Shell Global Solutions

ISSUE 1, 2013

RETHINKING THINKING:
Making the most of human capital

How IndianOil maintains its

competitiveness in a challenging climate

Zeeland refinery: Innovative catalysts

keep it on target

Looking into a crystal ball – Does Shell’s

forward thinking guide the future?
Contents

Produced by Marketing
and solutions
development
Editor
Mergyla van Uytrecht
Tel: +31 70 447 8007
Email: mergyla.vanuytrecht@shell.com

Contact
Email: impact@shell.com
Visit our website at
www.shell.com/globalsolutions

In this issue

3 comment 8 focusing on the world’s 13 model hydrocracker

Ed Daniels looks at the skills big challenges performance
shortage in the oil and gas industry The crucial and continuing role of An innovative catalyst and kinetic
chemical engineers modelling help Zeeland refinery
Business stay on target
4 CULTIVATING MOMENTS Case study
OF INSIGHT 10 THINKING AT THE MARGINS 16 technical collaboration
Lessons from neuroscience for the The challenges facing IndianOil is the key
way technical consultants interact and the project portfolio designed Upgrading heavy-oil and bitumen-
with customers to maintain its competitiveness derived feeds

6 Sowing the seeds of 12 Responding to demand 18 integrated thinking

strategic success for base oils in Asia Multimillion-dollar capital cost
Shell scenarios: four decades of A Shell and Hyundai Oilbank joint- reductions achieved at natural gas
forward thinking venture base-oil manufacturing plant plant through intelligent design
to significantly boost lubricant supply

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*Shell Global Solutions is a network of independent technology companies in the Shell Group. Its engineering services in the United States of America are provided by Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc. For projects in the United States of America that entail
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system, without permission in writing from Shell Global Solutions International BV. This publication is printed on environmentally friendly paper.

2 impact issue 1, 2013

 Comment

Ed Daniels
Executive Vice President
Shell projects & technology

“
Oil and gas companies have to find new

“
ways to attract people into the industry.

One of the biggest impediments to growth facing our industry is not access to capital,
legislation or socio-economic stability, but a lack of qualified people.
The human capital shortage has steadfastly risen up the oil and gas industry’s agenda in recent
years, and data from the Economist Intelligence Unit confirms how acute the issue has become.1
In its 2011 global survey of senior executives in the oil and gas industry, skills issues came fifth
on the list of barriers to growth. By 2012, the same issue had risen to second and the early
indications are that it will remain one of the top barriers of 2013.
And this issue is not going to go away soon because experienced professionals are retiring
faster than appropriately qualified graduates are joining the industry.
Moreover, the oil and gas sector is particularly vulnerable because the energy challenges that
it faces are unprecedented. It must find ways to meet rising energy demand, open up new
energy frontiers and make the most of existing resources. And it must do so in environmentally
considerate ways. Shell, for instance, currently has about 30 projects under construction
worldwide that are part of a four-year capital spending programme of $120–130 billion. Such
projects call for skilled, creative and dynamic professionals to make them fly.
So what can we do to overcome these skill shortages? First, oil and gas companies have to find
new ways to attract people into the industry. Research by PwC is pertinent here, as it provides some
key insights into what makes an organisation an attractive employer.2 Apparently, it is not primarily
about remuneration; people place greater emphasis on opportunities to grow and to develop. On
this basis, it might be an interesting exercise to evaluate your value proposition for new employees.
How can you become more attractive to the working population than other organisations?
Furthermore, we also need to put measures in place to keep the people we have worked
so hard to employ. Schlumberger Business Consultancy has found that our industry’s people
deficit is concentrated in the mid-career population.3 We cannot solve this problem if we lose
people just as they have accumulated vitally important skills and experience. Well-designed
competency and development frameworks may, therefore, encourage people to stay rather than
to look for opportunities elsewhere – or to leave the industry altogether.
I strongly believe that people development is key to the ongoing success of our industry. What is
References more, I have seen it at first hand. I have worked for Shell for almost 25 years, and it is clear to
“Big Spenders: the outlook for the oil and gas
me that businesses that focus on engaging, connecting and valuing their people achieve better
1

industry in 2012”, Economist Intelligence Unit

”Managing tomorrow’s people: The future of
2 business results.
work to 2020”, PwC, 2007
Now that our industry’s long-standing skills gap is getting oil companies’ full attention, I hope
3
”SBC O&G HR Benchmark 2011”,
Schlumberger, 2012 that, together, we will find new ways to attract, retain and develop highly talented people.

