ABOUT MRPL

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL),

located at Kuthetoor, at mangalore on the west coast of in the
evergreen dakshina kannada district. This has the distinction of
being a first joint Refinery in India, promoted by HPCL and aditya
birla group of companies and now is a subsidiary of ONGC.

The refinery has a versatile design with high flexibility to process

crudes of various API and with high degree of automation. MRPL
has a design capacity to process 9.69 million metric tonnes per
annum from its first two phases and further 3 million metric tonnes
per annum from its third phase, which is being constructed. It is the
only refinery in India to have two hydrocrackers producing
premium diesel (high cetane).

State of art technology, efficient systems of international

standard(ISO 9001 to ISO 14001), a team of committed employees
and backing of the parent company have converted MRPL into a
major player in the refinery
sector and had a turnover of Rs. 36000 crores during last year.
Before acquisition by ONGC in March 2003, MRPL was a joint
venture oil refinery promoted by M/s Hindustan Petroleum
Corporation Limited.

MRPL has high standards in refining and environment protection

matched by its commitments to the society. MRPL has also
developed a green Belt around the entire refinery with plant
species selected specially to blend with the flora.

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Manufacturing facilities
MRPL has the unique distinction of having two hydrocrackers and
two CCR units in one complex which produce high quality low
sulphur fuels. The technology and equipment have been selected
from the best available in the world to ensure quality and reliability
of operation. Multiple units also allow for flexibility in operation
enabling MRPL to processes 40 different types of crude at same
time. The main products produced by distillation of crude in the
main plant and other secondary products are :

1. Liquefied petroleum gas (also called LPG, GPL, LP Gas,

or autogas) is a flammable mixture of hydrocarbon gases
used as a fuel in domestic heating appliances and vehicles
consisting of Propane and Butane.

2. Naphtha A hydrocarbon generally used in fertilizers and as a

solvent in chemical industries as a cleaning agent.

3. Kerosene sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and

industrial usage, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid ,
commonly used as a heating fuel.and still used as light
source in village areas.

4. HSD is used in all heavy vehicles tankers, trucks, railways ,

etc. , MRPL has achieved less than 0.25 % of sulphar levels
in Diesel as prescribed by The Ministry of Petroleum.

5. Gasoline or petrol is a petroleum-derived liquid mixture

which is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion
engines. It is also used as a solvent, mainly known for its
ability to dilute paints.

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6. Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation,
either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is
any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or
boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the
generation of power.

7. ATF(Aviation Turbine Fuel) a kind of fuel used in

Domestic aircrafts and Helicopters , which has to undergo
stringent laboratory tests so that the properties obtained are to
near standards .

8. BITUMEN Is produced in the lower plateau region of

MRPL, is a highly viscous, black, sticky substance composed
primarily of highly condensed polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons . It is a substance used to make roads and also
called as Tar.

9. Sulphar is dispatched from Sulphar recovery unit (SRU) in

direct form (Yellow Powder) and sent to various industries
i.e. the consumers by trucks .

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BLOCK DIAGRAM OF REFINERY

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MANUFACTURING UNITS
Manufacturing unit of MRPL is divided as follows:
• Crude distillation unit (CDU)
• Vacuum distillation unit(VDU)
• Visbreaker unit(VBU)
• HydroCracker unit(HCU)
• Continuous catalytic reforming(CCR)
• Sulphur recovery unit(SRU)
• Oil movement and storage(OMS)
• Captive power plant(CPP)
• Condition monitoring
• Effluent treatment plants(ETP)
• Workshop
• Mechanical devices

CRUDE DISTILLATION UNIT (CDU)

It is the starting point in a refinery. Here the crude is
separated into a number of fractions, each having a certain
range of boiling points. In CDU, the oil is distilled to produce
naphtha, kerosene, diesel, and reduced crude. The block
diagram of CDU is as shown below:

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Block diagram of CDU tower

Process description: Hot crude from the atmosphere heater

which comprises of both liquid and vapour flashes as soon as it
enters the atmospheric tower. The vapour and the liquid separate in
the flashing zone. The liquid gets collected at the bottom and is
sent to the vacuum heater. This is called reduced crude oil. Mass
transfer takes place between the vapour and the liquid in the
column. The heavier products condense first as they have higher
boiling points and lighter products condense at the top.

Atmospheric distillation column: In atmospheric column

instead of treating crude as a mixture of hundreds of
components ,it is divided into various components based on the
boiling points. However due to ineffiencies in circulation of reflux
and other factors, additional trays are provided. The heavier
products condense first as they have higher boiling points and

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lighter products condense at the top. A simple diagram is as shown
below.

