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The pilot project for the advanced hydrocracking control system has passed the acceptance test, and the pilot plant for FCC catalysts and their production processes has entered the trial operation phase. China National Petroleum Corporation’s first pilot project for an advanced hydrocracking control system was recently approved by an expert panel organized by Dushanzi Petrochemical Company. The implementation of this project will increase the kerosene yield by 33% and boost corporate profits by 3%. During this acceptance process, the key person in charge of the hydrocracking project team introduced the control interfaces of the five advanced control systems as well as their performance. The experts from the acceptance panel conducted a thorough review of the acceptance documents, project implementation, calibration, and overall performance based on the actual operation status on site. They unanimously agreed that the project passed the acceptance criteria, and they also offered suggestions such as developing additional product options, optimizing energy savings and consumption reduction, strengthening subsequent maintenance, and ensuring a high system availability rate. The pilot project for an advanced control system for hydrocracking at Sinopec’s refinery began to be prepared in the hydrocracking workshop at the beginning of October 2006. All tasks, including preliminary preparations, detailed plan design and confirmation, establishment of a soft testing system, and development of the mathematical model for the device, were carried out as planned. On June 7, 2007, all preparatory work was completed, and the phase of on-site implementation began. The advanced control trial operation is first carried out on the four liquid levels of the hot and cold high-pressure liquid separation levels in the hydrocracking reaction separation system. Subsequently, the key aspects of the unit—temperature control of six beds such as the refining and cracking reactors—were also put into trial operation one after another. In May 2008, the advanced control operating system for the hydrocracking unit entered a phase of comprehensive testing and analysis. Technicians, taking into account the production conditions, carefully analyzed the problems existing in this optimization system and proposed solutions. At present, all advanced controllers have been put into use; the automatic control rate, utilization rate, and reliability of all level gauges have all reached 100%, enabling stable control of the conversion rate and optimization of the product structure. Further news (correspondents Qiu Guoxian, Zhang Zhongdong, Liu Tao): On March 10, the “Pilot Plant for FCC Catalysts and Their Production Processes” project, undertaken by the China National Petroleum and Petrochemical Research Institute, passed the acceptance evaluation conducted by the Science and Technology Management Department of China National Petroleum Corporation. The expert group listened to a special report presented by Gao Xionghou, director of the Lanzhou Chemical Engineering Research Center at the Petrochemical Institute. Based on the adoption of advanced pilot-scale design concepts from both domestic and international sources, the Lanzhou Chemical Research Center will, in accordance with the principle of overall planning and phased implementation, and by leveraging the support of the Petrochemical Research Institute and Lanzhou Petrochemical Company, establish a pilot-scale production facility for FCC catalysts using the existing pilot laboratories within the Lanzhou Petrochemical plant. The project was approved in June 2006, and passed the expert evaluation organized by the Group’s Science and Technology Department on October 16. On August 3, 2007, the approval for the feasibility study report was obtained. Since its commencement, under the organization of the Petrochemical Research Institute, the project has progressed smoothly and achieved phased results. The experts present also visited the pilot plant for FCC catalysts and their production processes, where they conducted on-site investigations and evaluations of the project’s progress. During the acceptance evaluation, experts provided specific and constructive suggestions regarding the completion and operation of the FCC catalyst pilot plant, as well as its long-term role. The expert group gave high praise to the work of the Petrochemical Research Institute. The institute established a dedicated leadership team for the construction of a pilot-scale production facility for FCC catalysts and their preparation processes. This team is responsible for approving the implementation plan for the construction of such facilities, overseeing and guiding the process of acquiring necessary equipment, and determining as well as submitting the list of members for the technical committee ； The organizational structure of the test base and the staffing available can meet the needs of pilot-scale research ； To build the pilot plant, the Petrochemical Research Institute also established an FCC catalyst pilot research institute, with the testing personnel being appropriately matched to the current research tasks ； More than 80 new instruments and equipment intended to be acquired for the pilot plant have been basically installed; among them, key devices such as spray drying units, horizontal belt filters, and high-temperature roasting furnaces have been installed. Contracts have been signed for the DCR lift tube catalyst evaluation system and the accompanying CPS catalyst treatment system ； The pilot plant has also established a fairly comprehensive set of rules and regulations, including relevant work procedures, management systems, operating procedures for instruments and equipment, as well as an HSE management system. After a comprehensive evaluation, the expert group concluded that the pilot plant has a sound management structure with clear responsibilities, technical leaders who are competent and highly skilled, investment plans that have been largely completed, and complete sets of rules and regulations; therefore, it approved the pilot operation review for the pilot plant.