www.shell.com/globalsolutions 3
Business
CULTIVATING
MOMENTS
OF INSIGHT
Neuroscience is helping to enhance the effectiveness of executive coaching. Can it also provide
lessons for the way in which technical consultants interact with refiners? Sally Martin, Vice
President of Commercial Services, Shell Global Solutions, talks to Impact about her thoughts.
R
ecent advances in neuroscience have
illuminated what occurs in the human
brain as business professionals sort,
prioritise and act on large quantities of
information; respond to challenges; and
develop strategies in pressurised situations.
Increasingly, executives are leveraging this
science to perform better in their roles.1
For instance, Sheena Porter, Director and
Executive Coach of the Oxford Group,2
acknowledges that much of the executive
coaching that her company delivers is
informed by neuroscience. “We do not
claim to be experts in neuroscience: we
are business coaches. But because we are
interested in getting the best possible results
for our clients, some of the recent key
findings affect what we do,” she says.
“Over the last few years, technologies
such as magnetic resonance imaging
have been able to show us what goes on
in the brain. We can actually see bursts
of brain activity just before a moment
of insight – all the lights come on. This
is when the physical connections, or
synapses, are created that enhance our
mental processes. So what we have been
4 impact issue 1, 2013
doing in the coaching arena is asking
how we can most effectively help our
clients to create their own moments of
insight,” says Porter.
Executive coaching is typically a one-
to-one partnership between the coach
and the client. It is very much driven by
a client’s needs and is often targeted
to overcome the specific barriers and
challenges the client is encountering.
Porter describes one way in which
neuroscience has shaped the way she
delivers her coaching. “Research has shown
that the mental act of focusing attention
stabilises the brain circuits,” she explains.
“It keeps the brain circuitry open and alive,
and creates a good foundation for new
circuitry to develop. The act of focusing
creates a chemical change in the brain
and a physical one by building foundations
for new connections or reinforcing and
strengthening existing ones.”
Porter’s coaches use a variety of means
to create focus, in particular, by helping
coachees to create personalised scorecards
with clearly defined priority areas.
Additionally, other research suggests that
talent develops from choosing what you
want to be good at and then repeatedly
practicing it.3 “A key way in which the
brain changes is through repetition, and
positive feedback from others can help
to sustain deliberate good practice and
improvements. So we are building on
these principles and creating situations that
are designed to help enhance and embed
our coachees’ learning,” she adds.
Sally Martin, Vice President of Commercial
Services, Shell Global Solutions, says
there are compelling parallels between
the one-to-one coaching that an individual
executive might receive and the technical
consultancy that Shell Global Solutions
delivers. “The advantage of someone
coming in from the outside, whether they
are a coach or a consultant, is that they
see things differently to someone who is
actually in the situation.”
She continues, “When we engage with
a refinery management team as they
evaluate their options for, for example,
processing a wider range of crude oils
or enhancing their yield of high-value
 “
products, the information we have about
how other refiners have successfully
responded to similar challenges provides
us with a knowledge base of best
practices that the management team might
not have.”
Martin, in fact, has a special perspective
on this, as she has been a recipient of
executive coaching and is a manager
who coaches her team and a keen
proponent of talent development.
“When I was receiving executive coaching
with the Oxford Group, the coach did
not get mired down with the intricate and
complex details of the challenges that I
was grappling with,” she recalls. “Instead,
she asked very shrewd, objective questions
and, in doing so, helped me to realise
what I needed to do differently to become
more effective. She did not tell me what I
needed to do; she helped me to create my
own moments of insight.
“That is similar to what we do at Shell
Global Solutions during the scouting and
front-end-development phases of a refinery
project,” she continues. “We will work
with the refinery management team to
identify and clarify the challenge. We
believe that it is crucial that we do this
before beginning to develop technical
solutions. This often leads to ‘light-bulb’
moments whereby a refinery leadership
team recognises the steps that they can
take to achieve their business objectives
more effectively.
“We cannot make decisions for our
customers, but what we can do is
shine a light on the things that could be
considered,” she affirms. “My coach led
me towards insights that I just did not see
because I was so deep in the situation
that I lost perspective and objectivity.
So, there are clear parallels between
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
Unlocking a better understanding of what is
really happening within that business is the first
step to making it more effective.
executive coaching and the work that we
do with our customers.”
Porter’s objective is to embed learning
effectively in a one-to-one situation, and
she is always looking out for new ways
in which she can help coachees to
develop new connections in the brain.
Martin’s objective is actually very similar.
She is searching for ways to improve
the learning that happens when Shell
Global Solutions engages with a refinery
management team.
The neuroscience hypotheses that Porter
talks about can, to a certain extent, be
scaled up to the enterprise level, Martin
believes. Neuroscience is revealing how
the brain works, which, in turn, is helping
individuals to understand themselves
better and to realise what they need to
do to change their behaviour or their
approach. Similarly, when Shell Global
Solutions works with refiners, its subject
matter experts and consultants also seek
a deeper level of understanding about
the refinery: how it is performing, what its
long-term objectives are, how the external
environment is shaping its decisions and
performance, etc.
“Sometimes a refinery management team
knows that it could perform better, but
does not know exactly how to achieve
it,” says Martin. “Unlocking a better
understanding of what is really happening
within that business is the first step to
making it more effective.”
For instance, Shell Global Solutions
recently engaged with a European
refiner that was planning to build a mild
hydrocracker complex to process a mix
of medium and heavy vacuum gas oil,
and also to hydrotreat the gas oil from a
crude distiller. Like many other facilities,
the refiner planned to achieve this through
two separate standard designs.
“
Shell Global Solutions could have
responded to this request. However, by
asking the right questions and assessing
the refiner’s emphasis, Shell Global
Solutions identified that capital was a
major issue. Moreover, further probing
revealed that the management team was
open to unconventional solutions.
As a result, a combined team of the client’s
senior personnel and staff from Shell
Global Solutions devised an innovative
solution: an integrated reactor section that
would squeeze down the capital cost.
The hydrodesulphurisation reactor and the
hydrocracking reactor were combined with
a common separation, compression and
fractionation section. Because the customer
only needed one unit instead of two, the
capital cost was significantly lower.
Martin reflects that, in the same way that
it is difficult to see what is happening
inside the brain, it can also be difficult
for a third party to truly understand the
refiner’s business situation, pressures
and objectives. Nevertheless, this is
crucial for the relationship to deliver
value. “Experience shows that when
Shell Global Solutions can achieve a
deeper understanding of what is going
on within the refinery from the point of
view of performance and also its aims
and objectives, this can be as useful to
the project as neuroscience can be to an
executive coach,” Martin concludes.
References
1
“SCARF: a brain-based model for collaborating with and
influencing others”, Rock, D., 2008 (www.scarf360.com/
files/scarf-neuroleadershiparticle.pdf)
www.oxford-group.com
2
3
The Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert
performance, K. A. Ericsson, N. Charness, R. R. Hoffman and
P. J. Feltovich (eds), Cambridge University Press (2006)
For more information contact:
Sally Martin
Email: sally.martin@shell.com
5
Business
Sowing the seeds of
strategic success
Four decades of forward thinking
T
he future matters. It is hardly
surprising, therefore, that
individuals and organisations
spend time contemplating what future
events or opportunities will be most
significant in shaping the decades
ahead. Shell has been using scenario
planning as one technique for trying to
make sense of the road ahead for the
past 40 years. During that period, this
discipline has helped the organisation
to make better strategic choices.
So, is Shell in the business of predicting
the future? Not quite, as Jeremy
Bentham, Vice President, Global Business
Environment, Royal Dutch Shell plc,
explains, “Scenarios provide lenses that
help us to see future prospects more
clearly, make richer judgments and be
6 impact issue 1, 2013
more sensitive to uncertainties. The goal
of the scenarios is not to predict the future
but to enable policymakers to make well-
informed and better decisions involving
the future as a result of having a deeper
grasp of key drivers and uncertainties.”
The initial steps towards the scenario
planning approach were taken in
Shell in the 1960s when a team of
economists, engineers and scientists
started work on the first scenarios.
They looked at how the future might
unfold and the impact this could have
on the organisation. Their first report,
issued in 1972, detailed six scenarios,
one of which looked at the possibility
and consequences of an energy crisis,
something unheard of at the time.
In October 1973, the Yom Kippur War
broke out and the West’s support for
Israel angered oil-rich Arab states and
triggered an oil embargo. Fuel shortages
sparked a global recession and a
massive stock market crash. The world
was shocked and the global economy
reeled. But Shell’s decision makers had
mentally prepared the business for the
worst, having already imagined it. The
energy crisis scenario helped Shell
to weather the storm favourably and
brought financial gains, thanks to the
sale of refineries and installations, or
decisions not to replace them.
“Shell scenarios work because they
are neither rigid predictions nor wishful
fantasies,” Bentham says. “They are a
way of understanding how the world
“
Four decades on from that first energy crisis
breakthrough, a new generation of scenario
planners is looking to the future and identifying
new uncertainties, challenges and opportunities.
looks, what forces are at work and how
we can deal with them. The trick is to think
in terms of trend breaks. You have to think:
what radical changes could there be?
That is also the most difficult part; it is not
something people feel comfortable with.”
Success during the 1973 oil crisis
raised the profile of scenario planning
within Shell and made it an established
tool for identifying and thinking around
subsequent global shifts. Scenarios helped
the organisation to anticipate, adapt and
respond to another oil shock in 1979 and
