Hydrocarbon cracking
A method and apparatus for extending the operating life of a tube-type heat exchanger that has an upstream tube sheet face that carries a plurality of hollow tubes wherein the upstream side of the tube sheet face is coated with at least one refractory.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the thermal cracking of a hydrocarbonaceous material in a pyrolysis furnace. More particularly, this invention relates to the transfer line exchanger (TLE) of a pyrolysis furnace.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Thermal cracking of hydrocarbons is a petrochemical process that is widely used to produce olefins such as ethylene, propylene, butenes, butadiene, and aromatics such as benzene, toluene, and xylenes. In an olefin production plant, a hydrocarbonaceous feedstock such as ethane, naphtha, gas oil, or other fractions of whole crude oil is mixed with steam which serves as a diluent to keep the hydrocarbon molecules separated.
This mixture, after preheating, is subjected to hydrocarbon thermal cracking using elevated temperatures (1,450 to 1,550 degrees Fahrenheit or F.) in a pyrolysis furnace (steam cracker or cracker). This thermal cracking is carried out without the aid of any catalyst.
The cracked product effluent of the pyrolysis furnace (furnace) contains hot, gaseous hydrocarbons of great variety (from 1 to 35 carbon atoms per molecule, or C1 to C35 inclusive, both saturated and unsaturated). This product contains aliphatics (alkanes and alkenes), alicyclics (cyclanes, cyclenes, and cyclodienes), aromatics, and molecular hydrogen (hydrogen).
This furnace product is then subjected to further processing to produce, as products of the olefin plant, various, separate and individual product streams such as hydrogen, ethylene, propylene, fuel oil, and pyrolysis gasoline. After the separation of these individual streams, the remaining cracked product contains essentially C4 hydrocarbons and heavier. This remainder is fed to a debutanizer wherein a crude C4 stream is separated as overhead while a C5 and heavier stream is removed as a bottoms product.
Such a C4 stream can contain varying amounts of n-butane, isobutane, 1-butene, 2-butenes (both cis and trans isomers), isobutylene, acetylenes, and diolefins such as butadiene (both cis and trans isomers).
The hot, cracked furnace product, upon leaving the furnace, is first introduced into a tube-type heat exchanger wherein, for example, boiler feed water is indirectly heat exchanged with the hot furnace product stream to cool that product stream to a more manageable level, and to generate high pressure steam for use elsewhere in the cracking plant. The tube-type heat exchanger (exchanger) employed is a unit that contains a plurality of closely spaced heat exchange tubes, e.g., typically from about 25 to about 100 tubes. The number of tubes varies widely depending on a number of variables such as exchanger and tube internal diameters. The tube ends are carried and spaced apart by a metal member that is termed a tube sheet face.
The transfer of product from the furnace to the exchanger is accomplished through a transfer line and a truncated cone adapter which expands from the smaller diameter transfer line to the larger diameter exchanger. The truncated adapter, unlike the tube sheet face and exchanger tubes, is typically refractory lined, and incorporates various conical or trumpet style designs intended to distribute the flow evenly across the larger diameter exchanger. The mass flow rate (pounds/second/square foot) of furnace product through the transfer line and cone, and into and through the exchanger tubes is relatively constant under normal conditions.
The exchanger is an elongated unit, since the tubes in its interior are long in order to achieve as much heat transfer from the hot product to the boiler feed water as reasonably possible. The exchanger, including its upstream tube sheet face and tube interiors, are formed of uncoated metal, and are exposed to the hot furnace product.
In the cracking process coke is unavoidably formed in the furnace, and just as unavoidably, coke fines find their way into the furnace product that passes into the transfer line exchanger. Thus, the exposed metal upstream side of the upstream tube sheet face of the exchanger and the interior of the exchanger tubes are both constantly impacted with hot furnace product containing coke particulates (fines). The furnace product also carries steam which can cause scale deposition on the upstream tube sheet face and the interior of the exchanger tubes. Thus, the upstream side of the tube sheet face and the interior surface of the exchanger tubes carried by that tube sheet face are subjected to the peak heat flux (Btu/hour/square foot) of the exchanger under severe particulate erosion and scaling deposition conditions.
Accordingly, there are no less than three major problems encountered by an upstream tube sheet face and its accompanying tubes in a TLE. These are 1) physical erosion due to normal operation of the transfer line exchanger in conjunction with a pyrolysis furnace which includes de-coking operations that employ combustion, in the presence of added oxygen, of coke deposits on the upstream surface of the upstream tube face sheet and tube interior surfaces; 2) high temperature degradation of such surfaces during normal operation, including de-coking; and 3) scale deposition from the water contacting such surfaces with accompanying corrosion of such surfaces under the scale deposits.
Therefore, it is desirable to have the most robust tube sheet face as is economically possible to provide as long an operating life as possible for a transfer line exchanger. This invention does just that, and addresses all three problem areas as aforesaid at the same time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn accordance with this invention, the foregoing transfer line exchanger problems are minimized by coating the exposed metal upstream side of the upstream tube sheet face with at least one refractory.
Pursuant to this invention, it has been found that, contrary to what was thought, it is not necessary to protect the exposed inner metal surface of the exchanger tubes.
Tubes 12 are carried by the upstream tube sheet face 11, and extend along their long axes to downstream tube sheet face 13. Tubes 12 terminate at sheet face 13, and are in fluid communication with downstream outlet chamber 14. Chamber 14 is typically cylindrical or conical in shape. Sheet faces 11 and 13 enclose opposing ends of interior 20 of exchanger 5. The cooled furnace product then passes out of exchanger 5 in a conduit (not shown) in a second flow direction as shown by arrow 6.