Circulating reflux are used to control temperature at various points

in the atmospheric column. It is also used to take the extra heat in
the column to increase the temperature of the crude thus saving a
lot of fuel oil.

VACUUM DISTILLATION UNIT (VDU)

Vacuum distillation is a method of distillation whereby the

pressure above the liquid mixture to be distilled is reduced to less
than its vapor pressure (usually less than atmospheric pressure)
causing evaporation of the most volatile liquid(s).

Heavy crude oil is preheated by the bottoms feed exchanger,

further preheated and partially vaporized in the feed furnace, and
passed into the vacuum tower where it is separated into slop oil,
vacuum gas oil, vacuum distillate, slop wax, and bottoms residue.

Advantages: vacuum distillation increases the relative volatility of

the key components in many applications. The higher the relative
volatility, the more separable are the two components; this

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connotes fewer stages in a distillation column in order to effect the
same separation between the overhead and bottoms products.
Lower pressures increase relative volatilities in most systems.

A second advantage of vacuum distillation is the reduced

temperature requirement at lower pressures. For many systems, the
products degrade or polymerize at elevated temperatures.

Vacuum distillation can improve a separation by:

1. Prevention of product degradation or polymer formation

because of reduced pressure leading to lower tower bottoms
temperatures.
2. Reduction of product degradation or polymer formation
because of reduced mean residence time especially in
columns using packing rather than trays.
3. Also increasing capacity, yield, and purity.

Another advantage of vacuum distillation is the reduced capital

cost, at the expense of slightly more operating cost. Utilizing
vacuum distillation can reduce the height and diameter, and thus
the capital cost of a distillation column.

NAPHTHA SPLITTING UNIT (NSU)

The above unit may be divided as follows:

NAPHTHA SPLITTING UNIT

Naphtha Stabilizer Naphtha Splitter

.
Naphtha stabilizer

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The purpose of naphtha stabilizer is to remove LPG and fuel gas
from naphtha. Thus making it easier to store and making it less
susceptible to release last amounts of hydrocarbon vapours.
The naphtha stabilizer has 36 trays. The feed from the atmospheric
reflux drum enters at 1170C. LPG is collected as the overhead
product and it is sent to amine treatment unit. A part of this is sent
to the column as the top reflux. The column bottom is maintained
at 1620C with the help of a reboiler which uses LGO CR as the
heating medium. Stabilized naphtha is collected as a bottom
product. Thus goes to the naptha splitter.

Naptha splitter
Naphtha splitter column consists of 30 trays. The stabilized
naphtha from the stabilizer column is pre-heated in heavy naphtha
product heat exchanger and is flashed. Overhead product is light
naphtha which is sent to column as overhead reflux. Heavy
naphtha is collected as the bottom as the bottom product.

VISBREAKER UNIT

A visbreaker is a processing unit in oil refinery whose purpose is

to reduce the quantity of residual oil produced in the distillation of
crude oil and to increase the yield of more valuable middle
distillates (heating oil and diesel) by the refinery. A visbreaker
thermally cracks large hydrocarbon molecules in the oil by heating
in a furnace to reduce its viscosity and to produce small quantities
of light hydrocarbons (LPG and gasoline) The process name of
"visbreaker" refers to the fact that the process reduces (i.e., breaks)
the viscosity of the residual oil. The process is non-catalytic.

In this process Short Residue is cooled to 220 -230 degrees Celsius

and sent to a visbreaker unit , in which thermal cracking takes

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place breaking long chains molecule at centre due to which lighter
compounds like Light Gas Oil (LGO) , Heavy Gas Oil (HGO) ,
Sour Off Gas , Naphtha and Fuel Oil are formed.

The various apparatus in this Visbreaker Unit are

 The heater is two pass, vertical, box types , balanced
draft heater.
 Two Burners are present.
 Fuel Oil, Gas Oil or both are used as fuel.
 An induced Draft fan and FD Fan is used.
 Soaker type VBU which provides long run time at low
temperature.

MEROX (MERCAPTAN OXIDATION) UNIT

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Merox is an acronym for mercaptan oxidation. It is a proprietary
catalytic chemical process developed by UOP used in oil refineries
and natural gas processing plants to remove mercaptans from LPG,
propane, butanes, light naphthas, kerosene and jet fuel by
converting them to liquid hydrocarbon disulfides.