to the decline and eventual collapse of the
Soviet Union in the 1980s. In the 1990s,
growing social and environmental stresses
were highlighted that helped Shell to
develop a constructive, proactive attitude
to the threat of climate change.
“For anyone interested in anticipating future
trends and coping with the sudden changes
that arise,” continues Bentham, “there are
two sides to scenario planning: painting
pictures of the future and imagining our
reactions to them. Having the capability
for looking at trends and predicting events
is important, but perhaps the most vital
aspect of Shell scenarios is the analytical
power that goes into developing effective
strategies for each contingency. The ability
to do this in an informed and rigorous way
is what sets Shell scenarios apart from most
futurologist predictions.”
The process of developing scenarios
encourages Shell’s leaders to think about
the possible wider and longer-reaching
implications of unfolding trends and
potential discontinuities, of which there
may only be faint signals today. They can
help to deliver better long-term prospects
for Shell, the industry and society. Their
value is underlined by Peter Voser, Chief
Executive Officer, Royal Dutch Shell plc,
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
“
who states, “Scenarios help us to make
crucial choices in uncertain times as
we grapple with tough energy and
environmental issues.”
The role of the scenario process in
informing business development is an
inexact science but the fingerprints of
the team and their work can be seen
on numerous decisions. In 2005, the
scenarios raised the probability of an
alarming gap between global energy
demand and global supplies. For Shell,
this reinforced the significance of natural
gas in the company’s energy mix. Later,
the scenarios highlighted circumstances
that made sustainable biofuels look
like an attractive business opportunity.
Consequently, in 2011, Shell responded
by moving into the production of low-
carbon bioethanol from Brazilian sugar
cane and secured commercial benefit
from this development.
Shell’s “Signals & Signposts scenarios”,
which were published in 2011, predicted
an era of “volatile transitions” and identified
one of the key factors as heightened political
tension in certain parts of world. In early
2011, these tensions found expression in the
Arab Spring, when popular revolts toppled
rulers in Egypt and Tunisia, and paved the
way for political reform and further conflict
that continues today. The scenarios did not
predict the timings of the uprisings, but they
highlighted the conditions that would make
them more likely and would fuel resentment:
young populations with huge aspirations
and low employment opportunities;
economic volatility; rising prices for essential
goods; and increasing unemployment.
Shell has shared some of its far-reaching
scenario views with the wider world since
the 1990s and examined the impact of
momentous developments such as the
fall of the Iron Curtain and the war in
Iraq. The scenarios have also helped the
wider world to investigate the evolution
of alternative energy resources such as
biofuels, shale gas and renewable energy
resources, including wind and solar power.
The future of scenario planning is bright
and the demand for future insights is
greater than ever. As Bentham explains,
“Four decades on from that first energy
crisis breakthrough, a new generation
of scenario planners is looking to the
future and identifying new uncertainties,
challenges and opportunities. Like
their predecessors, they are working
to ensure that Shell is not surprised by
events as the future unfolds. Their regular
engagement with leading decision makers
enables business leaders to review vital
intelligence and gain insights that will
help the organisation to survive and thrive,
whatever the future may bring.”
The “New Lens Scenarios”, the latest
report (www.shell.com/global/future-
energy/scenarios.html) from the scenario
planning team, will be reviewed in a
forthcoming issue of Impact.
For more information contact:
Mergyla van Uytrecht
Email: mergyla.vanuytrecht@shell.com
7
Business
focusing on the world’s
big challenges
A crucial and continuing role for chemical engineers
T
here is a consensus among political
and business leaders that the coming
decades will present a range of
global social and economic challenges
that will be both complex and difficult to
overcome. These challenges will affect
all the countries in the world and will
have implications for almost every aspect
of our lives, from food and water to
energy use and health. The driving forces
behind these challenges are continuing
population growth, the emergence of
affluent middle classes in the developing
nations and increasing urbanisation.
The Institution of Chemical Engineers
(IChemE, www.icheme.org) has identified
these issues in a report, “Chemical
Engineering Matters”, which was
8 impact issue 1, 2013
published in November 2012. In this
article, Ed Daniels, IChemE Technical Vice
President and Executive Vice President
Shell Projects & Technology, talks to
Impact about the rationale for the report,
its intended readership and how it may
help to focus discussions on the role of
chemical engineering.
The report focuses on i) securing sustainable
energy supplies; ii) food and nutrition; iii)
access to clean water; and iv) health and
wellbeing: areas where chemical engineers
can make a positive impact. At the heart
of the report, lie four “vistas”: graphics that
capture the current status in these areas.
The aim is to offer a snapshot of the
current situation and to provoke debate, as
Daniels explains: “The vistas show solutions
that are available now, in the near term or
on the horizon. These summary diagrams
are likely to be the subject of animated
discussion: they are open to constant
revision. Indeed, IChemE recognises that
step changes may occur and that each
vista could alter dramatically. The rich
variety of solutions that can be suggested is
a compelling illustration of the possibilities
offered by chemical engineering.”
Planning and innovating
for the long term
Taking energy as an example, current
trends in population growth and
urbanisation suggest that, by 2050, the
world will need twice the energy it does
 “
today. At the moment, no one can say
exactly where this energy will come from,
but the solution will call for innovation
across energy sources, energy use and
the conservation of energy.
Thinking and planning three or four
decades ahead can be difficult, Daniels
says. “The challenges we face are long-
term issues. Experience at Shell shows that
to take a new energy technology from
development through commercialisation to
the point where it makes a 1% contribution
to a nation’s energy system requires about
30 years. This is clearly a much longer
time frame than most national political
cycles, so we at IChemE hope that, by
raising awareness, we will encourage a
more long-term and strategic view. This will
help governments to formulate plans that
deliver effective solutions more quickly.”
The issues that the report highlights are
complex. Addressing the potential energy
shortfall, for example, will require technical
solutions that work in the highly variable
and sometimes extreme conditions in which
energy resources are found and developed.
Furthermore, there are substantial economic
challenges and imperfections in the current
global energy market, not least that there
is, as yet, no global price set for carbon
dioxide trading. This makes it difficult to
manage international carbon trades and
the targets for emissions.
Daniels stresses that chemical engineers
must understand the non-technical aspects
of the challenges. “Many of these issues
are politically charged. Each government
has its own policies and energy resource
agenda. The differences are not trivial;
conflicts have been started over disputed
resource ownership or disagreements on
the use of a resource.”
Although political decisions will be crucial
to meeting the challenges that have been
identified, the IChemE remains politically
neutral. However, the report cites the
need for greater engagement with
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
The future may be challenging and unclear, but
it seems certain that chemical engineering will be
central to the delivery of sustainable energy, water,
food and wellbeing in all parts of the world.
policymakers to ensure that the decisions
that affect funding and regulation are
evidence based. It also highlights the
need for increased public engagement
to overcome the negative and often
inaccurate public perception of chemistry,
chemicals and chemical engineering.
Explaining the issues
One of the key issues that IChemE faces
is determining how the messages from
the report and the thoughts of chemical
engineers can best be communicated to
non-technical audiences.
“This will require effective science
communication,” Daniels says. “Our aim
at IChemE, and the responsibility of all
professional chemical engineers, is to
deliver concise, accurate information that
non-specialists can understand, discuss and
act on. We have to find the middle ground
between the snappy and sometimes
misleading sound bites in a 30-second
television interview and the grind of a
lecture that starts from first principles and
often confuses its non-technical audience.
“Most people do not have time to focus
on these big problems. So, we have to
tailor information to specific audiences;
provide the necessary information using
language that is easily understood; and
then encourage non-specialists in the
political sphere and the general public
to reflect and make decisions that are as
well informed as possible,” Daniels says.
The future may be challenging and
unclear, but it seems certain that chemical
engineering will be central to the delivery
of sustainable energy, water, food and
wellbeing in all parts of the world.
“Chemical Engineering Matters” is aimed
at addressing the challenges faced by
chemical engineers and focuses on the
themes and issues that are of highest
priority and greatest relevance to society.
“We hope the report will inform chemical
engineers but also that it will find its
“
way to policymakers, politicians, non-
governmental organisations and the
general public,” Daniels affirms. “We all
have a role to play in understanding and
addressing the issues the report highlights.
Given the scale of the challenges facing
humanity, doing nothing is not an option.”
Pivotal in managing risk
In addition to setting out the four key vistas,
the report describes IChemE’s current
thinking in three fundamental underpinning
areas: safety and risk; education and
training; and research and development.
The first of these, safety and risk, is of
particular interest in the current economic
climate where organisations are under
great pressure to trim costs and squeeze
their assets.
“Chemical engineering plays a vital role in
helping to ensure the safety and integrity of
engineering assets,” Daniels says. Industrial
accidents in the process industries have
the potential to be severe and to cause
extensive damage to material assets and
possibly injury or loss of life.
“Over recent years, some organisations
have concentrated their safety efforts on
personal safety and minimising the risk
of personal injury. This is undoubtedly
important, but there must be an equally
strong focus on process safety. Process
safety is fundamental to operations
involving high-temperature and high-
pressure systems, so in this sphere, the
role of the chemical engineer is also
vital,” Daniels concludes.
For more information contact:
Nicki Welding
Email: nicki.welding@shell.com
9
CASE STUDY

