Centre for Gas, Refining & Petrochemical
Introduction
The Centre for Gas, Refining & Petrochemical Technology has been established to train manpower to effectively manage the Gas, Refining and Petrochemical industry. The Centre when fully operational will be a research hub for refining activities as it will operate a pilot plant for experiments. It is hoped that the activities of the centre will not only help save funds expended on the importation of petroleum products but also help to bring indigenous expertise into the gas, refining and petrochemical industry.
MSc Programme in Refining and Petrochemical Technology
The aim of this Professional Refining and Petrochemicals programme is to provide graduates with broad based training required for sound refining and processing of crude oil. Crude oil and gas are of little use in their raw state. Their value lies in what is created from them: fuels, lubricating oils, waxes, asphalt and petrochemicals. A refinery is an organized and co-ordinated arrangement of manufacturing processes designed to produce physical and chemical changes in crude oil and natural gas. The programme will produce competent and industry ready Refining and Petrochemical processing graduates that will be fully prepared to work in the oil and gas industry at local and international levels.
On completion of this Masters’ programme, the graduates will among other skills, be able to:
• Evaluate oil and gas hydrocarbon structures
• Learn and understand various separation/fractionation methods employed in refining crude oil
• Study secondary petroleum refining processes to improve yields
• Know how molecules are cracked by processes like catalytic, thermal and hydrocracking
• Grasp the concept of Catalysis and Reactor design
• Identify contaminants present in crude oil and their removal processes
• Find out how these contaminants can be converted into harmless compounds to improve qualities of finished refinery products to prevent destruction of expensive catalysts and minimize corrosion of refining equipment or prevent environmental pollution
• Evaluate how specific qualities of refined products are improved by blending and using additives
• Process modelling of crude oil refining process using Aspen Refsys
• Evaluate petrochemical Precursors (feedstocks), their unit operations and final products
• Determine how plastics (thermoplastics and thermosets) are made
Admission Requirements
For admission into the programme, candidates must possess a minimum of Second Class (Upper Division) Honours Bachelor’s degree in Science and Engineering. Industry/Company workers with 3 years cognate experience who possess a Second Class (Lower Division) Honours Bachelors degree (with cumulative Grade Point Average, CGPA of 3.0 or better) will also be admitted.
Duration of Programme
The duration of the programme will be 12 calender months of intensive full time study. Industry/company workers can equally attend modular/sandwich programmes and accumulate credits.
Award of Degree
Successful students at the end of the programme shall receive an MSc in Refining and Petrochemical Technology of the University of Port Harcourt.