2.2.

6 Integrating NGL recovery and natural gas liquefaction plant

NGL recovery plants can be operated with or without an LNG plant downstream
Standalone advantages:
NGL recovery: Producing sales gas to the pipelines and sending only the required volume to
the LNG plants
Liquefaction plant: minimum gas conditioning equipment that allows LNG production
without the upstream NGL recovery plants
Independent operation increases the reliability and availability of both facilities but would
require additional costs
Integrated NGL/LNG process can eliminate duplication of heat exchangers and reduce the
pressure drop between two units
Traditionally, an LNG plant is integrated with a scrub column for removal of the heavy
hydrocarbons to avoid freeze up in the cryogenic exchanger

The scrub column normally operates at the feed gas pressure, because of the high pressure,
the scrub column can recover only about 50 to 70% of the propane while producing a bottom
product of the heavier components containing significant amounts of ethane and lighted
components.
Consequently, a deethanizer is required in additional to the traditional depropanizer and
debutanizer in an NGL recovery plant.
The scrub column uses propane refrigeration to generate reflux about -20oF, producing a
lean gas that is sent to the main cryogenic heat exchanger (MCHE)

Scrub Column

The scrub column is simple and easy to operate, however, component separation is not very
sharp and LPG recovery is limited due to the high operating pressure and relatively high
reflux temperature

The advantage of a scrub column is that it can produce a high pressure residue gas to reduce
liquefaction plant horsepower.
On the other hand, the rough separation maybe problematic with rich feed gas containing high
levels of benzene and aromatics and heavier hydrocarbons.
If they cannot be completely removed to the ppm level, they may cause waxing and freezeout in the cryogenic exchanger

Nitrogen Removal Unit

Nitrogen content in natural gas varies depending on characteristics of the gas fields.
When present in high concentration (> 5 mole%), it must be removed from the LNG product
to levels of below 1% mole in order to improve its calorific value and simplify problems
associated with the management of boil-off gas during storage and transportation
The presence of greater than about 1 mole% nitrogen in LNG may lead to auto-stratification
and rollover in storage tanks, which presents a significant safety concern.
For feed gas containing nitrogen levels of approximate 1-2mole%, nitrogen can be removed
in the end-flash section within an LNG production plant

The LNG from the main cryogenic heat exchanger (MCHE) is letdown in pressure with a
hydraulic turbine to flash off the nitrogen content.
The flashed liquid, which is reduced in nitrogen content, is pumped to the storage tanks and
the flashed vapor (contianing high levels of nitrogen) is returned to the fuel gas system by
compressing to fuel gas pressure

3 Natural Gas Liquefaction

The natural gas liquefaction process is the key component in LNG plants in terms of cost,
complexity, and operational importance.
Liquefaction technologies are based on refrigeration cycles, which take warm, pretreated feed
gas and cools and condenses it to cryogenic temperatures into a liquid product.
The refrigerant may be part of the natural gas feed (open-cycle process) or a separate fluid
continuously recirculated throung the liquefier or heat exchanger (closed-cycle process)
To achieve the extremely cold or cryogenic temperatures required to produce LNG, work
must be put into the refrigerant cycle(s) through a refrigerant compressor(s), and heat must be
rejected from the cycle(s) through air or water coolers.

Propane precooled mixed refrigerant process

The propane precooled mixed refrigerant (C3-MR) process, developed by Air Products &
Chemicals Inc. (APCI), is the most widely used liquefaction process to date.
The C3-MR process is composed of a multistage propane precooling system followed by
liquefaction using a mixed refrigerant system (made up of nitrogen, methane, ethane, and
propane).

The natural gas feed is initially cooled by a separate propane chiller package to an
intermediate temperature, approximately -35oC.
The natural gas is then liquefied and subcooled in the main cryogenic heat exchanger
(MCHE), composed of a large number of small diameter spiral-would tube bundles.
The mixed refrigerant is partially condensed by the propane chiller before entering the heat
echanger.