How efficiency losses become embedded cost

In many Indian refineries, heaters originally designed for lighter feeds are now operating under more demanding conditions. As radiant heat-transfer efficiency declines over time, operators compensate by increasing firing rates to maintain output.

However, this shifts operating conditions. Stack temperatures rise, while tube metal temperatures become less uniform and more importantly, fuel consumption increases.

The added fuel cost becomes part of operating expenditure, while elevated tube metal temperatures can cause creep damage and coke formation, increasing the risk of long-term degradation.

Restoring heat transfer effectiveness without disruption

Addressing performance drift does not necessarily require capital replacement or extended shutdown.

Targeted surface engineering and in-situ repair technologies allow refiners to restore heat-transfer effectiveness while assets remain online. For instance, Cetek® high-emissivity ceramic coatings can enhance radiant absorption, helping heaters achieve required capacity at lower and more uniform tube metal temperatures. This helps to reduce hot spots, slow coke formation and improve heater efficiency.

Meanwhile, Hot-tek ™ online repair technologies work to address damage and fouling in-situ, supporting performance recovery without tube or refractory replacements or full shutdowns.

Fired heater optimisation should consider both radiant and convection performance. While radiant heat transfer governs tube metal temperature and process heat input, convection section cleanliness determines how effectively residual flue gas energy is recovered. Technologies such as TubeTech’s engineered convection section cleaning services, delivered during planned shutdowns, enable operators to remove fouling and restore heat recovery performance.

Integrated strategies, combining surface engineering, in-situ repair and targeted convection cleaning, provide a more comprehensive pathway to stabilising efficiency and protecting margin.

Restoring heat transfer effectiveness without disruption

Addressing performance drift does not necessarily require capital replacement or extended shutdown.

Targeted surface engineering and in-situ repair technologies allow refiners to restore heat-transfer effectiveness while assets remain online. For instance, Cetek® high-emissivity ceramic coatings can enhance radiant absorption, helping heaters achieve required capacity at lower and more uniform tube metal temperatures. This helps to reduce hot spots, slow coke formation and improve heater efficiency.

Meanwhile, Hot-tek ™ online repair technologies work to address damage and fouling in-situ, supporting performance recovery without tube or refractory replacements or full shutdowns.

Fired heater optimisation should consider both radiant and convection performance. While radiant heat transfer governs tube metal temperature and process heat input, convection section cleanliness determines how effectively residual flue gas energy is recovered. Technologies such as TubeTech’s engineered convection section cleaning services, delivered during planned shutdowns, enable operators to remove fouling and restore heat recovery performance.

Integrated strategies, combining surface engineering, in-situ repair and targeted convection cleaning, provide a more comprehensive pathway to stabilising efficiency and protecting margin.

What’s the ROI for optimised fired heater performance?

In India, refiners need measurable fuel savings, avoided downtime or deferred replacement and fast payback.

For example, one of India’s largest refineries partnered with IGS to address gradual heater efficiency loss, with rising stack temperatures and localised high tube-metal temperatures. In response, the operators were increasing firing rates and running more conservatively, to maintain output. Expectations were high, with returns on improved productivity, extended life of existing equipment and fuel savings anticipated within a short duration.

Instead of advising the operator to replace equipment outright, IGS focused on restoring surface condition to stabilise thermal behaviour. Online refractory repair services were carried out without shutting down the heater, and high-emissivity ceramic coatings were applied to improve radiant heat transfer, extend the time required between decoking cycles, and stabilise operating temperatures.

The result was up to 10% improvement in productivity alongside over US$4 million in annual energy savings. Payback was achieved in under six months and thermal efficiency became more stable, supporting long-term tube integrity and reliability.

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Proactive strategies for greater control

In parallel, thermal efficiency studies can proactively quantify performance losses and identify where heat-transfer imbalances are occurring. A proactive strategy versus reactive maintenance gives operators greater control. Intervening earlier through thermal efficiency testing allows refiners to manage performance drift before incidents occur, zooming in on stabilising thermal behaviour, protecting tube lifecycles and controlling fuel consumption in a disciplined way.

See how it works

For India’s refinery sector, fired heater performance is dependent on operating cost, energy efficiency and long-term asset integrity. In high-throughput systems, restoring radiant heat-transfer effectiveness and stabilising tube metal temperature offers a practical, measurable way to protect margin without major capital disruption.