KR20210060471A - Simulation of unit operation in a chemical plant for acid gas removal - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for determination of unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal, the method being carried out by a computer or a distributed computer system, the step of providing a first set of parameters for the unit operations (S1); Providing a second parameter set for unit operations based on the provided first parameter set and data retrieved from the database (S2); Determining a digital model of the chemical plant based on the first parameter set and the second parameter set (S3), the digital model comprising a system of equations defining unit operations of the chemical plant; Selecting starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations (S4)-the starting points are i) a first parameter set; ii) a second parameter set; And iii) at least partially selected from data retrieved from the database; It relates to a method comprising the step S5 of determining result settings for unit operations of a chemical plant using an equation-based solution method for simultaneous equations initialized by selected starting points.

Description

Simulation of unit operation in a chemical plant for acid gas removal

The present invention relates to a method, a corresponding system and a corresponding computer program product for the determination of unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal.

Chemical processing simulation is commonly used in chemical and process engineering to simulate and determine the general flow of plant processes in chemical plants and products of equipment.

US 20120029890 A1 is a method of designing or optimizing a column for a separation process comprising computer-implemented steps of providing vapor-side and liquid-side mass transfer coefficient equations and mass transfer area equations associated with the column of interest in a digital processor. , Vapor-side and liquid-side mass transfer coefficient equations, and mass transfer area equations describe the methods derived from defining the column mean height equivalent to the theoretical stage as a mathematical relationship. The equations are further derived from reducing the error of the curve fitting the empirical data of the various columns. The method also includes determining the column height and column width configurations of the target column using the equations provided, and outputting the determined column height and column width configurations of the target column.

EP 2 534 592 A2 describes methods and systems comprising an input module that enables customization of a target facility design based on limited data. The target facility design includes design alternatives and a processor routine that is coupled to the input module to model the target facility design and responds to user specifications by forming an input data set for a rigorous simulation modeler. Strict simulation modelers require more than limited data input.

US 7367018 B2 describes methods and apparatus for managing process and plant engineering data for chemical or other engineering processes throughout the applications. The method and apparatus comprises a respective class view, a composite class view, a conceptual data model and a consequently an integrated multi-tier data model for each of a number of software applications. The multi-tiered data model makes it possible to share engineering and other data from multiple software applications with other process and plant engineering applications and programs.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved design of unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal.

These and other objects are solved by the subject matter of the present invention.

According to a first aspect of the invention, as a method for determination of unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal-in particular, the method is a computer-implemented method, the method being a computer or a distributed computer Performed by the system-providing or receiving, by the processing device, a first set of parameters for unit operations; Providing or identifying, by the processing device, a second set of parameters for unit operations based on the first set of parameters provided or received and based on data retrieved from the database; Determining or generating, by the processing device, a digital model of the chemical plant based on the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters, the digital model comprising a system of equations defining unit operations of the chemical plant; Selecting, by the processing device, starting points for an equation-based solution method of the system of equations, the starting points comprising: i) a first parameter set; ii) a second parameter set; And iii) at least partially selected from data retrieved from the database; A method is provided comprising the step of determining, by the processing device, result settings for unit operations of the chemical plant using an equation-based solution method for a system of equations initialized by selected starting points.

Determination of the unit operations of the chemical plant for acid gas removal, for example, a chemical plant or gas treatment for treating a gaseous inlet stream with a treatment solution to provide a treated outlet stream, comprising one or more gas treatment units. Operating and/or dimensioning of the plant, preferably an acid gas removal plant for removing one or more acid gas component(s) from the gaseous inlet stream with a treatment solution to provide a treated outlet stream. parameters).

The present invention provides the determination of unit operations of one or more gas processing units for a chemical plant by processing a process flow diagram as a set of equations to be solved simultaneously. Certain embodiments of the present invention provide a database as a basis for selection of improved starting profiles by identifying previously successfully used starting profiles of previously resolved simulations and solutions provided. Thus, the database is advantageously separated from user interaction. Certain embodiments of the present invention advantageously provide robust custom modeling based on user input and robust determination of convergence criteria for solving simultaneous equations. Certain embodiments of the invention further advantageously provide on-line, on-site, real-time determination of convergence criteria to solve simultaneous equations for the design of chemical plants. Certain embodiments of the present invention further advantageously provide a graphical user interface that reduces the amount of information presented to the user, allowing the user to more efficiently specify input parameters, thereby improving the usability of the graphical user interface.

That is, the method for determining the unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal, the following steps:

Input parameters can be provided by the user and transmitted by the client device to a simulation server, e.g. a decision server.

It may include.

The input parameters can be used by the decision server to establish a system of equations.

System of equations is by MESH for mass balance, equilibrium relationship, summation equation, heat balance, or mass balance, matter balance, matter and heat-transfer velocity equation, summation equation, hydraulic equation for pressure drop, equilibrium equation. Can be expressed by MERSHQ equations. Additionally, the input parameters may be stored in a volatile or non-volatile storage medium by the database server so that they can be kept accessible for later creation of a starting profile with respect to starting profiles corresponding to the starting points plus metadata.

When the simulation is run by the decision server based on the input parameters provided by the user, the system of equations is solved by reaching the convergence criteria, and the final solution includes all the variables that have to be determined for the system of equations.

To create a starting profile, the final solution determined by the decision server along with all the determined variables can be stored as a starting point (ie, all variables) through the database server. In addition, metadata including input parameters is stored by the database server and associated with the corresponding starting points of that particular same simulation executed.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first parameter set for unit operations comprises at least one relative parameter.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the second parameter set for unit operations comprises at least one relative parameter.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the data comprises at least one relative parameter.

The term "relative parameter" as defined by the present invention means (i) any throughput of a chemical plant-mass throughput or volumetric throughput-or (ii)-any gas treatment of a chemical plant, for example Unit of-can be understood as a ratio of at least two corresponding parameters according to any geometry or dimension or measure.

The term “input parameter” as defined by the present invention can be understood as any parameter provided by a user simulating or designing a chemical plant.

The term “result settings” as defined by the present invention refers to any data set of variables and constants for a given set of equations to be solved simultaneously to provide a design modeling of a chemical plant by determining convergence criteria for solving a system of equations. Can be understood as

The term "starting profiles" as defined by the present invention can be understood as a data structure comprising starting points and any additional metadata.

The invention advantageously enables optimized modeling of gas treatment plants, preferably acid gas removal plants on the basis of modeled and determined parameters, and a subsequently generated design.

For example, relative parameters may be introduced to enable a simpler design process, because the relative parameters are problem driven or functionally driven, while the corresponding parameters are the user's problem driven or functionally driven of the gas treatment plant. This is because specifications must be converted into specific structural or operational parameters. Further, design constraints are easier to predict in terms of relative, eg, functionally driven parameters, than in terms of any structural, dimensional or operational parameters. Thus, the ability to produce physically meaningful results is greatly improved. In particular, no expertise is required to carry out determinations of operating and/or dimensional parameters for gas treatment plants, since no expertise needs to be specified.

Additionally, by introducing relative parameters, any correlations of the input parameters are reduced or returned, thereby enabling a more robust and reliable determination of the dimensional and/or operating parameters implemented in the gas treatment plant to be physically built. Thus, the complexity of the design process is reduced when considering the number of iterations required to find physically and chemically meaningful operating and/or dimensional parameters. Thus, the computer program, when loaded and executed in the processing system, transforms the entire system from a general purpose computing system to a special purpose computing system tailored to the environment for a simplified and more efficient gas processing plant design.

Relative parameters as used herein are, for example, associated with corresponding parameters. The relative parameters are thus independent of the plant throughput and the corresponding parameters are thus dependent on the plant throughput or on the gas processing unit geometry. In certain instances, the relative parameters may be independent of the plant size, the physical dimensions of the gas treatment plant, the gas treatment unit geometry and/or the capacity of the gas treatment plant. Relative parameters may be functional parameters and, in contrast to the corresponding parameters, are not directly correlated with plant throughput, plant size, physical dimensions of the gas treatment plant, gas treatment unit geometry and/or capacity of the gas treatment plant. An example is the hydraulic load in the absorber as a relative parameter. This parameter is a functional parameter when specifying the criterion as the distance to hydraulic flooding, not the absorber diameter. In contrast, the corresponding parameter, in this example the absorber diameter, is directly correlated with the plant throughput, the plant size and/or the capacity of the gas treatment plant. The specification of the improper absorber diameter can lead to flooding conditions and unstable or physically meaningless operating conditions, while the specification of the hydraulic rod is inherently unstable or irrational, for example, through a factor of safety less than 1 and greater than 0.5. Avoid the design of conditions.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the method further comprises storing, by the processing device, the selected starting points and the determined result settings for the unit operations of the chemical plant in a database.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, selecting the starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations comprises at least partially selecting the starting points of the previously performed equation-based solution method of the system of equations stored in the database. Includes.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the step of at least partially selecting the starting points of a previously performed equation-based solution method of a system of equations stored in the database comprises determining and stored result settings of the previously performed equation-based solution method. Comparing the desired settings of the current method for determination, and optionally the first parameter set for unit operations includes the desired settings.

