Natural gas separation and

design
Mr. K. Sarkodie

outline
Receiving Gas at a Plant
Liquid Separations.
Design of equipment.
Operating problems.

Introduction
When a gas enters a plant, nearly always there
is a large vessel through which the gas passes.
The function of these vessels is to remove any
free liquid from the gas stream before it is
further processed. Since most gas enters the
plant as a two phase fluid, these vessels are of
prime importance.

Function of Inlet Separators

These vessels have two functions.
These are:
1. Separate the fluid received into gas and liquid.
2. To handle liquid slugs and prevent the
receiving of them at a plant from upsetting
the rest of the plant.

Particle Size
When separating liquid and solids from a
gas, the size of particles is of considerable
importance.
Generally, we are concerned in the gas
processing industry with the separation of
liquid droplets - generally 10 microns in
size (i.e, 1/100 of a millimeter or larger).

Description of Common Separators

In the gas processing industry generally some
form of an impingement separator is used.
Some of the more common ones are:
Vertical Separator
Horizontal Separator
Spherical Separator
Cyclone Separator

Vertical separator

Most common type of separator

Used for separation of gas from relatively large
volumes of liquids.
Advantages
Liquid level control is not critical since large
quantities of foreign materials such as sand
without plugging up or otherwise affecting the
operation of the vessel; and it is easy to clean
Disadvantages
expensive of the three types of separators;
it does not adapt readily to a skid-mounted unit;
has a lower capacity than any of the other kinds
of separators when compared on the basis of
effective diameter

Mode of operation
The well effluent enters the vertical separator at approximately
the midpoint of the vessel.
Separation of the gas from the liquid commences at this point.
The gas travels upwards through the vessel, dropping out the
larger diameter liquid particles in its journey towards the top
of the vessel.
Most separators are designed on a basis of a ten micron
diameter particle being excluded from the gas at exit point of
the separator.
All liquid droplets which are larger than ten microns will be
either dropped out in the main body of the separator or will
impinge upon the mist extractor and be removed at that point.

Horizontal separator
The Horizontal separator is most commonly used for the
separation of large volumes of gas from small volumes of
liquid.
It is also used extensively for handling liquid slugs from
gathering systems.
This type of unit is used on gas wells, gas condensate
wells, and, generally, as inlet separating devices at gas
processing plants.
Advantages
Cheaper then the vertical unit (1.5 times the gas capacity
of a vertical unit of the same diameter).

Mode of operation
The well effluent enters one end of the horizontal
separator, hits a deflector plate to drop out liquid drops,
then the gas continues to the gas exit of the separator,
where it passes through a mist extractor and then out the
gas outlet.
The liquid is collected in the bottom half and if necessary, a
boot is put on at the outlet end to separate water from oil.
In the horizontal separator, the force of gravity acts on the
liquid droplets throughout the length of the vessel causing
the particles to "arc" to the bottom of the unit and thus
separate more easily than in the vertical separator.

Spherical separator
The spherical separator is most commonly used for the
separation of large volumes of gas from extremely
small volumes of liquid.
This type of unit is used mainly as a scrubber, i.e.
removing small amounts of liquid.
Advantage
More compact than either of the other units.
Disadvantage
limited separation space and liquid surge capacity.
the liquid level control is extremely critical.

Assignment
Submit a page length on the mode of
operation of cyclone separators and filter
separators NEXT WEEK
(HAND WRITTEN)

Separation Theory
Momentum
Fluid phases with different densities will have
a different momentum.
If a two phase stream changes direction
sharply greater momentum will not allow the
particles of the heavier phase to turn as
rapidly as the lighter fluid, so separation
occurs.
Momentum is usually employed for bulk
separation of the two phases in a stream.

Gravity settling
Liquid droplets will
settle out of a gas
phase if the
gravitational force
acting on the droplet is
greater than the drag
force of the gas flowing
around the droplet.
These forces can be
described
mathematically using
the terminal or free
settling velocity.

