Nelson complexity index

The Nelson - Index [ also Nelson complexity index (NCI ) ] is a 1960, developed by the American engineer Wilbur L. Nelson indicator that measures the complexity of an oil refinery.

The complexity of a refinery is the ability to process crude oil to higher value products. While complex refineries usually produce gasoline (from catalytic cracking), complex systems are less specialized in the production of middle distillates ( thermal conversion and / or hydrocracking ). Larger plants, a refinery is assigned a coordinated their capacitance value (or complexity factor). The reference value is the award for the simple crude distillation complexity factor of 1.0. Adding to the complexity of data for every part of the system determines the total complexity of the refinery. For a refinery with a Nelson index 10 it means that it is ten times as complex as a crude oil distillation plant with the same processing capacity. The index is therefore also a good measure of the investment costs and the potential to add value to a refinery; Refineries with high Nelson Index are therefore more expensive to build and operate, but also higher- end products.

Refineries in Germany have Nelson values ​​from 6.0 to 11.0 (except for the Petroleum Refinery Emsland with a peak of over 14 ).