ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

I, Jyoti Prasad Deka, student of National of Institute Technology Karnataka

hereby submit the Training Report of month long vocational training at the Indian Oil
Corporation Limited, Noonmati, Guwahati.
I would like to take the opportunity to thank Mr. A.K. Singh, Senior Manager of
Fire and Safety Department, Mr. .S. Atha, CMNM, Mr. S.S.N. Mahapatra, MNM of
Mechanical Maintenance (Plant), Mr. D. K. Baruah, DMML of Mechanical Maintenance
(Unit) and also the various technicians and workers who in spite of their busy schedule
and routine tasks extended full co-operation in letting us know whatever we asked for
from them.

1
1. BRIEF OVERVIEW OF GUWAHATI REFINERY

2. FIRE AND SAFETY TRAINING

3. MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE

• THERMAL POWER STATION(TPS)

• MECHANICAL WORKSHOP

• PLANT

4. CONCLUSION

2
 Crude oil is refined into products such as gasoline, asphalt, and waxes by a process
called fractional distillation. During the process, the parts, or fractions, of crude oil are
divided out successively by their increasing molecular weight. For instance, gasoline has
a low molecular weight and vaporizes at a fairly low temperature. This means that at the
appropriate temperature, while all of the rest of the oil is still in liquid form, gasoline may
be separated out. The remaining oil goes through the same process at a slightly higher
temperature, and jet fuel is divided out. Repeating the distillation process several times
will separate out several constituents of crude oil, which are then processed and put to a
wide range of uses.

3
 A BRIEF OVERVIEW

The oil sector can be broadly divided into 3 major divisions, viz.

1. Drilling and extraction of crude oil: In India, mostly done by Oil India
Limited (OIL) and Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC). In most cases the
transportation to the refining site is carried out through pipelines which are
handled by these organizations only.

2. Refining: The next phase of refining of the crude oil into suitable products like
petrol, kerosene, diesel, ATF etc is carried out by IOCL( which is the only
government sector undertaking) and by companies like Reliance, BPCL etc in the
private sector.

3. Marketing: After the crude oil has been refined it is then transported to the
different outlets and marketed by various companies like BP, HP, IBB etc.

Before the advent of the 1962 Indo-China aggression, India was

completely dependent upon MNCs for entirely managing the oil sector but the
war among its numerous repercussions brought about the establishment of
companies like IOCL, OIL etc.

Guwahati Refinery:

 Guwahati refinery was built and commissioned on 1st January 1962 with
Rumanian assistance.
 Originally designed to process 0.75 MMTPA of Assam crude.
 Revamped in 1986 to a capacity of 1 MMTPA.
 Revamped in 2000 to a capacity of 1.3 MMTPA.
 The distillate yield (85.4%) is the highest amongst all refineries in the
country(1999-2000)
 For Quality Management System the refinery received ISO 9001 accreditation
in September 1995.
 For Environment Management System received ISO 14001 in August 1997.
 Also the refinery has been accredited OHSAS 18001 in April 1999 & ISRS
level-6 in March 2000.
 Over the years, the refinery has been revamped and modernized by adding
new facilities like :

• LPG production(1971)
• Effluent Treatment Plant(ETP) (1976)
• New 27km long treated effluent discharge pipeline to River Brahmaputra
(1984).
• Naptha splitting facilities (1984).

4
• Circulating water system (1986).
• New turbo generator (1986).
• Demineralised water plant (1993).
• Digital Distributive Control System- Unit Control Room (1994).
• Digital Distributive Control System- OM&S Control Room (1994).
• Crude Distillation Unit Delayed Coker Unit revamp (2000).
• Project facilities like Hydrogen Unit, Hydrotreater Unit, ISOSIV Unit,
Sulpher recovery Unit, Nitrogen Unit .
• Commissioning of two new boilers (2004).
• BG unloading facility for tank wagon (2005).

5
 FIRE & SAFETY:
Safety, health and environment (S, H&E) efficiency is given prime importance
in today’s industrial ventures. The value of life and property necessitates
precautionary measures that have to be taken by employees at workplace as well at
their homes.

Fire-safety:

A fire breaks out when the three elements; fuel, oxygen and heat come together.
Thus, it can be kept away cautionary measures:
a) storing of inflammables away from sparks and heat.
b) avoiding throwing of cigarette butts here and there.
c) keeping workplaces clean from thrash.
d) not wearing synthetic inflammable material clothing.

There are mainly four types of fire-extinguishers:

1) soda-acid
2) foam type
3) dry chemical: this is an all purpose fire –extinguisher.
4) carbon-dioxide: this type is mostly found at homes.

