Location: Fawley Refinary (ESSO), UK, March 2007
At ESSO’s Fawley Refinery in the UK, the cat slurry tanks were in need of cleaning. Two main objectives were outlined for the project: Minimum downtime and minimum waste generation. The BLABO automated system proved its strength on both accounts.
From manual to automated cleaning
Before the BLABO system entered the scene, the Fawley Refinery had already cleaned one cat slurry tank through traditional manual cleaning. The process entailed high waste disposal costs and took longer than the company would prefer. Also, personal and operational safety was at risk. This promted the management to try automated tank cleaning, eliminating the need for tank entry and ensuring an efficient, cost-effective claning process.
The cleaning procedure: Inerting First
He STS entered the picture in March 2007. STS has over a decade of exspirience with safe, automated tank cleaning and oil recovery throughout Europe, and Managing Director Jorge Oteiza is a firm advocate of the Oreco BLABO system.
Preparations and compliance checks somplete, the modular, fully automated BLABO system was mobilised on-site. Nitrogen was introduced to create a safe atmospehere for tank cleaning. The target was 8% O2 volume in air to eliminate the risk of explosion.
LCO washing – and miximum hydrocarbon recovery
The With the atmospehere made safe and the initial flush complete, heated LCO (light Cycle Oil) washing was begun, pumps re-circulating LCO through the BLABO system loop back into the tank.
As Mr. Oteiza says ” Maximum hydrocarbon recervy is a key asset of the BLABO system. Various measures optimise sludge fluidity for an efficient flow, and the prodycts is kept in the loop until it meets strict quality requirements. The minimal waste and the value of this recovered oil is part of what makes automated tank cleaning a financially advantageous option, too – you just need to look at the big picture.”
Washing complete, tank opened
The LCO wash was repeated until the high standard specified by ESSO was met. Then , enjectors degrassed the tank to raise oxygen levels back to 20%, leaving it ready for operation.
Client pleased: ” Cleanest we’ve ever seen”
M The Fawley Refinery was very pleased to have its tank back in just 15 days. The results proved impressive; when the tank doors were opened, managers and supervisors all stated that they had never seen a slurry thank that clean in all their years in the business. And the results were not only acheived with speed; money was saved on waste disposal and, best of all, no people were subjected to any risk.