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Processing Units
Description of Major Processing Units
- Fluid Catalytic Cracker: “Cat cracking” is a refining process used to manufacture gasoline. The process uses intense heat, low pressure and powdered catalyst to accelerate the chemical reaction of the heavy fractions into smaller gasoline molecules.
- Selective Hydrocracker: Partially converts diesel-range material into gasoline, propane and butane via a chemical reaction that uses high temperatures and pressures in a catalyst-containing reactor.
- Distilling Units: Crude oil is heated until it boils and as the oil boils, it vaporizes. Each hydrocarbon rises to a tray at a temperature just below its own boiling point. There, it cools and turns back to a liquid. The lightest fractions are liquefied petroleum gases (propane and butane) and the petrochemicals used to make plastics and other products. Next come gasoline, kerosene and diesel fuel. Heavier fractions are used as home heating oil and as fuel in ships and factories. Still heavier fractions are made into lubricants and waxes. The remains, which include asphalt, are known as “residuals.”
- Alkylation Plant: Converts light hydrocarbons to heavier hydrocarbons more compatible as gasoline components for high-octane gasoline.
- Catalytic Reforming: A process for upgrading low octane naphtha to a high octane gasoline blending component, reformate. Important by-products of this process include hydrogen, benzene, toluene, and xylenes.
- Delayed Coker: Converts petroleum pitch into petroleum coke and gas oils for processing in other units to higher quality, higher value diesel fuel and gasoline.
- Gas Oil Hydrotreater: Provides for removal of sulfur and nitrogen from various products, making them more suitable for conversion feed to other process units.
- Gas Plants: There are a number of gas plants in the refinery. Their functions are similar: collect gases from processing units (hydrocracker, hydrotreater, reformer, coker, cat cracker) and separate volatiles into appropriate product streams.
- Sulfur Recovery Unit: Recovers sulfur from refinery streams as elemental sulfur for sale as end-use products.
- Co-generation Power Plant (150 megawatts): Converts surplus refining fuel and natural gas into electricity and steam to be used by different units at Shell Deer Park.