Petrochemical Review

J. R. Gieen, "The Mobil High Tempeiatuie Xylene Isomerization (MHTl) Process," 1988 Petrochemical Review, DeWitt Company, Houston, Tex., Mai. 23-25, 1988. 

Maeiz, B., S S Clieu. C R. Venkat, and D. Mazzone EBMax Leading Edge Ethylbenzene Technology from Mobil/Badger, 1996 DeWitr Petrochemical Review, Houston, TX, Mar. 19-21, 1996. 

R. G. Craig, T. J. Delaney, J. M. Duffalo, Catalytic dehydrogenation performance of the catofin process. DeWitt Petrochemical Review, Houston 1990. 

Jeanneret J.J. et al, The UOP Q-Max Process Setting the Pace for Cumene Production (The 22nd Annual DeWitt Petrochemical Review, Houston, 1997). 

Reference McPhee, A., "Upgrading Kerosene to Valuable Petrochemicals," 24th Annual DeWitt World Petrochemical Review, Houston, Texas, US, March 1999. 

Bentham, M., et al. Process improvements for a changing phenol market. In DeWitt Petrochemical Review Conference, Houston, TX, Mar 19-21, 1991. 

Jeanneret, J. Greer, D. Ho, P. McGehee, J. Shakir, H. The UOP Q-Max process setting the pace for cumene production. Presented at the 22nd Annual De Witt Petrochemical Review, Houston, TX, Mar 18-20, 1997. 

World Petrochemical Review Organized by Dewitt Co. Contact (281) 774-7200 or fax (281) 774-7210. 

Corbin, G. and Lee, K.F. (1993) Simplified Gas Phase Polypropylene Process Technology. DeWitt Petrochemical Review, Houston, Texas, USA, 23-25 March. 

Dennison, M.T. and Lovell, J.S. The future of plastics recycling in Europe. Paper presented to the (1994) De Witt Petrochemical Review, Houston, USA. 

Dennison, M. T., and Lovell, J. S. (1994) The Future of Plastics Recycling in Europe. Presentation DeWitt Petrochemical Review, Houston. 

Many large petrochemical projects involve considerable investment. Plant output value can be measured in staggering amounts of money if value of lost production is calculated. An incorrect pressure switch installed on a compressor may have very little direct financial impact to a compressor manufacturer, but it can cause a loss to the user far in excess of the total value of the compressor package itself. Extra care must therefore be taken in compressor performance tests. In the planning of a pro- ject, testing has to be reviewed to ... 

Natural gas and crude oils are the main sources for hydrocarbon intermediates or secondary raw materials for the production of petrochemicals. From natural gas, ethane and LPG are recovered for use as intermediates in the production of olefins and diolefms. Important chemicals such as methanol and ammonia are also based on methane via synthesis gas. On the other hand, refinery gases from different crude oil processing schemes are important sources for olefins and LPG. Crude oil distillates and residues are precursors for olefins and aromatics via cracking and reforming processes. This chapter reviews the properties of the different hydrocarbon intermediates—paraffins, olefins, diolefms, and aromatics. Petroleum fractions and residues as mixtures of different hydrocarbon classes and hydrocarbon derivatives are discussed separately at the end of the chapter. 

When the first edition of Chemistry of Petrochemical Processes was written, the intention was to introduce to the users a simplified approach to a diversified subject dealing with the chemistry and technology of various petroleum and petrochemical process. It reviewed the mechanisms of many reactions as well as the operational parameters (temperature, pressure, residence times, etc.) that directly effect products yields and composition. To enable the readers to follow the flow of the reactants and products, the processes were illustrated with simplified flow diagrams. 

As a starting point, the book reviews the general properties of the raw materials. This is followed by the different techniques used to convert these raw materials to the intermediates, which are further reacted to produce the petrochemicals. The first chapter deals with the composition and the treatment techniques of natural gas. It also reviews the properties, composition, and classification of various crude oils. Properties of some naturally occurring carbonaceous substances such as coal and tar sand are briefly noted at the end of the chapter. These materials are targeted as future energy and chemical sources when oil and natural gas are depleted. Chapter 2 summarizes the important properties of hydrocarbon intermediates and petroleum fractions obtained from natural gas and crude oils. 

