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Abstract Environmental pollution by Petroleum refinery wastewater (PRW) raises vital call for attention to scientist and industrialists due to its impact on human and eco-system. This manuscript reviews methods on modification of semiconductors, effect of operating parameters, reusability/stability, along with recent development on TiO 2 - and ZnO-based photocatalysts towards degradation of PRW pollutants. TiO 2 and ZnO can be successfully modified to visible/solar light responsive photocatalysts. In-depth knowledge of reaction mechanism between photocatalysts and sorbates, structure formation in modified photocatalysts with respect to generation/mobilization of photo-charged carriers, informs the choice of composition of photocatalysts. Petroleum refineries are yet to benefit from heterogeneous photocatalysis due to some setbacks such as: recovery of photocatalysts for reuse, inability of the catalyst to degrade high concentration of pollutants, inability to handle the complex nature of PRW, and its reusability. Thus, a multifunctional and cost effective photocatalyst with reusability/stability needs more exploration to enable commercialization of the photocatalysts. Highlights • TiO 2 and ZnO remain the most stable photocatalysts under UV radiation. • These can be successfully modified for Visible/Solar light enablement. • Heterojunction, particularly type III, exhibits great ability for practical application. • The complex nature of PRW hinders petroleum refinery from heterogeneous photocatalytic benefits. • A multifunctional and reusable photocatalyst is proposed for PRW treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the method developed by the authors to separate the inorganic materials from the hydrocarbon of the sludge deposits, which is fast and can accurately identify very small quantities of inorganic materials, has been extended to characterize the 12 types of sludge samples collected from (a) a regeneration overhead acid gas condenser, (b) water draw-off pump’s suction strainer in a gas plant, and (c) condenser, inside vessels of inlet head, and head coiler tube equipment at gas plants. The results revealed that the major phases are (a) iron sulfide corrosion products with the hydrocarbon type of mixture of diesel and lube oil for a condenser and (b) carbonate scale in the form of calcium carbonate with the hydrocarbon type of lubricant oil for sludge deposits from a suction strainer for pumps, and drilling mud in the form of barium sulfate with no organic hydrocarbon or polymer for sludge samples from a water recycling pump. Moreover, the major phases for inorganic materials built up in a condenser, inside the vessel’s inlet head, and the head coiler tube revealed that iron oxide corrosion products are found in the steam drum, and iron sulfate corrosion products are built up in the condenser. The presence of dissolved oxygen in the boiler feed water is indicated by a high wt% of iron oxide corrosion product in the form of magnetite (Fe3O4), which appeared in the inorganic materials built up in the condenser steam drum. Knowing accurately which phases and their wt% were involved in the inorganic materials can guide the field engineers to facilitate efficient cleaning of the equipment by drawing up the right procedures and taking preventive action to stop the generation of those particular sludge deposits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pilot and demonstration plants (PDPs) play important roles in technological development; representing bridges between basic knowledge generation and technological breakthroughs and industrial application and commercial adoption. Moreover, they also help pursue socio-technical goals, not least by creating arenas where key actors’ agency can be linked to the broader systemic context. This paper addresses the importance of the actor networks around PDP. The aim is to propose a role-based typology that can be used as an illustrative tool to facilitate a more generic analysis of PDP actor networks and their dynamics. For this purpose the paper pursues a primarily inductive approach to investigate the barriers experienced by the actors in their joint efforts to further transform the PDPs and gain a broader legitimacy for the new technologies after the initial technology verification and demonstration phases. To aid the analysis, the actor networks surrounding four Swedish biorefinery PDPs are investigated empirically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transport sector is fast changing with demand for distillates increasing amidst declining gasoline consumption in many markets especially in the developed world. Increasingly refineries are stretched to operate less efficiently and this is manifested through a drop in efficiency as a consequence of increasing diesel production via less efficient routes, particularly on the marginal barrel