High Pressure Equipment

for LDPE Plants

Market Leader
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High pressure is spelled Uhde.

Worldwide.
Uhde High Pressure Technologies:
Our name is our programme. Since it
was founded in 1930, Uhde has been
exploiting the world of high pressures
for the widest possible variety of
applications. Whatever can to be solved
promisingly with high or ultrahigh
pressures arouses the curiosity and
ambition of our engineers.

Key responsibilities and business

policy
We see ourselves as a partner to the users
of LDPE plants as well as to engineering
contractors and LDPE licensors. We
support them all with innovative, safe and
cost-efficient solutions for high pressure
equipment. Our customer service starts at
feasibility studies and development work
and extends through the construction and
assembly of new plants. For operating
plants, we guarantee lifetime after-sales
Creative engineering for the LDPE world service, including spare parts and
Since the development of high pressure
customer advice.
processes for the industrial fabrication
of low-density polyethylene, Uhde has
played a decisive role in making these
ideas economically usable.
Uhde designs and supplies all the
essential high pressure components
of any plant from any renowned
process-licensors.
Quality creates certainty
Wherever such stringent demands and
extreme pressures are dealt with, the
obvious thing to do is to place great
emphasis on quality management as
well. A strict QM system reliably ensures
compliance with specified sequences
and quality standards. Various certificates
according to EN DIN 9001 or ASME give
our customers additional certainty.

Manufacturing

Test assembly and functional tests in our

workshops

Engineering

Good workmanship relies

on team effort
The people and their attitudes in tackling
tasks and requirements are decisive for
success.
Here, Uhde can rely on more than 230
motivated and competent employees
who, together with the great
effectiveness of modern machinery,
produce top performances.
From Hagen to the world

A good place for good discussions, good

ideas, hard work and outstanding results

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Our Programme
High Technology, High Quality and Excellent Service

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Low-density polyethylene
The development of the LDPE process
began in 1936 when the possibility of
polymerising ethylene at high pressure
was discovered. First of all, autoclaves
(ICI and Du Pont) were used as reactors
for the technical synthesis and, a little
later, tubular reactors (BASF and UCC)
as well.
Today, the proportion of the total
production of thermoplastic construction
materials accounted for by LDPE is very
high at around 20 %. Over 30 million t
of LDPE is produced every year all over
the world according to the different
processes.
Since 1955, Uhde has been designing
and fabricating for all the major
process-licensors.
Advantages of cooperation with us:
The advantage of working with Uhde on
a new LDPE project or on maintenance
projects on existing plants is the
advantage of working with the market
leader. We are the supplier which has
the widest scope of equipment supply
anywhere in the world, ranging from
reactors and vessels to pumps, valves
and much more. Also, more than any
other supplier, we can count on broad
experience from cooperation with all
licensors and contractors in this
business.

Project meeting

New LDPE plants: Partnership with

licensors and engineering contractors
We provide our experience for the
development of licence packages and
equipment specifications. In many
cases, our equipment technology sets
the standards in the licensors' data
sheets. We support the engineering
contractor with excellent project
management services which make sure
that he gets the specified equipment
on time. Our broad database on
procedures, specifications and
documentation in accordance with
the different licensor/ contractor
requirements helps our partners to
save valuable engineering hours.
Existing LDPE plants: Partnership with
the user
The LDPE user can count on us for the
service life of his plant. We still fabricate
spare parts for pumps and valves which
we delivered in the forties. Our high
pressure experts are always available for
advice on equipment use while on
deployment to the site for assistance.
We provide state-of-the-art high pressure
equipment independently of the original
supply for the plant. We can provide
much of that equipment from stock,
such as high pressure tubes, flanges
and fittings. This saves inventory costs
for our customers. We also assist our
customers in inspecting the equipment
and advise on preventive maintenance.

