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highlight the revamp capabilities of Stamicarbon, as much in terms of developing the optimum process scheme as in terms of troubleshooting and elegantly solving capacity limitations.

t to boost yield, enhance the nutrients.

of the fertiliser product and/or the fertiliser application technology.

Netherlands, since 2010 operating as OCI Nitrogen.

ti-product granulation • Modular build-up of granulatio...

used to reduce NOx emissions from diesel vehicles.

alysis (capacity, operations) Tailor made design

g Bangladesh. It is the first Stamicarbon urea CO2 stripping plant featuring the pool condenser technology, see [1]. In the Kafco-Bangladesh plant, the interconnection between the pool condenser and the reactor is provided by two high pressure (HP) pipelines, a 10” inch liquid and a 10” inch gas line. The plant is commissioned in 1994. After commissioning, operating experience learned that the gas line from the pool condenser to the reactor was sometimes filled with a stagnant liquid level; especially in case of a start-up from a “blocked-in condition“. This resulted in problems with the synthesis hydraulics and limited the maximum plant load to 115%. This problem was mostly overcome after draining of the synthesis loop but causing some environmental problems as well. For a permanent solution to this problem a modification of the HP gas line was implemented during the planned turnaround in 2010.The modification improved the hydraulics of the urea synthesis loop; eliminated gas flow restriction after a “block-in situation” and resulted in an increase of production up to 121% of the design capacity. The 1725 MTPD plant is now able to produce 2100 MTPD.

out of the exhaust of diesel cars. Diesel trucks but also already private cars are obliged to use DEF in Europe and the US, more continents will follow. The price of DEF at the moment almost doubles the price of urea fertilizer. All urea producers are looking for opportunities to become part of the DEF family. The DEF specification is described by ISO 22241 and DIN V70070 and limits amongst others the amounts of Biuret (< 0.3 wt%), NH3 (< 0.2 wt%) and Formaldehyde (< 5 ppm). DEF is produced by urea producers as a 32.5 wt% - or a 50 wt% aqueous urea solution or as solid product depending on the distance between the producers and the consumers. Urea granules are abandoned as DEF due to its formaldehyde content. Urea prills are sold in China as premium if the biuret content is maintained lower than 0.9 wt% because in that case they can be used for DEF.  Plants with a granulation finishing section which produce DEF from urea solution have difficulties to keep the biuret concentration low enough in their granules due to the increased residence time in the evaporation stage. These challenges are leading to the increased worldwide interest in biuret.

taking place within a single piece of equipment. In a Urea reactor for instance the corrosion in the top is more than in the bottom part. This reduction in liner wall thickness should not mean automatically the end of the lifetime of a reactor. An in situ relining may extend the lifetime of the reactor again for many years. To allow an optimum repair with respect to quality, timing and down time of the Urea reactor it is important to make a good game plan and preparations should already be done prior to the turn around. In the HP Heat Exchangers the liner is not the critical factor. The heat exchanger tubes are the limiting factor with respect to the lifetime of the equipment and a replacement appears to be the most economical solution.

roducts are highly corrosive. Risks discussed in this presentation: •Explosion •Loss of mechanical integrity

duction. At the same time, we must expect that society will focus even more on safety and environmental issues associated with fertilizers, such as Health and safety risks from working in fertilizer plants Major accident risks, to avoid disasters like the explosion in Toulouse Terrorist acts, using fertilizers for bomb-making Pollution risks from the manufacturing processes and from the use of fertilizers Climate change and the role of fertilizers and agriculture Use of limited energy and mineral resources, such as phosphates The public perception of Good Citizenship has changed over the years. Today, many people look upon the chemical industry as a burden to future sustainability. This perception will deepen if the industry has a poor safety and environmental performance. It is vital to perform well and to eliminate bad practices. Otherwise we must expect that much stricter regulations will be enforced upon the industry. In this paper I will focus on the 3 first bullet points above, those that are related to safety and product stewardship, with some practical advice on actions the industry should take in order to be in command and avoiding over-regulation. 

gas lines was again AISI316L-UG, because there were still some such tubes in stock, dating from the time the plant was constructed.The affected areas showed evidence of stress corrosion cracking (SCC), but reduction in the wall thickness was also observed. This was attributable to condensation corrosion, which is normally observed in the gas lines. It was most severe in the heat-affected zones (HAZ) near the welds. The affected elbows were subjected to metallographic examination in Brazil as well as in Stamicarbon laboratory. This paper presents the investigations carried out on the elbows and piping removed from the urea synthesis gas lines in order to find the root cause of the leakages. 

tripper performance.  The stripper level indication (Radioactive type) LT-1043 got erratic at our plant and we sustained plant operation without this indication by: 1. Keep the plant load constant and avoid any changes in plant load.  2. Observe the stripper outlet temperature as this temperature will change with increase or decrease of the stripper bottom level.  3. Observe the steam consumption of the stripper as the steam flow will change with a change in the liquid level. 4. Observe the N/C Ratio and keep it constant. 5. Observe the downstream section pressure at constant plant load.

mance. And rightfully; we must see safety as a prime concern in order to protect ourselves and our neighbors from unwanted effects from our activities. Moreover, on the long run production without accidents will be a key factor in order to obtain and maintain acceptance of our activities by the rest of the society. In order to maintain this so called ‘license to operate’ it is of importance that our production processes are safe, but also we should be able to proof that our safety procedures and standards are up to ‘world class’ level. In this respect it is important to recognize that safety standards are continuously evolving. Things that were fully acceptable 100 years ago nowadays are completely unthinkable.

duction. At the same time, we must expect that society will focus even more on safety and environmental issues associated with fertilizers, such as Health and safety risks from working in fertilizer plants Major accident risks, to avoid disasters like the explosion in Toulouse Terrorist acts, using fertilizers for bomb-making Pollution risks from the manufacturing processes and from the use of fertilizers Climate change and the role of fertilizers and agriculture Use of limited energy and mineral resources, such as phosphates The public perception of Good Citizenship has changed over the years. Today, many people look upon the chemical industry as a burden to future sustainability. This perception will deepen if the industry has a poor safety and environmental performance. It is vital to perform well and to eliminate bad practices. Otherwise we must expect that much stricter regulations will be enforced upon the industry. In this paper I will focus on the 3 first bullet points above, those that are related to safety and product stewardship, with some practical advice on actions the industry should take in order to be in command and avoiding over regulation.