Field troubleshooting process

In 1983, I started teaching a three day process equipment troubleshooting seminar, to chemical engineers and experienced plant operators in the petroleum refining and chemical process industry. Since the inception of the seminar, in excess of 5000 men and women have attended the classes. The seminar is largely based on my 30 years experience in field troubleshooting, and process unit revamp design. 

Sometimes I work with process equipment as a field troubleshooter. Sometimes I specify equipment as a process design engineer. And often, I teach shift operators and plant engineers how equipment works. Whatever I m doing, 1 have in mind my childhood experiences in south Brooklyn. 1 focus on the analogy between the complex problem of today and the simple experiences of everyday life. 

Most of the equations you will need for common process equipment have been presented in the preceding chapters. One of the purposes that we had in writing this book was to make such information available for field troubleshooting. 

I could write a whole book just about making pressure and flow and level and temperature measurements in the field. Actually, 1 have. Troubleshooting Process Operations, 3d ed., Pennwell Publications, Tulsa, Oklahoma.) But I ve made my point. Making field measurements is complicated. There are too many variables to turn the job over to the outside unit operator. There are so many sources of potential error to consider and eliminate. There is only one way to make sure any job is done right and that s to do it yourself. At least you will know which data are reliable and which data are questionable. 

Norman P. Lieberman is a chemical engineer with 50 years of experience in process plant operation, design, and field troubleshooting. An independent consultant, he troubleshoots oil refinery and chemical plant process problems and prepares revamp designs. Mr. Lieberman teaches 20 seminars a year on "Troubleshooting Process Plant Operations" and has written eight books on plant process operations and problems. 

The system that experienced the failure had been modified within the previous decade. Instrumentation and control changes made it difficult for field crews to diagnose and troubleshoot operating problems. Process safety information had not been properly documented and there was litde evidence that the changes had been formally evaluated. A few days before the incident, a tag was installed on a faulty letdown valve instructing that a bypass must not be used. No explanation was given for this instruction. 

In the field, the topic of process control includes the selection and installation of sensors, transmitters, transducers, actuators, valve positioners, valves, variable-speed drives, switches and relays, as well as their air supply, wiring, power, grounding, calibration, signal conditioning, bus architecture, communications protocol, area classification, intrinsic safety, wired interlocks, maintenance, troubleshooting, and asset management. 

The use of computer software RP programs in design, RP property data, processing fabrication, troubleshooting, and related fields is widespread. It is increasingly important to keep up to date continually with the nature and prospects of new software technologies. 

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