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Introduction to Natural GasEngineering
Wednesday, Week 1
Agenda
• A little about me
• Introduction to the course
• Introduction to Natural Gas Resources
• Basic concepts in Natural Gas Engineering
Introduction to the Course
What is this course about?
• This course is about
– The analysis and prediction of PVT behaviour of natural gases
(especially using cubic equations of state)
– Thermodynamics of selected process steps in natural gas
handling (compressors, pipelines, valves, etc.)
– The economic and social context of natural gas development
• This course does not cover the drilling and production,
geological or reservoir engineering aspects of
developing natural gas resources as they are the
domain of other courses.
• Notes
– We will work mainly in SI units
– For assessments I assume you know your conversion factors
(pressure, mass, energy, distance, etc.)
– Watch your significant figures.
Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course you should
be able to:
1. Apply thermodynamic theory to predict & explain
the properties and PVT behaviour of natural gases.
2. Perform preliminary design/analysis calculations for
common unit operations in natural gas handling.
3. Critically engage in contemporary debates around
the development of the various types of natural gas
resources.
UNSW Graduate Attributes (GA)
The core GA which we develop in Natural Gas
Engineering are:
• Scholars who have an understanding of their
discipline in its interdisciplinary context (GA 1a)
• Scholars who are able to apply their knowledge and
skills to solving problems (GA 1d)
• Scholars who are capable of effective
communication (GA 1f)
• Leaders who are collaborative team workers (GA 2c)
http://www.johnbiggs.com.au/solo_graph.html
Course Components
• Read the course outline!
• 2h lectures + 2h tutorials (start this week!!)
• Tutorial participation (4020: 4%, 5010: 2%)
• Assignments
- TBD
• Assessable Quizzes in Weeks 5 & 9
- TBD
• Final exam (50%)
• Resources (textbook, Moodle)
Resources
• Notes and slides on
Moodle
• Text: Smith, Van Ness &
Abbott
– Buy @ UNSW Bookshop
– Copies @ library
(PX660.28/70…)
Learning Management System
• Lecture slides
• Weekly quizzes
• Assignments and quizzes
• Surveys
• Course notes and other background material
Lecture schedule
Week Topics
1 Intro to course & natural gas resources Basic properties & concepts
2 Getting gas to market (Gas specifications, gas processing, LNG, GTL)
3 First law; state functions, reversible processes; heat effects; heating values; GHG
4 Second law; entropy; ideal & lost work Material, energy and entropy balances
5 PVT behaviour of ideal and real gases; reversible cycles for processes
6 Real equations of state; residual properties and real processes
7 Transport of natural gas: compressors, turbines and pipelines
Teaching Recess
8 Valves, nozzles and chokes in natural gas operations
9 Vapour-liquid equilibrium and the phase behaviour of natural gases
10 Water vapour in natural gases Hydrate inhibition; dehydration
11 Unconventional gas resources and their thermodynamic behaviour
12 Gas sweetening and Carbon Capture & Storage
Introduction to Natural GasResources
What is Natural Gas
• A combustible mixture of hydrocarbon gases
• Mainly of methane (CH₄) with varying levels of
heavier hydrocarbons (ethane, propane, butane &
condensate) and other gases (e.g. CO₂)
• Formed by the thermogenic or biogenic decay of
ancient plant and animal remains.
– Thermogenic – created by effect of heat and pressure
(e.g. conventional and unconventional gas)
– Biogenic – created by effect of methanogenic bacteria
(e.g. landfill gas)
 Where is it found?

Methane
hydrates

SA DMITRE (2012). Roadmap Unconventional Gas Projects in SA.

 Where is it produced?

>100 billion
>10 billion
>1 billion
>1 million
>0

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Natural_gas_production_world.PNG
In Australia

GA & BREE (2014). Australian Gas Resource Assessment.

 Various natural gases (mol%)
Basin Browse Carnarvon Cooper Gippsland Perth Persian Gulf Taranaki

Field Scott North Goodwyn (comp- Barra- Marlin (comp- South South Maui Kapuni
Reef Rankin osite) couta osite) Pars 1 Pars 2
C1 76.9 85 86.1 79 85.7 81.1 95.1 89.2 88 81 45.6
C2 6.9 6.2 7.5 3.7 5.7 6.7 1.7 5.4 3.8 6.5 5.8
C3 1.6 2.1 2.9 0.8 2.9 4.7 0.8 0.6 1.2 2.5 2.9
C4 0.8 0.9 1.2 0.2 1.8 2.3 0.6 1 1.1
C5 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.1 0.8 1.1 0.1 0.3 0.3

C6+ 3.5 0.7 trace 0.2 0.6 2 0.3

N2 0.6 0.5 1.5 0.3 1.8 0.6 0.7 3.7 5.7 3 0.5
CO2 9.5 4.3 0.2 15.6 0.6 2 1.7 1 0.1 6 43.8

• Natural gases contain between 70% and 90% methane.

