Diagnostic tools and control parameters
for refinery heaters
To optimise or manage furnace operation more effectively and safely,
engineers and operators need to understand and control the entire process
YAHYA AKTAŞ, HAKAN OǦUZ, GÜRAY AKSU, DOǦUŞUZUN and MUAMMER SEVER
Tüpras¸ Izmir refinery
T
he basic principle of good
combustion is to fully
oxidise the carbon, hydro-
gen and sulphur in the fuel,
leading to the formation of
carbon dioxide, water and SOx.
Stoichiometric levels of oxygen
should normally be sufficient
to complete combustion.1
Improvement of furnace
operation is very important to
achieve efficient or continuous
production, and safety issues
have always been the priority
for chief engineers in refineries.
Generally, for combustion in
refinery heaters, there are two
main parameters that affect the
thermal efficiency of the entire
combustion process:
• Lowering the value of the
oxygen content of the flue gas
• Lowering the value of the
temperature of the flue gas.
The thermal efficiency of
furnaces can be improved by
increasing heat recovery from
the flue gases. Usually, a 20°C
reduction in stack flue gas
temperature corresponds to a
1% gain in efficiency. In addi-
tion, a 1% reduction in the total
oxygen level leads to a 0.5%
improvement in efficiency.
Reducing CO2 emissions is an
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absolute necessity and an
expensive challenge for refiner-
ies to meet environmental
targets according to legal
requirements. In Izmir refinery,
we are trying to decrease the
production of greenhouse gases
by making some operational
changes and investments.
In order to reduce emissions
of CO2, CH4 and O3, as well as
energy demand, we undertook
the following tasks:
• Heat integration projects, for
the significant reduction of
emissions and for further
energy savings
• Installation of new preheat
exchangers before the heaters,
and online cleaning of heaters
• Optimise the operation of an
existing heater.
Detection and diagnostics
Combustion engineering is an
intellectually challenging field
with plenty of opportunities to
enhance fundamental and prac-
tical knowledge that will
ultimately lead to the develop-
ment of new products with
improved performance.3
Most refinery furnaces gener-
ally have a large potential for
the reduction of stack gas
temperatures. A reduction in
temperature leads to an
improvement in efficiency. Due
to instrument failures in some
furnaces, one can observe unre-
alistic low stack temperatures,
indicating cold air intake.
Detecting cold air leaks is also
very important in the operation
of furnaces. Sources of leaks
include:
• Heater header boxes
• Peep holes
• Non-activated burners
• Explosion doors
• Damper leaks
• Breakdown of air registers.
In practice, excess air is
necessary to achieve complete
combustion. This excess air is
expressed as a percentage of
the theoretical amount of air.2
Any excess air, above its theo-
retical value, causes a loss of
energy in furnaces.
Stack gas temperatures are
usually higher than target
temperatures. Excess stack gas
temperatures also lead to heat
loss, thus decreasing the effi-
ciency of the furnace. One of
the most important actions to
decrease stack gas tempera-
tures is to constantly keep tube
surfaces clean. This can be
PTQ Q2 2013 1
 achieved by smart soot blow-
ing and online cleaning while
the furnace is fully operational.
When these temperatures are
monitored carefully by a
distributed control system, any
rise in their values can be elim-
inated by proper soot blowing
and cleaning.
In order to increase the
energy efficiency of refinery
furnaces, there are inevitably
some important parameters to
consider:
• Efficient combustion
• Instrumented protection
functions
• Reducing heat losses
• Waste heat recovery.
Daily inspection of furnaces
is required to make sure that
no flame impingement, smoky
conditions or bad atomisation
occurs.
It is advisable to carry out
monthly oxygen measurements
to check and compare the
percentage of flue gas oxygen,
upstream and downstream of
the air preheater, to prevent
any leakage occurring between
combustion air and flue gas.
