Process Engineering articles from March 2007

Process Engineering archives from March 2007

COMMENT: Back seat drivers.
March 26, 2007... With climate change now 'officially' the greatest threat to the planet, politicians are increasingly hopping onto the green bandwagon - regardless of this vehicle's tendency to veer away from scientific facts and, indeed, common sense....

Haze over climate aims.
March 26, 2007... There is widespread confusion among UK manufacturers over climate change initiatives and the likely impact of Government targets toward achieving a 'low carbon economy', a survey of UK business has revealed. The fourth npower Business...

UK's market in motion.
March 26, 2007... The exodus of large machine builders, in particular those within the machine tool industry, means the UK motion market is set for major transition over the coming few years. The volume manufacturers of process machinery, are almost...

BP warns on biofuels "Russian roulette".
March 26, 2007... Government and industry must keep public on board in the drive to develop and introduce alternatives to fossil fuels The biofuels industry will be "playing Russian roulette" if it takes government support or public backing for granted,...

Drax and Siemens ink #100m upgrade deal.
March 26, 2007... Drax Power is to replace the low-pressure and high-pressure turbines on all six units at its power station, near Selby, North Yorkshire. The project represents an investment of some #100 million and is part of the company's commitment to...

Bosses, employees at odds.
March 26, 2007... Employers and employees in the engineering sector are working to very different goals due to a large gap between how individuals and their organisations judge success. According to new research by the Chartered Management Institute,...

IN BRIEF: Helios award.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... BP engineers at Cherry Point refinery in Washington State have received the company's Digital & Communications Technology (DCT) Helios award for wireless innovation. Working collaboratively, a BP and Emerson team developed the world's first...

IN BRIEF: SECCO Petrochemicals.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... SECCO Petrochemicals Company is to deploy model predictive control (MPC) technology from Pavilion on six polymer lines at its manufacturing facility in the Shanghai Chemical Industrial Park, near Shanghai, People's Republic of China. ...

IN BRIEF: INEOS Polyolefins.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... INEOS Polyolefins is investing E150 million in its European assets over the next three years. Polypropylene capacity expansions will take place in Geel, Belgium and Grangemouth, Scotland, increasing capacity by a total of 250ktpa. A near-30%...

IN BRIEF: D1 Oils.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... Biodiesel producer D1 Oils has completed the acquisition of a second major biodiesel site, at Bromborough on Merseyside. The facility will complement D1's refinery site at Middlesbrough, Teesside, which currently has 32,000t of biodiesel...

IN BRIEF: BP.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... BP is selling its Coryton refinery in Essex, UK to Petroplus Holdings, the independent refiner and wholesaler based in Zug, Switzerland. The $1.4-billion deal includes an adjacent bulk terminal and BP's UK bitumen business, which is...

ANALYSIS - Biofuel: the process answer.
March 26, 2007... Moves to reduce reliance on fossil fuels in the US and Europe are raising some difficult issues for industry and governments alike. Process technology for the production of biofuels is key to the solution Last month saw demonstrations in...

PLANT VISIT - GRAIN LNG: When the ship comes in.
March 26, 2007... The Grain LNG terminal on the Isle of Grain in Kent is undergoing a second major expansion that will equip it to supply 12% of UK demand for natural gas. Patrick Raleigh visits Previously, a little known operation that was only called upon...

SIMULATION: Virtual challenges.
March 26, 2007... Simulation-based engineering must deliver high quality information to enable operators to improve oil and gas production. Patrick Raleigh reports Global oil and gas demand is predicted to increase by 50% to 2030, driven by escalating...

SIMULATION: Software: No satisfaction.
March 26, 2007... Around 70% of process operators and engineers are less than satisfied with the level of support provided by the engineering software they were using for their work process, according to a new industry survey. This result was obtained...

GLOBAL COMPETITION - ASSET MANAGEMENT: Cheaper than China.
March 26, 2007... With effective asset and supply chain management, EU processors can beat their Far East competitors. Prof. Roger Benson has the figures to prove it The process industries are an important centre of European wealth and jobs creation....

