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Design and Retrofit of the C 2 Splitter in a Commercial Ethylene Plant

Utilizing a New Hybrid Separation System

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Design and Retrofit of the C2 Splitter in a Commercial
Ethylene Plant Utilizing a New Hybrid Separation
System

A. A. Al-Rabiah, K. D. Timmerhaus, and R. D. Noble

Department of Chemical Engineering

University of Colorado
Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA

Separation of ethylene from ethane in commercial processes is expensive both in capital and operating costs. This study
has evaluated the feasibility of using facilitated transport membrane technology for improving the separation process.
Simulation and optimization of various distillation/membrane hybrid configurations as well as stand-alone membrane
cascade systems have been examined under different operating conditions of temperature and pressure. A detailed
analysis has determined the optimum sequence that minimizes the energy consumption of the C2 splitter while
maximizing the profitability of the ethylene plant. This study has shown that the reduction in refrigeration requirement
is the key to a successful hybrid system and that the series hybrid configuration is the optimum design, providing the
maximum processing savings for a grass-roots ethylene plant. A retrofit design has also been investigated for an
existing ethylene plant with the new membrane process. The parallel hybrid scheme, with a permeate pressure of about
50 psia, shows the ultimate design. For this parallel hybrid system, a net annual savings in processing cost of more than
0.86 million US dollars can be achieved to provide a payout period of about 19 months.

INTRODUCTION
The low-temperature distillation column for the separation of ethylene from ethane has been the preferred
technology for several decades. However, this binary separation process consumes about 36 percent of the
refrigeration energy required in the ethylene plant [1]. The C2 splitter is commonly operated at high-pressure,
utilizing closed-cycle propylene refrigeration, which is incorporated with the refrigeration systems serving
other parts of the plant.
Facilitated transport membrane technology (FTMT) is a less established separation technique. It has been
demonstrated in laboratories and pilot plants for the selective separation of olefins from alkanes. This
technology has shown significantly high selectivity and flux rate of ethylene over ethane [2,3].
The desired objectives for any ethylene separation process are to obtain a high-purity ethylene product
combined with a high percentage recovery of the ethylene. The conventional distillation technology can
accomplish both of these objectives. However, the accompanying high-energy consumption of the
refrigeration system makes the present distillation process costly. On the other hand, the FTMT is capable of
producing a high-purity ethylene product, but with a lower percentage of recovery. The lower percentage of
recovery dictates the use of a multi-stage system incorporating additional compressors.
The combination of membrane and distillation technologies to form a hybrid system is another design
alternative for replacing the current distillation technology. The hybrid system incorporates the high-purity
product aspect of both technologies as well as the high percentage recovery of the distillation process.
In the study reported here, various configurations of the membrane/distillation hybrid systems have been
investigated for the ethane/ethylene separation. Among the many configurations studied were those wherein
the membrane was located at the top, at the bottom, in parallel, and in series with the distillation column.
Stand-alone membrane cascade systems have also been evaluated and compared to other design alternatives.
For each hybrid system, the optimum design is based on an economic comparison of the overall savings
achieved in the total processing costs.
This study also evaluates the economic effect of using the FTMT process to retrofit the ethane/ethylene
separation system in an existing ethylene plant. The FTMT process has been evaluated as a stand-alone
membrane system as well as a hybrid distillation/membrane system. Economic comparison criteria, such as
payout period, are presented in this study.
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

Water Quench Caustic Wash

Propane/
Ethane
Transfer-line Compression Compression Drying
Exchangers Stages 1,2,3 Stage 4
Pyrolysis
Furnaces
Hydrogen
Tail Gas Cold Box
Ethylene Acetylene Compression
MA/PD Reactor Stage 5 Prechilling
Propylene
Reactor

Demethanizer
Depropanizer

C2 Splitter
C3 Splitter

Prechillers Deethanizer
System

Mixed
C4+ Propane Ethane
Recycle Recycle

Figure 1: Ethylene front-end deethanization process.