Different Extinguishing Agents:

The Extinguishing Agents, which are suitable for different types of fire and their
extinguishing action, are as below:-

(i) Water: Water is the most effective, cheapest and readily available for fighting
the fire and it has the highest heat of vaporization. Water is used in the
refinery fire as cooling agent and also for the production of foam required for
fighting the oil fire. To achieve this objective, sufficient quantity of water is
made available in the refinery premises.

(ii) Mechanical Foam : Mechanical Foam is one of the suitable fire-fighting

agents to tackle the refinery fire. Foam is protein based compound and
insoluble in the hydrocarbon products. Foam is nothing but air filled bubbles,
so it floats on the surface of the oil and forms a blanket covering the surface of
the burning liquid.

(iii) Dry Chemical Powder: Dry Chemical Powder is universal fire fighting agent
to tackle all classes of fire. The basic ingredients of the powder are sodium
bicarbonate with metallic stearate and additives.

6
Road-safety:

Road accidents can be avoided if pedestrians as well as people on vehicles follow

traffic rules.

Safety at home:

Careful use of gas-stoves and cylinders, proper earthlings of power points etc.
can prevent a lot of hazards that occur at homes.

Personal protection equipments (PPE):

The use of PPE at work places is a must for safety. The PPE generally used at
work places are:
• helmet
• shoes
• gas-masks
• gloves

The gloves used may be of different types based on the type of work handled,
such as : PVC gloves for safety from electric shock, chemical gloves when handling
toxic chemicals, acid gloves etc.

7
 THERMAL POWER STATION (TPS):

MAINTENANCE PLANT: - we went to the Maintenance Unit of the Thermal

Power Station. The main function of this unit is to see that the boilers, turbines,
compressors and generators are in good working conditions it is this unit only which is
mainly responsible for the production of electricity and afterwards distributing it among
the various units as per their requirements.

BOILERS: - there are four single drum boilers and there is a bi-drum boiler as well.
These boilers are oil/gas filled and are steel cased designed for natural circulation suitable
for outdoor installation. The specifications are enlisted below-

Fuel: LSHS/Coking fuel/Hydrocarbon gases

Steam Temperatures: 450+5 degrees
Peak Evaporation:45MT per hour
Working process:39 kgf per sq cm
Number of Burners: 2 nos.
Oil Consumption: 2959 kg per hr
Efficiency: Gross on G.C.V at MCR(oil) is 89.6 + 0.6%
Tubs: 51 mm outside diameter, 4.06 mm thick seamless from the outside wall root
and sidewalls, roof.

The boiler is a vertical one with accessories like economizer, air pre heater, super heaters
(both primary & secondary.), a deaerator and attemperator (desuperheater). The boiler
drums have been safeguarded by the use of spring loaded safety valves, which were
replacements of dead weight safety valves, which were previously installed. The feed
water to the boiler is fed by the feed water pump at a pressure much greater than the
boiler pressure i.e, 50 kgf per sq cm. Thee is a feed check valve which is non-return.

Valves and there are no other mountings common to any other boiler such as the blow off
chuck, the manholes, the furnace gates etc.
The steam thus produced is sent to the turbo generator run turbines and a part of it is
also sent to the steam atomizer, which in turn sends steam to the combustion chambers
for effective ignition of the furnace. To monitor the different boilers under working
conditions there is a boiler control room with digital instruments. Among the
maintenance work that is done in the TPS is the maintenance of the boilers, the
reciprocating compressors, centrifugal pumps, turbines etc.

8
MAINTENANCE OF BOILERS:- Technical inspection meets both inside &
outside inspection. Outside inspection: this includes all the operations including
inspection of all factors involved for safe, economical operation. They are:-

1. Clearance of boiler room & plant properly.

2. Existence of journals & training of he attendant for each boiler
3. Inspection of all visual ports of the boiler & auxiliary equipments
such as water gauges, pressure gauges, safety valve feeding heads etc.

Inside inspection:- this shall be carried out with boiler shut down for a limited period, at
a date established by the official inspector. During internal inspection the boiler has to
comply with all the requirements with regard to cleaning, venting, temperature, light are
done. All valves should be removed and the state of metallic surfaces should be checked
for possible defects. Internal corrosion, thermal cracks must be inspected & the buckling
of the boiler tubes should also be inspected.