THINKING AT THE MARGINS

A senior executive from Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IndianOil) talked to Impact about the
challenges facing his business and the project portfolio designed to maintain its competitiveness

L
ike many other refiners worldwide,
India’s national oil company, IndianOil,
was severely affected by the global
economic downturn. Its competitive
landscape remains extremely challenging.
The principal challenge now is the squeeze
on gross refining margins; these are under
enormous stress because crude prices are
on an upward trend but crack spreads (the
differential between the crude oil price
and the price of the petroleum products
extracted from it) are not.
Moreover, margins are not the only
challenge. The momentum in dieselisation
has meant that IndianOil refineries have
had to find ways to increase the amount of
crude that they can convert into diesel. In
addition, India’s product specifications are
becoming more stringent (specifications
equivalent to Euro IV are being rolled
out in 50 cities by 2015). Meanwhile,
environmental regulations continue to
tighten and outlets for the bottom of the
barrel are shrinking.
When Impact asked Rajkumar Ghosh,
Director of Refineries, IndianOil, about his
strategy for maintaining competitiveness,
he revealed that the organisation has
embarked on an ambitious $10 billion
growth plan for its 10 refineries, which aims
to increase capacity, upgrade the bottom of
the barrel and improve product quality. The mixture of revamps, debottlenecking to consider the gestation period. What
company is also planning several greenfield initiatives and greenfield ventures. “The about the opportunities that you lose
projects, including the new 15-million-tonnes- importance of revamping must never be during the three to four years it takes to
a-year refinery on India’s west coast that it underestimated,” he explains. “Refineries deliver a major project?
announced in late 2012. usually have a lot of untapped potential “This is why I always recommend first
And then there are the mega-projects, which and it is important that we harness this. investigating the capabilities of the
include a $6 billion greenfield refinery and “There is often a tendency to respond existing hardware. Making sure you are
petrochemical complex at Paradip. This to situations with major investments. getting the maximum return from it should
ultra-modern and highly complex facility However, revamps can often be the most be the first consideration, I believe,”
will process 15 million tonnes a year of economical solution. Typically, a revamp Ghosh concludes.
high-sulphur heavy crude oil into high-value costs $276 million for every million of Ghosh cites the example of a
products with zero residue. tonnes of capacity installed, whereas the debottlenecking exercise that increased
But it is significant, Ghosh says, equivalent cost for a greenfield project is the capacity of Panipat refinery by 25% to
that the project portfolio includes a $368 million. In addition, you also have 15 million tonnes a year at the relatively