This Process may be basically classified as:

i. Kero Merox
ii. LPG Merox

The conventional Merox process for the removal of mercaptan

(i.e., sweetening) of jet fuel or kerosene is a one-step process.The
mercaptan oxidation reaction takes place in an alkaline
environment as the feedstock jet fuel or kerosene, mixed with
compressed air, flows through a fixed bed of catalyst in a reactor
vessel. The catalyst consists of charcoal granules that have been
impregnated with UOP's proprietary catalyst. The oxidation
reaction that takes place is:

4 RSH + O2 → 2RSSR + 2H2O

As is the case with the conventional Merox process for treating

LPG, the jet fuel or kerosene sweetening process also requires that
the feedstock be prewashed to remove any H2S that would interfere
with the sweetening. The reaction that takes place in the batch
caustic prewash vessel is:
H2S + NaOH → NaSH + H2O

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LPG MEROX:

The conventional Merox process for extraction and removal of

mercaptans from liquefied petroleum gases (LPG), such as
propane, butanes and mixtures of propane and butanes, can also be
used to extract and remove mercaptans from light naphthas. It is a
two-step process. In the first step, the feedstock LPG or light
naphtha is contacted in the trayed extractor vessel with an aqueous
caustic solution containing UOP's proprietary liquid catalyst. The
caustic solution reacts with mercaptans and extracts them. The
reaction that takes place in the extractor is:

2RSH + 2 NaOH → 2NaSR + 2 H2O

The second step is referred to as regeneration and it involves

heating and oxidizing of the caustic solution leaving the extractor.
The oxidations results in converting the extracted mercaptans to

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organic disulfides (RSSR) which are liquids that are water-
insoluble and are then separated and decanted from the aqueous
caustic solution. The reaction that takes place in the regeneration
step is:

4NaSR + O2 + 2H2O → 2RSSR + 4NaOH

After decantation of the disulfides, the regenerated "lean" caustic

solution is recirculated back to the top of the extractor to continue
extracting mercaptan. The net overall Merox reaction covering the
extraction and the regeneration step may be expressed as:

4 RSH + O2 → 2RSSR + 2H2O

The feedstock entering the extractor must be free of any H2S.

Otherwise, any H2S entering the extractor would react with the
circulating caustic solution and interfere with the Merox reactions.
Therefore, the feedstock is first "prewashed" by flowing through a
batch of aqueous caustic to remove any H2S. The reaction that
takes place in the prewash vessel is:

H2S + NaOH → NaSH + H2O

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As is the case with the conventional Merox process for treating
LPG, the jet fuel or kerosene sweetening process also requires that
the feedstock be prewashed to remove any H2S that would interfere
with the sweetening. The reaction that takes place in the batch
caustic prewash vessel is:

H2S + NaOH → NaSH + H2O

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 HYDROCRACKER UNIT
The HydroCracker Unit is a device that converts light and
heavy gas oils to more valuable lower boiling point products.
It is essentially catalytic cracking in the presence of hydrogen
at elevated pressure (70 - 210 (Bar)) and moderate
temperature (280 - 450 (C)).The figure below shows a
general hydrocracking unit.

Basically, the process cracks the high-boiling, high molecular

weight hydrocarbons into lower-boiling, lower molecular weight

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olefinic and aromatic hydrocarbons and then hydrogenates them.
Any sulfur and nitrogen present in the hydrocracking feedstock
are, to a large extent, also hydrogenated and form gaseous
hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3) which are
subsequently removed. The result is that the hydrocracking
products are essentially free of sulfur and nitrogen impurities and
consist mostly of paraffinic hydrocarbons.

Hydrocracking plants are capable of processing a wide variety of

feedstocks of different characteristics to produce a broad range of
products. They can be designed and operated to maximize the
production of a gasoline blending component (called
hydrocrackate) or to maximize the production of diesel oil.

Technology Used: M/s universal oil Production, USA

Catalyst Used: DHO-8 (distillate Hydrocrack) formulated by

Oxides of group 6 –b and group 8 metals orn amorphous silica
base.

The important Mechanical equipment may be classified as:

1) Recycle Gas compressor:

It is Kobalc made of USA. It is a centrifugal compressor, which is

turbine driven costing 25 crores. Its capacity is 3 lakh m3/hr. Its
pressure changes from 186 – 210 bars at 1500 RPM .It have a
leakage only at 16 m3/hr.

2) Make up Gas compressor:

Three compressors are present of two are running at any instant

.The stage pressure increases are 20-45 bars , 45-96 bars and 96-
186 bars in three stages handling about 28000 m3/hr.

3) LPG Stabilizer Feed Compressor:

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It is a two stage Thompson made reciprocating compressor ratio
10:1 divided over 2 stages without inter cooling.