BASE CASE ETHYLENE PLANT

The ethylene plant used in this study is a state-of-the-art design of the propane cracking process with a
nominal capacity of 500,000 metric tons of ethylene. Figure 1 shows a block flow diagram of this process.
The ethylene process employs a front-end deethanizer flow sequence with a front-end acetylene reactor. The
refrigerants used in this process are ethylene and propylene. A portion of the methane rich gas, which is
produced in the demethanization section, is used as fuel. The principal products are polymer grade (99.9%)
ethylene and polymer grade (99.6%) propylene. The feed to the C2 splitter leaves the demethanizer bottoms
at approximately – 4 oC and 3.49 MPa (506 psia). This stream is flashed before it enters the C2 splitter
maintained at an average pressure of about 2 MPa (290 psia). Propylene refrigerant is used to condense the
reflux stream. The overhead polymer grade ethylene is compressed before further processing. The ethane
bottom stream from the C2 splitter is recycled to the cracking furnaces. The 4.57m (15.0 ft) diameter column
requires about 111 trays and operates with a reflux ratio of about 2.75.

MEMBRANE PROCESS
Process Description
Separation of a low-relative volatility mixture such as ethane/ethylene utilizing simple-diffusion membrane
systems is uneconomical because of the slow transfer rates and low selectivity in the separation [2].
However, using the facilitated transport scheme, membranes can make this process feasible. In such
transport, the simple diffusional process is coupled with a chemical reactant that reversibly binds with one of
the species to be separated, thereby increasing the net transport rate. In the separation of the ethane/ethylene
mixture, silver ions reversibly bind to the double bond portion of ethylene and facilitate its transport across
the membrane. Ethane, which does not contain a double bond, is unaffected by the silver ions. Figure 2
illustrates the ethane-ethylene facilitated transport membrane system, in which the membrane consists of
silver nitrate solution held within the membrane by capillary action. Ethylene from the feed side at high
pressure reacts with the silver ion to form a complex, which then diffuses across the membrane. The silver-
ethylene complex decomposes when it reaches the product side of the membrane, releasing the ethylene into
the permeate and permitting the silver solution to return to the membrane inlet. There is a need to provide a
membrane system which can operate at a high pressure differential across the membrane without the need for
a product side sweep as well as avoid stability problems caused by membrane drying. Valus et al. [4] solved
this problem when they developed a novel technique in which the complex can be separated from the product
gas in a flash drum and then recycled back through the membrane system.
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

High Low
Pressure +
Ag -C2H4 Pressure

Facilitated
C2H4 C2H4
Transport

Ag+ Solution-
C2H4 C2H4
Diffusion
Transport
C2H6 C2H6
Membrane

Figure 2: Mechanism for facilitated transport of ethylene by silver ions.

Permeate

Feed Retentate
Membrane

Figure 3: Schematic diagram of cross-flow membrane module.

Process Model
The membrane model is based on cross-flow along the permeate side of the membrane and plug-flow along
the feed side of the membrane. Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of the cross-flow membrane module. In
this model, the local permeate-side composition is a function only of the local feed-side composition. Since
the permeate composition changes along the membrane length, it is not affected by the composition at any
other point along the membrane side, but only by the local flux at that point. The assumptions used in
developing the membrane model are summarized in Table 1. The membrane properties used in the
simulations are based on the experimental data of Teramoto et al. [5] and Hughes et al. [2]. The membrane
properties that were reported are similar in both studies. For example, the diffusion coefficient of ethylene
was reported by Teramoto et al. as 1.87 ×10-9 m2/s. This value is similar to the one which was reported by
Hughes et al. (1.85 ×10-9 m2/s).

Table 1: Assumptions used in modeling of cross-flow model with FT membrane.

1. Cross-flow along the permeate side and plug-flow along the feed side of the membrane.
2. Negligible pressure drop along either side of the membrane.
3. Isothermal operation.
4. Instantaneous ethylene/silver reaction.
5. Equilibrium between product and reactant species at the membrane boundaries.
6. Steady state process.
7. The diffusivity and solubility coefficients of each species are independent of pressure.
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

Hybrid distillation/membrane system

Distillation Membrane
Process Process

Steam Propylene Ethylene Steam

System Refrigeration Refrigeration System
System System

Process Process
Fuel System Streams Fuel System
Streams

Figure 4: Process integration of the hybrid distillation/membrane system.

HYBRID SYSTEMS
The distillation/membrane hybrid system may be represented by a large number of different schemes. The
hybrid configurations may differ with regard to the location of the membrane relative to the distillation
column. For example, the membrane can be located at the top of the distillation column. In this case, the
membrane performs the final purification of the product. The permeate product is compressed and cooled to
meet the specifications of the ethylene product. The retentate is recycled back to the distillation column at an
appropriate location in the column. Another configuration is the bottom hybrid system wherein the
membrane unit performs the final purification of the ethane recycle stream from the distillation column. The
permeate, as opposed to the retentate, (as in the top configuration) is recycled and must be recompressed to
the column pressure before returning to the distillation column. Operating conditions may be varied for each
configuration in order to achieve optimum performance.
Propylene is utilized as a refrigerant for the conventional distillation process as well as for most of the
hybrid system configurations. If this refrigeration requirement is changed, it will affect the propylene
refrigeration system, which affects both the steam and fuel consumption. Figure 4 shows a block flow
diagram of the elements that are directly related with the hybrid system.

