Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Workshop
At the wellhead, reservoir fluids generally are saturated with water.
The water in the gas can present some problems:
• formation of solid hydrates can plug valves, fittings, or pipes
• the presence of water along with H 2S or CO 2 can cause
corrosion problems
• water can condense in the pipeline causing erosion or corrosion
problems
Generally, a dehydration unit is used in gas plants to meet a pipeline
specification. There are several different processes available for
dehydration: glycols, silica gel, or molecular sieves.
The natural gas industry commonly uses tri-ethylene glycol (TEG) for
gas dehydration where low gas dew point temperatures are required,
such as in the design of offshore platforms in the Arctic or North Sea
regions or for other cryogenic processes.
In this example, the water dewpoint spec for the dry gas is -10°C
(-14°F) at 6200 kPa (900 psia).

Learning Objectives
Once you have completed this section, you will be able to:
• Model a typical TEG dehydration unit
• Determine water dewpoint for a gas

Prerequisites
Before beginning this section you need to be able to add streams,
operations and columns.

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Process Overview

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Column Overview
TEG Contactor

TEG Regenerator

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Building the Simulation

Defining the Simulation Basis
For this case, you will be using the Peng Robinson EOS with the
following components: N 2, H 2S, CO 2, C 1, C 2, C 3, i-C 4, n-C 4, i-C 5,
n-C5, H 2O, and TEG.

Starting the Simulation

Adding the feed streams
1. Add a Material stream for the inlet gas with the following values:
In this cell... Enter...
Name Inlet Gas
Temperature 30°C (85°F)
Pressure 6200 kPa (900 psia)
Molar Flow 500 kgmole/h (10 MMSCFD)
Component Mole Fraction
N2 0.0010
H2 S 0.0155
CO 2 0.0284
C1 0.8989
C2 0.0310
C3 0.0148
i-C 4 0.0059
n-C 4 0.0030
i-C 5 0.0010
n-C 5 0.0005
H2 O 0.0000
TEG 0.0000

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 Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

2. Add a second Material stream for the TEG feed to the TEG
Contactor with the listed values.
In this cell... Enter...
Name TEG Feed
Don’t forget to enter the Temperature 50°C (120°F)
mass fractions!
Pressure 6200 kPa (900 psia)
Std Ideal Liq Vol Flow 0.5 m3/h (2 USGPM)
Component Mass Fraction
H2O 0.01
TEG 0.99

The values for the stream TEG Feed will be updated once the Recycle
operation is installed and has calculated.
Mixer Operation
The composition of the natural gas stream has been provided on a
water-free basis. To ensure water saturation, the gas is mixed with
water prior to entering the Contactor.
Add a Mixer to mix the Inlet Gas and Water to Saturate streams.
In this cell... Enter
Connections
Name Saturate
Inlet Gas
Inlets
Water to Saturate
Outlet Gas + H2O

Parameters
Automatic Pressure Assignment Equalize All
Worksheet
Water to Saturate, Flowrate 0.5 kgmole/h (1.1 lbmole/hr)
Water to Saturate, Composition 100% Water
Water to Saturate, Temperature 30°C (85°F)

What is the vapor fraction of the stream Gas+H20? (It should be less than 1.0 to ensure
saturation)

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Separator Operation
Any free water carried with the gas is first removed in a separator
operation, FWKO.
Add a Separator and provide the following information:
In this cell… Enter…
Connections
Name FWKO TK
Inlets Gas + H2O
Vapor Outlet Gas to Contractor
Liquid Outlet FWKO

How much water does the Separator remove?

What is the hydrate temperature of Gas to Contactor?

Contactor Operation
The TEG Contactor can now be simulated.
Add an Absorber column operation with the following specifications
and run the column.
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Name TEG Contactor
No. of Stages 8
Top Stage Inlet TEG Feed
Bottom Stage Inlet Gas to Contactor
Ovhd Vapor Outlet Dry Gas
Bottoms Liquid Outlet Rich TEG
Pressures
Top 6190 kPa (897 psia)
Bottom 6200 kPa (900 psia)

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Valve Operation
The Rich TEG stream is flashed across the valve, VLV-100. The outlet
pressure will be back calculated.
Add a Valve with the following values:
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Inlet Rich TEG
Outlet LP TEG

Heat Exchanger Operation

Regen Feed is heated to 105°C (220°F) in the lean/rich exchanger, L/R
HEX, before entering the Regenerator.
Add a Heat Exchanger with the following values:
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Name L/R HEX
Tube Side Inlet Regen Bttms
Tube Side Outlet Lean from L/R
Shell Side Inlet LP TEG
Shell Side Outlet Regen Feed

Parameters
Tubeside Delta P 70 kPa (10 psi)
Shellside Delta P 70 kPa (10 psi)
Worksheet
Regen Feed, Temperature 105°C (220°F)
Regen Feed, Pressure 110 kPa (16 psia)

Regenerator Operation
The TEG Regenerator is simulated as a Distillation Column. The TEG
Regenerator consists of a condenser, a reboiler and one ideal stage.