MAINTENANCE OF FIRING UNIT:-

Frequent inspection of atomizing nozzles and of the heads of fuel oil burners is
compulsory. Damaged parts should be replaced immediately.
The spare parts of all firing equipments are:

1. 9 internal burners with head & nozzles

2. 4 staring burners complete with head & nozzles
3. 12 spare heads & nozzles for normal burners
4. 288 seats for flexible hoses. In pairs
5. 8 diffusers for injectors

MAINTENANCE OF BOILER MOUNTINGS & ACCESSORIES:

The boiler mountings are safety valves, water level indicator, pressure gauge, stop
valve, feed check valve, blow cock, inspector testing gauge, man hole & mud hole. The
maintenance of the mountings is of the following types:-
1. Calibration(Zero based, suppressed base, elevated zero)
2. Component alignment
3. Measuring element replacement
4. Periodic service
5. Daily check
6. Correction of trouble shooting

9
Among the boiler accessories the main are-feed pump, injector, economizer, air pre
heater, super heater, steam separator & steam pump. The maintenance of accessories
includes:

1. The links, packages & piston should be checked

2. The injector path should be cleaned from time to time
3. Valve spindle should be lubricated properly

MAINTENANCE OF TURBINES:-

The turbines mainly consist of couplings, turbo gears, pumps and D.C motors. Its
maintenance includes:

a) Coupling maintenance: It is limited to periodic cleaning &

checking. They must be properly aligned & lightly fixed.
b) Turbo gear maintenance: Inspection gear tooth contact,
bearing, assembling of gear box, replacement of damaged gear
and protection of gear against corrosion must be inspected.
c) Pump maintenance: The pumps are dial, periodically and
annual checked. Their discharge rate, bearing temperature &
lubrication must be checked.
d) DC motor: The interior & exterior of the machine must be
free from moisture, oil dust, dirt etc.

MAINTENANCE OF COMPRESSORS:

The compressor is used in the refinery to control the different air operating system.
Here maintenance of component include piston, cylinder, inter cooler, lubrication of drive
mechanism air filter, air receiver & the entire unit.

We had gone to the De-Mineralization plant as well. This plant is mainly responsible
for the supply of water that is required to be fed into the boilers. The water that is to enter
must have certain properties failing which some kind of anomalies might crop up. The
De-Mineralization plant serves the purpose of brining the water up to the desired
properties. This plant removes the unwanted minerals & discharges the water at a
required pH.

10
MAINTENANCE OF DE-MINERALISATION PLANT:

In De-Mineralization plant the water is treated to soften if for use in the boiler. The
water from the water treatment plant is passed through the pressure filter then cation
exchange is done, the de-gaser, after the cation exchanger & finally through mixed bed to
get mineral free water. Here flow meter, level meter, pneumatic valve, gate valve and non
return valve is used. Here pressure filter & separator inside the vessel needs special care,
which must be checked periodically. The water sprinkler system, the valve & the level
meter must also be inspected from time to time.

11
 Thermal P
L

Boilers with DM Plant

Rotor(800 rpm) Ge

12
 MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE & PLANNING:

A. Rotary section:

It deals mainly with the construction and repairing of pumps.

PUMPS:

Some of the pumps found in the workshop are :

1) centrifugal
2) reciprocating
3) duplex

1) Centrifugal:

The various parts of the centrifugal pump are :

i. Gland plate
ii. Shaft sleeve
(which is
also known
as rotary
part)
iii. Carbon ring
or mating
ring.

iv. Compression
unit to
prevent leak.
v. Rubber
oaring or
packing.

Also mechanical shielding is

provided for highly
inflammable contents. This is

13
 single stage pump. For multistage pump both side shielding called double shielding is
provided to give additional property of better leak proofness.

Pumps also consist of stuffing box, bearing house, impeller and casing.

These pumps basically consist of an impeller and a casing. The impeller is the rotating
part andthe casing is the stationary part. The liquid that enters at the centre at suction
pressure is pushed through a path of increasing cross-section, adding hydraulic energy to
the liquid.

These centrifugal pumps are again of two types, single stage and multi stage. The
casings are placed one after the other
concentrically in multi staged pumps where
each stage adds extra energy .The water first
enters the first impeller, then through the
diffuser and out to the casing from where it
goes to the second impeller.[Fig-a]

Impellers are of three types:

• box-type: the impeller
is completely closed on
both sides.
• semi-closed : the impeller is closed on one side.
• open

2) Reciprocating :

Reciprocating pumps have lesser efficiency than centrifugal pumps and are
increasingly being replaced by centrifugal ones.

3)Duplex:
The duplex pumps are used for pumping thick crude oil or such unprocessed
liquids. These consist of two pistons, one for suction and the other for discharge

.
BEARINGS:

The rotating parts of machinery require bearings for the purpose of free movement at
the ends with minimum friction, to increase the life-span of the main shaft.