• Concentration decreases with increasing molar mass.
• Nitrogen and oxygen occur in low concentrations (1–2%).
• Carbon dioxide may be a minor or major component.
• Hydrogen sulfide & helium may be found in trace amounts.
Variation in a single well (core desorption)

Scott, S. (2012). Unconventional hydrocarbon potential of the southern Cooper Basin. Presented at the 2012 SPE NSW/ACT Section Shale &
Unconventional Gas Symposium. Sydney NSW, Australia.
Further reading
• Course Outline
• International Energy Statistics: Natural Gas — US EIA
http://www.eia.gov/cfapps/ipdbproject/IEDIndex3.cfm?tid=3&pid=26&aid=24
• Roadmap Unconventional Gas Projects — SA DMITRE
(2012)
http://www.pir.sa.gov.au/petroleum/prospectivity/basin_and_province_information/
unconventional_gas/unconventional_gas_interest_group/roadmap_for_unconventi
onal_gas_projects_in_sa
• Australian Gas Resource Assessment 2014 — GA & BREE
http://www.ga.gov.au/metadata-gateway/metadata/record/gcat_79675
• Fundamentals of Natural Gas Processing — Parrish &
Kidnay
http://www.crcnetbase.com/isbn/978-0-8493-3406-1
Basic natural gas properties
Moles, etc.

• A mole (abbrev: mol)

the SI amount of substance
equal to 6.022 × 1023 things http://jennashworth.blogspot.com/

(i.e. Avogadro’s number).

• Molar mass = the mass of one mole of the substance.
• Units of molar mass include
– kilogram per kilomole (kg/kmol)
– pound per pound-mole (lbm/lbmmol)
• Note: the molar mass of methane
M = 16 kg/kmol = 16 lbm/lbmmol
• But… 1 kmol = 2.20 lbmmol
Other measures of composition
• The volume fraction (v/v, vol%) for a mixture of
ideal gases is the same as the mole fraction.
• The parts per million (ppm) of a component A is the
number of parts of A (moles, grams, particles) per
million parts of solution.
• The molar concentration or molarity is the number
of moles of A per unit volume of solution
• The molal concentration or molality is the number
of moles of A per unit mass of solvent
Ideal gas law
• Obeyed by many gases at moderate temperatures &
pressures, e.g. near ambient conditions

𝑃𝑃
𝑃𝑃
𝑃𝑃
𝑃𝑃= 𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛

• P = pressure (Pa, bar, psia)

V = volume (ft³, L, m³)
n = number of moles (mol)
T = thermodynamic temperature (°R, K)
R = gas constant = 8.314 J/mol.K
= 10.73 ft3.psia/lb-mole.oR
• Any (ideal) gas has the same volume @ same T&P.
Energy, work and heat
Energy, Work and Heat
• What is energy?
• What types of energy are there?
• What is heat?
• What is work?
• What is the rule about energy?
Work (2)

• Energy is possessed by a
body; work is not.
• Work is energy in transit. system
• The body under study is called
the system.
• The region it interacts with is
the surroundings. surroundings
• Work is done
by the system on surroundings
or the surroundings on system.
Conservation of mechanical energy
• For both kinetic and potential energy the work done
can be recovered by reversing the process.
• This implies that a body possesses the ability or
capacity to do work
• The capacity to do work is called energy
• A free falling body converts its potential energy into
kinetic energy such that its capacity to do work is
unchanged…

• … until it hits the ground.

Heat
• Heat (Q) is like work: it is energy in transit.
• Classically, from a hot to a cold object.
• Energy transferred by
heat is stored as
molecular EK &/or EP.
• A moving system may
lose kinetic energy by
friction as heat.
Further reading
• Chapter 1 of Smith, Van Ness & Abbott
• Chapter 1 of the Walsh Notes
(https://moodle.telt.unsw.edu.au/)
• The SI System of Units and the SPE Metric Standard
http://www.spe.org/authors/docs/metric_standard.pdf
Now watch some of these!
• Crash Course Chemistry (each about 10 mins)
• #2 Unit Conversion & Significant Figures:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQpQ0hxVNTg
• #17 Energy & Chemistry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqtUWyDR1fg
• #18 Enthalpy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SV7U4yAXL5I
• Avogadro's Number (Mole) – Numberphile (10 min)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dzS_LXvYA0
• Absolute Zero – PBS NOVA (2 hours)