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VOLUME 11 NUMBER 49 APRIL 2025

[Link]
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In This Issue
Volume 11 | Number 49

EDITOR
SPECIAL FEATURES Karl Kolmetz

The Relevance of Deep Conversion DIGITAL EDITOR

04 Refining Hardware in Energy
Transition: Directing Fossil Carbon
Shauna Tysor

for Noncombustible Purposes REFINING CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR

Dr. Marcio Wagner da Silva Dr. Marcio Wagner da Silva

PROCESS ENGINEERING
The View from Rock Bottom:
21 Look Past the Tariffs….Its About the
Shipping, Stupid…
CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR
Jayanthi Vijay Sarathy

Ron Cormier CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR

Ronald J. Cormier

26 Stages of Happiness
Karl Kolmetz

Process Design of Industrial

29 Deaerators
Jayanthi Vijay Sarathy
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The Relevance of Deep Conversion

Refining Hardware in Energy Transition:
Directing Fossil Carbon for
Noncombustible Purposes
Dr. Marcio Wagner da Silva

Introduction and Context Due to being produced from residual streams

with high molecular weight, there is a tenden-
The necessity to reduce the environmental im- cy of contaminants accumulation (sulfur, ni-
pact and the higher sustainability of the indus- trogen, and metals) in the bunker, this fact
trial processes normally is translated into strict- makes it difficult to meet the new regulation
er regulations and higher control upon the in- without additional treatment steps, what
dustries activities, mainly to those that have a should lead to increasing the production cost
high environmental footprint as the crude oil of this derivative and the necessity to modifi-
production chain. This fact is positive and wel- cations in the refining schemes of some refin-
come, in view of the necessity to preserve nat- eries. Figure 1 presents a schematic diagram
ural resources and the technological develop- of how the bunker was produced before the
ment needed to meet these regulations. IMO 2020.
One of the most impacting regulations to the The drastic reduction of sulfur content in the
downstream industry is the necessity to reduce final product, lead refiners to look for alterna-
the sulfur content in the maritime fuels, known tives to reduce the sulfur content in the inter-
as IMO 2020. This regulation established mediate streams, and this is a hard task to
which from the maximum sulfur content in the refiners processing heavy and extra-heavy
maritime transport fuel oil (Bunker) is 0,5 % crudes.
(m.m) against the previously 3,5 % (m.m). The
main objective is to reduce the SOx emissions Beyond the necessity to add value to bottom
from the maritime fleet, significantly decreas- barrel streams in compliance with the IMO
ing the environmental impact of this business. 2020, the increasingly restrict environmental
regulations require even more capacity to
The marine fuel oil, known as bunker, is a rela- produce cleaner distillates, imposing another
tively low viscosity fuel oil applied in diesel cy- challenge to refiners processing extra-heavy
cle engines to ship movement. Before 2020, crudes. The growing trend of petrochemical
the bunker was produced through the blending integration is another great challenge to refin-
of residual streams as vacuum residue and ers with access to extra-heavy crudes once
deasphalted oil with dilutants like heavy gasoil requires more complex and expensive refin-
and light cycle oil (LCO), due to the new regu- ing hardware, in this sense, the hydrocrack-
lation, a major part of the refiners will not be ing and deep hydrocracking technologies can
capable of producing low sulfur bunker through be a fundamental tool to allow the refiners
simple blend.
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with high capital investment capacity to reach a processing heavy crude oils and maximize
highlighted competitive positioning in the the added value to the processed crude.
downstream market through adequate balance
of bottom barrel conversion capacity and petro- Flexible refining hardware in relation to the
chemicals maximization. processed crude slate is an important com-
petitive advantage in the downstream sector,
The war between Russia and Ukraine raised mainly the processing of heavy and extra-
the spread between the 0,5 % sulfur and 3,5 % heavy crudes due to its lower acquisition cost
sulfur marine fuel oil, as presented in Figure 2, when compared with the lighter crude oils.
becoming even more attractive the production The difference in the acquisition cost between
of VLSFO. these oils is based on in the yield of high add-
ed value streams which these oils present in
Even before the war the spread between the distillation process, since the lighter
VLSFO and HSFO justified investments by re- crudes normally show higher yields of distil-
finers to produce low sulfur fuel. Furthermore, lates than the heavier crudes, its market val-
it’s important to considering the increasingly ue tends to be higher. As an example, Figure
stricter regulations and the trend of reduction 4 presents the evolution of the discount of
of the HSFO market in the middle term (as pre- WCS (West Canadian Select) crude oil to
sented in Figure 3), this fact plus the trend of WTI (West Texas Intermediate) crude oil over
reduction in transportation fuels demand and the time.
growing demand of petrochemicals at global
level tends to favor refiners relying on most
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The WCS is considered a heavy crude (API Despite these characteristics, refiners with
grade between 19 and 22) with a sulfur con- adequate refining hardware and easy access
tent around 3,0 % while the WTI is considered to heavier crudes can use the price gap be-
a reference crude with a medium API grade tween light and heavy crudes as opportunity
around 40 with very low sulfur content (around to improve the refining margins, mainly con-
0,3 %), Figure 1 shows a significant price gap sidering the IMO 2020 that reduced, even
between these crudes, leading to a relatively more, the acquisition cost of heavier and
advantage to refiners capable to add value to sourer crudes and due to their characteristics,
these crudes, especially considering the IMO the hydrocracking technologies broke signifi-
2020 that requires even more refining capacity cative restrictions of the refining hardware to
to add value to the bottom barrel streams. Nor- add value to these discounted crudes.
mally, the valuation of crudes is defined by the
quality, the available market in other words it’s Processing Extra Heavy Crudes – The Hy-
necessary to find refiners capable of pro- drocracking Alternative
cessing this crude oil, and the capacity to Refiners processing heavy and extra-heavy
transport the crude oil to the consumer market. (or high sulfur) crudes face a great challenge
Heavier crudes tend to present discounts relat- to meet the IMO 2020 once it is extremely
ed to lighter crude due to these three varia- difficult to comply with the new regulation
bles: through carbon rejection technologies, in this
· Quality – Heavier crudes present lower case, the hydrogen addition technologies are
yield of distillates and high added value fundamental.
derivatives like diesel, kerosene, and gaso- The hydroprocessing of residual streams pre-
line than lighter crudes. sents additional challenges when compared
with the treating of lighter streams, mainly
· Consumer market – The refiners able to due to the higher contaminated content and
process heavier crudes needs to rely on residual carbon (RCR) related with the high
adequate bottom barrel conversion capaci- concentration of resins and asphaltenes in
ty, in other words, more complex refineries, the bottom barrel streams. Figure 5 shows a
restricting the consumer market in compar- schematic diagram of the residue upgrading
ison with lighter crudes. technologies applied according to the metals
· Transportation – Heavier crudes present and asphaltenes content in the feed stream.
higher logistics costs due to higher energy
consumption.
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Higher metals and asphaltenes content led to the hydrocracking reactors, these reactors act
a quick deactivation of the catalysts through like guard bed to protect the hydrocracking
high coke deposition rate, catalytic matrix deg- catalyst.
radation by metals like nickel and vanadium or
even by the plugging of catalyst pores pro- The principal contaminant of hydrocracking
duced by the adsorption of metals and high catalyst is nitrogen, which can be present in
molecular weight molecules in the catalyst sur- two forms: Ammonia and organic nitrogen.
face. By this reason, according to the content
of asphaltenes and metals in the feed stream Ammonia (NH3), produced during the hy-
are adopted more versatile technologies aim- drotreating step, have temporary effects re-
ing to ensure an adequate operational cam- ducing the activity of the acid sites, mainly
paign and an effective treatment. damaging the cracking reactions. In some
cases, the increase of ammonia concentra-
Catalysts applied in hydrocracking processes tion in the catalytic bed is used like an opera-
can be amorphous (alumina and silica- tional variable to control the hydrocracking
alumina) and crystalline (zeolites) and have catalyst activity. The organic nitrogen has
bifunctional characteristics, once the cracking permanent effect blocking the catalytic sites
reactions (in the acid sites) and hydrogenation and leading to coke deposits on the catalyst.
(in the metals sites) occur simultaneously. The
active metals used in this process are normally As exposed above, extra-heavy crude oils or
Ni, Co, Mo and W in combination with noble with high contaminants content can demand
metals like Pt and Pd. deep conversion technologies to meet the
new quality requirements to the bunker fuel
It’s necessary to have a synergic effect be- oil. Hydrocracking technologies are capable
tween the catalyst and the hydrogen because to achieve conversions higher than 90% and,
the cracking reactions are endothermic and despite the high operational costs and instal-
the hydrogenation reactions are exothermic, lation can be attractive alternatives.
so the reaction is conducted under high partial
hydrogen pressures and the temperature is The hydrocracking process is normally con-
controlled in the minimum necessary to con- ducted under severe reaction conditions with
vert the feed stream. Despite these character- temperatures that vary to 300 to 480 oC and
istics, the hydrocracking global process is pressures between 35 to 260 bar. Due to
highly exothermic, and the reaction tempera- process severity, hydrocracking units can
ture control is normally made through cold hy- process a large variety of feed streams,
drogen injections between the catalytic beds. which can vary from gas oils to residues that
According to the feed stream quality can be converted into light and medium deri-
(contaminants content), its necessary hy- vates, with high value added.
drotreating reactors installation upstream of
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Figure 6 shows a typical process arrangement hydrocracking alternative is the most techni-
to hydrocracking units with two reaction stage cally adequate solution.
and intermediate gas separation, adequate to
According to data from Global Data Compa-
treat high streams with high contaminants con-
ny, the global installed hydrocracking capaci-
tent like nitrogen.
ty in 2022 was around 12,500 Mbd and will
The residue produced by hydrocracking units growth under an average annual growth rate
have low contaminants content, able to be di- of 5,0 % until 2027 and this growth will be
rected to the refinery fuel oil pool aiming to headed by USA, China, India, and Saudi Ara-
produce low sulfur bunkers, allowing the mar- bia.
ket supply and the competitiveness of the re-
finers.
Deep Hydrocracking Technologies – Re-
The process shown in Figure 6 presents a covering More Added Value from the
fixed bed hydrocracking unit, to heavier Crudes
crudes. This unit can be inadequate due to the
As aforementioned, despite the high perfor-
low operating life cycle, in this case the ebulat-
mance, the fixed bed hydrocracking technolo-
ed bed and slurry phase reactors can be more
gies can be not economically effective to treat
effective, despite the higher capital spending.
residue from heavy and extra-heavy due to
The capital requirement is one of the most im-
the short operating lifecycle. Technologies
portant restrictions to refiners to adopt the hy-
that use ebullated bed reactors and continu-
drocracking technologies both to capital and
um catalyst replacement allow higher cam-
operating capital due to the necessity of larger
paign period and higher conversion rates,
hydrogen generation units, catalysts costs, etc.
among these technologies the most known
Figure 7 presents a comparison between resi-
are the H-Oil and Hyvahl technologies de-
due upgrading alternatives related to the capi-
veloped by Axens Company, the LC-Fining
tal investment (CAPEX) and effectiveness in
Process by Chevron-Lummus, and the Hy-
the bottom barrel processing.
con process by Shell Global Solutions.
As presented in Figure 7, the hydrocracking These reactors operate at temperatures
technologies present the higher level of re- above 450 oC and pressures to 250 bars. Fig-
quired capital spending, on the other hand of- ure 8 presents a typical process flow diagram
fer the higher conversion to bottom barrel for a LC-Fining process unit, developed by
streams, a necessity to refiners processing Chevron Lummus Company while the H-Oil
heavy and extra-heavy crudes. According to process by Axens Company is presented in
Figure 3, the other alternatives are not effec- Figure 9.
tive to treat residue streams with high carbon
residue and metals, common characteristics of
extra-heavy crude oils. In this case, the
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Catalysts applied in hydrocracking processes technology by KBR Company.

