Course Content – Refinery Troubleshooting

Course Content – Refinery Troubleshooting

REFINERY TROUBLESHOOTING


“The case studies/examples were eye-opening and helped us understand other technologies on how to solve problems. Our class continued open discussions that were great and effective. If there are moments in the plant where you’re unsure of, this is a great course to get a better understanding of the process and what factor. Mr. Andrew is a great educator.”
— Technical Advisor, Tracerco, United States

“Good course agenda – covered a good variety of topics.”
— Anonymous

“Great job!”
— CITGO, United States


Schedule Date Time PDH Venue/Platform Cost Register
Spring 2024 April 22 – 23, 2024 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Central Time (UTC -6)
16 hrs. Sheraton North Houston at George Bush Intercontinental
Accepts in-person and virtual attendees
US$2,300
Fall 2024 October 21 – 22, 2024 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Central Time (UTC -6)
16 hrs. Sheraton North Houston at George Bush Intercontinental
Accepts in-person and virtual attendees
US$2,300

Description:

Since day-to-day operation problem solving and optimizing are critical to the profitability of plant operations, troubleshooting is a prime responsibility of refinery and plant engineers. The importance of troubleshooting has grown as plants push to operate at tighter economic margins. Lost profits due to unsolved unit problems can never be recovered. Consistently maintaining smooth operation, maximum capacity, and acceptable product quality are important goals that can be difficult to achieve. Thus, this program has been developed to provide an in-depth yet practical review of the art and science of plant troubleshooting.

The program’s content is both comprehensive and wide-ranging. The sessions begin with a discussion of the fundamentals, including process objectives, equipment behavior, interaction of the process and equipment, and troubleshooting techniques. A case study approach covers major equipment found in refineries and petrochemical plants, specifically pumps, heat exchangers, fired heaters, vacuum systems, piping and hydraulics, compressors, distillation towers, and auxiliary equipment. All case studies are developed from actual field case histories. This approach demonstrates the complexity of actual plant operations and how to simplify and identify solvable problems. Once the fundamentals are established the session moves into the topics of troubleshooting techniques, analysis, and problem solving.

Outline:
INTRODUCTION
  • Objectives and Approach
  • Importance of Troubleshooting
  • Case Studies
TROUBLESHOOTING CONCEPTS AND TECHNIQUES
  • Typical Problems
  • Integration of Process and Equipment
  • Troubleshooting Techniques
  • Troubleshooting Tools
DISTILLATION
  • Flooding and Its Detection
  • Pressure Surveys
  • Saltation
  • Entrapment
  • Damaged Equipment
  • Entrainment and Product Quality
HEAT EXCHANGERS
  • Preheat and Crude Fouling
  • Leaks
  • Hot Vapor Bypass and Sealing
  • Vapor Blanketing
  • Heat Integration and Startup
  • Heat Flux Limits
  • Thermosyphon Reboilers
HYDRAULICS
  • Gravity Flow and Open-Channel Flow
  • Unstable Systems
  • Compressible Flow: Transfer Lines
  • Nozzles
  • Pressure Balance Systems
PUMPS
  • Suction Conditions-NPSH and Suction Specific Speed
  • Multiple Pumps in Parallel
  • Low Head Applications
  • Fan Law Limits
FIRED HEATERS
  • Pass Balancing
  • Average Versus Peak Heat Flux and Coking
  • Heat Integration and Air Preheat
  • Environmental Control
VACUUM SYSTEMS
  • Ejector Systems
  • Suction Constraints
  • Excessive Load
  • Precondenser Performance
  • Plugged Exchangers
  • Damaged Equipment
  • Liquid-Ring Low-Pressure Operation
CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSORS
  • Suction Conditions
  • Surge Control
RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS
  • Interstage Pressures
  • Capacity Restrictions
CONTROL
  • Instability
  • Impossible Constraints
  • Unsound Control Schemes
  • Instrument Installation Problems
  • Advanced Control Problems
OTHER EQUIPMENT
  • Coalescers
  • Dryers
  • Salt Dryers
  • Drums
  • Gas Turbines
ADVANCED TECHNIQUES
  • Gamma Scans: Uses and Limitations
  • Neutron Backscatter
  • Thermal Scanning
Who Should Attend:

Program participants will have the opportunity to obtain a broad working knowledge of troubleshooting principles and practice, to gain insight into both traditional and advanced techniques, and to interact with others working in plants. The program is ideal for personnel involved in refinery troubleshooting, process engineering, plant operations, and technical services. Process engineers from operating, design and construction companies, as well as others providing services to the petroleum and petrochemical industries, should also find this program beneficial.

Instructor:
Andrew W. Sloley
Andrew W. Sloley is an independent consultant with over 40 years of experience in the hydrocarbon processing industry. He has worked extensively on petrochemical and refining units. His specialty in this area has been on product separation, distillation, and heat integration. This has covered the range from crude and heavy oils to cryogenic systems for light-ends recovery and gas treating. His other responsibilities have included technology analysis, and economic evaluation. Andrew has authored or co-authored over 400 publications in these areas. He is currently a contributing editor on equipment and plant design for Chemical Processing magazine. He has a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Tulsa and is a licensed professional engineer in Texas. He has been involved in troubleshooting equipment and process problems with numerous clients.

Download Course Content
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Discounts:
Becht offers the following discounts on Public Training:

The highest applicable discount will be applied; discounts are not additive.

  1. Early Registration – A 10% discount is to be provided when you register 30 days before the start date of the training.
  2. Group Rate – A group discount is applied when you send three or more people from your organization to the same course and provide a single payment.
  3. No. of Registrants Discount/Person
    3 10%
    4 – 6 20%
    7 and up 25%
  4. Yearly Commitment Discount – A 25% discount when you prepay for a minimum of 10 participants from your organization to any of the courses in the same year.

Virtual Training Platform:
GoToTraining is Becht’s interactive online training solution with the most reliable features to help you before, during, and after your sessions. GoToTraining is a robust training platform that engages participants/attendees virtually.

Cancellation Policy:
A full refund is available for cancellations more than 30 days before course start date. Within 30 days of course start date, course credit can be transferred to another attendee within the same company, or can be kept on file to be applied to a future Becht training course.

For information regarding the training course, contact the Training Coordinator at Training@becht.com.

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