4) Reactor charge feed pump:

Two pumps of which one pump is standby is present, It is a nine

stage centrifugal pump with a gear box in between. Motor
Capacity is 3.1 MW at 2985 RPM.

5) Water Injection pump:

Three Peroni make pumps are present, used to wash Ammonium

Sulphide .It is a 5 cylinder pump.

6) Lean Amine Pump

7) Reflux Pump:

Horizontal single stage centrifugal pump.

8) Kerosene Pumps:

Two stage centrifugal Pump.

CONTINUOUS CATALYTIC REFORMATION

(CCR):
The main aim of CCR unit is to increase the octane number of
naphtha to get reformate. This reformate is blended with the
naphtha again to get the required quality motor spirit. The octane
number is increased by converting the naphtha and paraffin into
higher octane compounds like aromatics. This process takes place
in the presence of platinum based catalyst. The feed to this unit is
naphtha from CDU. The major sections in a reforming unit are-

1. Pretreating:

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The naphtha which comes from CDU contains about 750 ppm
of sulphur and traces of other impurities like arsenic and lead.
These impurities poison the catalyst used in the reformer. Hence
the naphtha is initially subjected to hydro treatment

The feed is first heated and then mixed with hydrogen in the
naphtha hydro treater. This causes a number of reactions of
which hydro desulphurisation is prominent. Treated naphtha and
hydrogen sulphide are then separated. The sulphur content in
the naptha is reduced from 750ppm to .5 ppm.

2. Reforming:

The naphtha from NHT is then sent to the reformer where

dehydrogenation, isomerisation, cyclisation etc ocuur to give
aromatic and smaller chain compounds. The product is moixture
of gas and liquid phases which is separated in a separator. The
gas is virtually pure hydrogen while the liquid is a reformate.
Reformate has a higher octane number and it is suitably blended
with naphtha to get motor spirit.

The reformer has a fluidized catalyst bed and a continuous

catalyst regenerator. The catalyst is thus constantly regenerated
and recycled through the system. The regenerated catalyst is fed
to the top of the reactor along with the pressurized hydrogen
while the naphtha enters at the bottom.

The hydrogen produced is compressed & sent to the header.

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SULPHAR RECOVERY UNIT
This is a unit wherein the Sulphar is tapped out from Hydrogen
Sulphide present as an impurity. The overall main reaction
equation is:

2 H2S + O2 → S2 + 2 H2O

Hydrogen sulphide gas extracted as an impurity is obtained from

Fuel gas, LPG and regenerator and is converted to elemental
sulphur.

The main purpose why this is carried out is that the sulphar present
in LPG and fuel gas causes pollution.

In the ATU (Amine Treatment Unit) Impure LPG containing H2S

is made to pass through Lean Amine, the H2S combines with Lean
Amine to form Rich amine and Pure LPG is liberated.

Sulfur is usually transported as a liquid (melting point 115 °C) and

when solidified forms a yellowish powder. The sulphar is then
piled up as shown below and dispatched using Lorries or may be
directly exported. Sulphar is used for making dyes, in sugar
industry, in ointments, as a disinfectant etc.

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OIL MOVEMENT AND STORAGE (OMS)
For any refinery oil movement and storage facility is as important
as other sections of complex. Refinery crude processing capacity,
product pattern and storage capacity requirement govern the size of
storage facility.

MRPL receives crude from NMPT jetty located 11.8km away

complex through single crude pipeline. Part of the products is also
dispatched through the same jetty using dedicated pipelines and
loading arms. The trucks and rail loading facilitates and LPG
bottling is carried out by HPCL.

Pipeline consists of:

 Refinery terminal
 Crude and Product Pipeline
 Coastal terminal at NMPT
 Interconnecting pipelines
 Jetty facilities

Also the following points may be noted:

o The Jetty number 10 and 11 belong solely to MRPL.

o MRPL has 6 pairs of loading arms 4 arms for loading
Crude, 4 arms loading Fuel Oil and 4 for loading white
oil.
o There are around 150 Fixed and floating Roof tanks for
Crude oil storage and for the storage of other
substances.
o LPG is stored in Spherical Pressure vessels.

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 Fig : FIXED ROOF TANK

Fig : FLOATING ROOF TANK

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 EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT (ETP)
In a refinery there are many by products produced which have
contaminating properties. These have to be treated suitably before
being discharged.

Refinery waste can be classified as follows:

1) Solids Wastes:

Most solids can be removed using simple sedimentation techniques

with the solids recovered as slurry or sludge. Very fine solids and
solids with densities close to the density of water pose special
problems. In such case filtration or ultrafiltration may be required.
Although, flocculation may be used, using alum salts or the
addition of polyelectrolytes.

