GAS ENGINEERING NOTES

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

Institute of Chemical Engineering and Technology

University of the Punjab

Uses of Natural Gas:

Lecture 1

Natural Gas is primarily used as a fuel and raw material in

October 31, 2014

manufacturing Industries.

As a Domestic Fuel:
Home Furnaces

Water Heater

Gas Ovens

Boilers

Cooking Stoves

As an Industrial Fuel:
i)
ii)

It is use in Kiln for baking Brick, Cement and Ceramic tiles.

In Glass Industry

iii)

Generating Steam in Boilers.

iv)

Clean Heat Source for sterilizing Instruments and Processing Foods.

As a Raw Material in Petrochemical Industries:

i)
ii)

Natural Gas is use to produce Hydrogen, Sulfur, Ammonia and Carbon

Black.
Ammonia is used in range of Fertilizer and as secondary feed stock for

iii)

manufacturing other chemicals including HNO3 and Urea.

Ethylene an important chemical is also produce from Natural Gas.

Miscellaneous:
Gas is used as a fuel for vehicles (CNG & LNG) and Gas Generators.

Question:
Why Natural Gas is Preferred over Liquid and Solid fuels?

Answer:
Natural Gas is Environmental Friendly Clean Fuel that offers environmental
benefits as compare to other fossil fuels. Environmental qualities over crude oil
and Coal are that of less emission of CO2, SO2 Nitrous Oxide emission.
It also helps to reduce problems such as acid rain, ozone layer detrition and
greenhouse gas.
It is safe source of energy when transported, stored and used.

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

Constituents of Natural Gas:

Principle Constituents of Natural Gas is methane other constituents are paraffinic
hydrocarbons such as ethane, propane and butane. Many natural gas sources also
contains Nitrogen, H2S and CO2.
Trace quantities of H2, Argon and Helium are also found in some sources.

Natural Gas Composition before Refinement:

C5 Plus hydrocarbons in small proportions and when separated this fraction is light
gasoline. Some aromatics such as benzene, xylene and toluene can also be present.
Acid contaminants such as Mercaptans, Carbonyl Sulfides and carbon Disulfides
maybe present in small quantities.

Typical Composition of Natural gas form Source.

Component

Formulae

Percentage Composition

Methane

CH4

>85 %

Ethane

C2H6

3-8 %

Propane

C3H8

1-2 %

Butane

C4H10

<1 %

Pentane

C5H12

<1 %

Carbon dioxide

CO2

1-2 %

Hydrogen Sulfide

H 2S

<1 %

Nitrogen

N2

1-5 %

Helium

He

<0.5 %

Origin of Natural Gas:

Natural Gas are formed in three ways:
iii-

Bacterial
Thermal

iii-

Inorganic

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E11-PG08

Bacterial:
The gas formed due to the action of bacteria of the organic debris accumulating in
the sediments is called bacterial gas or Biochemical gas.
Methane is the only hydrocarbon forms by this procedure, the temperature
ranges between 65-80C corresponding to the depths of 2000-2500 m.

Thermal Gas:
Formation of thermal gas from organic matter present in the

Organic matter is incorporated in the sediments at the time of deposition. Debris

from organic matter which accumulates at the water sediment interphase
degraded by living organism.
In an aerobic environment (in the presence of free oxygen dissolved in water) this
degradation is rapid and nearly complete and carbon initially present in organic
debris is nearly converted to CO2 which returns to atmosphere.
In an anaerobic environment (in the absence of air) by contrast degradation is slow
and incomplete.
The residues accumulates in the sediments in the form of complex structures and
debris which have resisted biodegradation. The overall mass is insoluble in an
organic solvents and is called KEROGEN.
The sediments are progressively buried and raise to increasing temperature and
pressure. Temperature generally below 200C.
However the periods during which this process occur are so long that the
KEROGEN is eventually thermally degraded. This thermal degradation generates
hydrocarbons as well as non-hydrocarbons. Such as CO2, H2O, Hydrogen, H2S,
Nitrogen and a residue very rich in carbon similar to coke produces in a refinery by
thermal cracking of oil called PYROBUTEMEN.

