WO2020243062A1 - Utilisation de détendeurs de fluide dense dans la récupération de liquides de gaz naturel cryogénique - Google Patents

Utilisation de détendeurs de fluide dense dans la récupération de liquides de gaz naturel cryogénique Download PDF

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WO2020243062A1
WO2020243062A1 PCT/US2020/034487 US2020034487W WO2020243062A1 WO 2020243062 A1 WO2020243062 A1 WO 2020243062A1 US 2020034487 W US2020034487 W US 2020034487W WO 2020243062 A1 WO2020243062 A1 WO 2020243062A1
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stream
dense fluid
distillation column
fluid expander
liquid
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PCT/US2020/034487
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Adam Adrian Brostow
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Uop Llc
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    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
    • F25J3/00—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification
    • F25J3/06—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation
    • F25J3/0605—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the feed stream
    • F25J3/061—Natural gas or substitute natural gas
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    • C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
    • C10G—CRACKING HYDROCARBON OILS; PRODUCTION OF LIQUID HYDROCARBON MIXTURES, e.g. BY DESTRUCTIVE HYDROGENATION, OLIGOMERISATION, POLYMERISATION; RECOVERY OF HYDROCARBON OILS FROM OIL-SHALE, OIL-SAND, OR GASES; REFINING MIXTURES MAINLY CONSISTING OF HYDROCARBONS; REFORMING OF NAPHTHA; MINERAL WAXES
    • C10G5/00—Recovery of liquid hydrocarbon mixtures from gases, e.g. natural gas
    • C10G5/06—Recovery of liquid hydrocarbon mixtures from gases, e.g. natural gas by cooling or compressing
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    • F25J3/0228—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by rectification, i.e. by continuous interchange of heat and material between a vapour stream and a liquid stream characterised by the separated product stream
    • F25J3/0238—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by rectification, i.e. by continuous interchange of heat and material between a vapour stream and a liquid stream characterised by the separated product stream separation of CnHm with 2 carbon atoms or more
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    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
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    • F25J3/06—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation
    • F25J3/063—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the separated product stream
    • F25J3/0635—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the separated product stream separation of CnHm with 1 carbon atom or more
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    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
    • F25J3/00—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification
    • F25J3/06—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation
    • F25J3/063—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the separated product stream
    • F25J3/0645—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the separated product stream separation of CnHm with 3 carbon atoms or more
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    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
    • F25J3/00—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification
    • F25J3/06—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation
    • F25J3/063—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the separated product stream
    • F25J3/065—Processes or apparatus for separating the constituents of gaseous or liquefied gaseous mixtures involving the use of liquefaction or solidification by partial condensation characterised by the separated product stream separation of CnHm with 4 carbon atoms or more
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
    • C10G—CRACKING HYDROCARBON OILS; PRODUCTION OF LIQUID HYDROCARBON MIXTURES, e.g. BY DESTRUCTIVE HYDROGENATION, OLIGOMERISATION, POLYMERISATION; RECOVERY OF HYDROCARBON OILS FROM OIL-SHALE, OIL-SAND, OR GASES; REFINING MIXTURES MAINLY CONSISTING OF HYDROCARBONS; REFORMING OF NAPHTHA; MINERAL WAXES
    • C10G2300/00—Aspects relating to hydrocarbon processing covered by groups C10G1/00 - C10G99/00
    • C10G2300/10—Feedstock materials
    • C10G2300/1025—Natural gas
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
    • C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
    • C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
    • C10L2290/06—Heat exchange, direct or indirect
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
    • C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
    • C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
    • C10L2290/54—Specific separation steps for separating fractions, components or impurities during preparation or upgrading of a fuel
    • C10L2290/543—Distillation, fractionation or rectification for separating fractions, components or impurities during preparation or upgrading of a fuel
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    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
    • F25J2200/00—Processes or apparatus using separation by rectification
    • F25J2200/02—Processes or apparatus using separation by rectification in a single pressure main column system
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
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    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
    • F25J2200/00—Processes or apparatus using separation by rectification
    • F25J2200/70—Refluxing the column with a condensed part of the feed stream, i.e. fractionator top is stripped or self-rectified
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    • F25J—LIQUEFACTION, SOLIDIFICATION OR SEPARATION OF GASES OR GASEOUS OR LIQUEFIED GASEOUS MIXTURES BY PRESSURE AND COLD TREATMENT OR BY BRINGING THEM INTO THE SUPERCRITICAL STATE
    • F25J2200/00—Processes or apparatus using separation by rectification
    • F25J2200/72—Refluxing the column with at least a part of the totally condensed overhead gas
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    • F25J2200/00—Processes or apparatus using separation by rectification
    • F25J2200/76—Refluxing the column with condensed overhead gas being cycled in a quasi-closed loop refrigeration cycle
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    • F25J2200/00—Processes or apparatus using separation by rectification
    • F25J2200/90—Details relating to column internals, e.g. structured packing, gas or liquid distribution
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    • F25J2205/02—Processes or apparatus using other separation and/or other processing means using simple phase separation in a vessel or drum
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    • F25J2235/00—Processes or apparatus involving steps for increasing the pressure or for conveying of liquid process streams
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    • F25J2240/30—Dynamic liquid or hydraulic expansion with extraction of work, e.g. single phase or two-phase turbine