10 impact issue 1, 2013

 “
low cost of $200 million. Implementing
state-of-the-art internals, for example, in
the distillation column, the reactors and
the fluidised catalytic cracking strippers
played a part in this. “Whatever the
facility, we can usually find a way to
squeeze more value from it,” he says.
He accepts, though, that there is a limit to
how much a revamp can achieve for the
business. Once a plant has reached that
limit, IndianOil always considers adding
new facilities, such as Paradip. Here,
Shell Global Solutions has licensed its
deep hydrodesulphurisation technology,
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
Revamps can often be the most economical
solution. Typically, a revamp costs $276 million
for every million of tonnes of capacity installed,
whereas the equivalent cost for a greenfield
“
project is $368 million.
which will enable the refinery to use
low-quality feedstock components (light
cycle oil) to produce diesel fuels that
meet the stringent specifications that are
on the horizon. To help meet emissions
legislation, Shell Global Solutions is
also licensing its third-stage separator
technology, which typically reduces flue
gas particulate emissions from fluidised
catalytic crackers to below 50 mg/Nm3,
and CANSOLV® flue gas desulphurisation
technology to recover sulphur dioxide
from boiler flue gases.
But it is the possibility of unlocking
additional value from existing assets that
Ghosh is most passionate about. He is
always keen to explore whether anything
can be done to enable an existing facility
to operate safely beyond its original
design levels.
The outcome of a research and
development initiative between IndianOil’s
technologists and Criterion Catalysts &
Technologies was especially interesting.
Given the squeeze on margins and also
the refiner’s need to maximise diesel yield,
the two organisations co-operated to
develop a new-generation catalyst.
Following a detailed programme of work
involving laboratory analysis, scaling
up trials and pilot plant tests, the new
catalyst was installed in IndianOil’s
hydroprocessing reactors.
IndianOil expects additional margin
improvements to come from its plan
to integrate most of its refineries with
petrochemical complexes. This can
potentially enhance the economics at
both sites because there are often
optimisation opportunities across the
refinery–petrochemicals interface. For
instance, streams such as hydrocracker
residue can be sent from the refinery
to the petrochemical complex’s steam
cracker to make ethylene.
Ghosh says that a recent study has
identified opportunities for improvement
that are worth almost $0.9 per barrel
across IndianOil’s assets, and the
company is planning initiatives to
enhance maintenance practices, improve
energy management and enable its
refineries to handle cheaper, but difficult-
to-process crudes.
IndianOil’s refineries are, therefore,
pursuing growth on all fronts: through
operational improvements and low-
cost revamps, and by installing major
facilities. This approach aligns with the
three-pronged strategy that Shell Global
Solutions proposes when refiners are
planning an investment: the multiplatform
Shell Global Solutions Pentagon Model.
Reflecting on IndianOil’s array of projects
and initiatives, Ghosh is extremely
confident that the company will continue
to enhance its competitiveness.
“We have a very strong project portfolio,
but what is equally important is the quality
of our people,” he says. “Our people
are extremely committed, and they
have the internal desire to improve. For
instance, we set our individual refineries
highly challenging targets for metrics
such as margin, capacity, utilisation,
distillate yield and fuel consumption.
And although these targets have been
very steep, the refineries usually achieve
them. Furthermore, I believe there are
still potential improvements in the system
waiting to be uncovered.”
For more information contact:
Sanjay Lodha
Email: sanjay.lodha@shell.com
CANSOLV is a trademark of Cansolv Technologies Inc.,
a wholly owned subsidiary of Shell Global Solutions.
11
CASE STUDY
Responding to demand
for base oils in Asia
Complementary strengths bring Shell and Hyundai Oilbank together
S
hell and Hyundai Oilbank Co. Ltd
have started constructing a joint-venture
base-oil manufacturing plant that will
significantly boost the supply of lubricants to
China and the rest of Asia Pacific.
Having an adequate base-oil supply is
of vital importance to economic health.
Base oils are blended with additives to
produce essential finished products for
the operation of turbines, power stations,
ships and vehicles, among other things.
Many market observers are predicting
modest demand growth for base oils
throughout Asia Pacific in 2013 and
continuing price volatility due to buoyant
feedstock gas oil and fuel oil prices. The
new plant at Daesan, on the western
side of the Korean peninsula in South
Chungcheong Province and to the south
west of Seoul, is part of the trend for
expanding base-oils capacity within Asia.
The plant will have an initial design
capacity of 650,000 tonnes per year. This
close-to-world-scale plant will mean a large
and significant boost in base-oil production
in the region and will benefit from its
proximity to key lubricant markets and
excellent links to existing infrastructure.
“Operations at the plant will draw on
the experience and expertise that both
partners can bring to the joint venture,” said
Gurminder Singh, Downstream Licensing
Sales Manager Asia Pacific, Shell Global
Solutions. “Based in Seoul, Hyundai Oilbank
is an affiliate of Hyundai Heavy Industries
12
and entered the oil refining market in 1993.
The company has extensive expertise in
areas such as project management and the
operation of world-class refinery facilities.
Shell Global Solutions has recognised
strengths in base-oil production technology,
and the Shell Group has a global
leadership position in lubricants blending
and marketing, including a network of
19 lubricant blending plants across Asia.
Shell Global Solutions will license the
technology for the base oil manufacturing
plant and the revamp of the vacuum
distillation and hydrocracker units, and
provide project and health, safety, security
and environmental assurance. Hyundai
Oilbank will lead on project execution.”
Construction work at the Daesan plant
started in December 2012 and the new
facility should commence operations in the
second half of 2014. Hyundai Oilbank
will operate the plant and hold a 60%
stake in the facility; Shell will own the
remaining 40%. Daesan will be Shell’s
fourth base-oil manufacturing plant in Asia
and join its plants in Singapore, Taiwan
and Japan. It is expected that Shell will
take some of the production from the
Daesan plant for blending and will then
market blended products across the region.
According to Dal-ho Kang, Chief Executive
Officer of Hyundai and Shell Base Oil
Company, “The new plant at Daesan
will enable us to meet the growing
demand for base oils in Asian markets
and to compete with production facilities
anywhere in the world. Working with
Shell on this project provides access to
industry-leading catalysts, reactor internals
and process technologies. By drawing on
our combined expertise in this way, I am
confident that we will be able to improve
the plant’s performance and efficiency.”
The decision to increase base-oil supply
in the region reflects the surging growth
in the developing economies, particularly
China and India. The strong trend towards
urbanisation in China has led to higher
incomes and increased consumer spending
by city residents, with most of the focus on
housing, household appliances and motor
vehicles. This rapid increase in consumption
is expected to increase demand for
industrial and vehicle lubricants.
Since the 1990s, there has been a
sustained and dramatic increase in the
number of motor vehicles on China’s roads,
including a tenfold increase in the number
of private cars: from just over 3 million in
1985 to more than 31 million in 2005.
This soaring growth has helped to make
China the world’s fourth largest producer
and third largest consumer of motor vehicles.
The ability of Chinese people to purchase
cars will be a vital growth element for the
automotive lubricant oil market throughout
2013. China is currently playing a
leading role in raising the demand for cars
and, hence, lubricants. For every million
cars sold, automotive lubricant demand
increases by about 91,000 tonnes.
“We are delighted to be working with
Hyundai Oilbank on this project and see the
development at Daesan as part of a wider
strategy that includes Shell’s plans to build
two more blending plants in China and
Indonesia,” Singh concludes.
For more information contact:
Gurminder Singh
Email: gurminder.singh@shell.com
impact issue 1, 2013

