(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 30.May.2020) — Ecuador’s state oil company EP Petroecuador is monitoring emissions at the Esmeraldas refinery, especially those of sulfur dioxide (SOx) even though preliminary reports show emissions from the refining center have yet to exceed parameters allowed by environmental regulations.
Notwithstanding, EP PetroEcuador has carried out several actions aimed at reducing emissions into the environment and has started operations of a fuel gas treatment unit, where sulfur compounds are eliminated so that clean gas is used as fuel in the ovens and boilers, the company announced 30 May 2020 in an official statement.
Additionally, adjustments of the combustion parameters in the furnaces has already been carried out through arrangement of draft and excess oxygen to guarantee complete combustion, preventing emissions from emitting compounds without thermal oxidation, the company said.
In the last hours, actions were also implemented to reduce refinery emissions such as: operational actions to send less gases to the plant and more to the incinerator since by operating the incinerator at a higher temperature, it generates a more complete combustion of all the contaminants, the company said, while also draining drums, among other actions.
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