Ultimately the price of crude oil dictates the profitability of refining operations. Heavy, high-sulfur etudes or a dynamic range of variable quality blends provide excellent cost opportunity, but can put the
plant at risk of early equipment failures and unplanned maintenance outages caused by unanticipated corrosion and fouling attack. By using performance-based monitoring strategies at the crude unit for corrosion and fouling, a refinery can be in a better position to maximize the
cost/profitability ratio offered by these opportunity crudes.
Keywords: crude oil, chemical treatment, real-time tools, crude oil feed system, desalting process, overhead corrosion, performance sensors, on-line monitoring, electrochemical noise, detection and alarming, application-focused programs.