Model hydrocracker performance
An innovative catalyst and kinetic modelling help Zeeland refinery stay on target
R
efinery operators can increase
margins by processing lower-quality
feedstocks to produce high-value
products, but, for this approach to
succeed, operators must optimise the
performance of their hydrocracking units.
The principal challenge is to balance
the cost and the quality of a feedstock
against the effects it will have on the
hydrocracker’s catalyst system. The
ultimate aim is to improve refinery margins
while using the catalyst fill effectively and
prolonging the cycle as much as possible.
Managing this requires a clear
understanding of the hydrocracker and
how it will operate during each cycle.
The catalyst choice and the selection of
reactor internals influence the efficiency
of any hydrocracking process. The catalyst
usage has to be managed to derive the
best performance in terms of activity and
stability, while the right choice of internals
promotes efficient distribution of gas and
liquids within the reactor.
Zeeland refinery in the Netherlands is a
joint venture between Total and LUKOIL.
Criterion Catalysts & Technologies (Criterion)
has provided hydrocracking catalysts to
the hydrocracker for almost 15 years and
has gained a clear understanding of the
process challenges it faces in balancing
feedstock quality and the performance of
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
CASE STUDY
the hydrocracker catalyst system. Criterion
offers a detailed and in-depth technical
service to help the refinery overcome
these operational challenges. This service
includes operating data evaluations, special
studies and process-related advice. A
key tool for supporting these activities is a
hydrocracking kinetic model that is used to
simulate hydrocracker catalyst performance.
Zeeland refinery has a turnaround every
five years, and the hydrocracker operates
on the basis of an optimised 19-month
turnaround to fit this schedule. The
19-month turnaround means having two
intermediate catalyst change-outs in the
five-year period. Running this way calls
for close monitoring of the operation and
regular evaluation of the hydrocracker
unit’s data to ensure that its performance
is in line with the operational targets. higher activity catalyst and the new reactor
The focus for the hydrocracker unit at internals, no additional catalyst change-
this facility is on improving throughput, out was necessary when the throughput
achieving the desired cycle length and increased, and this has enabled Zeeland
managing the quality of the products refinery to keep its original catalyst change-
from a variable feedstock. out scheme.
Throughput at Zeeland refinery has A key part of maintaining the change-
increased significantly in past years and this out scheme has been developing a
has been achieved not by upgrading the new pretreatment catalyst specifically
hydrocracker, but by increasing the activity for heavier and dirtier feedstocks. This
of the catalyst and installing Shell Global involved making the demand for more
Solutions reactor internals in the pretreatment active and stable catalysts a focus of the
reactor. Thanks to the combination of research and development process within
13
“
The catalyst choice and the selection of
reactor internals influence the efficiency

“
of any hydrocracking process.

Criterion and close technical collaboration combination of features is essential unit performance and product quality. Too
with the research and development when processing heavier, more-metal- much nitrogen or other catalyst poison
groups in the Shell technology centres contaminated feeds. in the VGO has a detrimental effect on
in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and According to Cees Koopman, Senior catalyst activity and selectivity.
Houston, USA. Process Engineer at Zeeland refinery, “The The cycle length for a hydrocracker is
In its last cycle, Zeeland refinery used drive at the Zeeland refinery is to operate usually determined by the pretreatment
Criterion’s newest pretreatment catalyst, the hydrocracker unit so that it uses every catalyst’s deactivation rate, which
CENTERA® DN-3620, and was one drop of activity from the Criterion catalyst. depends, in turn, on the feed quality
of the first clients to do so. This catalyst Our determination to get the best from and the process operating conditions.
was developed specifically for heavier the unit has made it possible to increase The feed to the hydrocracker at Zeeland
feedstocks and illustrates how closely margins consistently during a period of refinery is a combined stream of hot VGO
research and development is connected global economic downturn. The key to this from the crude and vacuum distillation
to the market. has been a clear understanding of what is units, and imported VGO. Very poor
DN-3620 is a Type 2 NiMo alumina happening in the unit.” quality VGO substantially reduces the
catalyst based on the latest CENTERA Feedstock composition and variability cycle length, so it is vital to check the
technology platform. Criterion applied are two of the main factors affecting VGO’s quality before using it. In the
nanotechnology methods, a detailed hydrocracker performance. The crude worst case, an unplanned change-out
understanding of metal–support unit at Zeeland refinery does not produce may be required, which would mean
interactions and the impact of particle size sufficient vacuum gas oil (VGO) to supply an additional 10-day shutdown, a fresh
and pore-size distribution on performance the hydrocracker, so the operators bring catalyst charge and loss of production.
to create a high-activity catalyst with in VGO from the open market. The quality Theo Visser, Senior Technologist
outstanding stability (Figure 1). This of the imported VGO is a key factor in Hydroprocessing, Shell Global Solutions,
says, “During the cycle before the
application of CENTERA DN-3620, the
deactivation rate for the pretreatment
Normalised weighted average bed temperature, ºC

450
CENTINEL GOLD DN-3300 catalyst at Zeeland refinery increased
440 CENTERA DN-3620
significantly. Criterion compared the
430
conditions in the hydrocracker with
420
those in earlier cycles and examined
410
parameters such as feed properties and
400
process conditions to determine why.”
390

380

370

360 Figure 1: The stability of CENTERA DN-3620

compared with the previous catalyst by reference
350
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 550 600
to the weighted average bed temperature. The
data from this commercial application shows that
Days on-stream
DN-3620 is twice as stable as CENTINEL GOLD
DN-3300, itself a market leader.

