A process-integration framework for Abnormal Situation Management (ASM): A systematic approach with application to Qatar's industrial needs and opportunities

Abstract

Qatar is a leading producer of a variety of gas products including LNG, GTL and a wider spectrum of petrochemical intermediates and specialty chemicals. The country is blessed with the third largest natural gas reserve in the world and its booming industry includes the largest LNG train, the world's biggest ethylene cracker, the largest GTL plant and the list continue. The industrial fortune however comes at a cost in terms of impact on the environment. And although the importance of flare reduction is a worldwide struggle, the State of Qatar has a vested interest in reducing its flaring rates to enhance the quality of life for it's citizens. In 2009, the State of Qatar officially partnered with the World Bank in it's program for Global Gas Flaring Reduction, aiming to be a global leader in environmental protection. Flare reduction will directly contribute to limiting the emissions of environmentally harmful waste of gas and the reduction of CO2 and other GHGs emissions. A concentrated effort to reduce flaring in Qatar's industrial cities can have a dramatic impact on the sustainability of gas industrial industries, quality of life of local populations in addition to reducing Qatar's CO2 footprint. Initial efforts from 2007-2010 lowered flaring rates by 14%. Nonetheless, Qatar still flares 1.9 billion cubic meters annually, indicating reduction efforts must continue. Evolving environmental regulations and Qatar's commitment to flare gas reduction makes better management of industrial processes a key topic and research priority area for the State of Qatar. The literature indicates that the reasons for high flaring sources is a combination of lack of end of use options for the unwanted gases during operation, and weak environmental regulations. Companies have access to relatively inexpensive natural gas and often feel that managing associated gases is too much of a hassle. With the rising prices of energy and oil, industry now has motivation to better manage their natural resources and they have started to investigate means of recovering these vented and associated gases. It is here that there is still great potential for research work. In this paper, the authors propose a project that focuses at development of a novel approach for optimal management of process facilities. It is based on simultaneous design and operational optimization by identifying key flaring and venting sources, causes and consequences of process upsets that result in flaring and by applying recent process design and optimization tools. Tradeoffs between cost, production, mass utilization, energy efficiency, safety, and environment impact will be established through multi-objective optimization models (Pareto curves), which can be used by decision makers to determine optimal flaring policies. The developed design and operational methodologies and associated models will introduce for the first time a comprehensive, systematic, and generally applicable approach that combines abnormal situation management, systems dynamics, and process.