How to increase crude throughput in desalter applications

Summary

1. The potential for optimisation

2. Desalting applications today
3. The challenges in desalting applications
4. The limitations in conventional methods
5. Optimise your chemical dosing
6. Increasing crude throughput
7. Conclusion
The potential for optimisation

Increase crude throughput by as much as 20,000 barrels per day

The potential for optimisation

Deliver savings of up to $3.5m annually in chemical dosing

The potential for optimisation

Deliver savings of up to $330,000 from zero shutdowns

Desalting applications today

• Within many refineries, there is a growing tendency to process heavier

crudes or blend these with lighter feed stocks. During crude oil refining, it is
advantageous to optimise the blend to reduce overall feedstock costs whilst
at the same time ensuring the final mix can be adequately processed with
minimal upset.

• One fundamental need within a refinery process is the efficient separation

of wastewater from crude feedstock using a desalter vessel after water
washing the material to reduce chloride levels.

• In order to optimise this separation requirement, appropriate vessel and

internals design must be used alongside reliable level and interface
instrumentation.

Hewitt, P. and Vidrine, S. (2006) 9th Topical Conference on Refinery Processing (TA015) –
#55 – Advances in Desalting of the 2006 Spring A.I.Ch.E Meeting, Orlando, FL, April 23-27, 2006
Challenges in desalting
applications

Increase use of blended

crudes presents
calibration challenges for the instrumentation used
for level and phase measurement.
High temperature processing of up to 194oC/
380oFcan mean some instrumentation cannot be used as
it will not withstand the extreme temperature.

Gradual build-up on internals affects measurements thus

causing inefficient processing.
Keeping the plant operational which is difficult
when the emulsion level is not shown.
Limitations with conventional
methods

Although traditional level and interface measurement systems have their advantages, when
applied to the relatively dirty process experienced within a desalter, a number have been
found to demonstrate many shortcomings.

Level and interface instruments can be in two categories; mechanical or electrical.

•Mechanical systems such as float have high capital and maintenance costs as well
as poor reliability and flexibility.
•Electrical based systems are more popular due to improved reliability and accuracy such
as Nucleonic, Capacitive, Guided Wave and DP. Although these still can present
problems with the presence of emulsion.
Optimising your chemical dosing

The lynchpin to optimising chemical dosing is

repeatable, reliable, accurate measurement.

Tracerco ProfilerTM is the only nucleonic

instrumentation designed to measure the vertical
distribution of oil, emulsion and water in real time at
high resolution.
Optimising your chemical dosing

Confidence in the accuracy of your instrumentation

allows you to run the plant at maximum
throughput.
Confidence in the reliability of the Profiler as it is
TM

unaffected by density fluctuations. The

same technology is deployed in subsea separation systems.
Reliability allows you to continuously monitor the water and
oil interface with the additional benefit of low
maintenance cost. The latest version of the
Profiler is designed for temperatures up to
TM

194oC/380oF.
The Tracerco Profiler™ has no moving parts and therefore
gives repeatable measurement.
Optimise your chemical dosing

Case Study
Feedback Cost Savings
• Operator confidence to run the interface
level at or within the lower electrostatic
grid – 82% level.
Chemistry Annual savings
• Separation optimisation of difficult blends
– improve crude flexibility (Escalante
crude blend increased from 30kbbl/d to Demulsifier $200,000
50kbbl/d). Neutraliser $75,000
• Increased upstream desalter mixing to
enhance chloride removals from Water clarifier $130,000
downstream vessels thus reducing
Asphaltene stabiliser $100,000
corrosion issues (between 3 to 4 ppm to
2ppm). No production loss due $330,000
• Optimisation of chemicals within the to desalter upsets
desalting process leading to
considerable cost savings. Total Improvement $835,000
• The elimination of process upsets
resulting from water carryover or oil carry
under from the desalter vessel.
Increase crude throughput
Increasing crude throughput

• With optimised chemical dosing the emulsion level is controlled up

toparts per million with the accuracy delivered by the Profiler’s unique
technology allowing more volume in the vessel.

• This volume can be used to process more crude and accuracy of the
measurement gives operator confidence to run
the interface level at
or within the lower electrostatic grid – 82% level.