can be amorphous (alumina and silica-
alumina) and crystalline (zeolites) and have In the slurry phase hydrocracking units, the
bifunctional characteristics once the cracking catalysts in injected with the feedstock and
reactions (in the acid sites) and hydrogenation activated in situ while the reactions are car-
(in the metals sites) occur simultaneously. ried out in slurry phase reactors, minimizing
the reactivation issue, and ensuring higher
An improvement in relation to ebullated bed conversions and operating lifecycle. Figure
technologies is the slurry phase reactors, 11 presents a basic process flow diagram for
which can achieve conversions higher than 95 the Uniflex slurry hydrocracking technology
%. In this case, the main available technolo- by UOP Company.
gies are the HDH process (Hydrocracking-
Distillation-Hydrotreatment), developed by Other commercial technologies to slurry hy-
PDVSA-Intevep, VEBA-Combicracking Pro- drocracking process are the LC-Slurry
cess (VCC) commercialized by KBR Com- technology developed by Chevron Lummus
pany, the EST process (Eni Slurry Technolo- Company and the Microcat-RC process by
gy) developed by Italian state oil company Exxon Mobil Company. Figure 12 presents a
ENI, and the Uniflex technology developed basic process flow diagram for the LC-
by UOP Company. Figure 10 presents a basic Slurry technology developed by Lummus
process flow diagram for the VCC Company.
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Aiming to meet the new bunker quality require- vacuum gasoil to high quality naphtha, kero-
ments, noblest streams, normally directed to sene, and diesel the synergy between hy-
produce middle distillates can be applied to drocracking and steam cracking units, for ex-
produce low sulfur fuel oil, this can lead to a ample, can improve the yield of petrochemi-
shortage of intermediate streams to produce cal intermediates in the refining hardware, an
these derivatives, raising their prices. The mar- example of highly integrated refining configu-
ket for high sulfur content fuel oil should ration relying on hydrocracking is presented
strongly be reduced, due to the higher prices in Figure 13.
gap when compared with diesel, its production
tends to be economically unattractive. Considering the recent trend of reduction in
transportation fuels demand followed by the
Deep Conversion Refining Hardware – Pet- growth of petrochemicals market makes the
rochemicals from Bottom Barrel Streams presence of hydrocracking units in the refin-
ing hardware raise the availability of high-
As aforementioned, the residue upgrading quality intermediate streams capable of being
units are capable to improve the quality of bot- converted into petrochemicals, an attractive
tom barrel streams, the main advantage of the way to maximize the value addition to pro-
integration between residue upgrading and cessed crude oil in the refining hardware. As
petrochemical units like steam cracking is the presented in Figure 13, the synergy between
higher availability of feeds with better cracka- carbon rejection and hydrogen addition tech-
bility characteristics. nologies like FCC and hydrocracking units
Bottom barrel streams tend to concentrate aro- can offer an attractive alternative, sometimes
matics and polyaromatics compounds that pre- the hydrocracking and FCC technologies are
sent uneconomically performance in steam faced by competitors technologies in the re-
cracking units due to the high yield of fuel oil fining hardware due to the similarities of feed
that presents low added value, furthermore, streams that are processed in these units. In
the aromatics tends to suffer condensation re- some refining schemes, the mild hydrocrack-
action in the steam cracking furnaces, leading ing units can be applied as pretreatment step
to high rates of coke deposition that reduces to FCC units, especially to bottom barrel
the operation lifecycle and raises the operating streams with high metals content that are se-
costs. In this case deep conversion units like vere poison to FCC catalysts, furthermore the
hydrocracking can offer higher operational mild hydrocracking process can reduce the
flexibility. residual carbon to FCC feed, raising the per-
formance of FCC unit and improving the yield
Once cracking potential is better to paraffinic of light products like naphtha, LPG, and ole-
molecules, and the hydrocracking technologies fins.
can improve the H/C in the molecules convert-
ing low added value bottom streams like
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Considering the great flexibility of deep hy-