Bearings are basically of three types:

1) roller
2) ball

14
 3) journal

Roller bearings:

In this type the outer and inner parts are separate, i.e. the cage holding the roller and the
outer ring move independently. Generally this bearing can take more load than ball
bearings.
Roller bearings are classified as follows:
a) cylindrical
b) taper
c) needle
d) spherical

a) Cylindrical: The rollers are cylindrical and these are used in rolling mills or in
bearing units for rail vehicles.
b) Taper: The rollers are slightly tapered and found in passenger cars and trucks,
propeller shafts and differentials.
c) Needle: These are thin rollers capable of taking radial loads mostly.
d) Spherical: These bearings allow slight misalignments of the rotating shaft, as the
plane of the outer and the inner rings can have relative angular movement. They are
found in railway axle boxes , and in stationary transmission.

Ball bearings:

Here the rotating moves smoothly over some steel balls fitted onto the cage of the
bearing. They are classified as follows:
a) deep groove
b) angular contact
c) self aligning

a) Deep groove: These are capable of taking both radial and axial loads. They are found
in electrical machinery, air, sea and land vehicles. Miniature ones are used in instruments
and computers while the large ones can be seen in rolling mills.
b) Angular Contact: These can take high axial loads, particularly the four-contact point
one. These can be seen in machine tool spindles, in gear-boxes and passenger car-wheels.
c) Self aligning: These consist of a pressed steel cage and are found in agricultural
machinery and ventilators.

Journal bearings:

Journal bearings are of two types : the slip and the split type. The inner
surfaces of these bearings have a layer of white metal. This material being soft
can be given fine finishing and hence causes less friction. Also the bearing
undergoes wear and tear instead of the shaft.

15
B. The Valve Section:

An altogether of eight types of valves was seen in this section.

These are:
1) safety v.
2) gate v.
3) glove v.
4) N.R.V.(non-return valve )
5) angle v.
6) ball v.
7) audco v.
8) foot v.

Some of these are discussed below:

1) Safety v.: safety valves are necessary part of boilers , vessels etc. which prevent the
pressure inside them to exceed a limit determined by the material strength of the boiler.
These are again of two kinds:

a) Dead-weight : the valve remains closed until pressure due to the weight
kept on the seat cover is exceeded by the pressure inside. After the excess steam
or air escapes through the open valve and inside pressure comes to the safe limit,
the valve automatically closes.
b)Spring-loaded : the operation of this type is similar to that of dead-
weight ,except that instead of a weight a compressed spring is kept, the lock nut
of which is adjusted with the help of safety-valve testing bench*.

*safety-valve testing bench:

This testing bench basically consists of an air or water chamber where air
or water is sucked in. The valve body is fixed on top of the chamber with the seat-
cover subjected to the desired pressure through a hole in the chamber. The
pressure exerting at the seat cover and that inside the chamber is indicated by
pressure gauges.

2) Gate valve: These are manually operated valves. The valve can be closed or opened by
turning the wheel in the clockwise and anticlockwise way respectively.[Fig-1]

16
3) Glove valve: These are similar to gate valves but differ only in internal structure.[Fig-
2]

4) Non-return valve: These are only one-way valves.

5) Angular valves: Angular valves have angular seats and are generally placed in the
bends of boilers.

6) Audco valves: These valves are fast closing valves. They can be shut in about 1/2 a
sec. They are operated by a handle and are generally used to prevent over flow while
filling tankers with oil in the stations.

C. Fabrication section:

The two main fabrication processes seen in this section are welding and heat expansion
process.

17
 1) welding:

The main types of welding done are:

a) gas welding: oxy-acetylene gas is used in the process . Gas cutting

can be done only in the case of M.S. and not for C.S. or S.S.

b) arc-welding: this gives much stronger weld than gas welding.

c) TIG welding: a very effective method of welding is the tungsten

inert gas (TIG) welding. Here the welding rod consists of 99.95% pure
tungsten and thoria or zirconia is also used.the use of filler rod is
optional in the process.

2) Heat-expansion process:

In the workshop, this method is used for the purpose of fitting pipes in flanges
of heat exchangers**.

The expanding machine which consists of an electronic torque control unit and
a mandrel does this. [Fig-3]

The mandrel has a main rod which has its cross section decreasing in a direction. Rollers
rolling over this rod move in the outward direction as they are pushed towards the larger
cross-sectional side. So, this outward movement of the rollers and heat generated due to
the friction caused by the rolling action causes the pipe to expand and fit securely onto
the flange.

