Crude oil
Executive Viewpoint: It was the best of times
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness…”. Fortunately, this opening line from A Tale of Two Cities does not often present itself as an appropriate analogy to the oil and gas industry. Yet, here we are.
Business Trends: The economics of reliability—An interim report on the global refining industry
What is reliability? Most people think reliability is simply a measure of failure, or lack of failure. If something runs for a longer period without failing, then it is more reliable than something that runs for less time. However, reliability is a measure of how often something performs when you want it to.
Understanding HCN in FCC: Formation, effects and mitigating options
In these challenging times, fluidized catalytic cracking units (FCCUs) aim to improve margins by processing poorer- or different-quality feeds, while maintaining good yield performance.
TOTAL refineries improve overhead systems corrosion and salting with amine-neutralizing technology
Weak organic amines are commonly used in crude unit overhead systems to prevent acidic corrosion from chlorides and other acidic contaminants via a neutralization reaction.
Leveraging digital technologies to create the smart renewable diesel facility
Many companies are modifying existing crude refineries or building grassroots renewable diesel facilities to produce drop-in, green renewable diesel from a variety of agriculturally derived triglyceride feedstocks.
Reducing acid consumption: Maximizing sulfuric acid alkylation unit profitability
Alkylation is a process used to produce highly branched isoparaffins from the reaction of lighter olefins and isobutane in the presence of sulfuric acid as a catalyst.
Converting a petroleum diesel refinery for renewable diesel
As refiners consider renewable, low-carbon alternatives, renewable diesel—refined from agricultural products using petroleum refinery processes—is gaining traction.
Industry Metrics
U.S. refinery margins extended their upward trend for the fifth consecutive month, exhibiting the largest upturn relative to other regions.
Fuels and chemicals: Finding the right refinery configuration for a less predictable world
The refining industry links the upstream production of crude oil with the end markets for fuel products, as well as for the petrochemical/chemical industry.
Specifying internals in sour water strippers—Part 1
A sour water stripper (SWS) system is a common process in petroleum refineries and other processes where hydrogen sulfide is present.

- MOL completes the acquisition of LBC Tank Terminals 7/3
- BHP awards charter contracts for two ammonia dual-fueled vessels 7/3
- TOYO develops MRF-Z Neo—A compact reactor optimized for small-scale green methanol production 7/3
- China's Shandong raises fuel oil import tax rebates for some refineries 7/3
- Executive Viewpoint: Heavy industry, light footprint—Helping the HPI run leaner and cleaner with AI 7/3
- Digital Feature: Flare system design—The importance of periodic evaluation of existing facilities 7/2