On the issue of reduced capacity during a state of emergency
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Today, a sudden downpour occurred, and the feed of catalyst into our diesel unit dropped by about 30 tons. While contacting the catalyst suppliers, we reduced the feed volume. At that time, I managed to reduce the amount of catalyst fed into the reactor by 10 tons in a short period of time. I would like to ask everyone whether this reduction in volume is reasonable The experienced technician said I reduced it too sharply; in hindsight, it wasn’t necessary, and the catalysis system also adjusted itself in time. At that time, the liquid level in the raw material buffer tank was around 80%, but suddenly 30 tons were lost. I wasn’t sure when they would be able to adjust things back to normal, so such a significant decrease occurred in a short period of time. I would like to ask everyone whether this amount of reduction is considered excessive, or rather, what should be done when reducing the output of the hydrogenation unit in an emergency situation?
I’m not sure what your processing capacity is; it’s really high. Please contact the scheduler or the team in charge as soon as possible to find out the exact situation and how long it will take to resume supply. If the liquid level in the buffer tank drops too much, I’d rather initiate a full cycle or reduce the flow rate gradually; if it drops suddenly by that much, won’t the system pressure and furnace temperature fluctuate? Will the product quality still be satisfactory? I’m just an external operator; teach me.
It is unclear what the processing volume of your facility is, and what proportion 10 tons represents of your total feed volume. As an operator, you should know how long the raw oil buffer tanks within the facility can sustain supply in the event of a disruption to feed delivery. During this period, it is necessary to reduce the temperature and volume of feed appropriately; if the facility has a circulation system, the product can be circulated back to the raw oil buffer tanks. Major adjustments should definitely be avoided
1. The processing capacity of the unit is 200 tons per hour, while that of Cerchina Road is 100 tons per hour
What constitutes a reasonable reduction in volume?
Personally, I think that if there is a disruption in the upstream raw materials, the first step should be to address that issue by figuring out when and how long it will take to get things back on track; only after that should the situation be reported to management so that the facilities can be adjusted accordingly. There’s no fixed solution for this; there’s just a general direction. In fact, for such problems, it relies on experience.
Yes, what I lack is experience. When watching the clock, I’m too afraid to make any adjustments. If I do make a change, I’m worried it won’t be right; if I don’t, well, I’m already sitting there. It can be quite confusing, and it’s exhausting to work in such circumstances
First, you need to understand all the principles behind the operations before starting to practice; at least that way you’ll know what’s going wrong and what to do about it. After that, it’s a matter of experience. You can proceed with the operation even if you don’t understand the principles, but as a result, many things will be visible in reality; still, it will take an experienced expert to clean up the mess
In fact, there’s no need to reduce the volume by such a large amount; generally, the liquid level in the raw material buffer tank is kept at a higher level, as this helps to prevent issues resulting from unstable feed rates or problems with the feed supply. If the supply of raw materials is truly unstable or interrupted, it is first necessary to determine how long the raw material buffer tank can sustain the supply. Then communicate with the catalyst or scheduler to make further adjustments.
Everyone has their own frustrations. In our line of work, especially as operators, who would want to pretend to know something they don’t in order to cause problems?
I think this is the better approach in an emergency. 1. When the liquid level in the raw material buffer tank is high, maintain stable operation first; contact the feeding area and the relevant equipment to find out what’s going on and when it will be resolved. Inform the dispatch team and the supervisors of the equipment, and report the situation ； 2. If the liquid level in the buffer tank drops too rapidly (which usually doesn’t happen, as the processing volume is high and the buffer tank is large), the frequency of the feed pump can be reduced first, along with the amount of gas fed into the reaction furnace, in order to monitor the temperature of the bed layer ； 3. Generally speaking, it’s possible to wait for the leader’s instructions, so it’s best to maintain stability for now and avoid making significant reductions on your own.