18
 The electronic torque control unit controls the forward and reverse movement
of the mandrel.

**Heat- exchangers:
The heat exchangers consist of a casing which holds around a couple of
hundred brass or cast-iron tubes . The
pipes are held onto the casing by iron
flanges. These pipes carry the fluid that
has to be either heated or cooled to a
particular temperature. Incase of cooling,
cold water and incase of heating hot
steam runs around the casing. The
conduction of heat through the outer
surface of these pipes brings the desired
effect.[Fig-4]

D. Machine-shop:

The machines in this section are:

a) lathe
b) milling machine
c) shaper
d) drilling machine

a) Lathe: the lathes seen the workshop are used for step-cutting, thread-cutting,
facing etc. The half nut is used for the purpose of locking and unlocking the lead
screw (provides necessary feed during thread-cutting). The largest among these is
one ten feet long used for the cutting of flanges having a large chuck.
Tools and accessories of the lathe:
i. cutting tool. [Fig-5]
ii. lathe centers. [Fig-7]
iii. guides.[Fig-6]

19
 b) Milling machine: the various functions like facing , gear cutting, slotting , sawing
etc. is done on the machine. Generally, the milling cutter , angle cutter and the
like are fitted onto the arbor (an over-hanging rotating shaft ). More than one
cutter can be fitted on it to work simultaneously. Gear cutting is done with the
help of the index plate#.

c) Shaper: in the shaper, the reciprocating arm is driven by a crank and slotted
mechanism. This reciprocating arm is held onto the base by a dovetail .

d) Drilling machine: two of types of drilling machines are the radial and the axial
drilling machines.

The radial type has two motors, one for the drill jig and the other for the up and
down motion of the radial arm. The work- piece remains fixed .
The axial type has a single motor for the motion of the drill jig.

e) Grinding machine: grinding machines are used for various purposes, such as
tool sharpening, finishing of machined articles etc. The material of the grains of the
wheel differed in each case.

# Index plate:
The index plate is used to cut gear teeth according to the required module. The
no. of teeth for the given diameter and module is calculated.
The index plate containing a no of holes is fitted in a way so that the work-piece
feeding mechanism of the machine rotates the piece accordingly.

E. Compressors:

The compressors used in the refinery consist of the following parts :

• motor
• reciprocating mechanism with pistons
• compression chamber

F. Vibrations:

Maintenance of the machinery in the refinery is of utmost importance for the

smooth running of the plants. For example efficiency will suffer if parts are not
aligned properly. Failure to align properly can cause:-
a) Increased vibration
b) Shaft seal failure
c) Accelerated failure of close clearance machine parts
d) Bearing overload/failure
e) Coupling failure

20
 f) Shaft fretting/failure
Types of misalignment:
a) Parallel misalignment
b) Angular misalignment
c) Combination(Parallel & Angular) misalignment

Dial indicators are used to quantify or measure the misalignment between parts.
Dial indicators are of two types. These are:-

a) Balanced type:- Figures are read in both directions(positive & negative)

from zero.

b) Continuous reading type:- Figures are read only clockwise from zero.
MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE OF PLANT

Mechanical maintenance is done by two methods:

a) Breakdown maintenance
b) Preventive maintenance

a.) Breakdown maintenance: This method is basically applied in case of

household appliances and other cases where maintenance cost is considerable
compared to capital cost. This method was earlier also employed in factories.

b) Preventive maintenance: Preventive maintenance is done when the

following conditions satisfy:
• the maintenance cost is negligible compared to the
capital cost of the machinery and equipments.
• The shutdown of plant cannot be afforded due to
heavy loss in production time.
• The breakdown involves safety hazards.

***Total Preventive Maintenance (TPM):

This is a revolutionary step taken up by IOCL . By this process all the
various machineries and parts of the refinery are kept under constant observation
so as breakdown of any part is completely avoided. Each part of the refinery, such
as a pump or a boiler, is to be looked after by an employee, be he a mechanic or
an officer of any rank. They are to perform their daily duties of maintaining the
cleanliness and health of the assigned part of the refinery.

Generally, there are 4 major divisions in the maintenance section, namely,

1. Mechanical division.
2. Electrical division.

21
 3. Instrumentation division.
4. Miscellaneous division ( mostly concerned with civil equipment and handling)

Mechanical maintenance in an oil refinery is of paramount importance and is one of the

main factors which determine whether it is running at a profit or loss. However in a
refinery, breakdown maintenance is rarely if ever carried out. We shall go through a brief
overview of these aspects in the following segment of the report.