According to one embodiment of the invention, a first parameter set for unit operations is provided or received by a client device and/or a second parameter set for unit operations is provided or identified by a decision server and/or data Is provided by the database server.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, providing or identifying a second parameter set for unit operations based on the first parameter set,

i) providing or identifying at least one parameter not specified by the first parameter set, and/or

ii) providing or identifying at least one parameter that is a complementary parameter to the first parameter set

Includes.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the step of providing or identifying a second parameter set for unit operations based on the first parameter set comprises the first parameter set and the chemical parameters specified by the data retrieved from the database. Determining the associated unspecified or complementary parameters.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the metadata can be supplemented to include more than the input parameters. Such additional metadata may include, for example, the following.

i) If the user specifies the strip steam ratio in the input parameters as relative parameters, the simulation determines the corresponding reboiler duty, so the determined reboiler duty can be saved as additional metadata, and then executed. In other simulations, if the user provides a reboiler duty rather than a strip steam rate, a starting profile can be found.

ii) This is applicable for all relative parameters provided as input parameters and resulting corresponding parameters, and vice versa. Indeed, even if the corresponding parameter is provided as an input parameter, the completion of the metadata also proceeds as long as the relative parameters are explicitly determined.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, when searching for starting profiles, the first step is to filter out potentially applicable starting profiles. Such a filter can be very rough considering only a subset of the input parameters (eg solvent, composition or structural parameters). According to another embodiment of the invention, in a second step, these potentially applicable starting profiles are ranked based on the entire set of input parameters. This allows for more efficient selection and access. Additional filters and rankings may be applied. The key here is to reduce the processing complexity and burden.

Thus, metadata is arbitrary data associated with starting points and allowing selection of specific starting profiles as an advantage of the present invention. As input parameters, for example, configuration parameters are provided. These configuration parameters may further specify the column type, such as a packed bed or tray column, the number of segments in the column, pressure conditions such as pressure drop on the column, temperature conditions or the type of distributor for the liquid treatment solution.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the configuration parameters may specify the gas treatment and/or process units included in the gas treatment plant and their interconnections representing the streams. Further, configuration parameters that provide a fixed set of possible configurations may be predefined in whole or in part.

These predefined configurations may be stored in a database and may be identified in process specific input parameters via one or more identifier(s) representing respective configuration parameters. Pre-defined configuration parameters guide the user by reducing the problem space and lead to a more robust and reliable determination of operating and/or dimensional parameters. In embodiments where the configurations are not entirely predefined, the method may include a verification step to ensure that reasonable configurations are defined by the user.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the type of metadata can be, for example, descriptive, e.g., ammonia, LNG, natural gas applications, solvents or absorption media, the main components of the process, e.g. , As the number of absorbers, HP flash, heat exchanger, for example configuration or industrial application type can be defined.

Structural metadata can also be seen in the latter sense, since the configuration includes, for example, a plant flow diagram, such as inside an absorber, and a plant structure, such as processing units.

According to a second aspect of the invention, a system for determining unit operations of a chemical plant, preferably for acid gas removal, is provided, preferably comprising a decision server and a database communicatively coupled to a client device. Includes a database server, and the system:

i) a client device configured to provide or receive a first set of parameters for unit operations;

ii) a database server comprising a database configured to provide or identify data;

iii) a decision server configured to provide or identify a second set of parameters for unit operations based on the provided first set of parameters and based on data from the database or data retrieved from the database server, the decision server comprising the first set of parameters and Further configured to determine or generate a digital model of the chemical plant based on the second set of parameters, the digital model comprising a system of equations defining the unit operations of the chemical plant-

Including,

The decision server is further configured to select starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations, and the starting points are:

i) first parameter set

ii) a second parameter set; And

iii) data retrieved from the database

Is at least partially selected from,

The decision server is further configured to determine result settings for the unit operations of the chemical plant using an equation-based solution method for the simultaneous equations initialized by the selected starting points.

According to one embodiment of the second aspect, there is provided a system for determining unit operations of a chemical plant, preferably for acid gas removal, the system comprising:

A database server comprising a decision server and a database communicatively coupled to a client device

Including, the determination server,

Provide or receive a first set of parameters for unit operations, and

Providing or identifying a second parameter set for unit operations based on the first parameter set and based on data retrieved from the database server,

Determining or generating a digital model of the chemical plant based on the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters, the digital model comprising a system of equations defining unit operations of the chemical plant,

Select the starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations-the starting points are,

i) a first parameter set;

ii) a second parameter set; And

iii) data retrieved from the database

At least partially selected from -,

To determine outcome settings for unit operations of a chemical plant using an equation-based solution method for a system of equations initialized by selected starting points.

It is composed.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the system is further configured to store selected starting points and determined result settings for the unit operations of the chemical plant in a database of the database server.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the decision server is further added to select starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations by at least partially selecting the starting points of the previously performed equation-based solution method of the system of equations stored in the database. It consists of

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the decision server performs prior execution of the system of equations stored in the database by comparing the determined and stored result settings of the previously performed equation-based solution method with the desired settings of the current method for determination. Is further configured to at least partially select the starting points of the equation-based solution method, optionally the first parameter set for unit operations comprising the desired settings.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the decision server,

i) providing or identifying at least one parameter not specified by the first parameter set, and/or

ii) by providing or identifying at least one parameter that is a complementary parameter to the first parameter set

It is further configured to provide or identify a second parameter set for the unit operations based on the first parameter set.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the determination server uses the chemical parameters specified by the data to determine unspecified or complementary parameters associated with the first parameter set, thereby determining the second parameter set for the unit operations based on the first parameter set. It is further configured to provide or identify.

In one embodiment, the method may include designing and assembling a chemical plant based on operational and/or dimensional parameters determined by one or more of the methods described herein. In other embodiments, the method may include producing a chemical product using a chemical plant.

It should be understood that the embodiments described herein are not mutually exclusive, and one or more of the described embodiments may be combined in a variety of ways as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.

Methods for determining unit operations can be used to train operating personnel or to rigorous model-based advanced process control. In the case of training, the methods can be linked to the workbench, and process specific input parameters can be created from any input by manpower to the workbench. Based on these generated input parameters, operating and/or dimensional parameters can be determined and feedback can be provided to the operator. For strict model-based advanced process control, the software runs in a rating mode. Based on the process specific input parameters, operating parameters can be determined and compared in real time with the measured operating parameters. In a preferred embodiment, the operating parameters are from analysis of the concentration of one or more components in the one or more process streams, preferably the content of amines and/or water in the absorption medium or the concentration of one or more acid gases in the treated or feed gas stream. It can be determined in the rating mode based on the derived input parameters. Input parameters related to the concentration of one or more components in the process stream can be determined by methods known in the art, such as spectral methods or chromatographic methods. In particular, in a preferred embodiment, the operating parameters determined in the grading mode and based on the input parameters related to the concentration of one or more components in the treated outlet stream are the solution flow rate of the absorption medium and the reboiler duty of the regenerator. Since the concentration of one or more components of the process stream can vary with increasing operating time, the preferred embodiments mentioned above are optimized operating parameters such as reboiler duty or solution flow rate based on the actual concentration of the components of the gas treatment plant. Make their decisions possible.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer program product comprising computer readable instructions that, when loaded and executed on a processor, perform a method according to any one of the embodiments of the first aspect or accordingly the first aspect. Is provided.

A computer program for performing the method of the present invention may be stored on a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may be a floppy disk, a hard disk, a CD, a DVD, a universal serial bus (USB) storage device, a random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), and an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM).

The computer-readable medium may also be a data communication network, such as the Internet, that allows program code to be downloaded.

A computer program for performing any of the methods of the present invention may be stored on a computer readable storage medium (eg, a non-transitory computer readable storage medium). Computer-readable storage media include floppy disk, hard disk, compact disk (CD), digital versatile disk (DVD), universal serial bus (USB) storage device, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), and EPROM ( Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) or other suitable device. The present invention is described herein in digital electronic circuitry, or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or a combination thereof, for example, in the available hardware of conventional mobile devices, or as described in more detail below. It can be implemented with new hardware dedicated to processing the described methods.

In a further embodiment, the methods described herein can be used in rigorous model-based advanced process control that can be implemented in existing gas treatment plants to monitor or control processes.

