EXTREME CONDITION PROCESSING
Petrochemical Research Pilot Plant C. V. FOSTER, 0. A. KNEDLER, J. F. PETERSEN, Co., Ponca Cify, Oklu.
AND
M. L. SHARRAH
Continenfal Oil
D
URING the last few years, research personnel of the Continental Oil Co. have been performing laboratory work in the fields of lubricating oil additives, geophysics, petrochemicals, and petroleum production. I n addition t o the laboratory work, pilot plant studies on new products have been conducted in existing equipment. The time arrived when additional facilities for production research, high pressure research, and pilot plant studies were required. Thus, herein is a description of the quarters which were built to serve these research functions. The various types of research work to be done in the building require different facilities. Most of the production research is done with bench-scale units, consequently only general laboratory space ismeeded. The pilot plant endeavors require both batch and continuous units and produce both design data and materials in sufficient quantity for market evaluation. The expanded high pressure research program needed equipment for processing both small and large quantities a t high pressures. These needs established the basic nature of the building layout but did not dictate its architectural character. Naturally an economical structure was desired, but a t the same time a certain distinctiveness was permissible. An analysis indicated that a considerable saving could be made if the structure took the form of a huge cylinder which had as its basic structure an 80,000-barrel storage tank, a form that guaranteed architectural distinction (Figure 1). The circular building has an over-all diameter of 117 feet and is 46 feet high a t the center. The outer walls and roof are formed from the original tank shell and are covered with 2 inches of fiberglass insulation, corrugated aluminum, and porcelain enamel. Window and door openings are cut into the tank shell 'at appropriate places. Below the windows porcelain enamel panels of green are used. I n addition t o the use of color, the extensive exterior wall is broken by white porcelain enamel pilasters a t equal inter-
Figure 1. Figure 2. May 1956
vals around the periphery. The front entrance is a large trapezoid of cement and stone flanked with shrubbery. A cantilever aluminum canopy covers the entryway. Beyond the front door, which is glass, a service entrance with a 10 by 11 foot overhead door opens directly into the building. On the opposite side of the building from the front entrance, a stairway fire escape extends t o the top of the building. This provides access t o the roof for maintenance and inspection as well as a safety exit in case of fire. The roof consists of 2 inches of fiberboard insulation and conventional 15-year built-up roofing on the original steel tank roof. Light and ventilation are provided by a central clerestory 42 feet in diameter and 5 feet high. The wall section of this part of the building is made from green corrugated plastic fiber-glass material. Directly adjacent t o the south side of the building is the high pressure area (Figure 2). I n this area are the six high pressure cells that fan out in a radial direction from the main building (Figure 3). They are placed in groups of two with each group separated from the next by a walk and are of two sizes with each having a trapezoidal floor plan. The smaller cells are approximately 10 by 9 feet whereas the larger cells are about 18 by 10 feet. The two larger cells are placed side by side between the two groups of smaller cells. The cells are covered with highpitched, 45" gable roofs. The walls of the cells are 12 feet high. Between the cells and the main building is an operating corridor 60 by 10 feet (Figure 4). The corridor serves two purposes; it separates the main building from the high pressure equipment, and i t provides space for instruments and operation. I n the main building are the offices and the control laboratory, which are entered from the operating corridor. These are used by the high pressure group. The interior of the main building is divided into two principal areas. I n the center of the building is the pilot plant, which is
Over-all view of pilot plant building Exterior of high pressure cells +
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
ENGINEERING, DESIGN, AND PROCESS DEVELOPMENT
Figure 3.
