Engineering & Technical Capabilities

ThermaTran's registered professional engineers provide a wealth of experience in fired heaters, incineration, NOX minimization or removal and related systems. Technical expertise is enhanced and assisted through the use of ThermaTran computer programs. These programs were developed by utilizing our comprehensive design experience. Our computer library, which contains more than 100 thermal, process and mechanical programs, can be used in numerous combinations. CADD systems complement our process software to allow flexibility for the engineer to design equipment with the optimum thermal and mechanical efficiency. Some examples of our program library include:

Fired Heater Thermal Efficiency Evaluation:
All services, all firebox and coil geometries and for any fuels, with and without air preheat.

Air Preheat:
Systems are integrated with all optional equipment including additional heat recovery, SCR's, blowers, stack, bag houses, etc.

Multiple Service Convection Heat Recovery Systems:
Up to 10 Separate Services in the same flue gas stream, co-current and counter current to flue gas flow, connected services, input of side flue gas streams, auxiliary firing, or flue gas by passing. Row by row analysis of flue gas and process temperatures, tube metal and fin tip temperatures and flue gas pressure drop.

Combined System Combustion Analysis:
· Up to seven (7) separate combustion sources directed to a common flue gas stream.
· Each combustion source may fire up to three (3) separate fuels, for example, field oil, slop oil, and plant gas in any ratio. The fuel oil may be steam atomized and any of the three (3) fuels may be selectively air preheated.
· Turbine exhaust O2 source is available. After combustion analysis, the combined flue gas streams may be utilized by a remote heat recovery unit and/or an air preheat exchanger.
· NOx, SOx, CO, particulate and dew point analysis is available for each heater and for the combined stream. O2 content and percent excess air alternatives are available.

Process Side Programs:
· Two phase enthalpy pressure drop
· Multi-component crude calculations
· ASTM, D86, TBP or EFV or 10/70 Flash slope or ASTM D1160 inputs are acceptable
· Heat Balance programs for all services
· Pseudo component breakdown
· 1968 ASME Steam Table calculations
· Catalytic reformer (platformer) models

Atmospheric Crude, Vacuum Cruse and Reboiler Evaluations:
The multiple pseudo-component flash model is based on the API recommended, "Soave-Redlich-Kwong" equation of state. ThermaTran can utilize crude flash curve data from the following sources ASTM D86, TBP, EFV or even as little data as 10/70 slope and exit conditions. The ThermaTran software can additionally allow for steam, water or light hydrocarbon injection at either the inlet or some intermediate coil input.

The pressure drop program output includes a detailed pseudo component breakdown, a detailed inlet and outlet description and a tube by tube analysis of flux rates, cumulative length, pressure, temperature, vaporization, heat content, linear velocity and residence time. Also, noted are maximum and average film and metal temperatures as well selective coke lay down capability on a tube-by-tube basis. Sub-tube increments are utilized to verify maximum metal temperatures and velocity in the outlet tubes. Finally, a complete range of properties is output as well for light hydrocarbons, non-condensable and/or steam presence on a tube-by-tube basis.

Transfer Line Calculation:
As a compliment to our crude heater process programs, ThermaTran utilizes a transfer line evaluation program along the same lines. We have found over the years that the outlet pressure of the crude heater is commonly unavailable and in a number of cases, neither the pressure nor the temperature is available. In these cases, ThermaTran can generate the heater exit conditions from the towers flash zone data and an isometric description of the transfer line.

Steam Services:
Boiler and Superheater Evaluation - Based on current ASME steam tables
Complete Circuit Analysis - Economizer, Steam Generator and Steam Superheater

Mechanical and Structural Programs:
· Full range of heater structural design
· Stack optimization
· Multiple refractory layer shell temperature calculation
· Tube thickness in accordance with API RP-530 and/or ASME Sections I & VIII
· Multiple tube diameter vertical cylindrical heater coil layout

Thermal Design Programs:
This includes virtually all combustion and coil geometries in use today; natural draft, air preheat or turbine exhaust gas are available as O2 sources for the combustion. Natural gas, plant gas, fuel oil and discrete component (chromatographic analysis) firing analysis are available.

