TRAINING FOR PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE IN THE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY Manual E-13 INDIRECT FIRED HEATERS Second Edition by WARD ROSEN President, Petroleum Learning Programs Ltd. OIL & GAS GAS REFINING & PRODUCTION PROCESSING PETROCHEMICALS Personal Copy of Petroleum Learning Programs Ltd. 305 WELLS FARGO DA. SUITE 4 ISTON, TEXAS 77090 (719) 444-7632 » FAX: (719) 586.9076TRAINING FOR PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE This manual is one of a series for your use in learning more about equipment that you work with in the petroleum industr,. Its purpose is to assistin developing your knowledge and skills to the point that you can per- form your work in a more professional manner. The manual was prepared so that you can learn its contents on your own time, without the assistance of an instructor or classroom discussion. Educators refer to learning by self-study as Programmed Learning. itis amethod widely usedinall industries as a means of training employ- @@s to do their job properly and teach them how to perform higher rated jobs. You can demonstrate your desire to be a professional by taking a positive attitude toward learning the contents of this manual and others that are appli- cable to your job. ‘The author of this manual has years of experience in operating petroleum equip- ment. He also has the technical knowledge of how and why petroleum equipment functions. The text was written for use by personnel with little or no previous experience with petroleum ‘equipment. Consequently, some of the material may be familiarto youif you have experience with oilfield equipment From such experience, you have ob- served the effect of making operating changes. The manual will help explain why the changes occurred that you ob- served. Itwillalsoteach you howandwhy equipment functions. In order for you to learn the contents of the manual, you must dig out the —_per- tinent facts and relate them to the subject. ‘Simply reading the materialand answering the questions is not enough. The more effort you make to learn the material, the more you will learn from the manual. Teaching yourself requires self-disci- pline and hard work. In order to prepare yourself for the sacrifice you will have to make, you should set goals for yourself. Your ultimate goal is to perform your work in a more professional manner. Training is one step in reaching that goal. Applica- tion of what you leam is another. Seeking answers to questions is a third, Once you have established your final goal, you must determine the means for teaching that goal. You may decide, for example, that you must complete a series. of 10 to 15 manuals to get the basic knowledge and skills you need. After you decide which training materialis required, you should set a time table for completing each section of the material Achieving your final goal may take more than a year, and will require hours of hard work on your part. You will know you have achieved your goal when you understand how and why to operate oil- field equipment in order to obtain the maximum productat the lowest cost. Your sacrifice will have been worth-while from the satisfaction of knowing that you can perform your job in a methodical profes- sional manner, instead of atrial-and-error approach. ©1991 Petroleum Learning Programs Ltd. No part of this manual may be reproduced in any form. Its use as a reference in training courses is specifically reserved for Petroleum Learning Programs Ltd. All translation rights are likewise reserved. oNINSTRUCTIONS FOR USING THIS MANUAL This is your’ manual. You should write your name on the cover. Upon completion you will find it helpful to keep it in an accessible place for future reference. Problems are included throughout the text. The solutions to the problems are given at the end of the book. The manual is used in training programs all over the world. In some countries, English units of measure- ment such as feet, gallons, pounds, etc., are used. In other countries, Systems Internationale (SI) or Metric units, such as meters, liters, kilograms, etc., are used. In order for the manual to be of maximum use, both SI and English units are shown. The SI unit always appears first, and the English unit follows in brackets (). Example: the temperature is 25°C (77°F). The English equivalent of the SI unit will be rounded off to the nearest whole number to simplify the text and examples. A distance of 10 m may be shown as 33 ft whereas the exact equivalent is 32.81 tt. If you are working in English units, you may find it helpful to mark out the parts that are in SI units and vice versa. Some of the Figures have units of measurement. In such cases, two Figures are included. The first one has SI units, and the Figure number is followed by the letter A (Example: Figure 1A). The second Figure will be on the next page and will have English units. It will be the same number as the first one, but it will be followed by the letter B (Figure 1B). If you use SI units, be sure to refer to Figures followed by the letter A; if you use English units, refer to Figures followed by the letter B. The following general procedure is recommended for using this manual: 1. Turn to Page 1, Read the material until you come to the first problem or question. 2. Work first problem or answer the question and enter the answer in the proper space in ink. If the problem or question is shown in both SI and English Units of measurement, answer only the part in units of measurement that you use. 3. Compare your answer with that shown at the end of the book; be sure to use solutions to the probems in the units you are working in, ff your answer is correct, continue reading until you come to the next problem and work it If not, restudy the manual until you understand the reason for your error. Rework the problem if necessary. Leave your wrong answer and note the correct one. This will keep you from making the same mistake later on. 4, Proceed stepwise as shown above until you have completed the text. The above approach will require thought, making mistakes, and rethink- ing the situation. Concentrate on two things - the how and why. Do not cheat yourself by taking shortcuts or looking up the answers in advance. It ‘saves time and errors but produces no real understanding. Your _ future depends on how efficiently you perform your job and not on how rapidly you proceed through this manual. Since this is your manual, any errors you make are private. A validation or test covering the entire manual is included at the back of the book. Answers will be sent to your supervisor or training director at their request at no cost.ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS MANUAL s,min hd mm om ‘SI UNIT ABBREVIATIONS second, minute, hour, day millimeter centimeter meter kilometer square meter cubic meter cubic meters per day gram kilogram kilopascal megapascal kilopascal absolute bar (1 bar - 100 kPa) kilojoule megajoule watt, kilowatt time time length length length length area volume volume rate volume weight weight Pressure pressure Pressure pressure heat, work heat, work power ENGLISH UNIT ABBREVIATIONS s,min hd int sqin sqft cuft gal bbl BPD fo psi psia Btu MBtu MMbtu W, KW hp lid Metié MMetid M MM second, minute hour, day inch, foot square inch ‘square foot cubic foot gallon barrel (42 US gal) barrels per day pound Ibs per square inch ls per sq in absolute British thermal unit thousands of Btu milions of Btu watt, kilowatt horsepower cubic feet per day thousands of et/d millions of ct/d thousand mition time time length area area volume volume volume volume rate weight pressure pressure heat heat heat power Power gas flow rate gas flow rate gas flow rate UNITS OF MEASUREMENT Sl UNITS OF MEASUREMENT Most of the SI units of measurement used in the oilfield are traditional metric units. The exceptions we are concerned with are pres- sure and heat units, which differ as follows: metric] siuniT [CONVERSION UNIT Pressure | bar — |kilopascal, kPa | bar = hea Heat [kilocal [kilojoule,kI | kcal= 4 STANDARD CONDITIONS FOR GAS Measurement units for gas volume are cubic meters per day (m3) or thousands of cubic feet per day (Mctid). The letters st or s are sometimes used with the units to designate volume at standard temperature and pressure: mi%/d (st) or Mscf. In this manual, standard volumes are comected to a temperature of 15°C and a pressure of 101.325 kPa(a), or 60°F and 14.7 psia. To simply the text, the letters st and s are omitted. However, all gas volumes shown are at standard conditions unless specifically stated otherwise. HEAT CAPACITY AND RELATIVE DENSITY Specific heat and specific gravity are traditional terms that have been used in both Metric and English units for many years. These names are being replaced with the terms: heat capacity and _ relative density. The new names are used in this manual. When you see the term heat capacity (Ht Cap), it will have the same meaning as specific heat, and relative density (Rel Dens) means specific gravity.INDIRECT FIRED HEATERS TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION -- I, DESCRIPTION «-.- A. Firetube B. Burner C. Stack « D. Pilot Bumer +..s.0+: E, Puel Control System = F, Accessories «+. 1, Fuel Gas Scrubber - 2. Fuel Gas Heating Coil 3. Flame Ignition System 4, Flame Arrester 5. Stack Arrester - Il, PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION - ‘A. Gas Combustion «+ B. Heat Transfer - Il. APPLICATION - IV. OPERATION -- e@ A, Start-Up Procedure «+ B. Shutdown Procedure - C. Routine Operation D. Control - 1. Puel Rate to Burner 2. Air Flow to Burner V. TROUBLESHOOTING A. Heater Will Not Supply its Rated Heat Output B. Frequent Flameout - C. Frequent Firetube Failure - VL. SAFETY DEVICES . 36 A. High Liquid Temperature . 36 B. Low Level Shutdown ... 37 C. Flameout Shutdown... 238 D. High Stack Temperature Shutdown - 238 E. High or Low Fuel Pressure Shutdown .. 239) VALIDATION - SI UNITS . SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS - $I UNITS - VALIDATION - ENGLISH UNITSLIST OF DRAWINGS, ILLUSTRATIONS AND PHOTOGRAPHS Photographs of Indirect Fired Heaters ---- cece eeeeee 1,20,21,22,23,24 Firetube --- 8 Firetube Liner - Burners Fuel Control System - Heater Accessories +--+ Flame Arrester ‘etube is Heat Exchanger Example of Firetube Area and Heater Duty Temperatures in Heaters « Flow of Heat in Indirect Heater .. Seale on Firetube +--+ +++++00+ Start-Up Sequence -- ss 25 Fuel Control +28 Effect of Fuel-Air Ratio on Burner Flame Pattern -~ = 29 High Liquid Temperature Shutdown o 36 Low Liquid Level Shutdown Flameout Shutdown, High Stack Temperature Shutdown - High/Low Fuel Pressure Shutdown -INTRODUCTION 1 Heaters are used in almost every phase of petroleum produetion and processing. ‘They vary in size and complexity from a simple hot water heater to a sophisticated cracking furnace in a refinery. Heaters are generally classified in two ways: 1. Direet fired. 2. Indirect fired. ‘The direct fired heater is one in which the fluid being heated flows through tubes in cabin, and fuel combustion occurs outside of the tubes. A boiler is the most common form of this type of heater. ‘The indirect fired heater is one in which the liquid being heated is outside of the tube, and the fire is inside the tube. ‘This type of heater is widely used in the oilfield in line heaters, emulsion breaking equipment, and process heaters. It is sometimes called firetube heater. ‘This manual will discuss the indirect fired heater. Furthermore, since almost all oilfield applications use gas for fuel, we will limit our study to that of gas fired heaters. The principles of heater operation will apply regardless of the type of fuel. INDIRECT FIRED HEATER ON CRUDE OIL EMULSION HEATER2 L DESCRIPTION An indirect fired heater has a pipe or series of pipes called a firetube with a burner inside it that is immersed in the liquid that it is heating. Examples are shown below and opposite. A. FIRETUBE ‘The most common form of firetube is that of a U-tube or hairpin. It can be mounted on @ flange on the side of the vessel in which it is inserted, and can be easily removed for repair or replacement. Large heaters often have a firetube which consists of @ combustion tube with a cluster of return tubes as shown below. The burner is located at the inlet of the combustion tube, and the stack mounts on the collector plate of the return tubes. The area of the tubes can be up to 3 times that of a single U-tube pipe, which means that the heater can release 3 times as much heat in the same volume that a U-tube would occupy. ‘To put it another way, a U-tube type firetube would have to be 3 times as large (longer and/or larger diameter) as a cluster tube heater. STACK RETURN TUBES COLLECTOR PLATE. 