2) Liquid Wastes:

Many oils can be recovered from open water surfaces by skimming

devices. Considered a dependable and cheap way to remove oil,
grease and other hydrocarbons from water, oil skimmers can
sometimes achieve the desired level of water purity. At other
times, skimming is also a cost-efficient method to remove most of
the oil before using membrane filters and chemical processes.
Skimmers will prevent filters from blinding prematurely and keep
chemical costs down because there is less oil to process.

3) Bio-Degradable Wastes:

Biodegradable organic material of plant or animal origin is usually

possible to treat using extended conventional wastewater treatment
processes such as activated sludge or trickling filter Problems can

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arise if the wastewater is excessively diluted with washing water or
is highly concentrated such as neat blood or milk. The presence of
cleaning agents, disinfectants, pesticides, or antibiotics can have
detrimental impacts on treatment processes.

The various units in ATP are:

 Inlet receiving system: where waste water streams are

received from various sources.
 API separator: API stands for American petroleum
institute. The separator has a scrapping mechanism which
consists of number of wooden plates arranged on a chain
pulley arrangement. Forward movement at the top collects

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 floating oil whereas backward movement at the bottom
leads to sludge collection.
 Tilted plate interceptor: it consists of inclined
corrugated plates where the oil drops are intercepted and
coalescence into larger droplets. The oil is skimmed off by
rotating oil skimmer pipe and discharged to wet oil sump.
 Equalization tank: the purpose of the tank is to equalize
the waste water in other words homogenize it before
sending for chemical and biological treatment. The water
has to be made uniform and has to be sent at constant flow
rate to chemical treatment
 Dissolved air floatation (DAF): DAF releases dissolved
air as a cloud of micro effluent stream. Bubbles float on
surface of oil globules and lift them into surface.

 Bio tower Feed Sump: For Biological waste treatment,

where micro organisms decompose biological waste. Here
Nutrients is added and a suitable atmosphere is maintained
for their growth.

 Aeration Tank: It is a round shaped tank having four

agitators to increase the dissolved content.
 Clarifier: It is divided into two parts ; In tank 1 dry
effluent comes into the tank and wet effluent arrives to
tank 2 , in both cases large amount of oil is removed .

WORKSHOP
The MRPL workshop generally consists of:

1. Electrical workshop.
2. Instrumentation workshop.
3. Mechanical Workshop.

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 Mechanical Workshop consists of the following:

MACHINE SHOP:
• Lathe: Used for wide range of operations like
turning, milling, drilling, boring, thread cutting
etc. Various lathe Present are NH32 Lathe , high
pressure Lathe , Energy Heavy duty Lathe , etc
• Shaper Machines
• Slotting Machines
• Safety Valve Test Bench
• Hydraulic Press
• Bench Grinders
• Radial Drilling Machine

HEAVY EQUIPMENT SECTION:

 Cranes Of different Sizes are used based on the
Application:
1) Drum Loaders
2) Fork Lifts
3) JCB Cranes
4) Cranes of Sizes 250 MT,150 MT,55 MT,
45 MT

WELDING SECTION:

Welding is a fabrication or sculptural process that joins materials,

usually metals or thermoplastics, by causing coalescence. This is
often done by melting the work pieces and adding a filler material

25
to form a pool of molten material (the weld pool) that cools to
become a strong joint, with pressure sometimes used in
conjunction with heat, or by itself, to produce the weld.

Generally 2 types of welding are done:

1) Arc Welding
2) Gas Welding

Arc Welding: Done by striking an electric arc of high temperature

which is enough to melt the metal.

Gas Welding: In this the heat is generated by burning a

combustible gas like Acetylene etc.

TIG Welding:

Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), also known as tungsten

inert gas (TIG) welding, is an arc welding process that uses a non
consumable tungsten electrode to produce the weld. The weld area
is protected from atmospheric contamination by a shielding gas
(usually an inert gas such as argon), and a filler metal is normally
used, though some welds, known as autogenously welds, do not
require it. A constant-current welding power supply produces
energy which is conducted across the arc through a column of
highly ionized gas and metal vapors known as plasma.

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Applications of TIG Welding

While the aerospace industry is one of the primary users of gas

tungsten arc welding, the process is used in a number of other
areas. Many industries use GTAW for welding thin workpieces,
especially nonferrous metals. It is used extensively in the
manufacture of space vehicles, and is also frequently employed to
weld small-diameter, thin-wall tubing such as those used in the
bicycle industry.