14 impact issue 1, 2013

The study, which included analyses of
imported VGO samples, resulted in several
key recommendations for operating the
hydrocracker unit at Zeeland refinery:
a) Systematically analyse imported feeds to
check for a high Conradson carbon ratio
and asphaltene and nitrogen content.
b) Analyse and set limits for the hot
VGO colour targeting a normal
specification of ASTM Colour 4 for all
feedstocks processed on the vacuum
distillation unit, as this indicates minimal
asphaltene entrainment.
c) Investigate inconsistency in feed
Conradson carbon ratio values.
d) Make minor operational adjustments
to reduce the negative effect of poor-
quality feeds on catalyst activity.
One of the most important tools for
analysing hydrocracker unit performance
is the Shell Global Solutions kinetic
hydrocracking model HyStar. This
powerful tool estimates how a specific
catalyst package for a particular
hydrocracker will perform in terms of
activity, stability, product yields and
properties. The software uses information
about the specific design feedstock and
the operating conditions at the refinery to
deliver a solution tailored to that facility.
“The model describes the kinetic behaviour
of a wide range of pretreatment and
hydrocracking catalysts,” Visser explains.
“The model is based on numerous catalyst
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
testing projects from Shell’s research
and development groups, and industrial
experience from more than 30 years. It is
regularly updated.”
The kinetic model provides information on
vital factors about the process, including
how a particular feedstock will affect the
activity and stability of the catalyst; the
likely yield structure; and the predicted
product properties. This is a very powerful
tool when a refinery is running on a wide
variety of imported feeds.
As Visser points out, results from the model
require expert interpretation. “No matter
how sophisticated the model is, we have
to remember that it is a model. The results
must be interpreted by hydrocracking
experts who know the customer’s
operation in detail. Balancing feedstock,
product properties and cycle length to
meet a customer’s need is a challenge
where we can deliver added value.”
At Zeeland refinery, the model helped to
reveal the key issues behind the increased
deactivation rate and enabled the operators
to establish a new workflow to prevent the
issue from recurring.
“The success of this monitoring and
modelling approach relies on a technical
collaboration that combines the wealth
of knowledge that the Zeeland refinery
operators have of the unit and how it
operates with Shell Global Solutions
and Criterion’s catalyst expertise and
understanding of technical issues.”
Koopman adds.
When it became clear that the new
catalyst would enable the Zeeland
refinery unit to reach its run target with
activity to spare, the operators were
able to run the vacuum distillation unit
harder and yield a heavier VGO feed
for the hydrocracker or to adjust the
specifications for the imported VGOs.
This has helped to increase the refinery’s
margins significantly.
The performance of CENTERA DN-3620
at Zeeland refinery emphasises the need
for catalysts with high stability as well
as high activity; catalyst activity is only
valuable for as long as it is retained.
By combining a catalyst that offered
high activity and stability with a strong
technical support programme from
Criterion, the Zeeland refinery operators
were able to overcome the specific
challenges they faced and to optimise
their operations.
For more information contact:
Theo Visser
Email: theo.j.visser@shell.com
CENTERA is a Criterion Catalysts & Technologies trademark.
15
CASE STUDY
Technical Collaboration is the key
Upgrading heavy-oil and bitumen-derived feeds
G
rowing global demand for oil,
reduced conventional oil supply,
increased competition and tighter
environmental controls are driving some oil
producers to modify their production sites
to process synthetic crude oils, including
extra-heavy and bitumen-derived crudes.
Processing such feedstocks presents many
challenges: their nature and the associated
technical and operational issues can
greatly complicate hydroprocessing.
In Canada, a major source of synthetic
crude, refined products originate from
extra heavy crudes (i.e., Cold Lake) and
oil sands (i.e., Athabasca bitumen). But
there is global potential for this type of
production. Energy consulting firm IHS
CERA predicts that oil sands production
will grow from 1.7 million barrels a day
in 2012 to 3.2 million barrels a day in
2020. It also says that markets outside
North America, particularly in Asia,
hold potential for refining this additional
production from oil sands; China, for
example, is expected to nearly double
its current refining capacity of 10 million
barrels a day by 2030.
Many facilities have increased their use
of heavy-oil and bitumen-derived feeds
in order to maximise asset utilisation
and facility margins. This often requires
increased processing and technology
16
capabilities in several refining process units,
particularly the hydroprocessing assets. The
magnitude of the impact depends on the
feed being processed, the flexibility of the
facility and the ability to offset the increased
processing requirements.
Criterion Catalysts & Technologies
(Criterion) has collaborated with refinery
operators to develop customised catalyst
systems and operating practices to
improve days on-stream, generate higher
yields and facilitate the processing of
more challenging feeds.
Hydroprocessing of bitumen-derived
crude oils can be challenging, as Kevin
Carlson, Business Development Manager,
Criterion, explains. “Difficulties arise
owing to the high concentrations of
sulphur, nitrogen, aromatics, asphaltene
and arsenic, and of metals such as nickel
and vanadium that are detrimental to
catalyst performance. Asphaltenes can
foul process equipment and lead to
unexpected pressure drops, and arsenic
will rapidly deactivate catalysts even at
very low concentrations.
“Through technical collaborations with
upgrader and refinery operators, we
have learned how refineries can develop
bitumen-derived feedstock processing
capabilities with minimal adaptation and
investment,” he continues. “The following
examples illustrate some of the challenges
associated with processing these crudes
and the solutions that we have developed
to mitigate them.”
Improved guard catalyst for
arsenic removal
Some petroleum resources, including
Athabasca bitumen, contain high
levels of arsenic, which is a catalyst
poison that leads to significant loss
in hydrodesulphurisation (HDS) and
hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) activity and
a shift of the reactor axial temperature
profile owing to reduced hydrogenation
activity in the arsenic-poisoned top layers.
Consequently, protecting catalysts from
arsenic poisoning became a priority,
as Max Ovchinnikov, Senior Scientist,
Shell Global Solutions, explains, “The
development of high-performance
hydrotreating catalysts enabled the
processing of difficult crudes and prompted
refiners and catalyst suppliers to look for
dedicated arsenic abatement solutions
to protect the main catalyst beds and
catalysts in post-treatment reactors from
arsenic poisoning. Criterion addressed this
challenge by launching several dedicated
arsenic guard catalysts with high HDS and
HDN activities.”
impact issue 1, 2013
 “
Ovchinnikov points to a joint research and
development programme between Criterion
and a North American refiner to develop a
new guard catalyst for managing arsenic
in naphtha–kerosene feed blends derived
from oil sands. “This technical collaboration
resulted in MaxTrap[As]syn catalyst,” he
says. “This exhibits a 70% improvement
in volumetric arsenic uptake capacity
compared with the previous generation
while providing over 50% better utilisation
of nickel for arsenic capture and better
and more stable HDS and HDN activity,
as evidenced by pilot plant testing using
100% coker naphtha feedstock. The first
commercial deployment of MaxTrap[As]syn
catalyst occurred in early 2013.”
Low-cost hydrogen makes
high-value products
The costs of natural gas fuel and
hydrogen production have dropped
significantly over the past decade. Using
low-cost hydrogen for heavy crude
processing can increase liquid volume
yields and boost the production of higher-
value products.
Advances in catalyst technology
employed during the global clean
fuels initiatives have led to many
hydroprocessing units having underutilised
capabilities. This offers the opportunity
for drop-in solutions during a catalyst
change-out. Working in close technical
collaboration with plant operators,
Criterion can provide additional reactor
volume to enable further hydrogen
utilisation upgrades and extend days-on-
stream. Examples of the benefits include:
n aromatic saturation to enable density
upgrades, smoke point improvements,
feed difficulty capability, and fluidised
catalytic cracking (FCC) yield gains;
n selective
ring opening to further
improve density and volume swell while
improving diesel cetane. Selective ring