Operation of the air preheater
is very sensitive due to the
presence of glass tubes. The
wash water temperature
should not exceed 80°C; other-
wise, the tubes may break as a
result of thermal shock. To
achieve this, the parameters of
the temperature indication
controller need to be config-
ured for monitoring by the
distributed control system. The
value of the flue gas tempera-
ture should not exceed the
target value. Keeping flue gas
temperatures below the target
value for optimum charge
levels also helps to maintain
cleaner preheaters, thus mini-
mising shutdowns.
2 PTQ Q2 2013
In some cases, furnaces have
unrealistically low stack
temperatures, probably as a
result of broken glass tubes in
the air preheater; a furnace’s
thermal efficiency will increase
if broken tubes are replaced. A
portable oxygen analyser will
monitor fugitive emissions via
induced draught fan sucking
patterns.
Visual inspection of the
furnace refractory via peep
holes revealed the refractory to
be in satisfactory condition,
with only a few areas of minor
damage. Nonetheless, it is
necessary to take thermal
photos of furnaces as part of
regular maintenance proce-
dures, as this helps to maintain
clean tube surfaces.
During furnace combustion,
when the percentage of hydro-
gen is higher than the design
value in the fuel gas, flame
impingement occurs in the
convection zone. As a result,
tube supports begin to redden.
Fuel oil specification is also
important to prevent high
vanadium and sodium levels
exceeding allowable limits.
The effect of corrosion fail-
ures on the performance and
maintenance of materials can
be minimised if lifetime moni-
toring and control of
environmental and human
factors supplements more effi-
cient design.6
Causes of high flue gas oxygen
levels
As was mentioned earlier,
reduction of oxygen in the flue
gas has direct benefits in the
reduction of fuel usage in
furnaces. There is a target
oxygen level for each furnace.
If the level increases, this is
probably due to false air
ingress through manholes or
leakages in the casing bellows.
When the control system
detects a higher oxygen level
in the stack, the air flow to the
burners automatically
decreases. Without automatic
regulatory control in the
furnace, manual control
becomes insufficient, leading
to problems in radiant coils
and deficiencies in tube
supports. Therefore, the instal-
lation of automatic dampers
and pistons should be obliga-
tory in heater and air
preheater systems.
If the excess air level is too
low, flames become smoky and
unstable, and sub-stoichiomet-
ric firing may occur. This leads
to increased fuel consumption,
as well as increased fouling on
tubes, greater solids emissions,
reduced run length and
reduced lifetime of the furnace.
Causes of high flue gas
temperatures in furnaces
Usage of fuel oil in furnaces
causes fouling of the tubes,
which reduces heat transfer
into the process areas of the
tube surfaces. This results in
heat loss from the flue gases as
well as higher stack tempera-
tures. Soot blowing helps to
minimise fouling, but frequent
soot build-up means loss of
energy. Inefficient soot blowing
also results in decreased heat
transfer to the process.
This can be explained with
an example. Heater-A was
operating with a stack temper-
ature of 700°C; this high
temperature was the result of
there being no convection bank
within the design of the
furnace. The design was very
inefficient, so a new convection
bank was installed. As a result,
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Figure 1 Before maintenance of heater refractory Figure 2 After maintenance of heater refractory

the furnace duty increased by Refractory maintenance cantly lowers the combustion
approximately 20% through should be carried out at specific air outlet temperature at the air
enhanced heat recovery. periods (see Figures 1 and 2) so preheater and thus reduces the
The Combustion Engineering that appropriate action can be thermal efficiency of the
Group at Izmir refinery regu- taken very quickly to reduce furnace. The other negative
larly inspects the furnaces. This heat losses in furnaces. effect of a leakage in an air
group, together with the tech- preheater is that the air outlet
nical control department, has Practice of furnace operation temperature is lower than the
found heavy soot accumula- Furnaces are usually supplied design value, reducing the
tions in the convection bank along with information from furnace’s total efficiency.
and refractory area, indicating the manufacturer on the duty, However, if we only fire fuel
poor combustion leading to corrected log mean tempera- gas or natural gas in the heater,
reduced efficiency. ture difference, percentage soot blowing has no impact on
Some furnaces in the refinery vaporised, desired pressure increasing heat transfer and
have been operating with high drop and materials of heat recovery. Using soot
stack temperatures. We know construction.5 blowers leads to consumption
that these temperatures were Bad combustion through of steam and increases the
not in compliance with the shortage of air to individual amount of oxygen in the stack
manufacturer’s operating data. flames and bad atomisation gas.
