Project Report

Design of a TEG dehydration train model using
the glycol property package in HYSYS
Authors:
Henriette Hansen,
Alexandru Chiriac,
Nana Incoom,
Andreas Olsen.
Aalborg University, K8-11

Esbjerg, May 2013
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Aalborg University Esbjerg, Master in Oil and Gas Technology K8o
Design of a TEG dehydration train model using

the glycol property package in HYSYS
Aalborg University, K8-11

Esbjerg, May 2013
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Title page
A project from: Aalborg University Esbjerg (AAUE)

Niels Bohrs Vej 8
6700 Esbjerg
Denmark
Study: Master Degree in Oil and Gas Technology
Semester: 8th semester K8-11
Semester theme: Oil and Gas Production.
Project title: Design of a TEG dehydration train model using the glycol
property package in HYSYS.
Project period: February 2013 - May 2013.
Authors: Henriette Hansen,

Nana Incoom,
Andreas Olsen,
Alexandru Chiriac.
Supervisors: Rudi P. Nielson,

Sergey Kucheryavskiy.
Front page pictures: Offshore Gas Plan

http://www.fluor.com/projects/pages/projectinfopage.aspx?prji
d=178
Submission date: 28th of May 2013.
Esbjerg, Denmark, 28 May 2013, by:
Nana Incoom Alexandru Chiriac
Henriette Hansen Andreas Olsen
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Abstract
Well fluids that come from the reservoir to the production platform are put through a series of
separators at different pressures that will separate gas from oil and water. The produced
natural gas is saturated with water, which can cause problems in pipeline transport. To avoid
these problems, the gas has to be dehydrated.
The aim of the project was to design a TEG (Triethylene glycol) train model using the glycol
property package in HYSYS. The report studies the effects of varying the glycol flow rate,
reboiler temperature, stripping gas rate and coldfinger setup on the water content in glycol
dehydration units.
The dehydration and the regeneration sections of the process are modeled using the glycol
package in HYSYS. From simulations it is found that stripping gas can increase TEG purity
to about 99.6% if it is injected at the right rates. The coldfinger setup can also give TEG
purity of about 99.8%. TEG was also found to be very effective in the dehydration process, it
was realized that TEG could be used to remove approximately 99% of the water from the gas.
Backed by simulation results, enhanced forms of glycol regeneration such as the coldfinger
and stripping gas techniques are indeed effective.
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Table of Contents
Figures ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Tables ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 8
1. Natural Gas production ................................................................................................ 9
1.1 Gas Transport .............................................................................................................. 9
1.2 Problems Related to gas transport ............................................................................... 9
1.3 The Hydrate structure ................................................................................................ 10
1.4 Gas Treatment ........................................................................................................... 11
1.5 Safety ......................................................................................................................... 12
1.6 HAZOP completion................................................................................................... 14
2. Gas Dehydration ........................................................................................................ 15
2.1 Dehydration by absorption ........................................................................................ 15
2.2 Dehydration by Adsorption ....................................................................................... 18
2.3 Comparison of dehydration processes....................................................................... 20
2.4 Enhanced glycol regeneration ................................................................................... 21
2.5 Materials .................................................................................................................... 21
2.6 Corrosion ................................................................................................................... 23
3. Thermodynamic theory .............................................................................................. 26
3.1 Phase equilibrium ...................................................................................................... 26
3.2 Vapor/ Liquid Equilibrium (VLE) ............................................................................ 27
3.3 Liquid/ Liquid Equilibrium (LLE) ............................................................................ 28
3.4 Ideal and Non-ideal Gas ............................................................................................ 28
3.5 Equation of state (EOS)............................................................................................. 29
3.6 Comparison between Glycol Package and Peng-Robinson ....................................... 32
4. Process design ............................................................................................................ 36
4.1 Inlet Gas scrubber design .......................................................................................... 36
4.2 Contactor design ........................................................................................................ 37
4.3 Dew point depression ................................................................................................ 38
4.4 Glycol Flow Rate ...................................................................................................... 39
4.5 Number of trays required .......................................................................................... 40
4.6 Glycol Flash tank ...................................................................................................... 40
5. Simulation .................................................................................................................. 41
5.1 Dehydration simulation ............................................................................................. 41
5.2 Regeneration Simulation ........................................................................................... 42
5.3 Simulation Results..................................................................................................... 44
5.4 Summary ................................................................................................................... 48
6. Discussion .................................................................................................................. 49
7. Conclusion................................................................................................................. 51
References ................................................................................................................................ 52
Appendix .55
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Figures
Fig. 1 - Gas Hydrates plot pressure/temperature. ................................................................... 10
Fig. 2 Hydrate structure ....................................................................................................... 11
Fig. 3 Steps in HAZOP process. ........................................................................................... 13
Fig. 4 - Fault Tree Analysis .................................................................................................... 14
Fig. 5 - Schematic representation of Gas dehydration using glycol ........................................ 16
Fig. 6 - Water dew points with various concentrations of TEG ............................................. 17
Fig. 7 - Example of adsorption gas dehydration ..................................................................... 20
Fig. 8 - Main types of material................................................................................................. 22
Fig. 9 - phase equilibrium. ...................................................................................................... 27
Fig. 10 Showing deviations of non-ideal gases. .................................................................. 29
Fig. 11 - Dehydration section of simulated design .................................................................. 42
Fig. 12 - Regeneration with stripping gas. ............................................................................... 43
Fig. 13 - Coldfinger setup in simulation. ................................................................................. 44
Fig. 14 - Water removal performance of Inlet vessel. ............................................................. 45
Fig. 15 - Water content in dry gas with increasing TEG flow. ................................................ 45
Fig. 16 - Stripping gas flow and water removal performance. ................................................ 46
Fig. 17 - Stripping gas flow and Lean TEG temperature. ........................................................ 47
Fig. 18 - Heat duty of reboiler at specific regeneration temperatures. .................................... 48
Tables
Table 1 - Physical Properties of MEG, DEG, TEG, TREG. ................................................... 15
Table 2 - Representative properties of some commercial adsorbents ...................................... 18
Table 3 - General properties of steels ..................................................................................... 25
Table 4 - Parameter assignments for equation of states. ......................................................... 31
Table 5 Gas composition ...................................................................................................... 41
Table 6 TEG with stripping gas. ........................................................................................... 46
Table 7 TEG without striping gas. ........................................................................................ 46
Table 8 Coldfinger with stripping gas. ................................................................................. 47
Table 9 Coldfinger without stripping gas. ............................................................................ 47
Table 10 Water content in gas after dehydration. ................................................................. 48
Table 11 - Water mass balance. ............................................................................................... 48
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Preface
The following work is a collaboration of an intelligent resource gathering and problem

solving. Presented to the four of us (Alexandru, Andreas, Henriette, and Nana), as part of
Aalborg University Esbjerg division 8th semester project 2013 (K8o) under the Master in Oil
and Gas Technology program.
The project was provided to us by Maersk Oil and Gas A/S, who was kind enough to meet
and provide us with resources which were helpful in developing this project.
The dehydration process is setup up using HYSYS where the gas mixture is simulated using
the glycol package.
This assignment was done between February and May 2013, counting as 15 ECTS units and
considered to be 50 % of our semester work load.
Acknowledgements
We will like to address our gratitude towards:
First of all to our supervisors Rudi P. Nielson and Sergey Kucheryavskiy, who always helped
us with useful guidelines through this project, answered or guided us with relevant
information we needed to continue and finish the project.
To all 8th semester lecturers Birgit K. Storm, Svetlana N. Rudyk, Rudi P. Nielson, Sergey
Kucheryavskiy, M. Adeel Nasser, Jens Muff and Erik Gydesen Sgaard for giving good
explanations that helped in consolidating the frame work of this project.
To all our colleagues from the 8th, 9th and 10th semester Oil and Gas Technology for their help
and guidance.
And last but not least to all our family and friends who supported us during this semester.
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Introduction
When extracting natural gas from the reservoir, its important to remove the water from the
gas prior to pipeline transport as water can cause hydrate formation at low temperatures and
high pressures or corrosion when it is in contact with hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or carbon
dioxide (CO2), components regularly present in the gas stream. This problem can be resolved
by reducing the water concentration. [1]
To ensure that the pipeline does not get clogged up, and also to prevent corrosion, water
should be removed from the gas through a process known as dehydration. For hydrate
formation it is also possible to use chemicals, as its commonly used for pipeline transport
from the wellhead to the platform or on-shore processing facility.
The most commonly used method for dehydration are absorption and adsorption. Absorption
is the process of dehydration using a liquids such as glycols; in adsorption solids such as gels,
alumina and molecular sieves are used in the dehydration process. This project focuses on
dehydration by absorption using triethylene glycol (TEG). [2]
The task for the project is to design a triethylene glycol (TEG) dehydration train model using
the glycol property package in HYSYS. The design should contain a contactor modeled as a
stripper, a regenerator modeled as a refluxed column with stripping gas, reboiler and
condenser; and a coldfinger unit for additional water removal from the glycol. The design
should also be equipped with heat exchangers, flash vessels, pumps and overheads liquids
removal.
The dehydration system is modeled similar to Maersks Dan field platform in the North Sea.
The problem with the Maersks system is that the TEG has not been drying the gas well
enough for transport. This draws focus to the dehydration system and its performance. The
dry gas will then be sent on-shore while the TEG will be recycled.
The main objective of this project is to investigate the gas dehydration process and make a
HYSYS simulation of it. Chapter 5 describes the making of the simulation module and shows
all results, assumptions and decisions made. The results are assessed and discussed in the
final chapter (Conclusions).
In spite of the ongoing environmental awareness campaign, the design is environmentally