Machining of high pressure components on

a boring mill with CNC in six axes

Welds manufactured according to all

recognised welding processes

Constant quality testing of the fabricated components and measuring tools

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Ultrahigh Pressure Tubes

Strength and Safety

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High pressure tubes made by Uhde

LDPE plants using the tubular or autoclave
process are built, to a large extent, from
high pressure tubes. It is the single most
important item to focus on when you
invest in new equipment. For many years,
Uhde has manufactured high pressure
tubes by drilling forged bars. But only
recently did this technology become so
successful that 9 out of 10 tubes are now
manufactured in this way. We at Uhde
are fully utilising the benefits of this new
technology in order to provide equipment
suited for the highest demands of the
new plants with a world-scale capacity.
Steel production
We melt the crude steel in a modern
electric-arc furnace, followed by vacuum
degassing. The steel purity achieved by
this modern equipment is already very
high but can be further improved by
electroslag remelting or, for the highest
demands, by vacuum-arc remelting.
The ingots produced in this way then
go through the largest radial forging
machines in the world where the raw
bars are produced. The capabilities of
the steel plant cover all the requirements
in terms of metallurgical capabilities
which are necessary for the production
of materials for the LDPE process
licensors. A team of experienced
specialists is ready to always further
improve the steel quality and to adapt
the alloys and the production technology
to the market needs. This is how our
standard alloy, A-723 Grade 3 mod.
(DIN 1.6959 mod.), came into being:
An alloy design focused on the required
function in LDPE high pressure duty.
Machining
Precise machining is used in order to
obtain very narrow tolerances on the
bore diameter and the outer diameter.
This helps the process designers to
precisely determine the flow rate and
pressure drop in the tube and in the
jacket pipe. The final surface quality on
the bore which we achieve is Ra = 0.1 m.
This quality assures the longest service
life of the tubes. The tubes are then
finish-machined including a sealing face, a
thread and a shrink-ring seat for jacketing.

Autofrettage
All high pressure tubes are subjected to
an autofrettage treatment. This operation
helps to extend the service life of the
tubes. It is carried out by exposing the
tubes to extremely high pressures close to
their burst pressure. The tube is deformed
in such a way that we achieve a high level
of compressive stress at the tube bore.
This protects the tube against cracks
developing from the inside.
Radial forging machine

Steel grades
Designation
A-723 Grade 3 mod.
(DIN 1.6959 mod.)

Specification
UHDE-HPM-01

20Cr - 10Ni (HP-160)

UHDE-HPT-02

X12Cr13
(DIN 1.4006 mod.)
A-723 Grade 1 mod.
(DIN 1.6580 mod. K10X)
X4CrNiMo16-5
(DIN 1.4418 mod. RM3)

UHDE-HPM-03

UHDE-HPM-04

UHDE-HPM-05

Apart from Uhde works standards, tube

materials can be produced according to
any customer specification.
Sizes
Bore size
3 - 25 mm
25 - 38 mm
38 - 100 mm

Max. length possible

7,000 mm
10,000 mm
17,000 mm

Quality assurance
The complete tube manufacturing line
has been developed in order to guarantee
100 % defect-free production. Every
process step is carefully monitored so
that the specifications are met. Therefore,
the tube orders can be made to the precise
number without any need to worry about
an allowance for overproduction.

Description
standard low-alloy steel for high pressure
tubes PN-4000, combines high strength
with high toughness for any tube sizes
High-strength austenitic stainless steel for
bore sizes from 3 to 25 mm and PN-4000
Ferritic stainless steel for high pressure
up to PN-2500
Standard low-alloy steel for high pressure
tubes PN-4000
High-strength soft martensitic stainless steel

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Tubular reactor PN-3,500, DN-62

Tubular reactors
Uhde high pressure tubular reactors can
be found everywhere in the world. Since
1955, we have delivered more reactors
to the petrochemical industry than any
other company. The first reactor had an
inner diameter of 24 mm and was
designed for a pressure of 1,600 bar.
Nowadays, Uhde builds reactors with
inner diameters of 70 - 90 mm, suitable
for pressures of up to 3,600 bar.
Likewise, the production capacities
have increased tremendously from
10,000 t/a to over 400,000 t/a.
Our advantages
During nearly 50 years of experience
in the construction of LDPE reactors,
we have learned to build them in
accordance with all process licences,
e.g. Lyondell Basell, Versalis, Sabtec
and Exxon Mobil. More than this, our
know-how and engineering help our
process-licensing partners to further
de velop their technology and
specification package. In the same
manner, all major engineering
companies which are active in this
industry have worked with us
successfully in building new LDPE
plants.