A more complete understanding of the present invention and the advantages accompanying it will be more clearly understood with reference to the following schematic drawings, which are not drawn to scale.
1 shows a schematic flow diagram of a method for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
2 shows a schematic diagram of a system for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
3 shows a schematic diagram of a system for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
5 shows a schematic diagram of a graphical user interface of a method for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
6 shows an image of a simulated process flow diagram used in chemistry and process engineering to represent the general flow of chemical plant processes and equipment according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
7 illustrates an exemplary embodiment for determining the CO2 loading factor through the ratio of actual loading to equilibrium loading in the liquid phase.
8 illustrates liquid phase temperature behavior illustrating the dependence of absorber height versus temperature for different liquid flow rates and constant gas flow rates.
9 shows the gas phase CO2 content behavior illustrating the dependence of the absorber height versus the CO2 content for different liquid flow rates and a constant gas flow rate.
10 shows the loading factor CO2 behavior illustrating the dependence of the absorber height versus the loading factor for different liquid flow rates and constant gas flow rates.
11 shows the convergence behavior illustrating the number of repetitions versus the flow rate.

The examples in the drawings are schematic and are not drawn to scale. In different drawings, similar or identical elements are provided with the same reference numerals.

In general, the same parts, units, entities or steps are provided with the same reference numerals in the drawings.

1 shows a schematic flow diagram of a method 10 for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

A method for determining unit operations of a chemical plant may comprise at least the following steps.

As a first step of the method, a step S1 of providing a first set of parameters for unit operations is performed. According to a further embodiment of the invention, the first set of parameters for the unit operations are parameters required by the user of the chemical plant using aqueous alkylethanolamine solutions to remove hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide from gases, e.g. , May include the amount of gas treated by the amine gas treatment. This produces an outlet gas depleted of carbon dioxide and/or hydrogen sulfide.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first parameter set for unit operations comprises at least one relative parameter.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the user can determine the geometric dimensions of the units of the chemical plant, e.g., the height, width or length or volume of any of the absorber unit and regenerator unit and additional accessory equipment as a first parameter set. Can be specified additionally.

Additional parameters defined by the first parameter set may be, for example, required gas flow values or maximum concentration values of the overhead gas generated from the regenerator, for example, the concentration of extracted hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide.

As a second step S2 of method 10, a step of providing a second parameter set for unit operations is performed based on the provided first parameter set and based on data retrieved from the database.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the second parameter set for unit operations comprises at least one relative parameter.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the data retrieved from the database may include chemical and physical properties of the gases involved, materials or geometric properties of process piping and equipment items of the chemical plant. The second parameter set may be provided, for example, to complete the first data set to arrive at the entire data set including the parameters required for the simulation.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the retrieved data comprises at least one relative parameter.

In one embodiment, in particular, one of the one or more gas treatment units is an absorber for treating the gaseous inlet stream with a treatment solution to provide a treated outlet stream, and the absorber input parameters comprise at least one of the following relative parameters: Is provided.

i. A ratio specifying the fraction of one or more depleted component(s) in the processed outlet stream relative to the entire outlet stream;

ii. A loading factor representing an arbitrary distance from the absorber to the equilibrium capture capacity of the treatment solution; And

iii. Acceptable hydraulic rod representing the distance to flooding conditions.

In one example, the absorber input parameters may include the available relative parameters of the heard i, ii and iii.

In another example, the absorber input parameters include two of the above heard parameters, and any remaining absorber input parameters are specified via a corresponding dependent parameter.

In another example, the absorber input parameters include one of the available relative parameters, and the remaining absorber input parameters are specified via the corresponding parameters.

In one example, the absorber input parameters include at least one of absorber height, absorber diameter, or solution flow rate as a relative parameter, which

-For absorber height, the composition of the treated outlet stream,

-In the case of flow rate, the loading factor of the treatment solution in the absorber,

-For absorber diameter, allowable hydraulic rod to absorber

Include by providing.

According to this inference, the absorber height, flow rate and absorber diameter are each corresponding parameters and are thus part of the operating and/or dimensional parameters to be determined based on the digital model.

Based on the above parameters, the concept of providing relative parameters becomes clearer. For example, the composition of the treated outlet stream is relative, and in this particular case it is by the ratio of the amount of any component to be absorbed in the treated outlet stream to the sum of the amounts of all components in the treated outlet stream. It can be dimensionless in the sense that it can be determined.

According to a further embodiment of the invention this ratio is related to the absorber height, since as the path through the absorber increases, the amount of any component to be absorbed changes. Likewise, the loading factor is relative, and in this particular case may be dimensionless in the sense that it can be determined by the ratio of the actual loading to the equilibrium loading.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, this ratio is related to the treatment solution flow rate, since as the treatment solution flow rate or flow rate increases, the actual loading decreases. The hydraulic rod is relative, and in this particular case may be dimensionless in the sense that it can be determined by the ratio of the actual hydraulic rod to the hydraulic rod at the flooding limit.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, this ratio is related to the absorber diameter, since as the diameter of the absorber increases, the actual hydraulic load decreases. Thus, relative parameters in the sense of the invention are, for example, related to functionally driven parameters, which are preferably based on ratios or similar relationships of the corresponding parameters. These relative parameters are independent of or not directly correlated with the plant throughput, the plant size, the physical dimensions of the plant and/or the capacity of the gas treatment plant.

When providing relative parameters for the absorber, no specification of the absorber height, absorber diameter or flow rate is required. Instead, the composition in the treated outlet stream, the acceptable hydraulic load, or the loading factor of the treatment solution in the absorber is provided. The composition in the treated outlet stream can be determined by the ratio of the amount of any components to be absorbed in the treated outlet stream to the sum of the amounts of all components in the treated outlet stream.

The composition specifying the proportion of one or more depleted gas component(s) in the treated outlet stream may be based on the individual ratio(s) for each depleted gas component(s). The composition may also be based on the sum or partial sum of the proportions of the depleted gas components.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the second set of parameters can define, for example, the ionic components of the multi-component gas streams. Ionic components may be calculated and determined according to temperature profiles, and temperature profiles may also be provided by a database based on the temperature required in single operating units or single equipment items of chemical plants.

As a third step (S3) of the method 10, a step of determining a digital model of the chemical plant based on a first set of parameters and a second set of parameters is carried out, the digital model being an alliance defining unit operations of the chemical plant. Includes the equation being performed.

As a fourth step (S4) of the method 10, the step of selecting starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations is carried out, the starting points being:

i) first parameter set

ii) a second parameter set; And

iii) data retrieved from the database

Is selected at least in part from

According to a further embodiment of the invention, an equation-based solution can be performed, for example, by an equation-oriented approach, wherein the process flow of the chemical plant is treated as a set of equations to be solved simultaneously.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, selecting the starting profiles for the equation-based solution may include determining the starting points based on input parameters closest to the metadata associated with the starting points provided by the database server. . According to a further embodiment of the invention, the starting profiles may include previously used and/or calculated starting points, and may also include calculated or used parameters and output data and metadata of previously determined solutions. I can.

That is, since the starting profiles can be used to complete and provide supplemental data for the first parameter set, the user does not need to provide specific parameters in detail, and these parameters are based on the starting points stored in the starting profiles of the database. Filled in, and the data is rounded up by the starting profiles of the database.

As a fifth step S5 of method 10, a step of determining result settings for the unit operations of the chemical plant is performed using an equation-based solution method for simultaneous equations initialized by selected starting points.

In a further embodiment, in a method for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the data retrieved from the database comprises thermodynamic parameters, and the thermodynamic parameters are operating or laboratory conditions. Are derived from measurements of thermodynamic properties of gas treatment plants under The thermodynamic parameters preferably represent thermodynamic properties in gas treatment plants under operating conditions.

An additional embodiment that provides thermodynamic parameters indicative of thermodynamic properties in gas treatment plants under operating conditions may include data retrieved from the database. Since the data retrieved in this way complements the input parameters, the number of parameters that must be provided by the user is reduced.

Preferably, the thermodynamic parameters are based on historical measurement data of gas treatment plants or laboratory scale experiments in operation to provide a more accurate basis for the determination of operating and/or dimensional parameters. Thermodynamic parameters may include thermodynamic solvent-gas parameters specifying equilibrium conditions, kinetic parameters such as reaction rate or mass transfer parameters related to density, viscosity, surface tension, diffusion coefficients or mass transfer correlations. Specifically, including the motion parameters improves the accuracy of the determined outcome settings, since not only the equilibrium conditions are considered.

In a preferred embodiment, when a relative parameter is used, the relative parameter may be limited within a predefined range. Here, one or more of the absorber input parameters or the regenerator input parameters designated as relative parameters may be within a predefined range.