friendly, since gas flaring has been eliminated. Cost efficiency is also taken into
consideration; this is evident in the TEG regeneration process, where the glycol is recycled.
This is also done by the continuation of the recycle and the fact that one doesnt have to keep
injecting TEG.
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1. Natural Gas production
Raw natural gas can be produced from three different types of wells: oil wells, condensate
wells, and gas wells. Gas produced from oil wells is defined as associated gas which is
acquired through separation techniques of well fluids (dissolved Gas) or separate from well
fluids (free gas). Non-associated gas refers to gas produced from condensate and gas wells
from which there is little or no crude oil present. Gas wells produce only natural gas whiles
condensate produce gas with a semi liquid hydrocarbon condensate. [3]
Natural gas from oil wells is comprised of hydrocarbons such as methane, ethane, propane,
and butane. Along with other heavier hydrocarbons it also contains impurities which can have
harmful effects during processing. These impurities include; Nitrogen (N2), Carbon Dioxide
(CO2), H2S, and Water Vapors (H2O), it can cause corrosion, blow outs, and even death.
These impurities are mainly removed to reduce these risks (corrosion and poisoning).[4]
Water content
The water content of the gas is determined by the gas composition, temperature, and pressure.
If the natural gas contains 70 % or more methane, a diagram called McKetta-Wehe, pressure-
temperature correlation can be used. (See appendix A3). [5]There are several ways to
estimate the amount of water in a gas stream:
Use of equations of state.
By using the saturated water chart, developed by McKetta and Wehe.
The wet gas temperature and pressure are the most important elements in determining a
precise dehydration system design. Without this basic information, the sizing of an
appropriate dehydrator is not possible. [5]
1.1 Gas Transport
The most common way of gas transportation is through pipelines. The pipelines are designed
with adequate sizing and capacity to ensure effective transport of the gas. Pipeline sizes for
gas transport can range from 15 to 120 cm in diameter. Routine checks are conducted on
pipelines to check for corrosion and other defects, which is done with the help of a piece of
equipment known as a pig. This devise is propelled through pipelines to check for leaks,
blockage, and thickness along with other problems that might affect transportation.
Water in gas during transport causes the formation of hydrates resulting in pipeline plugs.
Corrosion is also inevitable when water is present. Natural gas extracted from reservoirs is
associated with free water which is easily removed by simple separation techniques. There
also exists water vapor in solution with the natural gas which requires a more specific and
complex method to remove. Some of these methods include dehydration in the form of either
adsorption or absorption and refrigeration or condensation. Absorption occurs when the water
vapor is removed by the use of a dehydrating agent, an example being glycol. Adsorption
involves the condensation of water vapor which is later collected at the surface of the gas. [4]
1.2 Problems Related to gas transport
Water in gas causes a wide range of problems during transportation through pipelines. These
problems include but not limited to the following:
Corrosion
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Hydrate formation
Corrosion occurs when the pipeline is exposed to water and other contaminants such as O2,
H2S, CO2, and chlorides. The nature and extent of corrosion depends on concentrations,
combinations and operating conditions of the various contaminants. Micro-organisms are also
known to cause corrosion this happens when microbes and nutrients are available along with
being in connection with water provide favorable conditions for microbial activity. Corrosion
can be controlled by monitoring the gas quality entering the pipelines and also by using
chemical corrosion inhibitors [6]
Hydrate formation occurs when the wet gas crystalizes. Many of the constituents of natural
gas (methane, ethane, isobutane, propane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and hydrogen sulfide)
form gas hydrates, these are considered solid crystalline compounds that exist below 0C and
high pressures (over 25 bars), as can be seen in Fig. 1. [6][7]
Fig. 1 - Gas Hydrates plot pressure/temperature. [8]
1.3 The Hydrate structure
Non-stoichiometric crystalline solids comprised of hydrocarbon gases trapped within the

cavities of a rigid "cage-like" lattice of water molecules. These compounds contain clusters
(two or more) of gas-trapping polyhedral, which is formed by pentagonal and hexagonally
and make up hydrogen-bonded water molecules (Fig. 2). [8]
They are known to cause pipeline plugging which in turn reduces the transmission capacity of
the pipeline. To fight against hydrates in gas fields, many inhibitors are placed into the
boreholes and pipelines (methanol, glycols, 30-percent CaCl2 solution), or the temperature of
the gas flow is maintained above the temperature of hydrate formation by means of heaters,
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insulated pipelines, or the choice of operating conditions to give maximum gas-flow

temperature. Drying is the most effective way of preventing hydrate formation in gas mains.
[7]
Fig. 2 Hydrate structure [9]
1.4 Gas Treatment
Gas treatment involves the reduction of both gaseous and liquid(oil) impurities such as
carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and other sulfur compounds (carbonyl sulfide, carbon
disulfide) commonly known as acid gases. The removal of sulfur compounds is defined as
sweetening. Sour gas refers to gases with high concentrations of sulfur compounds and those
with low and acceptable levels of sulfur concentrations are termed as sweet gas. [10]
The gas treatment process involves the following,
Oil and condensate removal.

In order to transport associated gas dissolved in oil, a lower temperature is often needed. Due
to the expansibility of natural gas, oil and condensates can be condensed out by varying
temperatures and pressures [3]
Water removal
Removal of water from associated gas can be achieved by simple separation techniques at or
near the well head. The main problem is the removal of liquid mist or water vapor in the form
of solution with the gas stream. This can be done by the applying dehydration techniques. [3]
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Dehydration
Dehydration in gas processing is the removal of water held in the vapor phase by
hydrocarbon gases. The selection of dehydration method depends on the desired level of
dehydration required, compatibility with connected process operations, economics and
experience [10].The selection of a dehydration method depends on the desired level of
dehydration required, compatibility with connected process operations, economics and
experience. [5] This process is explained further in Chapter 2 of this report.
Separation of Natural Gas liquids

Natural gas is known to exit wells with some amount of gas liquids which are commonly
removed and sold since they are of higher value as separate products. The removal of natural
gas liquids is related to the dehydration process of natural gas and involves two steps;
extraction of the liquid and the separation of these liquids to their base components. [3]
Sulfur and Carbon Dioxide Removal

Natural gas from wells may contain significant amounts of sulfur and carbon dioxide. They
have a rotten smell (sour gas) if Sulfur is present; in this case sulfur content must be removed
because of its harmful effects, such as corrosion and poisoning. The process of removing
sulfur and carbon dioxide from natural gas is termed as gas sweetening, amine or girdler
process. The process incorporates the use of amine solutions (monoethanolamine and
diethanolamine) as sulfur absorbents. Also solid desiccants like iron sponges can be used to
remove both sulfur and Carbon Dioxide. [3]
Extraction of Nitrogen
Nitrogen is extracted from sulfur and carbon dioxide free gas by the use of a nitrogen
rejection unit. Here the gas stream is further dehydrated using molecular sieve beds. The gas
stream then passes through a series of columns and a brazed aluminum plate fin heat
exchanger. The nitrogen is recovered through cryogenic distillation. Another method that can
be used involves the separation of methane and heavier hydrocarbons from nitrogen using an
absorbent solvent. [5][4]
1.5 Safety
The gas dehydration unit is one of the most hazardous processes due to its extreme
operational conditions in terms of pressure, temperature and volatility. This makes safety a
very important measure in the dehydration process. There are many ways of ensuring safety,
one of the most commonly used method is risk analysis. The risk analysis contains several
types of methods to prevent unwanted occurrences. These methods can be used alone or
together, due to the complexity of the situation.
1.5.1 Risk analysis methods

Risk analysis involves a thorough assessment of the dehydration process and taking into
consideration all situations and processes that can cause harm. The idea of making these
analyses is to implement actions, which will reduce the risk of accident occurrence. This will
in turn reduce the risk of harming people, plants, and the environment. The most common
things to review are explosions, fire, release of unwanted gases and personal injury [11]:
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The five most common risk analysis methods are:
Hazards identification will identify and evaluate possible hazards.
FMEA (failure mode and effects analysis) will identify consequences and root cause for
component failure.
Analysis of human fail (Operating) will identify human fail which will cause unwanted
consequences and find the root cause in the work instruction, processes and systems.
HAZOP (Hazard and operability study) will identify consequences of variations in process
variables like temperature, pressure, flow etc. and decide which consequences it will have for
the systems operation and safety. This method will be started up first and the other methods
will be following.
Fault Tree Analysis will be used when the unwanted occurrence is known and there should
be made a logical connection between occurrence and different root causes.
These methods can identify unwanted occurrence, find root causes, locate consequence and
come up with corrective actions. Since the HAZOP analysis is very critical, it will be the first
method to be implemented this would be the first step to ensure a safe operation.
1.5.2 Hazard and operability (HAZOP) study

HAZOP is a widely used method in the oil and gas processing industry. There are several
guidelines which help endorse HAZOP, some include: ICHQ9 Guideline, Quality Risk
Management and IEC International Standard 61882.
HAZOP is built up in such way that the process is split into smaller processes called unit
operations. These operations are then assessed individually. When a stream is transferred,
what could happen between the unit operations? Is the pressure, flow and temperature going
to increase or what will happen? The HAZOP analyze can be built up on answers to these
similar questions. The steps in HAZOP will be as shown in Fig. 3 [12].
Fig. 3 Steps in HAZOP process.
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To checking the whole system and all the process parameters, a process diagram will be used.
All parameters will be checked for deviations. The parameters are closely monitored to make
sure the operational guidelines are met.
Once a problem or concern is known in HAZOP a Fault Tree analysis can be generated (see
Fig. 4). This will help generate additional analysis to help figure out the cause of the
problem. In turn this would help in future prevention, ensuring the same problem wouldnt
occur twice. [12].
Fig. 4 - Fault Tree Analysis [13]
1.6 HAZOP completion
When the analysis is done and decisions for the corrective actions are made, considerations
have to be done to check if the decisions and corrective actions are good enough. These
considerations will have to be economical and safe. Finally the data is put into a risk
analyzing report which will be used for future safety awareness and include, how the system
is built up, function, hazards, security etc.
If all these procedures are done, the risk of accident/ failures could be minimized
significantly and lead to a reduction in the cost and injury.
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2. Gas Dehydration
The process of removing water from gas is defined as gas dehydration. The water is mostly
held as vapor in hydrocarbon gas. The removal of water from gas reduces the risk of pipeline
corrosion and eliminate blockage caused by hydrate formation. [14] In some cases
dehydration is only required to meet product specifications or enhance hydrocarbon recovery.
Dehydration can be achieved by two principal processes; adsorption or absorption. [14]
2.1 Dehydration by absorption
Dehydration by absorption is accomplished by contacting wet gas with a liquid that has a
high chemical affinity to water known as liquid desiccants. The desiccant absorbs water from
the gas and becomes wet with the water. The absorption solvent must have the following
properties. [14]
High water affinity and low affinity for hydrocarbons,

