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This chapter will look at field treatment and processing operations of natural gas and
other
associated
products.
The
operations
include
,dehydration,
acid
gas
Sweetening of natural gas almost always precedes dehydration and other gas plant
processes carried out for the separation of NGL.
pipeline marketing and it is necessary step is the requirement of NGL from natural
gas.
For convince a system involving field treatment of a gas project could be divided
Into 2 main stages.
Natural
gas
Removal of
acidic gases
and impurities
STAGE 1
Fractionati
on of NGL
Recovery of NGL
STAGE 2
C2
C3
C4+
Natural gas leaving the field can have some components that need to be removed
before the gas is sold to pipeline transmission company.
All the H2S ,CO2,water vapour and nitrogen should be removed from the gas before
export.
To recover and separate NGL from a bulk of gas stream requires a change in phase meaning a
new phase has to be developed for separation to take place by using one of the following.
1.An energy separating agent: like refrigeration for partial or total liquefaction and
fractionation
2. Mass separating agent: examples are adsorption and absorption(using selective hydrogen
carbons)
The main objective is to obtain natural gas as the main product free from impurities.
In addition it should be recognized that field processing units are economically justified by
NGL recovery above that obtained by conventional separation.
found at the wellhead, although still composed primarily of methane, is not yet pure.
Raw natural gas comes from three types of wells: oil wells, gas wells, and condensate wells.
Natural gas that comes from oil wells is typically termed associated gas.
This gas can exist separate from oil in the formation (free gas), or dissolved in the crude oil (dissolved
gas).
Natural gas from gas and condensate wells, in which there is little or no crude oil, is termed non
associated gas.
In addition, raw natural gas contains water vapor, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), carbon
dioxide, helium, nitrogen, and other compounds.
natural gas.
Major transportation pipelines usually impose restrictions on the make-up of the
natural gas that is allowed into the pipeline.
That means that before the natural gas can be transported it must be purified.
While the ethane, propane, butane, and pentanes must be removed from natural
gas, this does not mean that they are all waste products.
Should these hydrates accumulate, they can impede the passage of natural gas
through valves and gathering systems.
To reduce the occurrence of hydrates, small natural gas-fired heating units are
typically installed along the gathering pipe wherever it is likely that hydrates may
form.
The actual process used to separate oil from natural gas, as well as the equipment that is
used, can vary widely.
Although dry pipeline quality natural gas is virtually identical across different geographic
areas, raw natural gas from different regions may have different compositions and separation
requirements.
After liquid removal, the dry gas then travels back through the heat exchanger and is
warmed by the incoming wet gas.
By varying the pressure of the gas in various sections of the separator, it is possible to vary
the temperature, which causes the oil and some water to be condensed out of the wet gas
stream. This basic pressure-temperature relationship can work in reverse as well, to extract
gas from a liquid oil stream.
Water Removal
In addition to separating oil and some condensate from the wet gas stream, it is necessary to
remove most of the associated water.
Most of the liquid, free water associated with extracted natural gas is removed by simple
separation methods at or near the wellhead.
However, the removal of the water vapor that exists in solution in natural gas requires a
more complex treatment.
Water Removal
This treatment consists of dehydrating the natural gas, which usually involves one
of two processes: either absorption, or adsorption.
Absorption occurs: when the water vapor is taken out by a dehydrating agent.
Adsorption occurs: when the water vapor is condensed and collected on the surface.
Glycol Dehydration
An example of absorption dehydration is known as Glycol Dehydration.
In this process, a liquid desiccant dehydrator serves to absorb water vapor from the gas stream.
Glycol, the principal agent in this process, has a chemical affinity for water.
This means that, when in contact with a stream of natural gas that contains water, glycol will serve to
steal the water out of the gas stream.
Essentially, glycol dehydration involves using a glycol solution, usually either diethylene glycol (DEG)
or tri ethylene glycol (TEG), which is brought into contact with the wet gas stream in what is called
the contactor.
Glycol Dehydration
The glycol solution will absorb water from the wet gas.
Once absorbed, the glycol particles become heavier and sink to the bottom of the
Glycol Dehydration
The glycol solution, bearing all of the water stripped from the natural gas, is put
through a specialized boiler designed to vaporize only the water out of the solution.
While water has a boiling point of 212 degrees Fahrenheit, glycol does not boil until
400 degrees Fahrenheit.
This boiling point differential makes it relatively easy to remove water from the
Solid-Desiccant Dehydration
Solid-desiccant dehydrators are typically more effective than glycol dehydrators, and
are usually installed as a type of straddle system along natural gas pipelines.
These types of dehydration systems are best suited for large volumes of gas under
very high pressure, and are thus usually located on a pipeline downstream of a
compressor station.
Solid-Desiccant Dehydration
Two or more towers are required due to the fact that after a certain period of use,
the desiccant in a particular tower becomes saturated with water.
