Refrigeration economizer

Figure 5.28 Simplified flow schemes of (a) a conventional and (b) Mobil Oil s membrane solvent dewaxing processes. Refrigeration economizers are not shown. The first 3 million gallon/day commercial unit was installed at Mobil s Beaumont refinery in 1998. Polyimide membranes in spiral-wound modules were used [41-43]...

The amount of gas used by field engines is usually in the 0.5-2.0-MMscfd (million standard cubic feet per day) range—too small to make treatment of the gas by refrigeration economical. As a consequence, many engine users are forced to live with the problem gas and the resulting low reliability and high maintenance costs. 

For the above reasons, gas Is typically economic to develop only if it can be used locally, i.e. if a local demand exists. The exception to this is where a sufficient quantity of gas exists to provide the economy of scale to make transportation of gas or liquefied gas attractive. As a guide, approximately 10 Tcf of recoverable gas would be required to justify building a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant. Globally there are few such plants, but an example would be the LNG plant in Malaysia which liquefies gas and transports it by refrigerated tanker to Japan. The investment capital required for an LNG plant Is very large typically in the order of 10 billion. 

The reason for the popularity of anhydrous ammonia is its economy. No further processing is needed and it has a very high (82.2%) nitrogen content. Additionally if held under pressure or refrigerated, ammonia is a Hquid. Being a Hquid, pipeline transport is practical and economical. A network of overland pipelines (Fig. 4) is in operation in the United States to move anhydrous ammonia economically from points of production near natural gas sources to points of utilization in farming areas (see Pipelines). 

Steam-Jet Systems. Low pressure water vapor can be compressed by high pressure steam in a steam jet. In this way, a vacuum can be created over water with resultant evaporation and cooling water, therefore, serves as a refrigerant. This method frequently is used where moderate cooling (down to 2°C) is needed. The process is inefficient and usually is economically justified only when waste steam is available for the motive fluid in the steam jet. 

Several types of fluids are used as refrigerants in mechanical compression systems ammonia, halocarbon compounds, hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and cryogenic fluids. A wide temperature range therefore is afforded. These fluids boil and condense isotherm ally. The optimum temperature or pressure at which each can be used can be deterrnined from the economics of the system. The optimum refrigerant can be deterrnined only... 

A low temperature of approach for the network reduces utihties but raises heat-transfer area requirements. Research has shown that for most of the pubhshed problems, utility costs are normally more important than annualized capital costs. For this reason, AI is chosen eady in the network design as part of the first tier of the solution. The temperature of approach, AI, for the network is not necessarily the same as the minimum temperature of approach, AT that should be used for individual exchangers. This difference is significant for industrial problems in which multiple shells may be necessary to exchange the heat requited for a given match (5). The economic choice for AT depends on whether the process environment is heater- or refrigeration-dependent and on the shape of the composite curves, ie, whether approximately parallel or severely pinched. In cmde-oil units, the range of AI is usually 10—20°C. By definition, AT A AT. The best relative value of these temperature differences depends on the particular problem under study. 

Milk has been a source for food for humans since the beginning of recorded history. Although the use of fresh milk has increased with economic development, the majority of consumption occurs after milk has been heated, processed, or made into butter. The milk industry became a commercial enterprise when methods for preservation of fluid milk were introduced. The successful evolution of the dairy industry from small to large units of production, ie, the farm to the dairy plant, depended on sanitation of animals, products, and equipment cooling faciUties health standards for animals and workers transportation systems constmction materials for process machinery and product containers pasteurization and sterilization methods containers for distribution and refrigeration for products in stores and homes. 

Heat Pumps. Because of added capital and complexity, heat pumps are rarely economical, although they were formerly commonly used in ethylene/ethane and propylene/propane spHtters. Generally, the former spHtters are integrated into the refrigeration system the latter are driven by low level waste heat, cascading to cooling water. 

Refrigera.tlon, In processes such as olefin separations, the economic importance of refrigeration exceeds that of the steam system. 

A leader in the refrigerants industry, we manufacture and supply customers with economical chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) replacements and non-ozone depleting hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants for automotive, home, commercial and transportation uses. In the Americas and Asia, you can find these products under the Genetron name and in Europe and the Middle East under Honeywell Refrigerants. 

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