Low viscosity to enhance pumping and contact between absorbent and gas,
A good thermal stability to ensure that the degradation of the absorbent doesnt occur at
high temperatures. Degradation temperatures of some absorbents are shown in table 1,
A low potential for corrosion.
The most commonly used liquid desiccants in the absorption process are glycols;
monoethylene glycol (MEG), diethylene glycol (DEG), triethylene glycol (TEG) and
tetraethylene glycol (TREG) [14]. Table 1shows some important properties of these
desiccants.
Table 1 - Physical Properties of MEG, DEG, TEG, TREG. [15][16]

Glycol MEG DEG TEG TREG
Formula C2H6O2 C4H10O4 C6H14O4 C8H18O5
Molecular Weight, g/mol 62 106.12 150 194.2
Boiling Point @ 760 mm Hg, 197 (387) 245 (473) 288 (550) 329 (625) Decomposes
C (F)
Freezing Point, C (F) -13.4 (7.9) -9.0 (16) -4.3 (24) -4 (25)
Density, (g/cc) @ 20C (68F) 1.115 1.118 1.125 1.124
Viscosity, cP @ 25C (68F) 16.9 35.7 49.0 58.3
Degradation Temperature(C) 240 162 206 226
Ethylene glycol is mostly used for operations where brine carryover into the contactor is high
because it has a high salt holding ability, the solubility of sodium chloride in MEG is about
20wt % whiles the others range around 5%wt.[14]
Diethylene glycol (DEG) is mostly used when dehydration uniformity is required when
hydrate inhibitors are used upstream of the dehydration. They are also mostly used in colder
climates because of its lower viscosity. [14]
Triethylene Glycol is the most common absorbent for gas dehydration. Its commonly used
because it can be regenerated to high concentration without degradation; since leaner (dry)
glycol is achieved at higher operating temperatures therefore TEG would be considered ideal
due to the high degradation temperature (206C). [17]
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Tetraethylene glycol (TREG) is more expensive and viscous but has the advantage of
reducing absorber vapor loss due to its lower vapor pressure and mostly applicable in
dehydration of gases whose temperatures are more than 50C [17]. Although tetra ethylene
glycol has a higher dehydration performance, the costs involved are known to outweigh the
profit returns. This makes TEG a more viable option in terms of cost benefit analysis.
2.1.1 Process description
Fig. 5 - Schematic representation of Gas dehydration using glycol [18]
The process is divided into two sections; dehydration and regeneration. In dehydration, water
is removed from the gas using glycol and in regeneration the glycol is recovered by removing
water from it for reuse in dehydration. From Fig. 5 the dehydration section consists of the
absorber, the flash drum and a pressure control valve. The regeneration section consists of the
stripper, reboiler, and reflux drum. Heat exchangers are present in both sections and serves as
chillers or heaters. The process is described using the flow diagram and equipment shown in
Fig. 5.
Absorber
The absorber is a column in which gas is dried up by glycol. The water free glycol flows
counter-current to the rising wet gas, absorbing water from the gas and leaving the button of
the absorber with high water content (rich glycol). The counter flow in the contactor makes it
possible for the gas to transfer a high amount of water to the glycol and still be near in
equilibrium with the leanest (dry) glycol concentration.
The efficiency of the dehydration is measured by the water content in the dry gas that exists
from the top of the absorber. Fig. 6 shows the dew points that can be achieved with different
concentrations of TEG glycol as a function of absorber temperature. Dew point represents the
temperature and pressure at which a liquid begins to condense out of a gas. The dew point is
further explained in the thermodynamics section of the report.
The glycol flow into the contactor depends on the water content in the gas and number of
trays in the absorber column. Normally glycol flow ranges between 0.017 to 0.042m3 dry
TEG per kg of water in gas. [14]
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Fig. 6 - Water dew points with various concentrations of TEG [5]
Flash-drum
The wet glycol leaves the buttom of the absorber, flows through a pressure control valve,
(Pressure letdown valve, PLV) then into a flash drum.In the flash drum the wet glycol
pressure is reduced to enable light hydrocarbons,mainly methane to escape from the solution
(Glycol,water and hydrocarbons) as vapor. This process is termed as flash evaporation.
Pressure in the flash drum is generally less than 5 bar and requires a typical holdup time of
15-30 minutes.After leaving the flash drum the rich glycol is heated in a heat exchanger to
replace the heat lost during the flash process and ensure that it has the same temperature as
the stripper before entering it. [5][14]
Stripper-column (regenerator)
The stripper is a distillation column where water is separated from the glycol. The rich wet
glycol enters the stripper after it has been heated by the heat exchanger, it then flows down
and is heated by the rising vapors being boiled off the liquids in the reboiler, see below for
reboiler. The liquid gets hotter and hotter as its falls and water vapor flashes out of the liquid.
The glycols settle at the bottom and the water vapors exits from the top of the column. [5][14]
Reboiler
At the bottom, a reboiler is installed. This acts like a heat exchanger and provides the heat
required to separate the glycol from water in the stripper. The temperature is mostly based on
the degradation temperature of the glycol type being used. For TEG the recommended
maximum temperature is 206C. In Fig. 5, steam is used as the heating medium and exits as
condensate (water). The lean glycol is taken from the reboiler and recycled back into the
absorber. Before it enters the absorber, the lean glycol goes through a heat exchanger and a
pump to ensure that the temperature and pressures are equal or close to that in the absorber.
[5][14]
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Condenser
After the vapor leaves the still column, it is routed through a cooling water condenser, which
condenses the glycol vapor. [5][14]
Reflux Drum
The reflux drum acts as a distribution point and stores the condensed glycol allowing water
vapor to exit. It is mostly used to ensure that the condensed glycol enters the stripper under
controlled standards thus ensuring that the right amount of glycol is returned back into the
Stripper with the help of control devices. It is also equipped with a pump to manage flow
rates. [5][14]
2.2 Dehydration by Adsorption
Adsorption is the process where a solid desiccant is used for the removal of water or water
vapor from gas. There are two types of adsorption; physical and chemical. Chemical
adsorption involves chemical reactions causing chemical bonding between the surface and
the adsorbed molecules this process is termed chemisorption. [14][17]
In physical adsorption the dehydration is caused by physical bonds of attraction and repulsion
(van der Waals forces) between the adsorbed specie (liquid) and the solid phase. Figure 2
shows a schematic example of physical gas dehydration by adsorption. This section considers
only physical adsorption and all references relating to adsorption means physical adsorption.
Adsorbents should have the following properties [17][14]:

High surface to volume ratios
High rate of mass transfer.ie a high adsorption capacity for liquids and gases
Easy and economic regeneration
Must be strong enough to resist crushing and dust formation
It must be non-toxic, corrosion resistant and withstand small changes in volume resulting
from adsorption and desorption of water.
It must also be readily available in large quantities
The most common materials that exhibit these properties and commonly used for adsorptive
gas dehydration are silica gels (SiO2), activated alumina made up of aluminum dioxide
(Al2O3), and molecular sieves made up of alkali aluminosilicates. Table 2 shows some useful
properties of these adsorbents.
Table 2 - Representative properties of some commercial adsorbents

Property Silca gel Activated alumina Molecular sieves 4A
Shape Spherical Spherical pellets
Density(kg/m3) 720-780 750-850 720-780
Particle size(mm) 5-2 3,5,6 1.6,3.2,6
Regeneration temperature 250-280 160-220 200-315
(C)
Surface Area(m2/g) 650-830 210-360 600-800
Pore Volume(cm2/g) 0.36-0.43 0.2-0.4 0.28
Minimum moisture 10-20 5-10 0.1
content(ppmv)
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Silica gels have a high affinity for water and are commonly used when water concentration of
the gas stream is very high (>1 mole %) and are capable of achieving outlet dew points of -
51C representing water content of about 0.034g/m3.The gels are manufactured from sulfuric
acid and sodium silicate forming pure silicon dioxide and are relatively non-catalytic. They
are also known to be very stable against acidic damage and very effective in dehydrating high
acid gas concentrations. [5][14][17]
Aluminas are naturally occurring form of aluminum oxide which are activated by heating.
They are polar and strongly attract acid gases and water. They are mostly applicable in
dehydrating gas streams with moderate levels of water. They have high mechanical strength
compared to silica gels and molecular sieves and capable of achieving outlet dew points
around -68C. [5][14][17]
Molecular sieves are manufactured from aluminosilicates and are very popular in adsorption
dehydration due to their abilities to reach very low dew points (-184C) correlating to water
contents less than 0.0001 g/m3 [19]. They also have high regeneration temperatures (200-
315C) and very expensive compared to aluminas and silica gels. [5][17]
2.2.1 Process description

The adsorption process is shown schematically in Fig. 7.The process consists of two adsorber
beds. One adsorber dries the gas whiles the other goes through a regeneration cycle. One
adsorber is always on-stream to assure uninterrupted gas processing capability and the valves
automatically alternate the adsorber between adsorption and regeneration.
As shown in Fig. 7, the wet gas feed enters an inlet separator which catches any entrained
liquids before it enters the top of the active absorber bed. The gas flows through the adsorber
bed from top to down becoming dryer as it gets closer to the bottom. The dried gas exits
through a dust filter which removes the fines that may be present. [14]
It is also seen that a slip of hot gas, about 315C is returned back into the bed for regeneration
purposes i.e. heating the adsorber bed and removing adsorbed water from the adsorbent. The
hot wet regenerated gas then goes through a cooler and inlet separator (water knock out) to
remove water before it is compressed and mixed with the incoming wet gas [14][17]
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20
Regeneration Gas
Regen Gas
Compressor
Water knock out