5 BURNER COMBUSTION TUBE FIRETUBE WITH COMBUSTION TUBE AND RETURN TUBES:rae 9 & FIRETUBE ay FIRETUBE MAIN BURNER BURNER DUAL FIRETUBE AND FUEL CONTROLS MOUNTING FLANGE SHUT DOWN4 FIRETUBE If the vessel containing the firetube operates under pressure, the firetube must be heavy enough to withstand the pressure. In most applications, the pressure inside the vessel is at or near atmospheric pressure, and thin wall pipe can be used for the firetube. ‘The firetube usually has brackets on the bottom to prevent it from touching the vessel. So long as the tube is immersed in liquid, the temperature of the tube will be approximately that of the liquid, even though the temperature of the combustion gas inside the tube may be over 1650°C [3000°F]. If the tube were to touch the vessel, a hot spot could develop that might distort or melt the tube and vessel. If the liquid that surrounds the firetube is oil, glycol, or some other combustible liquid, the tube may be made of stainless steel or other alloy to give extra protection against failure. Another protective device is @ liner that slips inside the firetube for the length of the flame. The liner is usually made of a heat-resistant metal such as monel or stainless steel. Its purpose is to prevent the flame from striking the tube wall and causing it to overheat and fail. If the fire strikes the liner, it will eventually distort ‘and have to be replaced, but the firetube will not be damaged if the liner is promptly replaced. TEMPERATURE |C| CoNTROLLER |o OJ Fuel gas FIRETUBE WITH LINERBURNER 5 B, BURNER ‘The burner in an indirect fired heater is designed to produce a long narrow flame pattern. It is centered in the tube. Typical oilfield burners are shown on the next page, ‘The parts and functions of a burner ar 1, Fuel orifice. The orifice is a hole in the end of the fuel line. The hole is precision drilled so that an excessive amount of fuel eannot flow into the burner. The s ze of the hole will depend upon the allowable fuel rate, and also upon the heating value of the fuel. Propane, for example, has a much higher heating value than natural gas, and a smaller orifice would be used. 2. Mixing chamber. The mixing chamber is designed so that the fuel and air later. thoroughly mix before combustion. We will go into greater detail on t Burner tip. The tip of the burner is drilled with holes that are sized and located So that the flame will travel in the middle of the firetube and not touch the walls. Primary air control. Most of the air used in burning the fuel comes from the primary air opening. The air is sucked into the burner as the fuel gas velocity inereases when it flows through the orifice. Secondary air control. This device serves the same function as the primary air control. Smaller burners often use primary air as their only air source and have no secondary air control. C. STACK ‘The stack is usually a piece of pipe that fits over the outlet end of the firetube. Its height will vary from 2 to 6m [6 to 20 ft], depending upon the location. A high stack is used when leaking hydrocarbons may be present. D. PILOT BURNER ‘The pilot burner has the same parts as the main burner, but it is much smaller. It has no secondary air control. Pilot burners on small heaters often have a fixed air opening that has no adjustment.| | | 6 BURNERS PHOTOGRAPH AND DETAIL OF BURNER WITH PRIMARY AND SECONDARY AIR CONTROL, Burner Gas Tip — Heating Pitot Miser Pitat can oe a _ =a Primary.) Air Control second Register Control Slip-On Mounting Flange Adjustable Air Plate co Tip Nut Mixing Chamber | Le Fuel Gas BURNER WITH SINGLE AIR CONTROL e ounnensFUEL CONTROL SYSTEM E, FUEL CONTROL SYSTEM Most heaters have a diaphragm operated control valve to regulate the flow of fuel to the burner. The control valve is actuated by a temperature controller. ‘The system also includes a pressure reducing regulator on the inlet fuel line to lower the pressure to the maximum that the burner is designed for. High fuel pressure can cause the burner to over-fire and burn out the firetube. ‘The fuel system also includes a line with a pressure regulator to the pilot gas burner. The regulator is set to hold the proper flame pattern in the pilot burner. TEMPERATURE |CD| CONTROLLER |o Of 100-200 kPa 115-30 psil B 7 Fuel gas PRESSURE REGULATOR s PILOT [100 Pe Paces URE REGULATOR FUEL CONTROL SYSTEM. F. ACCESSORIES 1. Fuel Gas Serubber. A vertical vessel is usually used on small heaters. It has an internal float that blocks the flow of gas when liquid approaches the top of the vessel. Liquid is drained with a dump trap. conventional level controllers to drain liqui Larger heaters may have a separator with and high-level fuel shutdown devices. 2. Fuel Gas Heating Coil. When condensation is likely in the fuel line, # few feet of fuel Piping is installed in the liquid that surrounds the firetube so that the fuel will be heated enough to vaporize liquid that is in the fuel gas.8 ACCESSORIES 3. Flame Ignition System. Some large heaters are equipped with @ spark plug and high ( voltage coil that will light the pilot either manually or automatically. The system usually operates on 120/240 volts, but can be used with batteries. ra SI TEMPERATURE |] * CONTROLLER o_O 100-200 kPa 115-30 psi wap fe= I [Pitot | ignitor} Heating Coil Fuel DUMP Gas Y TRAP oe FUEL GAS SCRUBBER HEATER ACCESSORIES 4. Flame Arrester. The flame arrester shown opposite prevents a back-fire in the heater. Fire could come out the heater end of the firetube for several reasons. ‘The most hazardous situation would be caused by ignition of gas or hydrocarbon liquid that was escaping from a leak near the heater. If the leaking fuel were to catch fire, the fire would travel back to the source of the leak and might result in a major fire or explosion. ‘The arrester cell is made of thin corrugated aluminum sheet that is wound in a spiral coil. It is designed so that if gas outside the unit passes through the coil and ignites inside the burner, the flame will cool to the point that it will go out as it tries to move from the inside to the outside of the cell. ‘The arrester is actually a heat exchanger in which ambient air temperature cools a burning gas below its ignition temperature. ‘The Figure on page 10 shows the function of the flame arrester. (|FLAME ARRESTER 9 SHUT DOWN PANEL ARRESTER BURNER FUEL” (PQ CONTROLS FLAME | | | BURNER BURNER INDIRECT FIRED HEATER WITH FLAME ARRESTER10 FLAME ARRESTER 5. Stack Arrester. In some heaters, the temperature of the fuel gas leaving the stack is € high enough to ignite fuel that may have leaked near the stack. The stack arrester is a flame arrester installed on the stack. Vapors from hydrocarbon leak blow into burner and ignite. Fire will travel e back to source of leak and set fire to it. prevents fire inside burner from igniting vapor outside \. $ { “ the heater. e FUNCTION OF FLAME ARRESTER: (@ PRINCIPLES OF HEATER OPERATION u Problem 1 Match each item in the left column with that which most closely describes it in the right column. Firetube a Burner b. Pilot burner e Flame arrester a. Liner e No secondary air control. Prevent backfire. Mix gas and Prevent flame from touching firetube. Totally immersed in liquid. IL PRINCIPLES OF A. GAS COMBUSTION HEATER OPERATION Natural gas is usually composed of 85 to 90% @) methane, Ciy and the remainder is ethane, C2, @ ® © @ and other