Breakdown maintenance:

This is the type of maintenance which is carried out when the equipment breaks down
and is non-operative. It is only possible under the following circumstances,

1. Cost: When replacement of the equipment incurs lesser cost than

maintenance.
2. Safety hazard: When the equipment poses no safety hazard during its
operation after damage has set in and it is on the verge of breakdown.
3. Time: When the time factor for maintenance is not detrimental to the
profitability of the venture.

In order to carry out mechanical maintenance in the refinery it is very much necessary
to observe the operation of the different machineries. This is carried out by observation
and analysis of the vibrations of the various machineries in the units.
For the sake of mechanical maintenance the machine parts in the refinery are broadly
divided into 3 divisions:

1. Critical: where the observations are carried out on a daily basis.

2. Semi-critical: where the observations are carried out on a weekly basis.
3. Sub-critical: where the observations are carried out after a certified period of time.

Repairing of jobs by the mechanical maintenance department is carried out

in the following manner:

1. The department of production informs the maintenance department

about the damaged part by giving a job request.

2. The defect is then identified and necessary steps are taken in order
to remove the defect at the site.

3. If the above steps fail, then in case it is a hot job then clearance is
sought from the Fire and Safety Department and also from the Production
Department.

4. Then the damaged part is dismantled and carried to the required

place, usually the maintenance workshop by the transportation department

22
 5. After the job has been completed then the mechanical workshop
informs the maintenance department which in turn informs the
transportation department which transports the part back to its original
site.

6. The repaired part is boxed up and the production department is

informed that the job assigned has been completed.

Brief descriptions of some of the units visited are given in the following
lines:

1. Crude Distillation Unit (CDU):

“The mother unit”, the unit where the raw crude oil with all its impurities makes its
entry into the refinery. The crude oil is bought from Oil India Limited and stored in
storage tanks. These tanks are insulated. The crude oil in the storage tanks is kept warm
with the help of steam coils. The main function of this unit is to separate the crude oil
into its various components by the means of 2 fractionating columns CL1 and CL3. The
oil is circulated throughout the unit by various pumps starting from P1 (the initial input
suction pump). The raw crude oil is firstly passed through 2 strainers, one of which is idle
and the other running with the purpose of separating some of the impurities present in the
crude. Then the crude is passed into a heat exchanger and then is passed into the different
fractionating columns. The fractionating column separates the crude into its various
components which collects on the different trays set at different heights placed in it on
the basis of their volatility and boiling points. The heavy waste which is at the bottom of
the columns are pumped out by P9 pump & heated in the burner. These pass through the
heating coils and are heated by the hot gases outside. The number of burners used
depends on the amount of heating required. There are six chulhas each having three
burners. A steam line and an oil line goes to each of the chulhas. The oil is burnt at the
mouth of the burner. Steam is added for better burning of the oil.

2. Delayed Coking Unit (DCU):

The main process which is carried out in this unit is thermal cracking which yields
products such as coker gases, coker gasoline, coker gas oil, coker fuel oil, refined fuel oil
and raw petroleum coke. Coker gases are fed from the LPG Recovery Unit (LRU) and
other products obtained from the CDU and KTU to form motor spirit, high speed diesel,
light diesel oil, furnace oil and low sulphur heavy stack. This unit is called delayed
cooking unit since it envisages the production of coke by allowing high resistance time to
cracking for liquid phase cracking in the reaction chamber operated on alternate days

23
with a gap of 24 hours in between. The feed to this unit basically comprises of reduced
crude oil (RCO) and coke gas oil. The cracking process consists of decomposition to
lighter hydrocarbons. (In the fractionating column in DCU (CL2), there are 3 types of
condensate: light, medium and heavy. Cracking is the process of converting the groups of
heavy hydrocarbon mixtures into lighter ones by the application of mostly heat). Except
for the coke, the rest of the products of this unit are transported to different units for
further refining. The solid, heated coke formed after cooking for 24hours is ‘cut’ or
broken up into smaller pieces by highly pressurised water which is fed at into the
chamber at around 120kgf/cm squares initially and then further broken into smaller
pieces in the second and third cuts by water fed at a pressure of 80kgf/ cm squares.

