Single-fluid heat-transfer systems that both heat and cool a process require special considerations for trouble-free operation Thermal fluid systems that both heat and cool are often utilized in batch processes. They are also often found in continuous processes where heating…
Water and steam are vital components of virtually all plants in the chemical process industries (CPI). And, a very important operation is the treatment of makeup water to produce the purity required for certain applications, most notably for use in…
Effective level measurement helps ensure smooth, continuous processes by maintaining material inventory at economic quantities, and maximizes plant output by preventing spillage, system clogging and process upsets. In chemical process industries (CPI) applications, level measurement of liquids, powders and slurries…
For decades, plant-wide oil-mist systems have been used to lubricate rolling-element bearings in high-speed applications throughout the petrochemicals, textiles, pharmaceuticals, mining and other chemical process industries (CPI). Applications range from small motors to large rotating cylinders and a variety of…
To stay on budget, major capital projects often call for aggressive schedules. Engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors often end up using work processes that are not part of an established or standard work procedure. This is especially true when…
In today’s climate of increased energy prices and tightening environmental emissions requirements, petrochemicals producers around the world are continuing to focus on optimizing energy consumption at their facilities. Over the past few years, while energy prices have been increasing, petroleum…
The benefits of field-device diagnostics are often acclaimed in qualitative terms, but on a much lower frequency in quantitative ones. Yet, an attractive cost-benefit analysis is necessary for almost any initiative to make it off the drawing board and into…
Pinch analysis is a systematic method to maximize energy recovery from process streams entering and exiting process equipment. Using this method, the minimum thermodynamic requirements for hot and cold utilities can be calculated for a process. This is useful to…
Equilibrium stage simulations are the nearly universal process design tool for mass transfer columns that contact vapor and liquid in countercurrent flow. Whether the service is absorption, stripping, distillation, fractionation, quench or evaporation, equilibrium stage models make mass and heat…
A well-operated steam generator can save money. In a steam-driven turbine system, water is heated in the steam generator to produce high-temperature, high-pressure steam. Steam is then expanded in a turbine to produce electricity from a generator. Turbine steam is…