Optimo Control Valvula Control
Optimo Control Valvula Control
Optimo Control Valvula Control
EnTech Control Engineering examined demanded by the new catalyst. formation on the heater tubes and
more than 5,000 control loops and Changing the main hydrogen extended the time between heater
found that nearly 80% of loops failed to control valve reduced the maintenance requirements.
reduce process variability to an accept- temperature variation to +/- 0.5°
able degree.1 This study reported that F. As a result, unit production was These are just a sample of the evi-
“the undesirable behavior of control increased by more than 1,000 dence showing the profound impact that
valves is the biggest single contributor barrels per day. In addition, the selection of the right final control equip-
to poor loop performance and the desta- better temperature control has ment can have on the bottom-line per-
bilization of product uniformity.” resulted in improved catalyst life formance of process plants. Establish-
A major control valve manufacturer and has allowed an extension in ing proper control valve performance is
in the hydrocarbon and chemical indus- the time between turnarounds. the foundation for establishing process
tries also performed an audit on loop 䡲 A naphtha cracker in Brazil loop performance. The resulting gain in
performance and had similar findings. In added digital instrumentation to loop performance not only improves
more than 7,000 loops audited in refin- 350 control valves to improve the process efficiency, it also impacts the
ing and petrochemical plants, more than plant’s performance. Operational overall reliability of the process. Opti-
half the loops needed valve performance benefits that were realized mum control valve performance is vital
improvements to achieve optimal included a 25% reduction in for achieving efficient, reliable process-
process performance. Most loops failed furnace alignment time, reduced es. It is also a sound first step for real
to respond to a 2% change in setpoint. maintenance as a result of more improvement in process reliability.
Subsequent initiatives to optimize con- uniform coke formation on So if the control valve is so critical to
trol valve performance resulted in signif- furnace tube walls and greater plant optimization, how does one go
icant efficiency and reliability improve- operational stability. The about selecting the right valve?
ments in the entire process unit. annualized process impact was
Commonly those unit efficiency improve- more than $4 million.2 Traditional Selection
ments were 2 to 5% or greater after con- 䡲 Because of excessive fuel Traditional valve-sizing methods have
trol valve performance optimization consumption, the control valves often been used as a guideline for select-
projects. on the fired heaters of a 160,000 ing the “right” valve in each applica-
The following examples illustrate the BPD crude unit were replaced. tion. Process details are gathered to
impact of valve performance on process Before this optimization, the DT make sure a control valve is made from
efficiency: across the passes was +/-9° F. the right materials, can handle process
䡲 A new, higher activity catalyst Fuel gas consumption had temperatures and pressures, and has
was charged into a first-stage averaged 18.7 MMSCFD. After enough capacity to handle mini-
hydro-cracking reactor. After the optimization, DT was only mum/nominal/maximum flow condi-
commissioning, reactor +/-2° F, and fuel gas consumption tions. ISA (Instrumentation, Systems
temperature variations of +/-4° F was reduced to 17.5 MMSCFD. and Automation Society) and IEC
at the catalyst bed were observed, In addition to the large fuel gas (International Electrotechnical Com-
and the existing hydrogen feed savings, better control of mission) provide industry standard con-
valve could not respond fast temperature within the heater trol valve specification forms that help
enough to process changes resulted in better control of coke make procurement of control valves
almost as easy as “filling in the blanks”
with the pertinent process information.
These parameters are very important
for many reasons, including process
safety, cavitation and/or noise control,
and preventing choked flow.
The problem with just filling out the
specification sheet is that optimal valve
or process performance is not guaran-
teed, even if the spec sheet is filled out
exactly right. Almost all the information
gathered deals with the static perform-
ance of the control valve at fixed
process conditions. While important,
Figure 1. Efficiency is a function of outputs and costs. very few parameters are actually
can calculate and trend friction values ance characteristics to achieve true SHAWN ANDERSON is a senior research engineer
and provide other online data that can process optimization. at Emerson Process Management, Fisher Divi-
move your organization to a predictive The performance of the control loop sion. He has been involved in control valve per-
diagnostics approach to control valve in the process should be the prime con- formance testing and studying the effects of
control valve dynamic performance. Reach him
maintenance. sideration when specifying equipment. at [email protected].
Valve manufacturers that understand
NEAL RINEHART currently directs technology
Conclusions control performance can share those and marketing initiatives for Control Valve
Control valves are a highly engineered capabilities and show they can conform Performance at Emerson Process Management,
product and should not be treated sim- to a user’s performance specifications. Fisher Division. He is involved with process
ply as a commodity. Addressing control Finally, implementing the best online, improvement initiatives in the refining, petro-
valve performance has a dramatic effect in-service diagnostics will optimize chemical and chemical industries. Reach him at
[email protected].
on process plant efficiency, overall prof- maintenance efforts if the information is
itability and control valve life-cycle used properly. Following these steps and
costs. While traditional valve specifica- adopting work practices to take full
tions certainly play an important role in advantage of the digital tools available
performance, it is also crucial that valve will have a positive impact on all
specifications address dynamic perform- parameters of plant efficiency. VM