Corrosion reactions in aggressive organic solvents are becoming a more frequent occurrence owing to developments in the chemical and petrochemical industries, and these reactions can lead to the deterioration of the metal and to undesirable changes in the solvent. This aspect of corrosion has recently been the subject of an extensive review by Heitz who has considered the mechanisms of the reactions, the similarities between corrt ion in organic solvents and in aqueous solutions, the methods of study and the occurrence of the phenomenon in industrial processes. 

Claims for acute hydrogen sulfide exposure that occurred over a 5-year period (1969-1973) in Alberta, Canada, primarily among petrochemical workers, were reviewed by Burnett et al. (1977). Acute effects noted included coma, disequilibrium, and respiratory insufficiency with pulmonary edema. Of 221 cases, there were 14 deaths. A follow-up study of 250 workers claims for hydrogen sulfide exposure from 1979 to 1983 in Alberta, Canada, found 7 fatalities that usually involved the central nervous and respiratory systems hepatic congestion and cardiac petechiae were also noted (Arnold et al. 1985). The difference in fatality rate (6% down to 2.8%) was attributed to improved first aid training and an increased awareness of the dangers of hydrogen sulfide. 

Review the case histories described in the booklet by Marsh McLennan,31 and document the number of accidents that occurred in refineries and in petrochemical plants. 

Nolan, D. P., Application of Hazoo and What-If Safety Reviews to the Petroleum. Petrochemical and Chemical Industries. Noyes Publications, Park Ridge, NJ, 1994. 

Mr. Nolan has received numerous of safety awards and is a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers, National Fire Protection Association, Society of Petroleum Engineers, and Society of Fire Protection Engineers. He is the author of the book "Application of HAZOP and What-If Safety Reviews to the Petroleum, Petrochemical and Chemical Industries," which is widely referred to within the petroleum and chemical industries. Mr. Nolan has also been listed in "Who s Who in California" for the last ten years and has been elected to appear in the 1996 International Edition of "Who s Who of Science and Engineering."... 

Marlin and Hrymak (1997) reviewed a number of industrial applications of RTO, mostly in the petrochemical area. They reported that in practice a maximum change in plant operating variables is allowable with each RTO step. If the computed optimum falls outside these limits, you must implement any changes over several steps, each one using an RTO cycle. Typically, more manipulated variables than controlled variables exist, so some degrees of freedom exist to carry out both economic optimization as well as establish priorities in adjusting manipulated variables while simultaneously carrying out feedback control. 

The production ofp-xylene begins with petroleum naphtha, as does the production of the other mixed xylene components, benzene and toluene. Naphtha is chemically transformed to the desired petrochemical components and the individual components are recovered at required purity in what is known in the industry as an aromatics complex [12]. A generic aromatics complex flow scheme is shown in Figure 7.2. It is useful to briefly review the general flow scheme of this complex for subsequent discussion of the liquid adsorptive processes. The process blocks... 

The aromatics complex converts approximately 75% of the feed naphtha to petrochemical aromatics with the vast majority of the remainder being exported as raffinate and some hydrogen. With a modern aromatics complex flowscheme, a little over half of the mixed xylenes are produced in the Tatoray unit while the rest are produced in the CCR Platforming unit directly from the naphtha reforming. Having reviewed the framework of an aromatics complex we are now in a better position to understand the context of the continuous countercurrent liquid adsorptive Parex process which produces the primary aromatics complex product, p-xylene. 

Chapter 7 gives a review of the technology and applications of zeolites in liquid adsorptive separation of petrochemical aromatic hydrocarbons. The application of zeolites to petrochemical aromatic production may be the area where zeolites have had their largest positive economic impact, accounting for the production of tens of millions of tonnes of high-value aromatic petrochemicals annually. The nonaromatic hydrocarbon liquid phase adsorption review in Chapter 8 contains both general process concepts as well as sufficient individual process details for one to understand both commercially practiced and academic non-aromatic separations. 

The realization of the need and importance of petrochemical planning has inspired a great deal of research in order to devise different models to account for the overall system optimization. Optimization models include continuous and mixed-integer programming under deterministic or parameter uncertainty considerations. Related literature is reviewed at a later stage in this book, based on the chapter topic. 

The remainder of this Chapter 4 is organized as follows. In Section 4.2 we will review the related literature in the area of petrochemical planning. Then, we will... 

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