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

1. Add a Distillation Column to the case.

In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Name TEG Regenerator
You can turn off the
Column Input Experts No. of Stages 1
in Tools/Preferences
Inlet Stream Regen Feed
on the Simulation tab
by unchecking the Condenser Type Full Reflux
‘Use Input Experts’
box. Ovhd Vapor Outlet Sour Gas

Bottoms Liquid Outlet Regen Bttms

Condenser Energy Stream Cond Q
Reboiler Energy Stream Reb Q
Pressures
Delta P Cond 2 kPa (1 psia)
Condenser 101 kPa (14 psia)
Reboiler 103 kPa (15 psia)
Specs
First Spec - Column Temperature
Stage Condenser
Spec Value 102°C (215°F)
Status Active
Second Spec - Column Temperature
Stage Reboiler
Spec Value 205°C (400°F)
Status Active
Third Spec - Reflux Ratio
Spec Value 1.0 Molar
Status Estimate
Fourth Spec - Column Draw Rate
Draw Sour Gas @ COL2
Spec Value 1 kgmole/h (0.02 MMSCFD)
Status Estimate
2. Set the Damping Factor (on the Solver page) to Adaptive. This
will result in much faster convergence for this column.
3. Run the Column.

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Mixer Operation
TEG is lost in small quantities, so a makeup stream is required to
ensure that the material balance is maintained.
1. Add a Material Stream.
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Name Makeup TEG
Temperature 15°C (60°F)
Don’t forget to enter
the mass fractions! Component Mass Fraction
H2O 0.01
TEG 0.99

2. Add a Mixer with the following information:

In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Makeup TEG
Inlets
Lean from L/R
Outlet TEG to Pump
Parameters
Automatic Pressure Assignment Equalize All
Worksheet
Std Ideal Liq Vol Flow, TEG to Pump 0.5 m 3 /h (2 USGPM)

What is the flowrate of Makeup TEG?

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Pump Operation
A pump is installed to raise the pressure of the TEG before it enters the
Contactor.
Add a Pump with the following information:
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Inlet TEG to Pump
Outlet Pump Out
Energy Pump Q
Worksheet
Pump Out, Pressure 6275 kPa (910 psia)

Heat Exchanger
A second heat exchanger is added to cool the TEG returning to the
Contactor.
Add a Heat Exchanger with the following information.
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Tube Side Inlet Pump Out
Tube Side Outlet TEG to Recycle
Shell Side Inlet Dry Gas
Shell Side Outlet Sales Gas
Parameters
Tube Side Delta P 70 kPa (10 psi)
Shell Side Delta P 35 kPa (5 psi)
Worksheet
TEG to Recycle, Temperature 50°C (120°F)

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 Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Recycle Operation
The Recycle installs a theoretical block in the process stream. The feed
into the block is termed the calculated recycle stream, and the product
is the assumed recycle stream. The following steps take place during
the convergence process:
• HYSYS uses the conditions of the assumed stream and solves
the Flowsheet up to the calculated stream.
• HYSYS then compares the values of the calculated stream to
those of the assumed stream.
• Based on the difference between the values, HYSYS modifies
the values in the assumed stream.
• The calculation process repeats until the values in the
calculated stream match those in the assumed stream within
specified tolerances.
In this case, the lean TEG (TEG Feed) stream which was originally
estimated will be replaced with the new calculated lean TEG (TEG to
Recycle) stream and the Contactor and Regenerator will be run until
the recycle loop converges.
1. Double-click the Recycle icon. On the Connections tab select the
connections from the drop-down boxes.

Recycle button

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 Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

2. Switch to the Variables page on the Parameters tab. Complete the

page as shown in the figure below. The tolerances for Flow,
Enthalpy and TEG Composition need to be tightened.

The TEG concentration

is very high so it is
necessary to tighten the
tolerances, especially on
composition, to ensure
accurate solutions.

What is the hydrate temperature of Sales Gas?

How does this compare with the hydrate temperature of Gas to Contactor?