In a further embodiment, a consistency check is performed on at least one relative parameter before and/or after determining the digital model of the chemical plant (step S3), the at least one relative parameter being within a predefined range. If there is, it is consistent. This consistency check can be implemented as a separate check through the authorization object before receiving the request and/or after receiving the request. In particular, when it is determined that the relative parameters are consistent, initialization of the digital model may be performed. If the relative parameters are determined to be inconsistent, a warning is provided via the output interface.

In a further embodiment, the physical performance of a gas treatment plant is described by determination of process specific input parameters, including gas treatment unit input parameters and thermodynamic parameters, and unit operations related to the digital model. Here, the digital model may include a system of equations defining unit operations in the form of one or more gas processing unit(s) or process unit(s) of the gas processing plant.

The digital model may include any gas processing unit or process unit specified through configuration parameters. For example, the digital model may include an absorber and/or regenerator model that characterizes mass and heat transfer in the absorber and/or regenerator, respectively. Thus, the digital model is a reliable and accurate means of describing a gas treatment plant, which description is used to make reliable and accurate predictions of the dimensions and/or operating parameters to be implemented in the physical gas treatment plant to be built.

The digital model may be based on MESH equations, mass balance, equilibrium relationship, summation equation, heat balance, or MERSHQ equations, matter balance, matter balance, matter and heat-transfer velocity equation, summation equation, pressure drop. Hydraulic equations, equilibrium equations may be based, and optionally, cost equations for operation and/or capital expenditures, for example, may be included as known in the art (e.g. Ralf Goedecke; Fluidverfahrenstechnik, Grundlagen , Methodik, Technik, Praxis; 2011; WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co., Weinheim, Germany; ISBN: 978-3-527-33270-0).

In a further embodiment, determining unit operations may include determining dimensions and/or operating parameters of the units.

In a further embodiment, determining unit operations includes using an equation-based solution method or a sequential-modular solution method for the digital model. In sequential-module solution methods, unit operations are solved sequentially starting with a gaseous inlet stream, sequentially solving downstream unit operations such as an absorber unit operation or a regenerator unit operation.

This established directionality from inlets to outlets makes the composition of downstream specifications, for example an outlet stream, difficult. This can be overcome by introducing downstream specifications, for example control loops that control the composition of the outlet stream. These control loops stepwisely determine differences in control parameters, such as the composition of the outlet stream, which increases complexity and slows down the processor.

In equation-based solution methods, unit operations are treated as a set of equations. Preferably, the equation-based solution method includes all equations of the digital model in a single system of equations that are solved simultaneously. Systems of equations can be solved numerically by performing all equations simultaneously with a defined accuracy. Finding a solution to a system of equations can involve more than one iteration.

Using the equation-based solution method allows simple specification of the relative parameters, which is simpler than the sequential-module solution methods. Also, in an equation-based solution method, it is important to specify meaningful starting or initial input parameters for the method to arrive at the solution. Specifying relative parameters to gas processing unit input parameters provides an improved and improved method of providing meaningful starting or initial input parameters.

Providing at least one of the relative parameters to gas processing unit input parameters can affect the digital model in that the digital model can include a relationship of the relative parameter to the corresponding parameter. For absorber input parameters, this is the desired fractional level of at least one of the composition in the treated outlet stream versus the absorber height, or, for example, the loading factor versus flow rate of the treatment solution in the absorber or the acceptable hydraulic rod versus absorber diameter. May contain more than one relationship of.

Likewise, relationships to player input parameters may be included. Determining the dimensions and/or operating parameters may include determining convergence criteria for the gas treatment units of the gas treatment plant using an equation-based solution method for the digital model, the convergence criteria being physical system balances. Is related to. Examples of these balances are MESH equations, mass balance, equilibrium relationship, summation equation, heat balance by or MERSHQ equations, mass balance, mass balance, mass and heat-transfer velocity equation, summation equation, hydraulic equation for pressure drop. , Equilibrium equations and optionally, for example, those provided by cost equations for operating and/or capital expenditures.

Here, convergence may mean repeatedly determining dimensions and/or operating parameters until convergence criteria are reached in the sense of reaching a threshold value for physical system balances.

In addition, providing at least one of the relative parameters affects the output in that the output of the operating and/or dimensional parameters includes a corresponding parameter of the gas processing unit related to the relative parameter provided as the gas processing unit input parameter. I can go crazy. Depending on the relative parameter, the operating and/or dimensional parameters include, for example, the height of the absorber as a dimensional parameter, the diameter of the absorber as a dimensional parameter or the solution flow rate of the absorber under operating conditions as an operating parameter.

Further, the output of the operating and/or dimensional parameters includes at least one of a reboiler duty as an operating parameter or a regenerator diameter as a dimensional parameter depending on the relative parameter.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the client device may be part of a client-side arranged computer environment, and the database server and decision server may be part of a server-side computer environment.

The client device may be implemented as a web service or a standalone software package, for example application software. In further embodiments, the database server and decision server may be part of the client side of a distributed client-server computer system.

On the client device side, process specific input parameters and in particular gas processing unit input parameters can be provided by specifying the required purity class or composition of the processed outlet stream, e.g., one or more fractions of the compounds of the processed outlet stream. Can be defined by specific values for a given fraction.

For example, in a commercial gas application, purity grades of 2-4 mol% gas or less may be much lower than in other liquefied natural gas (LNG) applications with high purity grade requirements of 50 mol ppm gas or less.

The minimum set of process specific input parameters may be inlet gas conditions such as temperature, composition or pressure, pressure conditions of gas processing units, condensation temperature at the top of the regenerator and lean solution temperature. In order to meet these various technical requirements, the determination of the dimensions and/or operating parameters or the determination of the operating parameters for operating an existing gas treatment plant is carried out in a controlled and more efficient manner. The gas treatment plant type can be utilized to limit the parameters.

Defining which gas treatment unit input parameters are provided as a relative parameter or as a corresponding parameter may provide for each gas treatment input parameter a single gas treatment input parameter specified as either a relative parameter or a corresponding parameter. May contain permission objects. This can be implemented by providing a selection option in the input module's user interface. Alternatively, the authorization object may allow to provide a single gas treatment input parameter that is designated exclusively as a relative parameter or as a corresponding parameter.

Likewise, defining which process specific input parameters are provided based on plant type may include permission to provide only specific process specific input parameters for each gas treatment input parameter, others being fixed. . Alternatively or additionally, defining which process specific input parameters are provided based on the plant type may include permission to provide only a specified range of process specific input parameters for each gas treatment input parameter.

2 shows a schematic diagram of a system 100 for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The system 100 for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal may include a client device 110, a database server 120 and a determination server 130.

The client device 110 is configured to provide a first set of parameters for unit operations.

The database server 120 includes databases 120-1, 120-2, and 120-3 configured to provide data (illustrated in FIG. 3).

The decision server 130 is configured to provide a second set of parameters for unit operations based on the provided first set of parameters and based on data from the database. The decision server 130 is further configured to determine a digital model of the chemical plant based on the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters, the digital model comprising a system of equations or matrices defining unit operations of the chemical plant. The decision server 130 is further configured to select starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations, the starting points being selected by using the first parameter set, the second parameter set, and data retrieved from the database.

The decision server 130 is further configured to determine result settings for the unit operations of the chemical plant using an equation-based solution method for simultaneous equations initialized by the selected starting points.

3 shows a further schematic diagram of a system 100 for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The client device 110 may be configured to provide input parameters input to the determination server 130 with respect to, for example, a solvent name and strength.

The decision server 130 may further include a subunit in terms of the input data provider 130-1, which is configured to initialize and transform the provided input parameters and provide the converted input parameters to the simulation engine 130-2, and , The simulation engine 130-2 is configured to initialize a digital model of the chemical plant to run the simulation.

The output of the initialized and executed digital model of the chemical plant may be provided by data files 130-4 and 130-5. The output can be divided into output data for the client and output data for the database.

The database server 120 includes, for example, a first database 120-1 for physical properties, a second database 120-2 for starting points, and a third database 120-3 for starting profiles. Can include.

The second database for starting points 120-2 stores data including starting points and associated hash tags that enable identifying and finding results of previously performed simulations as a starting point for the intended execution of the digital model. The hash tag may be generated by the user or by the decision server 130 or by the database server 120 according to the lookup table.

The third database for starting profiles 120-3 stores starting profiles including starting points and metadata. The metadata may be descriptive or structural-describing a chemical plant-or statistical-eg, statistics of previously performed simulations-metadata. Metasearch is performed by the database server 120 in the third database 120-3 to identify and find the results of previously performed simulations as a starting point for the intended execution of the digital model.

The starting points may be stored in both the second database 120-2 and the third database 120-3, or may be stored only in the second database 120_2.

The database server 120 may transmit physical properties and/or start profiles according to input parameters initially provided. The transmitted physical properties and/or starting profiles can be used by the simulation engine 130-2 to initialize the digital model of the chemical plant.

