Americas
Corrosion under insulation is a hidden problem
Corrosion under insulation (CUI) is one of the costliest avoidable problems facing the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) today. CUI afflicts refineries—specifically, the steel piping, storage..
Process safety management: Going beyond functional safety
Operating companies are increasing efforts to reduce the risk of catastrophic events such as the release of toxic, reactive or explosive chemicals that can damage the environment or plant assets.
Operator response to alarms is an important protection layer
Operator response to alarms is important layers of protection (LOP). When implemented with good design, engineering and maintenance practices, an alarm can help reduce the safety integrity level (SIL)..
Key aspects of design and operational safety in offsite storage terminals
The Buncefield incident in the UK and the Jaipur fire in India stand out as major offsite storage terminal disasters in the European and Asian regions. In the Americas, a similar explosion rocked the ..
Improve benzene control
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the Mobile Source Toxics (MSAT) Rule on February 26, 2007 (40 CFR Parts 59, 80, 85 and 86). This rule required refiners to reduce the average benzen..
HP Reliability: How the best lubricant provides added value
In November 2012, a highly competent lubrication engineer and I met again at the ExxonMobil Maintenance and Productivity Improvement Symposium in San Antonio, Texas. We talked about the small, but pes..
HP Integration Strategies: Wireless sensing benefits from new technology
Wireless sensing is the most important new technology to emerge in decades for process measurement and equipment monitoring applications. For this reason alone, it has attracted the sustained attentio..
HP Viewpoint: Refiners have a new learning curve with shale oil
We’ve all heard the news reports: “Shale resource developments have the potential to make the US energy independent for the first time since 1952.” The long-term impact of shale resourc..
HP Engineering Case Histories: Case 71: Statistical visual data can be useful in troubleshooting—Part 2
In “Case 71: Statistical visual data can be useful in troubleshooting—Part 1,” the editorial focused on how taking data and analyzing it could determine the cause for high reject rates...
HP Industry Perspectives: EU leans forward on clean-fuel strategies
In late January 2013, the European Commission (EC) announced ambitious measures to ensure the buildup and standardization of alternative fueling stations across Europe. Much of the earlier EC policy i..
- U.S. firms to develop Syria energy masterplan after Trump lifts sanctions 7/18
- Russian seaborne diesel exports for July 1–15 fall 6% month-on-month 7/18
- INEOS invests £30 MM to slash emissions at Hull site by 75% 7/18
- Mitsubishi Chemical Group invests in Licella Holdings, oil conversion technology using supercritical water 7/18
- BASF and Equinor sign 10-yr natural gas supply agreement 7/18
- Oil prices rise after new EU sanctions on Russia 7/18