sustainability achieved by the current status
drocracking technologies that are capable to
(transportation fuels) needs to be invested to
convert feed streams varying from gas oils to
build the future (maximize petrochemicals).
residue, an attractive alternative to improve the
Keeping the eyes only in the future or only in
bottom barrel conversion capacity is to pro-
the present can be a competitive mistake.
cess in the hydrocracking units the uncracked
residue in FCC unit aiming to improve the yield The Side Effect of Cracked Feeds – A Spe-
of high added value derivatives in the refining cial Challenge to Hydrocracking Units
hardware, mainly middle distillates like diesel
and kerosene. The most common cracked feeds directed to
hydrocracking units are residual streams from
As aforementioned, face the current trend of FCC like Light Cycle (LCO) and Decanted Oil
reduction in transportation fuels demand at the (DO) and Heavy Coker Gasoil (HCGO) from
global level, the capacity of maximum adding Delayed Coking units. Another less common
value to crude oil can be a competitive differ- feed is residue from Visbreaking units.
ential to refiners. Due to the high capital in-
vestment needed for the implementation that The main characteristics that influence the
allows the conventional refinery to achieve the hydrocracking performance for each feed-
maximization of chemicals, capital efficiency stock is presented below:
becomes also an extremely important factor in
the current competitive scenario as well as the · FCC Cycle Oils – Present high aromaticity
operational flexibility related to the processed that are normally refractory to cracking
crude oil slate. reactions as well as refractory sulfur com-
ponents, raising the sulfur content in the
Although the advantages presented by closer final products and reduction in diesel ce-
integration between refining and petrochemical tane number, on the other side, normally
assets, it’s important to understand that the presents low basic nitrogen content that is
players of downstream industry are facing a a poison to the hydrocracking catalysts.
transitive period where transportation fuels are
responsible for a great part of the revenues. In Thermal Cracking Feeds – Normally presents
this business scenario, it’s necessary to define low aromatics content but concentrate refrac-
a transition strategy where the economic tory sulfur components.
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The Heavy Coker Gasoil (HCGO) is an inter- like basic nitrogen. These characteristics lead
esting case study as a feed to hycrocracking the refiners processing cracked feeds in hy-
unit. Refiners with high complexity refining drocracking units to invest more capital in
hardware can rely on the synergy between de- feed treating systems like filtering and guard-
layed coking and hydrocracking technologies ing beds. Despite this apparent disadvantage,
to ensure added value to bottom barrel refiners able to add value to bottom barrel
streams. streams can enjoy highly competitive ad-
vantage considering the downstream market
The quality of the HCGO relies on the quality post IMO 2020. For refiners processing extra-
of the feed to the delayed coking unit as well heavy bottom barrel streams, the deep hy-
as the operating mode of the unit, mainly the drocracking technologies like slurry phase
recycling ratio. Higher recycling ratios produc- hydrocracking can be an interesting option,
es better quality HCGO once reduces Conrad- despite the high capital and operating costs.
son Carbon Residue (CCR), reducing the con-
taminants content like metals, sulfur, and nitro- The Lubricating Market – Short Lifetime to
gen. Solvent Route
Despite this advantage, the delayed coking According to recent forecasts, the global mar-
operators normally minimize the recycle ratio ket of automotive lubricants will grow under
to minimum as possible aiming to raise the annual rates around 6,3 % between 2022 and
fresh feed processing capacity and the quality 2030 reaching a total market size of USD 120
of HCGO is not an optimization focus of the billion in 2030. Figure 14 presents the grow-
refinery. For this reason, normally HCGO is a ing trend for the automotive lubricants mar-
hard feed to hydrocracking units due to the ket. The high added value of lubricants in
high content of refractory sulfur components, comparison with the transportation fuels ac-
high CCR, high nitrogen content, and aromat- companied by the trend of reduction in trans-
ics concentration. portation fuels demand indicates an attractive
alternative to refiners with adequate refining
The sulfur and nitrogen content raises the heat hardware to improve their revenues and com-
release in the first bed (Higher exothermal pro- petitiveness in the downstream market.
file) that can produce damage to the catalysts,
the nitrogen tends to inhibit the cracking reac- Like others crude oil derivatives, economic
tion leading to lower conversion in the unit. Hy- and technology development have been re-
drocracker’s processing feeds with high nitro- quired the production of lubricating oils with
gen content tend to apply processing configu- higher quality and performance, moreover
ration with intermediate gas separation to con- with lower contaminants content.
trol the catalyst activity. The higher production
of H2S and NH3 due to the higher concentra- The main quality requirements for lubricating
tion of sulfur and nitrogen reduces the hydro- oils are viscosity, flash point, viscosity index
gen partial pressure, raises the necessity of (viscosity change with temperature), fluidity
washing water to the units, and can raise the point, chemical stability, and volatility.
corrosion rate in the processing unit.
According to the American Petroleum Insti-
Aromatics compounds tend to raise the hydro- tute (API), the lubricating base oils can be
gen consumption, the heat release in the cata- classified as described in Table 1.
lyst bed, and are precursors of coking deposi-
The lube oils from groups II, III and IV have
tion that deactivate the catalyst. Other side ef-
higher quality than base oils from group I, the
fects of the cracked feeds to hydrocracking
content of contaminants like sulfur and un-
units are the impact over the quality of the final
saturated compounds are significantly re-
products like lower cetane number of diesels,
duced, moreover, the viscosity index are su-
higher smoke point of kerosene, lower viscosi-
perior for groups II, III, and IV.
ty index in the lubricating oils and higher sulfur
content. The main disadvantage of the solvent route,
when compared with the hydrorefining route,
As described above, processing cracked
is that the solvent route can produce only
feeds in hydrocracking units present some ad-
Group I lubricating oil, this can limit its appli-
ditional challenges to refiners related to hydro-
cation to restricted consumer markets, which
gen consumption, better quench design of the
can reflect in the economic viability. Figure 15
catalyst bed due to the higher exothermic pro-
presents a forecast for the market share evo-
file of the reactions, and lower global activity of
lution of different kinds of base oils in the
the catalyst due to the higher poison content,
market.
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According to the data from Figure 15, a signifi- saturate polyaromatic compounds and re-
cant reduction in the demand for Group I base move contaminants like sulfur and mainly ni-
oil is expected, leading to a great competitive trogen which is a strong deactivation agent for
loss for refiners relying on base oil production the hydrocracking catalyst.
exclusively through solvent routes.
In the hydrocracking step, the feed stream is
Another solvent route disadvantage is the sol- cracked under control conditions and chemi-
vents applying which can cause environmental cal reactions like dehydrocyclization, and aro-
damage and needs specials security require- matics saturation occurs which give to the
ments during the processing, production of process stream the adequate characteristics
low value-added streams like aromatic extract to the application as lubricants.
is another disadvantage. In this sense, refin-
ers relying on solvent routes tend to lose mar- The following step, hydroisomerization, seeks
ket in the next years and face difficulties find- to promote the isomerization of linear paraf-
ing markets for their products, reducing in a fins (which can reduce de viscosity index) pro-
significant manner their competitiveness in the ducing branched paraffins.
downstream market.
After the hydroisomerization the process
Producing High Quality Lubricating Oils – stream is pumped to hydrofinishing units to
The Hydroprocessing Route saturate remaining polyaromatic compounds
and to remove heteroatoms, in the hydrofin-
In the lubricating oil production by hydrorefin- inshing step the water content in the lube oil is
ing, the physical processes of the solvent controlled to avoid turbidity in the final prod-
route are substituted by catalytic processes, uct.
basically hydrotreating processes. Figure 16
shows a block diagram of the processing se- In hydrotreating units dedicated to producing
quence to produce base lube oils through hy- lubricants, one of the focuses of the hy-
drorefining route. drotreating process is to reduce the concen-
tration of long chain paraffin, to achieve this
In this case the fractionating in the vacuum goal is applied a specific catalyst bed contain-
distillation step has more flexibility than in the ing dewaxing catalysts (ZSM-5). One of the
solvent route, once that the streams will be most known hydrodewaxing technology in the
cracked in the hydrocracking unit, so another market is the MSDW process, commercial-
distillation step is necessary. ized by ExxonMobil Company. A basic pro-
cess flow diagram for MSDW process is
After the vacuum distillation and propane shown in Figure 17.
deasphalting steps, the process streams are
sent to a hydrotreating unit. This step seeks to
 16