4 shows a schematic diagram of a system for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In step S101, the inputted input parameters are provided to the determination server 130.

In step S102, the determination server 130 initializes and converts the provided input parameters, and provides the converted input parameters to the simulation engine 130-2.

In step S103, a step of transmitting starting points and/or starting profiles from databases may be performed.

In step S104, a branching in terms of a different instruction sequence (steps S105 and S106) may be performed based on the simulation results.

In step S107, the digital model initialization of the chemical plant by the simulation engine 130-2 may be performed.

5 shows a schematic diagram of a graphical user interface 500 of a method for determining unit operations of a chemical plant for acid gas removal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The user can use the graphical user interface to specify the desired operating values within the typical range of the acid degassing chemical plant. The absorber unit may be specified, for example, by defining parameters of the operation such as lean amine temperature within a predefined range of 35° C. to 50° C. or by defining the feed gas pressure within a predefined range of 5 to 100 atm. I can. For example, this data can be provided by a first set of parameters.

The regenerator unit can be specified, for example, by defining operating parameters such as a temperature range of 110° C. to 150° C. or by defining a pressure range of 1.5 to 7 atm. This data can be provided, for example, by a first set of parameters.

The user can select the absorption medium and select or specify the desired absorption medium strength.

6 shows an image of a simulated process flow diagram 600 used in chemistry and process engineering to represent the general flow of chemical plant processes and equipment in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The simulated process flow diagram can be calculated and determined, for example, by a decision server, and the simulated process flow diagram can be visualized to the user. The simulated process flow diagram is a process piping of a chemical plant, units that operate certain chemical processes, additional equipment items, connections of gas or fluid phase streams, or any fluid flow that regulates, directs or controls. You can visualize the valves.

6 further shows an exemplary chemical plant configuration comprising an absorber unit and a regenerator unit.

The flow diagram is defined by single unit operations or a combination of gas processing units such as mixer, heater/cooler, flash stage, balance stage column and velocity based column. Single unit operations are connected by streams or interconnects. There may be recycle streams or interconnects, which may lead to the fact that changes in one unit operation affect some or all unit operations in the flowchart.

The acid gas removal plant of FIG. 6 comprises a desorption column as an absorber and a regenerator for the treatment solution. The treatment solution may comprise an aqueous amine solution as an absorption medium. Absorption media include at least one amine. The following amines are preferred.

(i) amines of formula I:

Here, R1 is a C2-C6-hydroxyalkyl group, a C1-C6-alkoxy-C2-C6-alkyl group, a hydroxy-C1-C6-alkoxy-C2-C6-alkyl group, and a 1-piperazinyl-C2-C6-alkyl group. And R2 is independently selected from H, a C1-C6-alkyl group and a C2-C6-hydroxyalkyl group.

(ii) amines of formula II:

Wherein R3, R4, R5 and R6 are independently selected from H, C1-C6-alkyl group, C2-C6-hydroxy alkyl group, C1-C6-alkoxy-C2-C6-alkyl group and C2-C6-aminoalkyl group, , X represents a C2-C6-alkylene group, -X1-NR7-X2- or -X1-O-X2-, wherein X1 and X2 represent independently of each other a C2-C6-alkylene group, and R7 is H, C1 -C6-alkyl group, C2-C6-hydroxyalkyl group, or C2-C6-aminoalkyl group.

(iii) a 5- to 7-membered saturated heterocycle having at least one nitrogen atom in the ring and which may contain one or two additional heteroatoms selected from nitrogen and oxygen in the ring,

(iv) mixtures thereof.

Specific examples are as follows.

(i) 2-aminoethanol (monoethanolamine), 2-(methylamino)ethanol, 2-(ethylamino)ethanol, 2-(n-butylamino)ethanol, 2-amino-2-methylpropanol, N- (2-aminoethyl) piperazine, methyl diethanolamine, ethyl diethanolamine, dimethylaminopropanol, t-butylaminoethoxyethanol, 2-amino-2-methylpropanol;

(ii) 3-methylaminopropylamine, ethylenediamine, diethylenetriamine, triethylenetetramine, 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-diaminopropane, hexamethylenediamine, 1,4-diaminobutane, 3 ,3-iminobispropylamine, tris(2-aminoethyl)amine, bis(3-dimethylaminopropyl)amine, tetra-methylhexamethylenediamine;

(iii) Piperazine, 2-methylpiperazine, N-methylpiperazine, 1-hydroxyethylpiperazine, 1,4-bishydroxyethylpiperazine, 4-hydroxyethylpiperidine, homopiperazine, Piperidine, 2-hydroxyethylpiperidine and morpholine; And

(iv) mixtures thereof.

In a preferred embodiment, the absorption medium is amine monoethanolamine (MEA), methylaminopropylamine (MAPA), piperazine, diethanolamine (DEA), triethanolamine (TEA), diethylethanolamine (DEEA), diiso At least one of propylamine (DIPA), aminoethoxyethanol (AEE), dimethylaminopropanol (DIMAP), and methyldiethanolamine (MDEA), or mixtures thereof.

The amine is preferably a hindered amine or a tertiary amine. Hindered amines include secondary amines in which the amine nitrogen is bonded to at least one secondary carbon atom and/or to at least one tertiary carbon atom; Or a primary amine in which the amine nitrogen is bonded to a tertiary carbon atom. One preferred hindered amine is t-butylaminoethoxyethanol. One preferred tertiary amine is methyldiethanolamine.

When the amine is a hindered amine or a tertiary amine, the absorption medium preferably further comprises an activator. Activators are generally sterically unhindered primary or secondary amines. In such sterically undisturbed amines, the amine nitrogen of at least one amino group is bound only to primary carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms.

Primary or secondary amines that are not sterically disturbed are, for example, selected from the following.

Monoethanolamine (MEA), diethanolamine (DEA), ethylaminoethanol, 1-amino-2-methylpropan-2-ol, 2-amino-1-butanol, 2-(2-aminoethoxy)ethanol and Alkanolamines such as 2-(2-aminoethoxy)ethanamine,

Hexamethylenediamine, 1,4-diaminobutane, 1,3-diaminopropane, 3-(methylamino)propylamine (MAPA), N-(2-hydroxyethyl)ethylenediamine, 3-(dimethylamino) Polyamines such as propylamine (DMAPA), 3-(diethylamino)propylamine, N,N'-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)ethylenediamine,

5-membered, 6-membered or 7-membered saturated heterocycles, e.g. piperazine, which have at least one NH group in the ring and may contain one or two additional heteroatoms selected from nitrogen and oxygen in the ring, 2-methylpiperazine, N-methylpiperazine, N-ethylpiperazine, N-(2-hydroxyethyl) piperazine, N-(2-aminoethyl) piperazine, homopiperazine, piperidine and morpho Pauline.

Particular preference is given to 5-membered, 6-membered or 7-membered saturated heterocycles which have at least one NH group in the ring and which may contain one or two additional heteroatoms selected from nitrogen and oxygen in the ring. Piperazine is very particularly preferred.

In one embodiment, the absorption medium comprises methyldiethanolamine and piperazine.

The molar ratio of the activator to the hindered amine or tertiary amine is preferably in the range of 0.05 to 1.0, particularly preferably in the range of 0.05 to 0.7.

The absorption medium generally comprises from 10% to 60% by weight of amine.

The absorption medium is preferably aqueous.

The absorption medium may further comprise a physical solvent. Suitable physical solvents are, for example, N-methylpyrrolidone, tetramethylenesulfone, methanol, oligoethylene glycol dialkyl ethers, such as oligoethylene glycol methyl isopropyl ether (SEPASOLV MPE), oligoethylene glycol dimethyl ether. (SELEXOL). The physical solvent is generally present in the absorption medium in an amount of 1% to 60% by weight, preferably 10% to 50% by weight, in particular 20% to 40% by weight.

In a preferred embodiment, the absorption medium comprises less than 10% by weight, for example less than 5% by weight, in particular less than 2% by weight, of an inorganic basic salt such as potassium carbonate.

The absorption medium may also contain additives such as corrosion inhibitors, antioxidants, enzymes, and the like. Typically, the amount of these additives ranges from about 0.01-3% by weight of the absorption medium.

The loading factor of the gas component i can be defined as follows.

The loading factor of any gas component i is the actual gas component flow rate of component i in the liquid solution and the actual gas component flow rate of the liquid solution for the equilibrium gas loading of any gas component i as a function of the composition of the absorption medium, temperature, pressure and gas phase It can be related to the ratio of the actual gas loading of component i as a function of the total flow rate.

