Refining and Petrochemicals
Refining and petrochemical operations convert crude oil into fuels and chemical feedstocks through high-temperature, high-pressure processes. SIL-rated instrumentation ensures process safety while maximizing product yield and energy efficiency.
Overview
Refining and petrochemical operations convert crude oil into fuels, lubricants, and chemical feedstocks through complex high-temperature, high-pressure processes. From atmospheric and vacuum distillation through cracking, reforming, and product blending, precise level and pressure measurement is essential for process efficiency and safety. Instrumentation must withstand aggressive media, extreme temperatures, and corrosive conditions while meeting SIL functional safety requirements. Reliable measurement in separators, distillation columns, reactors, and storage tanks helps operators maximize product yield, reduce energy consumption, and maintain compliance with strict environmental and safety regulations throughout the refining value chain.
Industry Challenges
Key challenges we help address
Operating instruments in extreme heat above 400°C in cracking units
Measuring interface levels in desalters and separators
Preventing overfill in atmospheric and pressurized storage tanks
Detecting coking and fouling buildup in heat exchangers
Meeting SIL 2/3 safety requirements for critical processes
Managing LPG and propane storage under high pressure
Monitoring catalyst activity and regeneration efficiency
Solutions for This Industry
Industrial IoT
Use Cases
Explore specific scenarios and challenges in this industry
Acid slurry tanks
Refining and Petrochemicals
Acid slurries in the alkylation unit create an aggressive environment that requires robust, highly resistant level measurement instrumentation to withstand the conditions. Accurately reporting the process levels ensures that there is ample acid available for proper execution of the alkylation process.
Alky settler
Refining and Petrochemicals
In an alkylation unit the acid settler is fed from the reactor vessel which is used to remove acid for recycling back into the reactor. The layers created in the separation process form interfaces that must be tracked to manage the output of the material from the unit. Reporting density on a horizontal plane enables accurate control of the process and maximizes throughput, therefore controlling the acid levels for optimal processing.
Amine contactor
Refining and Petrochemicals
Amine contactors introduce amine solutions to the incoming natural gas from the inlet separator to remove acidic components, such as H2S and CO2, from the process stream. The operator must accurately monitor the amine collecting at the bottom of the contactor to ensure that the process is running efficiently.
Anhydrous ammonia storage tank
Refining and Petrochemicals
During the sulfur removal process, nitrogen is converted into ammonia through a water wash process to be sold for fertilizer production. Stringent environmental restrictions and the high hazard potential make secure control of the levels in ammonia handling processes absolutely necessary.
BTX separators
Refining and Petrochemicals
Precise interface monitoring in refinery separators is critical to product quality because it confirms there is complete separation. For liquid-liquid interface in a BTX (benzene, toluene, xylene) separator, an accurate measurement helps control the quality of the separator’s output and thus helps to extend equipment life in downstream units by avoiding potentially expensive operating issues.
Blowdown drums
Refining and Petrochemicals
The blowdown drum is designed to allow the refinery to release any process or byproduct liquids including hydrocarbons, in a safe and controlled way that protects plant equipment and personnel. The blowdown drum can see rapid filling at high pressures and temperatures. Because of the mixture of products, density and viscosity can also fluctuate, so the level must be measured quickly and reliably.
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