hydrocarbons, Let's assume for the moment that it is 100% methane. Methane is a hydrocarbon that consists of one atom of carbon @) and 4 atoms of hydrogen. ‘The methane motecule is shown to the left. When gas burns, a chemical reaction occurs between the gas and oxygen in the air. ‘The reaction that takes place when methane burns is: CH, + 202 C02 + 2H20 1 volume 2 volumes 1 volume 2 volumes methane oxygen carbon dioxide water (steam) When the reaction occurs, heat is released: When 1 cubie meter of gas burns, 37 300 kJ of heat is produced. When 1 cubic foot of gas burns, 1000 Btu of heat is produced. The oxygen which combines with the methane comes from the air. Air is composed vo of 20% oxygen and 80% nitrogen. In order to burn 1 volume of gas, 10 volumes of air must be present. (10 volumes of air contains 2 volumes of oxygen). If less than 1012 PRINCIPLES OF HEATER OPERATION volumes of air are present, the gas will not completely burn. When gas and air burn, the heat of reaction has to go somewhere. It heats the combustion products — CO2 and steam — to about 1925°C [3500°F], if the gas and air are thoroughly mixed in a 1 to 10 ratio. In other words, when gas and air at ambient temperature burn, the heat of reaction raises the temperature of the combustion products to about 1925°C [3500°F]. If less than 10 volumes of air are present for each volume of fuel, some of the gas will not burn. This wastes gas, and also results in a lower combustion temperature. If there are more than 10 volumes of air, the gas will completely burn, but some of the heat of reaction will be used to heat the excess air that was present. For example, if there are 11 volumes of air, the temperature of combustion products will be only 1775°C [3225°F]. ‘The excess air absorbed about 8% of the heat. Or, to put it another way, 8% of the fuel was wasted in heating excess air. In order to burn hout any excess air, the gas and air must be thoroughly mixed before buming occurs. It is almost impossible to mix the two so that each molecule of gas is surrounded by 10 molecules of air. Some will have 9 parts, and some will have 11. Consequently, it is almost always necessary to have some excess air present in order to completely burn all of the gas. In fact, it is usually necessary to have about 12 parts of air present for each part of gas in order to be sure all of the gas burns. It is better to have excess air and burn all of the gas than have a shortage of air and not burn all of the gas. More heat will be given off when all of the gas burns; and of equal importance, deadly carbon monoxide is formed when a shortage of air occurs. When the proper volumes of gas and air are mixed in a burner, a blue flame will result. It may have streaks of yellow or red, which are often called squirrel tails. A flame that is red or yellow is caused from ineomplete combustion. It may be due to insufficient air, or improper mixing of the fuel and air before ignition. The procedure for adjusting the fuel and air is discussed in Chapter 4. B. HEAT TRANSFER An indirect fired heater is simply a heat exchanger in which the heat from hot fuel gas inside the firetube is transferred to the liquid outside the tube. The principles of heat transfer are discussed in PLP manual P-7, HEAT EXCHANGERS.HEAT TRANSFER 13 Heat inside firetube flows into liquid outside. FIRETUBE IS HEAT EXCHANGER ‘The temperature of combustion gas inside the firetube will vary from about 1650°C [3000°F] at the burner to 482°C [900°F] as the gas leaves the firetube and enters the stack. ‘The heat transfer that takes place in an exchanger is determined by the equation: Duty, Q = Ux Ax OT Wheret Q = Heat transferred, kJ or Btu per hour. U = Exchanger coefficient. A = Exchanger surface, area, square meters (m?) or square feet (sq ft). AT = Average temperature difference between the hot gas inside the firetube and the liquid outside the firetube. In heaters, the coefficient and AT are combined in a single term called flux rate. ‘The flux rate is the amount of heat that passes across each square meter [square foot] of surface area of the firetube in one hour. ‘The heat transfer equation for heaters is: Duty, Q = (Area) x (Flux Rate) = A x Fl Q = Heat transferred, kJ/hr [Btu/hr] A = Area of firetube, square meters or square feet. FI = Flux rate, kJ/m?/hr (Btu/sq ft/nr]4 @ larger firetube than a high rate. and 136 000 kJ/m*/rr [6000 and 12 000 Btu/sq ft/nr] of area, shown on the following page. HEAT TRANSFER The heat transfer equation can be rearranged to calculate the area as follows: nese Bee = Br Example A U-shaped firetube in an amine reboiler is 508 mm [20 in.] in diameter and 10 m [33 ft] long. What is the duty of the heater if the flux rate is 68 300 kJ/m? /rr [6000 Btu/sq ft/hr] ? | Jo m(33 ft} [50s rmml 20 in} Flux = 68 300 kJ/m?* /hr | 6000 Btu/sq ft/nr) sI_UNITS ENGLISH_UNITS Swface Area Equation, A= x Dia x Length = 3.14 DxL Diameter 508 mm or 0.508 m 20 in= 20 = 1.67 ft 12 Total Length 10 x2=20m 33 ft x 2 = 66 ft ‘Area 3.14 x 0.508 x 20 3.14 x 1.67 x 66 = 31.9 m? = 946 sq ft Flux 68 300 m? 6000 Btu/sa ft Heat transfer equation, Q = Area x Flux = 31.9 x 68 300 = 346 x 600 = 2 178 770 ki/or = 2076 000 Btu The flux rate will vary with the service of the heater. A low flux rate requires The flux rate on most heaters is between 68 000 Typical rates areFLUX RATE AND AREA 15 FIRETUBE FLUX RATES LIQUID OUTSIDE FLUX RATE FIRETUBE _ kim7/hr — Btu/sq ft/hr Glycol Reboiler Glycol 74.000 6 500 Amine Reboiler Amine 90 600 8 000 Salt Bath Heater Molten Salt 90 600 8.000 Heating Oil Heater Heating Oil 96 300 8.500 Emulsion Treater il Emulsion 136 000 12 000 Water Heater Fresh Water 136 000 12 000 We said that the flux rate was the amount of heat per hour that transfers into the liquid surounding the firetube across each square meter [ square foot ] of firetube surface area. We also said that the temperature of the firetube is about the same as the temperature of the liquid that surrounds it. As the flux rate increases, the temperature of the tube goes up. At a flux rate of 68 000 kd/m * [ 6000 Btu/sq ft J, the temperature of the firetube is a few degrees above that of the liquid. At a flux rate of 136 000 kJ/m? [12 000 Btu/sq ft], the tube temperature is 25° to 50°C [ 45° to 90°F ] above that of the liquid. Consequently, low flux rates are used in amine or glycol solutions where a high tube temperature could cause the liquid to deteriorate. If the liquid is water, it will not be adversely affected by a higher temperature, and higher flux rates can be used. If the firetube in a glycol reboiler was used in an oil well flowline heater, its flux rate could be about twiee as much, A larger burner would obviously be needed. Problem 2 