Autoclave reactors
Whereas tubular reactors are used for
large single line production of commodity
polymers, autoclave reactors are the
first choice for special products like
co-polymers and extrusion grades. Uhde
fabricates autoclave reaction systems
as turn-key equipment including all
accessories for reaction volumes from
250 to over 2,000 litres.
High pressure components
Our scope of supplies includes jacketed
tubes and bends. The bends can be
produced by cold forming for large radii
or by hot forging for compact short
radius bends. All the necessary flange
connections, blocks and fittings are
supplied by us. We also manufacture
the sealings, thermocouples, injection
spargers and other high pressure
accessories. All the high pressure
equipment is subjected to the autofrettage
treatment and to rigorous quality control.
Steel structure
Uhde also designs and builds the steel
structures necessary to support the
reactor and the intercooler. The design
department uses advanced tools in order
to verify all the static and dynamic loads
on the steel structure. For fast and
efficient installation on site, Uhde
designs equipment in integrated
modules, combining the steel structure
and the process equipment.

Autoclave reactor PN-2,500

Reactors
A New Molecule is Born

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Hydraulic power unit

Control valve, DN 60 mm,

3,450 bar, 350C

Scope of valve technology

Uhde valves and fittings have proven their
particular reliability and operational safety
in many fields of the chemical industry.
In LDPE plants, Uhde valves with the
pressure ratings of 325 - 4,000 bar are
used as shut-off, control, safety, check
or three-way valves. The diversity of the
drive types and the robust design of the
valves allow them to be used in all the
pressure ranges occurring in polyethylene
production. The connections can be
adapted to any internationally common
standards.
Control valves
The control valve at the outlet of the
reactor is an essential constituent for the
process control of modern large reactors.
During the development of this control
valve, special emphasis was placed on
the demands for speed, accuracy and
a long service life.
The high stroke speed is achieved by
an electronic valve positioner and an
electronic-hydraulic transducer, designed
for rapid signal conditioning, as well as
by the special type of bearings in the
actuating piston.
The positions of the valve and drive
spindles are measured using a highresolution electronic travel transducer in
order to obtain great reproduction
accuracy. Many years of experience in
the design-related arrangement of the
seat and the cone and in the selection

Valve test station

of the appropriate materials led to the

achievement of long service lives. The
simple structure of the valve, in
conjunction with careful harmonisation
of the valve and control parts, results in
the highest degree of functional safety.
Hydraulic power unit
In the LDPE plant, the hydraulic valves
are supplied by an Uhde hydraulic power
unit. This station works at a maximum
operating pressure of 160 bar. The
necessary oil reservoir is dependent on
the hydraulic valves located in the plant
and is optimised correspondingly by
Uhde. The station components such as
the hydraulic pump and the motors are
equipped with stand-by units and are
supplied by an oil/water cooling/filtering
unit in a skid-mounted design.
Valve test station
Prior to delivery, all the valves are
subjected to pressure and functional
tests on Uhde's own valve test station.
In order to be able to perform these
tests in the plant as well (e.g. after
repairs), Uhde has a skid-mounted
valve test station in its supply
programme.
The following tests can be carried out on
the test station:
Gas leakage test up to 4,000 bar
Full functional testing of the valve
actuator
Measurement of speed and accuracy

Emergency blow-off valve

60 /60/60, 3,500 bar, 350C

Valves
Extremely Fast and Precise

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High pressure pumps

Uhde is one of the leading high pressure
pump suppliers for low-density
polyethylene plants. Since 1935, more
than 1,000 HP pumps have been
installed worldwide.
Typical applications for Uhde HP pumps
in the pressure range of 125 - 14,000
bar and with discharge capacities of
10 - 20,000 l/h are:
Injection
Proportioning
Testing
Pressurising
Product feed
Catalyst injection pump HP 2203
60 l/h, 2,900 bar

Dosing pump HP 5002

450 l/h, 2,500 bar

Reciprocating pumps, or so-called

double-acting oscillating pumps, for the
high pressure LDPE market have been
developed and manufactured since 1954.
Approx. 600 HP pumps have been
delivered for catalyst injection in autoclave
and tubular reactors and for all known
licensors.
Typical pump services in a low-density
polyethylene plant are:

Catalyst injection
Discharge
pressures:
1,500 to 4,000 bar
Capacities:
10 to 140 l/hr
Modifier & comonomer injection
Discharge
pressures:
250 to 365 bar
Capacities:
600 to 3,000 l/hr
Pressure testing & autofrettaging
Discharge
pressures:
4,000 to 14,000 bar
Capacities:
20 to 100 l/hr
These units can be foundation-mounted
or supplied in a trailer-mounted design
which means that they can be used
anywhere in the plant.