of diesel. It has been suggested that this decline in diesel production efficiency, as the ratio of gasoline to diesel (G/D) production drops, can partly be mitigated through the use of Gas-to-Liquid (GTL) diesel. In this paper we adopted refinery Linear-Programming models to represent the refining system in Europe as well as a district in the U.S. to investigate the effects of increased availability of GTL diesel to a refiner on the energy efficiency and GHG emissions of refineries. Here we showed that indeed there is an improvement in diesel production efficiency with increasing GTL concentrations, but this efficiency gain (<0.5%) is insufficient to counteract the higher energy consumption and emissions associated with the production of GTL, thus leading to an overall decline in life cycle efficiency (up to 5%), and an increase in life cycle GHG emissions (up to 2%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Populations living in the vicinity of oil refinery sludge deposition sites may be at greater risk of potential exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) through inhalation, ingestion, and direct contact with contaminated media. Three Indian oil refinery sludge deposition sites (at Haldia, Barauni and Guwahati) were chosen for study. Soil samples were collected from three different locations at each site. Mild solvent extraction by butanol and exhaustive extraction by acetone/hexane have been conducted to estimate the bioaccessible PAHs beside the total extractable PAHs content of the soil samples. Concentrations of 13 PAHs in the soils were found to be in a range of 67.02–95.21 μg/g and bioaccessible PAHs were in a range of 19.296–36.657 μg/g. A probabilistic health risk assessment with bioaccessibility considerations was carried out using Monte Carlo simulations for the estimation of the cancer risk exposed to the PAHs. The 90th percentiles cancer risks with bioaccessibility considerations of soil PAHs for children is 6.506E − 05 and for the adults the risk is 6.609E − 05. Risk assessments on extracted PAHs from exhaustive solvent extraction can overestimate the risk by 2.87–2.89 folds at 90% confidence level with respect to the biomimetic mild extraction procedure using butanol. According to USEPA above 1 × 10 − 6 extra risk of cancer is an alarm towards management. So, public health issues due to PAHs is imminent in these oil refinery vicinity areas. Sensitivity analysis revealed exposure duration (ED) and relative skin adherence factor for soil (AF) as the most influential parameters of the assessment. The profiling and risk assessment study with bioaccessibility considerations of PAHs from soil indicates that high PAHs concentration can lead to higher cancer risk for the vicinity area residents and local government should take immediate management actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An oil refinery is one industry that introduces large amounts of toxic phenol in receiving waters annually. Hence, the aim of this study was phenol removal from oil refinery wastewater by a natural treatment system of a stabilization pond. In this study, a pilot-scale pond volume, hydraulic load, and hydraulic retention time were 200 L, 40 L/day and five days, respectively. Influent concentration of phenol was 100-400 mg/L. Responses of the process were NH3, PO4, phenol, TCOD, SCOD, TBOD, SBOD, and pH. The results showed that increasing phenol concentration and decreasing temperature have negative effects on system efficiency. Maximum removal of NH3, PO4, phenol, TCOD, SCOD, TBOD, and SBOD were 61.08, 70.09, 93.58, 80.18, 78.89, 78.7, and 76.84% in high temperature, respectively. Maximum efficiency of wastewater treatment system was obtained in phenol concentration at 100 mg/L. Also, anaerobic stabilization ponds are cost-effective options with simple operation that can be employed for the treatment of phenol content of oil refinery wastewaters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses how communities across Latin America respond to poverty and environmental destruction and the impact of man-made environmental hazards like pollution. Topics include the impact of contamination caused by oil refineries on health and wellbeing, the approaches of copanies like smelting business Doe Run in La Oroya, Peru to control dissent and activism, and the protests of residents of contaminated and at-risk communities against the toxic impact of petroleum industry.

The article offers information on the contradiction of the city of Esmeraldas, Ecuador to the Revolución Ciudadana or Citizens' Revolution in Ecuador, which support the oil rents distribution for citizen improvement. Topics discussed include the report "Energy Agenda 2007- 2011: Towards a Sustainable Energy System," by Alberto Acosta and Arturo Villavicencio, the Esmeraldas State Refinery (REE), and the issue on pollution, poor water quality and effects on health of the refinery.

