Facilitator:
Oscar Brown, Valero Energy Corporation
1. Case Study: Boosting Hydrocracking Performance with Celestia™ Catalyst to Double Run Length and Enable Cold-Flow Improvement with MIDW
Presenters:
Christy Anderson, Ketjen Corporation
Mitchel Loescher , ExxonMobil Corporation
2. High throughput testing enables tailored, optimized, and confident catalyst selection for CITGO's Unicracker
Presenters:
Carmen Angelini, CITGO Petroleum Corporation
Ioan-Teodor Trotus, hte GmbH
Gain valuable insights into the best practices for shutting down hydrotreaters. Discover innovative chemical technologies that streamline maintenance steps and significantly reduce downtime. Attendees will learn how to enhance efficiency in reactor shutdown procedures, improve safety, and minimize both mechanical workload and unit downtime.
Are you a professional in hydroprocessing looking to enhance your understanding of feed flexibility? Don't miss this unique opportunity to gain valuable insights and practical knowledge at our upcoming townhall session. Hear from seasoned refiners as they share their firsthand experiences with feed flexibility challenges. Learn about the problems they encountered and the solutions they implemented. Engage with leading technology providers who will discuss innovative approaches to managing feed flexibility concerns. Discover how cutting-edge technologies can help you navigate feed changes effectively. Learn how to assess and evaluate feed changes to optimize your hydroprocessing units. Gain access to best practices and actionable takeaways that you can apply in your own operations.
Moderator:
Derek Blackwell, Chevron Products Company
Speakers:
Oscar Brown, Valero Energy Corporation
Anthony Galando, Chevron Lummus Global
Jacob Lundmark, Flint Hills Resources, LLC
Krishnan Vaidyanathan, Honeywell UOP
In July 2024, Parkland Corporation achieved a significant milestone as the first Canadian refinery to produce and market Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) through co-processing in a diesel hydrotreater (DHT). This accomplishment underscores the expertise and collaboration of our technical and operations teams, marking a pivotal step toward compliance with British Columbia’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) requirements. SAF production has gained global attention, driven by regulatory mandates such as the ReFuelEU Aviation initiative and incentives like Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits, LCFS credits, and tax benefits under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). While standalone SAF production remains capital-intensive and time-consuming, co-processing within existing units, like the DHT, offers a cost-effective and rapid deployment pathway. This paper provides an in-depth analysis of our SAF production run, during which we successfully produced ASTM-D1655-compliant SAF. It highlights operational challenges, key learnings, and recommendations for optimizing SAF production in a diesel hydrotreater. Our findings demonstrate the feasibility of integrating SAF production into existing refining operations with minimal capital investment and rapid scalability. This achievement not only sets the foundation for future SAF production runs at Parkland but also contributes to the global push toward low-carbon aviation fuels. Attendees will gain valuable insights into operational strategies and lessons learned, making this case study a practical blueprint for refineries exploring co-processing as a pathway to decarbonization and regulatory compliance.
Operational case studies of DHT, GOHT, and NHT feed /effluent exchanger threats are presented with monitoring, reliability, and chemical addition strategies. Mitigating threats of feed side and effluent side fouling and corrosion over time also requires sustaining institutional knowledge through constant change of stream composition, temperatures, AND people. This presentation includes tips and tricks of templated calculations, use of Decision Support Tools, industry knowledge, vendor relationships and support, and cross-site sharing of findings.
Moderators:
Del Grotewold, Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions
Wendy Wildenberg, Flint Hills Resources, LLC
Speakers:
Adrian Azpilicueta, Nalco Water
Steve Mayo, Eurecat U.S. Incorporated
Montri Vichailak, Marathon Petroleum Corporation
This session will cover the sources, mechanisms, and mitigations of common inorganic poisons of hydroprocessing catalysts. First, we will cover the main types of poisons encountered in hydroprocessing units and their sources. Next the three main poisoning mechanisms will be reviewed along with the severity of poisoning and catalyst mitigations to extend cycle. After that we will consider mitigations upstream of the hydrotreater to extend cycle life. Finally, a refinery case study will be presented demonstrating a process of extending cycle length in a hydrotreater with feedstock poisons.
Facilitator:
Oscar Brown, Valero Energy Corporation
1. Case Study: Boosting Hydrocracking Performance with Celestia™ Catalyst to Double Run Length and Enable Cold-Flow Improvement with MIDW
Presenters:
Christy Anderson, Ketjen Corporation
Mitchel Loescher , ExxonMobil Corporation
2. High throughput testing enables tailored, optimized, and confident catalyst selection for CITGO's Unicracker
Presenters:
Carmen Angelini, CITGO Petroleum Corporation
Ioan-Teodor Trotus, hte GmbH