- Overview
- Schedule
TRAINING DAYS: | 2 Days | PDH: | 16 Hours |
DISCIPLINE: | Mechanical Engineering | LEVEL: | Foundational |
CATEGORY: | Mechanical Fundamentals | SUGGESTED EXPERIENCE: | 1–3 years |
TRAINING MAP: | Fixed Equipment Engineer | ||
Levels and experience are guidelines based on topic-specific experience. All courses support foundational and advanced learning.
About:
This course provides a practical introduction to heat transfer equipment commonly found in refinery and petrochemical facilities. Designed for plant-based engineers and inspectors, it focuses on the operation, design, maintenance, inspection, rerating, and repair of shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-cooled heat exchangers, fired heaters, and other heat transfer equipment. The emphasis is on understanding equipment components, common failure mechanisms, applicable industry standards, and practical solutions rather than thermal design calculations.
What You’ll learn:
Explain the operating principles and design features of common refinery heat transfer equipment.
Identify common failure mechanisms, maintenance requirements, and repair strategies for heat exchangers and fired heaters.
Understand applicable industry specifications, standards, and equipment documentation.
Monitor equipment performance and evaluate the effects of fouling, corrosion, and operational issues on reliability.
Who Should Attend:
Heat Transfer Equipment for Plant Personnel is designed for plant engineers and inspectors seeking a foundational understanding of the design, specification, maintenance, inspection, and repair planning of heat transfer equipment.
Course Outline:
Heat Transfer Fundamentals
Heat transfer principles
Reliability considerations
Industry Specifications, Standards & Documentation
Applicable industry codes
Equipment documentation
Standards overview
Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers
TEMA exchanger types
Components and design considerations
Gasketed joints
Common operating problems
Flange leaks
Tube leaks
Vibration
Fouling
Maintenance
Rerating
Air-Cooled Heat Exchangers
Exchanger types
Components and design considerations
Common operating problems
Plug leaks
Tube leaks
Maintenance
Other Heat Exchanger Types
Plate heat exchangers
Hairpin exchangers
Novel exchanger designs
Equipment enhancements
Performance Monitoring
Equipment monitoring
Fouling
Performance impacts
Fired Heaters
Fired heater types
Components and design considerations
Burners
Air preheaters
Refractory systems
Tube corrosion mechanisms
Inspection
Maintenance
Taught By:
Louis Pasnik
Meet The Instructor:
Louis Pasnik has over 25 years of thermal and mechanical engineering experience, specializing in heat exchangers, furnaces, and combustion equipment. His background includes 13 years as a plant-based heat transfer engineer supporting multiple facilities and five years as a worldwide refractory subject matter expert for furnaces and sulfur recovery units.
His practical experience spans equipment design, thermal and hydraulic troubleshooting, turnaround support, fired equipment integrity programs, combustion controls, and operator training. He has overseen more than 30 furnace smart-pigging inspections and resolved more than 30 problematic heat exchanger body flanges. At Becht, he combines field experience with advanced analysis to support heat transfer equipment reliability.
Mr. Pasnik is Vice Chair of API 660, Shell & Tube Exchangers. He has more than two decades of experience with thermal and mechanical rating tools, including HTRI, FRNC-5, and Compress, and holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University.
Venue:
The training will be held in Houston, TX. The exact location will be announced by mid-November. Please check back for updates. If you purchase the class, you can find the hotel booking link under My Courses → (your course) → Resources once available.