Definitions

  • This invention provides improved recovery of natural gas liquids from natural gas streams. More particularly, the invention uses a dense fluid expander to result in increased recovery of ethane or propane from natural gas streams.
  • This invention relates to a process for processing natural gas or other methane-rich gas streams to produce a liquefied natural gas (LNG) stream that has a high methane purity and a liquid stream containing predominantly hydrocarbons heavier than methane.
  • LNG liquefied natural gas
  • Natural gas is typically recovered from wells drilled into underground reservoirs. It usually has a major proportion of methane, i.e., methane comprises at least 50 mole percent of the gas. Depending on the particular underground reservoir, the natural gas also contains relatively lesser amounts of heavier hydrocarbons such as ethane, propane, butanes, pentanes and the like, as well as water, hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and other gases.
  • NGL natural gas liquid
  • cryogenic processes have become popular because of the availability of economical equipment that produces power while simultaneously expanding and extracting heat from the gas being processed.
  • the richness (ethane, ethylene, and heavier hydrocarbons content) of the gas, and the desired end products may be employed.
  • the present invention is generally concerned with the liquefaction of natural gas while producing as a co product a liquid stream consisting primarily of hydrocarbons heavier than methane, such as natural gas liquids (NGL) composed of ethane, propane, butanes, and heavier hydrocarbon components, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) composed of propane, butanes, and heavier hydrocarbon components, or condensate composed of butanes and heavier hydrocarbon components.
  • NNL natural gas liquids
  • LPG liquefied petroleum gas
  • Producing the co-product liquid stream has two important benefits: the LNG produced has a high methane purity, and the co-product liquid is a valuable product that may be used for many other purposes.
  • a typical analysis of a natural gas stream to be processed in accordance with this invention would be, in approximate mole percent, 84.2% methane, 7.9% ethane and other C2 components, 4.9% propane and other C3 components, 1.0% iso-butane, 1.1% normal butane, 0.8% pentanes plus, with the balance made up of nitrogen and carbon dioxide. Sulfur containing gases are also sometimes present.
  • a feed gas stream under pressure is cooled by heat exchange with other streams of the process and/or external sources of refrigeration such as a propane compression-refrigeration system.
  • liquids may be condensed and collected in one or more separators as high-pressure liquids containing some of the desired C2+ components.
  • the high-pressure liquids may be expanded to a lower pressure and fractionated. The vaporization occurring during expansion of the liquids results in further cooling of the stream. Under some conditions, pre-cooling the high pressure liquids prior to the expansion may be desirable in order to further lower the temperature resulting from the expansion.
  • the expanded stream comprising a mixture of liquid and vapor, is fractionated in a distillation (demethanizer or deethanizer) column.
  • the expansion cooled stream(s) is (are) distilled to separate residual methane, nitrogen, and other volatile gases as overhead vapor from the desired C2 components, C3 components, and heavier hydrocarbon components as bottom liquid product, or to separate residual methane, C2 components, nitrogen, and other volatile gases as overhead vapor from the desired C3 components and heavier hydrocarbon components as bottom liquid product.
  • the vapor remaining from the partial condensation can be split into two streams.
  • One portion of the vapor is passed through a work expansion machine or engine, or an expansion valve, to a lower pressure at which additional liquids are condensed as a result of further cooling of the stream.
  • the pressure after expansion is essentially the same as the pressure at which the distillation column is operated.
  • the combined vapor-liquid phases resulting from the expansion are supplied as feed to the column.
  • the remaining portion of the vapor is cooled to substantial condensation by heat exchange with other process streams, e.g., the cold fractionation tower overhead.
  • Some or all of the high-pressure liquid may be combined with this vapor portion prior to cooling.
  • the resulting cooled stream is then expanded through an appropriate expansion device, such as an expansion valve, to the pressure at which the demethanizer is operated. During expansion, a portion of the liquid will vaporize, resulting in cooling of the total stream.
