Hydrocarbon Processing - May 2021 - 62

Valves, Pumps and Turbomachinery
leakage is the visual tell of this wear. Depending on the chemical being pumped,
the makeup could be very dangerous if
leakage occurs. Plant personnel should set
maintenance schedules based on applications, with more frequent monitoring for
mission-critical processes.
The bigger the facility, the more potential trouble spots there are to inspect. Fortunately, plant operators have a powerful
new ally in the form of remote monitoring technologies. These devices can easily
integrate into existing systems and collect
data around the clock. The information is
relayed via Bluetooth or internet connection to a condition monitoring control
center where operators can track daily and
long-term performance.
Ongoing digital monitoring of equipment provides greater visibility into floor
operations and enables swift and accurate decision making that can improve
safety. For example, plant operators can
track equipment breakdowns and ongoing maintenance costs. Armed with this
information, they have a much better understanding of when it is time to replace

components, thereby preventing a system
failure that could potentially cause harm
to workers and the environment.
In general, only around 20% of chemical manufacturing processes are equipped
with monitoring devices. However, for
mission-critical applications, the adoption
rate increases to approximately 60%-70%.
Given the costs associated with unplanned
downtime, this is a reasonable approach.
The average length of downtime is 4 hr
and can result in $1 MM in lost revenue.1
However, it is also important to note
that 70% of unplanned downtime events
occur on second or third shifts, which are
typically staffed with fewer workers. With
digital monitoring, industrial operators
have a 35% better chance of preventing
unplanned downtime and the associated
safety risks from equipment malfunction.1
Begin with the end in mind. When

new chemical compounds are created, it is
common to assign a pilot plant to develop
the manufacturing process and document
the ideal methods and materials for a
pumping system. Typically, it is a trial-and-

error process. The end result is a most effective technology, which can be shared, as
appropriate, with manufacturing partners.
That same method can be applied to
daily operations, especially as special orders and batch production become more
common. Chemical manufacturing is a
test-and-learn proposition. We always face
new challenges, which is why our best practice must keep getting better. The more we
can anticipate which production elements
could be improved in the name of safety,
more problems can be prevented.

LITERATURE CITED
George, N., " i-ALERT: Learn how to get automated
machine health diagnostics on your rotating equipment, " ITT webinar, online: https://www.i-alert.
com/videos/

STAN KNECHT is Vice President,
Global Engineering for ITT Goulds
Pumps. He has worked for the
organization since 1987 in various
leadership roles in product
management, operations and
product development. He is also a
member of the Hydraulic Institute Board of Directors.
Mr. Knecht earned a Bch degree in mechanical
engineering from Rochester Institute of Technology.

LIVE WEBCAST
Tuesday, May 18, 2021 | 10 a.m. CDT / 3 p.m. UTC

Corrosion Prediction and Material Selection for Crude
Corrosivity Applications
Dr. Hui Li
Corrosion and Modeling Engineer
Honeywell

Non-aqueous corrosion issues continue to be a major concern for reﬁning as market
growth leads to feedstock with increasing impurity content, leading to higher potential
for corrosion damage. Naphthenic acid and sulﬁdic corrosion (termed crude corrosivity) in
crude reﬁning are key corrosion mechanisms contributing to asset degradation and failure
in different areas of atmospheric and vacuum distillation units, such as in transfer lines and
side cut piping. Accurate quantiﬁcation of corrosion due to these factors is critical to safe
crude unit operations and gives reﬁners the ability to work with opportunity crudes at a
higher level of conﬁdence and safety.
In this webinar we will present a comprehensive approach to predict crude corrosivity in
naphthenic acid- and sulﬁdic-dominated systems as a function of critical environmental
parameters such as: Total Acid Number (TAN / NAT), Sulfur (H2S) content, temperature,
hydrocarbon content, ﬂow regimes and wall shear stress.

Mike Rhodes
Managing Editor
Hydrocarbon Processing

MAY 2021 | HydrocarbonProcessing.com

https://www.i-alert.com/videos/ https://www.i-alert.com/videos/ http://www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/Webcasts

Hydrocarbon Processing - May 2021

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