Fired heaters are an essential component of oil refineries all around the world. They are also a major consumer of energy, meaning even the smallest efficiency improvements can translate into saving hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. The presence of coke or scale in the process tubes of these fired heaters can have a major effect on how they perform, with increased fuel consumption being necessary to compensate for the reduction in heat flux caused by the deposited coke or scale. This, coupled with the corrosion mechanisms coke and scale can contribute to, such as sulfidation, carburization, embrittlement and metal dusting, means carrying out regular mechanical decoking on fired heaters should form an integral part of a refinery's preventative maintenance programs.
Without the information provided by the smartpig, operators have difficulty pinpointing where the remaining coke or scale is located.
By concentrating solely on mechanical decoking and smart pigging of fired heater process tubes, Cokebusters USA has grown into a leading center of excellence in this field. As the only decoking company with its own inline inspection tool (the patented Merlin Smartpig), not only is Cokebusters the only company able to offer both cleaning and a full smartpig tube inspection in one combined service, but it is also able to employ the use of its smartpig to perform a much more efficient and thorough decoke.
The patented single-bodied design of Cokebusters' smartpig allows it to run through the process tubes at any point during the decoking operation with ease, solely for the purpose of accurately locating and quantifying coke or scale remaining inside the heater. Equipped with this knowledge, decoking operators are able to concentrate their efforts only on the necessary areas. Without the information provided by the smartpig, operators have difficulty pinpointing where the remaining coke or scale is located, leaving them with no option but to run the cleaning pig through every tube. Not only does this greatly increase the time it can take to clean a heater, but the risk of damaging tubes is also increased as cleaning pigs are continuously running within clean tubes. When Cokebusters operators believe all internal fouling has been removed, the smartpig can once again be utilized to confirm no coke or scale remains in any of the tubes.
Whereas other mechanical decoking companies have to depend on less reliable methods of determining if process tubes are clean, such as the cleanliness of return water, the condition of cleaning pigs and the amount of coke in the return basket, Cokebusters is able to employ a more scientific approach.
Should the smartpig results show internal fouling still remains, discussions can take place between operators, technicians and refinery engineers as to what course of action to take.
When all parties agree decoking operations have been completed, Merlin Smartpig data can be supplied to the client, giving them the peace of mind that comes from not just being told their tubes are clean, but actually seeing it for themselves.
For more information or to request a sample copy of a coke removal verification report, visit www.cokebusters.com, call (281) 537-7475 or email Robert Williams at rwilliams@ cokebusters.com.