ASSET MANAGEMENT: Integration blurs the line.
March 26, 2007... Asset management increasingly requires leveraging services and systems for monitoring and management of process facilities, which are now available at all levels of the activity. The key enabling technologies include intelligent...

SOLIDS HANDLING - WOLFSON: Fine tuning the flow.
March 26, 2007... Many people consider it something of a "black art", but Richard Farnish reveals the science and techniques behind problem-free handling of bulk particulate Most industries in the UK use bulk particulate, but failure to ensure that a...

SOLIDS HANDLING: DEM launch at German show.
March 26, 2007... DEM Solutions is launching the latest version of its EDEM discrete element modelling software at the Powtech 2007 exhibition, being held in Nurnberg, Germany from 27-29 March. EDEM software enables engineers to simulate the movement of...

FLUIDS HANDLING: Nailing water hammer.
March 26, 2007... Coming to terms with hydraulic surge in pumping systems can prevent serious damage to instrumentation, pumps, pipes, fittings and valves Reciprocating pumps are an essential component in many processing and production applications ranging...

FLUIDS HANDLING: Sensor detects liquid levels remotely.
March 26, 2007... An innovative fibre optic sensor that can be used to detect liquid levels remotely and accurately has been introduced by Contrinex. A precision optical assembly, housed in a stainless steel threaded body, detects all liquids on contact and as...

FLUIDS HANDLING - BREWERY VISIT: Binding pumps out the volume.
March 26, 2007... Frankfurt brewer focuses on maintaining clean production conditions, in line with centuries-old German purity laws. Patrick Raleigh reports The Binding brewery in Frankfurt is one of the largest such operations in Germany producing about...

PIPE CORROSION: Costly fallout from corrosion.
March 26, 2007... The potentially huge cost of pipeline failures ensures that technologies for monitoring and treating corrosion are in high demand. Patrick Raleigh reports Corrosion costs the global process industry an estimated $40 billion a year,...

PIPES - JOINING: A couple of options.
March 26, 2007... Patrick Raleigh interviews Victaulic's new UK & Ireland country manager, who forecasts improving fortunes for pipe coupling systems makers in industrial markets Despite many apparent advantages over welding, pipe coupling systems are...

PIPES - JOINING: Shell's swell idea.
March 26, 2007... Patented technology from Shell is helping oil companies around the world to combat problems associated with underground water flows, which increase in volume as wells mature. The company has developed synthetic rubber seals that expand on...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Total chimneys.
March 26, 2007... Delta International has carried out a major inspection and maintenance contract for four chimneys at Total's Raffinerie de Provence mineral oil and gas refinery in France. The contract involved analysis of the chimneys, including non-...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: EA taps telemetry for flood monitoring.
March 26, 2007... Low-powered telemetry technology is being used by Capita Symonds to support its work in the analysis and assessment of hydrological, meteorological and hydraulic systems for the Environment Agency (EA). The UK engineering consultancy is on...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Air Liquide targest landfill gas-to-energy.
March 26, 2007... Air Liquide has developed new technology to capture methane emission from organic waste buried in landfills and recycle the gas into pipeline quality energy. The patented Biogaz system was developed by Medal - the membrane division of Air...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Improved view of steel process.
March 26, 2007... Improved visibility of the iron-making process and greater flexibility in the way steel is produced are the key benefits of a new control system for the Queen Victoria blast furnace at Corus Scunthorpe Steel works. The ABB System 800xA...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Particle modeling lifts off at NASA.
March 26, 2007... US space agency NASA will benefit from Scottish firm DEM Solutions' technology for modelling of bulk solid systems. The discrete element modelling (DEM) technology will be used in applications such as designing equipment to operate in lunar...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: White knuckle drive.
March 26, 2007... Engineers at a theme park in Florida have discovered that the chain driving their largest white knuckle ride shows virtually no signs of wear after five years' operation. The drive chain, which was manufactured by international engineering...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Online unit halts trouble at mill.
March 26, 2007... Mondi Business Papers has significantly reduced the number of unplanned shutdowns at its Richards Bay Mill in South Africa, thanks to the installation of a CSI 4500 Machinery Health Monitor from Emerson Process Management. The online system...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Big expansions at Euro sewage plant.
March 26, 2007... Western Europe's largest wastewater treatment plant, the new Brussels- North sewage plant serving over a million people in Belgium, is due to go 'on-stream' this month, partly with the help of seven giant expansion joints. The 2.7m by...