The acceptable hydraulic rod represents an acceptable hydraulic operating regime in the absorber. This can be determined by the distance of the actual hydraulic rod to hydraulic flooding conditions. Here, the hydraulic flooding conditions refer to operating conditions in which an additional increase in gas or liquid flow rate in the absorber leads to flooding inside the absorber or in which liquid is completely introduced by the gas flow. The hydraulic load can be specified through the ratio of the actual hydraulic load in the absorber to the hydraulic load at the flooding limit. An acceptable hydraulic load may be related to or indicative of a flooding condition in the absorber, for example a flooding curve in the absorber or a column mass transfer height specific pressure drop.

The permissible hydraulic rod can be defined as follows.

The hydraulic load is the F-factor, the liquid velocity wL, the gas density of the gaseous stream in the absorber, the liquid density of the treatment solution, the gas viscosity density of the gaseous stream in the absorber, the liquid viscosity of the treatment solution, the liquid surface tension and mass of the treatment solution. It can be related to the ratio of the actual hydraulic load as a function of the F-factor and liquid velocity wL to the hydraulic load at the flooding limit, which is a function of the geometry inside the transfer or absorber. In this context, the hydraulic rod can be determined for a constant liquid to gas ratio, for a constant F-factor or for a constant liquid velocity wL. Here, the F-factor can be defined as follows.

F-factor = gas velocity * (gas density)^0.5.

Additionally or alternatively, the hydraulic load in the absorber can be based on the F-factor or liquid velocity as a relative parameter. In this case, the operating and/or dimensional parameters, in particular the absorber diameter, are determined on the basis of a given F-factor or liquid velocity. Once this determination is made, a further check is made by determining whether the resulting absorber diameter allows an acceptable hydraulic operating regime in the absorber, so that flooding conditions can be avoided. If the determined absorber diameter does not allow an acceptable hydraulic operating regime in the absorber and the flooding conditions are met, determination of the operating and/or dimensional parameters will resume or a warning will be provided via the output interface. Such warnings may be provided in addition to the input module, which may be displayed to the user.

The expression hydraulic load can also be referred to as capacity (%), safety factor or loading point.

In particular, when providing the composition in the treated outlet stream, the acceptable hydraulic load or loading factor of the treatment solution leads to overlapping specifications of the absorber height, absorber diameter or flow rate. Thus, the absorber height, absorber diameter or flow rate are parameters released in the digital model and, therefore, a result of the method in the form of dimensional and/or operating parameters. This allows input parameters to be specified in a single step, resulting in results without requiring additional manual interactions by the designer. As a result, more robust convergence is achieved with fewer iterations, resulting in higher efficiency in the design process and use of computing power. Finally, the use of this method leads to a less error prone, simpler, and more effective process for determining chemically and physically meaningful dimensions and/or operating conditions of the gas treatment plant.

In a further embodiment, the absorber input parameters comprise a loading factor of the treatment solution determined by the ratio of the equilibrium loading at the bottom of the absorber, preferably the actual to equilibrium gas loading, preferably the actual gas loading. Alternatively, the absorber input parameters may be determined by the equilibrium loading, preferably the actual loading to the equilibrium gas loading, preferably an extreme value of the ratio of the actual gas loading, e.g. a maximum or minimum value, depending on the absorber height. Includes the loading factor of the solution. In this embodiment, the extrema can be determined through a profile of the loading coefficient depending on the absorber height, where the extrema refers to a point in the profile where the first derivative is zero and the second derivative is greater or less than zero. The profile can be defined so that the extrema is the maximum.

In a further embodiment, the loading factor, determined by the ratio of the actual loading to the equilibrium loading of the treatment solution, is less than 1, preferably ≦0.95, particularly preferably ≦0.9. Here, the values can be viewed in terms of modulus. In such embodiments, the total absorber height or part of the absorber height may be considered. For example, a portion of the absorber height from the bottom of the absorber to the fraction for the top of the absorber height, for example a fraction of 0.9 or 0.8 for the top, or a fraction of 0.7 to 0.9 may be considered. Using the loading factor in this way avoids irrational or physically meaningless specifications in determining dimensional and/or operating parameters, because there is often no or very little mass transfer at the top of the absorber, so the thermodynamically important of the absorber. Because only parts are considered.

In a further embodiment, the loading factor of the treatment solution is determined based on the at least one gas component to be absorbed from the inlet stream. In a further embodiment, if more than one gaseous component to be absorbed is present in the inlet stream, the loading factor is determined as a combined loading factor comprising more than one gaseous component to be absorbed from the inlet stream. The combined loading factor accounts for the interdependencies between the gas components to be absorbed. This combined loading factor reflects the kinetic properties as well as the thermodynamic properties of the treatment solution in relation to the gas components to be absorbed. Thus, reasonable or physically meaningful results can be ensured in determining the dimensional and/or operating parameters.

The combined loading factor is the actual gas component flow rates for at least two gas components in the treatment solution and the treatment solution for equilibrium loading, which depends on the absorption medium composition, the treatment solution temperature, pressure and the composition of the gaseous or gaseous inlet stream. It can be related to the actual total flow rate or the ratio of the actual loading depending on the actual total flow rate of the absorption medium, where VLE is determined based on the gas and liquid phases at the same absorber height. Here, the absorption medium is a liquid phase without any absorbed components from the gas phase, and the solution is a liquid phase comprising any absorbed components.

In a further embodiment, the absorber input parameters include configuration parameters that specify the absorber configuration. These configuration parameters may further specify the column type, such as a packed bed or tray column, the number of segments in the column, pressure conditions such as pressure drop on the column, temperature conditions or the type of distributor for the liquid treatment solution.

In a further embodiment, process specific input parameters are provided that are included in the request and used to initialize the digital model. Process specific input parameters may include absorber input parameters, regenerator input parameters, as well as absorption medium parameters specifying properties of the treatment solution and composition of the gaseous inlet stream at the absorber inlet. If there are additional gas processing units or process units in addition to the absorber, the process specific input parameters preferably include additional parameters specifying the respective gas processing units. Alternatively, some of the parameters specifying additional gas processing units may be preset to simplify and reduce the number of process specific input parameters.

The gas treatment plant may include one or more gas treatment units, such as one or more absorber(s), one or more regenerator(s) and/or additional gas treatment units. Additionally, process units such as heat exchangers, pumps, gas compressors or gas condensers may be included in the gas treatment plant and reflected in the digital model through respective unit operations.

A gas treatment plant may comprise one or more of these gas treatment units or process units. Preferably, the process specific input parameters comprise configuration parameters specifying the gas treatment and/or process units included in the gas treatment plant and their interconnections representing streams.

In addition, configuration parameters may be predefined in whole or in part, providing a fixed set of possible configurations. These predefined configurations may be stored in a database and may be identified in process specific input parameters via one or more identifier(s) representing respective configuration parameters. Pre-defined configuration parameters guide the user by reducing the problem space and lead to a more robust and reliable determination of operating and/or dimensional parameters. In embodiments where the configurations are not entirely predefined, the method may include a consistency check to ensure that reasonable configurations are defined by the user.

In a further embodiment, the gas treatment unit preferably comprises a regenerator having at least one reboiler for regenerating the treatment solution and feeding the regenerated treatment solution back to the absorber, the following relative parameters:

i. A loading factor representing the fractional quality of the regenerated treatment solution or lean solution, or the strip steam rate, or the distance from the top of the absorber to the equilibrium capture capacity of the regenerated treatment or lean solution;

ii. Acceptable hydraulic rod representing the acceptable hydraulic operating regime in the regenerator

Player input parameters comprising at least one of are provided.

The regenerator input parameters may only indirectly include at least one of reboiler duty or regenerator diameter as relative parameters, which

i. For reboiler duty, the fractional quality or strip steam ratio of the regenerated treatment solution or the loading factor of one component at the top of the absorber, and

ii. For regenerator diameter, allowable hydraulic load on regenerator

It can be included by providing.

In one example, the player input parameters include all available relative parameters. In another example, the player input parameters include one of the available relative parameters, and the remaining player input parameters are specified via corresponding parameters.

Here, reboiler duty refers to the heat duty requirements of the regenerator that have a significant impact on the energy consumption of the gas treatment plant. The regenerator input parameters may not include at least one of reboiler duty or regenerator diameter. Instead, a fractional quality of the regenerated treatment solution or lean solution, a strip steam ratio, or a loading factor or acceptable hydraulic load of the regenerated treatment solution or lean solution at the top of the absorber may be provided.

Here, the fractional quality of the regenerated treatment solution or the lean solution refers to the concentration of one or more gas components remaining in the lean solution after regeneration. Fractional quality can be viewed as a composition specifying the proportion of one or more gaseous component(s) remaining in the lean solution. In one embodiment, the composition may be derived from analytical sensor data, such as data measured through spectral methods or chromatographic methods. Such data can be received by an input unit or an interface unit of the decision server.

