Case Study

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Challenge

Requiring 1,500 gpm of demineralized boiler makeup water, a West Coast refinery was experiencing a variety of problems:

• Aging demineralizers
• Excessive operating costs
• Wide variations in raw water quality
• Pending environmental legislation
• Limited capital to address these issues

Plant personnel needed a dependable solution quickly.

Solution

Working with plant personnel, Siemens:

• Conducted a thorough water analysis to determine the types and levels of contaminants in the feed water
• Analyzed the existing water treatment system
• Supplied and installed a high-purity water treatment system including a 1,500 gpm reverse osmosis (RO) system, carbon filter and sodium zeolite softener

Water from the high-purity water treatment system is now used as feed to the refinery's existing demineralizers.

Results

Within a three month period, the equipment was installed and in operation. RO reject is now used for cooling tower makeup to conserve plant water and minimize waste. Some other benefits:

• $110,000 per month reduction in operating costs
• $50,000 per month savings in water, energy and treatment chemicals through reduction of 300 gpm of boiler blowdown
• 93% reduction in demineralizer waste volume
• Improved waterside cleanliness resulting in more reliable boiler operation and lower maintenance costs

Just as this refinery did, plant personnel throughout the world struggle with aging water treatment systems. Through Siemens' System Optimization Program, we can evaluate your current system and provide recommendations to optimize your existing system.

SOURCE: Siemens Industry, Inc. - Water Technologies