Regen Gas
Inlet cooler
Water
Wet gas separator
Regenerating
cooling
Adsorber 1 Adsorber 2
Valve open
Regen Gas
Valve close Dust Filter
heater Dry gas
Fig. 7 - Example of adsorption gas dehydration [17]
2.3 Comparison of dehydration processes
There are a number of factors that must be considered when evaluating dehydration
processes. But in this project the comparison will be made on bases of advantages and
disadvantages.
Advantages of using adsorption over absorption [20][14][19][21]

Very low dew point temperatures can be achieved(<-50C) thats a water content of less
than 0.038 g/m3
They are less affected by small changes in gas pressure, temperature and flow rate
Disadvantages of using adsorption over absorption
Higher costs in terms of adsorbent replacement compared to glycol replacement
It requires more space and weighs more compared to the absorption process
Advantages of using absorption over adsorption [20][14][19][21]

Glycols are cheaper than adsorbents (silica gels, molecular sieves)
It is also cheaper to replace glycol than replace an adsorber bed
Lower installation costs; it is known that adsorption plants costs 50%more at
10MMscfd(million standard cubic feet per day) and 33% more at 50MMscfd
They have a lower pressure drop; -0.344 to 0.67 bars and 0.67 to 3.5 bar for adsorption.
Glycol systems are more continues and very viable for high flows as compared to
adsorption.
Disadvantages of absorption over adsorption [20][14][19]

Achieving a water dew point less than 32C (water content of 0.244g/m3) is difficult and
requires special design. Some of these additional features are explained in section 2.4. It
becomes corrosive when it is decomposed as a result of excessive high temperatures.
Adsorption is able to yield a very low dew point, thus removing more water compared to
absorption. On the other hand the absorption process is more preferred because it can still
20
21
remove water to dry gas specification. In the United States and Canada water content for dry
gas is within the range of 4-7lb/MMSCF which relates to about 0- (-9) C water dew point at
69 bar. Absorption can achieve a water dew point of -32C without any special design or
methods. [22][23]
The absorption process is also cheaper and gives a better cost benefit result than the
adsorption process.
2.4 Enhanced glycol regeneration
Enhanced glycol regeneration may be required when glycol purities of more than 98.5wt% is
required. There are several processes that can be used to reach this target. All the methods
used are based on the principle of reducing the partial pressure of water in the vapor phase.
The three most common regeneration methods are the Drizo, Coldfinger and the Stripping
gas processes. [45]
2.4.1 The Drizo process.

The Drizo method makes use of a stripping gas medium in the regeneration column. The
vapor coming out of the reboiler and still column is condensed in a three phase horizontal
separator to separate the hydrocarbons from the water, the gas is then vented into the
atmosphere, water is discharged and the hydrocarbons are recycled back into the regenerator
for use as stripping gas. The Drizo process has the advantage of recovering all BTEX
(benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene) compounds from the vapor phase before
venting gas to the atmosphere. The Drizo process can increase TEG purity to as high as
99.99%wt without the use of external stripping gas. [45]
2.4.2 The Coldfinger process.

The main principle of the process is to condense and extract the water from the vapor phase
of the lean glycol. The lean glycol is sent into a vessel which contains the cold spot. In the
vessel, lean glycol fills half of its volume whiles the other half is occupied by vapor made up
of water and glycol. The vapor phase is cooled to condense the water for removal. In order to
attain equilibrium the water in the liquid glycol will evaporate to restore equilibrium in the
vapor phase, resulting in a more concentrated glycol. The coldfinger process can achieve a
glycol purity of about 99.96%wt [45].The coldfinger process does not make use of the
stripping gas.
2.4.3 Stripping gas

Stripping gas is the most common and simplest method of enhanced glycol regeneration used
in the natural gas processing industry. The stripping gas can be any inert gas (nitrogen),
recycled natural gas (flashed gas from vertical separator after the absorber column).The
stripping gas is introduced into the reboiler to lower the water content in the vapor phase and
hence reducing the partial pressure of the water. The use of stripping gas can increase TEG
purity up to 99.98%wt.The process requires little additional equipment, making it cost
effective and widely accepted. [24][4]
2.5 Materials
The selection of an appropriate material from which to make an equipment or product is very
important and must be carefully selected to ensure that it is able to withstand all reasonable
stresses during its lifetime. The selected material broadly affects the safety, reliability and
21
22
cost of the equipment. This section of the report shows a simple method that can be used in
dehydration material selection, focusing on distillation column.
Material can be split in four main groups [25]
Metals and alloys.

Polymers.
Ceramics.
Composites
Metals have a characteristic property which allows it to conduct electricity and heat.
It is rare that pure metals are used alone; it will often be used with the alloy, i.e., a metal
composed of other metals or non- metals. Steel is iron alloyed with carbon and small amounts
of other metals. Some of the most important metals are, aluminum, copper, nickel, zinc,
magnesium, and titanium, and their alloys.
Polymer is the main element in plastic. Plastic can be described as polymer mixed with
additive, as an example plasticizers, fillers, and coloring. Well-known polymers are
polyethylene (PE), Polyamide (PA), and polystyrene (PS). Rubber is also the subgroup
polymer.
Ceramics are often composed of small crystals. They include aluminum oxide (Al2O3),
zirconium oxide (Zr2O) and others. The group ceramic materials also include cement,
concrete, and glass. Composites are materials composed of multiple materials (see Fig. 8).
[25]
Fig. 8 - Main types of material
2.5.1 Material Selection criteria

The section of the right material for the regenerator requires the following factors; there are
four main activities to be considered in the material selection process, they are function,
shape, material and process attributes.
Function of the equipment

The regenerator is made up of a reboiler which acts as a heat exchanger and a condenser
acting as a cooler. The distillation column will contain a lot of liquid and vapor working
under high pressure and temperature. The main function is to distill and remove water from
glycol at high temperatures. Under this the following factors are evaluated;
Transmit loads, and heat.
Contain pressure.
Store energy, etc. at minimum mass, or at minimum cost, or with minimum
environmental impact.
22
23
Material Attributes
Material attributes are assessed for thermal, radiation environment and chemical stability as
well as ease of fabrication.
Thermal Analysis deals with the materials ability to resist sudden changes in temperature.
Due to high temperature operations in the distillation column, the material selected must be
stable internally and externally at high and low temperature.
The material must be wieldable, cast able and ductile; ductility is the ability of a material to
deform without forming cracks or fractures. Distillations columns are normally high and built
by combining several sections.
Effects from radiation, for example from sunlight and ultraviolet radiations must also be
considered before selecting the materials for the distillations column.
The environment is always considered in modern designing, the material selected for the
regenerator must be environmentally sound. Even though this might increase it is always
important to consider this in material section. Due to environmental awareness, material
selection must be made to meet both engineering and environmental requirements and still be
cost effective.
The distillations column is placed outside on a platform, therefore there will be an aggressive
environmental nature with especially a high salinity contain in the air, which can lead to
corrosion on the distillation column.
Also inside the distillation column there could be some interactions with the material the
distillations column is build off and the fluid inside it. [40]
Process attributes and shape

The shape of the material shall be good and resistant to the following; tension, torsion and
buckling. The shape and size shall be considered together, also the shape shall be chosen such
that the function can be performed using the material selected. Under process attributes the
cost, precision and tolerances are assessed.
2.6 Corrosion
The degradation of the physical properties a material due to its interaction with the
environment is termed as corrosion. The degradation can be assessed as the weakening of the
material due to a reduction in sectional area, cracking, brittleness etc. In this report corrosion
of metals is considered since the equipment under focus will be made from metal. Corrosion
will happen if water and oxygen are present. The aggressiveness of the corrosion is depended
upon the temperature, if the temperature is high, there will be less corrosion and vice versa
with low temperature. [25] The various types of corrosion are described below:
Uniform corrosion, are same all over (thickness).

Under creep corrosion, in small spots, paint will go off and there will be pin holes.
Pitting, can causing pin holes in the material, common in stainless steel.
Disposal corrosion may be caused by continual sediment deposition in bends.
23
24
Erosion corrosion, a degradation of material surface due to mechanical action, often

by impinging liquid, particles suspended in fast flowing liquid or gas, bubbles or
droplets, cavitation, etc.
Crevice corrosion, corrosion occurring in confined spaces to which the access of the
working fluid from the limited environment. Examples of crevices could be under
gaskets.
Galvinic corrosion is an electrochemical action of different metals in contact in an
electrolyte.
Material type selection
The material type for the distillation Colum will be based on the material selection criteria
explained above. The most commonly used materials in the chemical industry are iron and
steel. Therefore the selection shall be between iron and steel.
Cast iron tends to be brittle, except for malleable cast irons. It has a relatively; low melting
point, good fluidity, cast ability, excellent machinability, resistance to deformation, and wear
resistance. Cast iron is used in pipes, machines, and automotive industry parts, such as
cylinder blocks and gearbox [27]. They are not resistant to corrosion.
Steels can be grouped into two, carbon and stainless. Carbon steel is commonly used in
engineering processes because of its low cost, wide range in sizes and easy workability. It is
also known to have a good tensile and ductile strength. The pitfall with these materials is that
they are not corrosion resistant. Stainless steels are more resistant to corrosion and are
commonly used in the chemical processes where corrosion is eminent. To make stainless
steel corrosion resistant, the chromium content must be above 12 % [27] (Refer to appendix
A9 for stainless steel composition and types).
The distillation column will be standing outside on the platform, and will be affected by the
surrounding environment including sea water (salt), storm, rain, frost, sun and other more.
Therefore there will be a big risk of corrosion on the column. The stress on the distillations
column also needs to be addressed since its not bearing structure it will only receive stresses
from the process and the exterior environment.
Table 3 shows the various properties for selection from this table it can easily be seen that
stainless steel would be the best material for the distillation based on the chromium content
making it highly resistant to corrosion. Also it has a high melting point which is very good
since the distillation Colum in the regenerator will be operating at high temperatures.
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25
Table 3 - General properties of steels [29]