HDF = Hydrofininshing · Viscosity Index (VI) – This variable is

controlled in the hydrocracking step
Another available hydrodewaxing technology is through the reduction in the aromatics
the Isodewaxing process, developed by Lum- content.
mus Company, this process is shown in Figure
18. · Saturates – Another parameter that is
adjusted in the hydrocracking step,
At this point it is important to quote that the
through reduction of aromatics.
main quality requirements of the lubricating oil
are put under control through the following pro- · Pour Point – This quality requirement is
cesses: controlled in the hydrodewaxing step,
through the reduction of waxes content.
· Viscosity – The viscosity of the lubricating
oil is controlled in the distillation step, man- As an example, Figure 19 presents a refining
aging the cuts in the crude distillation units configuration capable of producing high qual-
or in the distillation columns after hy- ity lubricating oils based on hydrorefining
drocracking units. route.
 17

Despite the high capital spending involved in capacity for the next years. As expected, this
the hydroprocessing route, it’s possible to growth will be headed by the Asian refiners
achieve better quality, higher added value, and as presented in Figure 20.
products with growing demand against the pro-
duction of Group I lube that presents contrac- The headed by Asian players is expected
tion demands. In this scenario, it is expected once these players present high integration
which refiners, relying on exclusively solvent level between refining and petrochemical
routes, lose market share forcing revamps of assets, requiring high bottom barrel conver-
the existing lubricating production units or the sion capacity to maximize the yield of petro-
exit from the market. chemicals, again this shows the competitive
advantage for the Asian players due to the
As discussed above is expected a significant highest flexibility and profitability of their re-
growth of the global hydrocracking installed fining hardware.
 18

Conclusion Another side effect for lubricating producers

based on solvent routes due to the loss of
Comply with IMO 2020 put under pressure the competitiveness is raising the imports to sup-
refining margins of low complexity refineries ply the internal market, leading to an external
and reduced conversion capacity, once there is dependence on critical production input as
the tendency to raise the prices of low sulfur well as negative effects on the balance of
crude oils, furthermore, the higher operational payments. This reinforces the relevance of
costs depending on the technological or optimi- capital investments in hydrocracking pro-
zation solution adopted by the refiner. The chal- cessing units as a strategy to maximize the
lenge is even harder to refiners processing added value to crude oil reserves, especially
heavy and extra-heavy crudes, in this case, de- considering the transition period faced by the
spite the high capital spending the hydrocrack- downstream market where petrochemicals
ing technologies can offer an attractive alterna- tend to overpass transportation fuels as main
tive, beyond this, hydrocracking technologies driver of crude oil demand at global level.
appear like a fundamental enabler to ensure
high conversion of bottom barrel streams, espe- Again, it’s important to understand the transi-
cially considering the growing trend of integra- tive period faced by the downstream industry
tion between refining and petrochemical assets. and maintain competitive operations with the
For refiners processing low sulfur crudes, the current focus on transportation fuels while
solvent deasphalting technologies can be an the transition to petrochemicals is prepared
attractive way to comply with IMO 2020. in a sustainable manner aiming to keep eco-
nomic sustainability and competitiveness in
The downstream industry faces a transitive pe- the downstream market, in other words, our
riod with deep changes in the consumer market current operations will sustain our desired
where the necessity to decarbonize the energy future.
matrix requires a increasing participation of re-
newables in the crude oil refineries and the References
technological development like electric vehicles
and 3 D printing have great potential to destroy ALDESCU, M. Challenges of Heavy Crude
transportation fuels demand, leading to deep Processing. PTQ Magazine, 2012.
changes in the production profile of crude oil
BARIC, J. Next Level Hydrocracker Flexibil-
refineries. Stricter regulations like IMO 2020
ity – Unlocking High Performance in Today’s
raise, even more, the relevance of the residue
Turbulent Markets. Shell Global Solutions
upgrading capacity to the competitiveness in
White Paper, 2020.
the downstream industry, creating pressure
over the refiners with low complexity refining BISWAS, G.; GILLIS, D.; HURNY, R. LC
hardware, in this sense, refiners with high capi- MAX and LC Slurry – High Conversion Resi-
tal investment capacity are looking for closer due Hydrocracking Technologies, Chevron-
integration with petrochemical assets as a strat- Lummus Company, 2017.
egy to reduce costs and improve revenues.
BROWN, B.; NAIR, R.; SLEIMAN, T. Fuel Oil
Regarding the lubricating market, due to accel- Markets Show Resilience After Twin Chal-
erated technological development, especially in lenge of IMO 2020 and Pandemic, S&P
the automotive market, the Group I lubricating Global Platts, 2021
oil tend to lose market in the next years this fact
tends to lead the refiners to look for capital in- CACKETT, S. – IMO 2020 and Bottom of the
vestment aiming to sustain their competitive- Barrel Opportunities (Shell Catalysts and
ness in the lubricating market. Technologies). Presented at 2nd Residue
Hydrotreat, Kuwait, 2019.
As aforementioned, despite the high capital in-
vestment of the hydroprocessing units, the CLARK, J.; SILVA, M. W. – Delayed Coking
higher added value of the Groups II and III lub- as a Sustainable Refinery Solution. PTQ
ricants and the growing market can justify the Magazine, 2021.
investment mainly considering the trend of re-
duction in transportation fuels demand at a Encyclopedia of Hydrocarbons (ENI), Vol-
global level in the middle term that has been ume II – Refining and Petrochemicals
leading the refiners to look ways to ensure mar- (2006).
ket share and revenues in the downstream in-
FRECON, J.; LE BARS, D.; RAULT, J. –
dustry through the maximization of high added
Flexible Upgrading of Heavy Feedstocks.
value derivatives with the growing market as
PTQ Magazine, 2019.
petrochemicals and lubricating oils.
 19