Alternative fuel policies need accurate and transparent methods to find the embedded carbon intensity of individual refinery products. This study investigates different ways of allocating greenhouse gases emissions deriving from refining and upstream crude oil supply. Allocation methods based on mass, energy content, economic value and, innovatively, added-value, are compared with the marginal refining emissions calculated by CONCAWE’s linear-programming model to the average EU refinery, which has been adopted as reference in EU legislation. Beside the most important transportation fuels (gasoline, diesel, kerosene/jet fuel and heavy fuel oil), the analysis extends to petroleum coke and refinery hydrogen. Moreover, novel criteria, based on the implications due to hydrogen usage by each fuel pathway, have been introduced to test the consistency of the analyzed approaches. It is found that only two economic-based allocation methods are consistent with the introduced criteria. These two methods also give negative refinery emissions for heavy products, which is coherent with the marginal emissions calculated through the CONCAWE refinery model. The recommended allocation methods are transparent and use only publicly available statistical data, so they may be useful not only for future EU legislation, but also in jurisdictions where a representative refinery model is not available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Processing biomass into multifunctional products can contribute to food, feed, and energy security while also mitigating climate change. However, biorefinery products nevertheless impact the environment, and this influence needs to be properly assessed to minimize the burden. Life cycle assessment ( LCA) is often used to calculate environmental footprints of products, but distributing the burdens among the different biorefinery products is a challenge. A particular complexity arises when the outputs are a combination of energy carrying no mass, and mass carrying no energy, where neither an allocation based on mass nor on energy would be appropriate. A novel hybrid mass-energy ( HMEN) allocation scheme for dealing with multifunctionality problems in biorefineries was developed and applied to five biorefinery concepts. The results were compared to results of other allocation methods in LCA. The reductions in energy use and GHG emissions from using the biorefinery's biofuels were also quantified. HMEN fairly distributed impacts among biorefinery products and did not change the order of the products in terms of the level of the pollution caused. The allocation factors for HMEN fell between mass and economic allocation factors and were comparable to energy allocation factors. Where the mass or the energy allocation failed to attribute burdens, HMEN addressed this shortcoming by assigning impacts to nonmass or to nonenergy products. Under the partitioning methods and regardless of the feedstock used, bioethanol reduced GHG by 72-98% relative to gasoline. The GHG savings were 196% under the substitution method, but no GHG savings occurred for sugar beet bioethanol under the surplus method. Bioethanol from cellulosic crops had lower energy use and GHG emissions than from sugar beet, regardless of the allocation method used. HMEN solves multifunctional problems in biorefineries and can be applied to other complex refinery systems. LCA practitioners are encouraged to further test this method in other case studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Activated carbon injection is a proven technology to capture mercury from flue gases. Due to the high cost and environmental concerns related to its disposal, high efficiency and low-cost sorbents have been studied to replace activated carbon. In this study, the petroleum coke obtained from two Canadian petroleum refineries, with high inherent sulfur content and impregnated with bromine, was compared to investigate elemental mercury capture mechanisms. These carbon-based sorbents showed excellent mercury removal efficiency at 100 and 200 °C. Elemental analysis, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area, pore volume and thermogravimetric analysis were used to characterize the sorbents. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to examine the significant changes in chemistry and oxidation states of Br, S and Hg on the sorbent surface. More active mercury binding sites were created on brominated petroleum cokes after the chemical-mechanical bromination process. The inherent thiophene and organic sulfide in petroleum coke played a dominant role in mercury capture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green Bio-Refineries (GBRs) have economic and environmental potentials through changing land use from cereals to grass production and provision of grass-based protein feed for livestock production and other valuable byproducts. However, the potentials are dependent on local conditions of the GBRs, such as land productivity, environmental sensitivity and transport distances for feedstock as well as the regional economy which GBRs are a part of. In this paper, we compare the total (direct, indirect and induced) effects of different location choices of GBRs in Denmark at different (municipal, regional, national) scales − a key step for decisions about development of GBRs from both investors' and authorities' perspectives. We integrate a local life-cycle assessment (LCA), a geographic information system (GIS) analysis and an economic-environmental input-output (EEIO) based model (LINE) into a common framework (GIS-LCA-EEIO). We show that locating GBRs in Western Denmark, where the soils are primarily sandy and livestock densities are high, generates higher socio-economic gains than in Eastern Denmark, where the soils are primarily loamy and the concentrations of livestock are lower. We conclude by sketching out priority areas for developing GBRs and discuss the policy implications of the results within the context of development of a bio-based economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The photo-Fenton oxidation treatment combined with a coagulation/flocculation process was investigated for removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) from a refractory petroleum refinery wastewater. Scrap iron shavings were used as the catalyst source. A response surface methodology (RSM) with a cubic IV optimal design was employed for optimizing the treatment process. Kinetic studies showed that the proposed process could be described by a two-stage, second-order reaction model. Experiments showed that precipitation of iron ions can be utilized as a post-oxidation coagulation stage to improve the overall treatment efficiency. More than 96.9% of the COD removal was achieved under optimal conditions, with a post-oxidation coagulation stage accounting for about 30% of the removal, thus confirming the collaborative role of oxidation and coagulation in the overall treatment. A low-velocity gradient of 8.0 s for a short mixing time of 10 min resulted in optimum post-oxidation coagulation. Comparison of photo-Fenton oxidation to a standard Fenton reaction in the same wastewater showed more rapid COD removal for photo-Fenton, with an initial second-order rate constant of 4.0 × 10 L mg min compared to the Fenton reaction's overall second-order rate constant of 7.0 × 10 L mg min. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article links up the disastrous history of fossil fuels with the celebrated ecology of mangroves. Building on ethnographic and historical research in Puerto Rico and St. Croix, it outlines the often neglected but quite consequential place of crude oil in the Caribbean. Following the construction of what became the second largest refinery in the world, I describe how the imperial energy networks of the United States first came to the Caribbean. Troubling a popular origin story of the Caribbean, colonial and industry leaders voiced a robust critique of the plantation in order to justify the introduction of these enclave refineries. Imperial energy networks welcomed an unprecedented problem to the region: coastal oil spills. The scientific and legal response to these spills brought new attention to the vital relationality of mangroves. Rather perversely, the destruction of the mangroves in the Caribbean—in which crude oil played the leading role—opened mangroves up to new forms of knowledge and care. While many claim that fossil fuels helped cultivate a modern disregard for the natural world, I show how the negative ecologies of fossil fuels also instigated new scientific and political appreciations for the liveliness of the natural world. This story of oil in the Caribbean has implications for scholarly debates around the so-called Anthropocene. Against scholarship that looks at the coming disaster of crude oil as an epochal break in thought and politics, this paper instead describes the long history of acknowledging and managing the disastrous qualities of fossil fuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This study aims at identifying metabolic changes linking external exposure to industrial air toxics with oxidative stress biomarkers. Methods We classified 252 study subjects as 111 high vs. 141 low exposure subjects by the distance from their homes to the two main emission sources, oil refineries and coal-fired power plants. We estimated individual's external exposure to heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by dispersion and kriging models, respectively. We measured urinary levels of heavy metals and 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) as biomarkers of internal exposure, and 8-OHdG, HNE-MA, 8-isoPGF 2α , and 8-NO 2 Gua as biomarkers of early health effects. We used two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry to identify urine metabolomics. We applied “meet-in-the-middle” approach to identify potential metabolites as putative intermediate biomarkers linking multiple air toxics exposures to oxidative stress with plausible exposures-related pathways. Results High exposure subjects showed elevated ambient concentrations of vanadium and PAHs, increased urine concentrations of 1-OHP, vanadium, nickel, copper, arsenic, strontium, cadmium, mercury, and thallium, and higher urine concentrations of all four urine oxidative stress biomarkers compared to low exposure subjects. We identified a profile of putative intermediate biomarkers that were associated with both exposures and oxidative stress biomarkers in participants. Urine metabolomics identified age-dependent biological pathways, including tryptophan metabolism and phenylalanine metabolism in children subjects (aged 9–11), and glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism in elderly subjects (aged > 55), that could associate multiple exposures with oxidative stress. Conclusion By profiling urine biomarkers and metabolomics in children and elderly residents living near a petrochemical complex, we can link their internal exposure to oxidative stress biomarkers through biological pathways associated with common complex chronic diseases and allergic respiratory diseases. The internal exposure may possibly be traced to multiple air toxics emitted from specific sources of oil refineries and coal-fired power plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years concern about the chemical composition of wastewater generated by the oil refining industry has increased, even after its treatment. These wastewaters contain substances that can harm both the entire aquatic ecosystem and the health of any exposed organisms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the genotoxic and mutagenic potentials of the effluent generated by the largest Brazilian petroleum refinery, the effectiveness of the treatments used by the refinery, and whether its effluent can compromise the water quality of the river where it is discarded. Chromosomal aberration and micronucleus assays were performed in Allium cepa and micronucleus test in mammalian cell culture (CHO-K1). The samples were collected in three sites at the refinery: one site on the Jaguari River and two sites on the Atibaia Rivers (upstream and downstream of the discharged effluent), under three different climatic conditions. Tests with A. cepa showed increased frequencies of chromosomal aberrations and micronuclei in meristematic cells for the effluent after physico-chemical treatment, but the samples after treatment biological and stabilization pond presented none of these abnormalities. It was observed that the induced damage in the meristematic cells was not observed in the F 1 cells of A. cepa roots. The micronucleus test performed with mammalian cell culture also indicated that the effluent, after physico-chemical treatment, induced a significant increase in micronucleus frequencies. Plant and hamster cells exposed to the other samples collected inside the refinery and in the Jaguari and Atibaia Rivers did not present evidence of genotoxicity and mutagenicity in the tests performed. This study showed that the effluent treated carried out by the refinery (biological treatment followed by a stabilization pond) proved to be efficient for the removal of the toxic load still present after the physico-chemical treatment, since no change in the quality of the Atibaia River was observed. However, because this is an industry with a high production of effluent with toxic potential, its effluents must be constantly monitored, so that there is no compromise of the water quality of the receiving river. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Petroleum refinery effluent (PRE) needs treatment before discharge. One treatment option is the filtration of PRE through membranes but membranes can be become fouled, reducing their efficiency. This study evaluates the improvement of polymeric ultra-filtration (UF) membrane performance by integrating membrane filtration with a Fenton-flocculation process to treat PRE prior to sending it through the membrane. The results show that the integrated-UF membrane system increased the permeate flux by 50% compared to only using the membrane. Similarly, the integrated system increased the chemical oxygen demand, and the oil and grease removal efficiencies by 55 and 4.23%, respectively. The integrated system was further investigated under different conditions of transmembrane pressure (TMP) (1, 1.5, 2 bar) and cross flow velocity (CFV) (250, 300, 600 mL/min). Using Hermia's model, it was found that the cake formation model controlled fouling regardless of the applied TMP and CFV conditions. The extent of fouling was analyzed and characterised via Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS). SEM-EDS demonstrated different morphologies between fresh and fouled membrane, where irregularly distributed microparticles/oil droplets on the membrane surface and pores were dominant in the fouled membrane. The inclusion of the pre-treatment stage is therefore, important for improving polymeric UF membrane performance for treating PRE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study determined the concentration (ppm) of heavy metals, arsenic, zinc, chromium, nickel, iron, cadmium, lead, manganese, calcium and potassium in underground and surface water obtained from petrochemical refinery and cement producing site in some parts of southern Nigeria in order to assess the impact of petroleum processing and cement production on water quality. Water obtained from non-industrialized area (Umuariaga) served as control, alongside rain water and bottle water produced by Coca-Cola. Heavy metal concentration was determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Results obtained for arsenic (0.01667±0.0086), lead (0.01778±0.0097) and cadmium (0.00300±0.0007) for surface water in petrochemical refinery site (Eleme) surpassed the WHO (0.01) guideline for arsenic and lead, and (0.003) for cadmium concentration in water. For cadmium in surface water (0.00367±0.0007) and underground water (0.00400±0.0007) found around cement producing region (Ewekoro), concentration obtained surpassed the WHO guideline for cadmium in water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kuçova region lies on Miocene and Oligocene flysch deposits. This region includes some structural units of the subzone syncline of Permetit, subzone anticline of Berati and the extreme east of the Adriatic depression. The petroleum exploration has detailed geological setting, mainly of the Messinian-Pliocene section, flysch and carbonate deposition of eroded anticline of Kuçova. The hydrographic network is represented by the Devoll river, artificial lakes in the hilly area and a dense network of canals that discharge to the river. In the region of Kuçova, there are four water bearing complexes where the main one is of Quaternary deposits. Hydrogeological interpretations of Kuçova region are based on two results: those carried out earlier and those carried on recently in the context of studies on environmental rehabilitation. Water that comes from the separation of crude oil in the separators has a high content of total dissolved solids (TDS up to 100 g/l). Surface waters and those of the Quaternary deposits are somewhat polluted by the petroleum industry and urban emissions, particularly in the area of the former petroleum refinery. The TDS goes up to 6,363 mg/l, while that of natural water sources and of canals varies in the range 790 mg/l ÷ 1,217 mg/l. The analysis emphasized that natural waters (not those of oil traps) have been polluted by the petroleum industry. Based on the physico-chemical characteristics of natural waters, we came to the conclusion that some water sources (Spring and P-1) should not be used for domestic purposes. The obtained results serve local government structures for the management of hydrological systems, water bearing complexes and rehabilitation of wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the environmental prospective analysis for the sulphurous water at the Oil refinery is to visualize the possible future scenarios that allow complying with the emissions standards. To achieve that the author created a methodology based on the Michel Godet's one. Nine experts were selected with the use of Delphi method. These experts made a diagnosis to the industry with the use of a DAFO Matrix. The results place the industry in an adaptive position, and an overall problem was identified and the possible solution proposed. Then, the author used the methods MIC-MAC and MACTOR, as to know the variables and key actors respectively. While the SMIC method, with the support of the hypotheses proposed composed a total of sixty four scenarios, of which it was possible to choose the most desirable, even when it is the most likely to occur. Six technological variants were identified to achieve a sustainable hydro-treating process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Petroleum industry in Cienfuegos province is represented by "Camilo Cienfuegos" Refinery. It is a potential contamination and degradation risk of air, water and soil, whether for accidental discharges or for the emission of its dangerous residuals to the environment. For this reason, it is necessary to establish environmental continue