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION: Irish dairy improves water treatment.
March 26, 2007... Lakeland Dairies Co-operative Society, based in Kileshandra, the Republic of Ireland, has trebled the amount of solids that can be removed from the plant every day by installing a new decanter centrifuge. The Centrifuge CQ5000 from...

CONTRACTS: Technip.
March 26, 2007... PKN Orlen has awarded Technip an engineering, procurement and construction management lump sum contract for a hydrogen plant, to be located at its refinery in Plock, Poland. Technip's operations and engineering center in Zoetermeer, the...

CONTRACTS: Ineos investment.
March 26, 2007... Ineos Enterprises is investing over Euro90 million to establish a new biodiesel facility at its Zwijndrecht, Port of Antwerp site as part of a plan to become the premier supplier of the fuel. The 500ktpa facility is due on stream by early...

CONTRACTS: AMEC.
March 26, 2007... Shenhua Ningxia Coal Group has appointed AMEC to carry out the initial engineering design for the offsite and utility facilities on a $1.5 billion coal-to-chemical production complex in the Ningxia Hui region of north-west China. The...

CONTRACTS: Foster Wheeler.
March 26, 2007... Foster Wheeler has won the front-end engineering design and project management consultancy services contract from Osos Petrochemicals Co. for a planned new petrochemicals complex to produce polybutylene terephthalate at Yanbu, Saudi Arabia. The...

CONTRACTS: Siemens Power Generation.
March 26, 2007... Drax Power has signed a contract worth #100 million with Siemens Power Generation to replace the low-pressure and high-pressure turbines on all six units at its power station, near Selby, North Yorkshire. The four-year project marks the start...

APPOINTMENTS: Mobrey Measurement division.
March 26, 2007... Steve Seddon is the new director, sales and marketing for the Mobrey Measurement division of Emerson Process Management. He has worked for the group for 15 years and was previously director, new business at Micro Motion in Boulder, Colorado....

APPOINTMENTS: Emerson Process Management.
March 26, 2007... Former Honeywell director Peter Zornio has been appointed chief strategic officer at Emerson Process Management. It is a new role involving the prioritising of technology investments and identifying acquisition candidates. Copyright:...

APPOINTMENTS: BP Group.
March 26, 2007... Andy Inglis has been appointed as managing director of the BP Group and succeeds Tony Hayward as chief executive of the Exploration & Production (E&P) business. Inglis joined BP in 1980 and holds an MA in Engineering from Cambridge...

APPOINTMENTS: Shell.
March 26, 2007... Shell has appointed Bill Rothwell as vice president, innovation and chemicals technology for Shell Global Solutions International, effective 1 March. He will be based in Houston and will have global responsibility for identifying and leveraging...

APPOINTMENTS: Yokogawa Electric.
March 26, 2007... Yokogawa Electric is to appoint Shuzo Kaihori, director and senior vice president, industrial automation business headquarters, to the position of representative director and president on 1 April. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd....

APPOINTMENTS: HMD Sealless Pumps.
March 26, 2007... HMD Sealless Pumps has promoted Ingo Klein to product manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He replaces Robert Watling, who has moved to regional sales manager for the same region Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and...

APPOINTMENTS: Foster Wheeler.
March 26, 2007... Foster Wheeler has elected Umberto della Sala to the newly created role of president and chief operating officer with immediate effect. He assumes responsibility for the company's two business groups: global power and global engineering and...

APPOINTMENTS: Peter Brotherhood.
March 26, 2007... UK-based engineering company Peter Brotherhood has appointed Ken Andrews as engineering director to take responsibility for the engineering, design and R&D of the company's steam turbine and reciprocating gas compressor products. He has over 20...