Case Studies · Hydrocarbon & Chemical

EDC/VCM Cracking Furnace High Emissivity Coating: 10% Higher Cracking Rate at SABIC

EDC/VCM cracking furnace·SABIC, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

A SABIC petrochemical operator coated 40 process tubes of an EDC cracking furnace with Emisshield M-2 and the ceramic fiber walls and burner blocks with ST-3 and ST-17. A third-party evaluation reported production records, a cracking rate up about 10%, and energy savings of 2 to 6% depending on operating parameters. The client has since coated two additional furnaces.

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+10% cracking rate
: 2 to 6% energy savings
: Two additional furnaces coated since

The Challenge

The operator wanted to improve the efficiency of an EDC cracking furnace operating at about 850°C while increasing cracking rates, with stable tube temperatures through extreme heat cycles.

What Was Applied

Emisshield M-2 on 40 process tubes; ST-3 and ST-17 on the ceramic fiber walls and burner blocks. A third party evaluated performance.

Why It Worked

Coated walls and blocks re-radiate into the coil while coated tubes absorb more of that energy, so the same firing cracks more feed. See Production Increase.

Summary of Results

Metric	Before	After
Cracking rate	Baseline	+~10%
Energy savings		2 to 6%, with reports exceeding 6%
Production	Baseline	Production records set
Tube temperatures		Stable under extreme heat cycles

Higher production per unit of energy led the client to coat two more furnaces.

Next step

Operating the Same Asset?

Operating an EDC or VCM furnace? Send us the duty and fuel data. We project the result from comparable documented installations.

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