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Success Stories
It is a fact for all APC vendors and consultants that many of the success
stories have to remain unpublished to respect client confidentiality. It is
with great thanks to our clients that some good news can be expressed in these
pages.
FCCU Revamp at BP Gelsenkirchen
Our first application using Cutler Technology Corporation's [UPID]™
modelling technology was to revamp an FCCU multivariable controller at BP's
Gelsenkirchen refinery. Details of the application have been presented at the
2003 NPRA 'Plant Automation and Decision Support' conference
and in
Petroleum Technology Quarterly Winter 2004 issue.
Simplified Optimizer For Ethylene Unit
Rigorous closed–loop optimization for ethylene plants can be configured for
significantly lower cost than previously considered possible. A breakthrough
furnace optimizer application at Maruzen Petrochemical's Keiyo naphtha cracker
has shown that it is possible to achieve great benefits using a rigorous
optimization model for the furnace to achieve the desired ethylene/propylene
production, while a simplified optimization model can be used to predict back
end constraints such as charge gas compressor power and the ethylene/propylene
recovery trains. A presentation on this application was made at the AIChE
16th Annual Ethylene Producers Conference, 25–29 April 2004 in New Orleans
(Paper 65c).
FCCU Advanced Control at Chevron Pembroke Refinery
Using Honeywell RMPCT advanced control of a part resid FCC reactor and main
fractionator has been implemented at Chevron’s Pembroke Refinery. Inferential
properties on the main fractionator and gas plant are implemented using first
principles models which provide accurate inferences without analyser or lab biasing.
This project was a revamp of older applications, involving restructuring of
the applications, re–testing and commissioning. Since commissioning in July 2005
the application now has high operator acceptance and high up–time. Payback was
achieved within a month. A presentation on this application was made at the
ERTC Asset Maximisation Conference 2006 (ERTC Computing & ERTC Reliability), May 8–10, 2006, Vienna, Austria.
Coker Advanced Control at BP Gelsenkirchen
Using AspenTech's DMCplus, advanced control of a delayed coker was deployed at BP Gelsenkirchen
Horst site in Germany, with commissioning completed early in 2005. The project achieved significant
increases in throughput, product yields and improved product qualities. The project payback was
less than 6 months. The performance reported in the paper is a summary of a BP internal report
carried out to post audit the results one year after commissioning. The paper appeared in
Hydrocarbon Processing, June 2007.
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