  • the flash expanded stream is then supplied as top feed to the demethanizer.
  • the vapor portion of the flash expanded stream and the demethanizer overhead vapor combine in an upper separator section in the fractionation tower as residual methane product gas.
  • the cooled and expanded stream may be supplied to a separator to provide vapor and liquid streams.
  • the vapor is combined with the tower overhead and the liquid is supplied to the column as a top column feed.
  • the residue gas leaving the process will contain substantially all of the methane in the feed gas with essentially none of the heavier hydrocarbon components, and the bottoms fraction leaving the demethanizer will contain substantially all of the heavier hydrocarbon components with essentially no methane or more volatile components.
  • this ideal situation is not obtained because the conventional demethanizer is operated largely as a stripping column.
  • the methane product of the process therefore, typically comprises vapors leaving the top fractionation stage of the column, together with vapors not subjected to any rectification step. Considerable losses of C2, C3, and C4+ components occur because the top liquid feed contains substantial quantities of these components and heavier hydrocarbon components, resulting in
  • Multi-component refrigeration employs heat exchange of the natural gas with one or more refrigerant fluids composed of several refrigerant components in lieu of multiple single component refrigerants. Expansion of the natural gas can be accomplished both isenthalpically (using Joule-Thomson expansion, for instance) and isentropically (using a work-expansion turbine, for instance).
  • the Gas Subcooled Process was developed by Ortl off Engineers, Ltd. in the late 1970’s to recover higher yields of ethane and propane from natural gas streams than the previous industry standard design.
  • the GSP design incorporates the addition of a reflux stream generated from a portion of the inlet gas which is fed as reflux to the top of the demethanizer.
  • the expander feed separator operates at a warmer temperature, which eliminates instabilities when operating too close to the phase envelope.
  • GSP also incorporates an additional reflux stream feeding the demethanizer column above the expander feed. This enables GSP to achieve significantly higher recoveries than the conventional ISS design.
  • ethane recovery mode the GSP process produces a mixed NGL product stream, typically meeting a maximum methane in ethane liquid product specification.
  • propane recovery mode a mixed LPG product stream is produced, typically meeting a maximum ethane in propane liquid product specification.
  • the residue gas product stream will contain methane or methane and ethane, depending on the mode of operation.
  • Ortl off s Recycle Split Vapor (RSV) process is an enhancement of the original GSP technology.
  • the RSV process can provide ultra-high ethane or propane recovery from natural gas streams. It can also be operated to recover only a portion of the ethane.
  • the RSV design incorporates the addition of a small reflux stream generated from residue gas which is used to supplement the usual reflux stream.
  • An additional rectification section is installed above the typical top feed point of the GSP process. The liquefied residue gas stream is then fed as reflux to the top of this new section.
  • the lower section of the tower provides bulk recovery of the desired liquid product while the top section provides the“polishing” step.
  • the RSV technology is extremely flexible, and can operate as either an ethane recovery or a propane recovery process.
  • an RSV plant can operate at flow rates significantly different than design. In the case of lower flow, higher recoveries can be achieved; for flow rates higher than design, high product recoveries can be maintained.
  • a natural gas feed which contains a mixture of hydrocarbons is cooled and partially liquefied in a feed heat exchanger.
  • the resulting two-phase mixture is then separated into vapor and liquid.
  • a portion of the vapor is expanded into a distillation column while another portion is liquefied and subcooled in a subcooler heat exchanger with the resulting liquid expanded through a valve into the same distillation column referenced above.
  • the liquid from the phase separator is also expanded into the column through a valve.
  • the invention is a system and process for treating a natural gas liquid feed.
  • the invention is a system for processing a natural gas liquid feed comprising a dense fluid expander positioned downstream from a subcooler heat exchanger, wherein the subcooler heat exchanger cools one or more reflux streams against an overhead vapor stream and a distillation column positioned downstream from said dense fluid expander.