To regenerate the desiccant, a high-temperature heater is used to heat gas to a
very high temperature. Passing this heated gas through a saturated desiccant bed
vaporizes the water in the desiccant tower, leaving it dry and allowing for further
natural gas dehydration.
Adsorption Towers
The removal of natural gas liquids usually takes place in a relatively centralized
processing plant, and uses techniques similar to those used to dehydrate natural
gas.
NGL Extraction
There are two principle techniques for removing NGLs from the natural gas stream
the absorption method and the cryogenic expander process.
According to the Gas Processors Association, these two processes account for around
90 percent of total natural gas liquids production.
hydrocarbons.
The rich oil is fed into lean oil stills, where the mixture is heated to a temperature
above the boiling point of the NGLs, but below that of the oil.
This process allows for the recovery of around 75 percent of butanes, and 85 90
percent of pentanes and heavier molecules from the natural gas stream
Butane Splitter or Deisobutanizer this step separates the iso and normal butanes.
By proceeding from the lightest hydrocarbons to the heaviest, it is possible to separate the
different NGLs reasonably easily.
sour gas.
pure as possible, making it the clean burning and environmentally sound energy
choice.
Once the natural gas has been fully processed, and is ready to be consumed, it must
be transported from those areas that produce natural gas, to those areas that
require it.
Gas Treatment
When the gas is exported, many gas trains include additional equipment for further
gas processing, to remove unwanted components such as hydrogen sulfide and carbon
dioxide.
These gases are called acids and sweetening /acid removal is the process of taking
them out.
Natural gas sweetening methods include absorption processes, cryogenic processes;
adsorption processes (PSA, TSA and iron sponge) and membranes.
Gas Treatment
Gas treatment could also include calibration. If the delivery specification is for a
specific calorific value (BTU per scf or) gas with higher values can be adjusted by
adding an inert gas, such as nitrogen. This is often done at a common point such as a
pipeline gathering system or a pipeline onshore terminal.
Partners, authorities and customers all calculate invoices, taxes and payments based
on the actual product shipped out.
Often custody transfer also takes place at this point, means a transfer of responsibility or
title from the producer to a customer, shuttle tanker operator or pipeline operator.
Storage
On most production sites, the oil and gas is piped directly to a refinery or tanker terminal.
Gas is difficult to store locally, but occasionally underground mines, caverns or salt deposits
can be used to store gas.
The oil is stored in storage cells around the shafts on concrete platforms, and in tanks on
floating platforms.
Storage
On some floaters, a separate storage tanker is used. In both cases ballast handling is
important to balance the buoyancy when the oil volume varies.
For onshore fixed roof tanks are used for crude, floating roof for condensate.
STORAGE
Special tank gauging systems such as Level radars, Pressure or Float are used to
measure the level in storage tanks, cells and caverns.
The level measurement is converted to volume via tank strapping tables (dependent
on tank geometry) and compensated for temperature to provide standard volume.
Float gauges can also calculate density, and so mass can be provided.
STORAGE
Accurate records of volumes and history is kept to document what is received and
dispatched. For installations that serve multiple production sites, different qualities
make sure that the required amount of sold product is available and that sufficient
capacity is reserved for future received
STORAGE TANK
TYPES of storage tanks
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Bolted-steel tank
Welded-steel tank
Flat-sided tank
Field-welded tank
Fixed roof
Floating roof
Cone-bottom tank
h. Pipe Storage
Advantages
Easy transportation
Easy erected
Welded-steel tank
Shop-fabricated welded
Flat-sided tank:
Shape: rectangular
Good for limited space operation
: offshore operation
Field-welded tank
Provide large storage capacity @ single unit
API Spec 12D size range: 500 10,000 bbl (nominal capacity)
API Spec. 650 size range : > 10,000 bbl -> more than 150,000 bbl
Heavier gauge steel : min. thickness inch (bottom), 3/16 inch (shell & deck)
Fixed roof
Permanently attached to tank shell
Welded tanks >500 bbl
frangible
Floating roof
Tank roof floats on stored contents Used for storage @ atmospheric pressure
Move vertically within tank shell
Fabricated type:
Exposed to weather
Fixed roof
Popular: with external fixed roof
Cone-bottom tank
Can be bolted or welded tank
Provide 100% draining and removing water, water cut oil from bottom of tank w/o
coning oil into drain
marketable oil at above
Minimum corrosion on tank bottom
Easy cleaning
Pipe Storage
Special for storing & handling liquid petroleum components
Consists of number of line pipe section laid parallel to each other & interconnected
to operate as a single unit
Protected from corrosion by cathodes protection or coating paint
Cathodic Protection
To control electrochemical corrosion
Can be :
internal : self-contained sacrificial anodes
External : direct current flow onto entire surface area
cathodic
Recommended for pipe storage, pipelines, casing
state.
This section will cover only the fundamentals of interstate natural gas pipelines,
however the technical and operational details discussed are essentially the same for
intrastate pipelines.