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CAPTIVE POWERPLANT (CPP):
DESCRIPTION:

Power plant is the heart of any industry. MRPL requires large

amount of power and hence cannot rely on any external source for
power. For this reason power plant of capacity 75MW was
established.

Power plant consists of:

• Fuel oil system

• Boiler
• Turbine
• Cooling tower
• DM plant

Fuel oil system: The fuel oil stored in oil tanks. These are pumped
through pipes to the boiler as required. The fuel oil is used as main
fuel in the boiler to convert the water into steam.

Boiler: It is used to convert water into super heated steam. It

consists of steam drum, furnace, blowers, burners, safety valves.

The steam drum is used to differentiate water and steam based on

their densities. The presence water will cause corrosion of the
turbine.

Turbine: super heated steam from boiler enters the turbine at a

pressure of 103 bar & 510 C temperature. HP extraction of steam
is d4rawn after 3rd stage of expansion. LP extraction of steam is
also done. Pressure control valves are mounted on both HP & LP
steam header. The turbine consists of-rotor, casing, bearings,
control valves etc

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The turbine shaft is connected to the generator which produces the
power. The steam after expansion passes through the condenser
wherein it converted back into water.

Fig cross section of steam turbine

Cooling towers:

These are heat removal devices used to transfer process waste heat
to the atmosphere. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation
of water to remove process heat and cool the working fluid to near
the wet-bulb air temperature or rely solely on air to cool the
working fluid to near the dry-bulb air temperature. Common
applications include cooling the circulating water used in oil
refineries, chemical plants, power stations and building cooling.
With respect to drawing air through the tower, there are three types
of cooling towers:

• Natural draft
• Induced draft
• Open draft
• Closed draft

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Fig: cross section of cooling tower

De mineralization plant: This is the plant where the water is

treated chemically in order to remove minerals & other chemicals
present in water.

CONDITION MONITORING
Maintenance is grouped as follows

• Breakdown maintenance
• Time base maintenance
• Predictive maintenance
• Condition base maintenance
• Reliability

Types of condition monitoring

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• Critical -checked four times a month
• Semi critical-checked two times a month
• Non critical-checked once a month

Vibration analyzer cum data collector is the equipment used to

monitor the condition of the machines, whose reading is
analyzed using prism for future use.

Single channel -single reading at a time

Dual channel-two reading at a time

Gear mesh frequency=no. of tooth * rpm of gear

Line hammering-when steam strikes walls of line due to

blockage of steam line. Steam traps are used to remove
condensates.

Phase angle measurement is done by optical sensor or strobe

light.

Advantage of detecting problems in early stage is:

• To improve lubrication
• To improve filtering of lub oil

To remove problems like unbalance and misalignment etc

Oil test

• Viscosity test
• Contaminant analysis

Machine condition test

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 • Spectrometric oil analysis
• Particle analysis
• Direct reading ferrography
• Analytic ferrography

Vibration Severity analysis

Required to analyze the problems of those equipments

whose vibration goes beyond the acceptable limits.

In MRPL we have ISO standard 2372

• Class 1:Small sized machines

• Class 2 :Medium sized machines
• Class 3 :Large machines mounted over rigid support

Class 4 :Large machines mounted over flexible support

MECHANICAL DEVICES
The various Mechanical devices can be classified as :

1. Pumps
2. Bearings
3. Valves
4. Compressors
5. Heat exchangers

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PUMPS:
A pump is a device used to move fluids, such as liquids or slurries.

A pump displaces a volume by physical or mechanical action.

Pumps fall into five major groups: direct lift, displacement,
velocity, buoyancy and gravity pumps. Their names describe the
method for moving a fluid.

1)Positive Displacement pumps

A positive displacement pump causes a fluid to move by trapping a

fixed amount of it then forcing (displacing) that trapped volume
into the discharge pipe. A positive displacement pump can be
further classified according to the mechanism used to move the
fluid:

Positive displacement rotary pumps are pumps that move fluid

using the principles of rotation. The vacuum created by the rotation
of the pump captures and draws in the liquid. Rotary pumps are
very efficient because they naturally remove air from the lines,
eliminating the need to bleed the air from the lines manually.

• Reciprocating-typePositive Displacement Pumps has an

expanding cavity on the suction side and a decreasing cavity
on the discharge side. Liquid flows into the pumps as the
cavity on the suction side expands and the liquid flows out of
the discharge as the cavity collapses. The volume is constant
given each cycle of operation.

• Piston/Plunger pumps: A plunger pump can be based on a

single piston or, more likely, multiple parallel pistons. The
pistons are reciprocated using cams or crankshafts. The
stroke is generally adjustable. This type of pumps can deliver
heads of up to 1000 bar. Piston pumps are not generally
suitable for transferring toxic or explosive media.

