Fired Heaters

Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Giampiero Caronno
Sales Manager, Equipment Division
Foster Wheeler Italiana Spa

RRTC 22 & 23 September 2005

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 1

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Contents

• How a fired heater works

• Fired heater design basis – the importance

of the ‘heart’ of the unit

• Parameters influencing fired heater operation

• Maximization of process unit profitability

• Improper operation

• Example of revamping – case studies

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 2

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

How a fired heater works

Stack exit loss

Balanced (forced) draft

Stack
Stack effect in
stack

Damper Stack
effect in
convection
section

Convection

section
Negative pressure
0.05” – 0.1” W.G.
at top of radiant
section
0.05” –
0.1” W.G.
draft.
Draft at

Radiant section
radiant
section
outlet, R0
Stack effect in
radiant section

Burners Negative pressure Positive pressure

0

Natural draft
w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 3
Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Design Basis

• Tailored design to meet design requirements

• Main design parameters: efficiency and heat flux

• Optimization between efficiency and cost

• How many fired heaters have a proper design basis ?

• How many fired heaters work in line with the design basis ?

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 4

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Parameters influencing fired heater operation

+ +
Heat Load Fouling
+
Excess Air
=
EFFICIENCY REDUCTION

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 5

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Parameters influencing fired heater operation (*)

• Higher heat flux

Heat load
• Reduced tube
Fired heater duty Gcal/h 52 62 (+20%)
life time
Heat fired Gcal/h 67.36 82.12
Stack temperature °C 400 430 • Reduced
Fired heater % 77.2 75.5
efficiency
Efficiency

(*) Based on:

Fuel Oil LHV= 9500 Kcal/Kg

Fuel Oil Cost= 0.2 €/Kg

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 6

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Parameters influencing fired heater operation (*)

Extra Air Kg/h 2100

Excess Air Extra Fuel Kg/h 21

Extra Yearly € 33000

Fired heater duty Gcal/h 52 52 Cost

Excess air % 20 40
Stack temperature °C 400 400
Heat fired Gcal/h 65.82 67.36
Yearly saving € 259,200

(*) Based on:

Fuel Oil LHV= 9500 Kcal/Kg

Fuel Oil Cost= 0.2 €/Kg

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 7

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Parameters influencing fired heater operation (*)

Fouling of Clean Internal External

exchange surface condition fouling Fouling
Fired heater duty Gcal/h 52 52 52
• Clean condition
Heater efficiency % 77.2 74.2 71.3
• Internal fouling
Stack temperature °C 400 450 500

Peak film temperature °C 435 438 441

Metal temperature °C 448 524 456

• External fouling Tubelife Hrs 100,000 20,000 100,000

Fuel fired Kg/h 7090 7380 7680

Incremental fuel cost €/h 58 118

Incremental fuel cost €/year 464,000 944,000

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 8

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Maximization of process unit profitability

Reduce
emissions
Increase
capacity
Optimize
fired heaters
performance
Maximization
unit profitability
Reduce utility
consumption

Minimize
operating
cost
Maximize
on-stream time

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 9

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Maximization of process unit profitability

Draft shortage
Reduce firing rate
Reduce
High tube metal temperature
emissions
Replace burners Flame impingement
Increase Limited firing capacity
capacity Coke formation inside tubes
Optimize Firing control difficulties
Optimize firing Limited heat transfer surface
fired heaters
Uniform conditions performance

APH installation
Reduce utility Add extra surface
consumption
Cleaning surfaces
Instrumentation improvement
Minimize
Automatic devices operating
Internal tube cleaning cost Maximize Proper operation
Fire cheap fuels on-stream time Maintenance schedule

Fired Heater components

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 10

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Maximization of process unit profitability (*)

Increase of convection surface Increase of radiant surface

Increase
Topping capacity BPSD 46,000 46,000 60,000
capacity
Fired heater duty Gcal/h 33 33 43

Peak film temperature °C 393 387 387

Fired heater efficiency % 70 83 81

Reduce utility
Heat flux Kcal/h m2 28,000 24,400 30,900 consumption

Saving €/year N.A. 1,243,000

• Higher efficiency (*) Based on:

• Milder conditions at constant load Fuel Oil LHV= 9500 Kcal/Kg
Fuel Oil Cost= 0.2 €/Kg
• Possible increased fired heater load

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 11

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Maximization of process unit profitability (*)

Installation of air preheating system

Increase
Topping capacity BPSD 70,000 70,000 capacity
Fired heater duty Gcal/h 52 52