An indirect fired heater is installed in a heater- treater, The heater U-tube is 406.4 mm [ 16 in.] pipe and is 1.5 m(6 ft] long. The flux rate is 113 000 kd/m * /he [10 000 Btu/sq ft/nr J. a, What is the area of the firetube? b. What is the duty of the heater?16 FLUX RATE AND AREA Example The glycol reboiler shown below is designed for a duty of 1 050 000 kJ/nr {1.000 000 Btu/hr]. The flux rate is 79 600 kJ/m? [7 000 Btu/sq ft]. What length of firetube ts required if the diameter {s 609.6 mm [24 in]. I 3.55 m{11.75 ft) Heater, duty, Q [e00.s mm 24 in} Flux = 19 000 keal/m? [ 7000 BTU/sq/ft] Flux rate, Fl S_UNITS 1 050 000 kJ/hr 79 600 kJ/m? /hr ENGLISH UNITS 1 000 000 Btu/hr 7000 Btu/sq ft/ar Equation for area Substitute in equation Firetube diameter Equation for pipe area Rearrange and solve for length Substitute in length equation, L Total firetube length U shaped length ts 1/2 the length of straight tube. A = —Duty Flux Rate 1050 000 = 4.000 000 79 600 7000 13.19 m? = 142.8 sq ft 609.6 mm or 0.6096 m 24 in, or 2 ft A = 3.14 x Dia x Length Length = —Ared. 3.14 x Dia 13.19 - 142.8 BI x 0.6096 ie oidexza) 6.89 m = 22.7 ft 6.89 x 0.5 22.7 x 0.5 3.445 m = 11.35 ftTEMPERATURES IN HEATERS 7 110°C 104°C 100°C. ‘ [230°F) (219° FY (212°F] 1 ay

serve flame CONTROLLER [0 O} / pattern. Set pressure regulators oF oe Fuel A Gas Open pilot valve Close Open and light pilot. fuel fuel valves valve HEATER START-UP SEQUENCEOPERATION B. SHUT-DOWN 1. Close a valve in the fuel line upstream of the fuel regulator. Allow the fuel in line downstream of the valve to burn out. 2. When the fire goes out, close valves in the fuel lines to the burner and pilot. ROUTINE OPERATION 1, Cheek to see that the temperature or other controller is regulating the fuel control valve within tolerable ranges. The liquid temperature should be within 3°C [5°F] of the set point; if some other process vat rate, it should be within 5% of the set point. ble controls the fuel 2. Cheek the level of liquid outside the firetube to see that it is totally immersed. 3, Observe the burner flame pattern and adjust the air if necessary. 4. Operate each shut-down device at 3 month intervals to see that they function properly. 5. If the heater has « flame arrester, visually inspect it for plugging or obstruction from leaves, rags, ete. 6. Cheek the fuel system for leaks. 7. Check gas leaving the stack for smokey appearance, w h indicates a leaking firetube, or liquid hydrocarbon in the fuel gas. 8. Inspect the inside of the firetube through the inspect n opening for a hot spot whieh is an indication of scale on the outside of the firetube. Cheek the burner end of the firetube for liquid dripping out, which indicates a leak in the firetube. 10. Cheek the stack temperature for a change from the last observation. A rise in temperature can be caused by: heater firing harder, coke has formed inside the tube, a leaking tube, @ change in the fuel~ ir mixture in the burner. CONTROL ‘The two major control points on an indirect fired heater are: 1, Fuel rate to the burner. 2. Air flow to the burner.CONTROL OF FUEL RATE TO BURNER a7 1. Fuel Rate To Burner If the action of the temperature controller is set for quick response, that is a low Proportional band setting, the effect will be to fully open or close the fuel valve as the liquid temperature falls or rises above the set point in the controller. The likelihood of burning out the firetube is much greater with the burner firing at a full rate than at @ partial rate. In addition, the fuel consumption will be greatest when flow is cyclic. Consequently, it is desirable to stabilize the firing rate and avoid full firing even for short periods. ‘The fuel rate to a burner is varied to hold a constant temperature in the liquid surrounding the firetube. The fuel control system includes a temperature controller and control valve, and a pressure regulator. If the temperature of the liquid begins to fall, the temperature controller will signal the fuel control valve to open. This results in more heat input, and the temperature of liquid begins to rise. The volume of liquid surrounding the firetube is usually fairly large, so it may take 15 to 30 minutes to raise the temperature of the liquid to the set point on the controller. There is often a lag in the control system, so that the liquid temperature rises above the set point before the controller begins to close the fuel valve. When the liquid temperature rises above the set point on the temperature controller, the controller signals the fuel control valve to close. This reduces the heat input to Adjust pressure regulators and temperature controller so that the control valve is about 50% lopen most of the time. TEMPERATURE |] CONTROLLER [o_o 100-200 kPa [15-30 psil T) = ~ Fuel 7 CONTROM onessuBe REGULATOR PILOT PRESSURE REGULATOR FUEL CONTROL“28 CONTROL OF HEATER the heater, and the liquid ‘temperature starts to fall. Several minutes are usually required for the temperature to drop after the fuel rate is reduced, and the liquid temperature ‘may drop below the set point on the temperature controller before the controller will signal the fuel valve to open so that more heat is added to the liquid. ‘The effect of the delay in response is to set-up a cycle in the fuel rate and liquid temperature. ‘The cycle can be minimized by adjusting the temperature controller so that it has a slow response to temperature changes and make small changes in its pressure signal to the fuel control valve. This is accomplished by increasing the proportional band on the controller. ‘Another factor which affects the fuel control system is that of fuel pressure. A. pressure regulator in the fuel line is set to hold a constant pressure of 100 to 200 kPa [15 to 30 psi] to the fuel control valve. Fuel pressure downstream of the regulator is adjusted by changing the spring tension in the regulator. Increasing the tension raises the fuel pressure and vice versa. ‘The regulator should be adjusted so that the fuel control valve is 502 open when the burner is firing at its normal rate. If the fuel pressure is too high, the normal operating position of the control valve will be less than 50%, and it will be more difficult to maintain a constant temperature of liquid surrounding the firetube. If the fuel pressure is too low, the burner may not receive sufficient fuel to maintain temperature of the liquid around the firetube. ‘The ideal adjustments of the pressure regulator and liquid temperature controller are those which result in maintaining the desired liquid temperature at the lowest fuel rate to the burner. This is achieved by adjusting the temperature controller and pressure regulator so that the burner fires at a fairly constant