MURPHY, J. J.; PAYN, C.F. – Oil to Chemicals: Author

New Approaches. PTQ Magazine, 2019.
OYEKAN, S.O. Catalytic Naphtha Reforming Pro-
cess. 1st ed. CRC Press, 2019.

Refinery-Petrochemical Integration (Downstream

SME Knowledge Share). Wood Mackenzie Presen-
tation, 2019.
SARIN, A.K. – Integrating Refinery with Petrochemi-
cals: Advanced Technological Solutions for Synergy
and Improved Profitability – Presented at Global Dr. Marcio Wagner da Silva is Process Engi-
Refining & Petrochemicals Congress (Mumbai, In- neering Manager at a crude oil refinery
dia), 2017. based in São José dos Campos, Brazil.
SILVA, M.W. – More Petrochemicals with Less Cap- Bachelor’s in chemical engineering from Uni-
ital Spending. PTQ Magazine, 2020. versity of Maringa (UEM), Brazil and PhD. in
Chemical Engineering from University of
ZHANG, Z. Crude oil to chemicals: Challenges and Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil. Has extensive
Opportunities in a Sustainable World - Wood Com- experience in research, design and construc-
pany Presentation at METECH 2024, 2024. tion to oil and gas industry including develop-
ZHOU, T.; BAARS, F. Catalytic Reforming Options ing and coordinating projects to operational
and Practices. PTQ Magazine, 2010. improvements and debottlenecking to bottom
barrel units, moreover Dr. Marcio Wagner
have MBA in Project Management from Fed-
eral University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), in
Digital Transformation at PUC/RS, and is
certified in Business from Getulio Vargas
Foundation (FGV).
20
 21

The View from Rock Bottom:

Look Past the Tariffs….Its About the
Shipping, Stupid…
Ron Cormier

Welcome back to the March edition of TVFRB! Whether are not you are a supporter of such
I am traveling this month and into April as well, frustrating trade tactics (causing multi-trillion-
including a trip from my home in temperate dollar losses in stock market equity, currently
Mexico, to Houston and then on to the UK. I too), we business folk must now deal with,
am looking forward to the UK’s still-cooler and navigate our businesses through, yet one
weather next week, since in Houston, air con- more significant liability for profitability. While
ditioning compressors are already whirring oil/gas products surcharges are most likely to
away at homes and businesses all around apply as well, we may more specifically study
town. Humidity has already condensed on my those early commodities which have already
iced tea glass at this moment! Such is typical been affected.
of life most of the year in Houston though.
Among a long list of isolationist trade controls
Since our last thought exchange back in De- meant to return manufacturing to the USA,
cember, the US federal government has the administration has proposed US port fees
changed reigns, with the beginning of the sec- on ships made in China. Surcharges on
ond Trump administration. As he promised these ships are already hitting agricultural,
during his campaign, the president instantly metals, and coal exports, as examples.
introduced frustrating trade tariffs causing
mass uncertainly in most all commodity mar- Reuters’ reported Wednesday that “President
kets; associated stock market upsets have al- Donald Trump’s plan to revive U.S. shipbuild-
ready taken place commensurately, as well. ing using massive fees on China-linked ship
 22

visits to American ports is causing U.S. inven- effectively shut out from our global export
tories to swell and is already stoking uncertain- markets," Mike Koehne, an Indiana soybean
ty in embattled agriculture and coal markets, farmer and director of the American Soybean
as exporters struggle to find ships to send Association, said in a document submitted to
goods abroad.” the USTR Office before the Monday hearing.
The United States Trade Representative is Koehne noted that the US does not have the
holding a public hearing regarding proposed domestic flag capacity to handle its export
Section 301 port call fees, which could range market at the rate proposed by the USTR.
from $500,000 to $1.5 million per port call for "Our industry is reliant upon ocean-going ves-
vessels with Chinese-built connections. sels to export our crop to customers around
the world in a cost-effective and efficient
“Trump is drafting an executive order that manner."
would rely on funding from a U.S. Trade Rep-
resentative proposal to levy fines on China- "The USTR's proposed remedies targeting
made ships or vessels from fleets port fees China's maritime, logistics and shipbuilding
have limited the availability of ships needed to sectors could have severe unintended conse-
move agriculture, energy, chemicals, mining, quences for the US mining industry, which
construction and manufactured goods to inter- relies heavily on global shipping networks,"
national buyers, according to major U.S. ex- Veronika Shime, vice president of Internation-
porters and transportation providers in inter- al Policy and Sustainability at the National
views with Reuters, letters to U.S. officials, and Mining Association, said in a statement sub-
comments ahead of USTR hearings late mitted to the USTR.
month.”
Increased costs, supply chain disruptions,
Troutman Pepper Locke reported that the
and even the outright inability to import or ex-
Trump administration’s proposal includes “a
port critical materials could bring the industry
service fee (that) will be imposed on vessel
to a standstill - threatening US manufacturing,
operators from China, requiring payment of up
energy production and national security. "We
to $1 million per entry into a U.S. port or up to
are already hearing reports of company trans-
$1,000 per net ton of the vessel’s capacity. In
portation contracts being canceled, signaling
practice, most ships are expected to incur the
immediate and serious disruptions," said
maximum $1 million fee per port call. If a ves-
Shime.
sel makes multiple stops at U.S. ports, the op-
erator will be required to pay this fee for each
"We urge the USTR to consider the ripple ef-
entry.”
fects beyond shipbuilding and engage with
In addition, “a service fee of up to $1.5 million stakeholders to develop targeted solutions
per port call will apply to any operator with a that do not inadvertently weaken American
vessel constructed in China or a fleet that in- mining, manufacturing, and energy security,"
cludes such vessels, regardless of their flag or said Shime.
operator nationality,” Troutman Pepper Locke
reported. “Even if a specific ship was not built "This action will slam the brakes on oil and
in China, its operator may still be subject to the gas production as the fees are onerous and
fee based on the overall composition of their make the US immediately uncompetitive,"
fleet.” Enterprise Products Partners, a Houston-
based energy infrastructure company, stated
Gao Lingyun, an expert at the Chinese Acade- in a document submitted to the USTR.
my of Social Sciences in Beijing, said that the
strong backlash from US industries shows that The company stated that "every time our peo-
the US government's policy will ultimately re- ple travel internationally to promote US ener-
sult in American businesses and consumers gy exports, they get the same question - can
paying higher prices. "The US is essentially we depend on the US. This action tells the
lifting a rock only to drop it on its own foot," world that they cannot."
Gao told the Global Times. Apart from the
shipbuilding and shipping industries, other US The company also quoted Lars Jensen, CEO
industries, especially exporters, also raised of Vespucci Maritime, a shipping expert, as
concerns and objections. saying "if the intention is to drastically in-
crease costs for US importers and make US
"We are extremely concerned that if this pro- exports uncompetitive, this proposal is likely
posal goes into effect, US soybeans will be to do the job."
 23