monitoring programs, to evaluate the derived results, and to take the appropriate actions to eliminate or to reduce the risks and damages. The objective of this research was to evaluate the liquid residuals in the biologic oxidative pool, the last stage of the Residual Treatment Plant of the Refinery, and also in the last control point previous to the discharge of the residuals to Cienfuegos' bay. The main contamination parameters were measured and evaluated according to the Cuban norm: NC 521:2007. Water Wastes Discharges to the Coastal Zone and to Marine Waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Refinery GHG emissions were predicted for 10% and 30% ethanol blends at refinery blendstock octanes between 77 and 89 AKI at any gasoline pool energy content between parity and constant gasoline pool volume. Linear programming analyzed how separate E30 blending scenarios of 2017 PADD 2-based refineries affect greenhouse gas ( GHG) emissions relative to status quo gasoline (i.e., E10, 87 AKI and 93 AKI premium). The compliance synergy of higher ethanol blends illustrated here is pertinent to national policy goals and multiple environmental objectives. Study results have implications for CAFE Standards, US EPA Tier 3 fuel standards, and Clean Air Act regulations of stationary source CO2 emissions from refinery operations. Results varied by amounts and types of crude oil processed, refinery operations, refinery gasoline blendstock produced (and fuel ethanol blended), and produced refinery product composition and properties. Significant differences exist in total refinery GHG emissions (including emissions from purchased electricity and hydrogen) with the largest differences from coke burn in the fluidized catalytic cracker and refinery fuel gas combustion principally related to reformer operations. The concept of refinery GHG emissions intensity was introduced to differentiate between differences in refinery throughput (an extensive factor) and severity of refinery operations (intensive factors). Refinery GHG emissions decline 12% to 27% from a 2017 base case for the various 30% ethanol cases, highlighting a significant gap in current life cycle analysis ( LCA) and supporting incorporation of this improved approach into LCA related to higher ethanol blends. This methodology can be adapted to other PADDs and/or for the USA. ©2015 The Authors. Biofuels, Bioproducts, Biorefining published by Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trend in discharges of petroleum-related substances from refineries in Europe shows a consistent picture of declining emissions, since first measured in 1969. This decline coincides with enhanced internal capture or recycling procedures and increasing use of physical and biological treatments. At the same time, and partly in response to legislative drivers, there has been an increase in the use of chronic (long-term) toxicity tests and alternative methods for assessing the quality of effluent discharges. The Whole Effluent Assessment (WEA) approach has also driven the increased conduct of studies addressing the fate of effluent constituents. Such studies have included the use of biodegradation and solid-phase micro-extraction-biomimetic extraction (SPME-BE) methods to address potentially bioaccumulative substances (PBS). In this way, it is then possible to address the persistence and toxicity of these PBS constituents of an effluent. The data collected in various case studies highlights the advantages and pitfalls of using biologically-based methods to assess the potential for refinery effluents to cause environmental impacts. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2015;X:000-000. ©2015 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented on the history of oil company Atlantic Refining Co.'s Point Breeze petroleum refinery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the late 19th to 20th centuries. It discusses various technological and business developments in the context of a nascent industry, the struggle for engineering efficiency in a self-regulation regime, and managerial and ownership developments. It also looks at the costs of such dependence for the safety of residents, workers and the city environment.

We examined the effects of refinery air pollution on house prices near Houston, Texas. The affected area was identified through AERMOD air modeling of past releases of sulfur dioxide, a proxy for respiratory risk. A total of 3,964 residential MLS sales from 2006 to 2011 were used to populate an OLS model, a spatial model, and a spatial model with an additional endogenous variable. The findings indicate that air pollution has a significant negative 6%-8% loss on house prices. For one year, the negative effect is shown to generally diminish with distance up to about two miles from the refinery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing attention toward sustainable development, biomass has been identified as one of the most promising sources of renewable energy. To convert biomass into value-added products and energy, an integrated processing facility, known as an integrated biorefinery is needed. To date, various biomass conversion systems such as gasification, pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion and fermentation are well established. Due to a large number of technologies available, systematic synthesis of a sustainable integrated biorefinery which simultaneously considers economic performance, environmental impact, and energy requirement is a challenging task. To address this issue, multiobjective optimization approaches are used in this work to synthesize a sustainable integrated biorefinery. In addition, a novel approach (incremental environmental burden) to assess the environmental impact for an integrated biorefinery is presented. To illustrate the proposed approach, a palm-based biomass case study is solved. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 132-146, 2015 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study focusing on the physical and geochemical characterization of surface-water bodies around an oil refinery at Bina in Madhya Pradesh, India. Topics discussed include the environmental degradation that can be cause by oil refineries; the monitoring of physical parameters of water such as hydrogen ion concentrations (pH), electrical conductivity, and total dissolved solids; and the hydrocarbons in soils and water.

