Abdulkarim J. Al-Sayed
Chief Executive
Bahrain Petroleum Company

Opening Address

Currently holding the position of Chief Executive of Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO), Mr. Al-Sayed began his career with BAPCO in 1965. In 1981 he was appointed as Manager of Power & Utilities and was subsequently promoted to General Manager of Engineering, Maintenence, Refining, Engineering Projects and Senior Deputy Chief Executive.

Mr. Al-Sayed completed his B.Sc and M.Sc in mechanical engineering/thermal power from the University of London, and obtained a Postgraduate Diploma from Imperial College, London. He is a registered Chartered Engineer and member of various institutions and societies.

Dr. Samir J. Serhan
Managing Director, Linde Engineering
President and CEO, Selas Fluid

Opening Address

Dr. Samir Serhan is currently serving dual roles as Managing Director at Linde Engineering and President and CEO of Selas Fluid. His responsibilities include oversight of both Selas Fluid and Selas Linde, Linde’s ethylene business, Health, Safety, and Environmental, Quality Management and Six Sigma initiatives. He previously held the position of Vice President, Engineering at Selas Fluid. Prior to joining the Linde organization, Dr. Serhan was employed by Parsons Energy and Chemicals and Gilbert Commonwealth.

The author of more than 40 technical papers, Dr. Serhan graduated with a Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from Virginia Tech. He is a registered Professional Engineer.

Mr. Marc Rost
Manager, Sales & Marketing
Selas Fluid Processing

Conference Chairman

Currently serving in a dual role as Product Manager for Reformers and Manager of Sales and Marketing at Selas Fluid, Marc Rost has held the titles of Applications Engineer, Product Engineer, and Manager of Incineration Products during his 21 year tenure at Selas.   Prior to arriving at Selas, he was a thermal/mechanical engineer at Research Cottrell and a mechanical design engineer at CE Air Preheater.  He is the author of a number of technical papers.

Mr. Rost holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University as well as a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Temple University.

Mr. Thomas F. McGowan
President
TMTS Associates Inc.

Presentation: Combustion, Thermal Systems and Air Pollution Control
(Pre-conference Course)

Thomas F. McGowan is president and founder of TMTS Associates Inc., a firm specializing in thermal systems and air pollution control. He was previously employed by RMT/Four Nines, American Combustion, the Georgia Tech Research Institute and Particulate Solid Research, Inc. McGowan has 35 years of experience in combustion, air pollution control, solids handling and industrial ventilation.

Mr. McGowan holds a M.S.Ch.E. from Manhattan College in New York City, and an M.S. in Industrial Management from Georgia Tech. He recently authored AWMA's online Elearning course on NOx Control, at http://www.awma.org/events/view_event.html?typeid=2&id=1

Dr. Raffaele Villante
Senior Advisor
Linde Impianti Italia

Presentation: Fired Heater Operation, Maintenance, and Troubleshooting
(Pre-conference Course)

Raffaele "Leo" Villante is Senior Advisor for Sales & Marketing at Linde Impianti Italia SpA, Fired Heaters Division. As the founder of Linde Impianti, he served as the General Manager for a number of years. With over 35 years of experience, Dr. Villante has been involved with nearly 400 fired heaters in various technical and management positions with both Linde Impianti Italia and KTI Italy, including design, engineering, project management, construction, sales and marketing.

Dr. Villante holds a Doctorate in Chemical Engineering from Politecnico University of Milan, Italy.

Mr. Filip Jennes
Product Engineer
MECS

Presentation: High Efficiency Particulate Removal to Meet Stringent Air
Quality Standards

Filip Jennes is Product Manager for Europe and Africa at MECS (Monsanto Enviro-Chem Systems) Global.  His experience includes ten years in process design and project execution with wet scrubbers in various industries.  His technical publications include “Incineration of Flue Gas Scrubbing Using Dynawave® Reverse Jet Scrubbers” and “Road to Recovery”, published in Hydrocarbon Engineering, August 2007.

Mr. Jennes has a degree in Chemical Engineering.