Global Time “Vessel owners have already re- Major Logistics News Going Underreport-
fused to provide offers for future U.S. coal ed
shipments due to the proposed USTR fees,
Xcoal Energy & Resources CEO Ernie Thrash- If implemented, this measure could reshape
er said in a letter to U.S. Department of Com- global shipping dynamics and have far-
merce Secretary Howard Lutnick dated March reaching consequences for international trade
12 and seen by Reuters,” Baertlein, Plume and with the United States. While the maritime
Gardner reported. “…The letter from Pennsyl- industry and logistics news sources are pay-
vania-based coal marketer Xcoal (a MetCoal ing close attention to this issue, metal buyers
Exporter) and comments from agriculture rep- and energy traders are understandably fo-
resentatives showing tangible impacts from the cused on product tariffs. As such, the upcom-
proposed fees have not previously been re- ing fees aren’t getting the attention they de-
ported.” serve in the media. If you’re worried about
how the latest logistics news might affect your
How the Proposed Fees Could Impact U.S. bottom line, pay close attention to these still-
Agriculture unfolding moves.

Baertlein, Plume and Gardner reported that The proposed new fees would require signifi-
“U.S. farmers, who are already getting pum- cant operational changes for shipping compa-
meled by retaliatory tariffs from China, Mexico nies, who would likely avoid smaller ports
and Canada, also are caught in the crossfire of where they would need to spread the pro-
the Chinese ship fee fight, the American Farm posed fees across fewer containers. Instead,
Bureau Federation said.” they would favor high-volume ports like Los
Angeles, Long Beach, New York and Savan-
“The inability to secure ocean freight transpor- nah.
tation from May and beyond has restricted
their ability to sell bulk U.S. agricultural prod- Meanwhile, lower-volume ports like Oakland,
ucts like corn, soybeans and wheat because Tacoma and Seattle could suffer sharp de-
exporters are unsure what the final cost would clines in traffic. For consumers, the impact
be, three U.S. grain export traders told Reu- wouldn’t just come from the 301 fees, either.
ters,” Baertlein, Plume and Gardner reported. Longer inland transportation routes could
“…Bulk agricultural exporters could face an drive up costs by more than $1,000 per 20-
additional $372 million to $930 million in annu- foot container.
al transportation costs from the fees, the Farm
Bureau said. That would represent substantial The proposed fees range from $500,000 to
margin loss in global markets where competi- $1.5 million per port call for vessels with Chi-
tiveness is often determined by mere pennies nese-built connections. Most analysts expect
per bushel.” the new fees to significantly increase shipping
costs and reduce services for fleets that in-
These proposed fees are expected to signifi- clude Chinese-built ships.
cantly increase shipping costs, potentially di-
verting traffic to non-US ports and leading to Benefits of the Policy Could Be Years Away
longer inland transportation routes, which Another major concern involves traffic diver-
could further accelerate costs for consumers. sion. For instance, shipping companies may
While the proposal aims to strengthen the US choose to reroute cargo through non-U.S.
maritime sector by encouraging the use of US- ports, such as those in Mexico or Canada, to
flagged and US-built vessels, the immediate avoid the fees.
benefits are expected to go to South Korean
and Japanese shipyards, with long-term revi- Although this strategy would sidestep the 301
talization of the domestic industry taking years charges, it could lead to delays, higher do-
to materialize. mestic delivery costs and potential product
shortages. Even when vessels continue to
Importers and consumers of products contain- use major U.S. ports, the added costs will
ing imported components should stay alert re- likely pass on to consumers, just as tariff
garding the latest logistics news, as the United costs have in the past.
States Trade Representative (USTR) plans to
hold a public hearing on March 24, 2025, re- One of the primary goals behind the proposal
garding proposed Section 301 port call fees. is to strengthen the U.S. maritime sector by
 24

encouraging the use of U.S.-flagged and U.S.- Sources

built vessels. While this could eventually serve Gao Lingyun, expert at the Chinese Academy of
to revitalize the domestic shipbuilding industry Social Sciences Beijing China, US Government's
and reduce reliance on foreign-built ships, any Proposed Port Fees on Chinese Ships Draw
Strong Backlash from US industries, March 21,
significant investment in U.S. shipyards will 2025
take years to materialize. In the short term,
South Korean and Japanese shipyards will Global Times, Enterprise Products Partners, a
likely see the biggest benefits. Houston-based energy infrastructure company,
statements in a document submitted to the USTR,
Although the USTR will make its determination March, [Link] Miner, Ryan Hanrahan, U.S.
soon, the final decision rests with the U.S. Considers New Fees on Chinese-Built Ships,
President. Moreover, there is no set timeline March 26, 2025
for the decision, thus leaving the industry in a
state of uncertainty. Mike Koehne, an Indiana soybean farmer/Director
of the American Soybean Association Soybean
With that, if your business has not already Farmer Testifies before USTR on Agriculture’s
placed these “trade war” issues on your busi- Concerns Over China Shipbuilding Investigation,
ness strategy and directional radar, then hope- March, 25, 2025
fully our March TVFRB piece will inspire fur-
ther study, research, and most importantly, Reuters, Stuart Burns, article on Shipping and US
communication with your elected US Congress agriculture, March, 2025
representatives. Until May, please remain
healthy and happy. Troutman Pepper Locke, Proposed U.S. Port
Fees on China Ships Already Hitting Ag Exports,
March, 2025

Xcoal Energy & Resources, CEO Ernie Thrasher,

letter to U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary
Howard Lutnick , March 12, 2025
25
 26

Stages of Happiness
Karl Kolmetz

Happiness Family Life

Happiness is the combination of at least three Families have been under attack for several
parts, enjoyment, satisfaction and meaning. generations. Long term studies show the
happiest people are in long term relation-
Enjoyment is not pleasure, that is an animal ships. Many people sacrifice long term hap-
concept. Human enjoyment involves people piness for short term pleasure. The failure of
and memories to make something lasting, and relationships are affairs, selfishness and
this is uniquely human. pride. Easy to let short term issues result in
Satisfaction is the joy that comes from accom- long term unhappiness.
plishing something hard with struggle, this is a Friends
human concept.
There are many types of friends. There are
Meaning is the significant that your life mat- real friends, deal friends and worthless
ters. friends which everyone has.
Research that looks at identical twins separat- Real friends are people that you have long
ed at birth and are tested forty years later term connections with. They have been hon-
shows that 50% of their happiness is genetic, est with you, kept their word and not taken
so your mother did make you unhappy. This advantage of situations. It is very hard to find
is important to understand because the same real friends and you are lucky to have very
studies show 50% of your tendency to abuse many.
alcohol is also genetic, but you can change
that proclivity to zero by not drinking. Habits Deal Friends are people that you deal with in
are important if you know yourself. your life. Your work acquaintances and peo-
ple that you have business dealing with.
The next 25% of happiness is circumstances,
life’s ups and downs will affect your happiness, Work
and many people think this is everything. The
job, the family, the vacation but this is transito- Only two things that predict happiness in your
ry. This will change as you go through life. profession, earning your success and serving
other people. Earning your success means
The next 25% of happiness is good habits. that you are creating value in your life, and
This is 25% of your happiness that is under value in the life of other people. That means
your direct control. You can improve your cir- you are being rewarded and acknowledged
cumstances and control your genetic proclivi- for merit, hard work and personal responsibil-
ties. There are four things that can control ity. The only economic system that brings
your habits: Faith, Family, Friends, and Work. joy to work is the free enterprise system,
even with all its flaws.
Faith
The essence of dignity is to be needed as a
For happiness faith is a path that will trans- person. The essence of despair is to be
cend yourself, to pay attention to things larger managed like a liability, instead of assets to
than yourself. We need perspective for each be developed. That is why government as-
of us to get small and the universe to get large. sistance programs fail because they treat
We need something to get small and not let people like liability instead of assets to be de-
the narcissistic world think of ourselves as veloped. You need to serve in your work and
large and take over your soul. see how you are helping other people live
better lives.
 27

