Refineries face various challenges, such as controlling high pressures, managing multiple fluid types, preventing erosion and cavitation, reducing noise, and ensuring precise flow control. Refining facilities often have maintenance issues, space limitations, and stringent environmental regulations.

This case study demonstrates how IMI’s tailored valve technology helped a refinery in Bahrain overcome complex operational challenges.

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Spotlight on the customer and end-user

Customer: A group of companies working on a major refinery upgrade project.

Location: A major oil refining facility in Bahrain.

The project is one of the largest refinery development projects in the Middle East. The refinery aimed to boost production from 265,000 barrels per day (BPD) to 360,000 BPD, a significant increase requiring high-performing, reliable equipment. However, it faced a number of significant challenges in achieving this aim.

The Challenges

The expansion project required the installation of over 2,000 valves for various critical applications, such as pressure and flow control of steam, crude oil, and diesel. The primary issues that the project team faced were:

• Noise control: The refinery needed to keep noise levels below 82 decibels (dBA), a challenging requirement considering the high-pressure processes involved.
• Flow control: The facility’s engineering team required the valves to operate efficiently between 20% and 85% of their opening, ensuring precise flow management. However, none of the initial suppliers, including IMI’s competitors, could meet these demands.
• Globe valve limitations:  Initially, the customer specified that they require globe valves, but nobody could meet the minimum 20% opening requirement.

The refinery’s inability to meet these operational requirements posed a potential threat to project timelines, forcing it to look for alternative solutions that could fulfil its rigorous demands.

The Solution

We introduced the refinery engineering team to our dBX Shield ball valve as the solution. Our team worked closely with the customer to discuss the benefits of transitioning from a globe to a ball valve. The team also demonstrated dBX Shield’s capabilities in meeting the customer’s operational goals. As a result, the customer accepted the dBX Shield solution.

Key outcomes

The implementation of dBX Shield brought significant improvements to refinery operations. Unlike the globe valves, which could not meet the minimum flow requirements, dBX Shield offered the following advantages:

• Noise reduction: dBX Shield technology effectively reduced noise levels, ensuring compliance with the refinery’s requirement of keeping noise below 82 dBA.
• Precision and rangeability: The valve allowed for precise flow control across the 20% to 85% range, outperforming traditional globe valves.
• Space and cost efficiency: One key benefit of dBX Shield was its compact design. The valve’s smaller size reduced the overall space required, saving costs associated with installation and maintenance.

This solution helped the refinery meet its expansion goals and set a new benchmark for efficient and cost-effective operations.