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1.2-Membrane Fundamentals:
1.2.1-Membranes:
Membranes are thin semipermeable barriers that selectively separate some compounds from others. This definition is necessarily broad because of the large variety of membrane materials separating an equally vast number of compounds in all phases.
The key requirements for a membrane to be used in an economical gas purification or separation process are: 1) High permeability for the component to be removed 2) High selectivity for the component to be removed in relation to other components
2 3) High membrane stability in the presence of all gas components which will come into con4) Uniformity--freedom from pinholes or other defect tact with the membrane 5) Low effective thickness of the active portion of the membrane to ensure a high permeation 6) Physical strength to withstand the required operating conditions
Applications include:
Ceramic membranes for gas purification in the semiconductor industry Palladium-based metallic membranes for hydrogen extraction Silicon rubber membranes for organic vapor recovery from air Polyvinyl alcohol-based membranes for ethanol dehydration
J is the membrane flux of Gas, that is, the molar flow of gas through the membrane per unit area of membrane.
3 k is the solubility of gas in the membrane. D is the diffusion coefficient of gas through the membrane. p is the partial pressure difference of gas between the feed (high pressure) and permeate (low pressure) side of the membrane. l is the membrane thickness. To simplify matters further, the solubility and diffusion coefficients are usually combined into a new variable called permeability (P). Ficks law can therefore be split into two portions: a membrane dependent portion (P/ ) and a process-dependent portion (p). To achieve a high flux, the correct membrane material and the correct processing conditions are needed. P/ is not a constant; it is sensitive to a variety of operating conditions such as temperature and pressure. The Ficks law equation can be equally written for methane or any other component in the stream. This set of equations leads to the definition of a second important variable called selectivity (). Selectivity is the ratio of the permeabilities of gas to other components in the stream and is a measure of how much better the membrane permeates gas compared to the compound in question. For example, most gas membranes provide a gas-to-methane selectivity anywhere between 5 and 30, meaning that gas permeates the membrane 5 to 30 times faster than methane. Both permeability and selectivity are important considerations when selecting a membrane. The higher the permeability, the less membrane area is required for a given separation and therefore the lower the system cost. The higher the selectivity, the lower the losses of hydrocarbons as gas is removed and therefore the higher the volume of salable product.
i-Spiral-wound Configuration;
In the spiral-wound configuration an envelope is formed with two membrane sheets separated by a porous support material. Typically the module consists of several such envelopes. The material between the membranes (permeate channel spacer) supports them against the operating pressure and defines the permeate flow channel. The envelope is sealed on three sides. The fourth side is sealed to a perforated permeate collection tube, and the envelope is wrapped around the collection tube with a net-like spacer sheet that has two functions:
4 1) It keeps adjacent membranes apart to form a feed channel. 2) It promotes turbulence of the feed gas mixture as it passes through the module, thus reducing concentration polarization.
During operation, the feed gas mixture enters one face of the module, travels axially along the feed channel spacer and membrane surface, and exits the other face as a residue or retentate. The more permeable gases pass through the membranes and travel in a spiral path inward within the envelope through the permeate channel spacer until they reach the perforated collection tube and finally exit as permeate (Figure). The feed channel spacer is a key feature of the spiral-wound module and, as shown by Da Costa et al. (1991, 1994), its design significantly affects module performance. Typically the modules have about 1 ,OOO square feet of surface per cubic foot of volume and are 4-12 inches in diameter by 3642 inches long. Up to six modules may be housed in a single pressure vessel shell.
The bundles typically have 3,000 square feet of membrane surface per cubic foot of module volume and the module dimensions range from 4-12 in. in diameter by 4-20 ft long. The feed gas is introduced on the shell side because hollow fibers are much stronger under compression than expansion. The faster permeating gases migrate into the fiber bore and exit via the open end of the bundle. For low pressure applications the fibers have a diameter greater than 400 pm and the feed gas enters the bore side while the permeate exits via the shell side. This configuration reduces pressure drop on the feed side. Not all membrane materials can be made into a thin selective layer on a porous substrate in a hollow fiber form.
Consequently, spiral-wound membranes, which can be made from a wider range of materials, usually have higher permeation rates. However, this is offset by the much
6 higher packing density of hollow fiber modules, resulting in similar overall productivity per unit module volume for the two configurations. This situation could change if developments in polymer science lead to more effective thin films in a hollow fiber form. Numerous mechanical designs of modules have been developed for both the spiralwound and hollow-fiber concepts. The various designs are aimed at optimizing such features as: membrane area per unit volume, gas flow distribution and pressure drop, seals and fastenings, and assembly technology. With either spiral-wound or hollow-fiber systems, large commercial installations normally require a large number of individual modules. This is evident in figure, which shows a UOP Advanced Membrane System for removing carbon dioxide from natural gas. A third module design-plate and frame-utilizes a stack of disk shaped membranes separated by sheets of porous filter paper and membrane support plates. The flow pattern is very much like that of a plate and frame filter. This design is not competitive for large commercial applications because of the relatively small membrane area per unit volume attainable. However, plate and frame designs are used for producing oxygen enriched air in small medical applications.