Ductwork analysis program:
This program will provide a flow, pressure and temperature analysis of an entire double fan air preheat system or just a small forced air or flue gas duct system. Every type of flow element is available; straight duct, mitered elbow, three (3) piece elbow, turning vanes, tees (straight through and side entry), wyes, sudden and gradual contractions and expansions, surface exchangers, rotary exchangers, dampers, etc.

The program will accept circular, square or rectangular cross sections on an element-by-element basis or will design the same to a given maximum linear velocity while also holding a minimum diameter, consistent with refractory application to the duct interior. Blower BHP and suction and discharge pressures are provided as well as flue gas by pass or hot air recycle. Each flow component output specifies velocity pressure, static pressure and total pressure as well as linear velocity, temperature and % of base flow. Streams may be split or combined in any ratio.

After the proper application of these programs, ThermaTran then does a thorough mechanical and structural design culminating in CAD drawing(s), including all pertinent details.

Management

Project Management:
Our project management system, tracks each project from its inception to its delivery at the plant site, monitoring such issues as:
material delivery schedules, both forecast and actual; engineering drawing progress; project cost controls; fabrication progress; and final assembly and shipment status.

Purchasing:
The ThermaTran purchasing staff is highly experienced in both domestic and international supplies of equipment, materials and fabrication.

Inspection:
ThermaTran inspects installations to verify that the quality standards demanded by ThermaTran and expected by our customers are strictly met.

Field erection and start-up assistance:
ThermaTran field assistance personnel are available for both erection and start-up/operational supervision.
I: Atmospheric Crude & Vacuum Crude Heater Experience
ThermaTran has a long history of experience in atmospheric crude charge heaters ranging in size from 5.2 MMBtu/hr to 450 MMBtu/hr. Further, we have designed and built vacuum crude heaters ranging in size from 3.6 MMBtu/hr to 180 MMBtu/hr. Additionally, we have provided soot blowers, oil, gas and combination combustion, waste stream combustion, air preheat and multi-service convection sections in these heaters. We have also provided for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) units, and specialized combustion systems such as flue gas recycle or utilization of turbine exhausts for combustion O2 supply.

From a software standpoint, the fundamental item of importance to the customer is that the tube-by-tube design program allows ThermaTran to maintain the smallest diameter of pipe at any given point in the coil and particularly at the point where vaporization begins. This specific ability allows ThermaTran to design the process coil with the minimum residence time and generally highest inside heat transfer rate/lowest film temperatures. All of this means the ThermaTran designs tend to coke up less and provide longer run lengths between decokings, a critical operational variable in today's modern refineries, which require maximum unit run lengths. This is particularly crucial in vacuum heaters.

II: Catalytic Reformer Experience
ThermaTran's engineers have been involved in the engineering and construction of ten (10) major catalytic reformer (naphtha) heater sets. These units provide process heat for UOP CCR (platformer) designs, Amoco Ultraformer designs, Exxon Powerformer designs and others.

Our thermal designers have experience with every style of heater for these services including vertical cylindrical - with or without convection section, horizontal multiple coil with brick wall, normal or inverted, single box, wicket designs and harp designs.

We maintain a substantial process thermal design computer software library for all options of these types of heater including:

· All of the coil geometries listed above,
· Individual and combined fireboxes catalytic reformer experience,
· Process exit temperatures up to 1,050°F,
· Nelson curve analysis of tube material acceptability,
· Duty analysis of known streams,
· Ability to model the process with only mol/weight and mol% H2 known. We have excellent programs for the above approach or discrete component analysis
· Detailed point by point or tube by tube process
· T, P, H, and velocity and tube metal average and maximum temperature profiles
· Environmental concerns such as NOx, SOx, CO, etc.