HYBRID PROCESS CONSIDERATIONS

The carrier inside the membrane is an aqueous solution of silver nitrate and this solution has different
freezing points depending on the solute concentration. An increase in the solute concentration increases the
freezing point depression. Since the temperature profile within the conventional distillation column decreases
from –7 to –29 oC for an operating pressure of 2 MPa, an innovative design is required to effectively
combine membrane and distillation technology. The 6 mol/L AgNO3 has been used in the process simulation
since this concentration does not freeze at the operating conditions of the ethane/ethylene separation. The
facilitated transport membrane performance also is sensitive to some impurities such as acetylene and sulfur.
Use of the front-end deethanization scheme assures that all acetylene produced in the pyrolysis furnaces is
directly converted in the hydrogenation catalytic reactors. If sulfur contaminants are present, they can be
removed by caustic scrubbers as in the conventional ethylene plant.

SIMULATION RESULTS
Simulation studies are required to identify the optimal configuration, which provides the greatest economic
advantage. Such simulations are useful for determining the operational limits for each system. In the
simulation process, parametric studies were conducted by varying the key parameters and observing the
effects on the overall process. The membrane model used in this study was closely integrated with a rigorous
distillation model utilizing SRK as the equation of state. In the simulator, the distillation hybrid system is
linked to other parts of the plant. For the simulation and optimization of this process, two limiting permeate
pressures of 15 psia and 50 psia have been investigated. The simulation results for two configurations are
summarized below.
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

C3 ref
Ethylene
Product

Feed

Ethane
Recycle

Figure 5: Parallel configuration hybrid system (PCHS) for the ethane/ethylene separation.

Membrane feed compositions, xm [ - ]

2.3 0.90
Reflux ratio, R
0.88
2.2 Membrane feed composition
Reflux ratio, R [ - ]

0.86
2.1
0.84

2.0
0.82

1.9 0.80

0.78
1.8

0.76
1.7
540 560 580 600 620 640 660

Membrane feed flow rate, nm [ mol/s ]

Figure 6: Performance of the parallel configuration hybrid system for the ethane/ethylene separation at a
permeate pressure of 50 psia and carrier concentration of 6 mol/L.

Parallel Configuration Hybrid System

Figure 5 shows a simple flow diagram of the parallel configuration hybrid system (PCHS) for the separation
of ethylene from ethane. In this configuration, the permeate and retentate streams leaving the membrane unit
are recompressed and reenter the distillation column at the appropriate stages where the stream composition
matches the tray composition. Figure 6 illustrates the performance of the parallel configuration when the
number of stages is set equal to that used in the conventional ethane/ethylene splitter. The simulation studies
shown in this figure were conducted for a permeate pressure (Pp) of 50 psia and a carrier concentration (CAg)
of 6 mol/L AgNO3. The membrane feed flow rate and composition are the two variables which link the
membrane unit with the distillation column. These two variables are optimized to obtain the minimal
condenser duty for each membrane area specified. The reflux ratio decreases with both an increase in the
membrane feed flow rate and an increase in the membrane feed composition. As the condenser duty is
reduced by decreasing the column reflux ratio, the capacity and required utilities of the auxiliary equipment
are increased. Figure 7 shows the membrane process performance of the previous example. It should be
noted that the compression duty is greater when the permeate pressure is 15 psia rather than 50 psia.
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

1000 0 .7 0

900 M e m b ra n e a re a 0 .6 5
S ta g e cu t

Membrane stage cut [ - ]

Membrane area, s [ m ]
800 0 .6 0

2
700 0 .5 5

600 0 .5 0

500 0 .4 5

400 0 .4 0

300 0 .3 5

200 0 .3 0

100 0 .2 5

0 0 .2 0
540 560 580 600 620 640 660 680

M e m b ra n e fe e d flo w ra te , n m [ m o l/s ]

Figure 7: Membrane performance of the parallel configuration hybrid system for the ethane/ethylene
separation at a permeate pressure of 50 psia and carrier concentration of 6 mol/L.