Properties Carbon Cast Iron Stainless steel
3
Density (1000 kg/m ) 7,85 7,14 7,75-8,1
Elastic Modulus (GPa) 190-210 83-168 190-210
Poisssons Ratio 0,27-0,3 0,29-0,3 0,27-0,3
-6
Thermal Expansion (10 /K) 11-16,6 6.68-7.1 9,0-20,7
Melting Point (C) 1371-1454
Thermal Conductivity (W/m-K) 24,3-65,2 36-50 11,2-36,7
Specific Heat (J/kg-K) 450-2081 - 420-500
Tensile Strength (MPa) 276-1882 152-974 515-827
Yield Strength (MPa) 186-758 224-864 207-552
Percent Elongation (%) 10-32 1.5-110 12-40
Hardness (Brinell 3000kg) 86-388 156-331 137-595
Chromium content 0.05 -0.8 0.1-0.03 13-19
25
26
3. Thermodynamic theory
Thermodynamics is about the changes in the state or condition of a substance when variation
in its temperature, state of aggregation, or its internal energy.
Thermodynamics is mainly concerned with five fundamental variables:
Pressure
Volume
Temperature
Internal energy (refers to energy of the molecules internal to the substance, the molecules
will possess kinetic energy) [30]
Entropy, (which is a measure of molecular disorder in a system when any of the
fundamental properties are applied to the system)
The gas dehydration system is comprised of different separating units, which removes the
water from the gas with help of glycol it then recycles the glycol to be reused. It is important
to keep in mind that the composition of the gas is mostly methane with slight traces of other
gasses. The other gases are so small that they are virtually insignificant, however for the sake
of the project we will use the term gasses knowing fully well that it is mostly comprised of
methane.
Phase equilibrium for methane-water, TEG-water and TEG-methane should be modeled. The
methane-water and TEG-methane will be vapor-liquid equilibrium (VLE) and for TEG-water
will be liquid-liquid equilibrium (LLE).
These can be modeled by using the equation of state (EOS). This will help find the
characteristics of the pressure, temperature, and the volume for both gases and liquids.
These substance controls and predicted glycol circulation rates, purities of the lean glycol,
and the water content of the dry gas. [31]
In predicting the thermodynamic behavior of gases, various equations are used and made to
understand and make an effective and efficient decision regarding the behavior.
3.1 Phase equilibrium
The phase equilibrium depends on the temperature, pressure, and phase composition. The
basis for phase equilibrium calculation is the fugacity ().
A system with multiple phases is said to be in an equilibrium state when the chemical
potential of each specie is in the system, this will occur in all the phases. A system will
contain two or more phases in equilibrium under certain pressures and temperatures, thus
temperature and pressure is the criteria for achieving equilibrium. [30]
Phase equilibrium calculations involve fugacity, (the activity of a gas). As shown in Fig. 9.
Fugacity, is used to measures the tendency of a component in A phase to escape to B phase
and a system is said to be in phase equilibrium when,
26
27
Eq.1
Fig. 9 - phase equilibrium. [30]
Fugacity is closely related to pressure and compressibility, the fugacity coefficient which is
a measure of deviation from the ideal behavior, is used and represented by the equation. [32]
Eq.2
For ideal gases, since
For non-ideal gases, Equation

Eq.3
3.2 Vapor/ Liquid Equilibrium (VLE)
Properties for VLE data, temperature T and pressure P are uniform, mole fractions in vapor
( ) and mole fractions in liquid ( ). [30]
Fugacity
For species in the vapor mixture,
Eq.4
The criterion of vapor/liquid equilibrium, is that , therefore,
Eq.5
Vapor/liquid equilibrium based on Raoults and Henrys law will be for species i in vapor
mixture,
Eq.6
For species in the liquid phase,

Eq.7
These two equations are set to be equal and will therefore be expressed as,
Eq.8
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28
( )
Superscripts and are not used because of a presumption that and refers to the vapor
phase and and refers to liquid phase properties. Substituting
Eq.9
( )
Dewpoint and Bubblepoint

Calculations for these can be calculated by, [30]
Eq.10
Eq.11
Where ( ) apply to BUBL P, DEW P, BUBL T and DEW T.
3.3 Liquid/ Liquid Equilibrium (LLE)
The equilibrium criteria for LLE will be the same as for VLE, especially for pressure,
temperature, and fugacity ( ) for each chemical species throughout both phases. [30]
( ) Eq.12
With the introduction of the activity coefficients, this becomes:
Eq.13
3.4 Ideal and Non-ideal Gas
Ideal Gas
Most of the gases will not be truly ideal. Many gasses follow the ideal gas law very closely
with sufficiently low pressures. The law for ideal gas is:
Eq.14
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29
Where,
p = pressure
V = volume
n = amount of substance
R = ideal gas constant
T = temperature
This ideal law describes most gases in the low-density regime and also that the gas molecules
are far apart from each other.
Non-ideal Gas
It is known that when experiments are conducted at high pressures the ideal equation is not
obeyed by most gases and therefor considered as not ideal gas.
Fig. 10 shows the deviation of some gases, CO2, CH4 and N deviating from the ideal gas
behavior at higher pressures.
Fig. 10 Showing deviations of non-ideal gases. [33]
Ideal solution
In ideal solution the interaction between the molecules and forces is very small. Ideal
solutions can be assumed as diluted solution.
Non-Ideal solutions
Non-ideal solutions can be identified by determining the strength and specifics of the
intermolecular forces between the different molecules in a solution. [34]
Non-ideal solutions can occur in the following situations [34]:
When intermolecular forces between solute and solvent molecules are weaker.
When intermolecular forces between dissimilar molecules are greater than those between
similar molecules.
3.5 Equation of state (EOS)
An equation of state is a formula describing the interconnection between various

macroscopically measurable properties of a system. [35]
29
30
Equation of state has an important role in the study of the phase equilibrium of fluids and
fluid mixtures [36]. The first type of equation of state was mainly used for pure components
where later it became possible to apply to mixtures, by using the Peng-Robison Equation of
state (PR EOS).
This equation of state relates to thermodynamic variable, temperature, pressure and volume.
Cubic and non-cubic Equations of state

Equations of state can be divided into cubic and non-cubic equations. The cubic will take into
account the volume of the specie and have the advantage of easily obtaining the volume
values. A non-cubic equation is more complex to calculate, however it provides better results
than the cubic. The non-cubic is also used to predict the correct volumetric behavior of
species under critical conditions. Because of the complexity of the non-cubic equation it has
been decided to use the cubic equation of state.
In the petroleum industry the most commonly used equation of states are Van der Waals,
Soave Redlich-Kwong and Peng-Robinson. They are the simplest ways to accurately
represent the characteristics of pressure, temperature and volume of both gases and liquids.
They are mostly applicable in conditions where the ideal gas law cannot be applied.
Van der Waals (VdW) equation of state is the simplest form of cubic equations used to
represent vapor liquid equilibrium and accesses the effects of attractive and repulsive
intermolecular forces and molecule sizes. It is also the first equation to predict vapor-liquid
behavior of species and on which all the other equations of state are built upon. Van der
Waals equation is represented by the following;
Eq.15
Where,
P = pressure
V = volume
R = ideal gas constant
T = temperature
Eq.16
Where,
= critical temperature
= critical pressure
Eq.17
The symbols a represents the intermolecular forces of attraction and b represents the size of
the molecules.
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31
Redlich-Kwong (RK) improved the Van der Waals equation by including a temperature
dependence on the attraction term while Peng-Robinson(PR) and Soave Redlich
Kwong(SRK) added the acentric factor, which describes the molecular behavior of the specie.
Equation of states may also be put in the generalized form to make them applicable to all
gases and liquid. This helps in the estimation of property values when information for
calculations is limited. These equations express the compressibility factor of above
mentioned EOS as a function of reduced pressure Pr and reduced temperature Tr.
Eq.18
Eq.19
Table 4 shows the various parameter assignments when using the four most commonly used
equations of state .The main idea is to find the compressibility factor and then using it in the
non-ideal gas equation.to find the molar volumes. These compressibility factors are
calculated using the formulaes and parameter assignments shown in table 4. The Formulae
for finding the compressibility are for liquids and vapor, denoted Zl and Zv.
Eq.20
( )
Eq.21
( )
The parameters q, are parameters determined from the formulas in equation 22 and 23.
Eq.22
q=
= Eq.23
Table 4 - Parameter assignments for equation of states. [30]

