Outlining software simulation

For many refiners, energy management has historically come with an expensive price. Improving energy performance is often equated with the need to purchase more capital equipment such as heat exchangers.

With a functioning refinery, process streams and workflows are normally well-established and, therefore, this change is often resisted. Finding space to install new heat exchangers can also be problematic.

Up to 30% of capital equipment impacts some 90% of energy used in most oil refining and petrochemical processes.

Overall, designing an effective heat exchanger or air cooling system requires skill, time and resources

Typically, the only time serious intervention is considered is when a plant becomes so unprofitable that a partial or complete revamp is essential.

Often, however, adding new equipment will result in the process becoming increasingly complex. Instead, plants should first focus on addressing the opportunity for process optimisation by enhancing performance of existing equipment.

Solutions require sophisticated innovative process modelling provided by software tools that can give insight into design performance and the expected variance that may occur.

With specialist software simulating a network of exchangers and correctly selecting the optimum combination of enhancement technologies, throughput can be improved and energy reduced.

There are opportunities too for vendors with specialist technologies in the follow-up detailed engineering phase. Typically, this involves analysis of existing heat exchangers through to proposals for equipment modification and addition of enhancement technologies.

Optimisation of heat exchangers is much easier for a new plant where there is opportunity to take into account size, weight, space, energy use and pressure loss.

For an existing facility, the cheaper option may be to assess how to optimise performance from installed heat exchangers.

In petrochemicals, the issues are simpler, as generally companies are more open to adjusting existing plants than established refineries.

First, their process streams are shorter than those within refineries. Second, petrochemical plant equipment is often less bulky and more flexible allowing retrofitting to ensure optimum productivity.

Overall, designing an effective heat exchanger or air cooling system requires skill, time and resources. Analysing and evaluating the systems is equally important. To optimise their approach to energy management, plants will need to run a range of ‘what if’ simulations.

For example, they might wish to find out the impact of a potential solution being subjected to varying loads and temperatures or run different types of technology to see whether it makes sense to upgrade existing systems rather than buying new solutions.

With the right partnerships, engineering vendors can enhance the value of heat transfer solutions by providing the most integrated range of innovative technology.

This allows refiners and petrochemical companies to take advantage of the most advanced physically based modelling, from equipment and process design to optimisation and operational monitoring.

Ultimately, recovering heat and improving equipment performance will reduce energy and drive cost savings, meeting regulations and optimising performance to maintain a competitive advantage.