Impact of Increased Helium Recovery Requirements from Natural Gas on Capital and Operational Performance of Two-Stage Membrane Equipment

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Abstract

The article discusses consequences of increased requirements for the degree of helium recovery from helium-containing natural gas on the efficiency of two-stage membrane system are considered on the example of composition gas of the Kovykta field. With an increase in the degree of helium recovery ≥ 95%, there is a disproportionate increase in capital and operating costs. At the same time, methane losses in the composition of the “helium concentrate” are increasing. With a low influence of nonlinear effects, it is recommended to use a pressure 0.11–0.15 MPa abs. of the permeate gas. Use of two successive steps of gas separation at the second stage with different use of two permeated streams is a more effective technological solution for all basic characteristics than the version with a single-stage membrane block.

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V. I. Solomakhin

API-Technology LLC

Author for correspondence.
Email: svi@api-tech.ru
Russian Federation, Moscow, 17, Nauchny Ave., Sect. 1, Office 14-4, 117246

References

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2. Fig. 1. Principal two-stage membrane scheme of helium extraction and concentration in accordance with the Russian patent [8], where 1 - the pipeline for supply of GPG at working pressure, satisfying TU STO Gazprom 089-2010 and thoroughly filtered from mechanical impurities; 2 - one-stage membrane unit MB-1 from parallel operating ME; 3 - pipeline for withdrawal of retentate from MB-1 with low residual helium content; 4 - pipeline for low pressure permeate from MB-1 with extracted gases; 5 - pipeline for withdrawal of combined two gas streams (3 and 13) at working pressure (from the first and second stages) and with low residual helium content as one of the final results of membrane gas separation - Product 1; 6 - gas supply pipeline to the CW-1 inlet, after combining two low-pressure permeate streams from MB-1 and from MB-3 in order to compress them to working pressure; 7 - multistage compressor station CW-1 with auxiliary equipment; 8 - pipeline for withdrawal of the compressed gas stream from CW-1 for further gas separation; 9 - one-stage membrane unit MB-2 for realisation of the first stage of gas separation at the second stage of the membrane unit; 10 - retentate withdrawal pipeline from MB-2 and its supply to MB-3 for the subsequent stage of gas separation as part of the second stage; 11 - pipeline for withdrawal of permeate from MB-2 to form Product 2, which can be conditionally called ‘helium concentrate’; 12 - one-stage membrane unit MB-3 to realise the final stage of gas separation to achieve the required final results from the second stage; 13 - pipeline for withdrawal of retentate from MB-3 with low residual helium content with its concentration as in retentate from MB-1 to combine these two streams; 14 - pipeline of withdrawal of circulating low-pressure permeate from MB-3 for further supply together with permeate from MB-1 to the inlet of CW-1; 15 - multistage compressor station CW-2 in order to restore the initial working pressure of permeate stream from MB-2 for correct estimation of total specific energy consumption of all processes in the two-stage membrane plant; 16 - pipeline of withdrawal of helium concentrate with working pressure as the second final product - Product 2 for decision-making on its further use.

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3. Fig. 2. The most typical dependences of the consequences of increased helium recovery requirements for MB-1 at the first stage of the plant, where a) the graph of reduction of the extracted helium concentration in the MB-1 permeate stream due to the increase in the fraction of penetrated/lost methane when the requirement to increase the helium recovery degree exceeds 90% and, moreover, when the requirement exceeds 95%; b) the graphs of relative performance (normalised to values at 85% helium recovery degree) in increasing the MB-1 permeate flow rate and in increasing the capital investment in the required amount of DOE.

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4. Fig. 3. Graphs of dependences on changes in the ratio of pressures on MPE in MB-1 composition at providing the same degree of helium recovery in 90%, where a) graph of reduction of extracted helium concentration in the MB-1 permeate stream due to increase in the share of penetrated/lost methane; b) graphs of relative indicators (normalised to values at 0.15 MPa abs. permeate pressure) on the effect on the value of permeate share θ1 and on similar changes in capital investments in the amount of MPE for MB-1.

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5. Fig. 4. Principal two-stage scheme of membrane helium extraction and concentration with ‘truncated’ execution of the second stage [11].

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