Profitability comparison
Factor Oil yield
Mechanical filtration Lower (up to 1% oil lost) High (filter changeouts)
Electrostatic separator Higher (losses <0.1%)
Maintenance Product purity
Low (automated)
Moderate
Very high Enabled
Access to premium markets
Limited
Capex
Moderate
Higher, but lower lifetime Opex
Table 2
mechanical systems. In order to understand these differences, it is important to examine refining demand from the bottom of the barrel and the markets it supports.2 Higher product purity directly translates into improved value and access to premium markets. To sustain profits from slurry clarification, it is important to take all factors into account. Oil yield, maintenance, and quality of the final product are key when making the final technology selection. Multiple studies and extensive research on each sector are summarised in Table 2 to understand the effects of each technology on its merit of profitability. Profitability comparison • Yield recovery : A typical refinery processing 10,000 barrels/day of slurry oil could save 100 barrels/day by switching to electrostatic separation (at $60/barrel, ~$2.2M/year). • Product premiums : Higher purity commands up to $20/barrel premium in the carbon black market, potentially $3.6M/year additional revenue. • Opex savings: Reduced maintenance and disposal costs estimated at $200,000– $500,000/year.3 • Total profit increase : Between $2.4M and $6M/year, depending on refinery size and market access. As shown above, with the right clarification process in place, there is a substantial return to the refiner’s bottom line. It is important to understand that Capex is not the only number to consider in a clarification project. Opex and additional external equipment can quickly erode any savings identified in the front-end engineering, prompting a lower-cost alternative on these merits alone. Table 3 takes these costs and savings into account.
Case study example : Refineries deploying the electrostatic separator in place of mechanical filtration have reported up to 0.5-1% increased product recovery, savings in filter media and disposal costs, and improved reliability. As a result, annualised operational savings typically offset the higher initial capital costs within one to three years.4 Preferred use cases There are key differences in how these technologies are used, and no two refineries are alike when it comes to the clarification requirements for FCC main column bottoms. The majority of the difference lies in the demand, the serviceable market, and the desire to profit from this low-value feedstock. Currently, 61% of the refining industry producing slurry still uses settling tanks to meet their demand for slurry oil sales. The following applies to the remaining 39%, who want to increase profits and reduce environmental waste: Electrostatic separation • Refineries targeting premium product markets. • High-volume or high-solids streams. • Refining markets where oil recovery and purity are paramount. • Resid and high-severity catalytic cracking. • Operating presence of asphaltenes or waxes. • Removal of sub-micron catalyst fines. • Refining markets with strict waste regulations or concentration requirements. Mechanical filtration • Lower-volume operations. • Non-premium markets. • Operations with lower purity requirements and capital constraints. • Small-scale operations. • Intermittent/temporary filtration.
Refining India
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