Authors: S. Tragesser - KBR J. Reeves - KBR T. Barnreiter - ConocoPhillips Ferndale Refinery Publication / Presented: KBR-EMRE FCC Licensee Symposium 2003 Date: 2003
ABSTRACT
With much of the attention in the refining industry being focused on clean fuels today, it is refreshing to report the startup of the worlds newest FCC unit by ConocoPhillips at the Ferndale refinery in Washington. In 1999, ConocoPhillips Ferndale refinery made a decision to replace their 1950s vintage Thermofor Catalytic Cracking Unit (TCC) with a modern KBR Orthoflow Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit (FCC). At the time of the shutdown, Ferndales TCC Unit was the last TCC operating in the United States. The basis for this decision was the improved reactor yield slate, improved reliability, reduction in catalyst cost, and environmental benefits. The new FCC Unit, located in Ferndale, Washington, was commissioned in March 2003. As a result of extensive preparation and training by ConocoPhillips, the initial startup of the unit occurred very smoothly and without any difficulties. In addition to the new FCC Unit, ConocoPhillips installed new regenerator flue gas cleanup technology including (1) a CO Incinerator for elimination of carbon monoxide and (2) a Flue Gas Scrubber system for removal of sulfur oxides and particulate matter. Also included within the revamp scope was the addition of a new regenerator air blower system and catalyst storage hoppers. The revamp reused the existing TCC main fractionator, wet gas compressor system, and vapor recovery unit. These areas under went fairly modest modifications to support the higher yields of gasoline and LPG that the FCC produces.
DESIGN BASIS
ConocoPhillips primary goal was to maximize low sulfur gasoline production from feedstocks consisting of vacuum gas oil and residuum blends with Conradson Carbon values up to 4.0 at a fresh feed rate of 30,000 BPSD. Two unique design cases were considered for the project; (1) 100% ANS Vacuum Gas Oil (VGO) and (2) Blend of Canadian VGO and Canadian Residuum. To achieve these objectives, design operating conditions
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PROJECT CONCEPTION
When ConocoPhillips decided to replace their TCC with a modern FCC to improve the yield slate from the main refinery conversion unit, KBR and all other FCC licensors were invited to submit proposals for this project. After an exhaustive review by ConocoPhillips, they determined that KBRs FCC technology would be best suited for their needs. Primary reasons for selecting KBR for the FCC licensor were their commercially proven FCC technology, which is discussed in more detail below, their ability to design a single stage low NOx regenerator for both VGO and residuum feedstocks, and the small plot space that their converter requires.
CONSTRUCTION
One of the unique aspects of this project is that the entire converter was built in a fabrication shop in Spain by Felguera and then shipped across the Atlantic Ocean, through the Panama Canal to the refinery site in northwest Washington state. Figure 1 shows the converter aboard a barge ready to off-load and roll to the refinery site. Being able to build the entire converter in a fabrication shop was a significant cost saving measure and is unique to the KBR design. Not only did it minimize the cost of construction, but it also
Orthoflow FCC shipped to site aboard barge External reactor-riser added once erected Total length is approximately 160 feet
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Riser Cyclone
External Plenum
Regenerator Cyclones
Reactor-Riser
Air Distributor
The feed injection system of a Fluid Catalytic Cracking unit plays a key role in the yield performance of the unit. A well-designed feed injection system must provide both rapid vaporization and intimate contact between the oil and catalyst. While both of these attributes are equally important, sometimes one or the other is overlooked in the design of the feed injection system. The ATOMAX nozzle injects medium pressure steam through annular orifices perpendicular to the inner flow of the oil, as shown in Figure 3, for primary oil feed atomization. The steam orifices are sized to efficiently utilize the energy available in the steam to impact the oil at near sonic velocity, resulting in superior atomization with minimal
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Steam
Expansion Section
Oil
Steam Orifices Multi-Slotted Tip
Mechanically reliable for years of service Optimized coverage of riser cross section Finely atomized feed 26 units in operation