The strip steam rate can be based on the water flow rate during regeneration and the acid gas flow rate during regeneration. The strip steam ratio can be defined by the ratio of the regeneration water flow rate to the regeneration acid gas flow rate. This can be determined, for example, for a constant height at the top or between the bottom and the top.

The acceptable hydraulic rod represents an acceptable hydraulic operating regime in the regenerator. This can be determined by the distance of the actual hydraulic rod to hydraulic flooding conditions. Here, the hydraulic flooding conditions refer to operating conditions in which an additional increase in the gas or liquid flow rate in the regenerator leads to flooding inside the regenerator or the liquid is completely introduced by the gas flow.

The hydraulic load can be specified through the ratio of the actual hydraulic load of the regenerator in operation to the hydraulic load at the flooding limit. An acceptable hydraulic load may be related to or indicative of a flooding condition in the regenerator, for example a flooding curve in the regenerator or a column mass transfer height specific pressure drop.

7 illustrates an exemplary embodiment for determining the _{CO 2} loading factor through the ratio of the actual loading to the equilibrium loading of the liquid phase.

One factor that allows for the relative parameters is to provide a loading factor at the bottom of the absorber or a maximum loading factor depending on the height of the absorber. Exemplary column profiles for determining the loading factor are shown in FIG. 6.

The first graphical representation of absorber height versus temperature illustrates temperature profiles in the gas and liquid phase. Providing a loading factor profile is particularly important for absorption processes with pronounced temperature expansion as shown in the first graphical representation.

This temperature expansion occurs when the heat of exothermic reaction and/or heat of absorption is released. The second graphical representation of absorber height versus CO _{2 concentration illustrates the CO 2} concentration profile in the gas.

The temperature of the gas phase and the C0 ₂ concentration determine the equilibrium loading profile of _{the C0 2} in the liquid shown by the dotted line in the third graphical representation of the absorber height versus the C0 _{2 loading.}

_{The actual loading profile of CO 2} in the liquid phase, shown by solid lines, is determined for each iteration of the equation-based solution method. The loading factor profile shown in the fourth graphical representation is defined by the actual loading of _{CO 2 in the liquid divided by the equilibrium loading.}

A loading factor value of 1 means that the equilibrium value is reached and no mass transfer occurs. This will lead to infinite absorber height as a result of the calculation to specify the _{CO 2} concentration in the treated outlet gas. Consequently, to design gas treatment plants, the loading factor must be specified with a value of <1 in order to avoid specifications that are physically impossible. A reasonable loading factor is, for example, <0.95 or <0.9.

If both CO ₂ and H ₂ S are present in the inlet gas, _{single loading factors of CO 2} or H ₂ S are misleading and may not be useful for the specification. In this case, _{the combined loading factor for CO 2} + H ₂ S is used as a specification.

In the exemplary Fig. 6 of the loading factor profile according to the absorber, it can be observed that the maximum value of the loading factor reaches the top of the absorber. _{This is because we specified the CO 2} content of the treated gas at 90% of the absorber height and the lean loading available at the top of the absorber. This maximum loading factor at the top of the absorber is acceptable and does not lead to physically irrational conditions.

However, the maximum loading factor around the maximum temperature position is important and should be limited to values of <1 as mentioned above. To ensure that the maximum loading factor is specified in the correct position, the loading factor is evaluated from the absorber bottom to the defined absorber height fraction.

8-10 illustrate the liquid phase temperature behavior, the gas phase CO2 content behavior and the determined loading factor (%) for different liquid flow rates. These examples are similar to the absorber behavior of a gas treatment plant when the liquid flow rate is changed as a parameter that depends on the plant throughput. In particular, the profiles of FIGS. 8 and 9 show a large influence on the profile shape for flow rates between 110% and 98%. Accordingly, the concentration profile of FIG. 9 and the loading factor profile of FIG. 10 show that the CO2 breakthrough occurs about 98% at the top of the absorber. Below and above 100% flow, the profile shape does not change significantly. Thus, around 100% flow, the profile shapes are the most sensitive.

This behavior of the absorber's physical quantities-the temperature and the CO2 content in the gas-is reflected in the number of iterations shown in FIG. 11 when increasing the flow rate step by step for given values. In the region between 96-98% flow rate, the converging behavior requires up to 6 times more iterations of the operation and/or the determination of dimensional parameters than above or below the region.

In the case of absorber operation in a gas treatment plant, this represents an unstable mode of operation, since the absorber will be operated near the point of CO2 gas breakthrough. Therefore, setting the flow rate to an appropriate value representing a stable absorber operation is important in designing a corresponding stable gas treatment plant. In order to ensure that this stable solution is provided for determining the operating and/or dimensional parameters, it is very advantageous to accept a loading factor as input.

Depending on whether the loading factor is determined at the bottom of the absorber or whether a maximum value is taken according to the height of the absorber, two regions capable of rapid convergence can be distinguished. At the same time, this approach ensures that the crystals produce operational and/or dimensional parameters that allow stable operation of the absorber and gas treatment plant.

The following example illustrates a significant increase in efficiency and simplification of the design process for users designing a gas treatment plant. Two different feed gas conditions are given: Case A and Case B, where only the concentrations of carbon dioxide and methane differ. All other conditions such as temperature, pressure flow rate and concentration of residual components are the same. An overview of all feed gas conditions is given in the following table.

This task is to design a _{basic CO 2} removal plant for an LNG production plant with a _{CO 2} concentration of 50 mol-ppm in the treated gas. The plant configuration should consist of absorption columns, HP flash and stripper columns. The user has to define several process parameters such as solution flow rate, absorber fill height, absorber diameter, reboiler duty and stripper diameter.

Before running the simulation, a state-of-the-art process flow simulator, plant geometry, conditions of inlet streams and application of process conditions must be defined. _{Conditions of all outlet streams, such as the CO 2} concentration of the treated gas, are the result of the calculation of the process simulator.

In order to achieve the specified acid gas concentration in the treated gas, the user has to change the process conditions mentioned above with many manual iterations until the _{required CO 2 concentration in the treated gas is reached.} The reason is that even an experienced user does not know the exact results for the operating and dimensional parameters a priori.

In addition, the user may define conditions during manual iterations, which may not lead _{to the required CO 2 concentration in the treated gas.} For example, only if the CO _{2 concentration of the lean solution is lower than the corresponding CO 2} equilibrium concentration at the top of the absorber _{can the required CO 2} concentration be reached in the treated gas. Since these conditions must be identified by the user, additional manual iterations are required.

In this example, the user has to define at least five key process parameters: solution flow rate, absorber fill height, absorber diameter, reboiler duty and stripper diameter. The following table shows the results for these five process parameters as relative values between exemplary cases A and B.

Applying the state-of-the-art process flow simulator, the user needs many manual iterations to design _{the CO 2 removal plant for Case A.} Even if the results of case A are known, case B leads to very different conditions, which are not a priori clear to the user. Thus, the user again requires many manual iterations _{for the CO 2 removal plant design for Case B.} These examples show that applying a state-of-the-art process simulator leads to many manual and time-consuming iterative steps, which makes the design process very tedious and inefficient.

Applying the invention to exemplary cases A and B, the CO ₂ concentration _{of the treated gas, the maximum loading factor for CO 2} in the absorber, the safety factor for the absorber, the loading factor for _{CO 2 at the top of the absorber and the stripper.} By specifying the five parameters of the safety factor for, the user will receive the results shown in the table above in one manual input step. This greatly simplifies the design process, shortens the design process time, and increases efficiency.

Any of the components described herein used to implement the methods described herein may be in the form of a computer system having one or more processing devices capable of executing computer instructions. The computer system may be communicatively coupled (eg, networked) to other machines over a local area network, intranet, extranet or the Internet. The computer system may operate at the capacity of a server or client machine in a client-server network environment, or may operate as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. A computer system is a personal computer (PC), tablet PC, personal digital assistant (PDA), mobile phone, web device, server, network router, switch or bridge, or a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) specifying the actions to be taken by that machine. Can be any machine that can run. Further, terms such as "computer system", "machine", "electronic network" are not necessarily limited to a single component, and individually or jointly, a set of instructions for performing any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. It should be understood that it should be taken to include any set of machines running (or multiple sets).

Some or all of the components of such a computer system may be utilized or represented by any of the components of system 100 such as client device 110, database 120 and decision server 130. In some embodiments, one or more of these components may be distributed among multiple devices, or may be integrated into fewer devices than illustrated. The computer system includes, for example, one or more processing devices, main memory (e.g., ROM, Flash memory, Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) such as synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) or Rambus DRAM (RDRAM)), static memory. (Eg, flash memory, static random access memory (SRAM), etc.) and/or data storage devices, which communicate with each other via a bus.