Eq. of state (Tr)
vdW 1 0 0 1/8 27/64
RK 1 0 0.08664 0.42748
SRK SRK(Tr; ) 1 0 0.08664 0.42748
PR PR(Tr; ) 1+ 1- 0.07779 0.45724
SRK (Tr; ) = [1+(0.480+1.574 )( )
PR (Tr; )= [1+(0.480+1.574 )( )
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32
3.6 Comparison between Glycol Package and Peng-Robinson
This section compares the glycol package with the use of TST and Peng-Robinson EOS.
Glycol Package
The glycol package was introduced in the HYSYS simulation program in version 2004.1,
where the program publisher Aspentech was focusing especially on BTEX (benzene, toluene,
ethylbenzene, and xylene) emissions in glycol units [37]. The software HYSYS by Aspentech
is a comprehensive modeling process system along with optimization of process and
operation design, which is in use by the majority of the oil and gas companies today.
It was needed to make some extra control, which could be done by using a proper type of
dehydrating agent as TEG, DEG etc. By using the right type of dehydrating agent there could
be a saving in both operation cost and cost of treating gasses.
By using the right type of dehydrating agent and it achieves the required gas dew point in
cases where BTEX emissions are a concern, a significant savings in cost will be achieved
[38].
The Glycol package is based on the Twu-Sim-Tassone (TST) equation of state. [39]
Eq. 24
( ) ( )
Where,
P = Pressure
v = Molar volume
R = Universal gas constant
T = Temperature
a and b are constants, and are the attractive and repulsive parameters akin to those of the Van
der Waals equation of state.
The constants u and w, are depending of EOS, and for the TST equation, u = 0.5 and w =
3.0.
TST equation of state with u and w constant,
Eq.25
( ) ( )
Eq.26
Eq.27
Where,
Tc = Critical temperature
Pc = Critical pressure
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33
The critical compressibility factor Z, can be found by the equation 28, [40]
Eq.28
The TST uses Cubic Equation of State (CEOS) and Excess Helmholtz energy (AE) mixing
rules which permit a smooth transition of the mixing rules author addition, from AE models to
the conventional van der Waals one fluid mixing rules.
Helmholtz measures the useful work which is obtained from a closed system at constant
temperature and pressure.
TST also uses an excess Gibbs Energy (GE) model. Combined with the CEOS and AE mixing
rules, it allows a van der Waals fluid and highly non-ideal mixtures to be described over a
broad range of temperatures and pressures.
The Gibbs Phase Rule is useful for understanding how many intensive variables must be
specified to be fully fixed, for example, the composition of phases and streams in a process,
[41]
Helmholtz free energy is to determine by,
Eq.29
Where,
F = Helmholtz free energy
U = Internal energy
T = Absolute temperature
S = Final entropy
T and S together is energy which can be gathering from the systems environmental by
heating.
Gibbs free energy is to determine by,
Eq.30
Where,
F = Gibbs free energy
U = Internal energy
T = Absolute temperature
S = Final entropy
P = Absolute pressure
V = Final volume
T and S together is energy which can be gathering from the systems environmental by
heating. P and V together is work to give the system final volume V at constant pressure P.
33
34
Van der Waals one-fluid mixing rule,
Eq.31
Eq.32
Where,
( ) Eq.33
Eq.34
( ) ( )
Where,
kij and lij are the binary interaction parameters obtained by fitting EOS predictions to measure
phase equilibrium and volumetric data. Generally lij is set to zero.
Peng-Robinson Equation of State (EOS)
In this project it was decided to use glycol fluid package for the calculation of the phase
equilibrium. The Peng-Robinson EOS was developed before the glycol package and is one of
the most commonly used gas dehydration calculation methods.
To design a proper system it is necessary to perform complex phase equilibrium calculations.

EOS is currently the most suitable for such calculations. There are many different types of
EOS, just to mention some, PR, SRK, VdW and many others.
The simplest EOS is the ideal gas law:
Eq.35
Where:
P = is the absolute pressure
V = volume
n = moles
T = absolute temperature
R = universal ideal gas law constant
With so many EOS and mixing rules available, it can be challenging to select the most
suitable thermodynamic method for the system.
The Peng-Robinson EOS was developed for better prediction of vapor-liquid equilibrium
(VLE) calculations. As mentioned there are many different types of EOS. Some of them are
not so good at predicting the physical conditions, for example the Soave-Redlich-Kwong
(SRK) EOS does not accurately represent the liquid densities. Additionally, SRK does not
34
35
accurately represent the experimental values because of the high universal critical
compressibility factor (0.3333).
PR is corresponds to a lower critical compressibility (0.307), thus representing the VLE of

natural gas systems accurately. [28]
The Peng-Robinson EOS is representing by:
Eq.36
( ) ( )
Eq.37
Eq.38
( )
Eq.39
( )
( ) Eq.40
Eq.41
Where is the acentric factor, V is the volume, P is the pressure, R is the universal gas
constant.
Tc and Pc is the critical temperature and pressure respectively.
ac, b and K are constants.
For mixing rules for multicomponent [42]:
( ) ( ) ( ) Eq.42
Eq. 43
Eq.44
As the equation was developed for pure components, the Peng-Robinson EOS has to be
applied for mixing, with adding the mixing rules.
Comparing these two EOS, the glycol package TST EOS and the Peng-Robinson EOS, it is
shown that the difference between the two EOS is the acentric factor.
Also the compressibility factor (Z) is different from the two EOS. The compressibility factor
for the glycol package TST EOS is 0.296 and for PR EOS it is 0.307. [40]
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36
4. Process design
This section explains the process and methods used in the sizing and designing of operation
units in the dehydration process. In order to properly design the dehydration process the
following data must be taken into consideration.
Inlet gas flow rate
Inlet specific gravity
Inlet gas temperature
Inlet gas pressure
Outlet gas water content required
4.1 Inlet Gas scrubber design
The diameter of the inlet separator can be determined from TableD3 and appendix A1.These
figures are obtained from the Souders-Brown equation,
( ) Eq.45
( ) ( )
( )
Where:
VS = allowable gas velocity, (feet/sec.)
DL = actual density of the liquid, (pounds/ cu.ft.)
Dv = actual density of the vapor, (pounds/ cu.ft.)
K = empirical factor 0.35 for vertical scrubbers
The next step is to find the cross sectional area, as of the scrubber. From this the diameter can
be calculated.
AS = GS/ GA Eq.46
Where:
AS = cross section area of the scrubber, (sq. ft.)
GS = gas flow rate, (MMSCF/D)
GA = allowable gas flow rate, (MMSCF/D-sq. ft.)
Interpolating from table in appendix A1, the allowable gas flow rate can be found by using an
assumed specific gravity of 0.7, a given gas inlet temperature of 37.29 100F and inlet
pressure of 70 bar 1000 PSIG.
The required cross sectional area as of the inlet scrubber can be calculated as follows;
36
37
The inlet scrubber diameter, can be calculated from the area as,
Eq.47
Eq.48

4.2 Contactor design
The diameter of the contactor is determined either by using table D2 in appendix A2.or
calculated using the Souders-Brown equation.
( ) Eq.49
( ) ( )
( )
Where:
VC = Superficial gas velocity, (feet/h.)
DL = actual density of TEG, (pounds/ cu.ft.) Hysys generated.
DV = actual density of the gas, (pounds/ cu.ft.)
Eq.50
Where
P = Pressure of stream (Psia)
Z = the compressibility factor selected from compressibility graphs from GPSA standards
R =the universal ideal law constant (psia-ft3/lbmoleR)
MW = molecular weight of gas stream, which is calculated by the hysys program
T = Temperature (R)
CSB = Sounders brown coefficient (ft/hf) = 660 ft/hf
( ) Eq.51
( ) ( )
( )
The next step is to calculate the cross section area, Ac of the absorber from which the
diameter can be calculated.
AC = GS/ GA
Where:
AC = cross section area of the contactor, (sq. ft.)
GS = Gas volumetric flow rate, (ft3/min)
GA = Superficial gas flow rate, (ft/min.)
The gas volumetric flow rate can be found from the ideal gas law.
37
38
Eq.52
Eq.53
Where
Z = the compressibility factor selected from compressibility graphs by GPSA(Gas processors
and suppliers association) standards
n = the number of moles (lbmole/SCF)
R =the universal ideal law constant (psia-ft3/lbmoleR)
T = Temperature (R)
V = Gas flow rate (ft3/min)
Crossectional area of the trayed contactor AC, can now be calculated as.
Eq.54
Contactor diameter, can be calculated from the area Ac,
Eq.55
4.3 Dew point depression
This is a measure of the difference in water dew point between the inlet and outlet gas. The
outlet dew point DPout of a gas is found by using the table in appendix A5. The outlet water
content Wout required and the operating pressure are used to determine the outlet dew point
DPout.The inlet gas dew point DPin of a water saturated gas is similar to the inlet temperature.
At the design operating pressure of 1000psig and an exit water content specification of 4lb
water /MMSCF, the dew point depression can be calculated as follows.
38
39
Eq.56
Where:
DPDep = dew point depression, (F)
DPin = dew point of the inlet gas, (F)
DPout = dew point of the outlet gas, (F)
4.4 Glycol Flow Rate
In determining the glycol flow rate, the minimum required water content in dry gas is first
assumed to be between 4-7lbMMscf. For analysis and investigations an assumed water
content specification of 4lbMMscf is set as the standard for pipeline transport . The glycol
circulation rate needed to meet this specification is calculated as follows;
Finding the water removal rate,
( ) Eq.57
Where:
WR = water removed, (lb water/ hour)
WIN = water content of the inlet gas, (lb water/ MMSCF)
WOUT = water content of the outlet gas, (lb water/ MMSCF)
GS = gas flow rate, (MMSCF/ D)
( )
The glycol rate is obtained by multiplying the ratio of glycol to water removed, LW and the
water removal rate, WR. As a rule of thumb, most design specifications allows an Lw range
of 2-5 gallons of TEG per pound of water with the mostly preferred being 3.The greater the
water removal rate or TEG to water ratio the higher the TEG circulation rate required.
[12][46]
Eq.58
Where
L min = Minimum glycol circulation rate, (gallons/ hour)
LW = glycol/ water ratio, (gallons of glycol/ pound water removed)
WR = water removed, (lb. water/ hour)
39
40
This is the minimum glycol circulation rate required.To avoid problems associated with low
TEG flow in the dehydration unit a certain amount of over circulation is required to ensure
that problems with performance is reduced. This over specification rate normally ranges
between 10 to 30 percent above the minimum circulate rate. [12]
In the HYSYS simulation, the glycol flow rate is 618.75 gal TEG/h (2.82m3/h), representing
an over circulation rate of 10% above the minimum glycol circulation.
Comparing to figure 4.3, it can also be seen that, the removal of water from the gas becomes
constant at around 2.5 m3/h, and any further increase in glycol will not create a change in the
dehydration process.
4.5 Number of trays required
Contactor number of trays can be estimated from tables found in table A6i, Appendix A6.The
dew point depression required, DPDEP and the circulation ratio of glycol to water, lw are used
along with the pressure at which the contactor will be operating, are used in the estimation.
From the tables the total number of contactor trays is estimated at 9.In the simulation 10 trays
are used.
4.6 Glycol Flash tank
Flash separator sizing is based on the liquid or rich glycol retention time. The formula used
is;
Eq.59
Where
V = settling volume in the separator, gal.
T = Retention time, minutes.
5 minutes for 2 phase separator and 10 to 15minutes for three phases.
L= glycol circulation rate, Gal/h.
Typical sizes and settling volumes can be found in table A6ii, from appendix A6
40
41
5. Simulation
The simulation of the process is divided into two sections; dehydration and regeneration. The
thermodynamic package used for the simulation is the HYSYS glycol package. HYSYS uses
this package to predict the thermodynamic characteristics of the gas and glycol. Before the
simulation can be executed certain specifications are required, for this project the following
specifications were given.
Table 5 Gas composition

