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Main fractionator water

wash systems
When properly designed and operated, main fractionator wash water systems can
remove salt with little upset. Misconceptions concerning the minimum column
overhead temperature and operation when producing FCC heavy naphtha are discussed
Christopher F Dean Saudi Aramco
Scott W Golden Process Consulting Services Inc

ain (fractionator) column

water wash systems are
sometimes
needed
when
producing heavy naphtha product to
ensure the FCC feed rate and gasoline
quality can be met throughout the run.
Heavy naphtha product draws are used
to segregate the high sulphur portion of
the gasoline or to reduce the liquid load
through the gas plant. This is becoming
more prevalent due to the production of
propylene for petrochemical feedstocks.
Consequences include a lower main
column overhead temperature, higher
wet gas rate and reduced gas plant
propylene recovery. Lowering the
overhead temperature can lead to
ammonium chloride deposits on the
trays or in the packing. These salts must
periodically be removed; otherwise, FCC
capacity will be reduced.

Condenser

Reflux

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Reflux

Heavy naphtha
product
Heavy naphtha
PA return

Heavy naphtha
pumparound &
product

Heavy naphtha product

draws and pumparounds
Figures 1 and 2 show two heavy naphtha
product draw systems. The product in
Figure 1 is withdrawn from the same
location as the pumparound, which is
the most common arrangement.
Pumparound temperature is set by the
heavy naphtha product rate. As the
overhead product naphtha rate decreases
and the heavy naphtha product draw
increases, the draw temperature drops.
When cold-feed preheat or gas plant
C3/C4 splitter and stripper reboiler
services use the heavy naphtha
pumparound heat, a reduction in the
draw temperature can create problems in
each of these systems. Existing
exchanger surface areas or pump
capacity are often insufficient to meet
the required duties. It is common during
revamps to have to add pump capacity
and increase the exchanger surface area
due to higher product draw rates.
However, in many cases, modifying
the flow scheme eliminates or
minimises the pumparound system
investment. Heavy naphtha product can
be withdrawn above the pumparound
(Figure 2), allowing existing equipment
to be reused without modifications. This

Condenser

Heavy
naphtha PA

Heavy naphtha
pumparound

Figure 1 Typical heavy naphtha draw

Figure 2 Alternative flow scheme

permits a higher product draw rate

without lowering the pumparound draw
temperature. The internal liquid rate
above the pumparound is sometimes
less than the targeted heavy naphtha
product yield. In these instances, it is
necessary to use a dual draw system,
with the majority of product yielded
above the pumparound and a smaller
amount from the pumparound draw
tray. This maximises the pumparound
temperature.

dewpoint, which depends on the

quantity of water present in the column
overhead
vapour
and
operating
pressure. High concentrations of water
reduce the dewpoint temperature. Water
content of the overhead vapour depends
on the feed nozzle atomising steam,
reactor stripping steam and main
column steam, with rates varying
dramatically between units.
Column overhead vapour HCl and
ammonia concentrations play a central
role. FCC feeds containing high chlorides
are mainly unhydrotreated atmospheric
and vacuum residue containing residual
inorganic salts (MgCl, CaCl and NaCl)
from the crude unit desalters, and
purchased gas oil contaminated with
seawater. As overhead vapour HCl and
ammonia concentrations increase, salt
forms at higher temperatures. Severely
hydrotreated feeds contain small
amounts of nitrogen compounds and

Salt formation
Localised temperatures, HCl and
ammonia concentrations, and water
dewpoint all contribute to salt
formation. Ammonium chloride salts
are deposited after condensed water has
absorbed the ammonia and HCl, and
subsequently the water vapourises.
Water
forms
when
localised
temperatures are below the water

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240

Overhead vapour
215

130

90

100

90

Reflux
160
260

200

Oil and trace

water

Temperature, F
Temperature, F

Figure 3 Localised temperatures

almost no chlorides. Therefore, overhead
vapour ammonia and HCl concentrations are low. High chloride feeds
generate large amounts of HCl, so the
column overhead temperature may need
to be as high as 265F to avoid salt
formation, whereas low chloride feeds
can operate as low as 235F without rapid
salt formation.
Reflux temperature and rate influence
the rate of salt deposition because they
set localised temperatures. Reflux
temperatures vary from 75120F,
depending on ambient conditions and
the condenser system design. Reflux rate
depends on column heat balance.
Overhead vapour temperature may be
240300F, yet the liquid temperature
leaving the top tray may be only 150180F. High rates and cold reflux reduce
the local temperature. Recognising the
difference between localised liquid
temperatures on the top trays and
measured vapour temperatures is
essential
to
understanding
the
mechanism of salt formation.
Heat is exchanged when cold reflux
and hot vapour mix on the tray. Figure 3
depicts the change in liquid temperature
across a one-pass tray. In this case, reflux
enters at 90F, heat (and mass) is
exchanged between the vapour and
liquid, and liquid leaves at 160F. A
portion of the vapour entering the top
tray is condensed. Localised temperatures
below the water dewpoint contribute to
salt formation because the water absorbs
HCl and ammonia from the vapour.
Water eventually vapourises because
temperatures increase as liquid flows
down the column, and salt is deposited.

