The September issue of Hydrocarbon Engineering covers topics including catalyst solutions, instrumentation, heat technology, digital transformation, cybersecurity and the energy transition. This month’s regional report examines the latest developments in North America’s downstream sector, and the issue also includes a Guest Comment from Geoff Moody, Senior Vice President, Government and Policy, AFPM.
This month's front cover is brought to you by Athlon, a Halliburton Service.
Keeping up with the times
If pestilence were not bad enough, North America’s downstream sector has war, climate change and shortages to deal with. Gordon Cope, Contributing Editor, details how the oil and gas industry is faring in the face of these challenges.
From molecular-level engineering to enhanced aromatics economics
Roy van den Berg and Richard Mauer, Shell Catalysts & Technologies, discuss how an innovative zeolite technology is unlocking business value.
Stepping stones on the path to sustainability
Lucas Vergara, Axens, France, presents catalytic solutions to help tackle the challenges associated with co-processing sustainable feeds.
Precious metals for green chemistry
Gisa Meissner and Konrad Krois, Heraeus Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG, Germany, discuss the use of precious metal-based catalysts for the efficient conversion of 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (5-HMF) into 2,5-diformylfuran (DFF) to produce phenolic resins.
MOFs for the energy transition
Dr. M. Asunción Molina Esquinas, Instituto de Catálisis y Petroleoquímica, and Dr. Meritxell Vila, MERYT Catalysts & Innovation, explain why metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have an essential role to play in helping the energy sector to achieve its energy transition and independence goals.
Improving level reliability
Tai Piazza, VEGA Americas Inc., USA, discusses the use of gamma instrumentation to improve level reliability in the delayed coking unit.
Meet the heat
Edward Cass, Paratherm Heat Transfer Fluids, USA, details the use of thermal fluid systems technology for the process heating industries.
Fouling management through digital transformation
E. M. Ishiyama, J. Kennedy, S. J. Pugh and H. U. Zettler, Heat Transfer Research Inc., explore how successful digital transformation is helping ENEOS Group refineries in Japan to eliminate waste, reduce lost time in data processing, and facilitate collaboration between different work groups within the organisation.
The critical link for digitalisation
Jason Apps, ARMS Reliability, Australia, discusses how Asset Strategy Management is key to the successful digital transformation of the downstream oil and gas sector.
A deep dive into DRL
Gadi Briskman, Modcon Systems, UK, explains how to safely deploy Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) for process control, via integration with online analysers.
A new direction for cybersecurity
Jim Crowley, Industrial Defender, USA, outlines the importance of cybersecurity in the oil and gas industry, and provides a step-by-step guide to cultivating a more cyber-aware business.