Power generation from waste heat in integrated crude oil refining, aromatics, and utilities facilities

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9803145-B2
Application number	US-201615087499-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 31, 2016
Priority date	Aug 24, 2015
Publication date	Oct 31, 2017
Grant date	Oct 31, 2017

Abstract

Optimizing power generation from waste heat in large industrial facilities such as petroleum refineries by utilizing a subset of all available hot source streams selected based, in part, on considerations for example, capital cost, ease of operation, economics of scale power generation, a number of ORC machines to be operated, operating conditions of each ORC machine, combinations of them, or other considerations are described. Subsets of hot sources that are optimized to provide waste heat to one or more ORC machines for power generation are also described. Further, recognizing that the utilization of waste heat from all available hot sources in a mega-site such as a petroleum refinery and aromatics complex is not necessarily or not always the best option, hot source units in petroleum refineries from which waste heat can be consolidated to power the one or more ORC machines are identified.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A power generation system, comprising:
a first heating fluid circuit thermally coupled to a first plurality of heat sources from a first plurality of sub-units of a petrochemical refining system, the first plurality of sub-units comprising a hydrocracking plant;
a second heating fluid circuit thermally coupled to a second plurality of heat sources from a second plurality of sub-units of the petrochemical refining system, the second plurality of sub-units comprising a diesel hydrotreating reaction and stripping plant;
a third heating fluid circuit thermally coupled to a third plurality of heat sources of a third plurality of sub-units of the petrochemical refining system, the third plurality of sub-units comprising a CCR plant, a portion of the aromatics plants separation system, and a utility system sour water stripping plant;
a fourth heating fluid circuit thermally coupled to a fourth plurality of heat sources of a fourth plurality of sub-units of the petrochemical refining system, the fourth plurality of sub-units comprising an aromatics plant benzene extraction unit and a CCR/aromatics plant;
a fifth heating fluid circuit thermally coupled to a fifth plurality of heat sources of a fifth plurality of sub-units of the petrochemical refining system, the fifth plurality of sub-units comprising a para-xylene separation unit;
a power generation system that comprises an organic Rankine cycle (ORC), the ORC comprising (i) a working fluid that is thermally coupled to the first through fifth heating fluid circuits to heat the working fluid, and (ii) an expander configured to generate electrical power from the heated working fluid; and
a control system configured to actuate a first set of control valves to selectively thermally couple the first heating fluid circuit to at least a portion of the first plurality of heat sources, the control system also configured to actuate a second set of control valves to selectively thermally couple the second heating fluid circuit to at least a portion of the second plurality of heat sources, the control system also configured to actuate a third set of control valves to selectively thermally couple the third heating fluid circuit to at least a portion of the third plurality of heat sources, the control system also configured to actuate a fourth set of control valves to selectively thermally couple the fourth heating fluid circuit to at least a portion of the fourth plurality of heat sources, and the control system also configured to actuate a fifth set of control valves to selectively thermally couple the fifth heating fluid circuit to at least a portion of the fifth plurality of heat sources.

2. The power generation system of claim 1 , wherein the working fluid is thermally coupled to the fourth heating fluid circuit in a pre-heating heat exchanger of the ORC, and the pre-heating heat exchanger of the ORC is fluidly coupled to an inlet of an evaporator of the ORC, and the working fluid is thermally coupled to the first, second, third, and fifth heating fluid circuits in the evaporator of the ORC.

3. The power generation system of claim 2 , further comprising:
a first heating fluid tank that is fluidly coupled to the first through fourth heating fluid circuits with an outlet of the pre-heating heat exchanger of the ORC, wherein an outlet of the first heating fluid tank is fluidly coupled with inlets of the first through fourth heating fluid circuits, and an inlet of the first heating fluid tank is fluidly coupled with the outlet of the pre-heating heat exchanger of the ORC; and
a second heating fluid tank that is fluidly coupled to the fifth heating fluid circuit, wherein an outlet of the second heating fluid tank is fluidly coupled to an inlet of the fifth heating fluid circuit and an inlet of the pre-heating heat exchanger of the ORC, and an inlet of the second heating fluid tank is fluidly coupled with an outlet of the evaporator of the ORC.

4. The power generation system of claim 1 , wherein the working fluid comprises isobutane.

5. The power generation system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first, second, third, fourth, or fifth heating fluid circuits comprises water or oil.

6. The power generation system of claim 1 , wherein the ORC further comprises:
a condenser fluidly coupled to a condenser fluid source to cool the working fluid; and
a pump to circulate the working fluid through the ORC.

7. The power generation system of claim 1 , wherein the first plurality of heat sources comprises at least seven hydrocracking plant heat sources, comprising:
a first hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a 2nd reaction section 2nd stage cold high pressure separator feed stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit;
a second hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a 1st reaction section 1st stage cold high pressure separator feed stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit;
a third hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a product stripper overhead stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit;
a fourth hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a main fractionator overhead stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit;
a fifth hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a kerosene product stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit;
a sixth hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a kerosene pumparound stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit; and
a seventh hydrocracking plant heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a diesel product stream, and is fluidly coupled to the first heating fluid circuit.

8. The power generation system of claim 7 , wherein the second plurality of heat sources comprises at least three diesel hydrotreating reaction and stripping heat source, comprising:
a first diesel hydrotreating reaction and stripping heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a light effluent to cold separator stream, and is fluidly coupled to the second heating fluid circuit;
a second diesel hydrotreating reaction and stripping heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a diesel stripper overhead stream, and is fluidly coupled to the second heating fluid circuit; and
a third diesel hydrotreating reaction and stripping heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a diesel stripper product stream, and is fluidly coupled to the second heating fluid circuit.

9. The power generation system of claim 8 , wherein the third plurality of heat sources comprises at least nine heat sources from the CCR plant, the portion of the aromatics plants separation system, and the utility system sour water stripping plant, comprising:
a first sub-set of the third plurality of heat sources comprising at least two heat sources from a para-xylene separation-xylene isomerization reaction and separation unit, comprising:
a first para-xylene separation-xylene isomerization reaction and separation unit heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a Xylene isomerization reactor outlet stream before a separator drum, and is fluidly coupled to the third heating fluid circuit; and
a second para-xylene separation-xylene isomerization reaction and separation unit heat source comprising a heat exchanger that is fluidly coupled to a de-heptanizer column overhead stream, and is fluidly coupled

Assignees

• Saudi Arabian Oil Co

Inventors

• Noureldin Mahmoud Bahy Mahmoud
• Al Saed Hani Mohammed
• Bunaiyan Ahmad Saleh

Classifications

• C01B3/34 Primary

  by reaction of hydrocarbons with gasifying agents · CPC title

• C01B2203/0283

  containing a CO-shift step, i.e. a water gas shift step · CPC title

• C01B2203/043

  Regenerative adsorption process in two or more beds, one for adsorption, the other for regeneration · CPC title

• C01B2203/127

  Catalytic desulfurisation · CPC title

• C01B2203/0227

  containing a catalytic reforming step · CPC title