www.shell.com/globalsolutions
Through technical collaborations with upgrader
and refinery operators we have learned how
refineries can develop bitumen-derived feedstock
processing capabilities with minimal adaptation
“
and investment.
opening maximises cetane improvement
per unit of hydrogen consumption.
n conversion through mild hydrocracking
(distillate, vacuum gas oil and residue)
to minimise lower-value fuel yields,
increase heavy oil processing capacity
and improve product quality and
margins; and
n shape-selective paraffin cracking and
isomerisation to improve distillate cold
flow properties.
The available technologies enable the
hydrogen utilisation/volume expansion
achieved to be tailored to specific
refiners’ capabilities and objectives.
Increased capability with
bitumen-derived feeds
FCC feed pretreatment (FCC PT) units
often process bitumen-derived feeds.
Catalysts that operate in this service must
have optimised sulphur, nitrogen and
aromatic saturation performance to drive
the FCC unit’s economic performance
and be able to operate stably in an
environment with significant levels of
contaminants such as nickel, vanadium,
silicon, sodium, arsenic and asphaltenes.
CENTERA® catalyst DN-3651 combines
the proven stability and contaminant-
tolerance features of ASCENT DN‑3551,
an established NiMo FCC PT catalyst,
with unique CENTERA active site
architecture. This combination offers
step-out performance in HDS, HDN and
aromatics saturation along with high
catalyst stability in FCC PT applications.
A significant aspect of the CENTERA
DN-3651 development programme is that
the catalyst was developed specifically
for FCC PT applications utilising high-
throughput experimentation while targeting
improvements in challenging synthetic
feeds. This sort of work helps to expedite
the testing process, as Carlson explains.
“The high-throughput reactor system makes
use of multiple tubular flow reactors with
automated process control and sampling.
This significantly accelerates catalyst
development compared with conventional
testing techniques. Leads generated with
the high-throughput equipment were
confirmed by conventional-scale pilot
plant testing.”
Applying technology improvements such
as CENTERA DN-3651 requires a holistic
joint approach to ensure that the operator
gains full benefits from the technology
with respect to site-specific constraints
and objectives. In this example, Criterion
utilised a collaborative approach with the
customer to improve catalyst performance
and facilitate processing of a more
difficult oil-sands-derived feedstock.
After extensive collaborative testing, the
customer decided to use the CENTERA
DN‑3651 catalyst as part of its next
catalyst change-out along with an optimised
demetallisation catalyst package.
“Many refiners have chosen to upgrade
their capabilities in processing difficult-
to-treat feeds. Making the right decisions
about this kind of move requires good
understanding and modelling of the
facility, and strong knowledge of the
sources and processing requirements
of the available crudes. With the
continuing development and increased
availability of such feeds, this knowledge
needs to be continuously updated to
minimise operational surprises. Ongoing
research and development and technical
collaboration will be invaluable in this
process,” Carlson concludes.
For more information contact:
Kevin Carlson
Email: kevin.carlson@shell.com
CENTERA is a Criterion Catalysts & Technologies trademark.
17
CASE STUDY
INTEGRATED THINKING
Multimillion-dollar capital cost reductions achieved at natural
gas plant through intelligent design
G
as plant operators can unlock
substantial value by designing
the acid gas removal unit and
the sulphur recovery unit as an integrated
block, says Matthijs de Oude, Manager
Design Integration – Gas Processing,
Shell Global Solutions, in an interview
with Impact.
De Oude explains that the industry is
increasingly developing natural gas fields
containing contaminants such as benzene,
toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX),
and organic sulphur compounds such
as carbonyl sulphide, carbon disulphide
and mercaptans. The implications for
gas plants are profound, as they require
ever-more-sophisticated gas processing
technologies to bring the product up to
pipeline specifications.
Moreover, the quality of the acid gas
challenges the sulphur recovery unit,
which sits downstream of the acid gas
removal unit.
There is often the tendency to source these
units independently, but de Oude says that
there is substantial value to uncover when
the design considers the impact that the acid
gas removal unit can have on the sulphur
recovery unit. He cites the example of a
plant that was being designed to process
67 MNm3/d of non-associated gas. The
raw natural gas contained substantial
concentrations of carbon dioxide, hydrogen
sulphide, heavy hydrocarbons and organic
sulphur compounds.
The original design of the reference plant
had four parallel acid gas removal units
“
This improved the acid gas quality so
much that it was possible to reduce the
size of the sulphur plant by about 30%.
18
using methyl diethanolamine. The resultant
acid gas for routing to the sulphur recovery
units would contain approximately
34 mol% hydrogen sulphide, 600 ppm
BTEX and hundreds of parts per million of
carbon disulphide and mercaptans.
“However,” says de Oude, “because the
hydrogen sulphide content of the acid
gas in the reaction furnace was relatively
low, the temperatures were insufficient for
BTEX destruction.”
He continues, “To overcome this, the
owner had considered several options,
including high-pressure steam preheating
of the acid gas, indirect fired heating of
the combustion air, natural gas co-firing
and installing a carbon bed for BTEX
removal. Unfortunately none of the options
provided the cost-effective, simple-to-
operate and sustainable solution required.”
To enhance the content of hydrogen
sulphide in the acid gas, Shell Global
Solutions and Jacobs Comprimo (an
authorised licensor of Sulfinol® technology)
proposed using its patented, integrated,
hot-flash-enrichment gas-treating scheme,
which uses Sulfinol-M.
Acid gas enrichment processes are used
to increase the acid gas’s hydrogen
sulphide concentration and alleviate the
problems associated with a lean acid gas
feed to the sulphur recovery unit. With a
conventional acid gas enrichment unit,
it is impossible to achieve high sulphur
recovery when carbonyl sulphide, carbon
disulphide and mercaptans are present
because the selective treating solvents
“
commonly used do not absorb them.
Consequently, these organic sulphur
species slip to the incinerator, thereby
increasing the sulphur dioxide emissions.
Sulfinol-M’s formulation (methyl
diethanolamine, Sulfolane and water)
enables it to be used for selective and
non‑selective removal of hydrogen sulphide
in the presence of carbon dioxide,
depending on the process conditions.
In the non-selective main absorber,
the Sulfinol-M absorbs the hydrogen
sulphide, carbon dioxide and trace
sulphur components, with the treated gas
coming from the top of the absorber.
In the selective enrichment section, rich
solvent coming from the bottom of the
main absorber via a hydrocarbon flash
vessel is heated and flashed at reduced
pressure. The carbon-dioxide-rich flash
vapour flows to the enrichment absorber
where lean Sulfinol-M solvent preferentially
absorbs hydrogen sulphide and some
trace sulphur components. The enrichment
absorber overhead vapour is routed to
the incinerator, while the rich solvent from
the enrichment absorber is combined with
the flashed solvent from the hot flash and
routed to the common regenerator.
The acid gas, therefore, flows from the
Sulfinol-M regenerator to the sulphur
recovery unit, and this has increased the
concentration of the hydrogen sulphide in
the acid gas to the sulphur recovery unit
from 34 to 62 mol%.
“This improved the acid gas quality so
much that it was possible to reduce the
size of the sulphur plant by about 30%,”
says de Oude. “At the same time, we
could also eliminate the need to install a
dedicated BTEX removal unit. In addition,
the overall plant sulphur recovery improved
impact issue 1, 2013
 “
owing to the lower sulphur species level in We have numerous examples of how
the flash gas routed to the incinerator.” we can unlock substantial value by

“
Furthermore, cost calculations revealed providing integrated designs.
that this approach could cut the capital
expenditure by up to $67 million per
acid gas removal unit or sulphur recovery
unit train.
“Of course, every plant is different,” de
Oude concludes, “but we have numerous
examples of how we can unlock
substantial value by providing integrated
designs. We can usually find opportunities
to integrate units in order to optimise a
plant’s performance and cut the required
capital expenditure; it is just a matter of
knowing where to look.”

For more information contact:

Matthijs de Oude
Email: m.deoude@shell.com

Sulfinol is a Shell trademark.

www.shell.com/globalsolutions 19
www.shell.com/globalsolutions