7 pressure drop across the membrane. The configuration is only used in low-pressure applications, such as air separation and air dehydration (Baker, 2002). To handle high pressures, the permeate flows into the hollow fiber from the shell side. This feature makes the membrane much more susceptible to plugging, and gas pretreatment is usually required (Baker, 2002). The gas flow is cross current and provides good feed distribution in the module. This configuration is widely used to remove CO2 from natural gas. In the spiral wound element shown in Figure, two membrane sheets are separated by a permeate spacer and glued shut at three ends to form an envelope or leaf. Many of these leaves, separated by feed spacers, are wrapped around the permeate tube, with the open end of the leaves facing the tube. Feed gas travels along the feed spacers, the permeating species diffuse through the membranes and down the permeate spacers into the permeate tube, and the residue gas exits at the end. The gas flow is cross flow in this configuration.
1.3.1-Design Considerations;
Many process parameters can be adjusted to optimize performance depending on the customer and application needs. Optimization is most critical for larger systems where small improvements can bring large rewards. Some typical requirements are:
Low cost High reliability High on-stream time Easy operation High hydrocarbon recovery Low maintenance Low energy consumption Low weight and space requirement
Flow Scheme;
The simplest membrane processing scheme is a one-stage flow scheme (Figure 7). A feed gas is separated into a permeate stream rich in CO2 and a hydrocarbon-rich residual stream. In high CO2 removal applications, a significant amount of hydrocarbons permeate the membrane and are lost. Multistage systems attempt to recover a portion of these hydrocarbons. The twostep design shown in Figure 8 allows only a portion of the first-stage permeate to be lost. The rest is recycled to the feed of the first stage.
The portion of first-stage permeate that is lost is usually taken from the first membrane modules, where feed CO2, hence permeate CO2, is highest and hydrocarbons are lowest. The permeate that is recycled is at low pressure and must be repressurized before it can be combined with the feed gas.
Two-stage designs process the first-stage permeate in a second membrane stage, as shown in Figure 9. The permeate from the second stage, which has typically twice the CO2 content as the first-stage permeate, is vented. The residue is either recycled and combined with the feed gas. A compressor is required to repressurize the first-stage permeate before it is processed in the second stage. Two-stage designs provide higher hydrocarbon recoveries than two-step or one-stage designs but require more compressor power (because more gas must be compressed to be treated)
9 The percentage hydrocarbon recovery is plotted versus percentage CO2 removal for oneand two-stage systems at certain process conditions. The percentage hydrocarbon recovery is defined as the percentage of hydrocarbons recovered to the sales gas versus the hydrocarbons in the feed gas.
The hydrocarbon recovery of a two-stage system is significantly better than that for a single stage system. However, when deciding whether to use a single or multistage approach, the designer must also consider the impact of the recycle compressor. This impact includes the additional hydrocarbons used as fuel, which increases the overall hydrocarbon losses, as well as the significant capital cost of compressors and the difficulty of maintaining them in remote locations. For moderate CO2 removal applications, that is, below approximately 50%, single-stage membrane systems usually provide better economic returns than do multistage systems.
ii-Operating Temperature;
An increase in feed temperature increases membrane permeability and
10 decreases selectivity. The membrane area requirement is therefore decreased, but hydrocarbon losses and the recycle compressor power for multistage systems are increased, as shown in Figure
Increased operating temperature increases permeability but decreases selectivity. Because membranes are organic polymers, they have a maximum operating temperature that depends upon the polymer used. Exceeding this temperature will degrade membrane material and shorten the useful life of the unit.
iii-Feed Pressure;
An increase in feed pressure decreases both membrane permeability and selectivity. However, the increased pressure creates a greater driving force across the membrane. A net increase in permeation through the membrane results and the membrane area requirement therefore drops. Compressor power increases slightly, and hydrocarbon losses decrease slightly
Because the membrane area requirement is so affected by pressure, while other variables are not, designers attempt to use the maximum operating pressure possible to achieve a cheaper and smaller system. A limiting factor is the maximum pressure limit for the membrane elements and the cost and weight of equipment at a higher-pressure
11 rating.