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

KEROGEN Degradation Mechanism:

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E11-PG08

Lecture 2

Basic Concepts of Natural Gas Processing:

November 14, 2014

Background:
Raw natural gas after transmission through the field gathering network must be
processed before it can be moved into long distance pipelines system for use.

Objective:
To separate natural gas, heavy hydrocarbons, condensate, non-condensate, acid
gases and water from a gas processing wells and conditioned these fluids for sale
or disposal.

Simplified figure for Basic Natural gas processing:

Different Natural Gas Fractions and its various forms:

Natural gas and its different fractions can be transported in various forms:
i)

Compressed Natural Gas

a) In Gas Pipelines

ii)

b) CNG ( Further Compressed after receiving from distribution System)

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

iii)
iv)

Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)

Chemicals (Methanol, Urea, Ammonia)

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

Reason for Gas processing:

A number of Natural gas Components must be extracted either for reason imposed
by the subsequent production or transport steps or to comply with Commercial or
Regulatory Specification.

Components to be removed during Natural Gas processing:

a) Hydrogen Sulfide

(H2S)

It is Toxic and Corrosive

b) Carbon Dioxide

(CO2)

Corrosive, has no heating value and can crystallize in Cryogenic processes

c) Mercury

(Hg)

toxic and Corrosive with aluminum based alloy.

d) Water

(H2O)

It can lead to the formation of hydrates and can cause corrosion.

e) Heavy Hydrocarbon
It can condense in the transport system
f) Nitrogen

(N2)

No heating Value
g) Helium

(He)

No heating Value and valuable in other processes.

Pipeline Transport of the Commercial use:

The specification to be met for processed gas are related to transport condition
of use (Commercial gas).

Pipeline Transport Objective:

i- Aimed at preventing the formation of a liquid phase.
ii- The clogging of line by hydrates and excessive corrosion.

Commercial:
For a commercial use the specification are more severe and also include a range
impose for heating value.
Typical specification of commercial gas:
Gross Heating Value (GHV) =

39100-39500 KJ/Nm3

Hydrocarbon dew point:

Less than -6C

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

Water Content:

Less than 50ppm

C5+ Content:

Less than 0.50 mole%

Process Module:

The
first module is the physical separation of the distinct phase, which are typically
gas-liquid hydrocarbons, gas-water or gas solid separation. Transmission lines
supplying gas operate with 2-3 phases and consequently liquid slugging is common.

Question: When Slugs are formed ?

Answer:
From Elevational Changes in the inlet supply line
Changes in gas supply flow rate
Changes in temparature and pressure

Problems associated with Slugs:

The arrival of slugs at production or processing equipment impacts the operation
negatively carrying both mechanical problems (due to high velocity and momentum)
and process problems (increase in liquid level causes surging and trips).
In some Cases operator can minimize the liquid accumulation in a way to create a
suitable fluid flow regimes (mist flow regimes) in which the gas velocity is high
enough to keep liquid dispersed continuously.
In addition suitable process equipment are also installed in a pipeline to reduce the
effect of slugging. For example slug catchers are designed to separate
hydrocarbons, condensate, inlet water and gas.

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

Flow of Multiphase Mixture:

Multiphase flow is important in many areas of chemical and process engineering and
the behavior of the material will depend upon the process, the flow rate and
geometry of system.
Some of the major systems to be considered are:
Mixture of liquid with gas or vapor.
Liquids mixed with solid particles (Hydraulic transport)
Gas carrying solid particle wholly or partially in Suspension
(Pneumatic Transport)
Multiphase system containing solids, liquid and gases.
Mixed material may be transported horizontally, vertically or at the inclination to
the horizontal in pipes,
Liquids may have densities up to three order of magnitude than gases but they do
not exhibit any significant compressibility.
Liquids themselves can range from simple Newtonian fluids such as H2O to nonNewtonian fluids with very high apparent Viscosity.
These very large variations in densities and viscosity are responsible for large
difference in behavior of solid-gas and solid-liquid mixture must in practice be
considered separated.
Lecture 3
November 21, 2014
For all multiphase flow system it is important to
understand the nature of interactions between phases and how these influence the
flow pattern (The ways in which the phases are distributed over the cross section
of pipe or duct).
In design it is necessary to be able to predict pressure drop which, usually,
depends not only on the flow pattern, but also on the relative velocity of the
phases, this relative velocity is known as Slip Velocity.
This slip velocity affects the holdup (The fraction of the pipe volume which is
occupied by a particular phase). In the flow of two component mixture, the holdup
(in-situ concentration) of a component will differ from that in mixture discharged
S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

at the end of pipe because, as a result of slip of the phases relative to one
another, their residence times in the pipeline will not be the same.
In order to study the flow of this complex mixture, the following point are
required to be considered.
(1)
(2)

The flow patterns.