Catalyst injection pump HP 2201

30 l/h, 3,200 bar

The pumps are hydraulic pressure

intensifiers with an oil-hydraulic drive,
built up from standard component
parts/modules. They are available in a
2-plunger or 4-plunger design.
Pressure-relief valves in the hydraulic
system protect both the hydraulic

components and the components

wetted by the high pressure process.
The discharge rate of the pump is
infinitely variable from zero to maximum
during standstill and also while the
pump is in operation by simply changing
the stroke frequency. Additionally, the
discharge rate may be varied during
standstill by changing the stroke length.
The patented control system (DBP
2011570) develops extremely short
plunger reversal times, thus
guaranteeing a superior pressure
amplitude and exact feed-rate control,
and leads (e.g. in the case of catalyst
injection) to a very good reactor
temperature stability of up to
0.1C.
4-plunger pumps consist of two
separate HP units operated individually
by one single hydraulic drive. One unit
is in operation and the other in a
stand-by mode.If the stand-by unit is to
be put into operation, it can be brought
up to the operating pressure by a
prepressurising system. Thus, the
second unit can be started immediately
without influencing the reactor
temperature.
The so-called Uhde HP-4-Plunger
"twin pump" consist of two independent
HP-2-Plunger pumps, each with an
oil-hydraulic drive mounted on a
common frame. With this system, it is
possible to pump two different fluids
at different pressures and capacities.
This model is chosen, for example, if
the set-up space is limited.
Constant research and development and
the exchange of experience with our
customers leads to excellent service
lives of the main components in catalyst
injection pumps.
Uhde's unique combination of duplex
pump-body design with a tungstencarbide liner, a solid tungsten-carbide
plunger, a floating plunger coupling and
the dynamic packing itself maximises the
packing life to as much as 16,000 hours.
The pump body (HP cylinder) even
reaches a service life of 7 to 10 years
and ultralight double-ball check valves
1 to 2 years. All pressure-containing
parts are autofrettaged at optimum
pressures.

Pumps
The Heart of the Plant

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Proportional Injection Unit

Pulsation-Free and Exact Quantities

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The problem
If conventional pumps can no longer
be used, e.g. injection of very small
quantities (less than 1 l/h) or when
pressure pulsation is unacceptable,
Uhde's proportional injection units or
so-called phase-flow intensifiers are the
first choice.
Discharge
pressure range: 200 to 10 000 bar
Capacities:
0.1 l/h to 5,000 l/h
Capacity range: 0 ... 100 %
The solution
Uhde solved the problem by developing
long-stroke hydraulically driven pressure
intensifiers, using the experience
accumulated in years of manufacturing
high pressure equipment. Whilst
certainly meeting the high demands of
polyethylene producers, these pumps are
also suitable for many other applications
at low to ultrahigh pressure, e.g.
Catalyst injection (0.1 to 2 l/h) into an
LDPE tubular or autoclave reactor in
pilot plants
Pressure-controlled lube-oil and seal-oil
injection into a stirrer-shaft bearing of
an LDPE autoclave reactor
Comonomer and/or modifier injection
Special applications
Description/operating mode
A proportional injection unit (pump) has
a side-by-side design, consisting of two
HP intensifiers, each with a pump head
including the necessary check valves,
hydraulic cylinder, 4/2-way proportional
control valve with integrated electronics,
motion controller and pressure transducer.
Electrically, both HP intensifiers are in an
out-of-phase mode so that, during the
discharge stroke of one pump head, the
other goes through the suction and
preload period.
Electrical control and regulation are
effected with the aid of motion controllers
(position transducers) in combination with
pressure transducers.