  • the invention is a process for separating a hydrocarbon mixture into a liquid stream and a vapor stream, said process comprising the steps of first cooling a hydrocarbon feed to produce a two-phase mixture; separating the two-phase mixture into a vapor stream and a liquid stream; sending at least a portion of said vapor stream through a subcooler heat exchanger to produce a liquefied stream; sending the liquefied stream through a dense fluid expander to produce an expanded liquefied stream; and sending said expanded liquefied stream to a distillation column to produce a liquids stream and a residual gas stream.
  • Figure 1 shows a flow diagram of a natural gas liquefaction plant with the addition of the dense fluid expander.
  • Figure 2 shows a flow diagram of a natural gas liquefaction plant in which a portion of a vent gas is recycled with the addition of the dense fluid expander to the flow scheme.
  • a liquid expansion valve may be replaced by a dense fluid expander.
  • the dense fluid expander is put on a parallel line to improve efficiency in recovery of natural gas liquids. If the dense fluid expander is placed on a line parallel to a valve, efficiency is improved in that if for some reason the dense fluid expander is out of commission the plant can continue to operate in a manner similar to operation in prior art designs.
  • a dense fluid expander works similar to a pump working in reverse. It isentropically expands liquids where the reflux stream from the subcooler is in two phases. It is often referred to as a hydraulic turbine.
  • a portion of residue gas that is produced by the distillation column is recycled to be cooled in an improved version of the Recycle Split Vapor (RSV) process.
  • RSV Recycle Split Vapor
  • FIG 1 is shown one embodiment of the invention which has added the dense fluid expander 60 upstream of J-T reflux valve 64 to the upper vapor stream 66 entering column 22.
  • FIG 2 are significantly simplified but show the elements of the claimed system that are relevant to the present invention.
  • a feed stream 10 is cooled in heat exchanger 12 by heat exchange with stream 34 to produce cooled stream 14 that enters separation vessel 16 to be divided into vapor stream 48 and condensed liquid stream 18.
  • heat exchanger 12 is representative of either a multitude of individual heat exchangers or a single multi-pass heat exchanger, or any combination thereof. (The decision as to whether to use more than one heat exchanger for the indicated cooling services will depend on a number of factors including, but not limited to, inlet gas flow rate, heat exchanger size, stream temperatures, etc.) Vapor stream 48 from separation vessel 16 is divided into two streams, 48 and 50, with stream 48 continuing to heat exchanger 32 in heat exchange relation with refrigerant stream 30, resulting in cooling and substantial
  • Stream 50 enters a work expansion machine 52 in which mechanical energy is extracted from this portion of the high pressure feed.
  • the machine 52 expands the vapor substantially isentropically from a pressure of 1278 psia [8,812 kPa(a)] to the tower operating pressure, with the work expansion cooling the expanded stream 50 a to a temperature of -57° F. [-49° C.].
  • the typical commercially available expanders are capable of recovering on the order of 80-85% of the work
  • the expanded and partially condensed stream 54 a is supplied as feed to distillation column 22 at a mid-column feed point
  • the demethanizer in the distillation column also referred to as fractionation tower 22 is a conventional distillation column containing a plurality of vertically spaced trays, one or more packed beds, or some combination of trays and packing.
  • the fractionation tower may consist of two sections.
  • the upper section is a separator wherein the top feed is divided into its respective vapor and liquid portions, and wherein the vapor rising from the lower distillation section combined with the vapor portion (if any) of the top feed 66 to form the demethanizer overhead vapor (stream 30) which exits the top of the tower.
  • the lower section contains the trays and/or packing and provides the necessary contact between the liquids falling downward and the vapors rising upward.
  • the lower section also includes one or more reboilers (such as reboiler 26) which heat and vaporize a portion of the liquids 24 flowing down the column to provide the stripping vapors which flow up the column.
  • the liquid product stream 28 exits the bottom of the tower at 213° F. [101° C.], based on a typical specification of an ethane to propane ratio of 0.020: 1 on a molar basis in the bottom product.
  • the overhead distillation stream 30 leaves