The Ferndale ATOMAX-2 feed nozzles operate with an oil side pressure drop of approximately 50 psi at normal conditions. Riser Quench The Riser Quench system, patented by ExxonMobil, injects vaporizable oil, usually recycle heavy naphtha, into the riser above the feed injection nozzles. The recycle material acts as a heat sink as it is vaporized by the catalyst. At constant riser outlet temperature, quench increases the catalyst-to-oil ratio because the riser outlet temperature control point is downstream of the quench location. Introduction of quench oil also increases the temperature in the mix zone and lower section of the riser, as shown in Figure 4. The higher initial cracking temperature and higher catalyst-to-oil ratio increases gasoline yield, olefin production, and gasoline octane. Rapidly Figure 4 - Riser Quench Technology lowering the temperature at the optimally located quench point prevents secondary reactions Quench Increases Mix Zone such as saturation of olefins Temperature by 25-50F and overcracking to form dry gas. Riser quench is especially useful for residue feedstocks Quenched Profile with high boiling ranges. With Quench an elevated mix zone temperaRiser Outlet 25-50F Temperature ture, the fresh feed vaporization efficiency is improved. Since the desirable catalytic reNormal Profile actions occur in the vapor phase, vaporization of the fresh Fresh Feed Distance up Riser feed at the mix zone is very
Orthoflow FCC
Temperature
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The purpose of Closed Cyclone technology is to reduce the backmixing of the hydrocarbon vapors and hence reduce residence time for non-selective thermal cracking in the reactor. Backmixing in a typical reactor is approximately 40 to 50%. Installing Closed Cyclones reduces the backmixing to less than 2%. Independent laboratory research has confirmed that the hydrocarbon underflow from a Closed Cyclone system is less than 2% of the vapor flow through the cyclones. The benefits of Closed Cyclones are a decrease in dry gas production and LPG and a corresponding increase in gasoline and light cycle oil production. Typically, the average reduction in dry gas make is 30-40%. The average increase in gasoline plus light cycle oil is 2.5 volume %. In addition, butadiene production is reduced by as much as 50%. The reduction in butadiene significantly improves the downstream alkylaFigure 5 - Closed Cyclone Operability tion unit performance.
Orthoflow FCC
Referring to the sketch of the system (Figure 5), the riser cyclone dipleg discharges the catalyst slightly below the top of the stripper bed. The upper cyclone diplegs are equipped with trickle valves and are also sealed in the bed above the top of the stripper. The upper disengager cyclones are connected to the riser cyclones by a conduit, which is open at the circumference so that the steam and hydrocar-
Easy startup procedures Catalyst forced out dipleg in upset -- prevents carryovers No mechanical seals required Easy to "disengage" for quick startup 18 years commercial experience
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catalyst
air
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2C + 2 NO 2CO + N 2 + NO X
Table 3 shows a typical regenerator temperature profile of the Ferndale FCC. The uniform distribution of coke and air is evident from the small temperature differences between readings in the bed. The bed temperatures only vary 7F from average to low and high readings. The cyclone inlet temperatures only vary 5F. The counter current regeneration performance has been excellent with regard to NOx production. The measured NOx values from the stack have been averaging 30-50 ppm. This is even after the CO boiler which is firing auxilary gas and creating additional NOx after the regenerator. This is well below the Ferndale permit, so it will not be necessary for Ferndale to consider installation of other NOx removal technology.
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Successful Start-up of the Worlds Newest FCC New Orthoflow Converter Features
In addition to the technology features discussed above, this section highlights some of the new features of the KBR Orthoflow converter that were not incorporated in earlier Orthoflow designs. Self-Aerating Spent Catalyst Distributor Unlike earlier designs, which used air or steam for fluidizing the catalyst in the arms, the new selfaerating distributor makes use of the upward flowing air in the regenerator for fluidization. Vertical plates extend downward on the bottom of the troughs which trap the upward flowing gas bubbles under the troughs. The gas is the distributed through holes located in the bottom of the trough, which fluidize the catalyst flowing down the troughs.