III: Hydro Desulfurization/Hydrocracker/ Heavy Crude Upgrading Experience
(High Pressure Heater Designs)
ThermaTran engineers have engineered and built twenty-seven (27) HDS / Hydrocracker heater sets. These units provide process heat for licensed HDS and Hydrocracker designs from U.O.P., Chevron, Unocal, Lummus/Amoco, Shell and others.

Our thermal designers have experience with every style of heater for these services including vertical cylindrical (both serpentine and helical coils) - with or without convection sections, horizontal single and double fired coils and double fired vertical coil designs with or without convection sections.

We maintain a substantial process thermal design computer software library for all options of these types of heaters including:

· All of the coil geometries listed above,
· Duty analysis of known H2 / Hydrocarbon streams,
· ThermaTran H2 / Hydrocarbon process programs can start with all liquid and blend in H2 or start with a combined two (2) phase system inlet and model the stream to the outlet of the heater even with the stream becoming all vapor (including superheating) at the outlet.
· ThermaTran programs provide a detailed point by point and/or tube by tube process T, P, H and mass and linear velocity and tube metal and film average and maximum temperature profiles.

IV: All Liquid/Heat Medium/Fired Heater and Heat Recovery Experience
All liquid/heat medium heater design is crucial to the success of the plant or unit that the heater services. Why is this the case? The main reason is that the fired heater is often the only source of heat to the hot oil or heat medium circuit and thus if the heater does not work, the plant has no alternative except to shutdown.

One reason for a heater shutdown is exceeding the film temperature of your heating medium. A heating oil usually has a maximum film temperature such that beyond this temperature, degradation or breakdown of the fluid rapidly occurs. This leads to rapid fouling of the heater and to early and often shutdown(s) of the heater, and subsequently the entire unit. Proper attention to the design of the heater avoids this problem. ThermaTran uses a tube-by-tube analysis, which allows us to avoid exceeding the film temperatures at the design conditions.

This method also provides for accurate convection section design in heavy-viscous liquid processes. In this section, the low inside heat transfer rate dominates the overall rate calculation, which is not the norm. An improper design in this portion of the heater can cause an error in the overall performance of the heater of as much as 20% and the resultant over firing of the burners to make up for this error will cause the degradation and fouling noted above.

ThermaTran not only provides a competently designed heater but also has provided all the necessary support items for each heater such as:

· Full combustion control/burner management packages in fully assembled and tested condition.
· Complete pump and surge tank systems with all necessary piping mounted on a common, modular skid.
· Complete control panels suitable for either local mounting or remote control room mounting.
· Full inlet and outlet piping including orifice runs and other instrumentation

Besides complete fired heaters and systems, ThermaTran has designed and manufactured a number of specialized heat medium convection sections in heaters primarily built to service other processes and for turbine waste heat recovery.

V: Air Preheat and Other Ducted Flue Gas Systems Experience
ThermaTran engineers have designed and built well over fifty (50) air preheat or other ducted flue gas systems dating back to 1973. Please refer to the attached list of ThermaTran experience in air preheat and ducted flue gas projects, and more detailed descriptions of some of our bigger and more complicated systems.

In the thermal design stage, several ThermaTran software systems help to shape the concepts that the ultimate design is based upon.

Summary
In summary ThermaTran can resolve any heater or heater related problem you may encounter. From new units, to modernization and / or debottlenecking of older units to spare parts to Combustion control systems, emissions control and reduction ThermaTran can handle it.

The bottom line to our customer is ThermaTran's total capability to handle your entire crude heater solution, be it new heater, revamp, air preheat or SCR addition or whatever, and on either a hardware or fully erected basis.

ThermaTran engineers have also provided both heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) systems and/or air preheat or other process heat recovery coils for many of these heaters. We have an excellent mechanical group capable of all design scenarios currently in industry use. This group is augmented by outside consultants with extensive industrial experience in process fired heater design.