De-inventorying and Decontamination Chemistry that Meets the Most Rigorous Safety, Industry and Plant Standards

Use of a Light Oil Cycle (LCO) Enhancer to Improve De-inventory and Decontamination of a FCC Main Fractionator

Between changing feed stocks and typical process upsets FCC main fractionators bottoms commonly build up a significant hardened coke. This coke must be removed one way or another at the front end of turnarounds if tower entry is required. This case study is of a 300,000+ bpd Gulf coast refinery that used a LCO enhancer prior to the vapor phase decontamination. The enhancer increased the ability of the LCO to dissolve and break down the binders in the coke. The result was significantly reduced mechanical cleaning and a much faster coke removal post tower decontamination than the refinery has experienced in the past.

Original article written by Zach Stewart
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