CW CW

Ethylene
Product
Feed
C2 Ref

Ethane
Recycle

Ethane
Recycle

Figure 8: Series configuration hybrid system (SCHS) for the ethane/ethylene separation.

Series Configuration Hybrid System

The series configuration hybrid system (SCHS) is illustrated in Figure 8. The feed stream is flashed to about
2.62 MPa (380 psia) to obtain a refrigeration temperature of about -16 oC. The refrigeration associated with
this feed stream is exchanged with other process streams to reduce the refrigeration load in other parts of the
plant. The feed from the first membrane stage is concentrated by producing part of the recycled ethane as a
retentate. This feed is then sent to the second membrane stage where the feed pressure is about 0.69 MPa
(100 psia) and the ethylene mole fraction is about 0.915. The latter feed concentration is adequate for
producing a high polymer grade product in the second stage. Only part of the ethylene product can be
produced in the second membrane stage because membrane technology can not provide both a specified
recovery and purity in just one stage. The retentate from the second stage is sent to a low-pressure distillation
column, since additional membrane stages do not improve the performance of the system. The latter provides
the specified purity and recovery requirements but with a smaller than conventional column and condenser
because of the reduced feed flow rate to the column. Table 2 summarizes a comparison between the low-
pressure column used in this series hybrid configuration and the conventional distillation system. Utilizing
the series hybrid configuration, the reboiler and the bottom stream of the low-pressure distillation column
can be used to provide the refrigerant requirement to chill the cracked gas before sending to the
deethanization system. For this configuration, the distillation process utilizes ethylene instead of
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

Table 2: Comparisons between the low-pressure distillation column and the conventional splitter.

Item Conventional C2 splitter Low-pressure C2 splitter

Process Conventional Series configuration hybrid system
Number of columns 1 1
Number of theoretical trays 94 valve trays [111 actual] 48 valve trays [57 actual]
Distillation tray efficiency 0.85 0.85
Distillation tray spacing 24.0 in 24.0 in
Column diameter 15.0 ft 5.0 ft
Column pressure 290 psia 95 psia
Column reflux ratio 2.75 3.9
Condenser duty (MM BTU/hr) -53.4 -10.26
Reboiler duty (MM BTU/hr) 66.4 6.83
Product 99.9% polymer grade ethylene 99.9% polymer grade ethylene
Condenser coolant Liquid propylene @ -46 °C Liquid ethylene @ -73 °C

propylene refrigerant for the condenser resulting in an increase in compression duty of about 995 hp. The
increase in ethylene product compression power is about 6,800 hp. On the other hand, a significant reduction
in compression duty of about 11,000 hp was noted in the propylene refrigeration system. In addition, capital
costs associated with the SCHS system were reduced along with the steam requirements.

ECONOMICS
Economic performances of different hybrid systems were evaluated and compared with the conventional
ethylene plant. One of several criteria utilized in this economic comparison was the total processing cost.
This processing cost included all capital and operating expenses that were required to produce a polymer
grade ethylene. The capital costs were the depreciated cost of all units associated with each process.

Design Economics for New Ethylene Plants

All configurations involving new design alternatives developed in this study were evaluated for a new grass-
roots ethylene plant and compared with the base-case design. For example, the economic performance of the
parallel configuration hybrid system (PCHS) is illustrated in Figure 9. This parallel hybrid system was
evaluated at both a fixed number of stages and a permeate pressure of 15 psia. As the membrane product
recovery increases, the fuel and cooling water savings increase. This is because the column condenser duty
decreases with an increase in membrane product recovery. Therefore, the compression duty of the propylene
refrigeration system decreases and this in turn reduces the fuel demand. The optimum hybrid system occurs
when a permeate product recovery of about 0.70 is achieved. Under these conditions, the maximum annual
savings are around 2.4 million US dollars. The membrane feed composition at this optimum is 0.849, which
is close to the distillation feed stage where the pinch region is located.
Figure 9 shows that the annual savings decrease as the membrane product recovery exceeds 0.7. This
indicates that the membrane performance is optimal for bulk separation where the feed composition is close
to the column feed composition. Above this optimal point, processing cost savings decrease because of the
increasing costs of permeate compression and cooling.
The optimum configuration occurs when the membrane is coupled with the distillation column in a series
configuration. The new plant with a series configuration uses a small column compared to the conventional
design and requires smaller equipment for both the propylene and steam systems [6,7]. The series
configuration hybrid system (SCHS) shows an annual processing savings of about 6 million US dollars. In
addition, the series configuration requires no propylene refrigerant. A small amount of ethylene refrigerant is
used for the distillation column. The reboiler of the low-pressure distillation column is utilized to cool other
process streams that were normally cooled by propylene refrigerant. The recycled ethane also refrigerates
other process streams.

