Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Environmental Issues in Singapore

For my DE5122 assignment presentation on environmental issues in Singapore:

Here are some numbers:

Exxon Mobile plant's total crude oil processing capacity is 309,000 barrels a day, according to the company's Web site.

Exxon Mobil, the world's largest listed oil and gas company by market capitalization, also operates another Singapore refinery with a 296,000-barrel-a-day capacity.

Source: International Business Times

Large point source of CO2 emission are listed as "large point sources, such as power plants, oil refineries and industrial processes".

"The refining process releases numerous different chemicals into the atmosphere; consequently, there are substantial air pollution emissions[7] and a notable odor normally accompanies the presence of a refinery. Aside from air pollution impacts there are also wastewater concerns,[2] upset risks of fire and explosion, and both occupational noise and environmental noise health effects." - Wikipedia


Lights from Bukom Shell Oil Refinery at night


Tuas Powerplant



"Gas pipelines linking the air separation plant (lower case) directly to the customer through the pipeline network ensure continuous and consistent supply of large quantities of gases. SOXAL has a network of more than 80 kilometres of oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen piping covering major parts of Jurong, Tuas and Jurong Island." - Soxal - a major gas supplier for all refineries in Singapore. SOXAL (Singapore Oxygen Air Liquide Pte Ltd) is owned by Air Liquide, France, the world's leaders in the manufacture and application of gases.


Shell’s Pulau Bukom Refinery – currently Shell’s largest refinery in the world

List of Oil Refineries in Singapore:
* ExxonMobil Jurong Island Refinery (ExxonMobil), 605,000 barrels per day
* SRC Jurong Island Refinery (Singapore Refining Corporation), 285,000 bpd
* Shell Pulau Bukom Refinery (Royal Dutch Shell), 458,000 bpd

Video Jug explains Oil Refinery
30 miles radius of Oil Refinery has high chance of cancer
Fugitive Emission - air pollution from refinery that's not under control - smoke stack are regulated but miles of pipes that move gas and partially processed products have vents that allow the gas to escape and emission which pollute air and soil
S02 - sulphur dioxide one of the key pollutants responsible for acid rain
Also responsible for fugitive Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) synonymous with NMVOC (Non­ methane VOC)

calculating
carbon emission of oil refinery in 1997/98
crude oil emissions coefficient per unit of energy 5.8 million Btu per barrel
emissions coefficient for crude oil is 20.24 million metric tons carbon per quadrillion Btu

Assuming 5.8 million btu per barrel,
Singapore's oil refinery process 1348000 barrels per day
producing 78,184,000,000,000 btu per day (0.078184 quadrillion btu)
or 28.53716 quadrillion btu a year
total carbon emission is 577.6 million metric tons carbon per year just from oil refineries alone
Converted to carbon dioxide emission, this is equivalent to 2086.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide

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