The processing device may be a general purpose processing device such as a microprocessor, microcontroller, central processing unit, or the like. More specifically, the processing device includes a complex instruction set computing (CISC) microprocessor, a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) microprocessor, a very long instruction word (VLIW) microprocessor, or a processor or a combination of instruction sets implementing other instruction sets. It may be a processor that implements. The processing device may be one or more special-purpose processing devices such as Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), Digital Signal Processor (DSP), network processor, and the like. The methods, systems, and devices described herein may be implemented as software in a DSP, microcontroller, or any other side-processor, or as hardware circuitry in an ASIC, CPLD, or FPGA. The term “processing device” may also refer to one or more processing devices, such as a distributed system of processing devices located across multiple computer systems (eg, cloud computing), and unless otherwise specified, as a single device It should be understood that it is not limited.

The computer system may further include a network interface device. Computer systems also include video display units (e.g., Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) displays or touch screens), alphanumeric input devices (e.g. keyboards), cursor control devices (e.g., Mouse) and/or a signal generating device (eg, a speaker).

A suitable data storage device may include a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon one or more sets of instructions (eg, software) implementing any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The instructions may also reside completely or at least partially within the main memory and/or within the processor while being executed by a computer system, main memory, and processing device that may constitute a computer readable storage medium. Instructions may be further transmitted or received over a network through a network interface device.

A computer program for implementing one or more of the embodiments described herein may be stored and/or distributed on a suitable medium such as an optical storage medium or solid state medium supplied with or as part of other hardware, but the Internet or It may be distributed in other forms, such as through other wired or wireless communication systems. However, the computer program may also be provided over a network such as the World Wide Web, and downloaded from such a network to the working memory of the data processor.

According to a further exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a data carrier or data storage medium for allowing a computer program element to be downloaded is provided, which computer program element according to one of the previously described embodiments of the present invention. Arranged to perform the method.

The terms “computer-readable storage medium”, “machine-readable storage medium” and the like refer to a single medium or multiple media (eg, a centralized or distributed database and/or associated caches and Servers). The terms “computer-readable storage medium”, “machine-readable storage medium” and the like may also store, encode or carry a set of instructions for execution by a machine, and cause the machine to perform any of the methodologies of the present disclosure. It should be considered to include any transitory or non-transitory medium that causes it to carry out one or more of Accordingly, the term “computer-readable storage medium” should be taken as including, but not limited to, solid-state memory, optical media, and magnetic media.

Some portions of the detailed description may have been presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the essence of their work to those skilled in the art. Algorithms are herein and are generally regarded as a consistent sequence of steps leading to a desired result. Steps are those that require physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, but not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals that can be stored, transmitted, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, letters, terms, numbers, etc., primarily for reasons of general use.

However, it should be borne in mind that all of these and similar terms should be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Throughout the description, "receive", "search", "send", "compute", "generate", "add", "subtract", "multiply", unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent in previous discussions. , "Divide", "Select", "Optimize", "Calibrate", "Detect", "Save", "Perform", "Analyze", "Decision, "Activate", "Identify", "Modify", "Transform Discussions utilizing terms such as “, “apply”, “extract”, and the like, describe data expressed as physical (eg, electronic) quantities within the registers and memories of a computer system. It should be understood that it refers to the actions and processes of a computer system or similar electronic computing device that manipulates and transforms information into other data that is similarly represented as physical quantities within information storage, transmission or display devices.

It should be noted that embodiments of the invention are described with reference to different subjects. In particular, some embodiments are described with reference to method type claims, while other embodiments are described with reference to device type claims.

However, those of ordinary skill in the art, unless otherwise notified, disclose any combination between features related to different subjects, in addition to any combination of features belonging to one type of subject, with this application. It will be provided above and from the following description. However, all features can be combined to provide synergies beyond the simple sum of features.

Although the present invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and the foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be regarded as examples or examples rather than limiting, and the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Other modifications to the disclosed embodiments may also be understood and practiced by practicing the invention claimed by one of ordinary skill in the art from a study of the drawings, disclosure and appended claims. In some examples, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form rather than in detail to avoid obscuring the present disclosure.

In the claims, the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the singular expression does not exclude the plural. A single processor or controller or other unit may perform the functions of several items recited in the claims. The simple fact that certain measures are mentioned in different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.

Claims (19)

A method of determining unit operations of a chemical plant, the method being performed by a computer or a distributed computer system,
i) providing a first set of parameters for unit operations (S1);
ii) providing a second parameter set for unit operations based on the provided first parameter set and data retrieved from the database (S2);
iii) determining a digital model of the chemical plant based on the first parameter set and the second parameter set (S3), wherein the digital model comprises a system of equations defining unit operations of the chemical plant;
iv) selecting the starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations (S4), where the starting points are,
-i) a first set of parameters;
-ii) a second parameter set; And
-iii) data retrieved from the database
At least partially selected from;
v) determining result settings for the unit operations of the chemical plant using the equation-based solution method for the system of equations initialized by the selected starting points (S5).
How to include. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the first parameter set and result settings determined at least in part for unit operations of the chemical plant in a database. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the step of selecting the starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations (S4) comprises at least partially starting points of the previously performed equation-based solution method of the system of equations stored in the database. The method comprising the step of selecting. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of at least partially selecting the starting points of the previously performed equation-based solution method of the system of equations stored in the database comprises determining the determined and stored result settings of the previously performed equation-based solution method. And comparing the desired result settings of the current method for, wherein optionally the first parameter set for unit operations comprises the desired settings. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the step of selecting the starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations (S4) comprises: a starting profile of one of a plurality of starting profiles through a metadata search. The method comprising selecting. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein selecting one of the plurality of starting profiles is determined based on input parameters closest to metadata associated with the starting points. 7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a first set of parameters for unit operations is provided by the client device and/or; A second set of parameters for unit operations is provided by the decision server and/or; The method in which the data is provided by a database server. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
And/or the first parameter set for unit operations includes at least one relative parameter;
And/or the second parameter set for unit operations includes at least one relative parameter;
The method wherein the data comprises at least one relative parameter. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
Providing a second parameter set for unit operations based on the first parameter set (S2),
i) providing at least one parameter not specified by the first parameter set, and/or
ii) providing at least one parameter that is a complementary parameter to the first parameter set
The method comprising a. 10. The method of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein providing a second set of parameters for unit operations based on the first set of parameters comprises chemical parameters and/or physical parameters specified by data retrieved from the database. Parameters and/or physical properties balance data motion data physical data geometry data or geometry parameter model parameters to determine non-specified or complementary parameters associated with the first set of parameters. A system 100 for determining unit operations of a chemical plant,
The system is
A database server 120 comprising a database and a decision server 130 communicatively coupled to the client device 110
Including,
Where the decision server is,
Provide a first set of parameters for unit operations,
Providing a second parameter set for unit operations based on the first parameter set and based on data retrieved from the database server,
Determine a digital model of the chemical plant based on the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters, wherein the digital model includes a system of equations defining unit operations of the chemical plant,
Select the starting points for the equation-based solution method of the system of equations, where the starting points are,
i) a first parameter set;
ii) a second parameter set; And
iii) data retrieved from the database
Is at least partially selected from,
To determine outcome settings for unit operations of a chemical plant using an equation-based solution method for a system of equations initialized by selected starting points.
The system 100 that is configured. 12. The system (100) of claim 11, further configured to store selected starting points and result settings determined for unit operations of the chemical plant in a database of the database server (120). The method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the decision server (130) provides for an equation-based solution method of a system of equations by at least partially selecting the starting points of the previously performed equation-based solution method of the system of equations stored in the database. The system 100 is further configured to select starting points. The method of claim 13, wherein the decision server (130) prior to the system of equations stored in the database by comparing the determined and stored result settings of the previously performed equation-based solution method with the desired settings of the current method for determination. The system 100 is further configured to at least partially select starting points of the performed equation-based solution method, wherein optionally the first parameter set for the unit operations includes the desired settings. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14,
The decision server 130,
i) providing at least one parameter not specified by the first parameter set;
ii) by providing at least one parameter that is a complementary parameter to the first parameter set,
The system 100 is further configured to provide a second parameter set for unit operations based on the first parameter set. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 15, wherein the decision server (130) is based on the first set of parameters by determining unspecified or complementary parameters associated with the first set of parameters using the chemical parameters specified by the data. The system 100 is further configured to provide a second set of parameters for unit operations. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 16,
And/or the first parameter set for unit operations includes at least one relative parameter;
And/or the second parameter set for unit operations includes at least one relative parameter;
The system 100 wherein the data includes at least one relative parameter. A computer program product comprising computer readable instructions that, when loaded and executed on a processor, perform a method according to claim 1. Use of the method according to claims 1 to 10 in strict model-based advanced process control.

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