The control of fouling in the extractive distillation section of the butadiene unit is a key aspect of this process. As a part of an optimization study conducted for a SABIC plant, a number of critical heat exchangers were assessed in terms of their thermal and hydraulic functioning. In particular, the solvent/solvent-hydrocarbon unit was rigorously modelled. Key indicators over various cycles were obtained using software for trend analysis. Such evaluations provided the base line for the validation of the cleaning effectiveness as well as the criteria for the rating of the plant at varying throughput. The presentation reviews the exchangersâ simulation strategy and demonstrates the utilization of appropriate tools for analyzing the heat exchanger performance.