The appropriate administration of the residual managerial liquids constitutes an alternative to minimize the degradation of the environment and to conserve the social environment of a town. The present work has as objective to analyze, with a social focus, the administration of the residual liquids of the State Refinery of Emeralds, Ecuador. The analysis demonstrated that the main social contradictions identified in the administration of the liquid residuals are: between the condition of public company of the refinery and their irrational behavior with regard to the conservation of the environment; between the knowledge and execution of the environmental legislation; among the importance of the company for the Ecuadorian economy and their inefficient economic acting. These alone social contradictions can be resolved with the change of the patterns of behavior of the company, because it would allow advancing in their environmental administration and in the economic efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research possible variants of separation were identified and tested such as evaporation, centrifugation and precipitation for the treatment of waste water resulting from dielectric oil production in Sergio Soto refinery of Cabaiguán, Sancti Spíritus. This wastewater with intense dark color and strong smell of hydrocarbon is released into water courses deteriorating their quality and preventing the oxygen dissolution and its decreasing due to oxidation of organic matter. It seriously disrupts the development of aquatic life and water use for domestic purposes. Precipitation variant is proposed, using ethanol as a solution for separating the residual in two phases (liquid and solid). A theoretical explanation is giving to understand this separation. Both phases characterization were done. Treatments for liquid phase are proposed and the fuel-oil with solid mixture is tested to be reused following Cleaner Production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has relatively abundant rare earth elements (REEs) reserves and will continue to be one of the major producers of REEs for the world market in the foreseeable future. However, due to the large scale of mining and refining activities, large amounts of REEs have been released to the surrounding environment and caused harmful effects on local residents. This paper summarizes the data about the contents and translocation of REEs in soils, waters, atmosphere, and plants in REE mining areas of China and discusses the characteristics of their forms, distribution, fractionation, and influencing factors. Obviously high concentrations of REEs with active and bioavailable forms are observed in all environmental media. The mobility and bioavailability of REEs are enhanced. The distribution patterns of REEs in soils and water bodies are all in line with their parent rocks. Significant fractionation phenomenon among individual members of REEs was found in soil-plant systems. However, limited knowledge was available for REEs in atmosphere. More studies focusing on the behavior of REEs in ambient air of REE mining areas in China are highly suggested. In addition, systematic study on the translocation and circulation of REEs in various media in REEs mining areas and their health risk assessment should be carried out. Standard analytical methods of REEs in environments need to be established, and more specific guideline values of REEs in foods should also be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of biorefineries plays an important role for the solution of future global challenges such as the supply for an increasing world population, the finite nature of fossil resources or environmental and climate protection. Biorefineries guarantee high efficiency and sustainability in material and energetic use of biomass by integrating different processes. However, in order for biorefineries to become commercially feasible, significant further research is required. This concerns the integration of different measures for coherent technological concepts, the upscaling from a laboratory scale to an industrial scale, raw material supply, the optimization of methods and products of the primary- and secondary refinery including the principles of sustainability. The German Roadmap Biorefineries determines systematically the current status of the various biorefinery concepts, analyses them regarding economical and ecological aspects and contains concrete recommendations for research and development. The Roadmap gives a comprehensive overview of a range of technologies and the ways how they can be realized. The Roadmap's aim is to develop and to operate biorefinery concepts until 2030 that are highly efficient, in line with the future requirements and ecologically advan-tageous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The petroleum refining industry has a significant influence on the total pollution of the environment by industrial discharges and wastes. In the operation of petroleum refineries, the atmosphere is polluted with hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and other toxic substances. The main pollutants are sulfur dioxide and hydrocarbons. The fresh water used by refineries in product cooling is returned to the original source of water containing crude oil, petroleum products, and mineral salts as contaminants. The extent of air and water pollution depends on the particular processing technology, control measures that are employed and also on the scale of the processing. In working out these measures, the primary attention of scientific-research institutes and design and planning organizations must be directed not only towards how to reduce the contaminating and poisoning action of industrial discharges on the environment, but primarily towards preventing or minimizing these discharges in the refineries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A refinery located on the slopes of a mountain range in the city of Cubatão (SE-Brazil) is the main source of sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the region. For this reason, the refinery replaced a system in which energy was produced from crude oil combustion in boilers with a system of energy and vapor co-generation in a thermoelectric power plant fueled by natural gas. The aim of this study was to investigate the responses of Tibouchina pulchra to the fuel switching. Saplings planted in pots were distributed throughout monitoring sites around the polluting source (sites I, II, III and IV) and in a site (V) far from emissions. Changes on the plants responses occur along the three fuel switching phases. During the last phase, increased carbon assimilation (Asat) and decreased stomatal conductance (gs) were observed in plants growing in sites II and III; as a consequence, intrinsic water use efficiency (iWUE) increased. However, the increase in Asat did not promote growth increase suggesting that changes at the refinery did not result in better air quality, but only in a change in the main contaminants. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

