Process technology in the petroleum refining industry - current situation and future trends

This paper analyzes the technology of process and production optimization in the petroleum refining industry. There is, virtually, no refiner nowadays that does not use advanced process engineering tools to improve business results. The degree of maturity of those tools varies greatly, and there are still many unsolved problems. For instance, advanced process control is considered a mature technology, while the automatic generation of a scheduling of refinery operations is considered a goal to be achieved only in midterm. The current state of these technologies as well as the current needs of the industry and the expected future trends are presented. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.