Heat integration provides the bulk of the energy required for atmospheric distillation of crude oil. Heat integration effectiveness must balance multiple factors. These factors include;
- Energy costs.
- Capital costs.
- Operability and control.
- Integration with other units and shutdown scheduling.
- Corrosion.
- Feed flexibility.
- Product types and conditions.
The emphasis of this paper is on the analysis of a well heat-integrated atmospheric-vacuum distillation unit. Comparisons for different types of crude oils covering the range from 20 to 50 API degrees are shown. These comparisons identify best-practice targets for heat integration in crude units running a variety of feeds.