Declining Happiness personal interests for the benefit of the com-

munity. Maturity and wisdom involve the abil-
Since 1990 there has been a continually de- ity to prioritize long-term goals over present
cline of happiness in every survey. There is demands. This entails the sacrifice of self for
a lack of the four things of happiness. There is the future and for the greater good of the
a decline in faith, they are not building relation- community. Such sacrifices have historically
ships, they are not building friendships, and contributed to the abundance of wealth and
they do not have a vocational since of their freedom observed in Western Civilization.
work.
When a child makes a friend, they learn to
Also contributing to the declining happiness is share. I have a turn, then you have a turn –
the social order change. Our current social the sacrifice there is that it is not always my
order now values where you obtained your ed- turn.
ucation, more than your knowledge, more than
your values, more than your work ethic. Over Western Civilization was fundamentally orga-
fifty percent of the people in the elite workplac- nized around a sacrificial altar within the
es went to the same 34 elite colleges. Many church. The church served as the focal point
organizations only hire their managers from of the town, and the town, in turn, was central
the same elite college that have very liberal to the state. Sacrifice played a crucial role in
values. the development of Western Civilization. It is
voluntary self-sacrifice towards the highest
So hard work, knowledge and values no longer possible end that is the foundation of civiliza-
will get you the best jobs in many organiza- tion.
tions, leading to many people rejecting the
new social order because it is based on con- Today many organizations are teaching that
nections instead of merit. There is general un- individual identity is more important than the
happiness with the new social order. greater good, which is leading to social frag-
mentation and ultimately leading to less
Stage One – Selfishness Equals Unhappiness abundance of wealth and freedom.
The default state of humanity is me first and Very few people reach stage three and those
every child is born with this trait. The innate that do are highly respected and despised at
tendency of humans is self-interest. They must the same time.
be taught to share as part of their develop-
ment. This is where we all start. An infant only
wants immediate gratification, and this is not a
sustainable lifestyle. The long term of me first References
is failure. Sustained self-centeredness ulti- Authur Books, The Science of Happiness
mately leads to failure.
David Brooks, How the Elite Rigged the Soci-
Many members of my family are still in ety
stage one.
Jordan Peterson, Why is Hedonism Wrong
Stage Two - Family Sharing and Some Happi-
ness
Family sharing is essential. We learn to share
with our family knowing that they are some of
the only people that will support us in hard
times. They can depend on our help, and we
can depend on theirs. This is a very important
theme in Asia, but we seem to have lost this in
the USA, we now depend on the government,
to the detriment of our family units.
Again, many family members look for help but
provide very little in return when needed.
Stage Three – Sacrifice for the greater good
Sacrifice is fundamentally essential to the
foundation of civilization. Civilization, being
inherently social and future-oriented, necessi-
tates individuals to forgo their immediate
 28

Draft
Hamidreza Seyedjafari, Professor Ana Luisa Fernando
 29

Process Design of Industrial Deaerators

Jayanthi Vijay Sarathy

3. The saturation temperature, (i.e., boiling)

The primary purpose of an industrial deaerator
of water is 1000C at 1 atm. When feed
is to purge feed water in process facilities of
water comes into contact with the strip-
any oxygen (as air). Oxygen in feedwater is a
ping steam, chances are that the feedwa-
common cause for corrosion in industrial
ter can vaporize and would be vented with
equipment. The presence of any carbon diox-
the steam. Therefore, to prevent loss of
ide in feed water exacerbates corrosion by
feedwater through venting, it is imperative
forming carbonic acid which lowers the pH of
to supply feedwater below its saturation
the water. With time, pitting corrosion sets in &
temperature, say between 800C to 900C.
perforates the equipment.
Typically, the feedwater must be deaerat-
To attend to the issue of oxygen in feedwater, ed up to 0.02 mg/litre (ppm)
a deaerator collects the returning feedwater 4. Deaerators can operate under pressur-
containing non-condensables (including air) ized or vacuum conditions. For pressur-
and is stripped out using steam. The following ized deaerators, typical operating condi-
article explains the process design steps for a tions would be between 0.2 to 0.5 barg.
deaerator. The deaerated water collection vessel
would have a holdup time of 10 to 15
minutes or higher depending on the pro-
cess requirements. Since the steam is
suppled via a control valve, steam pres-
sures can range from 5 barg to 10 barg.
The returning feedwater supply pressure
must be at least 2 barg to ensure suffi-
cient atomization occurs and the water
droplets come into contact with the steam
inflow.
5. To minimize steam consumption and in-
crease efficiency, the feed water must be
hot as possible, but below saturation tem-
perature. However, since this is not possi-
General Notes ble during a plant start-up, the feedwater
tank must be provided with heating coils
1. The solubility of gas in a solvent depends for plant start-up purposes.
on its pressure and temperature and is
governed by Henry’s Law. At higher tem- 6. The deaerator can also be insulated to
peratures, the solubility of gas decreases. minimize heat losses. During venting,
However, at higher pressures, solubility along with air / non-condensables, some
increases which dictates the necessity to amount of water is also expected to be
operate a deaerator at lower pressures. lost due to entrainment. Turndown ratios
are typically around 5:1. The control sys-
2. In actual practice, feedwater is both chemi- tem must include steam control, water
cally (such as sodium sulphite) and ther- level control and manual venting provi-
mally treated to expunge any dissolved sions.
gases to maintain a pH between 8 and 9 to
avoid corrosion.
 30

Problem Statement The steam released with per litre of air is,
A deaerator operates at 0.2 barg with feed wa-
ter supplied at 800C from condensate tank in a
process facility. The non-condensables is tak-
en to be only air. It is assumed that the deaer-
ator is insulated well with no heat losses and
the air is assumed to be completely carried by The density of air is calculated using Ideal
the steam to the vent. The Air % in total vol- gas equation. Considering the operating pres-
ume of air-steam mixture a.k.a., volume of air sures are low at 0.2 barg, the compressibility
to steam in mixture at 0.2 barg is taken to be factor [Z] is taken to be 1.0.
16.408% from figure 2. Alternatively, the online
calculator from Ref [6], can be used to deter-
mine the Air% in total volume of air-steam mix-
ture. The boiler supplying steam operates at 5
barg with a supply flow of 5 tonnes/hr.