 The drag coefficient has been found to be a

function of the shape of the particle and the
Reynolds number of the flowing gas. For the
purpose of this equation particle shape is
considered to be a solid, rigid sphere.

 Reynolds number is defined as:

In this form, a trial and error solution is required

since both particle size, Dp, and terminal velocity,
Vt, are involved.
To avoid trial and error, values of the drag
coefficient are presented in Figure 15.7
as a function of the product of drag coefficient,
C', times the Reynolds number squared; this
eliminates velocity from the expression:
The abscissa of Figure 15.7 is given by:

Gravity settling
Gravity Settling - Limiting Conditions
As with other fluid flow phenomena, the drag
coefficient reaches a limiting value at high
Reynolds numbers.

Separator Design and Construction

Separators are usually characterized as
vertical, horizontal, or spherical. Horizontal
separators can be single or double barrel and
can be equipped with sumps or boots.
Parts of a separator
Consists majorly of four sections

Parts of separator-- for a gas liquid

separator

Separation section, A, is used to separate the

main portion of free liquid in the inlet stream.
It contains the inlet nozzle which may be
tangential, or a diverter baffle to take
advantage of the inertial effects of centrifugal
force or an abrupt change of direction to
separate the major portion of the liquid from
the gas stream.

 The secondary or gravity section, B, is

designed to utilize the force of gravity to
enhance separation
of entrained droplets. In some designs,
straightening vanes are used to reduce
turbulence.
The vanes also act as droplet collectors, and
reduce the distance a droplet must fall to be
removed from the gas stream.

 The coalescing section, C, utilizes a coalescer

or mist extractor which can consist of a series
of vanes, a knitted wire mesh pad, or cyclonic
passages.
This section removes the very small droplets
of liquid from the gas by impingement on a
surface where they coalesce.
A typical liquid carryover from the mist
extractor is less than 0.1 gallon per MMSCF.

 The sump or liquid collection section, D, acts as

receiver for all liquid removed from the gas in the
primary, secondary, and coalescing section.
Depending on requirements, the liquid section
should have a certain amount of surge volume,
for degassing or slug catching, over a minimum
liquid level necessary for controls to function
properly.
Degassing may require a horizontal separator
with a shallow liquid while emulsion separation
may also require higher temperature, higher
liquid level, and/or the addition of a surfactant

SEPARATOR DESIGN
The following discussion on oil gas
separation has been adapted from Sivalls
excellent treatment of the subject.
Sivalls tables, graphs and procedures are
accepted as the standard of the industry

Design of a separator
There are two design criteria.
The allowable gas and liquid capacities
Separator sizing (internal diameter and height)

Gas capacity
This is done by means of a form of the Stokes
Law which can be expressed by the following
equation:

where:
u = allowable velocity, feet per second or
(m/s).
g = density of the gas, lb/cu ft. (kg/m3).
L = density of the liquid, lb/cu ft. (kg/m3).

K value

 By use of the previous equation and the actual

flow, the area of the vessel can be determined
from:
Empirically,

LIQUID CAPACITY
The liquid capacity is of a separator is
dependent on the retention time of the liquid
in the vessel.
Good separation requires sufficient time to
obtain an equilibrium condition between the
liquid and gas phase at the temperature and
pressure of separation.
The liquid capacity of a separator is based can
be obtained from the following equation;

Stage separation
Stage separation is a process in which gaseous
and liquid hydrocarbons are separated into
vapour and liquid phases by two or more
equilibrium flashes at consecutively lower
pressures.
As illustrated in Figure below, two-stage
separation requires two separators and a storage
tank; and so on.
The tank is always counted as the final stage of
vapour-liquid separation because the final
equilibrium flash occurs in the tank.

 The purpose of stage separation is to reduce

the pressure on the reservoir liquids a little at
a time, in steps or stages, so that a more
stable stock-tank liquid will result.
Differential liberation can be closely
approached by using three or more seriesconnected stages of separation, in each of
which flash vaporization takes place.