Design Economics for Retrofit of Existing Ethylene Plants

In order to determine whether or not a retrofit is feasible, the operating costs associated with the present
conventional distillation column must be compared with those that would exist if the proposed change were
made. In this study, an incremental pre-tax return on investment of at least 25% was used as the primary
indicator of economic evaluation [8].
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

3 .5

Savings, (millions of US dollars per year )

O p tim u m h y b r id s y s te m
P r o c e s s in g c o s t
3 .0
D e p r e c ia te d c a p ita l

2 .5
U tilitie s c o s t
O th e r o p e r a tin g c o s ts
2 .0

1 .5

1 .0

0 .5

0 .0
0 .2 0 .3 0 .4 0 .5 0 .6 0 .7 0 .8 0 .9
M e m b ra n e P ro d u c t R e c o v e ry

Figure 9: Economic performance of the parallel configuration hybrid system for the ethane/ethylene
separation at a permeate pressure of 15 psia and carrier concentration of 6 mol/L.

0.95
Net savings, (millions of US dollars per year)

Point of tangency
0.90

0.85
Slope = 0.25
0.80

0.75

0.70 Recommended investment for

incremental pre-tax ROI of 25%
0.65

0.60
1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2.0 2.2 2.4
Required Investment, (millions of US dollars)

Figure 10: Net annual savings and required investment for the parallel hybrid system at Pp = 50 psia
and CAg= 6 mol/L.

The net annual savings is defined as the value of energy saved minus the sum of the operating costs and
depreciation. In this retrofitting analysis, the equipment associated with the distillation, refrigeration and
steam systems is identical to that used in the existing plant. The only change involved in the retrofit design
requires the addition of the membrane unit(s) and its associated compressors to the conventional C2 splitter.
For each retrofit configuration, the operating and capital costs were compared with the base-case design as
well as with other configurations utilizing the hybrid system. For example, Figure 10 shows the changes that
occur in the net annual savings associated with the required investment for different parallel hybrid systems
at a permeate pressure of 50 psia and a carrier concentration of 6 mol/L AgNO3. On the basis of alternative
investment comparisons, the optimal design that should be recommended, is not the design that provides the
maximum net savings. The analysis of the return on incremental investment is used to compare each design
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

Required investment, (millions of US dollars)

Net savings, (millions of US dollars per year)
1.5 2.4

1.4
2.2
1.3

1.2
Capital 2.0

1.1
1.8
1.0
Annual savings 1.6
0.9

0.8 1.4
0.7 Payout period is about 19 months
1.2
0.6

0.5 1.0
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

Payout period, months

Figure 11: Payout period versus the annual net savings and required investment for the parallel configuration
hybrid system at Pp = 50 psia, CAg = 6 mol/L.

2.50 2.50

Required investment, (millions of US dollars)

Annual savings, (millions of US dollars)

2.25 2.25

2.00 2.00
Capital
1.75 1.75

1.50 1.50

1.25 Utilities 1.25

1.00 Net annual savings 1.00

0.75 0.75
Optimum hybrid system
0.50 0.50
0.30 0.35 0.40 0.45 0.50 0.55 0.60

Membrane product recovery

Figure 12: Membrane product recovery versus the annual net savings and the required investment for the
parallel configuration hybrid system at Pp = 50 psia, CAg = 6 mol/L.

case with other design alternatives. The optimal design case gives a ROI of about 52% when compared to
the existing design. In addition, the optimal case provides a net annual savings of about 860,000 US dollars
per year and requires a capital investment of about 1.65 million US dollars. Figure 11 shows the required
payout period along with the net annual savings and necessary investment for each design alternative. The
payout period for the optimum parallel case is about 19 months. Figure 12 shows the net annual savings and
the required investment as a function of the membrane product recovery for various design cases of the
parallel hybrid system with a membrane permeate pressure of 50 psia and a carrier concentration of 6 mol/L.
As the membrane product recovery increases, the fuel and cooling water savings increase. The column
 6th World Congress of Chemical Engineering
Melbourne, Australia 23-27 September 2001