This resulted in an inspection cause a non-symmetric flame While the heater is out of
of the convection bank. We (see Figure 3). Some furnaces service, there are some steps
found that some of the tubes in the refinery appear to have that need to be carried out, as
did not have fins, causing poor low stack temperatures. We follows, in terms of control
heat transfer and higher stack can explain this as a leakage in mechanisms. The burner firing
temperatures than the design the air preheaters, which pattern should be mirrored and
values. The simplest action was results in air mixing into the burners should be evenly
needed to resolve this: install hot flue gases. This signifi- spaced along the entire box.
new fin tubes. When the burners are
A furnace’s interior also out of service,
refractory walls have a they should be rotated
much greater surface regularly. The change
area than the surface in burner positions
area of the heat trans- helps to maintain the
fer tubes. Therefore, a integrity of the tubes.
proportionally greater Once per shift the
amount of energy is field operator should
delivered to the walk the furnaces and
furnace’s refractory carry out the follow-
surfaces.4 Figure 3 Non-symmetric burner: top view ing checks:

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 Figure 4 Before application of online cleaning
• Check flames to ensure they
are orange and in stable
condition
• Make sure combustion is
symmetrical
• Check for flame impinge-
ment on the surfaces of tubes
• Note any burners that are
showing signs of plugging
• Ensure all peep holes and
dampers on burners out of
operation are closed.
If a burner is not firing, it is
best to remove the oil gun or, if
this cannot be done, keep the
atomising steam on to avoid
fouling of the tips. Burners
should be periodically removed
from service and cleaned or
repaired.
Online and off-line cleaning
of heaters removes all hydro-
carbon residues, soot and other
deposits (see Figures 4 and 5).
Optimal energy efficiency is
restored and the equipment’s
lifetime is extended. Heater
tubes should be cleaned and
repaired; burner atomisers
should be checked for corro-
sion and erosion; tip hole
drillings and alignment should
be checked; and the burner
tip’s position needs to be
adjusted.
All process shutdown param-
eters for furnaces must be kept
in operation without bypassing
safe operating conditions;
4 PTQ Q2 2013
Figure 5 After application of online cleaning
otherwise, unexpected hazards
could occur with severe conse-
quences. All equipment
related to shutdowns should be
tested periodically according to
approved procedures. The aim
and importance of these tests is
to detect unidentified failures
and to reduce the probability
of failure on demand in the
instrumented protective func-
tion. The quality of these tests
is very important and has a
major bearing on probability of
failure on demand of the
instrumented protective func-
tion. All test results should be
analysed and test reports kept
for future inspections.
Burners exhibiting long,
non-symmetrical flames
impinging on the tubes indi-
cates plugging problems. The
first priority in this instance
should be to calibrate periodi-
cally the oxygen analyser; this
is essential for optimum
furnace efficiency. If necessary,
a new analyser should be
installed.
The main hazard for furnaces
is gas accumulation in the fire-
box and explosion. Explosion
will occur if a source of igni-
tion is introduced into a firebox
containing a flammable
mixture of fuel and air. The
most hazardous periods during
the operation of furnaces are
during startup and shutdown.
In order to protect equipment,
operational procedures for
startup and shutdown should
be followed completely, and a
purge sequence should be
carried out to remove fuel from
the firebox before a burner is
ignited.
Safe operation
The primary consideration is
safety for operating personnel
and equipment. During shut-
down, all fuel inputs to the
furnace, except for pilots, must
be isolated. Pilots are kept
alight as a safety precaution so
that fuel does not accumulate
and lead to an explosion. Low
process flow through the tubes
is a good example of “heat
off” shutdown.
