Petroleum Refining Resources

Petroleum Refining

Submitted by Andrew Cloy || Valin Corporation

A maintenance manager at one of the largest petroleum refiners in the U.S. noticed that many of their duct heaters were failing. Each location has hundreds of industrial duct heaters that provide forced flow heat convection. It had become the #1 maintenance issue at this location. Learn more.

Submitted by Graham Johnson, Product Manager || Parker

Increasingly, process control instrumentation solutions are being applied in ever more hostile environments. As a result, there has been a corresponding increase in the reported incidence of external corrosion to 316 stainless steel instrumentation tubing systems.

Submitted by Patrick Bartell || Valin Corporation
Ammonia Vaporization

Developing a strong preventative maintenance plan for plant shutdowns and turnarounds is the best way for operators to minimize the risk of equipment failure, which can lead to unnecessary shutdowns and ultimately, higher costs.

Submitted by Patrick Barré, Product Manager, Instrument Manifolds - Parker
Inverted A-LOK fittings

Securing leak-free connection of impulse lines to manifolds for applications that use differential pressure flowmeters is a subject that has taxed instrumentation engineers for more than a century. Learn more.

Neles® Linear Globe Valve

Metso's Neles globe valves are designed to provide the best control accuracy and wide rangeability with economical high-performance. Standard units are equipped with linear actuators and ND valve controllers for precise flow control, extended operation life and performance monitoring on-line.

Multipoint Thermocouple Assemblies

Refineries rely on multipoint thermocouples to monitor temperature at different points inside fixed-bed reactors. However, these temperature measurement systems are also extremely useful for evaluating performance in fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) units, vapor distribution systems, and amine columns.

Submitted by Kari Kohonen || Valin Corporation

Specifying control valves and engineering a system in which the flow of a particular product is completely optimized for superior performance and yield can be a challenging process. A number of factors must be considered during this practice to avoid process-destroying problems. Learn more.

Submitted by Jon Monsen, Ph.D., P.E., Valin Corporation
Liquid Flashing in a Control Valve Without Choked Flow

Many engineers may wonder if it is possible to have flashing liquid flow in a control valve even if flow is not choked. The short answer is yes, but it is not very common. This article provides a more detailed answer to this question.

Submitted by Ron Jett || Valin Corporation
Confirm Best Practices for Compressed Air in Refineries

Within a refinery, four main utilities are considered essential to operations: electricity, natural gas, water and compressed air.

Submitted by Nathan Ehresman || Valin Corporation
Before Winter Strikes, Check the Heat Trace

With the cold months on the precipice, November is a great time to review the actions that plant managers and operators should take to better ensure a winter free from incident.