Decarbonisation Technology - February 2025 Issue

movement and storage of renewable diesel feedstock. These cables adjust their heat output based on the surrounding temperature, ensuring energy efficiency and preventing overheating. Their ability to provide uniform heating makes them ideal for use in pipelines and storage tanks. Since sustainability is a key component of the energy transition, Raychem SR heating cable with high power retention (HPR) technology and a 30-year design life, ensures the performance and long product design life to meet critical sustainability requirements. Electrical contractors typically prefer to work with SR heat tracing cables whenever possible because they are easy to design and install. This is a result of the unconditional T ratings and cut-to-length installation. The process maintain temperatures of the typical feedstocks in this industry are also a great fit for the power temperature curves of the high-temperature SR heating cables displayed in Figure 1 . In this case, 277V is the optimum power, if available, to ensure maximum designed circuit lengths while minimising the impact on the overall power distribution of new or retrofit refinery operations. Longline heating systems When the renewable diesel feedstock delivery points are on ship docks or from distant railway access, this often means greater distances between the delivery point and the refinery itself. Due to the heat management requirement of the feedstocks, the piping distribution systems in these scenarios are best designed using longline heat tracing technologies like Skin-effect Tracing Systems (STS), which can carry heating power longer distances, as shown in Figure 2 . STS systems can be designed to operate for up to 50 km from a single power point. The critical solution that this heat tracing technology brings to this industry is the opportunity to provide the feedstock process temperature maintenance desired with little power distribution required, often from a single power point location. If the long pipeline from the ship unloading to the refinery were heat traced with SR technology, multiple power circuits would be required, which means more breakers, power distribution cabling, resistance

Innovative solutions for heat tracing challenges Addressing the challenges of renewable diesel feedstock requires a comprehensive heat management system (HMS). This system includes engineering, power distribution, electric heat trace products, control and monitoring, thermal insulation, and instrument winterisation. Designing an HMS solution for the feedstock area of a renewable diesel refinery depends on the location of the feedstock unloading system and the availability of power distribution to support electrical heat tracing. For instance, unloading feedstocks from a ship may involve long piping distribution systems from piers and jetties, while unloading from a truck or in-plant railcar may offer closer access to the operating refinery. When the feedstock delivery system is near the refinery, self-regulating (SR) technology is ideal for heating cables. Self-regulating heating cables SR heating cables are an effective solution for maintaining consistent temperatures for the Figure 1 Raychem heating cable with HPR technology

Figure 2 Raychem longline heating system