Both coal-fired power plants and natural gas-fired power plants burn fossil fuels to produce energy. But what are some of the differences between them, and which are better overall? Here are some of the differences between them. Fuel Cost Despite the ecological disadvantages of using coal as a fuel source, it is still one of the cheapest ones available for …
Casing heads, tubing heads, and goal heads are all types of equipment used for oil exploration and production. They each have a specific function and construction process to manufacture them. Casing Head A casing head (AKA casing bowl, a-section, Braden head, or starting head) interfaces with the surface’s pressure control equipment. This primary interface for well drilling is a blowout …
Coal-fired power plants burn coal to produce electricity. Despite the environmental hazards presented by coal mining and burning, coal-fired power plants supply over 40% of the world’s electricity. Coal-fired power plants are used far more often in developing countries such as China and India who use coal to supply up to 75% of their electricity needs. However, coal is still …
A casing head has many other names: casing bowl, a-section, Braden head, or starting head. The casing head is the surface pressure control equipment’s primary interface. These interfaces would be blowout preventers for well drilling or the Christmas tree for production wells. The casing head is often welded or screwed on the top of the conductor pipe, and the casing …
There are four basic forged shapes from which products are manufactured. These shapes are: Ring Disc Block Cylinder When forging basic shapes, you need to start with a strategic and metallurgical approach to selecting raw material for forging, heat treating, machining, and NDE. Forged Steel Rings A forged ring is known to deliver higher strength and toughness versus the alternatives of castings, …
The weld-neck flange is used extensively for pipes everywhere, but when pipes are transporting high-pressure or high-temperature (or highly-fluctuating temperature) fluids, long weld neck flanges are better choices, especially in the oil and gas industry. Why Long Weld Neck Flanges Are Better The extended neck of a long weld neck flange provides additional reinforcement that a standard weld neck flange …
Many oil and gas producers prefer spherical tanks to store high-pressure fluids over other simpler tank designs. Why is this? Here are a few of the reasons. Spherical Storage Tanks Are Stronger Other types of storage tanks commonly found in the oil and gas production industries such as the common fixed roof tank and the external floating roof tank, use …
A distillation column is a critical piece of equipment in the refining of crude oil. It acts very much like a still, separating the crude into its different chemical components based on differences in volatility. This is typically the first phase of the petroleum refining process where crude oil is distilled into various components because of different boiling points. How …
Mechanical coalescers–AKA separators–are used widely across the oil and gas production industries to remove water, hydrocarbon, or hydrocarbon condensate from oil, petrochemical, or natural gas production processes. There are two major types of coalescers, a liquid/liquid coalescer and a gas/liquid coalescer. How Mechanical Coalescers Work A mechanical coalescer is a pressure vessel that uses a series of baffle walls or filters …
Last month we discussed why compressor stations are so important. This month we will explore some of the potential hazards of, and safety requirements for, natural gas pipeline compressor stations. Natural gas pipeline compressor stations are a critical part of the natural gas delivery process. These stations are necessary in order to transfer natural gas hundreds of miles from where it …
