Refractory linings are common throughout the refinery and found in many different units including the FCCU, fired heaters, and Claus thermal reactors. In the previous posting of Becht Blogs: Refractory series, we gave a cursory overview of several refractory types and where they are typically applied (Introduction to Refractory). These materials come from the family […]
Welcome to the first of a five-part blog series on refractory for petrochemical applications. This first blog is an introduction to refractory that covers the common refractory-lined equipment, future blogs will discuss materials and designs and quality, inspection, and work scope planning. Refractory is a ceramic material that maintains its strength while resisting damage by […]
Heat exchangers foul so we clean them, put them back in service, and move on. But have you ever wondered whether the cleaned heat exchanger is actually delivering clean performance? Have you evaluated the heat duty right after cleaning to see whether it is what it should be? Chances are you haven’t, for a multiple […]
When a heat exchanger is cleaned the expectation should be that it will now deliver the maximum possible heat duty. But an evaluation of most post-clean operation will show that the cleaned heat exchanger is delivering only about 85% of what should be the clean heat duty. For critical heat exchangers which impact process performance […]
Rarely do heat exchangers cause catastrophic events in operating plants. For that reason, they tend to get ignored; little or no proactive maintenance is done and improvements are typically not made unless they become a critical problem. But, if you look at which equipment is responsible for the most economic losses over a period of […]
Article published in the Inspectioneering Journal July/August 2022 Issue. High-temperature IR Thermography was pioneered several decades ago as a method for understanding tube temperatures inside fired equipment. While the equipment continues to improve, completing accurate analysis of the data remains very challenging. It is a complex process to accurately measure tube wall temperatures due to […]