To compare QOL among rural people living in three different industrial areas and one non-industrial area in southern Thailand. A questionnaire based on the WHOQOL-BREF with environmental assessment was initially developed. After consultation with experts and pilot study, it was tested to check internal reliability and further modified as necessary. The final version was then used to survey residents of three rural areas close to organic industries, a gas refinery, and an electricity power plant and residents from a non-industrial area. The developed scale has acceptable reliability coefficient (0.76). The overall QOL scores among those living in all study areas were high (mean > 3.75 out of 5). Only environmental QOL domain was slightly low (mean = 3.7) among these living close to the gas refinery area where people were distinctively disturbed by various types of pollution. Unpleasant odours were reported by residents living close to the power plant and areas of organic industries. After adjustment for age, education, income level and marital status, the residents of industrial areas were more than two times likely to have an unfavorable QOL. The level of pollution in the study industrial area should be reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oil lagoons in Ostrava contribute significantly to environmental contamination in the Czech Republic. In the lagoons, liquid and solid waste from a mineral oil refinery was deposited for a long time. In this contribution, the authors are concerned with the description of a procedure for removing the content of the lagoons, remedial measures and use of decontaminated areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Upset events, emissions released to air due to accidental or unavoidable circumstances at industrial facilities, are often exempt from fines and enforcement actions by state regulators, even if state rules conflict with the Clean Air Act. State rules may allow upset events to become a substantial, yet little-studied source of emissions at large industrial complexes. Drawing from Jacob Hacker's theory of policy drift, upset events are framed theoretically as a problem of regulatory drift between state and federal environmental regulations. Supporting analysis is provided by a case study cataloguing the emissions generated during upset events at six petroleum refineries, 2003–2008. Findings demonstrate that upset events occurred routinely and released approximately 8.5 million pounds of air emissions. Future research should examine upset events at a variety of facilities in Texas. Regulators should enhance data accessibility to facilitate analysis in other states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flaring is a technique used extensively in the oil and gas industry to burn unwanted flammable gases. Oxidation of the gas can preclude emissions of methane (a potent greenhouse gas); however, flaring creates other pollutant emissions such as particulate matter (PM) in the form of soot or black carbon (BC). Currently available PM emission factors for flares were reviewed and found to be questionably accurate, or based on measurements not directly relevant to open-atmosphere flares. In addition, most previous studies of soot emissions from turbulent diffusion flames considered alkene or alkyne based gaseous fuels, and few considered mixed fuels in detail and/or lower sooting propensity fuels such as methane, which is the predominant constituent of gas flared in the upstream oil and gas industry. Quantitative emission measurements were performed on laboratory-scale flares for a range of burner diameters, exit velocities, and fuel compositions. Drawing from established standards, a sampling protocol was developed that employed both gravimetric analysis of filter samples and real-time measurements of soot volume fraction using a laser-induced incandescence (LII) system. For the full range of conditions tested (burner inner diameter [ID] of 12.7–76.2 mm, exit velocity 0.1–2.2 m/sec, 4- and 6-component methane-based fuel mixtures representative of associated gas in the upstream oil industry), measured soot emission factors were less than 0.84 kg soot/103 m3 fuel. A simple empirical relationship is presented to estimate the PM emission factor as a function of the fuel heating value for a range of conditions, which, although still limited, is an improvement over currently available emission factors. Implications Despite the very significant volumes of gas flared globally and the requirement to report associated emissions in many jurisdictions of the world, a review of the very few existing particulate matter emission factors has revealed serious shortcomings sufficient to suggest that estimates of soot production from flares based on current emission factors should be interpreted with caution. New BC emissions data are presented for laboratory-scale flares in what are believed to be the first such experiments to consider fuel mixtures relevant to associated gas compositions. The empirical model developed from these data is an important step toward being able to better predict and manage BC emissions from flaring. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Refineries are one of the main sources of coastal marine pollution worldwide. In this study, the toxicity of sediments potentially impacted by the Paraguaná Refinery Complex on the west coast of Venezuela was evaluated using chronic toxicity assays. This toxicity was determined by exposing larvae of the shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei and the polychaete Scolelepis texana to bioassays during 28 and 10 days, respectively. Both bioassays indicated that the sediments surrounding the refinery are highly toxic, compared to sediments from the same region farther from the refinery and sediments from a control zone. The sediments surrounding the refinery had relatively high concentrations of total petroleum hydrocarbons (>10,000 ppm); of heavy metals such as chrome, nickel, and zinc; and of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (SPAHs > 1000 ppb). This study forms part of the first environmental ecological risk assessment done in Venezuela. The high toxicity of the sediments close to one of the largest refinery complexes in the world should serve as a warning of the possible impacts on benthic and planktonic communities that live in the environs of refineries in coastal marine environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]