RESTORATION OF REFINERY HEATERS

USING THE TECHNIQUE OF PREFABRICATED CERAMIC FIBER LINED PANELS

Henry D. Sento
Exxon Co. U.S.A., Refining Department
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
ABSTRACT
Refinery heater fuel requirements often represent HEATER COMPONENTS
50% of ~ units operating cost. A one percent change
Before we proceed let's review the principal compo
in the efficiency of a heater firing 100 MBtu/hr
nents of a heater that are involved in the
amounts to more than $25,000 per year. Heater effi
restoration procedures.
ciency is influenced by casing hot spots, air leak
age, corbel damage, flue gas obstruction and dirty
tubes. Efficiency impact is greatest in the convec
tion section since conventional repairs only permit
TYPICAL REFINERY FURNACE
accessing from the outside, thus only hot spots and
some air leakage are repaired.
Exxon USA's Baton Rouge refinery has adopted a re
storation procedure, using the technique of ceramic
fiber lined panels, which corrects all the problem
areas and returns the heater to new condition. Res
torations have been successfully completed on con
vection sections as well as total heaters. All res
torations have been within a normal turnaround
period. Efficiency increases greater than 3% have
been realized, as well as improvements in the hea
ter's opera tion.
FLUE
GIIS
INTRODUCTION
-jtHH-CIlSTING
~ - 1 t H f + - - . REFRIICTORY
M---IH+1- CORBEL
9-iEEt---itt-H- TUBE S
Restoration of refinery heaters using the technique
END VIEW
of ceramic fiber lined panels is replacing conven
tional methods of repairing heaters at Exxon USA's
Baton Rouge Refinery. Restoration yields energy,
maintenance and operating dividends that normally are
not achieved with conventional repairs. These divi
o Casing
dends include reducing excess air, reducing setting
loss, reducing stack temperature and increasing the The casing covers the outside of the heater. It
heater capacity. In addition heater turnaround time seals the inside from the outside. The casing
is not extended and unscheduled heater maintenance should be air tight to prevent air from leaking
between turnarounds is greatly reduced or eliminated. into the heater or flue gas leaking out.
We will address the convection section in this dis
o Refractory
cussion, but it should be recognized that the resto
ration procedure can be applied to the entire beater.
The refractory is attached to the casing. It
insulates the heater against heat loss and
RESTORATION VS. CONVENTIONAL REPAIRS
protects the casing from the high flue gas
temperature. It should be tight and continuous
Limitations of conventional repairs are the result of
when the heater is in operation.
identifying and fitting work into a predefined turn
around schedule or squatting a unit to make a quick o The Corbels
repair. This is especially true for convection sec
The corbels are projections of the refractory,
tions. A typical conventional repair replaces the
a type of baffle that deflects a portion of the
apparent damaged refractory, patches casing and seal
flue gas over the convection tubes. The corbels
welds leaks. Little or no attention is given to the
are required for efficient heat transfer.
inside of the convection section. On the other hand
restoration addresses all problem areas that are re
lated to returning the convection section to new
condition as compared to the typical patch job.
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Proceedings from the Third Industrial Energy Technology Conference Houston, TX, April 26-29, 1981
o The Tubes
The tubes are the heat transfer medium. They
often have extended surfaces such as fins or
studs to increase their heat transfer capability.
The outside of the heat transfer surface
should be clean.
PROBLEM AREAS
The convection section has five distinct problem
areas, all of which have an impact on heater effi
ciency and operation. The areas and their impact
are:
o Casing Hot Spots - are the result of hot flue
gas contacting the casing because of refractory
failure. This causes loss of the casing and
possible weakening of structural members. In
addition, openings in the casing can increase
air infiltration.
o Air Leakage - is the result of air entering the
heater through openings in and around the
casing. This causes increased firing because
of heat required to raise the air temperature
as well as difficulty in furnace combustion
air control.
o Corbel Damage - is the result of refractory
failure and improper repair. This causes
flue gas bypassing the heat transfer surface
and excess energy going up the stack.
o Flue Gas Obstruction - is the result of debris
falling on the tubes during refractory repair
or build up of combustion products. This
causes draft loss which can reduce heater
capacity and result in operating the heater
under positive pressure.
o Dirty Tubes - are the result of deposition of
products of combustion on the outside of the
tubes. This causes a reduction in heat transfer
and increases energy loss to the stack.
TYPICAL CONVENTIONAL REPAIR
Let's return to our furnace section for a moment
to review a typical conventional repair.
TYPICRL REFINERY FURNRCE
REPRIR
POURING
CASTA8LE

