Featured Project: Flareless Hydrogen Plant Shutdown – 3 MMSCFD Excess Fuel Gas Control (SCAQMD Rule 1118 & Refinery MACT 2)
When a Southern California refinery had to take its Hydrogen Plant offline for urgent, unscheduled maintenance, it lost the primary consumer of ~3 million SCFD of refinery fuel gas. Routing this volume to the flare would have triggered a major flaring event under SCAQMD Rule 1118 – Control of Flaring, exceeding daily SOx/NOx limits, violating the refinery’s Title V permit, and requiring public notification.
Envent delivered the largest mobile flare-minimization deployment ever executed in California — zero reportable flaring.
The Challenge
- Sudden loss of 3 MMSCFD fuel gas sink
- Flare system could not legally accept this volume under Rule 1118
- Full compliance with 40 CFR 63 Subpart UUU (Refinery MACT 2) work-practice standards
- Noise & community impact constraints
- Tight schedule — no delay to other units
Envent’s Zero-Flare Solution
Envent submitted and secured SCAQMD Rule 1118 variance + emergency permit within 48 hours.
| Equipment | Quantity | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| EMECS-42 (42 MMBTU/hr) | 3 | >99.9% DRE of fuel gas (H₂, CH₄, VOCs, H₂S) |
| High-Pressure Knockout Vessel | 1 | Liquid separation & surge protection |
| Variable-Speed Blower | 1 | Precise flow matching |
| Noise Mitigation Package | Full | Silencers + acoustic barriers |
Execution Highlights
- Full PHA, MOC, and tie-in design completed in <72 hours
- Three EMECS-42 units operated in parallel at 1,500 °F+
- Continuous NHVcz, combustion efficiency, and pilot monitoring per Rule 1118
- On-site Envent project engineers + 24/7 supervision
- Real-time data shared with SCAQMD via remote telemetry
Result: 100% of excess fuel gas destroyed, zero flare usage, zero community complaints.
Proven Benefits – Full Compliance, No Disruption
| Benefit | Delivered Outcome |
|---|---|
| Flaring Eliminated | 3 MMSCFD destroyed — zero reportable flare event |
| Regulatory Compliance | Full Rule 1118 variance + Title V permit satisfied |
| Community Impact | Noise <65 dBA at fence line — zero complaints |
| Schedule | Hydrogen Plant returned on time — no unit delays |
| Client Workload | Refinery only managed MOC & tie-ins — Envent handled everything else |
This remains the gold standard for flareless hydrogen plant, PSA, and fuel-gas balance turnarounds in California.
Planning an Unscheduled Hydrogen Plant or PSA Outage? Get your Free SCAQMD Rule 1118 Flare Minimization Plan & Quote today. Call Envent’s Refinery Turnaround Team at 888-997-9465 or email [email protected] — the only company with proven 3 MMSCFD flareless experience.