The importance of mechanical maintenance is illustrated by the analysis and solution of

a case encountered in the DCU:
There are 3 pumps operating in the DCU to supply water for the cutting process of
coke: P19, P19a and P19B. Pump 19a supplies water at 120kgf/cm squares whereas the
other two pumps supply water at 80kgf/cm square. All the pumps have a separate inlet for
water suction and a separate outlet for water discharge. However all the outlets are
connected to a discharge pipe via separate non-returning valves (NRVs). Now a situation
so arises that the pump 19a starts supplying water at 50kgf/cm square instead of 120kgf/
cm square although its record indicates that the pump has not been plagued by problems
of any kind since its setting up (it is a relatively new pump) and the other two pumps are
operating according to expectation. From which source could have the problem arisen?
Solution: One of the non-returning valves in the unaffected pumps had been causing the
problem. It is defective and has been allowing water from the common discharge line to
seep through its gates. This generates a back pressure which translates into movement of
the blades of that pump even in non-operative condition and thus reduces the line
pressure of the discharged water. The problem can be detected by observing the
movement of one of the pumps even when it is not in operating state. This problem is
fixed by either replacing the non returning valves or by repairing it.

3. ISOSIV unit:

Another unit which we visited during the course of our vocational training was the
ISSOSIV unit. The feed for the ISSOSIV unit is light naptha from the CDU and from
storage tanks (the advantage of the second means that storage results in sedimentation of
some of the heavier impurities present in the light naptha which results in purer feed).
The main function of the ISSOSIV is to separate the normal naptha from the iso-naptha.
This is done using a process akin to sieving based on the principle of adsorption.

A brief description of the process carried out in the ISSOSIV unit follows:

The light naptha is firstly sucked into a vessel from either the CDU or the storage tank.
It is then passed through a heat exchanger before being passed through a furnace. The

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output from the furnace is then passed via 2 feed lines to 4 adsorption chambers. The
adsorption chamber contains a zeolite based adsorbent. The adsorbent is a specially
prepared 5A molecular sieve with a pore diameter tailored so that normal paraffin can
pass through the pores and into the cavities within the crystalline structure, while others
such as isoparaffins, napthalenes and aromatics are excluded. The separation is achieved
in the vapour phase. Cycle time is 260 seconds. These chambers contain hydrogen gas as
the medium. Hydrogen is supplied and taken out from the adsorption chambers through
inlets and outlets interconnected between them. The adsorbent contains miniscule pockets
which are just sufficiently large to trap the normal naptha hydrocarbons but not the
isonaptha hydrocarbons. Thus against a feed of mixture of normal and isonaptha the
output only comprises of the isonaptha hydrocarbons. After the isonaptha hydrocarbons
have been collected, the trapped normal naptha hydrocarbons are blown out from the
pockets by blowing hydrogen through the inlet. The temperature of the naptha feed is 288
degree C. The iso component is not trapped in the pores of the sieves and these pass
through the top of the adsorber to the V03 and from there to the C01 to V07. Iso product
to storage is sent from the C01 at 13872 kg/hr. The normal component goes through V04
to C02 to V08. The normal product is sent to the storage at 2088 kg/hr. This is the low
octane product. Normal paraffins are used as reaction solvents due to their inherent
stability The isonaptha, normal naptha hydrocarbons are then processed in the unit itself
for further purity. Pure hydrogen is recovered and recirculated in the unit.

4. Kerosene Treating Unit (KTU):

Straight run kerosene is a mixture of parafinnic, napthanic and aromatic close boiling
point mixture. The purpose of the KTU is to remove the aromatic hydrocarbons abnd
thereby improve the smoking point. The feed and sulphur dioxide are contacted at -20
degree Celsius in a column packed with resching rings (to provide larger surface area).
The extract phase so created contains about 80% and 20% aromatic and the raffinate
phase contains about 80% non-aromatics as solvent.

5. LPG recovery unit:

The basic purpose of recovering coker off gases is to absorb heavier components of
compressed gas with stabilized naphtha(lean oil) in a rectified absorber and separation of
the LPG components from unstabilized naphtha(rich oil) in a stabilizer. Stabilized
naphtha and LPG are caustic treated before being transported to their respective storages.

6. Nitrogen unit:

In the Nitrogen plant, 99.9% pure nitrogen is extracted from air and supplied to the
other units wherever required. There are three centrifugal air compressors in the plant. At
a time only one or when requirement is more two compressors are run and the other is
kept as back-up. The compressed air is kept in a surge vessel. Some of this air is used as
plant air. A part of it sent to the drier section. Remaining part is sent through a moisture
separator to a refrigerating component where it is at 9-15degree C. This cool air goes
through an Air Purifier Unit to the Cold Box. The cold box has an MP Column. From the
cold box gaseous nitrogen goes to the header for supply and liquid nitrogen is stored in

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two 50000L storage tanks. In case there is a power failure then this liquid nitrogen is
passed through heat exchangers where it is converted to gaseous form and this is supplied
to the other plants.