rate with the fuel control valve about 50% open. 2. Air Flow To Burner Air adjustment to the burner is made for three reasons: a. To provide a stable flame pattern so that flame-out will not occur with a change in fuel rate, or from a gust of wind. bs To center the flame within the firetube so that fire does not touch the wall of the tube and cause it to burn out. cs To conserve fuel. An excess of air beyond that needed to burn the fuel results in wasting fuel to heat the excess air. A shortage ofCONTROL OF AIR TO BURNER 29 => Proper fuel-air mixture. Flame is blue with a few yellow streaks. oC Excess primary air. Flame has moved away from the burner tip. A few streaks of yellow are present. Burner usually makes a roaring sound, = — = ) - Z- WAGE ee ADS KEES FF Shortage of air. Flame is yellow and red, Flame pattern is not well defined. EFFECT OF FUEL AIR RATIO ON FLAME PATTERNS As previously mentioned, the flame pattern in a firetube should be a long narrow flame that does not touch the firetube. The flame pattern is set by adjusting the primary and secondary air rates, Primary air supplies the air for combustion during the first half of flame travel down the fire-tube. Air for combustion in the last half of flame travel comes from the secondary air ports. An excess of primary air usually results in the flame moving away from the burner, fand the burner has a roaring sound. A shortage of primary air will appear as an irregular yellow flame that may extend far down the firetube. » Setting the primary and secondary air rates is a trial and error process. The flame Pattern will vary from one burner to another, so it is difficult to come up with a30 CONTROL OF AIR TO BURNER procedure that will apply to all burners. This procedure will apply to most burners: 1. If burner has secondary air adjustment, set it 1/2 open. 2. Adjust the primary air plate to give a long narrow flame that is not more than 1 em [1/2 in.] removed from the tip of the burner. The first half of the flame should be blue with a few yellow tips. 3. Adjust the secondary air plate to take most of the yellow color out of the last half of the flame. If possible, analyze the stack gas as the secondary air is adjusted until the excess air is 15 to 20%, Proper adjustment of the secondary air plate often leaves it only 10 to 30% open. If excess air is present, it usually comes from the secondary air ports. 4, Repeat steps 2 and 3 until a good flame pattern is established with 15 to 20% excess air. Partially close and open the burner fuel valve several times to be sure that the flame is stable at low and high fuel rates, and no flameout occurs. Caution: if a flameout occurs, quickly close the fuel valve and allow the heater to stand at least 10 minutes before relighting it. A momentary flameout can occur with fuel in the burner, and an explosion can result if the burner is relit. Quite frequently, when the inspection plate is opened to observe the flame pattern, some seale or dirt is dislodged and enters the firetube. When it reaches the flame, it will cause a yellow color. It gives a similar appearance to that of insufficient air. Blowing sand has the same effect. When you check the flame, be sure that yellow color is not caused from dirt that is entering the heater. Setting the flame pattern on a new heater is often made more difficult because the manufacturer occasionally supplies the burner with the wrong orifice or the wrong burner tip. It is sometimes necessary to set the fuel pressure regulator at @ higher or lower pressure than the manufacturer recommends. In addition, new installations often have dirt and slag in fuel piping that can restrict the flow in the piping or the burner. ‘The most important point to remember in adjusting the flame pattern, or making other operational changes, is to do one thing at a time, and allow time for its effect to be judged before doing something else. If you make several changes at the same time, you may make the proper adjustment at one point and off-set it with an improper adjustment at another point. You see only the total effect of several changes, and have no way ofTROUBLESHOOTING 31 determining which ones were proper and which ones were not. Most burners which are rated at 1 000 000 kJ/h [1 MM Btu/hr] or less have no secondary air adjustment. Consequently, only the primary air door requires adjustment. As combustion occurs in a heater, the flue gas is heated, which causes it to expand. As it expands, it becomes less dense. The overall effect is to reduce the pressure inside the firetube so that it will suck air from the outside. Air sucked in will cool the combustion gas and require the heater to fire harder in order to heat it. ‘The burner end of the heater should be sealed to prevent air from leaking into it and wasting fuel. Problem 4 Match each item on the left with that on the right which most closely describes it. 1. Exeess primary air to burner 8, Combustion air for last half of flame. 2. Insufficient air to burner b. Close fuel valve. 3. Liquid temperature controller ¢. Flame too far from burner. ___4. Secondary air d. Regulate burner fuel rate. ____5. Shut down burner e. Yellow flame V. TROUBLESHOOTING Most of the operating problems that occur on an indirect fired heater involve failure of accessories or shut down devices. The heater has only two main parts — a firetube and burner — and a failure or malfunction of one can usually be found quickly. Each heater manufacturer has a different control and shut down system, so it is difficult to prepare @ troubleshooting procedure that will apply to all heaters. Sine most problems are associated with auxiliary equipment, the best means of solving operating problems is by prevention. Each instrument should be checked for operation monthly. Instrument lines should be blown out frequently; flame arresters should be removed and cleaned at six month intervals; a separator should be located in the fuel gas system and it should be kept drained of liquid. The following troubleshooting procedures for the most frequent operating problems with heaters will apply to most heaters. Procedures for finding problems with instruments and accessories are not ineluded.1 2. 3. 6 ‘TROUBLESHOOTING CAUSE OF LOW HEAT OUTPUT Low fuel gas pressure. Improper air setting on the burner Low fuel gas flow rate. Flame arrester is plugged and will not allow air to enter the burner. Firetube is covered with car- bon on the inside, or has an accumulation of scale on the outside. Change in heating value of fuel gas. A. TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE WHEN HEATER WILL NOT SUPPLY ITS RATED HEAT OUTPUT TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE Cheek pressure setting of fuel regulator and raise to design point. Check the flame pattern and color and adjust if necessary. b. Cheek the stack gas for excess air. Cut secondary air if excess is over 202. a, Compare rate with design. If rate is near or above design rate, the heater may be supplying the design heat rate, but the process requirements have exceeded the design rate. b. If fuel rate is below the design rate, check the following for accumulation of dirt: 1. Fuel control valve. 