Excess air % 40 20

Fired heater efficiency % 77 90

Reduce utility
Fuel fired Kg/h 7,090 6,080 consumption

Saving €/year N.A. 1,620,000

• Higher efficiency (*) Based on:

• Short payout period Fuel Oil LHV= 9500 Kcal/Kg
Fuel Oil Cost= 0.2 €/Kg

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 12

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Maximization of process unit profitability

Emission reductions
Reduce
H.I. Low Nox Low emissions
burners burners Nox
low eff. w/APH
Heater efficiency % 77.2 79 90

Excess air % 40 20 20

Nox emissions (*) mg/Nm3 600 350 400

Nox outlet (*) t on/y 442 252 253

Nox emissions (**) mg/Nm3 250 75 90

(*) Fuel oil firing
(**) Fuel gas firing
Nox outlet (**) t on/y 184 54 56

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 13

 Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Improper fired heater operation

Original
Low velocity
fired heater
inside tubes design

Old type Current High excess air

burners fired heater
Damper design
Positive pressure conditions

Fouling on Air infiltration

heat transfer
surfaces Uneven flow
distribution

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 14

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Case 1 Atmospheric distillation fired heater

• Installation of a fix type air preheating system (APH) on a twenty-

five year crude heater
• APH Installation was carried out during scheduled turnaround
• Forced and induced draft system installed
• Fired heater control was upgraded

Fired heater duty, Gcal/h 52 52

Net efficiency, % 72 90

Heat fired, Gcal/h 72.2 57.8

(*) Euros equivalent / F.O. Fuel oil saving, Kg/h 1,520

Cost : 0.1 €/ Kg equivalent

Annual saving, Euros (*) 1,216,000

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 15
Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Case 2 Refinery fired heaters

• Firing optimization and emission reduction program for most of

refinery process heaters
• Burners of significant fired heaters were replaced during phased
turnarounds; minor modifications on fired heater floors required
• Refinery fuel balance re-arranged to have most effective
FO / FG ratio
• Refinery global flue gas emissions were reduced to 65%

Overall fired heaters duty, Gcal/h 1,039.4

Ave. NOx emissions, mg/Nm3 455.5 296.3

Total NOx outlet, Kg/h 425.6 276.8

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 16

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Case 3 Vacuum Distillation fired heater

• Improved operating conditions of vacuum distillation fired heater

• Replaced burners with state-of-the-art type to solve tube bending due
to flame impingement problems and to reduce flue gas emissions
• Convection section and stack were modified and replaced

Fired heater duty, Gcal/h 20 20

Net efficiency, % 74 80

Heat fired, Gcal/h 27 25

Fuel oil saving, Kg/h 214
Annual fuel saving, Euros(*) 342,000
(*) Not considering improvement in operating conditions
w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 17
Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Case 4 Atmospheric Distillation fired heater

• Increase unit capacity from 30,000 to 42,000 BPSD

• Improved fired heater efficiency (+40% capacity with only 11%
additional heat fired)
• Added radiant surface in available space
• Replaced bare tubes with finned tubes in convection section
Unit capacity, BPSD 30 42

Fired heater duty, Gcal/h 25 35

Net efficiency, % 65 82

Heat fired, Gcal/h 38.5 42.7

Heat flux, Kcal/h m2 27,000 28,500

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 18

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

Case 5 Steam reformer revamping in a middle east refinery

• Identified a need of additional hydrogen production capacity of

12’000 Nm3/h
• Revamped an existing steam reformer; the upgrading project
included the catalyst tubes replacement with new ones with new
material (lower thickness)
• The increased catalyst volume, the higher catalyst performances
and the convection review allowed to target a production increase
of 20%

Hydrogen capacity, Nm3/h 60,000 72,000

Fuel+feed consumption, Gcal/h 247 298

Overall steam production, t/h 120 158

Export steam, t/h 63 93

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 19

Fired Heaters – Enhancing Refinery Profitability

The importance of the fired heater specialist

360° vision on fired heaters

Process
Dampers & stack

Re-rating

Fans and
blowers
Pressure profile
Mechanical

Heat recovery
section
Burners operation
Pressure parts Emission
reductions
Tube supports & tube
sheets
w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 20
Thank you

Giampiero Caronno
Sales Manager, Equipment Division
Foster Wheeler Italiana Spa

refining@fwc.com www.fwc.com

w:\dept\d151\a\graphics\depts\279\Russian Refining Conf Sept05\giampero_car 21