Floor plan, first floor
60 feet in diameter and which extends from the first floor to the roof (Figure 5). The offices and laboratories are around the outer wall on the first and second floors with a hallray separating them from the pilot plant area. Provisions have been made for adding a third floor of offices and laboratories when needed. The first floor arrangement in counter-clockwise order from the entrance is as follows (Figure 3): Office of supervisory personnel Application laboratory Locker and wash room Secondary petroleum recovery laboratory Control laboratory for the pilot plant activities Utility room High pressure control laboratory and offices Tool room and shop Distillation area, three floors Storage room Service entrance Solvent storage room Stairwell to second floor
board is composed of two thin transite sections fiandwiched on each side of a thick layer of Celotex to form large panels, 4 by 12 feet, which are held in place with sheet-metal angles. Interior walls of this material can be shifted easily by moving and installing new sheet-metal angles. This type of construction provides an essentially fieproof wall. The safety of the operating personnel is of paramount importance in the design, construction, and operation of the high pressure cells. Three walls of each cell and the half of the roof adjacent to the main building are of heavy material, whereas the fourth or outside wall and the other half of the roof is very light and forms a blovout panel (Figure 6). The heavy walls and roof consist of 2-inch-thick tongue-andgrooved pine boards, 6 inches wide, fastened to upright 4-inch steel channels with bolts. The vertical channels are welded top and bottom to two channel irons. The bottom channel iron is bolted to the concrete base with 1-inch diameter by 18-inch anchor bolts on 12-inch centers An outer cover of l/&xh-thick steel plate is melded to the channel iron frame. The hollow space between the steel and the tongue-andgrooved boards is filled with fine dry sand, The blowout panels consist of 3/4-inch-thick plywood held to the I-beams and channels with 100-pound wood screws, which allow the panels to be blown off when a differential pressure of I'/z lb./sq. inch exists between the inside of the cell and the atmosphere. Plastic panels were considered, but the avaiiability, cost, and ease of construction made the use of plywood mandatory. Individual entrances to each cell are through doorways cut in the outer or blowout wail; lightweight slab is used for the doors to keep out wind and rain and for locking the cells. To facilitate the moving of large e q u i p ment in and out of the cells the blowout panels are arranged for easy removal. Ceilings. I n the first-floor offices and laboratories the ceilings are of 22-gage corrugated sheet metal covered with reinforced concrete. On the second floor, the ceilings are also of corrugated sheet metal and are covered temporarily with fiber-glass innulation.
The laboratories and ofices on the second floor are directly above those on the first floor. Well logging, production stimulation, mud laboratory, storage, offices, and conference room are included on this floor. These laboratories and their functions have been described in a previous publication ( 1 ) .
Details of Construction Flooring. The ground floor of the building rests on a foundation of earth and packed sand and consists of 6 inches of reinforced concrete. The second floor of the offices and laboratories is of reinforced concrete poured over corrugated iron supported by I-beams. The second floor of the pilot plant area is constructed of steel grating. The floors of the storage areas, high pressure cells, and first-floor pilot area are of specially treated and hardened concrete. The first and second floors in the entrance, offices, and laboratories are covered with asphalt tile. Walls. The inner surface of the original tank forms the outer wall of the offices and laboratories with no additional covering. All interior walls of the main building are of Cemesto board. This
850
Figure 4.
Operating corridor for high pressure cells
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
Vol. 48, No. 5
EXTREME CONDITION PROCESSING
Figure 5.
Pilot plant area
point 20 feet beyond the blowout panels or cell front. It is made of 1l/rinch welded, Schedule 160, steel pipe. Utilities. Utility headers for cold and hot water, compressed air, vacuum, natural gas, 110- and 208-volt, 60-cycle electricity, and low and high pressure steam lines are hung from the ceiling of the first-floor hallway. These utilities are piped into the firstrfloor laboratories at the ceiling level and brought down to the bench level. The vertical run of piping is shielded from view with a housing made of the Cemestos board. Services t o the secondfloor laboratories are run through sleeves in the floor directly to the benches. A t the vacuum tank vacuum is maintained at 26 inches of mercury by a single pump of 58 cu. feet/min. capacity. Compressed air is furnished a t 150 lb./sq. inch by two air compressors, each with a capacity of 54 cu. feet/min. Drain lines from the laboratories are of Duriron throughout. Two floor drains, 16 feet by 1 foot and 6 inches deep, service the pilot plant area. All drains including those in the high pressure cells and excepting the sanitary sewers are tied into the refinery waste system; hence, oils and similar materials may be dumped into the drains and be recovered. A*large mud trap is used in the drilling mud laboratory drains t o catch the large amounts of clay and other materials used there. I n addition t o the above laboratory utilities, the pilot plant area has chilled water, cooling tower water, and 440-volt, 60cycle electricity. T h e chilled water is provided by a 50-ton refrigeration machine and is availableat 35°F. (Figure 7); lower temperatures down to 10' F. are available if needed but a t a reduced