2, Fuel orifice in burner. 3. Holes in end of burner. a. Inspect arrester and clean. a. Check the temperature of flue gas in the stack. It will rise as earbon or scale builds up. A temperature greater than 650°C [ 1200°F } usually indicates a fouled firetube. b. Inspect and clean firetube. It is possible (but unlikely) that the burner was designed and the air set for a certain heating value fuel. If the fuel valueeo TROUBLESHOOTING 33 CAUSE OF LOW HEAT OUTPUT 1 Burner is plugged or damaged. TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE changes, a new burner may be required. Consult the burner manfacturer. Inspect and repair or replace. B, TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE FOR FREQUENT FLAMEOUT 3. CAUSE OF FLAMEOUT An excess or shortage of prim- ary air. Fuel pressure fluctuates. Fuel contains liquid, TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE Adjust primary and secondary air. a, Observe fuel pressure downstream of pressure regulator. than 15 kPa [2 psi}, repair regulator. If it varies more b. Observe action of the fuel control valve. If movement is abrupt, check the following for cause: 1. Leaking diaphragm. 2, Actuator spring is loose. too tight or too 3. Temperature controller is set for snap action rather than throttling action. Adjust so that it throttles |. Air line between controller and control valve is plugged or leaking. a, If the liquid is water, it will probably evaporate before it can be visually de- ‘The fuel piping will have to be taken apart and checked for evidence of water. tected in the burner or firetube. b. If the liquid is hydrocarbon, a black ‘smoke will appear out the stack during burner operation, or on restart after a flameout.34 5 TROUBLESHOOTING CAUSE OF FLAMEOUT Wind gusts blow out fire. (Flameout is often blamed on wind when the cause is some~ thing else.) Failure of flameout shut- down device. Burner is plugged or dam- aged. TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE Cheek fuel separator to see that liquid dumping facilities operate properly. If fuel separator is some distance from heater, condensation may oceur in the line out of the separator. It may be helpful to insert a few feet of fuel piping in the liquid that surrounds the heater firetube in order to vaporize liquid that condenses in the fuel line. Ie it is, install wind sereen around burner. Be sure flameout is due to wind. Cheek device. Repair or replace. Inspect and repair or replace. C, TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE FOR FREQUENT FIRETUBE FAILURE 2. CAUSE OF FAILURE Heater operates above de- a. sign rate. b. e Flame touches wall of fire- a tube. b. e TROUBLESHOOTING PROCEDURE Check fuel rate. It will be above design rate when heater over-fires. Cut fuel to design rate. Burner may be tilted in its mounting bracket. Cheek and correct. Visually check flame pattern. Adjust primary air to center flame in tube. Burner may be tilted in its mounting bracket. Check and correct.‘TROUBLESHOOTING 35 PROCEDURE oe CAUSE OF FAILURE ‘TROUBLESHOOTIN 4. Holes in the firing end of burner may be partially plugged or improperly drilled so that fire is directed toward tube. Burner may have to be replaced, | . Build-up of carbon inside tube can ‘cause hot spots. Carbon results from a shortage of air, or liquid in the fuel. Cheek for both. Install liner in tube. 3. Corrosion or seale on out- Inspeet tube. If scale is present, re- side of the firetube causes move it and add corrosion or seale hot spot. inhibitor to liquid. 4. Firetube is touching the side Check heater shell for hot spot where or bottom of the heater. tube is touching it. Install bracket on e® firetube to prevent it from touching the shell. Problem 5 Mateh each item in the left column with that in the right column which most closely describes it. 1. Heater won't supply a. Liquid in fuel gas. esign heat output, 2. Seale on firetube. b. Flame touching firetube. 3. Smoke in stack. ©. Stack temperature goes up. 4. Firetube failure, 4. Flame arrester plugged.36 VI. HEATER SAFETY DEVICES A wide variety of safety devices are available for indirect heaters. Selection usually depends upon the potential hazard of the heater. For example, a heater used to heat water in a flowline heater would probably not result in any great damage if the firetube burned out, or other failure occurred. It would require very little safety protection. On the other hand, a heater in a glycol reboiler on an offshore platform could endanger the entire platform if it failed, and should have maximum proteetion against failure. Safety devices can operate mechanically or pneumatically. Furthermore, pneumatic devices can use either air or gas as the supply source. Each heater manufacturer has a different method for actuating safety devices. Consequently, it is almost impossible to show all of the combinations which are available. Typical safety devices are listed below. A. HIGH LIQUID TEMPERATURE ‘A temperature sensing device measures the temperature of liquid surrounding the firetube. The device is usually set to trip when the liquid temperature rises 6 to 10°C [10 to 18°F] above the normal operating temperature. For example, the normal r is about 204°C [400°F]. The high temperature device is set to trip at 210°C [410°F]. If the glycol temperature rises to operating temperature in a glycol reb« 210°C [ 410°F ], the device trips. It moves a 3-way valve in the instrument gas supply line to the temperature controller so that instrument gas pressure to the controller is Temp Switch] a Vent ¥ HIGH LIQUID TEMPERATURE SHUTDOWN Fu ge:HEATER SAFETY DEVICES 37 is vented to the air. This, in turn, will vent air pressure from the controller to the burner control valve, and the control valve will close and stop fuel to the burner. The pilot light stays on. When the temperature of the glycol around the fire tube drops below 210°C [410°F], the 3-way valve in the supply air line to the temperature controller returns to its normal position and instrument air pressure is restored to the temperature contrdl system, and fuel flows to the burner. B. LOW LEVEL SHUTDOWN ‘The level sensing device — usually a float — is located near the top of the firetube. It will trip if the level falls to the point that some of