condenser duty decreases with an increase in membrane product recovery. Therefore, the compression duty
of the propylene refrigeration system decreases and this reduces the fuel demand. The optimum hybrid
design case occurs with a membrane product recovery of 0.46. The membrane feed composition at this time
is about 0.81, which is close to the distillation feed stage where the pinch region is located. This figure shows
that the annual savings decrease for a large product recovery.
Many parallel hybrid systems with a membrane permeate pressure of 15 psia were also compared with the
conventional design. It was determined that some of those cases provided an incremental pre-tax ROI of
more than 25% when the membrane recovery was less than 0.7. However, those cases provided a smaller
economic advantage when compared to the parallel hybrid systems with a 50 psia permeate pressure. This is
because of the large compression costs associated with the 15 psia permeate pressure. On the other hand, the
series configuration hybrid system (SCHS) provided a maximum net annual savings when compared to other
design alternatives. The net annual savings of this hybrid system exceeded 2.1 million US dollars. However,
the required capital costs were more than 11 million US dollars for revamping the existing ethylene plant.
For this series design case, the incremental pre-tax ROI is about 20 %. Accordingly, such a scheme is not
recommended for retrofitting an existing ethylene plant. Nevertheless, this scheme was determined to be the
ultimate design when it was implemented for a new grass-roots ethylene plant. The stand-alone cascade
membrane system is not recommended for retrofitting an existing plant since the capital expenditure is high
due to the higher compression costs. In this scheme, the conventional C2 splitter is eliminated.

CONCLUSIONS
The hybrid distillation/membrane system utilizing facilitated transport technology is a promising alternative
for the ethane/ethylene separation in the ethylene production process. This study shows that the reduction in
refrigeration requirements is the key to a successful hybrid system. The parallel configuration proved to be
more economically advantageous than the top and bottom configurations. However, this study shows that the
series hybrid configuration is the optimum design by providing the maximum processing savings. In
revamping an existing ethylene plant, the equipment for the refrigeration and steam systems (turbines,
compressors, heat exchangers, …etc.) is not changed. Since a new plant would require smaller utilities
equipment, the economic benefit of this new technology when implemented in an existing plant is less when
compared to a new grass-roots plant. On the other hand, many parallel hybrid cases provide energy savings
when compared with the conventional design in an existing ethylene plant. The ultimate parallel hybrid
design provides a net annual savings of about 0.86 million US dollars and requires a payout period of 19
months. While the series configuration is the optimum hybrid design for a new grass-roots ethylene plant,
such a scheme provides less economic advantages when applied to an existing plant.

References
1 Stork, K., & Wagner, K. (1971), ‘Energy Savings in Ethylene Separation’, Oil & Gas Journal, 60(3),
60-63
2 Hughes, R.D., Mahoney, J.A., & Steigelmann, E.F. (1986), ‘Olefin Separation by Facilitated Transport
Membranes’, Recent Developments in Separation Science, Vol. 9, CRC Press, Cleveland, 173-195
3 Al-Rabiah, A.A., Timmerhaus, K.D., & Noble, R.D. (1996), ‘Utilization of a Hybrid Membrane
System in Olefin Production’, Proceedings of the 8th Ethylene Producers’ Conference, Vol. 5, AIChE,
New York, NY, 619-624
4 Valus, R.J., et al., October 15 (1991), U.S. Patent 5,057,641
5 Teramoto, M., Matsuyama, H., Yamashiro, T. & Katayama, Y. (1986), ‘Separation of Ethylene from
Ethane by Supported Liquid Membranes Containing Silver Nitrate as a Carrier’, J. Chem. Eng. Japan
19(5), 419-424
6 Al-Rabiah, A.A., Timmerhaus, K.D., & Noble, R.D. (1999), ‘Modeling and Simulation of Several
Hybrid Distillation Systems for the Ethane/Ethylene Separation’, Proceedings of the 20th International
Congress of Refrigeration, Volume I (paper 070), Sydney, Australia, 465-472
7 Al-Rabiah, A.A., Timmerhaus, K.D., & Noble, R.D. (1999), ‘Modeling and Simulation of Several
Hybrid Distillation Systems for the Ethane/Ethylene Separation’, AIChE Annual Meeting, Paper 221j,
Dallas, Texas
8 Al-Rabiah, A. A., Timmerhaus, K.D., & Noble, R.D. (2000) ‘Retrofit of the Refrigerated C2 Splitter in
an Ethylene Plant with a New Separation System’, AIChE 2000 Spring National Meeting, Paper 55e,
Atlanta, Georgia

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