iv-Permeate Pressure;
The effect of permeate pressure is the opposite of the effect of feed pressure. The lower the permeate pressure, the higher the driving force and therefore the lower the membrane area requirement. Unlike feed pressure, however, permeate pressure has a strong effect on hydrocarbon losses
The pressure difference across the membrane is not the only consideration. Detailed analysis shows that an equally important factor in system design is the pressure ratio across the membrane. This ratio is strongly affected by the permeate pressure. For example, a feed pressure of 90 bar and a permeate pressure of 3 bar produce a pressure ratio of 30. Decreasing the permeate pressure to 1 bar increases the pressure ratio to 90 and has a dramatic effect on system performance. For this reason, membrane design engineers try to achieve the lowest-possible permeate pressure. This need is an important consideration in deciding how to further process the permeate stream. For example, if it must be flared, then flare design must be optimized for low pressure drop. If the permeate gas is to be compressed, for example, to feed it to a second membrane
v-CO2 Removal;
For a given sales-gas CO2 specification, an increase in feed CO2 increases membrane area requirement as well as hydrocarbon losses (more CO2 must permeate, and so more hydrocarbons permeate). This is shown in Figure The membrane area requirement is determined by the percentage of CO2 removal rather than the feed or sales-gas CO2 specifications themselves. For example, a system for reducing a feed CO2 content from 10 to 5% is similar in size to one reducing a feed from 50 to 30% or one reducing a feed from 1 to 0.5% all have a CO2 removal requirement of about 55%. This behavior is different from the way in which traditional
12 CO2 removal technologies operate. For these operations, a reduction in CO2 from 3 to 0.1% does not require a much larger system than that required for a reduction from 3 to 1%. For a membrane system, the large difference in CO2 removal (97 versus 70%) means that the system for 0.1% sales gas is about three times the size of the 1% system.
Traditional solvent- or adsorbent-based CO2 removal technologies have the opposite limitation, that is, their size is driven by the absolute amount of CO2 that must be removed. So a system for CO2 removal from 50 to 30% is substantially larger than one reducing CO2 from 1.0 to 0.5%. For this reason, using membranes for bulk CO2 removal and traditional technologies for meeting low CO2 specifications makes a lot of sense. Depending on the application, either one or both of the technologies could be used.
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90 bar. The CO2 content is reduced from 12 to less than 3%.
The pretreatment system for this plant was designed for a light gas with minimal C10+ content and a dew point about 50F, as provided in a customer-supplied gas analysis. After start-up, an analysis of the feed stream indicated a significant heavy hydrocarbon content, including C30s, with a dew point above 125F. As a result, UOP proposed enhanced pretreatment. Installation has been delayed because well production has been lower than expected. However, because production is expected to soon increase, the client has the enhanced pretreatment design under consideration.
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The only major operating cost for single-stage membrane systems is membrane replacement. This cost is significantly lower than the solvent replacement and energy costs associated with traditional technologies. The improvements in membrane and pretreatment design allow a longer useful membrane life, which further reduces operating costs. The energy costs of multistage systems with large recycle compressors are usually comparable to those for traditional technologies.
iii-Operational Simplicity and High Reliability:
15 Because single-stage membrane systems have no moving parts, they have almost no unscheduled downtime and are extremely simple to operate. They can operate unattended for long periods, provided that external upsets, such as well shutdowns, do not occur. Items in the pretreatment system that could cause downtime, such as filter coalescers, are usually spared so that production can continue while the item is under maintenance.
iv-Good Weight and Space Efficiency: Skid construction can be optimized to the space available, and multiple elements can be inserted into tubes to increase packing density. This space efficiency is especially important for offshore environments, where deck area is at a premium, and is the reason why so many new offshore developments have chosen to use membranes for acid gas removal. v-Environmentally Friendly:
Membrane systems do not involve the periodic removal and handling of spent solvents or adsorbents. Permeate gases can be flared, used as fuel, or reinjected into the well. Items that do need disposal, such as spent membrane elements, can be incinerated.
vi-High Turndown: The modular nature of membrane systems means that low turndown ratios, to 10% of the design capacity or lower, can be achieved. Turnup and turndown increments can be set at whatever level is required during the design phase. vii-Adaptability:
Because membrane area is dictated by the percentage of CO2 removal rather than absolute CO2 removal, small variations in feed CO2 content hardly change the sales-gas CO2 specification. For example, a system designed for 10% down to 3% CO2 removal produces a 3.5% product from a 12% feed gas, and a 5% product from a 15% feed gas. By adjusting process parameters such as operating temperature, the designer can further reduce the sales-gas CO2 content.
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viii-Design Efficiency:
The membrane and pretreatment systems integrate a number of operations, such as dehydration, CO2 and H2S removal, dew-point control, and mercury removal. Traditional CO2 removal technologies require all of these operations as separate processes and may also require additional dehydration because some technologies saturate the product stream with water.
