US 6,925,338 B2 · Fiducial technique for estimating and using degradation levels in a process plant

Abstract

A process plant uses an asset utilization expert to collect data or information pertaining to the assets of the process plant from various sources or functional areas of the plant including, for example, the process control functional areas, the maintenance functional areas and the business systems functional areas. Some of this data, such as data indicative of one or more process parameters associated with a process entity like a furnace, may be used to estimate a degradation level, such as a coking level, of the process entity at a first time. The estimated level of the degradation of the process entity at the first time may then be compared to a predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the first time and the operation of the process entity may be altered based on the comparison to drive the estimated amount of degradation of the process entity at a second time to be approximately equal to a predetermined desired level of degradation at the second time.

Claims35

Dependent claims

A method of using a degradation level of a process entity within a process plant, comprising:

estimating a level of degradation of the process entity at a first time based on one or more process parameters associated with the process entity;
comparing the estimated level of degradation of the process entity at the first time to a predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the first time;
and
altering the operation of the process entity based on the comparison to drive an estimated level of degradation of the process entity at a second time after the first time to be approximately equal to a predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the second time, wherein the predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the second time is greater than the predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the first time.

1 more element

A process control system adapted to use a degradation level of a process entity within a process plant that has a processor communicatively connected to multiple process devices, comprising:

a memory,
a first routine stored on the memory and adapted to be executed on the processor to estimate a level of degradation of the process entity at a first time based on one or more process parameters associated with the process entity;
a second routine stored on the memory and adapted to be executed on the processor to compare the estimated level of degradation of the process entity at the first time to a predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the first time;
and
a third routine stored on the memory and adapted to be executed on the processor to determine an alteration for the operation of the process entity based on the comparison of the second routine to drive an estimated level of degradation of the process entity at a second time after the first time to be approximately equal to a predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the second time, wherein the predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the second time is greater than the predetermined desired level of degradation of the process entity at the first time.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Fiducial technique for estimating and using degradation levels in a process plant

Life of this patent

Fiducial technique for estimating and using degradation levels in a process plant

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims35