Among the many problems that threaten the daily operation of a urea plant, fluid leakage is perhaps the most common, especially the leaking of high pressure flanges in the urea synthesis section. A high-velocity jet emerging from a flange due to a failed gasket, a pinhole in an elbow, corroded threads of a level transmitter, etc., are familiar scenes that the maintenance crew encounters and must rectify.
Where possible, fertilizers should be stored in closed storage to protect the product from the weather (sun, rain etc.). The ideal storage conditions for urea granules in the summer season in the Gulf region are discussed.
Flares in urea plants are designed to improve the site’s safety performance by capturing and burning ammonia emissions from safety release points. This will prevent/reduce ammonia emissions from entering the environment and in turn reduce ammonia risks. Flares are becoming more common in new urea plants, but are they the optimum solution to improve safety and reduce environmental risks?
Pressure transmitters have become essential parts of virtually all urea plants. This discussion looks at a case where a plant is experiencing frequent faults with a reactor pressure transmitter. The urea industry shares its experiences and solutions.
Preservation covers the method of protection and preventative maintenance carried out on equipment and systems before and after they are put into use. In power plants, fertilizer units and refineries, expensive equipment like turbines, chillers, power generators, boilers, condensers, panels etc. begin to rust and corrode when in storage or during shutdown or even when in operation due to the presence of excess moisture in the air. Proper downtime procedures are extremely important. In this discussion, preservation and its importance is discussed by urea plant experts.
Once a flange connection in the high pressure urea synthesis section leaks it is almost impossible to stop by re-tightening the bolts. This raises the question whether the flange connection should be insulated.
Hot prills can easily cause caking which leads to lump formation and consequently dust formation when these lumps are crushed. This all leads to poor product quality and customer complaints, but how can hot prills be avoided?
The scraper in a prilling tower rotates above the floor of the tower and moves the prills from the bottom of the prilling tower to the conveyor belt. Under certain conditions, the scraper can get clogged and requires cleaning, but how can this be done safely?
It is commonly known that any urea plant has a certain minimum plant load, typically 60% of its design capacity. But why is this so critical for urea plants?
The CO2 compressor in a urea plant is often a limiting factor in the urea plant. This discussion shares experiences on how best to debottleneck this unique and interesting high-pressure rotating piece of equipment.