Keeping up with the pressure !
Sulzer delivers cost saving rerate to resolve condensate pump debate
Big chemical production sites measure their lifespans in decades . From the outside , a plant may look very similar from one year to the next . Behind the scenes , however , operators are continually adjusting and adapting their facilities to boost yields , drive down costs and integrate new technologies . For one chemical plant in Singapore , uprating , not replacing , a critical pump enabled a shift to higher pressure operation six months faster , and at much lower cost .
Chemical processing is both energy intensive and competitive , so any advantage that can be achieved that will improve a process or reduce costs will be assessed carefully . Consequently , a project that could achieve both of these objectives would be very attractive to the plant operators .
In this case , the plant was planning to increase the operating pressure in a key process , but the project team knew that the change would exceed the 38 bar maximum allowable working pressure ( MAWP ) of a large condensate pump . To tackle this challenge , the procurement team began looking for a brand-new pump .
The pump in question was a VS6 type barrel design , with seven impellers
mounted on an extended shaft . That shaft passes through the suction and discharge section of the pump , via a seal and balancing section to the drive motor , and the whole unit is encased in a caisson to create a net positive suction head .
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Above , For one chemical plant in Singapore , uprating , not replacing , a critical pump enabled a shift to higher pressure operation six months faster , and at much lower cost . ( Image Source : shutterstock _ 1211709133 ). Top , the entire upgrade process took only six months to complete .