1.7-Conclusion;
Membrane systems are a solid and proven addition to the range of technologies for the removal of CO2. With correct pretreatment design, they are extremely reliable, efficient, and ideally suited to installation
17 in remote regions. Continuing enhancements in membranes, membrane systems, and membrane pretreatment makes membranes an even more natural choice in the future, especially for applications requiring higher levels of CO2 removal.
References;
Kohl, A.R., and Neilsen, R.B.: Gas Purification 5th ed. Kidnay, A.J., and Parrish, W.R.: Fundamental of Natural Gas Processing Dortnunt, D., and Dhoshi, K.: Recent Developments in CO2 Removal Membrane Technology Research Paper. Mokhatab, S., Speight, J.G.: Handbook of Natural Gas Transmission & Processing
18 Molecular sieves are activated by heat to drive off the water of crystallization. The crystals have a robust cubic structure, which does not collapse on heating, so that activation results in a geometric network of cavities connected by pores. The pores are of molecular dimensions and cause the sieving action of these materials. The small molecules diffuse through the porous structure of sieve while the larger molecules excluded.
1-Zeolite A;
The pores of Zeolite A are restricted by 8-membered oxygen rings. The free aperture for this structure is about 3.0 A" for the K+ form (3A), 3.8 A" for the Na+ form (4A), and 4.3 A" for the Ca++ form (5A).
2-Faujasite;
Faujasite is represented by two forms, X and Y, with pores restricted by 12membered oxygen rings. The pores of these materials are relatively large with a free aperture of about 8.1 A". The X and Y zeolites differ from each other only with regard to the SUA1 ratio which controls cation density, and therefore, affects adsorptive properties.
3-Pentasil;
Pentasil-type zeolite has pores restricted by a 10-membered oxygen ring, which gives a free aperture of about 6.0 A". This zeolite was first proposed by Mobil in the early 1970s and named ZSMJ. At about the same time, a pure silica analog with the same framework structure was prepared by Union Carbide and named Silicalite
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2.2.1-Dehydration of N.G;
Solid desiccants or absorbents are commonly used for dehydrating gases in cryogenic processes. The use of solid adsorbent has been extended to the dehydration of liquid. Solid adsorbents remove water from the hydrocarbon stream and release it to another stream at higher temperatures in a regeneration step. A flow diagram for adsorption is shown in Figure.
In a dry desiccant bed, the adsorbate components are adsorbed at different rates. A short while after the process has begun, series of adsorption zones appear. The distance between successive adsorption zone fronts is indicative of the length of the bed involved in the adsorption of a given component. Behind the zone, all of the entering component
20 has been removed from the gas; ahead of the zone, the concentration of that component is zero. Note the adsorption sequence: C1 and C2 are adsorbed almost instantaneously, followed by the heavier hydrocarbons, and finally by water that constitutes the last zone. Almost all the hydrocarbons are removed after 30-40 min and dehydration begins. Water displaces the hydrocarbons on the adsorbent surface if enough time is allowed. At the start of dehydration cycle, the bed is saturated with methane as the gas flows through the bed. Then ethane replaces methane, and propane is adsorbed next. Finally, water will replace all the hydrocarbons. For good dehydration, the bed should be switched to regeneration just before the water content of outlet gas reaches an unacceptable level. The regeneration of the bed consists of circulating hot dehydrated gas to strip the adsorbed water, then circulating cold gas to cool the bed down.
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Regeneration;
The regeneration of molecular sieve beds in FEP systems is accomplished by flowing heated nitrogen through the bed, in the reverse direction to adsorption, at approximately atmospheric pressure. Regeneration temperatures are modest, 90" to 100C (194" to 212"F), but an amount of nitrogen equal to about 20 to 30% of the inlet air is required. The bed is cooled with low temperature nitrogen before it is ready for the adsorption step.
Process Description;
The gas feed to the dry bed and liquid absorption units is ratioed in such a manner that the final mixed product meets pipeline C02 specifications. The increased gas volume that results from leaving 3% C02 in the product gas provides a credit for gas sold on a
22 volume basis. Use of the dry-bed adsorption process on a portion of the gas has the further advantage of permitting the liquid absorber system to operate closer to maximum capacity, as a product gas which is slightly off specification with regard to H2S, and water can be tolerated for dilution with the very pure adsorber product.
2.5-Conclusion;
Molecular Sieves are very efficient adsorbent for removal of water from natural gas. In separation of impurities from natural gas molecular sieves are suitable for weakly adsorbed compounds such as CO2 and H2O but are not suitable for strongly absorbed compound as mercaptanes.
References;
Kohl, A.R., and Neilsen, R.B.: Gas Purification 5th ed.
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