Development of methods to monitor the fouling of stripper sheds in fluid cokers

流化焦化在世界各地用于从各种来源升级重油。例如，在北方阿尔伯塔，Syncrude的流化焦化厂每天生产超过0.3 Mbbl的合成原油。帝国石油公司还在其萨尼亚炼油厂经营一个流体焦化厂。在流化焦化器中，热焦炭颗粒提供重油热裂化所需的能量。热焦炭从燃烧器输送到焦化器顶部，向下流动到焦化器，在那里它与重油接触，并从焦化器底部流回燃烧器。在离开焦化器之前，焦炭流经汽提塔，在汽提塔中注入蒸汽以除去残余油。然而，焦炭沉积物，逐渐增长的汽提塔棚的表面上可能最终限制焦炭的流动，迫使过早关闭的焦化cher.The拟议的研究旨在开发可靠的方法在线监测汽提塔棚污垢在商业焦化。该信息将允许工业操作者在焦化器中保持理想的操作条件，在减少结垢的条件和使有价值的产品的产率最大化的条件之间保持适当的平衡。本研究的目的是建立测量技术，可以确定在商业焦化汽提塔污垢的程度，使用五种不同的方法。前两种方法将侧重于检测汽提塔上方或汽提塔区域内床层流体动力学的变化。其他三种方法将侧重于检测裙部、裙部附近的塔壁或专用结垢探针上的存款厚度变化。加拿大流化焦化装置的更有效运行将为加拿大带来可观的经济效益。随着经济逐渐从化石燃料转变，流体焦化厂的沥青进料将补充其他进料，如废塑料，热解生物油，糖和不合格的植物油。拟议的研究将有助于焦化厂适应新饲料，为加拿大带来经济和环境效益。

Fluid Coking is used around the world to upgrade heavy oils from various sources. For example, in Northern Alberta, Syncrude's Fluid Cokers produce over 0.3 Mbbl/day of synthetic crude. Imperial Oil also operates a Fluid Coker at its Sarnia refinery. In fluid cokers, hot coke particles provide the energy required for the thermal cracking of heavy oil. The hot coke is conveyed from a burner to the coker top, flows down the coker where it comes into contact with heavy oil, and flows back to the burner from the coker bottom. Before they exit the coker, the coke flows through a stripper where steam is injected to remove residual oil. However, coke deposits that gradually grow on the surface of the stripper sheds may eventually restrict coke flow, forcing the premature shutdown of the coker.The proposed research aims to develop reliable methods for online monitoring of stripper shed fouling in commercial cokers. This information will allow the industrial operator to maintain ideal operating conditions in a coker, with the right balance between conditions that reduce fouling and conditions that maximize the yield of valuable products. The research objective is to establish measurement techniques that can determine the extent of stripper fouling in commercial cokers using five different approaches. The first two approaches will focus on detecting changes in bed hydrodynamics above the stripper or within the stripper region. The other three approaches will focus on detecting changes in deposit thickness on the sheds, the column wall near the sheds, or dedicated fouling probes.More efficient operation of Canadian fluid cokers will bring substantial economic benefits to Canada. As the economy gradually shifts from fossil fuels, bitumen feeds to fluid cokers will be supplemented with other feeds such as waste plastics, pyrolytic bio-oil, sugars, and off-spec vegetable oil. The proposed research will help adapt cokers to the new feeds, bringing economic and environmental benefits to Canada.