Principal Process Engineer
AMEC
Total years of experience :13 years, 10 Months
Managed FEED and detailed design and provided construction/commissioning support works on North Sea projects
Managing and accountability for the detailed design works on the Dana Petroleum Sevan Marine 400 Type FPSO - Western Isles Development Project (WIDP)
Managed FEED and detailed design and provided construction/commissioning support works for various Upstream offshore and onshore UK North Sea projects
NIOC Gas Terminal Development Project FEED
Work at INEOS Grangemouth in the onsite contractor’s offices on a variety of operational improvement TAR projects, for the refinery on Ethylene / Butadiene and other work in the petrochemicals complex. Activities included: Investigation of and troubleshooting of operational issues (Liquid Hammer in Compression Train, Ethylene De-Superheater System, Butadiene Storage Spheres Upgrade, Ethylene / Propylene Plant Refrigeration), process upsets (Caustic Absorber Tower Re-Tray and Caustic Stripper Tower Upgrade), safety (Ammonia Vaporiser Safety Improvement), performance reduction of heat exchange equipment (De-Propaniser Condenser Replacement) and compressors (Catalytic Cracker Compression System) and creation of corrective actions. Development of process calculations, equipment specification, hazard analysis, hazardous area classification, datasheets and basic process simulation work using Hysys/Aspen. One major upgrade project, to redesign and replace the Refinery Crude oil pumping system, entailing dynamic modelling (using AFT) of all operational states and upsets, to ensure effective response of the control systems and various pumps (main and booster) in the system.
I worked in the site technical department on pharmaceutical production and solvent recovery projects:
Plant wide Hazardous Area Classification:
Utilising existing project specific drawings / hazardous zone calculations and providing new calculations and drawings, I was responsible for generation of a set of site wide hazardous area classification drawings.
Plant wide Integrated Cooling:
I was involved in this piece of work was as part of a team effort to provide a site wide main cooling medium network hydraulic and thermal model utilising AFT fathom. I provided modelling of the main solvent recovery plant cooling systems and part of the network supplying the penicillian manufacturing process.
Plant wide Environmental Performance (VOC emissions):
As a logical followon from the hazardous are classification work I aided in assessing the plant VOC emmissions from the manufacturing areas and the solvent recovery plants. This was against the backdrop of a push for manufacturing cost reduction through reduced solvent useage and intense scrutiny by environmental authorities. Assessment were made of all main equipment items in the various processes i.e. reactors, distillation operations, crystallizers, centrifuges, dryers; vacuum filters, storage tanks, in-process tanks and leaks.
Solvent Recovery Plant Expansion / Utilisation Concept Studies:
Due to increasing financial pressure on the site API manufacture of actives at the time, I recommended to the plant manager that a concept feasibility study should be carried out for the recovery of tetrahydrofuran from a waste toluene-thf-water stream generated by the z-valacyclovir manufacturing process which was one of the existing 'actives' pharmaceutical manufacturing processes on site. When I left the work I had received preliminary results from a 3rd party and I had started the process of internal GMP approval for the 3rd party recovery.
2-Phase Separator Automation Upgrade (Detailed Design Project):
This was a project to install new instrumentation and to fully automate a 2 phase MIBK-Water separator using the existing plant DCS (Delta V).
Solvent Recovery Plant Safety Upgrade (Detailed Design Project):
This was a project to introduce enhance the safety of the main solvent recovery facility. Based on Hazop outcomes, various design safety changes were introduced utilising the existing plant DCS (Delta V) and also a new safety system which provided an independant layer of protection across the facility to events such as high level and pressure etc. I helped specify the design changes to both the existing DCS and the new safety system and took part in the project FAT.
I provide support and assistance to the Rye site on all aspects of process engineering.
Waste water thermal oxidiser Project:
I provided commissioning support to the combustion fuel supply system for the new thermal oxidiser i.e. the main burner fuel supply which was an alcohol / hydrocarbon mixture prepared on site from other waste streams and supplied via a new storage tank installed.
Taught modules including: offshore risk and reliability cfd design of rotating machinery advanced control systems (non linear signal processing) process design and simulation Research Project: Design of low specific speed centrifugal aircraft fuel pump.
Year 1 Engineering, mathematics and chemistry. Studied electrical and mechanical branches of engineering in first semester, followed by myfirst in-depth study of chemical engineering. Year 2 Studied core chemical engineering subjects including Thermodynamics, Separations and Fluid Dynamics courses, supported by classes in mathematics. Lots of lab practical activities and a visit to a nearby industrial plant (Burnt Island Alcan). Year 3 Deepened myunderstanding of chemical engineering with classes including Thermodynamics, Unit Operations, Heat Mass and Momentum Transfer and Process Dynamics and Control. Put my knowledge into practice in the laboratory by studying acoustic window technology using isocyanate compounds. Year 4 Completed individual and group projects (oligomer plant design. Courses on Process Safety and Reaction Engineering.