Hydrate Formation Utility

There are three ways to attach utilities to streams in HYSYS.
• Click the Tools menu and select Utilities. The Available
Utilities view appears.
• Press Ctrl U and the Available Utilities view appears.
• Double-click a stream. On the Attachments tab, select
Utilities. Click the Create button and the Available Utilities
view appears.

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Attach a Hydrate Formation Utility to Stream

Sales Gas
1. In the Available Utilities view, select the Hydrate Formation
Utility and click the Add Utility button. If the utility is not already
associated with a stream, then the Hydrate Formation Utility view
appears.
2. Click the Select Stream button and select the stream Sales Gas.
Click OK.
3. Switch to the Performance tab. Here you will see the Equilibrium
Phase reported as Vapor Phase. With the Hydrate Formation
Utility in HYSYS v3.0 and newer, you must ensure that the
Equilibrium Phase reported on the Performance tab matches the
Hydrate Calculation Model chosen on the Design tab.
4. In this case, the default Hydrate Calculation Model is Symmetric,
which is only applicable to Liquid phase calculations. Thus, you
should switch the model to Vapor Only, as shown here:

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 Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

Now, you will note that the Equilibrium Phase reported on the
Performance tab is Vapor phase, which matches the Hydrate
Calculation Model chosen, as follows:

Analyzing the Results

One of the criteria used to determine the efficiency of a dehydration
facility is the water dewpoint of the dry gas. This can easily be
checked by finding the temperature at which water will just begin to
condense. First, all traces of TEG must be removed from the stream
being tested because TEG affects the H2O dewpoint. This is
The Component Splitter accomplished by the use of a Component Splitter. The resulting stream
does not do a flash to is then cooled and its outlet temperature is varied by an Adjust
separate components. The
user specifies the
operation to find the point at which water just forms.
separation.

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 Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

1. Add a Component Splitter with the following values:

In this cell... Enter...
Connections

Component Splitter Name Remove TEG

icon Inlet Sales Gas
Overhead Outlet TEG Only
Bottoms Outlet Water Dewpoint
Energy Split Q
Parameters
TEG Only, Temperature 10°C (50°F)
TEG Only, Pressure 6155 kPa (893 psia)
Water Dewpoint Temperature -10°C (-14°F)
Water Dewpoint Pressure 6155 kPa (893 psia)
'Use Stream Flash Specifications' 'Use Stream
Accept defaults
Pressure Specifications'
Splits
Stream TEG Only, TEG 1.0
Stream TEG Only, all other
0.0
components

2. Add a Separator to remove the condensed water.

In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Feed Water Dewpoint
Vapor Outlet Gas Out
Liquid Outlet XS H2O

An Adjust operation will vary the temperature of Water Dewpoint

until the dewpoint specification is met for the stream Gas Out.
Add an Adjust operation to manipulate the temperature of the Water
Dewpoint stream until the flow of the XS H2O stream is just greater
Adjust button than 0, a value of 0.01 kg/h works well here.

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Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

The resultant temperature of the Water Dewpoint stream will then be

the dewpoint of that stream.
In this cell... Enter...
Connections
Adjusted Variable Water Dewpoint
Variable Temperature
The tolerance must be
small here as the Target Variable
target value is close
to 0, but an XS H2O Object XS H2O
flow of 0 means that
Variable Comp. Mass Flow - H2O
the dewpoint has not
been reached yet. Target Value
Source User Supplied
Target Value 0.01 kg/h (0.022 lb/h)
Parameters
Method Secant
Tolerance 0.005 kg/h (0.011 lb/h)
Step Size 5°C (10°F)
3. Click the Start button to run the Adjust operation.

Exploring the Simulation

Exercise 1: Stripping Gas
The addition of stripping gas (slipstream from Sales Gas) will enhance the ability of
the Regenerator to remove water from the rich TEG. A Tee operation is used to split
Sales Gas into 2 streams.
• Strip Gas flow = 50 kgmole/h (110 lbmole/hr)
The stream pressure is 6155 kPa, which is too high for the
Regenerator. Use a Mole balance to transfer the flow and composition
of Strip Gas to SG to Regen. Specify the following parameters for SG
to Regen:
• T = 70°C (160°F)
• P = 110 kPa (15 psia)

SG to Regen enters as a feed to the Regenerator Reboiler. Does the TEG concentration in
Regen Bttms increase?

Hint: You should ignore the adjust, as the sales gas will now exceed the dewpoint
specification easily.

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 Process Modeling Using HYSYS Natural Gas Dehydration with TEG

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