Gas flow 250MMscfd
Inlet gas temperature 37.9C
Pressure 70Bar
Molar Composition
Methane 0.88322
Ethane 0.06755
Propane 0.01995
i-Butane 0.00688
n-butane 0.00769
i-pentane 0.00388
n-pentane 0.00183
n-Heptane 0.00132
n-Octane 0.00050
n-Nonane 0.00012
n-Decane 0.00005
Water 0.00121
Nitrogen 0.00237
Carbon dioxide 0.00166
Hydrogen Sulphide 000000
Glycol
Type TEG
Lean Purity 99.5 wt%
Lean TEG Temperature 80C
Lean TEG Pressure 1.2 bar
Contactor
Pressure 70 bar
Gas temperature 25C
Glycol Temperature 30C
5.1 Dehydration simulation
In simulating the dehydration process, the wet gas stream is created with specifications from
Table 5. The gas is cooled and flashed in a vertical separator to separate the liquids from the
gas. The gas is sent to the absorber, where the water vapor is absorbed by contacting with the
TEG The Rich TEG is then reduced in pressure by a valve after which the temperature is
increased before entering the regenerator column.
41
42
In optimizing the efficiency of the dehydration section the following have to be investigated
and studied. [1]
Inlet Separator temperature

Number of trays in the contactor
Circulation rate of the glycol
The inlet separator is a two phase vessel, into which the wet gas first enters. It separates the
gas into drier gas and liquid. Fig. 11 is generated from HYSYS and shows that the flash
separation will only occur at temperatures lower than 50C.
The number of trays in the contactor is also a factor in the dehydration process. Increasing the
number of trays means increasing the contact area between the TEG and the gas, thereby
enhancing the water removal efficiency of the glycol. Most contactors are traditionally
known to contain 6-12 trays. In the simulation, an absorber with the ten trays is used. (Refer
to section 4.5 for details).In the simulation, the TEG inlet and gas outlet are at the top of the
absorber whiles the TEG outlet and rich TEG exits through the bottom. Then temperature of
the TEG is kept at 10 to 20C above the inlet gas to minimize the condensation of heavier
hydrocarbons in the absorber. [10][1]
The TEG circulation rate is based on the water content of the gas, water removal rate and the
glycol/ water ratio. For this case the TEG flow rate is about 2.82 m3/h. (Refer to section 4.4
for calculations). Fig. 11 shows the simulated dehydration section of the process.
Fig. 11 - Dehydration section of simulated design
5.2 Regeneration Simulation

The regeneration is comprised of a regenerator modeled as an absorber with a reboiler and a
condenser, a stripping gas in the reboiler and a coldfinger setup. The process of regeneration
is explained in Chapter 3 of this report. To simulate the regeneration section the following
parameters were considered.
Temperature of the reboiler in the regenerator

Amount of stripping gas to be used
Operating pressure
42
43
The degradation temperature of TEG is around 402.8F/206C, (Refer to Table 1 in Chapter

2) therefore reboiler temperatures above this will cause the TEG to degrade. Specifying the
reboiler temperature can be very tricky and involves certain steps and graph correlations.
To specify this, the Equilibrium dew point is selected using the graph shown in Fig. 6 from
Chapter 3. Based on contactor temperature and an assumed typical gas pipeline dew point
temperature of 20F/-6.7 at 70 bar psig [43], it can be interpolated from the graph
that at the simulated contactor temperature of about 70 F and a required dew point of 20 F a
TEG concentration of about 99% is required and lower dew points can be achieved by
increasing the TEG weight percent.
After selecting the weight of TEG required, the reboiler temperature can be interpolated from
Fig. 8.2 in appendix 8. From the graph it can be noted that at 99% TEG weight, a reboiler
temperature of 440 F is interpolated but TEG decomposes at temperatures above 400F, [10]
therefore the percentage purity of TEG required cannot be obtained by increasing the reboiler
temperature. To attain a TEG purity of 99.5% or higher, the stripping gas and the coldfinger
system is used.
Stripping Gas simulation

The stripping gas will perform additional water removal, as the operation of the reboiler at
400F will only vaporize and remove most of the water
The flow of the strip gas used in the simulation is selected from stripping gas to weight of
TEG graph shown in Fig. 8.1 in appendix 8. It can be traced from the graph that a TEG
weight of 99.6% will require a strip gas rate of 11 SCF/gal of TEG (76 Nm3 gas /m3of
TEG).The strip gas enters the reboiler even though HYSYS shows it as a side stream on the
regenerator column.
The TEG flow enter the regenerator at 2.758 m3/h requiring a stripping gas injection rate of
209.61Nm3 gas/h Fig. 12 shows the simulation setup for Stripping gas injection.
Fig. 12 - Regeneration with stripping gas.
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44
Column Convergence
To ensure regenerator convergence, HYSYS requires that the degrees of freedom equal zero,
this means that all variables such as condenser and reboiler temperatures, mass fraction of
required TEG purity, reflux ratio and vapor flow rate etc. must be defined. In this case
HYSYS requires two variables to be satisfied before running estimates for convergence
In the simulation modeling the following variables were defined;

Vapor flow rate of 210.0kg/h.
Mass fraction of TEG 0.996
Reboiler temperature of 400F
Condenser temperature of 210 F
Reflex ratio of 1.0
The column converges after specifying these parameters by making TEG mass fraction and
reflex ratio active whiles hysys estimates the other parameters.
Coldfinger setup
The project specification requires the inclusion of the coldfinger system, the principle behind
the coldfinger process is explained in section 2.4.2 of this report. The coldfinger method is
simulated by the use of two vertical separators. The first one simulates the flash separation
between the lean glycol and vapor (water and glycol). Whiles the second simulates the
condensation of the water from the vapor glycol from the first vessel. These results in a more
concentrated glycol compared to the lean glycol from the reboiler. Fig. 13 shows the
coldfinger setup in the simulation.
Fig. 13 - Coldfinger setup in simulation.
5.3 Simulation Results
This section explains the results obtained after simulating the whole process with given and
calculated data. The results shall be divided under dehydration and regeneration.
Dehydration
The bases for measuring the effectiveness of dehydration is the water content in the dry gas.
Fig. 14 shows the inlet gas separator temperature as a function of water content in the vapor
phase after separation in the inlet vessel. For an inlet separator temperature of 20C a water
content of molar fraction 0.0003 is expected. The water content stays constantly at 0.0012
44
45
moles at temperatures above 50C. Very low temperatures are avoided to prevent hydrate
formation.
0,0014
Water content in flashed gas
Water content (moles) 0,0012
0,001
0,0008
0,0006
0,0004
0,0002
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Inlet separator Tempeature C
Fig. 14 - Water removal performance of Inlet vessel.
In the absorber, where the final removal of water from the gas occurs by contacting with
TEG, the water content of the exit dry gas is dependent on the glycol flow rate. Fig. 15 shows
the rate of water removal with increasing TEG flow. It can also be assessed that there is a
sharp drop in water content from 1 4 m3/h of TEG flow. The graph also shows that at TEG
flows above 6 m3/h. the water contents oscillates between the values of 1.63 and 1.65 kg/h. It
is also evident that the additional water removal by TEG after 4 m3/h is very low and not
profitable enough as more TEG is required to remove very small traces of water, thus the
costs involved in operating under such flows will outweigh the profits.
In the simulation a TEG flow rate of approximately 3.0 m3/h of TEG is used in the absorber
to achieve the specified water content required.
Water content /TEG flow

1,85
Water
Water Content in dehydrated gas Kg/h
content
1,8
1,75
1,7
1,65
1,6
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
TEG flow (m3/h)
Fig. 15 - Water content in dry gas with increasing TEG flow.
45
46
Regeneration
The main purpose of the regeneration section is to remove water from the rich glycol by the
use of stripping gas and the coldfinger setup, therefore the results shall be assessed on the
effects stripping gas and the coldfinger on TEG purity.
Effect of stripping gas on TEG purity

The impact of Stripping gas on the purity of the TEG can be assessed from tables 6 and 7.
Table 6 TEG with stripping gas.

TEG purity %
Rich TEG 78.8
Lean TEG with stripping gas 99.6
Table 7 TEG without striping gas.

TEG purity%
Rich TEG 95.37
Lean TEG without strip gas 98.85
Stripping gas in the reboiler provides a leaner glycol after regeneration. From Fig. 16, it can
be assessed the effect of strip gas on water content in lean glycol is optimum at about 45 kg
mole/h increasing of the strip gas above this does not make the glycol any leaner.
40
35
Water removal by Stripping gas in
Water content in lean TEG,kg/h
30 regenerator Water removal
25
20
15
10
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Molar flow of stipping gas(kgmole/h)
Fig. 16 - Stripping gas flow and water removal performance.
Another important factor to consider is the temperature of the lean glycol exiting the
regenerator. This is assessed using Fig. 17, where it is observed that the temperature of the
lean TEG is affected by the molar flow of strip gas entering the reboiler.
The temperature of the lean TEG will only be lower than its degradation temperature of 404
F only if the molar flow of stripping gas is above 60 kg mole/h. To prevent this from
happening a strip gas flow rate of 60 kg mole/h is used.
46
47
Stripping gas and lean TEG temp

240
Lean TEG temprerature
lean TEG temperatureC
235
230
225
220
215
210
205
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Stripping Flow (kgmole/h)
Fig. 17 - Stripping gas flow and Lean TEG temperature.
Effect of the coldfinger system

From tables 8 and 9, the effect of the coldfinger setup can be assessed. It can be observed that
using the coldfinger without the stripping gas is more effective and less costly since it only
requires the installation of two additional flash separators. The other requires an additional
cost on purchase of the stripping gas.
Table 8 Coldfinger with stripping gas.