I n the pilot plant area, the roof of the original tank serves as ceiling with the central clerestory about 36 feet above the iron grating of the second floor. This arrangement gives lighting, ventilation, and plenty of head room. The operating corridor for the high pressure cells is covered with insulation and built-up roof on a 20-gage steel deck. The high pressure cells have high-pitched gabled roofs with steel blasting mats hung from the ceiling. These mats are t o stop a projectile from an exdosion. 1/2"STEEL PLATE Heat and Ventilation. All offices and laboratories as well as the halls are air conditioned. Two 10-ton, one 15-ton, and one %ton units furnish refrigerated and conditioned air for the hot summer weather and heating and humidity control in winter. An overhead duct system located in the hall delivers the conditioned air 1/2" STEEL PLATE to the offices and laboratories. Two heaters each furnish 12,000 cu. feet/min. of heated or unheated air to the pilot plant area. This air is exhausted by two 12,000-cu. HIGH P R E S S U R E C E L L HIGH PRESSURE feet/min. exhaust blowers, one located in the CONTROL CORRIDOR LABORATORY clerestory and the other at ground level. At the ground level four openings are located at 90" around the periphery of the pilot plant which lead t o the exhaust blower through 24-, 36-, and 42-inch pipes. The blower discharges the air t o the outside a t ground level about 30 feet from the building, and thus pulls out stagnant and heavily contaminated air. The upper blower, located on a platform in the clerestory, exhausts Figure 6. Construction details of high pressure cells all light materials and hot air from the pilot plant. Ten air changes per hour are provided for the pilot plant area. Each high pressure cell is heated and ventilated by an induced capacity. A cooling tower with a 5,000,000 B.t.u. per hour draft fan t h a t pulls fresh air into the cell over a bank of steamcapacity serves the four air conditioning machines, the chilled heating coils. The coils are located inside a rectangular opening, water unit, and the pilot plant area. Under average operating 24 by 30 inches, that is cut in the blowout panels just above the conditions, a normal temperature of 8 5 O F, can be obtained. doorway in each cell. Thirty air changes per hour are provided, A total of 750 kv.-amp. of power is available at voltages of 440, but no provisions are made for cooling the coils. After the air 208, and 110 with three-phase service for the higher voltages. passes over the coils, i t is deflected t o the floor by an open duct work. The exhaust fan is located approximately 10 feet above t h e floor in the blowout panel and takes air through a duct work Furniture extending toward the ceiling. The use of the ducts assures an Laboratory bench sections in all of the laboratories are of steel even sweeping of the cell with the fresh air. with a gray finish. Bench tops and drainboards are of ChemI n case of the rupture of a bursting disk or the release of a stone, and the cabinets, which are placed on simple Chemstone safety relief valve, each cell is provided with a blowdown or vent line. This line connects t o the bursting disk and extends t o a bases above the bench top, are of metal with sliding glass doors.
-
May 1956
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
85 1
ENGINEERING, DESIGN, AND PROCESS DEVELOPMENT
Figure 7. Air compressors and 50-ton refrigeration unit
The Chemstone bases used with the cabinets consist of two upright slabs covered with a horizontal slab Sinks are Alberene stone. Utility outlets are located on the table tops (Figure 8). Noxious Fume Removal System. The fume hoods in the laboratories are of the air-conditioned, closed-face type and are constructed of transite covered with metal. They can be closed with glass pull-down doors equipped with stainlcss steel fittings. These hoods contain fixed baffles to assure balanced air flow for removing both light and heavy fumes. Lighting inside these hoods is by vaporproof incandescent fixtures. Water, vacuum, and air plus a Duriron drain are provided in each hood; electrical connections and switches are located just outside the face of the hood. All hoods are equipped with two fans. One fan exhausts 1200 cu. feet/min. while the other fan blows fresh air into the hood from outside the building. This arrangement is possible because all hoods are located on an outside wall adjacent to a pilaster-type rib. Ducts from the hoods to each blower are made of Galbestos. Since each blower rests on the top of the hood only a short duct is required. The blowers exhaust directly into a Galbestos duct located in the pilaster rib, and flexible connections are made of specially treated heavy canvas duck sleeves to reduce vibrations and lower noise. Storage. The solvent storage area is equipped with a drum rack and metal shelving. The drum rack holds 24 55-gallon drums horizontally, three high and eight wide. B y using the service valves, easy access is had to the contents of each drum. Five-gallon cans and smaller containers are kept on regular shelves. Metal shelving and bins are used in the second-floor storage area. These bins are three feet deep and have various size openings. Some drawer space is also provided. Samples, glassware, and dry chemicals are stored on the second floor in addition t o some pilot plant equipment such as portable pumps, filter presses, containers, dollies, and other easily moved equipment
852
Each high pressure cell contains a small locked cabinet equipped with tools and fittings peculiar to the equipment used in that cell. High pressure accumulators are located in the cell beside the equipment they serve (Figure 9) To safeguard personnel when they are checking or cleaning process equipment, the accumulators are separated fioin the other equipment by heavy steel-blasting mats hung from the ceiling. This permits the holding of the accumulators a t full pressure. Lighting. Lighting throughout the building is designed to give a uniform illumination of 50 foot candles at the working level. Fluorescent niultitube fixtures are used in laboratories, offices,
Figure 8.