Mr. Andy Castell
General Manager, Process
Hamworthy Combustion, Americas

Presentation: Burner Technologies for EDC and Refinery Heaters

Andy Castell is Hamworthy Combustion’s General Manager for the Americas.  He has 17 years of experience designing, testing, manufacturing, and supplying combustion equipment. 

Mr. Castell holds a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering.

Mr. Neal Boyd, P.E.
Sales Engineer
CML Northern Blower Inc.

Presentation: Fan Basics, Standards, Control, and Operational Considerations

Neal Boyd is a Sales Engineer and Prorject Manager for Northern Blower, a firm specializing in custom industrial fans and blowers. Mr. Boyd has 13 years experience in the fan industry supplying equipment to the petrochemical and polllution control industries as well as power plants, automotive paint finishing, and the pulp and paper industry.

Mr. Boyd holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Manitoba and is a registered Professional Engineer.

Dr. Dietlinde Jakobi
General Manager, Metallurgical Services & Technical Marketing of the Centrifugal Casting Division
Schmidt + Clemens

Presentation: Development of New Centrifugally Cast Materials for Radiant Coils

Mrs. Dietlinde Jakobi has been employed by Schmidt + Clemens Group since 1999, and is the General Manager, Metallurgical Services & Technical Marketing of the Centrifugal Casting Division.

Mrs. Jakobi holds a masters degree in technical chemistry and a PhD in material sciences from the Technical University of Aachen, Germany.

Mr. Pedro Imizcoz
R&D Project Manager, Technical Services, Latin America and Middle East
Schmidt + Clemens

Presentation: Centrifugally Cast Tubes for Reformers

Pedro Imizcoz has been with Schmidt + Clemens since 2001, and is the R&D Project Manager, Technical Services, Latin America and Middle East.

Mr. Imizcoz received both a mechanical engineering degree and a masters degree in Materials Engineering and Manufacturing from the Public University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain, with theses on High Alloy Steels Ageing Behaviour and Use of Microadditions in Centricast High Temperature Alloys.

Mr. Daniel E. Robertus, P.E.
Sales Manager, Specialty Boiler Systems
Deltak

Presentation: Heat Recovery in Steam Methane Reformers

With over 26 years of experience in the field of heat recovery, Daniel Robertus holds the position of Sales Manager for Specialty Boiler Systems at Deltak, a company specializing in the design, engineering, manufacturing, and service of steam generators and auxiliary equipment.

Mr. Robertus earned a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota, and is a registered professional engineer.

Mr. Sunil Kumar
Operations Manager, Cracker -2
Abu Dhabi Polymers Co. (Borouge)

Presentation: Furnace Addition Project Report

Sunil Kumar is the Operations Manager, Cracker -2 at Abu Dhabi Polymers (Borouge) in Ruwais. He has over 16 years of operations and process engineering experience in ethylene plants, primarily gas crackers. His plant experience includes a number of locations in India and the Middle East working in plants from leading ethylene technology providers – Linde, Lummus, and Stone & Webster.

Mr. Kumar holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a master’s degree in marketing management.

Mr. Bernd Schoepe
Operations Director, Engineering, Manufacturing and Quality Control / Quality Assurance Department
Alstom Power Energy Recovery GmbH

Presentation: Transfer Line Exchangers in Ethylene Furnaces: Operating and Reliability Experience

Bernd Schoepe joined Schmidt'sche Heißdampf Gesellschaft (now Alstom Power) in 1989 where he held several positions, beginning as group leader in the design department, moving to the project management group, and eventually rising to the position of Director of Engineering. Today he is the Operations Director for Alstom Power Energy Recovery GmbH overseeing the Engineering, Manufacturing and Quality Control / Quality Assurance Department. He is currently involved in a significant expansion of the company's manufacturing capacity.

Mr. Schoepe received his Dipl. Ing, (Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering) from the Technical College in Berlin in 1981. He is also a certified Welding Engineer. Prior to joining Alstom, he worked at other companies, including 2 years in the U.S. in the fluid processing industry as a pressure vessel designer.