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 • Injection pumps :

These are the pumps used to inject small doses of fluid .large
quantities can not be transmitted using this.

• Screw pumps: There are some screw pumps in the refinery

installed in particular areas where they suit the pumping
requirements.
Gear pump:
This uses two meshed gears rotating in a closely fitted casing.
Fluid is pumped around the outer periphery by being trapped in the
tooth spaces. It does not travel back on the meshed part, since the
teeth mesh closely in the centre. Widely used on car engine oil

2) Centrifugal pumps
Centrifugal pumps differ from ordinary pumps in that they rely on
kinetic energy rather than mechanical means to move the liquid.
Liquid enters the pump at the centre of a rotating impeller and
gains energy as it moves to the outer diameter of impeller liquid is
forced out of the pump by energy it obtains from the rotating
impeller. Centrifugal pumps can transfer large volumes of liquid
but efficiency and flow decrease as pressure and viscosity increase.

The main parts of pump are:

Motor: it converts electrical energy to mechanical, rotating the

shaft. The shaft is coupled to impeller thus rotating it.

Coupling: this is essential because no matter how meticulously we

align the pump shaft, there will be some kind of misalignment
whish is dangerous for the high speed pumps.

Mechanical Seal: consists of rotating and stationary parts. The two

are held very closely by means of spring loaded mechanisms. But
due to the very high surface finish provided for two parts, hence

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very minimal friction is developed. The seal prevents any leakage
of the liquid.

Suction end & Discharge end

Bearings: they take the various loads acting on the shaft.

Lubrication oil is used for lubricating these bearings.

Fig horizontal centrifugal pump cross section.

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BEARINGS
A bearing is a device to allow constrained relative motion between
two or more parts, typically rotation or linear movement. Bearings
may be classified broadly according to the motions they allow and
according to their principle of operation as well as by the
directions of applied loads they can handle .

JOURNAL BEARINGS

Journal or plain bearings consist of a shaft or journal which rotates

freely in a supporting metal sleeve or shell. There are no rolling
elements in these bearings. Their design and construction may be
relatively simple, but the theory and operation of these bearings
can be complex. This article concentrates on oil- and grease-
lubricated full fluid film journal bearings; but first a brief
discussion of pins and bushings, dry and semi lubricated journal
bearings, and tilting-pad bearings.

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ROLLER BEARINGS

A rolling-element bearing is a bearing which carries a load by

placing round elements between the two pieces. The relative
motion of the pieces causes the round elements to roll with very
little rolling resistance and with little sliding. There are many types
of rolling-element bearings, each tuned for a specific kind of load
and with specific advantages and disadvantages. For example:

Ball bearings

Ball bearings use balls instead of cylinders. Ball bearings can

support both radial (perpendicular to the shaft) and axial loads
(parallel to the shaft). For lightly-loaded

Fig: Ball Bearing

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bearings, balls offer lower friction than rollers. Ball bearings can
operate when the bearing races are misaligned. Precision balls are
typically cheaper to produce than shapes such as rollers; combined
with high-volume use, ball bearings are often much cheaper than
other bearings of similar dimensions. Ball bearings may have high
point loads, limiting total load capacity compared to other bearings
of similar dimensions.

Roller bearings

Common roller bearings use cylinders of slightly greater length

than diameter. Roller bearings typically have higher radial load
capacity than ball bearings, but a low axial capacity and higher
friction under axial loads. If the inner and outer races are
misaligned, the bearing capacity often drops quickly compared to
either a ball bearing or a spherical roller bearing.

Needle bearing

Needle roller bearings use very long and thin cylinders. Often the
ends of the rollers taper to points, and these are used to keep the
rollers captive, or they may be hemispherical and not captive but
held by the shaft itself or a similar arrangement. Since the rollers
are thin, the outside diameter of the bearing is only slightly larger
than the hole in the middle. However, the small-diameter rollers
must bend sharply where they contact the races, and thus the
bearing fatigues relatively quickly.

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 VALVES
A valve is a device that regulates the flow of a fluid (gases,
liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or
partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are
technically pipe fittings, but are usually discussed as a separate
category. In an open valve, fluid flows in a direction from
higher pressure to lower pressure.

Gate Valve
A gate valve, also known as a sluice valve, is a valve that opens by
lifting a round or rectangular gate/wedge out of the path of the
fluid. The distinct feature of a gate valve is the sealing surfaces
between the gate and seats are planar, so gate valves are often used
when a straight-line flow of fluid and minimum restriction is
desired.

