Drying pipelines

New pipelines have to be dried and made inert before hydrocarbon gas or liquid can be
transported.
An usual method of drying is blowing dry air through the pipeline. A very low dewpoint of the
air is not required as a major part of the water vapour carrying capacity of the air will be
created by the expansion of the air as it flows along the internal pipelinewall what need to be
dried. Test water is then already removed from the pipeline by the use of separation pigs.
For example: at an ambient temperature of 10C the water carrying (removal) capacity of air
dried to a dewpoint of 30C is less than 6 % more than air dried to
20C. The removal capacity of dried air to a dewpoint of 40C is less than 2 % more than
air dried to a dewpoint of 30C.
At 4 bara air inlet pressure, more than half the water carrying (removal) capacity comes from
the expansion of the air to atmospheric pressure at the outlet. It should be noted that the
dewpoint of the air flowing out of the pipeline is not a measure of the dewpoint of the air in
the pipeline when the inlet pressure is much higher than the outlet pressure.
After drying with air the pipeline should be purged and filled with nitrogen to prevent the
formation of explosive mixtures with hydrocarbon gas.
When the purging with nitrogen is done at low flow and low inlet pressure (1 barg or lower), it
can also be checked whether the drying is completed and if it is safe to commission the
pipeline because the gas flowing out of the pipeline (nitrogen) should be checked on both
water dewpoint and on oxygen content.
It is a rule of the tumb that for drying of a pipeline you need + 300 times of volume to dry.
Contents of a pipe line of 17 mile and a diameter of 10" is + 1400 m3, which is 300 multiplied
by 1400 is + 10 mmscf.
We propose the following:
First step drying the pipeline: the 900 Nm3/h dried air should be used to dry the pipeline to a
dewpoint of approx. 25C. This will take approx. 35 hours
Second step drying the pipeline: with nitrogen from the generator that produces 307 Nm3/h
with a dewpoint of 40C at 8 barg can dry the pipeline further. It reaches a dewpoint of
53C when the pressure in the pipeline is at less than 1 barg or to a dewpoint of 55C when
it remains below 0.5 barg and 58C at 0.0 barg.
Purging the pipeline with 5 times its volume will usually be sufficient to reach safe oxygen
levels. With a nitrogen generator of 397 Nm3/h the second step drying and purging can be
done in less than 20 hours for the pipeline above.
When the pipeline is not immediately commissioned it is recommended to leave it filled with
dry nitrogen at a pressures above atmospheric to prevent the ingress of oxygen and water
vapor (conservation of the pipeline).
The calculated time required to dry, purge and conserve a 17-mile section of a 10 pipeline
with the N2 generator is approx. 50 hours. The 50 hours is excluding the time for launching
and receiving pigs during drying and purging. Outside conditions may have impact on the
results i.e. pipeline configuration, ambient conditions, etc.
The price of a portable nitrogen package is + Euro 300.000,--.
The largest package we have in our programme is a unit with 2300 Nm3/hr dry air and 1000
Nm3/hr nitrogen which would reduce time less than 24 hours.
Also smaller types are available.
Nitrogen purity considered: 95 %.