  • demethanizer 22 at -73° F. [ 59° C.] and is then heated as passing through heat exchanger 32 to provide stream 34 that passes through heat exchanger 12 to produce stream 36 which is compressed by compressors 38 (which may be driven by expander 52) and 42 and cooled by heat exchangers 40 and 44 to produce residual gas stream 46 which may be used as a fuel gas.
  • Stream 48 which is cooled to produce cooled stream 58 passes through dense fluid expander 60 to stream 62, optionally through valve 64 and then stream 66 enters an upper portion of distillation column 22. A portion of stream 58 may bypass dense fluid expander 56 to flow through valve 58 to stream 60 and then to stream 66.
  • Valve 64 may be used to keep the discharge of dense fluid expander 60 single phase (liquid). It may also be eliminated and the discharge of dense fluid expander 60 may be two-phase.
  • Figure 2 has the same flow diagram as Figure 1 except that a portion of stream 46 is recycled as stream 70 to be cooled in heat exchanger 32 with a cooled stream 72 passing through valve 74 to stream 76 to enter an upper portion of distillation column 22.
  • a dense fluid expander may also be placed upstream of valve 74 or to replace valve 74 but, as the flow of reflux stream 72 is lower than the reflux stream 58, the benefit is lower.
  • the invention provides a power improvement of up to 2-3% which can be translated into a similar increase in production of natural gas liquids.
  • a first embodiment of the invention is a system for producing natural gas liquid products comprising a dense fluid expander positioned downstream from a subcooler heat exchanger, wherein the subcooler heat exchanger cools one or more reflux streams against an overhead vapor stream and a distillation column positioned downstream from the dense fluid expander.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the first embodiment in this paragraph wherein a backpressure valve is located between the dense fluid expander and the distillation column.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the first embodiment in this paragraph further comprising a Joules-Thomson valve positioned on a line parallel to the dense fluid expander.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the first embodiment in this paragraph wherein the dense fluid expander is positioned to accept the liquid feed from the dense fluid expander into an upper portion of the distillation column.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the first embodiment in this paragraph wherein the distillation column has an upper exit for a residue gas stream and a lower exit for a liquid stream.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the first embodiment in this paragraph further comprising a recycle line positioned to return a portion of the residual gas stream to the distillation column.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the first embodiment in this paragraph further comprising a dense fluid expander on the recycle line.
  • a second embodiment of the invention is a process for separating a hydrocarbon mixture into a liquid stream and a vapor stream, the process comprising the steps of cooling a hydrocarbon feed to produce a two-phase mixture; separating the two-phase mixture into a vapor stream and a liquid stream; sending at least a portion of the vapor stream through a subcooler heat exchanger to produce a liquefied stream; sending the liquefied stream through a dense fluid expander to produce an expanded liquefied stream; and sending the expanded liquefied stream to a distillation column to produce a liquids stream and a residual gas stream.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph further comprising sending the expanded liquefied stream through a backpressure valve to maintain a liquid state and then to the distillation column.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein a portion of the residual gas stream is returned to the distillation column.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein the hydrocarbon feed comprises a natural gas stream.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein the liquids stream comprises a natural gas liquids stream.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein the liquids stream comprises a mixture of propane and butane.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein the dense fluid expander increases a percentage of liquids in the expanded liquid stream.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein power produced by the dense fluid expander is recovered in a generator or is allowed to dissipate.
  • An embodiment of the invention is one, any or all of prior embodiments in this paragraph up through the second embodiment in this paragraph wherein the power is dissipated by being sent to an oil brake.