Column overhead temperature

Column overhead temperature is set by
operating pressure, the amount of water
and
overhead
naphtha
product

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Figure 4 Low overhead temperature

endpoint. A question often asked is
What is the maximum percentage of
FCC gasoline that can be withdrawn as
heavy naphtha? The answer depends
on the rate of salt deposition that is
tolerable. If the rate of salt laydown is
high, there needs to be an effective way
to remove it; otherwise, the tray will
plug, eventually causing flooding.
Refiners yielding 20% or more of the
gasoline as heavy naphtha will likely
have high rates of salt deposition unless
the feed has no chlorides. Those main
columns that have operated problemfree for years at 215F or lower have
well-designed water draw trays and good
operating procedures. One refiner has
been operating at below 190F for
several
years
(Figure
4),
but
continuously withdraws water during
normal operation. Hence, salts never
build up on the trays. Yet, it is essential
that all free water be withdrawn;
otherwise, water containing HCl and
ammonia will flow down the tower. This
is difficult to remove when it deposits
below the water draw tray.

Normal operations
During normal operation, the targeted
heavy naphtha product rate is set by
controlling the overhead temperature.
Lowering the overhead temperature
produces more heavy naphtha product
with localised temperatures low enough
to condense water even during normal
operation. Ideally, this water is
withdrawn continuously to minimise
the amount of salt deposited. When the
column is designed with a proper water
draw one or two trays below the top
tray, it is possible to continuously
remove free water.
Operating with a continuous draw is
quite simple. Draw rate is set high
enough to ensure hydrocarbon is always

present. This is done by sampling the

draw stream and visually checking for
hydrocarbons. Since there is little water
present, this stream will be more than
90% hydrocarbon. This ensures water is
removed without having to install an
interface detector on the main column.
Even though the draw stream contains
90% hydrocarbon or more, it will be less
than 10 gallons per minute for most
units. This stream can be cooled and
routed to the main column overhead
receiver, where the oil and water are
separated. The rate is so low that it does
not materially change the sulphur
content in the main column overhead
product stream.

Water washing: abnormal

operations
Water washing will cause significant
upsets if the system is poorly designed,
process routing is incorrect or the
procedure is not done properly. During
the water washing procedure, water and
oil will be withdrawn from the column
at 150190F. If this stream is routed
directly to the main column overhead
receiver without cooling, it will flash,
generating a higher wet gas compressor
load. During water washing, this stream
needs to be piped upstream of the
overhead condensers (Figure 5).
Proper operating procedures are
essential, because water washing forces
an abnormal operation on the main
column. First, the column overhead
temperature must be reduced, and then
sufficient water added to the reflux so
water is present on the water draw tray.
Water draw tray temperatures need to be
low enough so that sufficient water is
present to remove the salt. When the
water draw tray product is routed to the
main column condensers, the main
column overhead receiver temperature

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and overhead product naphtha remain

relatively constant, minimising gas
plant upsets.

Water wash system design

Four main features of a functional water
wash system are:
Correct water draw tray location
Proper routing of oil and water
Proper water draw tray design
Good operating procedures.
In one instance, the overhead
temperature ran continuously at 175F,
which was below the water dewpoint.
Yet, the water draw tray was located
only two trays below the top. Reflux was
just 75F during the winter; therefore, its
temperature increased to only 185F on
the water draw tray (Figure 6). At times,
operating temperatures below the water
draw were below the water dewpoint. In
this instance, the water draw tray should
have been located at least three trays
below the top of the column to ensure
the tray below the water draw operated
above the water dew point. The water
draw tray should typically be located
one to two trays below the top of the
column, but in a few cases, as noted in
this article, it needs to be lower. In all
cases, it must be seal-welded to ensure
all the water is removed.
The water draw tray design needs to
provide sufficient residence time to
separate the oil and water. The
downcomers from the tray above the
water draw and those feeding the tray
below need to be oriented correctly
(Figure 7). Low residence time or
improper downcomer orientations will
allow free water to flow below the water
draw. In some cases, it is necessary to
make the trays and water draw from a
dual alloy stainless to avoid corrosion.
Operating procedures are important.
During normal operation, there is only a
small amount of water and mostly oil.
When water washing, the flow increases
significantly, so the piping system must

Product
Sour
water

FC

FC

Figure 5 Water wash system

be large enough to handle the full
flow rate.

Conclusions
What is the maximum heavy naphtha
draw and minimum main column
overhead temperature? Truly, there is no
minimum temperature as long as the
unit has facilities to remove the salts,
metallurgy to deal with potential
corrosion and is run with proper
operating procedures. Since most main
columns have no water draw, few
engineers have experience of them, so
they are often viewed as unnecessary.
Yet, without an effective water wash
system, the overhead temperature must
be high so that the rate of ammonium
chloride deposition is very low. A main
column with a high reflux rate, cold

Condenser

75

Water intermittent
use

185

Oil and
continuous
water

Oil and water to

overhead
condensers intermittent

Figure 6 Continuous water draw

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Christopher F Dean is a process engineer

with Saudi Aramco at the Ras Tanura
refinery in Saudi Arabia. Deans current
responsibilities include FCC operations,
crude unit and other key refinery units,
while also providing strategic planning
support.
Scott Golden is a chemical engineer with
Process Consulting Services in Houston,
Texas, USA. His responsibilities include
FCC, crude unit, hydrotreating and
associated product recovery systems.
Email: [email protected]

175

Reflux

Oil

reflux and high concentrations of

chlorides and ammonia will need a very
high temperature. Often, this high
temperature means producing little or
no heavy naphtha.

Temperature, F

Figure 7 Water draw

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