7. IndMax unit/SRU:

Indane maximization is known as the Indmax unit. Indane is the brand name of the
LPG marketed by the IOCL. The main product of this unit is LPG. Here the feed consists
of coker gasoline and RCO + coker fuel oil. These are sent to a riser. There is a catalyst
present in a regenerator. The riser is connected to a reactor. From the reactor the raw
material goes through the main chamber and TCO stripper and forms the product
TCO(diesel). Clarified oil can be had from the main chamber. Also the main chamber
connects to a primary absorber and then to the sponge absorber and finally we get fuel
gas. From the main column through stripper and stabilizer, LPG and gasoline is
produced.

a. ARU/ATU:- Diethnol amine when saturated with H2S is

called rich amine. The source of H2S is sour water and off gases
received from HDTU, Indmax unit and off gas from DCU is
processed in the ARU to separate H2S and amine solution (lean
amine) which is obtained as bottom product from ARU. H2S &
other light components present in rich amine are separated out as
sweet gas. The top gas from regeneration section as acid gas sent
to SRU for sulphur recovery.

b. SWS(Sour Water Stripping):- Sour water originates

mainly from Indmax unit. It contains NH3, H2S plus phenols,
CO2, cyanides, chlorides & hydrocarbons. Principle of sour water
stripping is based on the application of heat to reduce stability of
NH4+ & HS- in water phase plus the dilution & depletion of
gaseous NH3 & H2S by raising steam vapour. Net result is
equilibrium is forced to leave. But NH3 is extremely soluble in
water some amine salt will persist in SW. Residual ammonia
present as NH4Cl can be removed by injection of NaOH. This feed
ammonia can then be stripped away.

Storage of crude oil:

The storage of crude oil is of prime concern to the oil sector in order to deal with
demand and supply situation as well as for circulation to different units within the
refinery. This has necessitated the construction of storage tanks within the refinery itself.
Before the tank is constructed, the bearing strength of the soil in the selected site is tested.
If the strength of the soil is found to be lesser the required strength then a process known
as ‘piling’ is carried out. In this process the strength of the soil is increased by

26
constructing underground columns in a geometric pattern. Firstly the soil is dug up to the
point of the rock soil strata. After the rock soil strata has been reached, alternate layers of
bentonite solution and soil are poured onto the dug out space and ramming is carried out
until the initial ground level is reached. A ring shaped base is constructed around the
proposed design of the tan which takes care of the hoop stress. The base is constructed in
a manner which leaves a taper thus easing the delivery and discharge of the crude oil.
The three basic parts of a storage tank are:

1. Tank bottom
2. Shell courses
3. Roof.
Based on the type of roof the tanks are classified into different types which are used to
store different types of liquid fuels. These tanks are usually constructed based on the
parameters of construction expenditure, storage capacity required and the fuel to be
stored. They are:

1. Open roof tanks: These are used for storing liquids whose properties are not
affected with time and which are not adversely affected by evaporation. The
limitation of such a tank makes it suitable mostly for the storage of water required
in the refinery.

2. Fixed roof tanks: These tanks as their name suggests have immoveable roofs.
There is a definite clearance between the roof height and the height of the stored
fuel. They are mostly used for the storage of fuels like high speed diesel, kerosene
which have low volatility and are not greatly affected by evaporation.

3. Floating roof tanks: These tanks are used to store highly volatile fuels like ATF
and petrol. In these types of tanks, the height of the tank roof is not fixed at a
definite height but adjusted along with the height up to which the oil is filled in
the tank so as to create a very small ‘vapour space’ i.e the space between the roof
and the oil. This leads to minimum vaporisation and cuts back losses.

4. Combination of floating and fixed roof tanks.

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 Maintenance Workshop
Layout

Fabrication Section Unfinished jobs

Valve section

Lathe, shaper, boring, milling

& drilling m/c
Rotary section

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 CONCLUSION:

“If you want to find out anything from the theoretical physicists about the methods they
use, I advise you to stick closely to one principle: Don't listen to their words, fix your
attention on their deeds.” Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

In a changing industrial world with changing perspectives, the gap between theoretical
knowledge and analysis and practical skill and application has widened. This gap can
only be bridged by greater interaction between the industry and educational institutions
imparting technical know-how. This short vocational training was no doubt a big leap for
a technical student like me. It was the first time I have been provided with the
opportunity to set foot inside a PROCESS INDUSTRY and it has been truly a great
learning experience for me.
The nuts, bolts and machinery of which we were familiar with in only black and white
are no longer only fragments of our imagination, for in the course of this training we have
become perhaps not fully but substantially acquainted with them. Overall it was one of
the best practical experiences that I have ever had and I am sure it will of immense help
to any of my future endeavor.

(JYOTI PRASAD DEKA)

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