Abstract

L'invention concerne un système et un procédé de traitement d'une alimentation en liquide de gaz naturel. Dans le système, un détendeur de fluide dense est placé en aval d'un échangeur de chaleur de sous-refroidisseur. L'échangeur de chaleur de sous-refroidisseur refroidit un ou plusieurs courants de reflux contre un courant de vapeur de tête et une colonne de distillation placée en aval du détendeur de fluide dense. Une augmentation de la récupération de liquides de gaz naturel est obtenue par l'utilisation de ce système comprenant au moins un détendeur de fluide dense.
PCT/US2020/034487 2019-05-29 2020-05-26 Utilisation de détendeurs de fluide dense dans la récupération de liquides de gaz naturel cryogénique WO2020243062A1 (fr)

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US16/425,779 US20200378682A1 (en) 2019-05-29 2019-05-29 Use of dense fluid expanders in cryogenic natural gas liquids recovery

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Citations (4)

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US20050155382A1 (en) * 2003-07-24 2005-07-21 Toyo Engineering Corporation Process and apparatus for separation of hydrocarbons
WO2008155653A2 (fr) * 2007-06-19 2008-12-24 Air Products And Chemicals, Inc. Configuration de rebouilleur d'une colonne de rejet d'azote
WO2012097455A1 (fr) * 2011-01-18 2012-07-26 Jose Lourenco Procédé de récupération de liquides de gaz naturel à partir de gaz naturel dans des installations de récupération de lgn
WO2015158395A1 (fr) * 2014-04-17 2015-10-22 Statoil Petroleum As Extraction de liquides de gaz naturel et refroidissement de gaz recomprimé traité

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US7159417B2 (en) * 2004-03-18 2007-01-09 Abb Lummus Global, Inc. Hydrocarbon recovery process utilizing enhanced reflux streams

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20050155382A1 (en) * 2003-07-24 2005-07-21 Toyo Engineering Corporation Process and apparatus for separation of hydrocarbons
WO2008155653A2 (fr) * 2007-06-19 2008-12-24 Air Products And Chemicals, Inc. Configuration de rebouilleur d'une colonne de rejet d'azote
WO2012097455A1 (fr) * 2011-01-18 2012-07-26 Jose Lourenco Procédé de récupération de liquides de gaz naturel à partir de gaz naturel dans des installations de récupération de lgn
WO2015158395A1 (fr) * 2014-04-17 2015-10-22 Statoil Petroleum As Extraction de liquides de gaz naturel et refroidissement de gaz recomprimé traité

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