23 Inline and Online Process Analytical Technology with an Outlook …
579
• Unique product range through the combination of special systems and procedures.
Figure 23.12 shows the flowchart of the OMV refinery as an example for a
combined refinery for crude oil and simultaneously with a production of basic
chemicals.
23.6.2 Objectives for the Integration of PAT Sensors
in a Refinery and Future Smart Production
Inline near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) has been increasingly used in refineries to
replace hazardous manual sampling and frequent laboratory analysis. Knowledge
of the current state of the crude oil being used has a major impact on the refining
process design and influences all refinery operations. In addition, the availability of
shale oil and other crude oils causes a greater variability of the raw material. Unknown
variations of feed properties lead to instability, e.g., in the crude distillation unit.
The main objectives of introducing NIR inline measurements in a refinery for
molecular characterization of components are described in detail, e.g., [65–68]. The
bullets summarize the most important findings:
• Better and above all faster reaction to quality fluctuations of the crude oil mixture.
• This is associated with a reduction in the downgrading of transient products such
as gas oil and residues.
• Yield increase of selected streams without affecting the quality, especially the
cloud and freezing point.
• Real-time quality determination of intermediate flows to improve continuity
between short-term planning, scheduling, and optimization systems (e.g., allocation of naphtha to reformers or steam crackers).
• This results in more stable downstream operations, increased profits, and reduced
environmental risks.
The use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) in the petroleum industry has greatly
increased over the last 15 years because NIR allows fast and nondestructive online or
inline multi-component analyses to be performed [62, 67]. Several suppliers of NIR
instruments are now selling state-of-the-art technology for predicting and controlling
important inline parameters in a refinery, as detailed, for example, in [66].
The following properties can be measured online or inline with NIR [66]:
• For research octane number (RON, ASTM D 2699), motor octane number (MON,
ASTM D 2700), road octane number (RdON).
• Specific gravity of the diesel, viscosity, flash point, cold filter plugging point
(CFPP), pour point, and cloud point.
• In addition, the volume percent or mole percent of individual components such
as paraffins, isoparaffins, aromatics, naphthenes, and olefin (PIANO) are also
measured during distillation.
579
• Unique product range through the combination of special systems and procedures.
Figure 23.12 shows the flowchart of the OMV refinery as an example for a
combined refinery for crude oil and simultaneously with a production of basic
chemicals.
23.6.2 Objectives for the Integration of PAT Sensors
in a Refinery and Future Smart Production
Inline near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) has been increasingly used in refineries to
replace hazardous manual sampling and frequent laboratory analysis. Knowledge
of the current state of the crude oil being used has a major impact on the refining
process design and influences all refinery operations. In addition, the availability of
shale oil and other crude oils causes a greater variability of the raw material. Unknown
variations of feed properties lead to instability, e.g., in the crude distillation unit.
The main objectives of introducing NIR inline measurements in a refinery for
molecular characterization of components are described in detail, e.g., [65–68]. The
bullets summarize the most important findings:
• Better and above all faster reaction to quality fluctuations of the crude oil mixture.
• This is associated with a reduction in the downgrading of transient products such
as gas oil and residues.
• Yield increase of selected streams without affecting the quality, especially the
cloud and freezing point.
• Real-time quality determination of intermediate flows to improve continuity
between short-term planning, scheduling, and optimization systems (e.g., allocation of naphtha to reformers or steam crackers).
• This results in more stable downstream operations, increased profits, and reduced
environmental risks.
The use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) in the petroleum industry has greatly
increased over the last 15 years because NIR allows fast and nondestructive online or
inline multi-component analyses to be performed [62, 67]. Several suppliers of NIR
instruments are now selling state-of-the-art technology for predicting and controlling
important inline parameters in a refinery, as detailed, for example, in [66].
The following properties can be measured online or inline with NIR [66]:
• For research octane number (RON, ASTM D 2699), motor octane number (MON,
ASTM D 2700), road octane number (RdON).
• Specific gravity of the diesel, viscosity, flash point, cold filter plugging point
(CFPP), pour point, and cloud point.
• In addition, the volume percent or mole percent of individual components such
as paraffins, isoparaffins, aromatics, naphthenes, and olefin (PIANO) are also
measured during distillation.