TEG TEG Purity %
Rich TEG 79.02
Lean TEG 99.7
Table 9 Coldfinger without stripping gas.

TEG TEG Purity %
Rich TEG 95.9
Lean TEG 99.8
Energy consumption.
The energy consumption is assessed by analyzing the relation between regeneration
temperature, required reboiler heat and the flow rate of TEG. The analysis is conducted by
maintaining a constant regeneration pressure of 1.2 bar and varying the regeneration
temperature and flow rate of TEG. Energy consumption was analyzed at reboiler
temperatures of 1700C and 2040C.
From Fig. 18, it can be seen that the impact of regeneration temperature on reboiler duty is
very minimal, this is due to the recuperative heat process between the rich and lean glycol in
the process. A linear relation between the molar flow and heat duty of reboiler is also
observed.
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48
8,00E+06
Reboiler heat
7,00E+06
6,00E+06
Heat flow KJ/h
5,00E+06
Regeneration at
4,00E+06 190
Regeneration at
3,00E+06
204 Celsius
2,00E+06
1,00E+06
0,00E+00
0 50 100 150
Molar flow of Rich TEG(kgmole/h)
Fig. 18 - Heat duty of reboiler at specific regeneration temperatures.
5.4 Summary
Table 10 shows the summarized dehydration potential of the simulation by comparing the
water content in the gas before and after the contactor. It can be assessed that the contactor
removes about 99.8% of water from the wet gas.
Table 10 Water content in gas after dehydration.

Medium Molar flow (Kgmole/h)
Stream 4 44.2784
Stream 28 0.0884
Difference 44.19
The evaluation of the dehydration process requires knowledge about the water mass balance.
The water mass balance is shown in Table 11. From the table an error or difference of 0.1496
is observed.
Table 11 - Water mass balance.

Stream Flow kg/h Total kg/h
In 4 271.4271 271.4271
Out 28 1.5922 271.2775
29 190.6114
12 79.0739
Error - - 0.1496
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6. Discussion
The findings from the project are mostly based on the results for the simulation. In this
section the dehydration performance of the system will be assessed and discussed based on
the simulation results. It is also realized that the simulated design is different from the
conventional absorber dehydration system as enhanced glycol regeneration techniques have
been added.
The introduction of stripping gas in the regenerator increases enhances the total dehydration
process increasing the TEG purity up to 99.6.However it was realized that a the calculated
flow rate of 209.61 Nm3gas/h. of stripping gas (nitrogen), the lean TEG exiting the
regenerator would have a purity of 99.6% but at a temperature of 246C, which is about 40 C
above the degradation temperature of TEG. It was later realized that increasing the flow rate
of the TEG above the calculated effective removal rate of 209 Nm3gas/h. can be used to
reduce the exit lean to a non-degradable temperature.
One could argue that this could be solved by simply adding a cooler. However, the cost of
running and maintaining the cooler will outweigh the cost of injecting additional stripping
gas. The excess stripping gas shows to have no effect on dew point depression.
The use of the coldfinger without stripping gas resulted in a TEG purity of 99.8% and 99.7%
with it, this shows that the coldfinger is more effective without stripping gas. Most literature
reviews also recommend the use of the coldfinger without stripping gas, but as requested by
the project specification, the simulation had to be carried out with both the stripping gas and
the coldfinger.
The effect of the inlet separator can be assessed in various ways; first of all extra water in the
inlet gas stream puts extra load on the glycol in the contactor. This causes a higher dew point
in the dry gas, for this reason the inlet separator is operated at lower temperatures to ensure
that this does not happen.
In the material section it was decided to focus on the distillation column due to its high cost
compared to other components in the system. The material that was selected was stainless
steel due to its temperature and pressure flexibility and also to minimize corrosion. Carbon-
steel is another alternative option which was looked at, however it needs surface protect and
does not handle higher temperature well. The long term cost benefits still weighs in favor of
stainless steel despite the initial lower cost of carbon steel.
Venting of hydrocarbons from regenerator is a problem in most dehydration facilities. In this

simulation this problem is kept by condensing and recycling back into the contactor. This
closed loop in the system makes it environmentally sound. These vapors are comprised of
57% Nitrogen along with 43% of other gases it can therefore be used as stripping gas.
Heat consumption of the reboiler was found to be linearly dependent on the molar flow of
rich TEG and less affected by the regeneration temperature. Adding stripping gas reduces the
heat required for the vaporization of the water from the glycol.
In this project it was decided from the beginning that the glycol fluid package should be used
for the dehydration system in HYSYS. The fluid packages combine and give the composition
along with theirs properties. The fluid packages analysis physical properties for the stream
49
50
including thermodynamic. The glycol package is one of the newest types of equation of state
(EOS) it was developed after PR EOS. The glycol package is developed by HYSYS and
based on the TST EOS which does not take into consideration the molecular structure of the
gasses. However the glycol package focuses on the vapor/liquid equilibrium predictions,
which is of high significances when working with a dehydration system.
In this simulation the glycol package has shown that the vapor/liquid equilibrium (VLE) was
able to be predicted by keeping the water content in the gas over the critical temperatures and
pressures. The glycol package focuses more on the critical temperature while PR takes a
broader approach, looking at shapes, behaviors, and other factors which are not relevant in
this project.
Additionally, the glycol package shows a smaller deviation (0.7) from ideal gas behavior
when compared with the PR EOS (0.8).
50
51
7. Conclusion
With the help of HYSYS simulation it can be concluded that the water content in natural gas
can be reduced with the help of TEG with high purity content, the simulation also showed
that TEG purity can be increased to about 99.9%wt with the help of the coldfinger unit and
stripping gas injection in the reboiler.
Peng-Robinson (PR) equation of state (EOS) is commonly used and mentioned in the oil and
gas industry, while the glycol package is only discussed in relation with HYSYS, keeping in
mind the glycol package is not an EOS, however uses TST EOS. PR EOS is better in
predicting the volume of hydrocarbons in a separation train with oil and gas. The glycol
package shows a more ideal behavior when compared with PR EOS.
Due to the low water content in the composition, the project focus on water removal almost
seems unnecessary. However using the simulation it shows that it was possible to remove
even more water. The results obtained by using HYSYS for simulating shows the additional
water removal by the use of a TEG regeneration train. This in turn gave a better process
understanding which can be related to real world situations.
The entire project has been an educational experience that allowed out of box thinking along
with providing a real world aspect to how business projects are conducted.
51
52
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Design of a TEG dehydration train model using

the glycol property package in HYSYS

Aalborg University, K8-11

Design of a TEG dehydration train model using

Aalborg University, K8-11

A project from: Aalborg University Esbjerg (AAUE)

Study: Master Degree in Oil and Gas Technology

Semester: 8th semester K8-11

Semester theme: Oil and Gas Production.

Project period: February 2013 - May 2013.

Authors: Henriette Hansen,

Supervisors: Rudi P. Nielson,

Front page pictures: Offshore Gas Plan

Submission date: 28th of May 2013.

Esbjerg, Denmark, 28 May 2013, by:

Nana Incoom Alexandru Chiriac

Henriette Hansen Andreas Olsen

The following work is a collaboration of an intelligent resource gathering and problem

We will like to address our gratitude towards:

In spite of the ongoing environmental awareness campaign, the design is environmentally

1. Natural Gas production

1.1 Gas Transport

1.2 Problems Related to gas transport

Fig. 1 - Gas Hydrates plot pressure/temperature. [8]

1.3 The Hydrate structure

Non-stoichiometric crystalline solids comprised of hydrocarbon gases trapped within the

insulated pipelines, or the choice of operating conditions to give maximum gas-flow

Fig. 2 Hydrate structure [9]

1.4 Gas Treatment

Oil and condensate removal.

Separation of Natural Gas liquids

Sulfur and Carbon Dioxide Removal

1.5.1 Risk analysis methods

The five most common risk analysis methods are:

Hazards identification will identify and evaluate possible hazards.

1.5.2 Hazard and operability (HAZOP) study

Fig. 3 Steps in HAZOP process.

Fig. 4 - Fault Tree Analysis [13]

1.6 HAZOP completion

2.1 Dehydration by absorption

High water affinity and low affinity for hydrocarbons,

Table 1 - Physical Properties of MEG, DEG, TEG, TREG. [15][16]

2.1.1 Process description

Fig. 5 - Schematic representation of Gas dehydration using glycol [18]

Fig. 6 - Water dew points with various concentrations of TEG [5]

2.2 Dehydration by Adsorption

Adsorbents should have the following properties [17][14]:

Table 2 - Representative properties of some commercial adsorbents

2.2.1 Process description

Water knock out

Fig. 7 - Example of adsorption gas dehydration [17]

2.3 Comparison of dehydration processes

Advantages of using adsorption over absorption [20][14][19][21]

Advantages of using absorption over adsorption [20][14][19][21]

Disadvantages of absorption over adsorption [20][14][19]

2.4 Enhanced glycol regeneration

2.4.1 The Drizo process.

2.4.2 The Coldfinger process.

2.4.3 Stripping gas

Metals and alloys.

Fig. 8 - Main types of material

2.5.1 Material Selection criteria

Function of the equipment

Process attributes and shape