If everybody would use SI units, it would stop confusing our younger engineers.
If the whole world could agree on one standard for reporting the cubic metre of gas. It would not matter which one was taken, the normal, the standard, the one proposed by Mr.Campbell, the Russians, Chinese or any new cubic metre as long as it was the same one.
If everybody would mention at page 1 of a report which m3 is used and forget about (st), (n) or other confusing additions to "m3" in the rest of the report.
If we could get rid of the "litre", and its derivatives, like the "kilolitre". What is wrong with dm3 and m3?
If there was just one pressure, the absolute.
If all engineers and particularly those with hardening brain cells were given a course on how to use units.
Shipbuilders and LNG plant builders often get together and design a floating LNG-plant. They always conveniently forget that the gas is produced at 300 bar pressure, contains CO2, H2S and water and has to be brought into the ship. As far as I am concerned that is PROBLEM NO.1.
They are the least understood among the "common engineer", retrograde condensation has caused many panics. Operators should have phase envelopes of all the gas and liquid streams they handle in their plant, both under design conditions and actual conditions. It avoids surprises.
The determination of the part of the envelope near the critical point is still a tricky matter.
Not always go for the minimum specified! A good example is the distance of undisturbed flow up- and down stream of a metering orifice! If there is more space, then USE it.
Damn the guy that orders the rig, that found oil or gas, to move out after 5 months drilling, before proper reservoir fluid sampling is done! Did he forget that apart from finding out about the reservoir the drilling was done specifically to find out how the reservoir fluid looks like? Did you know that there is a sulphur removing plant that never saw a molecule of sulphur because no proper reservoir fluid data were available Good basic data would have saved millions of dollars in facilities?
Proper testing facilities do not only produce a reservoir fluid analysis, they also OFFER THE POSSIBILITY TO SIMULATE PROCESSES!
Always have your MOST SENIOR process man at the discussions of a new contract and/or make sure he is 100% involved in setting volumes, conditions, gas and oil/product specifications, delivery points, safety precautions, metering rules etc., in an early stage as those are the points lawyers, petroleum engineers, economists, marketing people, finance, government officials and other non technical people know nothing about.
It is good to know where information needed can be found.
It is good to be able to find it quickly via a structured system of codes.
It is good to keep an eye on quality of work but:
It is also good to realize that all projects are different
It is also good to realize that different projects need different rules
It is also good to know that all latest and update thinking can NOT BE FOUND in the rule books. It will be there two years from now when all experts have given their opinion and all i’s are dotted.
It is also good to know that we will for ever need engineers to interpret rules and that they can disregard them when appropriate.
They are in fact useless as a specification in a gas contract (liquid content of a gas is far more meaningful). The reason is that an extremely small carry over of a heavy hydrocarbon will result in a high hydrocarbon dewpoint but may be harmless for the operation of a gas system as the quantity is so small.
DEGREE CENTIGRADE is out, please use DEGREE CELCIUS
SPECIFIC GRAVITY is out, please use RELATIVE DENSITY*
MOL WEIGHT is out, please use MOLAR MASS and do not forget that MOLAR MASS has a unit namely kg/mol or, more convenient, use kg/kmol.
Many are outdated because they originate from the 1920-1930 era when "acid rain", "pollution", "dense phase gas transport" and "LNG plant" were words that could not be found in the dictionary. Many originate from the USA. Examples are the 5 mg/m3 H2S specification for domestic gas (originally 1/4 grain per 100 standard cubic foot) and the 7 lb/MMscf water specification ( a specification belonging to a temperature of 32 F and a pressure of 1000 psia, typical for long pipeline systems in the USA). But what about a pipeline gas in Nigeria and is the 5 mg/m3 too loose or too stringent under present day conditions?
The 2 mol% CO2 specification used in some places is only there because the gas happened to have less than 2 mol% and should not be used as a standard!! More than 2 mol% CO2 or nitrogen are fully acceptable in most cases. Dutch gas from Groningen has 14 mol% nitrogen!
LET THERE BE NO SIMPLE STANDARD SPECIFICATIONS AS THERE WILL ALWAYS BE CASES WHERE THIS STANDARD SPECIFICATION IS TOO STRINGENT OR IN OTHER WORDS TOO MUCH TREATING MUST BE DONE.
THREE out of FOUR applicants for a job in engineering mention that they want to become "manager" (some even say "director")
To FOUR out of FOUR applicants I say that I know nobody in the company I worked in that had the potential to become a manager or director that did not make it.
I furthermore gave them my personal opinion that I think that NINE out of TEN managers are born and not made.
THE BAD NEWS FOR THOSE THAT LIKE STATUS IS:
That Shell does not very often use "ing", "ir","Herr Dr." or "Prof" as
titles, neither use the word "Manager" or "Vice President" as often as
others do.
THE GOOD NEWS ON TITLES IS
That a "Section head" in Shell makes twice as much money as a "Vice
President" in a small American firm.
THE BAD NEWS IS
That the "Vice President" travels first class and the "Section head"
business class, but I guess you can not win them all
THE GOOD NEWS IS
That in bad times ("cold winds we used to call them") Shell treats its
employees very well, while this can not be said always for other firms big
or small.
ON CENTRAL OFFICE (C.O.) COST
Only salaries count.
ON WORKING IN C.O.
In 6 months you get used to it.
ON WHAT WE DO NOT DO IN ENGINEERING IN C.O.
We do not build plants.
ON WHAT WE DO IN ENGINEERING IN C.O.
We produce paper.
ON DOING A GOOD JOB
Take initiative, organise, present.
ON DOING A BAD JOB
Be asleep, late or abrasive.
ON COMMON SENSE
It solves 95% of our problems.
ON STANDARDISATION
Carefull! You may freeze progress!