Engineering & Design
Built-up backpressure at the outlet flange of a pressure relief valve
Even for pressure relief valves (PRVs) discharging directly to the atmosphere through short tailpipes, API 520 Part 11 warns that choked flow may develop at the outlet flange, resulting in high backpressure.
Reliability: How application engineers add value
Making the vendor-manufacturer your technology provider has been our consistent advice to the user industries; we have recommended this highly effective approach for many decades.
Process safety as a profit center?
In today’s economic environment, new capital spending is harder to find than loose change buried under the couch cushions.
Hydrocarbon Processing Awards
<i>Hydrocarbon Processing,</i> the downstream processing sector’s leading technical publication, has announced the winners for its second annual awards.
Getting onboard with modernization
While electrical equipment typically has a lengthy lifespan, it is not meant to last, or be relevant, forever.
A game-changing approach to furnace safeguarding
This work is a follow-up article to “Automate furnace controls to improve safety and energy efficiency,” which was published in the June 2014 edition of <i>Hydrocarbon Processing.</i>
Technical considerations for the Heydar Aliyev refinery revamp
The following case study describes the early development phases of SOCAR’s ongoing major revamp project at the Heydar Aliyev Refinery (HAR) in Baku, Azerbaijan, and its interface with the associated Azerikimya (AZK) steam cracking complex near Sumgait. References are made to the related SOCAR polymer project in Sumgayit, as well.
Additive solutions to SOx emissions in FCCUs
Sulfur oxide additives are typically based on hydrotalcite or magnesium aluminate spinel-type structures. Magnesium alumina is the pickup agent present in the most effective SO<sub>x</sub> additives on the market; therefore, to optimize SO<sub>x</sub> reduction, it is critical to maximize the amount of the critical magnesium component in the fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) in an efficient and cost-effective way.
Business Trends: A strategic energy solution
Refining is the process of separating crude oil into different hydrocarbon groups through distillation.

- Mideast conflict turbocharges diesel prices, squeezing Europe 6/23
- Pertamina is looking to import > 200,000/month of 90-octane gasoline 6/23
- Japan will mitigate potential gasoline price spike, prime minister says 6/23
- Linde to invest $400 MM to build the world-scale air separation unit 6/23
- OEG signs major partnership agreement in Qatar 6/23
- U.S. Supreme Court lets fuel producers challenge California emissions standards 6/23