Provides simple method for aerating catalyst Captures gas from ascending bubbles Eliminates need for 6 small-bore aeration lines and associated valving and instrumentation
This eliminates the six aeration pipes for the troughs and the associated valving and instrumentation that was previously required. Regenerated Catalyst Standpipe Wye-Piece Configuration The new KBR Orthoflow design now incorporates a Wye-Piece configuration for the regenerated catalyst standpipe in place of the lateral/boot design. One of the benefits to this design is the simplification of the aeration system without any loss of performance. There is no longer a lateral that requires multiply aeration nozzles at each elevation point along the length of the lateral. The Ferndale FCC only has a single aeration ring located at the bottom of the wye for fluidization and an emergency steam nozzle for startup and shutdown. Elongated Spent Catalyst Stripper The new stripper design is elongated and includes seven baffles compared to the previous five baffle design. The advantage to this design is that it increases the residence time for improved stripping of the entrained hydrocarbons and also reduces the required length of the spent catalyst standpipe while maintaining the same static head of catalyst for good pressure buildup above the spent catalyst plug valve. The benefits to
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Successful Start-up of the Worlds Newest FCC Table 1 DESIGN FEEDSTOCK PROPERTIES AND OPERATING CONDITIONS
100% ANS VGO 20.3 1.36 0.207 0.2 0.8 1.7 173 1.4943 0.6 650 681 752 822 902 987 1050
RESID MIX 23.7 0.72 0.146 11.6 2.0 1.6 N/A N/A 4.0 650 690 770 866 986 1170 1258
Specific Gravity, API Sulfur Content, wt% Total Nitrogen, wt% Metals, ppmw Iron Nickel Vanadium Aniline Point, F Refractive Index @ 80C Conradson Carbon, wt% TBP Distillation, F IBP 10 vol% 30 vol% 50 vol% 70 vol% 90 vol% EP
Feed Rate, BPSD Temperatures Riser Outlet Feed Preheat Regenerator Feed Dispersion, wt% Riser Quench, vol% Catalyst to Oil Ratio, wt/wt Flue Gas CO2/CO Ratio Excess O2, vol% Carbon on Regen Cat, wt%
100% ANS VGO 30,000 960 500 1282 3.0 10 7.5 Compete Combustion 1.5 0.05
RESID MIX 30,000 970 420 1300 5.0 10 8.4 3.5 0.2 0.15
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Successful Start-up of the Worlds Newest FCC Table 2 ACTUAL OPERATING CONDITIONS AND YIELDS
Feed Rate, BPSD Temperatures Riser Outlet Feed Preheat Regenerator Feed Dispersion, wt% Riser Quench, vol% Catalyst to Oil Ratio, wt/wt Flue Gas CO2/CO Ratio Excess O2, vol% Carbon on Regen Cat, wt%
31,800 975 505 1315 2.9 10 6.6 Compete Combustion 1.5 0.05
Yields Vol% Conversion C2 and Lighter Total C3s Total C4s Gasoline (C5440F D2887) LCO (440-650F D2887) Slurry (650F + D2887) TOTAL C3+ Liquid Coke 72.41 -9.9 13.4 59.0 17.3 10.3 109.9 -Wt% 70.2 2.4 5.5 8.6 48.4 17.9 11.9 -5.0
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Table 3 CONOCOPHILLIPS FERNDALE FCC REGENERATOR TEMPERATURE PROFILE Orientation Degrees A B C D E F Bed 1319 -1308 -1308 -Cyclone Inlet 1333 1336 1341 1339 1341 1338 Cyclone Outlet 1320 1342 1327 1348 1324 1324
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