The hold-up of the individual phases and their relative velocities.

(3)

The relationship between pressure gradient in a pipe and the flow rates
and physical properties of the phases.

Vertical flow:
The difference in density between the phases is important in determining flow
pattern. In gas-solid and gas-liquid mixtures, the gas will always be the lighter
phase, and in liquid-solid systems it will be usual for the liquid to be less dense than
the solid. In vertical upward flow, therefore, there will be a tendency for the
lighter phase to rise more quickly than the denser phase giving rise to a slip
velocity.
For a liquid-solid or gas-solid system this slip velocity will be close
to the terminal falling velocity of the particles. In a liquid-gas
system, the slip velocity will depend on the flow pattern in a complex
way. In all cases, there will be a net upwards force resulting in a
transference of energy from the faster to the slower moving phase,
and a vertically downwards gravitational force will be balanced by a
vertically upwards drag force. There will be axial symmetry of flow.

Horizontal Flow:
In horizontal flow, the flow
pattern will inevitably be more
complex because the gravitational
force will act perpendicular to
the pipe axis, the direction of
flow, and will cause the denser component to flow preferentially nearer the bottom
of the pipe. Energy transfer between the phases will again occur as a result of the
difference in velocity, but the net force will be horizontal and the suspension

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

mechanism of the particles, or the dispersion of the fluid will be a more complex
process. In this case, the flow will not be symmetrical about the pipe axis.

Two-phase Gas (vapour)-Liquid Flow:

Two phase gas (vapour)-liquid flow is important in various chemical engineering
application this ranges from the flow of mixture of oil and gas from well heads to
flow of vapour-liquid mixture in boiler and evaporator.
In most cases the gas phase which may be flowing with a much greater velocity
than the liquid, continuously accelerates the liquid thus involving the transfer of
energy.
It is important to study the different flow regimes which exist in two phase (gasliquid) mixture the regimes are important to calculate and predict the holdup of
phase during flow and to calculate pressure gradient for gas-liquid flow in pipes.
In addition, when gas-liquid mixtures flow at high velocities serious erosion
problems can arise and it is necessary for the designer to restrict flow velocities
to avoid serious damage to equipment.

Flow Regimes and Flow Pattern:

Horizontal flow:
The flow pattern is complex and is influenced by the diameter of pipes and the
physical properties of fluid and flow rate. In general as the velocity are increase
and gas liquid ratio increases changes will take place from bubble to mist flow as
shown in Diagram:

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08

Flow Regimes in Horizontal two phase flow

Regimes

Bubble Flow
Plug Flow
Stratified Flow
Wavy Flow
Slug Flow
Annular Flow
Mist Flow

Typical Velocity
(m/s)

Description
Bubbles of gas
dispersed through the
liquid
Plugs of gas in liquid
phase
Layer of liquid with a
layer of gas above
As stratified but with
a wavy interface due
to high velocity of gas
Slug of gas in liquid
phase
Liquid film on inside
walls with gas in
center
Liquid droplets
dispersed in gas

Liquid

Vapor

1.5-5

0.3-3

0.6

< 1.0

< 0.15

0.6-3

< 0.15

NA

< 0.3

>5

<< 0.3

>6

cannot measured

>60

At high liquid-gas ratios, the liquid forms the continuous phase and at low values it
forms the disperse phase. In the intervening region, there is generally some
instability; and sometimes several flow regimes are lumped together. In plug flow
and slug flow, the gas is flowing faster than the liquid and liquid from a slug tends
to become detached, to move as a relatively slow moving film along the surface of
the pipe and then to be reaccelerated when the next liquid slug catches it up. This
process can account for a significant proportion of the total energy losses.

S.M. Taha Rehman Siddiqui

E11-PG08