Petrochemicals
History of the HPI: The 1950s: Capacity expansion, HDPE/PP, polycarbonate, computers and rocket science
The 1950s marked an evolution in the use of oil by nations around the world.
Accelerating and expanding process control benefits
Advanced industrial data analytics has a prominent role to play in process control and automation.
Raising the alarm: Understanding the operator’s perspective on refinery process alarms
As refineries and petrochemical complexes worldwide are moving toward more automated operations, plant operators are increasingly becoming dependent on process alarms for safe, smooth and continuous operation.
The EPC executive’s challenge and opportunity: Navigating the sustainability shift in capital projects
According to an industry report published by McKinsey and Co., accelerating the decarbonization of the U.S. economy to achieve net-zero targets by 2050 will require approximately $275 T of cumulative capital spending over the next 30 yr.1
Business Trends: The economics of reliability: Global chemicals
Chemical manufacturers worldwide are navigating an inflection point. Following the pandemic-fueled demand crash of 2020, a strong but stilted recovery unfolded in 2021.
Industry Perspectives: 1Q project announcements this year down vs. 1Q 2021
New capital project announcements are down 27% in 1Q 2022 vs. 1Q 2021.
Editorial Comment: Advancing maintenance ultimately leads to increased reliability
This year, <i>Hydrocarbon Processing</i> is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Throughout this year, the editors are publishing excerpts from past issues.
Global Project Data
Gulf Energy Information’s Global Energy Infrastructure database is tracking nearly 1,100 projects around the world, totaling more than $1.8 T in active capital project investments.
Business Trends: The big data tools and related professional competencies required in the chemical industry
Big data is making tremendous changes in various sectors of the economy, and chemical industries can now leverage these new advancements.
Sustainability: Staying ahead of environmental, social and governance goals
Investing in firms that champion environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues (TABLE 1) has been discussed for decades but is now moving to the forefront of corporate initiatives.

- thyssenkrupp Uhde completes pre-FEED for HAMR Energy’s renewable fuels project in Australia 8/21
- Europe distillates-diesel profit margins firm 8/21
- U.S.: Indiana's bp refinery restarts after severe flooding 8/21
- Berlin weighs trusteeship extension for Rosneft's German assets 8/21
- Trump administration to rule on biofuel exemption requests, delay reallocation decision 8/21
- TotalEnergies' Donges refinery fire extinguished 8/21