As shown in
Thus, the mass flow rate (mass flow) of product 8 in line 4 passes into interior 19 and impinges on upstream side 28 of tube sheet inlet face 11 at high velocity under peak temperature flux conditions in the presence of coke fines that are also traveling at a high velocity, thus leading to the three major problems enumerated here in above.
This invention alleviates, if not eliminates, all three problems.
Pursuant to this invention, as shown in
By this invention, the combination of tube sheet face 11 and refractory member 30 shown in
The refractory employed in this invention can be any refractory which contains a substantial amount of alumina. The alumina content can be at least about 20 weight percent (wt. %) alumina, preferably at least about 80 wt. % alumina, based on the total weight of the refractory. The refractory can contain other known refractory materials such as magnesium oxide, phosphoric acid, and/or silica. High alumina refractory is well known in the art, commercially available, and further detail is not necessary to inform the art. The refractory coatings of this invention can vary widely in thickness depending on the size of the equipment, particularly the interior diameter of tubes 12, but will generally vary from about 0.25 to about 6 inches.
Refractory can be affixed to tube sheet face surface 28 in any known manner. Generally, such refractory has a putty-like consistency when first molded to the desired carrying surface. Thereafter the molded refractory is fired at a high temperature to convert the soft refractory to the desired rigid refractory coating. Known anchoring systems can be used to help fix and hold the refractory coating on the tube sheet face during operation of the plant.
An anchoring system pursuant to this invention is shown in
Member(s) 31 is of a curvilinear, e.g., essentially circular, transverse cross-section similar to that of tube(s) 12. Member 31 extends upstream longitudinally outside (beyond) wall 28 for all or essentially all of the thickness 33 (
Pursuant to this invention, a method of fixing member 31 inside tube 12 involves inserting an undersized essentially curvilinear cross-section ferrule into tube interior 26, member 31 essentially matching the curvilinear cross-section of that tube, and then mechanically rolling or otherwise expanding the outer surface of the ferrule into tight physical contact with all or any part of the 360 degree interior of tube surface 34. In this manner, the rolled ferrule is held in place by physical, frictional gripping between the outer wall of the ferrule and inner wall of the tube. The foregoing construction can be employed in lieu of welding, riveting, or other mechanical means for fixing the ferrule to the tube; however mechanical fixing means are also within the scope of this invention.
Ferrule 31 can carry one or more projection members that are fixed to the ferrule and extend into the interior of the body of the refractory coating 30 to better support refractory 30 when in place on tube sheet face 11, and to better fix refractory 30 to face 28.
The upstream side 28 of tube sheet 11 is, for example, routinely exposed to a gas stream 8 which contains coke particulates and which is at a temperature of about 1,560 F, while its downstream side 42 is routinely exposed to water at 610 F. This creates a substantial temperature gradient across tube sheet 11. This temperature gradient can cause cracks to form in the tube sheet itself and/or in tubes 12. It can also cause scale deposits to form on the upstream side 42 of tube sheet 11, particularly in the corners where the tube sheet and tubes are contiguous with one another.
By this invention, the upstream side 28 of tube sheet 11 is reduced to a temperature of from about 700 to about 900 F, thereby significantly reducing the temperature gradient across tube sheet 11, and substantially reducing, if not eliminating, one or both of cracking in tube sheet 11 and/or tubes 12, and scale deposition on upstream side 42 and tube 12.
EXAMPLEA tube-type heat exchanger as shown in
Claims
1. In a method for thermally cracking a hydrocarbonaceous material to form a cracked product wherein said material is passed through at least one pyrolysis furnace to cause said cracking and form a furnace product, said product being transferred from said furnace to at least one tube-type heat exchanger which has a first upstream tube sheet face and a second downstream tube sheet face and which contains a plurality of longitudinally extending spaced apart hollow interior heat exchange tubes having an interior surface and upstream and downstream ends, said tubes extending in overall length from said upstream face sheet to said downstream face sheet for transporting said product through said heat exchanger, the longitudinal axes of said tubes extending from said upstream face sheet to said downstream tube sheet face, said upstream tube sheet face having an upstream side, said upstream ends of said tubes being product inlet ends that terminate with said upstream side of said upstream tube sheet face, the improvement comprising coating said upstream side of said upstream tube sheet face between said tube inlets with at least one refractory.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein said refractory contains at least about 40 wt. % alumina based on the total weight of said refractory.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein said interior surfaces of said exchange tubes are not coated with refractory.
4. In a thermal cracking transfer line tube-type heat exchanger which has a first upstream tube sheet face and a downstream tube sheet face and which contains a plurality of longitudinally extending spaced apart hollow interior heat exchange tubes having an interior surface extending in overall length from said upstream tube sheet face to said downstream tube sheet face and upstream inlet and downstream outlet ends, the longitudinal axes of said tubes extending from said upstream tube sheet face to said downstream tube sheet face, said upstream tube sheet face having an upstream side, said upstream inlet ends of said tubes terminating with said upstream side of said upstream tube sheet face, the improvement comprising said upstream side of said upstream tube sheet face having a coating of at least one refractory.
5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said refractory coating is from about 0.25 to about 6 inches.
6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said refractory coating contains at least about 40 wt. % alumina based on the total weight of said refractory.
7. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said refractory coating is supported by at least one ferrule that is carried at the inlet end of at least one of said exchange tubes.
8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said at least one ferrule carries at least one projection that extends away from said ferrule and into the interior of said refractory coating.
9. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said interior surfaces of said exchange tubes are not coated with refractory.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 7, 2006
Publication Date: Jun 12, 2008
Inventor: Alnoor Bandali (Pearland, TX)
Application Number: 11/635,324
International Classification: C10G 9/00 (20060101);