XRG provided a turnkey revamp of a large crude heater in The Netherlands to solve flame impingement problems, increase heater capacity and improve fuel efficiency.
The Problem: A large crude heater in The Netherlands suffered from reliability, fouling, and capacity problems caused by flame impingement. In addition to eliminating this bottleneck, the client wanted to increase heater throughput by 29% and increase fuel efficiency to at least 90%.
The Solution: XRG evaluated the system using CFD modeling and our in-house heater design software. We provided a new balanced draft air pre-heat system and new burners in a modified arrangement. This involved installing a new heater floor; supplying new steam air preheater, air preheater, forced draft (FD) fan and induced draft (ID) fan; revising the existing convection section; and providing the new flue gas and combustion air ducting.
The existing heater and surroundings were laser scanned and XRG integrated the resulting scans into 3D models of the new equipment, eliminating interferences and ensuring exact fit-up.
The revamp eliminated the flame impingement problems and allowed them to increase the capacity by 29%, while also increasing  the thermal efficiency from 78% to 91%, reducing CO2 emissions by 17,685 tons per year, and provided a fuel savings of $1.5 million annually. XRG’s turnkey services included design, material supply, demolition, installation, and start-up support.
XRG Technologies
1855 E 15th Street
Tulsa, OK 74104
info@xrgtechnologies.com
+1 918-201-2656