Applications laboratory
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
Vol. 48, No. 5
EXTREME CONDITION PROCESSING blankets are strategically located near all units and laboratories. Fire-fighting equipment is located in all areas where i t might be needed. Gas masks having their own oxygen supply are placed throughout the areas for use in noxious atmospheres.
Operations
Figure 9.
Five-gallon autoclave
and hallways. Vaportight lighting fixtures are used in the pilot plant and high pressure cell areas. Dumb Waiter and Hoist. T o service the second-floor laboratories, a dumb waiter is used for loads up to 200 pounds. It is located adjacent to the first-floor solvent storage and the second-floor storage. A 2000-pound electric hoist is used in the pilot plant area. It is hung from a 10-inch I-beam that makes a 360' traverse of the central area. Heavy supplies can be lifted from the ground floor to the second floor through a 4 by 8 foot opening in the second-floor grating.
High Pressure Area. The main purpose of the high pressure group is t o perform high pressure research and developmental work. Studies of some processes may include exploratory aa well aa pilot plant work; consequently, the high pressure cells are equipped with both batch autoclaves, ranging from 1-liter to 20gallon capacity, as well as units for conducting reactions continuously (Figure 10). Since the operating corridor contains the control panels for all of the high pressure cells, coordination of the over-all operation is simplified. Easy access to the shop and high pressure control laboratory aid in this coordination. Only professional personnel operate the high pressure equipment; their offices are located adjacent to the high pressure control laboratory. Pilot Plant Area. Two broad functions are carried out by the pilot plant group. They fulfill the normal duties of a pilot plant group and in addition produce market-research quantities of new products. Several kettles of glass-lined and stainless steel construction are used to make these market-research quantities of new products. These kettles are located in the center of the pilot plant area leaving the perimeter for continuous pilot plant units. The general utility items, such as stills, filters, centri-
Safety Many safety features have been provided in the high pressure operating corridor, cells, pilot plant area, and laboratories in addition to the usual precautions taken against fire and other normal hazards. All of the laboratories have two exits or more. A fire escape which can be reached through the utility rooms extends from the roof to the ground on the outside of the building. Three stairways plus a circular stair in the pilot plant area allow passage to the ground floor. One of these stairways opens directly to the outside, whereas the other two lead into outside doorways. To assure full protection in the pilot plant area and high pressure cells, all fixtures are explosionproof or vaportight. All motors on exhaust blowers are explosionproof. The two induced draft blowers serving the pilot plant area are equipped with a bell alarm that sounds when the blowers do not operate. A fog nozzle sprinkler system is installed at the second-floor ceiling level in the pilot area for use in case of fire. The solvent storage area is air conditioned and equipped with an automatic carbon dioxide fire-smothering system, automatic fire doors, and dampers to close the air exhaust ducts and a fire alarm. Safety showers are located in each laboratory in addition to several in the pilot plant and high pressure cell areas. Fire
May 1956
Figure 10.
Hofer gas compressor
fuges, and dryers, are located in the area adjacent to the pilot plant well. All of these working areas are immediately available to the service entrance, storage areas, tool room, shop, and hallway leading to engineering personnel offices.
literature Cited (1) Mines Mag. (Cob.) 45, No. 10,91-5 (1955). RECEIVED for review October 13, 1955.
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
ACCEPTED February 20, 1956.
853
