The topic of fouling in heat exchangers has been of increasing interest in recent years, since it is so closely linked to the cost of building and running a chemical plant. It has been reported that fouling costs are about…
One of the most important measurements in the chemical process industries (CPI) is rate of flow. Flowrates can be important to measure, and in fact can be critical to measure, throughout a process — from dosing components into a reactor…
There was a time, not long ago, when most groups responsible for industrial control systems (ICS) in the chemical process industries (CPI) were not much worried about security. They had their firewalls in place and their remote access servers, and…
Expect more in selection and scaleup, prediction of energy consumption and reliability Very seldom is a product of desired size manufactured directly in a process. Size reduction, coupled with screening (classification), is commonly used to achieve desired particle size. In…
A common practice in the chemical process industries (CPI) is to implement so-called value- maximization projects (VMP) to increase production or reduce production costs in order to increase profit margins. With such projects, one main objective of the design team…
Reciprocating pumps are often used in the chemical process industries (CPI) because of their ability to generate high pressures at low velocities. A subcategory of positive-displacement pumps, reciprocating pumps act through the recipricating motion of a piston, plunger or diaphragm.…
Wastewater streams from petroleum refineries present some of the largest ranges of variation in contaminant loadings and contain some of the toughest contaminant profiles to treat. These factors render the wastewater treatment processes difficult to control. The most challenging area…
Gas turbines are widely used throughout the chemical process industries (CPI) — especially in petroleum refineries and petrochemical facilities — to provide both mechanical-drive and power-generation capabilities. Presented below are a variety of recommendations related to the selection and arrangement…
Due to their simplicity of construction, lack of moving parts, ability to operate at a wide range of temperatures and pressures, low capital and operating cost, cyclones have been the workhorse for gas-solid separation in a wide variety of industries.…
Pressure measurement in the chemical process industries (CPI) is crucial to many unit operations, and selecting the most effective pressure sensors for a given situation can be complicated by a range of factors. An initial key to selection is establishing…