the tube may not be covered with liquid. The firetube will burn up in a matter of minutes if it is not completely covered with liquid. When the level switch trips from low level, it moves a 3-way valve in the instrument supply gas line to the vent position. In the vent position, instrument supply gas is blocked in, and pressure on the outlet side of the 3-way valve is vented. ‘This releases pressure on the diaphragm of the shutdown valve and the valve closes and shuts in fuel to the burner and pilot, which shuts down the heater. Instrument Supply Gas LOW LIQUID LEVEL SHUTDOWNi 38 HEATER SAFETY DEVICES FLAMEOUT SHUTDOWN 4 ‘A flameout occurs when both the main burner and pilot go out. This protection is | included on most heaters, and most heater suppliers have @ different method of turning off fuel to the burner and pilot. One flameout system is shown below. If the pilot light i goes out, the flame rod will cool and close a valve in the pilot line, which is also the \ instrument supply gas line, Instrument gas pressure to the temperature controller will : drop to zero, and the pressure on the diaphragm of the burner control valve will also drop to zero and it will close. Fuel gas Instrument Supply Gas FLAMEQUT SHUTDOWN D. HIGH STACK TEMPERATURE SHUTDOWN ‘This device is usually used in glyeol reboilers, or in eases where the liquid that surrounds the firetube will burn. ‘The device serves as a leaking firetube detector. When the temperature in the stack reaches the trip point, the temperature switch will move a ‘3+way valve in the supply gas line to the diaphragm of the shutdown valve to the vent e position. Pressure to the diaphragm will vent to atmosphere and the shutdown valve will close and shutdown the heater.HEATER SAFETY DEVICES 39 > Vent ———_—— SHUT DOWN VALVE, Fuel Instrument Supply Gas —) HIGH STACK TEMPERATURE SHUTDOWN HIGH OR LOW FUEL PRESSURE SHUTDOWN This device is usually used on large heaters only. It protects against fluctuations in fuel pressure which could cause the burner to over-fire on high pressure, and possibly cause an explosion in the firetube on low pressure. It fuel pressure rises above or falls below the settings of the pressure switches, a 3-way valve in the air line to the shutdown valve moves to the vent position and vents air pr closes and shuts down the heater. -ssure from the shutdown valve, whieh40 HEATER SAFETY DEVICES [High Low Pressure [Switch Vent Fuel Instrument Supply Gas HIGH OR LOW FUEL PRESSURE SHUTDOWN Safety devices are provided to protect equipment and personnel. Unfortunately, they often suffer from lack of maintenance, so that they fail to function when they are needed; or they trip prematurely and they are taken out of service. Most fires which have oceurred on heaters would not have happened if the safety deivees had been in working order. Each device should be operated at 3 month intervals, and faulty devices repaired promptly. Problem 6 1. High liquid temperature. a, Leaking firetube. ___2. Flameout. b. Close fuel to burner. 3. High stack temperature. c. Firetube not covered with liquid. 4, Low level shutdown. d. Shutdown heater.INDIRECT FIRED VALIDATION a1 HEATERS SI UNITS Name. eo 1. a, What is the area of the firetube shown below? b. What is the duty of the heater? ka Tar Check the correct item or items for each of the following statements. 2. The main parts of an indireet heater are: Stack Burner Firetube Flame arrester 3. ‘The parts of a burner are: Primary air adjustment Mixing chamber Fuel orifice Fuel regulator 4. An ifidireet fired heater is a: Heat exchanger Separator Boiler 5. Flameout is caused by: Plugged flame arrester __Low liquid level Improper fuel-air mixture High liquid temperature 6. Firetubé failure will result from: Seale on tube ___Flameout Tube touching bottom of heater Excess primary air 7. Improper fuel-air mixture results in: cel Waste of fuel High stack temperature Firetube failure Unstable flame 8. List the symptoms of each of the following: a. Seale on firetube b. Excess primary air to burner c. Insufficient primary alr to burner 4. Leaking Tiretube42 2. Duty Area of Firetube Area Flux Duty Length of firetube = Length of U tube Log 2 © feed Aa 5. b Loa 2 © a 4b Lob 2 @ oe OE SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS ~ SI UNITS Area x F x 3.14 x Dia x Length 406.4 mm aad x Sot xL5x2 3.83 square meters 113 000 kd/m? /hr 3.83 x 113 000 32. 790 kd/hr Area Bld x Dia 3.83 = 2.40 x 0.5INDIRECT FIRED VALIDATION 43 HEATERS ENGLISH UNITS Name 1. a. What is the area of the firetube shown below? sq. ft b. What is the duty of the heater? Btu/hr J 20. Flux = 8000 Btu/sq ft Check the correct item or items for each of the following statements. ‘The main parts of an indirect heater are: Stack Burner Firetube Flame arrester 3. The parts of a burner ari Primary air adjustment Mixing chamber Fuel orifice Fuel regulator An indirect fired heater is a: Heat exchanger Separator Boiler 5. Flameout is caused by: Plugged flame arrester ___Low liquid level Improper fuel-air mixture High liquid temperature 6. Firefube failure will result from: Seale on tube Flameout ——ube touching bottom of heater Improper fuel-air mixture results inz Waste of fuel High stack temperature Firetube failure Unstable flame 8 List the symptoms of each of the following: a. Scale on firetube :xeess primary air b. Excess primary air to burner ¢. Insufficient primary air to burner <. Leaking firetube44 la ioe 19 10 SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS — ENGLISH UNITS Duty Area of firetube Length of firetube Area Flux Duty Length of U tube 1 2 3. 4 5. i Iv 1m Ia 19 10 Io 12 10 10 lo ie 1a Io ‘Area x Flux 3.14 x Dia x Length 16 in, 12 41,87 square feet 10 000 Btu/sq ft/hr 3.14 x x5x2 41.87 x 10 000 = 418 700 Btu/hr Area _ __ 41.87 eat Blix Dia ~ idx @ori2 ~* 8.0 x 0.5 = 4.0 ftPLP TRAINING MANUALS NUMBER TITLE FA Basic Units of Measurement F2 Measurement of Energy F3 Hydrocarbons 4 Fundamentals of Electricity Pat Contactors P2 Solid Bed Adsorbers P3 Emulsion Treating P4 Flow Measurement P5 Fluid Flow P6 Fractionators PT Heat Exchangers P-8 Hydrate Inhibition Pg Lean Oil Absorbers P-10 Mechanical Refrigeration P11 Separators P12 Stabilizing Crude Oil and Condensate P13 Strippers E41 Pneumatic Control E-3A Centrifugal Compressors Part 1 E-3B Centrifugal Compressors Part 2 E4 Piston Type Compressors E13 Indirect Fired Heaters E-14 LACT Units E16 Centrifugal Pumps E17 Positive Displacement Pumps E-22 The Oil Well MS Oilfield Safety S41 Cryogenic Gas Plants S-2 Solid Bed Adsorption Process $3 Glycol Deydration Process S-4 Amine Type Sweetening Process Petroleum Learning Programs LTD. 305 WELLS FARGO DR,, SUITE 4 + HOUSTON, TEXAS 77090 + (713) 444-7632 + FAX; (713) 586-9676