Oil & Gas and Petrochemical

Oil and Gas and Petrochemicals Engineering and Mechanical Failure Services

The global oil and gas industry may supply the oils that form the many lubricants that underpin the movement of physical machines - but the industry itself requires engineering and mechanical failure expertise. 

Whether you’re looking at the upstream, midstream or downstream parts of the oil and gas industry, it’s filled with equipment and plant that can all be subject to friction, wear and subsequent material degradation. 

Thus, whether on a proactive or reactive basis, it can be necessary to call upon the services of engineering and mechanical failure experts during the commissioning, operation or decommissioning phases of a project lifecycle. 

Established over fifty years ago, Neale Consulting Engineers has unparalleled engineering and mechanical failure experience. If you require engineering support for your oil and gas project, we are the people to speak to. 

Our services include failure analysis and expert witness support. 

Oil and gas industry engineering and mechanical failure investigations

As you’ll see from the examples below, Neale Consulting Engineers’ experience in the oil and gas and petrochemical industries is substantial, covering a variety of equipment and settings. 

Reciprocating compressor problems at a natural gas liquefaction plant

Within only a few hundred hours of starting operation, the gas compressors at this LNG plant experienced conrod big end bearing failures. 

Neale Consulting Engineers was commissioned to investigate and determine the root cause of this failure. It was concluded that bearing loading was inherently too high for the bearing material. 

Subsequently, Neale Consulting Engineers recommended that a higher strength bearing material be used in conjunction with improved oil filtration and contamination control. 

Failure of a hydrogen compressor at an oil refinery

A steam turbine driven hydrogen compressor - which had been in operation for approximately 25 years - was given an overhaul and upgrade. This overhaul involved a number of minor design changes to the drive couplings, but no changes to the bearing configuration. 

Yet, soon after the overhaul was completed, and the turbine returned to operation, severe bearing damage occurred. 

Neale Consulting Engineers was brought in to establish the causal factors behind this failure. 

Upon the completion of our investigation, we found several factors contributing to the failure: 

• The oil viscosity had increased, which raised the operating temperature of the compressor. 
• During the overhaul, the bearings had been renewed and set up with a smaller operating clearance. 

Combined, these two issues ensured that the bearings became prone to transient thermal expansion issues, and to the build up of varnish or other deposits. 

Neale Consulting Engineers provided a suite of recommendations to ensure these issues were resolved. 

Screw compressor failures in a chemical processing plant

For a period of 13 years, two screw compressors fulfilled their duty without issue. 

Yet, the operators of the chemical processing plant in which the compressors operated, found themselves experiencing a slew of repeated thrust bearing failures. Why this was occurring to the previously reliable compressors was a mystery. 

But, the failures persisted. With 19 failures in a period of seven months - giving run times of only two to three days - production was hampered, with the future of the plant starting to look in jeopardy. 

The working hypothesis of the plant operators was that an increase in vibration, following an uprating of the compressors, was the reason for the repeated bearing failures. 

With that in mind, they commissioned Neale Consulting Engineers to investigate. Following the plant operators’ hypothesis, we investigated the failed bearings. Upon examination, it was determined that vibration could not be the cause of the failure. 

So, Neale Consulting Engineers took a deeper dive, and investigated further. It was determined that the bearing failures were being caused by a change of lubricant. An active additive in the new lubricant was reacting with process gas leaking into the lubrication system along the shaft seals.

The problem was solved by a complete clean out of the lubrication systems and reversion to the original type of lubricant. 

The leading engineering and mechanical failure consultancy

The oil and gas and chemicals industries support the world. But, who supports them when they have engineering and mechanical failure issues? Neale Consulting Engineers. 

Operating since the 1960s, Neale Consulting Engineers has established a reputation as the leading engineering and tribology consultancy. 

If you’re experiencing issues related to machinery damage, excessive friction, wear and concomitant material degradation, we are the people who can help. 

As part of the Brookes Bell group, Neale Consulting Engineers can draw upon a rich pool of expertise. Our wider team includes metallurgists, materials scientists, FEM / CFD professionals, engineers, and paint and coatings specialists. Think of us as your ‘one-stop-shop’ for machinery and plant failure investigations.