H--<Jt+f-POURED CASTA8LE
OAM
FLUE
GAS
ENO VIEW
Prior to shut down inspection identifies hot spots
or casing irregularities and indicates repairs to
be made. A typical repair would require cutting'
out a section of the casing, inserting a plywood
dam and pouring castable refractory between the
plywood form and casing. Space limitations
usually result in elimination of corbels.
PROBLEM AREAS VS. REPAIRS/RESTORATION
As we just observed the conventional repair
addresses only two of the five problem areas.
Tube removal would be required to correct the
remaining three problem areas. However, from an
operating point of view this is usually not accept
able because tube pulling is costly and requires
more time than a normal shutdown or turnaround will
allow.
The restoration procedure used at the Baton
Refinery corrects all problem areas without
to remove the tubes. Restoration can be done wlth
in a normal turnaround schedule and often can be
done in less time than is required for extensiv
conventional repairs. '
RESTORATION PROCEDURE
Prior to taking a heater out of service all panels
are designed, engineered, and fabricated. This,
requires a period of four weeks to three
After shutdown the restoration procedure is simple
and consists of three basic activities. '
o First we dismantle all casing and
o Then the tubes are hydroblasted externally from
all angles. Hydroblasting returns the tubes:to
95-100% of new condition with respect to external
cleanliness. '
o Last measurements are checked and column joints
to which the panels will be fitted are installed.
The panels are then placed in position and seal
welded. This completes the job.
TYPICAL RESTORATION
These are Panels Being Shop
Prefabricated Prior to Turnaround
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This is a convection section after dismantling This is a prefabricated panel being lifted
of the casing and refractory and hydroblasting of for installation. The corbelling can be
the tubes. Note the column preparation for seen on the surface of the panel.
joining the prefabricated panels.
The panels are delivered to the work site two
This is the panel in
structural columns.
place between the
It is now ready for
or three at a time. seal welding.
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- -'
-.I
.'
KEY TO RESTORATION
Panel design is the key to restoration and the pre
fabricated ceramic fiber lined panel technique make
the design possible. Cermaic fiber has all of the
advantages of refractory without many of the dis
advantages such as quality control, dryout, and
expansion.
The use of ceramic fiber permits shop fabrication
of the panels prior to shutdown. The panels can
be fabricated at a remote site and safely stored
until needed.
The ceramic fiber permits ease of handling since
the fiber is flexible and weighs 75-90% less than
most refractory.
Ceramic fiber permits quick installation since only
compression joints are required for installation.
Also dryout and cracking are not problems.
Ceramic fiber also permits subsequent removal and
reuse of the same panels when it became necessary
to enter the convection section again.
TYPICAL PANEL DESIGN
This is a typical ceramic fiber lined panel design.
It illustrates the variables that are considered
in the design and how they are treated.
TYPICRL PRNEL DESIGN
o P.TTf\CHMENT STUDS
o Hf\RD
o
o CERf\M!C
o SS
o CERAMIC
o MP.ST1C
o NEW CP,SING
FOIL----------'
COP,T1NG -----------'
-----------
FACE ----,.;:::...:-"-
CORBEL -------'
In order of fabrication we have:
o A prefabricated steel panel adequately braced
and with lifting attachments installed. Studs
are welded to the panel for attachment of the
fiber system.
o A mastic coating is applied to inside sur
face to protect against dewpoint corrosion.
o Ceramic fiber is installed for insulating
purposes.
o A 2-3 mil stainless steel vapor barrier is
installed.
o Additional ceramic fiber is installed for
insulation.
o Last a layer of silicon impregnated ceramic
fiber is installed to protect against velociity
erosion and impingement. ,
o Corbelling is provided where required by i
installing additional strips of ceramic
ECONOMICS
Economics favor restoration based upon our
experience. This is best illustrated by a typiical
convection section restoration.
o -The cost estimated for conventional repairs:
was $95,000 as compared to an actual restora
tion cost $85,000. A difference of $10,000
in favor of restoration. i
o The estimated fuel savings from conventionali
1
repairs was 1.5% as compared to 4% for
restoration.
o The turnaround field labor estimated for conven
tional repairs were 4,'000 manhours compar:ed
575 hours for restoration. Restoratl0n
in reducing turnaround manhours 86%. '
SUMMARY I
Based upon our experience heater restoration
yielded several energy and operating credits
which were not available or minimal when using
conventional repair methods. These include:
I
o Increased heater efficiency resulted from t
sealing the casing, restoring corbelling
cleaning dirty tubes
I
o Improved operating reliability resulted
returning the convection secton to new
I
o Increased capacity resulted from reducing
flue gas pressure drop and increasing the oJt
side heat transfer coefficient !
o Future restoration is simplified because
prefabricated panels are easily removed and 1
can be reused
o Economic incentives offer energy savings, ,
increased heater capacity and minimized losti
production
FUTURE PLANS i
I
Future plans include designing removable
panels so restoration can be incorporated iutd any
routine turnaround or shutdown activities. I
i
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