The very poor condition of
the furnace refractory has
resulted in high casing temper-
atures and numerous flue gas
leaks through the casing. The
safety of platforms around the
furnace was low because of
flue gas leakages and radiation
from the hot furnace casing.
The installation of new refrac-
tory will result in increased
thermal efficiency in the
furnace, reliability and safety
will increase, and the mainte-
nance shutdown period will be
reduced.
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 Efficiency is a function of
stack temperature; excess air
for fuel savings can be calcu-
lated from the difference in
efficiencies before and after
remedial action. We check the
furnaces physically, to deter-
mine the causes of high stack
temperatures, and fouled heat
surfaces are thoroughly
cleaned in a timely fashion.
Soot blowers should also be
well maintained and carefully
operated.
The efficiency of furnaces
can be improved by reducing
excess air to the burners.
Tuning of the burners, air and
fuel ratio control, firing
modes, register positions and
stack damper positions should
be optimised to deal with
high oxygen levels in flue
gases. A high excess air level
decreases a furnace’s thermal
efficiency.
Improved firing through
proper burner control and
maintenance of excess air to
the oxygen content target
requires proper burner mainte-
nance and inspection once per
shift. Flames need to be
adjusted until a good shape is
achieved. If problems in the oil
burners arise during operation,
proper precautions need to be
Weighted 02%
02 (actual value from furnaces)
= Heating value (LHV)
* /∑ Total heating value (LHV)
Weighted stack gas temp, %
= Heating value (LHV)
* T (actual value from furnaces)/∑ Total heating value (LHV)
T: heater stack gas temperature, °C
taken according to the opera-
tions manual. Major burner
maintenance requires shut-
down of furnaces.
Methodology of furnace
control
In general during furnace oper-
ation, important actions for the
safety and efficiency of the
heater control methodology
include:
• Increase in heater load,
followed by an increase in air
then an increase in fuel
• Decrease in heater load,
followed by a decrease in fuel
then a decrease in air.
The equivalence ratio is
defined as the ratio of the
actual fuel and air ratio to the
stoichiometric fuel and air
ratio. There are two main
controllers in a furnace opera-
tion — heater load and oxygen
controllers — which enable us
to determine the stoichiometric
amount of oxygen needed. As
a result, the air-to-fuel ratio
(1)
(2)
cannot exceed the stoichiomet-
ric value.
In this control strategy,
excess air is supplied during
furnace operation. Each fuel
pressure value is also
controlled within operational
limits. If the operation exceeds
the pressure limits, fuel flow is
manipulated in such a way
that the pressure value will be
controlled within operational
limits.
Trends and statistical values
for heater stack gas oxygen for
pre- and post-implementation
of furnace controls are shown
in Figure 6. Following imple-
mentation, the oxygen value is
controlled via the stoichiomet-
ric ratio of fuel to oxygen,
which results in a decrease
from 2.07% to 1.97% of the
oxygen value. The standard
deviation of the oxygen value
also decreased from 0.36 to
0.087 through a safer and more
reliable control structure.
Gas density compensation of

Figure 6 Percentage of oxygen analyser after installation of Figure 7 Tag plot for total temperature of furnaces
furnace control

www.digitalrefining.com/article/1000791 PTQ Q2 2013 5

 the flue gas flow be changed in refin-
measurement and eries. Additionally,
automatic air and produced and
fuel ratio control consumed energy
will be installed to should be kept under
further optimise the permanent control.
oxygen content. Furnaces comprise
Draught and excess the most risk-laden
air should be equipment in a refin-
controlled accord- ery. Therefore, the
ing to the guidelines duty of each engineer
for draught and must be to avoid
oxygen control for deficiencies in the
natural draught Figure 8 Historical data virtual tag definition of total protection functions.
furnaces. The air temperature of furnaces Diagnostic tools and
registers on the control parameters
burners, and the stack damper values collected from a real- enable engineers to gather
need to be set to appropriate time system. All virtual tag detailed information to evalu-
values to obtain target oxygen values are demand calculated ate the functions of combustion
levels. when an application or end equipment and to increase the
user makes a data request for efficiency of heaters.