• Giving increased throughput of up to 20,000 barrels per day.

Conclusion
• Controlling the emulsion level is key to increasing crude
throughput.
• The more accurately this can be controlled the more volume is
available for processing crude.
• This is controlled through accurate phase measurement which
allows optimised chemical dosing also saving on chemical costs.
• Where blended crudes are used there is instrumentation available which
does not need recalibrating.
• To ensure repeatable, accurate measurement instrumentation needs to
have very low failure rates.
• The right instrumentation can deliver huge benefits in increased
throughput and cost savings on chemicals.
The Tracerco ProfilerTM delivers all of these things in
one instrument.
Conclusion
Controlling emulsion
level
• Accurate to +/- 1%
• It is the only nucleonic instrumentation
designed to measure the vertical
distribution of oil, emulsion, water and
sand in real time at high resolution.
• Unlike conventional technology, this
patented instrument is a 'window' into
the vessel to enable the operator to
improve production throughput, reduce
the number of unscheduled shutdowns
and achieve significant cost savings.
No need to recalibrate
for blended crudes
• Ability to enhance feedstock blend
without the need to re-calibrate
equipment with real time process
optimisation.
• High stability and accuracy across a
wide range of ambient and process
temperatures.
Conclusion

Low failure rates –

Smart redundancy
• 0% failure in service.
• SMART redundancy for tubes
mounted at the same elevation, the
densities from the two tubes can be
averaged.
• Likewise SMART redundancy allows
for density values to be calculated via
interpolation of the adjacent healthy
tube values.
• This ensures minimum interruption to
the process.
• No moving parts.
• Suitable for temperatures of up to
194oC/380oF.
Conclusion
Benefits – Human
Machine Interface A picture is worth a thousand
(HMI) words.

• Control from one central location with

accurate overview of plant.
• Real time alarms enable quicker
reaction in the event of anomalies.
• Real time and historical density and
level data is recorded to offer
enhanced diagnostics.
• Effective management and operation
of instrument and plant.
• Reduced installation cost.
 Conclusion
Performance
Accuracy +/-1% of measurement range
Specification Density Range 0-3000 kg/m3
Number of Density Points
66@500cps, 35@1000cps
Over Range
Update Interval 0.5 seconds to 15 seconds
Electrical
Ex-Approvals ATEX Ex ib IIB T4
FM Ex ib C & D Zone 1 Class
1 Div 2
Design Temperature -55°C/67oF to + 194°C/380ºF
Power Galvanic Isolators
Ethernet, Modbus TCP/IP,
Communications
Modbus RTU,
4-20mA
Mechanical
Typically 8"
Vessel Nozzle Size (please enquire as
application dependent)
Dip Pipe Casing Titanium
Design Codes ASME VIII, PD5500
In accordance with vessel
Operating Pressure
design requirements
Maximum Length Up to 5m

*including ambient temperature factor.

Conclusion

The Tracerco Profiler™ can be used as a control and diagnostic instrument

to allow continuous quality monitoring of the water/oil interface.

•Highly reliable and repeatable measurement - 0% failure in service.

•Immune to process variations.
•No moving parts.
•Low cost of ownership.
•Live maintenance, no requirement for plant shut down.

Single integrated instrument solution providing a multitude of density points to

deliver a continuous level & density profile. 
Conclusion

Summary of benefits
• Increase crude throughput.
• Ability to enhance feedstock blend without the need to re-calibrate
equipment with real time process optimisation.
• Eliminate interface excursion upsets and reduce demand on electrostatic
grid power by monitoring rag layer.
• High stability and accuracy across a wide range of ambient and process
temperatures.
• No radiation dose rate external to the vessel.
• Zero maintenance - Annual wipe test required on arming rod handle.
• Reduce maintenance costs and risk to plant by reduced corrosion risk.
• Reduce and optimise chemical processing costs.
• Reduce process cost of brine waste treatment by reducing oil carryover.
• Improves asset environmental compliance with less demand on water
treatment.
• Smart redundancy.
• No risk of damage to instrument under empty vessel conditions.
Find out more

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