Shimadzu's Total Solutions for the Hydrocarbon Processing Industry

Significance of the Topic

The hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) underpins global energy supply, petrochemical manufacturing, and environmental compliance. Analytical control at every stage—from upstream extraction to downstream refining and product quality verification—is critical to ensure process efficiency, product specifications, regulatory adherence, and safety.

Objectives and Study Overview

This document reviews Shimadzu’s total solutions for HPI laboratories, illustrating how a comprehensive portfolio of analytical instruments addresses quality control and process management requirements across the entire value chain. It highlights device capabilities, standardized methods, and application examples to support analysts in petrochemical, chemical, and refining sectors.

Methodology and Instrumentation

Shimadzu offers a modular, integrated suite of instruments categorized by analytical technique:

• Gas Chromatography (GC): GC-2030 with support for various detectors (PFPD, PDHID), customized modules for natural gas (ASTM D1945), refinery gas (ASTM D7833), TOGA for transformer oil, VUV-based PIONA+ for compositional analysis.
• Sulfur Analysis: SCD-2030 with chemiluminescence detection for trace sulfur, delivering stable, high-sensitivity performance.
• Liquid Chromatography (HPLC): Systems for aromatics and furan analysis, supporting ASTM D6591 and related methods, with precise sample injection and PDA detection.
• Mass Spectrometry: LCMS-8060 triple quadrupole for polymer additives; HS-GC–MS QP2020 NX for VOCs and trace gases.
• Elemental Analysis: ICP-MS for trace element speciation; ICPE atomic emission spectroscopy; AAS for metals and sulfur; EDX fluorescence for rapid multielement screening.
• Vibrational Spectroscopy: FTIR IRSpirit for biodiesel FAME and oil-in-water detection; UV-Vis UV-1900 for rapid color and oil quantification.
• Thermal Analysis: DSC-60 Plus for polymer thermal properties; spectrofluorophotometer RF-6000 for trace fluorescence determinations.
• Total Organic Carbon: TOC-L analyzers for dissolved carbon in high-salinity waters and on-line monitoring.
• Physical Testing: AG-Xplus universal testers for tensile properties; SALD-2300 for particle size distribution.
• Data Management: LabSolutions CS network platform enabling centralized control of Shimadzu and third-party GC/LC instruments, batch management, and remote monitoring.

Main Results and Discussion

Shimadzu instruments demonstrate:

• High sensitivity and low detection limits for sulfur, trace metals, moisture and organic contaminants.
• Enhanced stability and maintenance features reducing downtime.
• Compliance with international standards (ASTM, ISO, UOP) across diverse HPI applications.
• Automation capabilities—online analyzers and autosamplers—boost throughput and data consistency.
• Integrated software enabling seamless method development, data acquisition, and result reporting.

Benefits and Practical Applications

• Comprehensive coverage: single-vendor solutions from upstream natural gas to downstream petrochemical quality control.
• Flexibility: customizable modules and third-party detector support to meet evolving analytical needs.
• Operational efficiency: reduced analysis time, simplified workflows, and lower total cost of ownership.
• Regulatory confidence: validated methods and proven performance for product compliance and safety.

Future Trends and Potential Applications

Emerging directions in HPI analytics include:

• Greater integration of real-time, on-line monitoring with process control systems.
• Advanced data analytics and AI-driven predictive maintenance.
• Miniaturized, portable instrumentation for field or offshore analysis.
• Enhanced detectors (e.g., vacuum UV, high-resolution MS) for complex mixture characterization.
• Expansion of green chemistry metrics—biocontaminants, microplastics, and bio-derived feedstock monitoring.

Conclusion

Shimadzu’s total solutions for the hydrocarbon processing industry deliver robust, high-performance analytical instrumentation and software to support quality control, process optimization, and regulatory compliance across the entire value chain. Their integrated approach and adherence to global standards help laboratories maximize productivity and data integrity.

References

No literature references were provided in the source document.