| Saudi Aramco Wins Award for Clean Fuel Technology |
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04/02/2009 09:20 (370 Day 12:12 minutes ago) | |||||
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The FINANCIAL -- Saudi Aramco has been awarded the National Oil Companies (NOC) Forum Environmental Stewardship Award for its groundbreaking research on Electron Beam Flue Gas Treatment (EBFGT) technology.
Then-president and CEO Abdallah S. Jum‘ah and Hesham A. Musaiid, manager of Environmental Protection, received the award at a ceremony in association with the 2008 NOC conference.
It was the second time in a row that Saudi Aramco won the award, first established at the Fourth NOC Forum in 2006.
The annual Environmental Stewardship Award recognizes member organizations that have demonstrated a voluntary commitment to excellence in environmental stewardship. It recognizes innovative projects that enhance the environmental performance and the reputation of NOCs.
The EBFGT technology provides an innovative solution to high-sulfur liquid-petroleum fuels. It benefits all NOCs by enhancing the acceptability and marketability of such fuels.
Saudi Aramco, in collaboration with King Abdulaziz City of Science and Technology (KACST) and the Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology (INCT) in Warsaw, Poland, conducted the research at the INCT laboratory.
The main objective of the study was to find an environmentally acceptable way to use high-sulfur, low-cost liquid fuel in Saudi Aramco operating facilities in lieu of the highly sought-after sales gas.
Laboratory analyses conducted at INCT consistently removed more than 90 percent of sulfur oxides and more than 80 percent of nitrogen oxide from the liquid fuel. Sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxide are air pollutants harmful to health and the environment. Currently, EBFGT is the only technology that can remove both at the same time.
The study also showed that, unlike conventional technologies that generate large volumes of waste, the by-product generated by EBFGT was a high-quality fertilizer.
“For the first time ever, EBFGT has been successfully utilized in removing air pollutants from liquid-fuel-fired boiler flue gas,” said Dr. Osama Fageeha, team leader for the technology initiative and general supervisor of Environmental Engineering.
Further, preliminary economic analysis indicates that EBFGT is highly competitive with conventional technologies for simultaneous removal of sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide.
The initiative has raised interest in the technology from various quarters.
Already, the utility companies Saudi Electricity Co. and the Saline Water Conversion Corp. have shown interest in using EBFGT to clean up their air emissions.
EBFGT benefits Saudi Arabia as well. “This technology has the potential to ease gas supplies in the Kingdom, as higher sulfur liquid fuels can be substituted for sales gas in our facilities and utility companies,” said Musaiid.
Fageeha added, “EBFGT has the potential to significantly contribute to air pollution control at various industrial facilities in the Kingdom.”
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