Snapshot controls in furnaces the tag. Only the available
Refinery engineers responsible data range binds the valid References
for furnace operations use a data time range for a virtual 1 Perry R H, Green D W, Perry’s Chemical
process historical database tag for any other tags refer- Engineers Handbook, Heat Generation
system to track oxygen, enced in its procedure part: 27-25, Combustion Background,
McGraw-Hill, USA, 1997.
temperature and efficiency definition (see Figure 8).
2 Baukal C E, Combustion Handbook, VII,
indicators. Historical data Virtual tags for a process
CRC Press LLC, USA, 2001.
provide a system of easily historical database system 3 Peters M S, Timmerhaus K D, Plant
managed calculated tags, provide the means to carry out Design and Economics for Chemical
whose data values are derived tag-based calculations. These Engineers, McGraw-Hill, Singapore, 1991,
via a mathematical and logical calculations appear to the user 17.
procedure. Calculations are much like collected values, but 4 Roberge P R, Handbook of Corrosion
based on collected process do not take up valuable storage Engineering, McGraw-Hill, USA, 2000, 5.
variables or on other calcula- space.
Yahya Aktas¸ is Process Superintendent
tions using equations 1 and 2 Formulae are used to calcu-
with Tüpras¸ Izmir refinery, Turkey. He has
above. late benefits. These simplified 14 years’ refinery experience, mainly in
Weighted oxygen or stack formulae for overall weighted process improvements, product blending,
gas temperature for each oxygen and stack gas tempera- oil metering systems, furnace and boiler
furnace is calculated to obtain ture are shown above. combustion control and safety systems,
a consumption ratio for each of burners, and waste heat boilers, and holds
them. The method can be Conclusions a BSc in chemical Engineering and a MBA.
applied for instant checks so The parameters of all heaters Hakan Oğuz is Reliability & Integrity
that the right intervention can should be monitored in real Superintendent with Tüpras¸ Izmir
be made as soon as possible time. In addition, field inspec- refinery. He has 14 years’ refinery
experience, including 11 years as
(see Figure 7). tions should be carried out
Instrument Engineer in Maintenance
daily to improve heater effi-
Management and the last three years in
Virtual tags ciency. Another important the R&I department. With a Shell SIFpro
Virtual tags are historical data parameter for furnace control (Safety Instrumented System Protection)
tags whose process data is the creation of new models. certificate as SIFpro facilitator in Tüpras¸
values are mathematical and Monitoring of furnace opera- Izmir refinery, he holds a BSc in electrical
logical procedures, rather than tions is a culture that needs to and electronic engineering.

6 PTQ Q2 2013 www.digitalrefining.com/article/1000791

Güray Aksu is Computer Chief Engineer
with Tüpras¸ Izmir refinery. His 14 years’
experience in the refinery’s IT department
covers DCS and PHD management, share
point training, system centre operation
management (SCOM), and he holds a BSc
in computer engineering.  experience in process improvements,
Doğuş Uzun is a Process Control
Engineer with Tüpras¸ Izmir refinery
with responsibilities covering advanced
process control, DCS management,
alarm management, control performance
www.digitalrefining.com/article/1000791
monitoring project commissioning and
system sustainability. He holds a BSc in
electrical and electronic engineering and
a MSc in mechatronics engineering.
Muammer Sever is Process Chief with
Tüpras¸ Izmir refinery, with 12 years’
crude oil distillation, Merox process
and isomerisation, furnace and boiler
combustion control and safety systems,
burners, waste heat boilers, hydrocarbon
loss management and energy reduction
studies. He holds a  BSc in chemical
engineering and a MBA.
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