From steam tables [8], the specific volume

[vsteam] of steam at 1000C is 1.41385 m3/kg
from which the steam density is calculated
as,

Therefore, the steam released by 0.9467 gms

of air is,

The solubility at 0.2 barg and 800C is,

From the data given, the venting rates can be
calculated as,

Therefore, the total air and steam vented per

1000 kg of deaerator capacity is,

In practice, the flow rate of the order of 30 or

40 gms of steam-air mixture is very low to be
vented / regulated and must be purged to
avoid re-entrainment. For this reason, manu-
facturers recommend a venting rate between
With the presence of air in steam, there would 0.5 to 2.0 kg of steam-air mixture per 1000 kg
be a reduction in the saturation temperature of of feed water [3].
steam since air is a poor conductor of heat. As
a result, the deaerator operating temperature Steam Requirements
would be lower than 105.1010C at 0.2 barg, To estimate the steam requirements for the
i.e., 1000C. Therefore, the reduction in steam deaerator, it can be made based on the boil-
temperature in the deaerator is, er’s capacity and feedwater requirements.
For this, the boiler’s maximum useful steam-
ing rate must be determined which depends
on the initial feedwater temperature. The
maximum boiler output [mboiler] is estimated
as,
 31

the deaerator operating at 0.2 barg is

105.1010C, which reduces to 1000C due to
the presence of 16.408% Air in the steam.
Where,
Steam Control Valve Size
𝝺1 atm = Latent heat of vaporization [kJ/kg]
To regulate steam into the deaerator, a steam
Hboiler Pressure = Specific Enthalpy at Boiler Pres- control valve is placed in the line from the
sure [kJ/kg] boiler to the deaerator. The boiler generates
Hfeedwater Temperature = Specific Enthalpy at feed- steam at 5 barg which is reduced to 0.2 barg
water temperature [kJ/kg] at the downstream of the control valve
For a boiler pressure of 5 barg at the inlet of (assuming line losses are neglected). For a
the steam control valve and 5,000 kg/h of steam flow rate of 213 kg/h, the control valve
steam, the latent heat of vaporization [ÿ] at 1 coefficient [Cv] is calculated as,
atm is 2,258 kJ/kg [9]. The specific enthalpy at
the inlet of the steam control valve [Hboiler P] is
2,756.23 kJ/kg for 5 barg. The initial feedwater
specific enthalpy [Hfeedwater T] at 800C is Rearranging to calculate mass flow rate ‘m’,
334.501 kJ/kg. Therefore, the maximum or ef-
fective boiler output [mboiler] is,

Where,

To estimate the steam requirements, an ener-

gy balance is made such that the initial amount
of heat in the feedwater and heat added by the
injected steam is equal to the final amount of
heat in the feedwater and condensed steam.
The energy balance is,
ms = Steam Mass flowrate [kg/h]
CV = Flow rate coefficient at rated capacity [-]
Where, P1 = Upstream absolute pressure [bara]
mboiler = Max boiler output at initial T [kg/h] P2 = Downstream absolute pressure [bara]
h1 = Enthalpy of feedwater at supply T [kJ/kg] MW = Gas molecular weight [kg/kmol]
ms = Steam flow rate [kg/h]
T1 = Control valve inlet temperature [K]
hg = Enthalpy of steam supplied [kJ/kg]
h2 = Enthalpy of feedwater at final T [kJ/kg] k = specific heats factor [Cp/Cv]
Re-arranging the energy balance equation, Z = gas compressibility factor [-]
∆P = Pressure drop at rated flow [bar]
Fp = Piping geometry factor (Fp = 1)
FK = Ratio of specific heats factor [=k/1.4] [-]
Therefore, for an effective/max boiler capacity
[mboiler] of 4,662 kg/h, the enthalpy of the re- x = Pressure drop ratio [-]
turning feedwater supply [h1] at 800C is XT = Choked flow ΔP factor (Ref 12) [-]
334.501 kJ/kg. The enthalpy of steam supplied
at the upstream of the control valve [hg] at 5 Y = Gas expansion factor [-]
barg is 2756.23 kJ/kg. The enthalpy of feedwa-
ter at a final temperature [h2] of 105.1010C is
440.19 kJ/kg.

Therefore, the steam flow required at 5 barg at

the steam control valve upstream is 213 kg/h,
and a downstream pressure of 0.2 barg, i.e.,
the operating pressure of the deaerator. The
saturation temperature of air-steam mixture in
 32

[-ΔsolH/R] can be calculated from known data

[2], i.e., the solubility of air [K0] in water is
~7.9 x 10-4 at 200C and 1 atm and a rejection
rate of 5.9 grams of air per 1000 kg of water
[0.0002024 mol/litre] at 800C [353.15 K] and 1
atm. Therefore, for a de-aerator feedwater
pressure of 1 atm and 200C,

Re-writing the temperature dependent Hen-

ry’s constant equation, the enthalpy of disso-
lution of air in water is,

Based on ANSI/ISA S75.01 method, for a pip-

ing geometry factor (Fp) of 1.0, i.e., no pipe The Van’t Hoff equation in the above form
fittings, 6” control valve size, equal percentage though is valid for a limited range, but the val-
characteristics and a steam flow of 213 kg/h, ue of -Δsol/H does not vary change much with
the control valve Cv is estimated to be 3.14. temperature variation of the order of around
20K [1]. Therefore, for the low operating tem-
Appendix A perature of the deaerator [0.2 barg] and feed
Air Solubility in Water water temperature in the range of 800C to
The solubility of air in water [S] can be estimat- 900C, the enthalpy of dissolution [-ΔsolH/R]
ed based on Henry’s Law [1] which is calculat- can be taken as 2350.
ed as, References
[Link]
[Link]
chemistry/chemistry-the-science-in-context-5-
Where, edition/chapter-10/problem-60-the-solubility-
of-air-in-water-is-approximately-7/#step-by-
step-solution
[Link]
steam/the-boiler-house/pressurised-
Henry’s constant is dependent on temperature deaerators?sc_lang=en-GB
and can be adjusted to the de-aerator feed wa- [Link]
ter temperature using the correlation like Van’t deaerator-working-principle-types-and-
Hoff equation [1] as follows, process-control/#google_vignette.
[Link]
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Where, [Link]?
advanced=on
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[Link]?advanced=on#
[Link]
saturated-steam-properties-d_457.html
Considering air consists of oxygen and nitro- [Link]
gen predominantly, the enthalpy of dissolution design-tools/steam-tables/saturated-water-
line?sc_lang=en-GB
 33

[Link] Author
vap_eau.htm
“Control Valve Handbook”, Emerson’s Fisher’s
Handbook, 5th Edition

Vijay Sarathy holds a Master’s Degree in

Chemical Engineering from Birla Institute of
Technology & Science (BITS), Pilani, India
and is a Chartered Engineer from the Institu-
tion of Chemical Engineers, UK. His expertise
over 10 years of professional experience co-
vers Front End Engineering, Process Dynam-
ic Simulation and Subsea/Onshore pipeline
flow assurance in the Oil and Gas industry.
Vijay has worked as an Upstream Process
Engineer with major conglomerates of Gen-
eral Electric, ENI Saipem and Shell.
34
 35

[Link]