GE’s Fuel Flex Technology Helps CEPSA Enable Spain’s Oil Refinery to Meet Strict European Emissions Standards
May 18 2015 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
- Compañia Española de Petróleos (CEPSA)
Turned to GE to Engineer an Innovative Solution to Boost Gas
Turbine Efficiency
- Project Marks First Use of High
Hydrogen Fuel Technology with Premix Combustion for B/E Class
Turbines to Run on Refinery Fuel Gas in the Petrochemical
Industry
- New Fuel Flex Technology Will Help
Refinery Operators around the World Meet Their Operational,
Environmental and Desired Financial Requirements
To meet environmental emissions restrictions without reducing
efficiency or increasing operational costs, Compañia Española de
Petróleos (CEPSA), one of Spain’s leading petrochemical companies,
has adopted new GE (NYSE:GE) gas turbine technology at its
Gibraltar-San Roque refinery.
Developed by GE’s Power Generation Services business, the
fuel-flexible High Hydrogen Fuel DLN1 technology increased the gas
turbine’s efficiency by enabling it to use recycled refinery fuel
gas (RFG) without needing additional water to generate power.
“GE Power Generation Services’ solution helped us to increase
plant efficiency and reduce our environmental footprint, supporting
our goals to produce cleaner energy and meet the region’s
increasingly stringent emissions requirements,” said Antonio
Berlanga, CEPSA’s operation manager. ”We appreciate GE’s commitment
to investing in flexible and efficient technologies that enable us
to reduce our emissions footprint.”
Refinery gases are used as fuel for CEPSA’s internal processes
with excess gas flared. GE’s turbine configuration recaptures and
reduces waste gas that otherwise must be flared or burned off. The
gas, known as RFG, is a typical byproduct of the refining process
and contains hydrogen and hydrocarbons, which contribute to
greenhouse gases.
Using GE’s technology, refineries around the world can reduce
both water consumption and emissions, helping them comply with
tightening environmental regulations while also reducing operating
expenses.
“GE is pleased to showcase the operational benefits, which is
the first use of this technology for B/E Class turbines to run on
refinery fuel gas in the petrochemical industry,” said Ramon
Paramio, Europe general manager for GE Power Generation Services—GE
Power & Water. “This project illustrates our commitment to
working with our customers to develop innovative fuel flexible
technology solutions that help refinery operators around the world
meet their operational, environmental and financial
requirements.”
This is the first time a refinery has adopted a process that
uses RFG to power turbines for generating electricity without using
water and reflects the fuel flexibility of GE’s 6B DLN1 heavy-duty
gas turbine design that blends startup fuel (natural gas) with RFG
fuel. The flexible fuel configuration caps GE’s three-year research
and development effort.
GE completed the conversion process more than a year ago and
since then, the unit has increased the power plant’s efficiency and
lowered the release of gaseous emissions. The use of waste (RFG)
gas has decreased the need to purchase natural gas resulting in a 7
percent heat rate improvement. CEPSA also has realized a 90 percent
reduction in NOx emission with GE’s DLN1 combustion system.
Since the upgrade, the new combustion system hardware’s
condition has exceeded CEPSA’s expectations as the unit has
accumulated 10,000 hours of operation on RFG. In addition, the new
configuration of the combustion system has 24,000 hours inspection
intervals, which is three time longer than the previous combustion
system. This extension will reduce the plant’s operating costs.
CEPSA operates three refineries that account for more than
one-third of Spain’s total refining capacity.
To view a video on the CEPSA project, click here.
About GE
GE (NYSE:GE) imagines things others don’t, builds things others
can’t and delivers outcomes that make the world work better. GE
brings together the physical and digital worlds in ways no other
company can. In its labs and factories and on the ground with
customers, GE is inventing the next industrial era to move, power,
build and cure the world. www.ge.com
About GE Power & Water
GE Power & Water provides customers with a broad array of
power generation, energy delivery and water process technologies to
solve their challenges locally. Power & Water works in all
areas of the energy industry including renewable resources such as
wind and solar; biogas and alternative fuels; and coal, oil,
natural gas and nuclear energy. The business also develops advanced
technologies to help solve the world’s most complex challenges
related to water availability and quality. Power & Water’s six
business units include Distributed Power, Nuclear Energy, Power
Generation Products, Power Generation Services, Renewable Energy
and Water & Process Technologies. Headquartered in Schenectady,
N.Y., Power & Water is GE’s largest industrial business.
Follow GE Power & Water and GE’s water business on Twitter
@GE_PowerWater and @GE_Water.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150518005257/en/
GE Power & Water- Power Generation ServicesLaura Aresi, +39
02 67335622Mobile: +39 335 6978871laura.aresi@ge.comorGE Power
& WaterShaun Wiggins, +1 518-385-5992shaun.wiggins@ge.com
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