Refining and Petrochemical
Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) is the most important and widely used refinery process for converting low value, heavy oil into more valuable gasoline, olefins (ethylene, propylene, etc.), and other products. A typical FCC Unit (FCCU) is comprised of multiple fluidized beds or Circulating Fluidized Beds (CFBs), which transport spent and regenerated catalyst between two principal components: the reactor and the regenerator. Additionally, fluidized beds are used to produce other products and chemicals downstream of the FCCU, such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and acrylonitrile, to name a few.
Since 2006, the team at CPFD has utilized our Barracuda Virtual Reactor® software to optimize the design and operation of fluidized processes for the Oil, Gas and Petrochemical markets. We assist Refineries worldwide by addressing FCCU problems such as emissions, catalyst circulation, erosion, afterburn, and catalyst losses by simulating the transient, 3D, gas-catalyst hydrodynamics, thermal behavior, and reaction kinetics. The same technology is also utilized for other downstream applications such as Polyolefins, Acrylonitrile, and VCM reactors.
Virtual Reactor™ has enabled our customers to increase the reliability and performance of their processes by:
- Identifying Root Cause of underperformance
- Virtual testing of design of operational changes
- Minimizing the risk of unintended consequences of proposed changes
To see Barracuda VR applied to FCC applications, please visit our FCC Resources page.
If you would like to discuss a specific issue or problem that you are experiencing, please contact us.