Operations & Maintenance
Critical Flanges: Advanced Washers Eliminate Galling and Hot Work
During vessel breakout activities, plants should pay close attention to the design of the washers used on bolted flanges. A simple change in this area can help to reduce downtime and improve safety Bolted flanges on vessels, and their associated…
Polymer-based Piping Systems: Meeting the Challenges of the CPI
Due to favorable properties, such as light weight and corrosion resistance, plastic-piping systems are suitable for a growing number of applications Over the past few decades, plastic-piping systems have been adopted in many different sectors of the chemical process industries…
Managing Fouling in Heat Exchangers
Fouling of heat exchanger surfaces reduces thermal efficiency. An improved understanding of fouling and the design factors that affect it can help ensure that heat exchange occurs during normal operating conditions Using tubular heat exchangers is an efficient and reliable…
Safety Relief Valves: Installation and Maintenance
Using proper installation practices and adhering to maintenance schedules helps ensure reliable operation of safety-relief valves Safety-relief valves are critical components of any pressurized system. In fact, a functioning safety-relief valve could be the most important piece of equipment on…
CE Podcast: Andreas Eschbach, CEO of eschbach
On this episode of the Chemical Engineering podcast, senior editor Scott Jenkins is joined by eschbach Europe and North America founder and CEO Andreas Eschbach, who discusses the progress and implications of the digital transformation in the chemical process industries,…
Traversing a Data-Powered Supply Chain
Transporting chemical products across global supply chains is complex and challenging, but data-supported technologies are helping to improve efficiency, sustainability and reliability Materials produced by the chemical process industries (CPI) are used in nearly all global product chains. According to…
Facts At Your Fingertips: Alternating-Current Induction Motors
Alternating-current (a.c.) induction motors are widely used throughout the chemical process industries (CPI) and other manufacturing sectors to convert electrical energy into mechanical energy to power rotating equipment, such as centrifugal pumps, compressors and fans, as well as other industrial…
Tower Doctor: A Quick Diagnosis Makes a Short Assignment
Henry Kister shares lessons learned from troubleshooting distillation towers On an assignment to troubleshoot a vacuum tower for a petroleum refinery, my team was tasked to “run simulations to determine why the heavy vacuum gas oil (HVGO) has a very…
Materials of Construction: Stainless Steel Versus Nickel Alloys
Nickel alloys have long been the default choice for demanding applications in the chemical process industries (CPI). A new grade of stainless steel offers an alternative Demanding chemical engineering applications, such as plate heat exchangers (PHEs; Figure 1), tubing, pipes…
Facts at your Fingertips: Clean-in-Place (CIP) Systems
Cleaning equipment surfaces is critical for processes involving biological materials to prevent microbial contamination. Clean-in-place (CIP) systems play a key role. In addition to preventing contamination, CIP systems also remove grit, scale and organic matter, which may affect process performance.…