Irrespective of the process data (pressure

and medium compressibility), a smooth
transition between the pump heads is
thus obtained without the pressure drops
normally associated with shifting the
supply from one HP intensifier to the
other. The unique design of the injection
units allows the continuous pulsation-free
injection of medium.
The piston velocity is controlled by
regulating the hydraulic flow over the
proportional valve via an external
(remote) or internal (local) 4 - 20 mA
control signal. Hence, the delivery rate
of the injection unit is infinitely variable
from zero to maximum.
As an alternative, the units can be
designed with pressure control.
Advantages
Robust design and rugged structuralsteel frame
Low hydraulic maintenance
Slower stroking than most double-acting
intensifers
Simple interface to the customers DCS
hardware
Fastest response to DCS signal
Precise reproducible setting of the
injection rate (< 0.5 %)
Absolutely pulsation-free operation superior pressure signal
Best reliability and durability
30 years experience with this kind of
phase-flow intensifier
Conclusion
The described pumps are ideally suited
for high pressure injection systems which
must have absolutely pulsation-free
operation and a perfectly reproducible
and precise setting of the injection rate
of the process pressure. In borderline
cases or in special applications, do not
hesitate to consult the Uhde specialists.

Catalyst injection pump

4-Plunger Twin pump HP 2201
30 l/h, 3,100 bar

Autofrettage pump HP 10/15

20 l/h, 10,500 bar

Lube-oil and seal-oil injection pump SP 25/240

14 l/h, 2,500 bar

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Heat Exchangers and Separators

High-Safety Vessels

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Vessels
An LDPE plant using the tubular or
autoclave process requires a number
of high pressure vessels.
These are mostly used as separators
for the separation of the liquid and gas
phases at pressures between 300 bar
and 700 bar. These separators may have
a volume up to 30 m3 and a total weight
of over 100 t. Others may have a volume
of just of a few hundred litres. Advanced
designs and special high-strength weld
able steel grades make our vessels your
first choice. They are designed to the
requirements of any LDPE licensor and
can be integrated seamlessly into the
connecting piping and valves.
Heat exchangers
Heat exchangers are either of the
double-pipe type like the tubular reactor
or are multi-tube exchangers and are
very appropriate for the 300 - 500 bar
range. Multi-tube heat exchangers in that
pressure range are used as recycle-gas,
product or compressor interstage
coolers. They can be protected against
corrosion by seakaphen or copper
cladding. The tube-to-sheet welding is
carried out with great care in two passes
in order to allow for the highest safety
and fatigue resistance of that joint.
We provide both the mechanical and
thermal design of these exchangers.

Multi-tube heat exchanger

HP separator 12 m3, PN-325

HP separator 18 m3, PN-500

Intercooler PN-1,600, DN-24

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Services
Reliable for the Whole Service Life

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Long-term partnership
High-technology equipment needs
high-quality services in order to be
successful. Our dealings with our
customers do not end once we have
sold a component or system. Instead,
it is the start of a long-term partnership.
It begins with the installation or the
installation-supervision service. Only
equipment which is installed properly
and tested will ensure you a smooth
start-up of your new production unit.
Then, think of training and education.
It is common knowledge today how
important that part is for the successful
operation of critical equipment.
Over the years that you use our
equipment, you will probably come
to appreciate our maintenance and
inspection service.
Spare parts
The single most critical factor for you to
operate our equipment for many years
to come is the availability of spare parts.
And we guarantee this. We still deliver
parts for machines which are over 60
years old and we will still be in the
marketplace when many others will
already have disappeared.

Our equipment documentation makes it

easy for you to order the right spare
parts. We make sure that you always
get high-quality parts which fit and
comply with the latest technical industrial
standards. For many parts, we will
maintain an inventory for you, e.g. high
pressure tubes, packings and other
critical components.
Engineering services
The engineering for the initial installation
of an LDPE reactor system is frequently
carried out by an engineering contractor.
But what if, later on, you need to
investigate modifications to high
pressure equipment or failure causes?
Our design department will be glad to
help out with piping-flexibility analysis,
finite-element analysis, vibration analysis
or, for example, with steel-structure
design and analysis.

Engineering services

LDPE Plant Improvement Conference

Autofrettaging service

Spare parts

gzd-empeer 06/2012, technical modifications reserved

Uhde High Pressure Technologies GmbH

Buschmuehlenstr. 20 58093 Hagen
Telefon 02331 967-0 Fax 02331 967-370
www.uhde-hpt.com info@uhde-hpt.com