Mr. Thomas Hierl
Manager, Department of Construction Concepts and Costing
Linde Engineering

Presentation: New Furnaces in Place in 35 Days

Thomas Hierl is the Manager, Department of Construction Concepts and Costing for Linde Engineering. His over 10 years of construction experience covers the construction of process plants for gas treatment, LNG, LPG and olefin furnace sections. The execution of projects from the conceptual design phase across the engineering into the actual execution on site as Site Manager have provided him with wide experience in various construction methods in several countries and regions of the world.

Mr. Hierl holds a Dipl. Ing. in Structural Engineering and System Engineering from the University of Applied Sciences Munich and is certified as an European Welding Engineer.

Mr. Adam Leathery
Product Manager, Fired Heaters
Selas Fluid Processing

Presentation: EDC Furnace Technologies

Adam Leathery is the Product Manager for EDC and Process Fired Heaters at Selas Fluid.  His prior experience includes tenure at Struthers Wells Corporation, where he was a Senior Process Engineer designing direct-fired heaters, thermal fluid heating systems, waste heat recovery systems, and process gas heaters, as well as managing heater and heat recovery system projects.  He designed a software package to predict and correlate diffusivities of polymer/solvent systems using various theoretical models while at Pennsylvania State University, and headed the design and testing of a remediation process to dissolve radioactive waste material while recovering thorium for Lockheed Martin Energy Systems.

Mr. Leathery holds a BS degree with honors in Chemical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University.

Mr. Paul van Helmond
Product Manager, Ethylene Technologies
Selas Fluid Processing

Presentation: Large Capacity Gas Cracking Furnaces for Ethylene Plants Ethylene Furnace Maintenance

Paul van Helmond is the Product Manager for Ethylene Technologies at Selas Fluid, and has experience at two other of the world’s leading ethylene technology providers – ABB Lummus and MW Kellogg.  His responsibilities have included design of ethylene furnaces and reformer heaters, equipment specification, ethylene furnace expansion and emission reduction studies, plant start-ups, project management, and training of staff in the design and application of air preheaters. 

Mr. van Helmond earned an Ir. Diploma (MS degree) in Physics from Eindhoven University of Technology and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of St. Thomas, Houston.  He holds membership in the AIChE American Ethylene Producers Committee, where he is Director of the Maintenance and Reliability Subcomittee.

Mr. Gene Irrgang
Product Manager, Oxidation Technologies
Selas Fluid Processing

Presentation: Selecting the Right Thermal Oxidation Technology

Gene Irrgang is Selas Fluid’s Product Manager for Oxidation Technologies.  His extensive experience includes the position of Manager of Process Development at T-Thermal, where he worked to develop waste management/destruction systems for chloro-fluoro hydrocarbons, chemical nerve agents and other hazardous wastes; he also led the development of systems and equipment for continuous production of chrome oxides and the treatment of landfill leachates.  He was integral to the development of the first commercial system for the recovery of solvents using activated carbon adsorption and vacuum regeneration.

Mr. Irrgang holds a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University, and is a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.  He is the author of a number of technical papers focusing on waste incineration and byproduct recovery.

Mr. Edward F. Stanley
Manager, Furnace Technologies
Selas Fluid Processing

Presentation: Evaluation of Reformer Types

Edward Stanley is a 40 year veteran of Selas Fluid, acquiring extensive experience with various technologies including hydrogen reforming, ethylene and EDC cracking, Selas Gradiation® heaters, and specialty furnaces. He developed a number of the rating, process, combustion, and exchanger design programs currently utilized by the Company’s process engineers.

Mr. Stanley graduated with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Drexel University.

Mr. Kelvin McAlister
Group Manager, Projects
Harbison-Walker

Presentation: Refractories 101

With over 19 years in the refractory industry, Kelvin McAlister has served in a number of capacities at Harbison-Walker: Application Specialist, Plant Engineer, Area Sales Manager, and in his current role as Group Manager of Projects.

Mr. McAlister holds a BS degree in Ceramic Engineering from Clemson University.