2012 Petroleum and Chemical Industry Conference Europe Conference Proceedings (PCIC EUROPE)

Electric motors are widely used in the industrial field and make major contributions in every sector of industry. They are the working horse power of today's industrialization. These motors are designed for the global environment following safety rules established by various recognized local and international authorities. Motors used in the oil and gas industry require special consideration with r... View full abstract»

This paper analyzes the use of Hydrogen-Cooled Generators for potential common use in the chemical, oil and gas (COG) industry. Currently, most of the existing generators in the COG industry facilities are air cooled generators. In fact, air cooled designs are now available in ratings up to 300 MVA. On the other hand, hydrogen cooled designs are available for ratings as low as 110 MVA, which means... View full abstract»

End user companies such as oil and gas companies need to have a set of company specific technical requirements for the electrical discipline. This paper presents a strategy for the development of such a set of technical requirements based on a case study for two oil and gas companies that merged in 2007 and developed a full set of new technical requirements thereafter. View full abstract»

The IEEE C37.013, [1] standard defines the overvoltage withstand requirements for circuit breakers (CBs) intended for use in generator applications. The constraints of these requirements may lead to larger sized CBs to be used. In Oil & Gas offshore applications, IEC 62271-100, [2], certified CBs are often preferred due to their more compact size. However, detailed validation of IEC CBs for ge... View full abstract»

There is a need for reliable, efficient and safe high power electrical systems in the petrochemical industry e.g. for air separation/oxygen plants. Such air separation plants use large synchronous motors. These motors cannot be started directly on line and a specialized redundant, cost effective, static frequency converter start system is proposed for a number of such trains. Redundancy is built i... View full abstract»

Natural ester fluids may be used in new transformers as well as to retrofill existing units in order to improve their performance and reliability. Designing or retrofilling power transformers with natural ester fluids requires, however, to account for a number of significant differences in properties, characteristics, and material parameters between natural ester fluids and mineral oil in order to... View full abstract»

This paper provides a big picture of arc-flash mitigation. From pre-arc issues, both preventive measures as well as various arc fault prediction technologies are discussed. Arc fault prediction is explained as identifying a developing arc fault by analyzing pre-arc conditions, in practice by on-line monitoring. Because preventive or predictive measures can not totally eliminate the risk of arc fau... View full abstract»

When designing a Power Management System (PMS) for an islanded power system, various factors should be taken into account. Consideration of these factors early in a PMS specification process will lead to a facility power system that is fit-for-purpose, user-friendly, flexible, and reliable. This paper presents a user's perspective of PMS and is based on the authors' experiences in operating, maint... View full abstract»

ATEX Adco is the European Administrative cooperation working group composed of representatives of Member States market surveillance authorities and were established to pursue the following objectives: 1) to achieve of a uniformly high level of enforcement of the relevant EU legislation; 2) to exchange information between Member States' authorities concerning the national market surveillance mechan... View full abstract»

In offshore installations, there is more and more focus on reliability of electrical power to manage safety-related control functions, which must be always available and run all the time. Back-up power systems based on emergency gen-sets are designed to ensure this continuity of operation, even in case of loss of the main electrical power. Specially in view to the present development of larger FPS... View full abstract»

This paper discusses the difference in performance of an induction motor while tested at manufacturing factory test stand and customer site. The induction motor is the prime mover in any process or chemical or power generating industries. There are several factors affecting the performance of the induction motor. They are type of driven equipment, installed conditions such as ambient temperature, ... View full abstract»

Safety and downtime are the critical factors in petrochemical installations. In this respect, possible internal arc faults have also become a more important issue in user's specification, dimensioning, operating and maintenance of Low Voltage Switchgear and Controlgear Assemblies. Preventing internal arc occurrences in switchgear assemblies is of paramount importance and an increasingly more impor... View full abstract»

FE computations are performed to investigate the current load on anodes and pipeline in the current transfer zone (CTZ) of a Direct Electrical Heated flowline. It is shown that there may be great differences in the current load on the anodes, and that there is a significant increase in the current density towards edges and corners. A simple model based on laboratory measurements show that these cu... View full abstract»

The Practical Issues involved in Designing, Specifying and Installing Skin Effect Current Tracing Systems, (SECT), for land based applications will be presented. Key learnings from the author's forty years of experience with skin effect heating for above ground and underground applications are described. Specific details of installation do's and don'ts, transformer, control and load centers option... View full abstract»

Rising development costs for new oil and gas facilities has led many operators to look to maximise the production capability from existing onshore and offshore plants. These projects often include a combination of brownfield and greenfield development - with the target of using as much of the existing infrastructure as possible. For example, as existing wells become depleted, production tails off,... View full abstract»

The quality and continuity of electrical energy supply is becoming a more and more important issue. The users costs due to a supply interruption are relevant and dependent on the duration of the interruption, the zone and the time when it occurs. The distributed generation topology of the Smart Grids increases the difficulty in guaranteeing stability of the network while the customer requirements ... View full abstract»

From its humble beginnings in 1996 to address an industry need for closer cooperation among Test Houses worldwide, to overcome wasteful duplication of testing and assessment in the Ex Field at that time, IECEx has emerged to become an essential compliance assessment tool for all industries worldwide where flammable or combustible materials are used, stored or transported that present a risk of fir... View full abstract»

Different technologies are available for switchgear and controlgear for use in industrial applications. Some are based on using withdrawable switching devices, others on using fixed devices. The choice of what type of equipment to use should be fundamentally based on two essential criteria, followed by other criteria specific to the application. The fundamental criteria for which there should be n... View full abstract»

Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) involves functional, legal and safety aspects. The paper summarises fundamentals of EMC in medium-voltage switchgear (1 kV <; U ≤ 52 kV), describing the electromagnetic climate, legislative and normative requirements, and presents guidelines for EMC correct design, manufacture and installation. Using the example of gas-insulated, metal-enclosed switchg... View full abstract»

This paper will discuss how new developments in process instrumentation and analytic technologies can provide solutions for optimization of production processes, improvement of asset management and will lead to: 1. Reduction of unscheduled production downtime and maintenance costs 2. Reduction of Total Costs of Ownership (TCO) 3. Improvement of production quality 4. Improvement of production quant... View full abstract»

Ever since electricity was first transmitted and distributed, there has been a need for switchgear. As distribution systems evolved, this switchgear became available in fixed and withdrawable forms. This evolution continues, and the emergence of new technologies and designs means that the “optimum” solution still changes over time. View full abstract»

This publication describes the challenges and experience with the four electric variable speed drive systems, type LCI, rated at 15.5 MW, installed at RAG's (Rohöl-Aufsuchungs Aktiengesellschaft) gas storage facility in Haidach, Austria. The project consists of two phases. At the time of implementation of phase one, the second phase was optional. In the first phase of the project, which st... View full abstract»

With ever-increasing pressure worldwide, it is essential that gas and petrochemical plants operate with high reliability and safety to maximize the return obtained for the capital investment. Higher plant reliability reduces process and equipment failures costs as failure disruption decreases production output which in turn limits the benefits of business for End-Users and OEM as well. For the bus... View full abstract»

This paper is describing a case study on a plant-wide stability control system, which utilizes load shedding for active switching of non-essential load within milliseconds in case of an external grid power failure, in a petrochemical plant in Shanghai, China. Control philosophy and system configuration are introduced in details. Finally system limitations are examined based on actual operation of ... View full abstract»