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Fig : Gate Valve

Globe Valve
A globe valve is a type of valve used for regulating flow in a
pipeline, consisting of a movable disk-type element and a
stationary ring seat in a generally spherical body. Globe valves are
named for their spherical body shape with the two halves of the
body being separated by an internal baffle.

Fig: Globe Valve

Needle Valve
A needle valve is a type of valve having a small port and a
threaded, needle-shaped plunger. It allows precise regulation of
flow, although it is generally only capable of relatively low flow
rates.

Non return valves:

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These valves allow liquid to flow only in one direction thus
maintaining flow and pressure.

COMPRESSORS
A gas compressor is a mechanical device that increases the
pressure of a gas by reducing its volume.

Compressors are similar to pumps: both increase the pressure on a

fluid and both can transport the fluid through a pipe. As gases are
compressible, the compressor also reduces the volume of a gas.
Liquids are relatively incompressible, so the main action of a pump
is to pressurize and transport liquids.

Centrifugal compressors

Centrifugal compressors use a rotating disk or impeller in a shaped

housing to force the gas to the rim of the impeller, increasing the
velocity of the gas. A diffuser (divergent duct) section converts the
velocity energy to pressure energy. They are primarily used for
continuous, stationary service in industries such as oil refineries,
chemical and petrochemical plants and natural gas processing
plants . Their application can be from 100 horsepower (75 kW) to
thousands of horsepower. With multiple staging, they can achieve
extremely high output pressures greater than 10,000 psi (69 MPa).

Many large snowmaking operations (like ski resorts use this type
of compressor. They are also used in internal combustion engines
as superchargers and turbochargers. Centrifugal compressors are

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used in small gas turbine engines or as the final compression stage
of medium sized gas turbines. Sometimes the capacity of the
compressors is written in NM3/hr. Here 'N' stands for normal
temperature pressure (20oC and 1 atm ) for example 5500 NM3/hr.

Reciprocating compressors

Reciprocating compressors use pistons driven by a crankshaft.

They can be either stationary or portable, can be single or multi-
staged, and can be driven by electric motors or internal combustion
engines .Small reciprocating compressors from 5 to 30 horsepower
(hp) are commonly seen in automotive applications and are
typically for intermittent duty. Larger reciprocating compressors
well over 1,000 hp (750 kW) are commonly found in large
industrial and petroleum applications. Discharge pressures can
range from low pressure to very high pressure (>18000 psi or 180
MPa). In certain applications, such as air compression, multi-stage
double-acting compressors are said to

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be the most efficient compressors available, and are typically
larger, and more costly than comparable rotary units.Another type
of reciprocating compressor is the swash plate compressor, which
uses pistons which are moved by a swash plate mounted on a shaft.

Household, home workshop, and smaller job site compressors are

typically reciprocating compressors 1 1/2 hp or less with an
attached receiver tank.

Rotary screw compressors

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Rotary screw compressors use two meshed rotating positive-
displacement helical screws to force the gas into a smaller space.
These are usually used for continuous operation in commercial and
industrial applications and may be either stationary or portable.
Their application can be from 3 HP(2.2 kW) to over
1,200 horsepower (890 kW) and from low pressure to moderately
high pressure.

HEAT EXCHANGERS:
Heat exchangers are used to describe units that transfer sensible
heat from one stream another in order to conserve energy.

Classification of heat exchangers

Shell & Tube exchangers:

These are generally designed and fabricated to the standards of

exchanger’s manufacturers association. These are characterized by
low fouling and corrosive tendencies.

Air cooled heat exchangers:

it is composed of one or more fans and one more heat transfers

mounted on frame. Bundles normally consist of cooled tubes. The
hot fluid passes through the tubes, which are cooled by air supplied
by fan.

Double pipe exchangers:

These are another class of exchangers that consist of one or more

pipes inside a pipe shell. These always consist of two straight
lengths connected at one end to form a U or hair pin. They are well
suited for high pressure applications.

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Spiral tube heat exchangers:

It consists of group of concentric spirally wound coils,

which are connected to tube sheets. Designs include counter

current flow, elimination of differential expansion problems,
compactness and provisions for more than two fluids exchanging
heat.

Scrapped surface exchangers:

They consist of rotating element, spring loaded scraper to wipe the

heat transfer surface. They are generally used in plants where the
process fluids crystallizes or in units where the fluid is highly
viscous.

Extended heat exchangers :

These are composed of tubes with either longitudinal or transverse

helical fins. An extended surface is best employed when the heat
transfer properties of one fluid result in a high resistance to heat
flow and those of other fluid having a low resistance.

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