Olefins.pdf
Problem:
Today’s markets and end users demand reliable performance from producers’ olefins units in order to maintain supply of quality products. Beyond the pressure imposed by the ultimate end users of the olefins, producers are also challenged with the fact that olefin units can take several days to complete a safe shutdown/startup if an asset requires immediate repair. Therefore, all key control valves become critical assets for sustaining olefins production and any need for service must be completed as quickly as possible if it cannot be done with the unit online.
When a North American refiner saw challenges with sluggish response on their hydrocarbon feedstock control valve to the olefins unit, they knew it was in their best interest to address the issue before any additional forced outages were incurred.
With $1M in lost production per day at risk, it was critical that any corrective actions be executable with the valve online. To ensure a seamless upgrade, Fisher Lifecycle Services was contracted to upgrade the instrumentation on the NPS 36” Fisher 7600 control valve equipped with a 480 Actuator and 3570 positioner.
Solution:
To ensure a seamless upgrade, Fisher Lifecycle Services was contracted to upgrade the instrumentation on the NPS 36” Fisher 7600 control valve equipped with a 480 Actuator and 3570 positioner. To address the stiction issues being observed with the 3750, Fisher readied all necessary hardware and accessories to complete an upgrade to the latest DVC6200 Positioner technology.
With the unit operating, the valve was safely locked into position to allow positioner upgrade online. However, during the upgrade process, operators observed that the unit was moving into a trip scenario, for which immediate use of the control valve was required. With no ability to operate remotely, the Lifecycle Services technician took hold of the hand wheel and manually operated the control valve for almost 8 full hours as the control room relayed valve position needs via radio. 8 hours later, with the upset avoided, the DVC upgrade was completed.
Results:
With the technician’s quick action to take over manual control, the customer was able to avoid approximately $15M in lost production had the unit tripped. Additionally, the improved performance of the upgraded Fisher control valve assembly allows them to control much tighter around set point and therefore provide a higher quality, more valuable product to their clients.
If you would like to know find out more about this Fisher success story, please comment below, or contact your Emerson Local Business Partner for additional details.