ransmission

Norman P. Lieberman
TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING

NORMAN P. LIEBERMAN

P e n n W e l l Books
A PennWell Publishing Company
Tulsa, Oklahoma
 Dedicated to Jack Stanley —
Grace Under Pressure

Copyright © 1987 by
PennWell Publishing Company
1421 South Sheridan RoadlP.O. Box 1260
Tulsa, Oklahoma 74101

Library of Congress cataloging in publication d a t a

Lieberman, N o r m a n P.
Troubleshooting n a t u r a l g a s processing.

1. Gas i n d u s t r y . I. Title.
TP751.L54 1986 665.7 86-16878
ISBN 0-87814-308-4
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored,
in a retrieval system, or transcribed in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and
recording, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
2 3 4 5 90 89
ui
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

DEDICATION iii
PREFACE vii
INTRODUCTION ix

SECTION I TROUBLESHOOTING AT THE WELL SITE

1 Increasing Gas Row at the Wellhead 1
2 Additional Ideas to Enhance
Gas Row 16
3 Wellhead Surface Equipment 25
4 Wellhead Compression 36
5 Process Cooling in Remote
Locations 49

SECTION II TROCBLESHOOTING AT THE DEHYDRATION

AND COMPRESSION STATION

6 Glycol Dehydration 59
7 Reciprocating Compressors 80
8 Reciprocating Engines 90
9 Loss in Centrifugal Compressor
Capacity 100
10 Gas Turbine Driven
Centrifugal Compressors 112
11 Light Hydrocarbon Distillation 120
 12 A m i n e Regeneration a n d
Scrubbing 133

13 Sulfur Plant Operation 148

SECTION III PIPELINE PROBLEMS

14 Hydrates
PREFACE
172
15 Production Metering 180
16 Piping Pulsations 188
17 Corrosion and Fouling The people who read this book are in the business of exploiting
192 our country's most valuable, non-renewable, natural resource—nat­
ural gas. We are all faying to maximize cash flow and profit for both
GLOSSARYr 195
the lease operator and the landowner. That's fine; that's the Amer­
ican way.
But, in a sense, the gas trapped deep in hidden sand formations
INDEX belongs not only to our current generation, but to the generations
203 coming along behind us. When we exploit a gas field, let's do it ef­
ficiently. It's pretty easy to damage a gas bearing sand formation by
careless or hasty production methods.
Once the gas is gone, it's gone forever. So let's leave a fair
share for future Americans to exploit and enjoy.

Norm Lieberman

VI
vn
 INTRODUCTION
FROM WELLHEAD TO TRANSMISSION PIPEUNE
The natural gas which flows from a well is wet, saturated with
heavy hydrocarbons and contaminated with salt and sand. Gas pres­
sure at the wellhead varies from a few PSIG to ten thousand
pounds. Natural gas flowing from deeper wells may contain large
quantities of hydrogen sulfide. The BTU content ranges from 1000
to 1400 BTU per SCF, while the temperature at the wellhead can
be over 200°F.
In contrast, gas in common carrier transmission lines is of a
much more uniform quality. Typical conditions are:

• 5 ppm H 2 S
• 800psig
• 90°F
• 1000 BTU per SCF
• 5 pounds water per million SCF

The common carrier transmission lines are usually 16" to 30"

in diameter. They carry gas from perhaps fifty thousand wells, scat­
tered throughout remote and inhospitable regions, to the population
centers of the nation. The lines from the wellheads are typically 2"
in diameter. The gas flows into collection lines called laterals which
range from 3" to 12" in diameter.
Although there is no generally accepted practice, liquids are
often separated from natural gas before the gas enters the collection
lateral piping. The liquids consist of brine (salt water usually less
saline than sea water) and condensate (natural gasoline).
The condensate is collected in trucks and winds up in a petro­
leum refinery or similar facility, where the condensate is blended
into gasoline. The brine is also removed from the well site in trucks,
then injected back into the ground in designated disposal wells.
After separation from wellhead liquids, the gas is metered.
Exact measurement of the gas volume flowing from a well is impor­
tant for two reasons. First of all, the owner of the well is not the
same individual who owns the mineral rights to the land. The land­
owner must be paid a royalty (about 20%) by the lease operator (i.e.
the company or individual that produces and sells the gas). Sec­
ondly, the lease operator pays tax on his production (7% in Texas).
Many wells are joint ventures, and this too necessitates careful
metering.

IX
 Natural gas flows from the collection laterals to a gas condi­ ration and drilling. The next largest cost components are royalty
tioning station. A small station may handle 10 million SCFD, while and tax payments. Gas treating, drying, compression and liquid hy­
a big station may process 500 million SCFD. Initially, the. gas goes drocarbon handling total a distant third on the list of expenses. But
through a knock-out drum to remove entrained liquids. Then it can it is just these areas that call for the talents of the troubleshooter.
be filtered to remove sand and corrosion products, compressed and Although the process and mechanical engineering concepts needed
scrubbed with an amine solution to remove hydrogen sulfide. to tackle these areas are relatively straightforward, it is their in­
All natural gas is dehydrated. This is accomplished with a cir­ teraction with the gas well itself that makes the job of trouble­
culating ethylene glycol system. The gas is dried so that it will not shooting natural gas production a real challenge.
precipitate water at temperatures down to -35°F. A common carrier
pipeline will not accept gas with hydrogen sulfide and water concen­
trations above standard pipeline specifications.
After dehydration, ethane, propane, isobutane, normal butane
and gasoline may be recovered from the dried gas. If the heat con­
tent of the gas exceeds 1100 BTU's per SCF, it is likely that it will
be cost effective to recover these hydrocarbons as liquid products.
Only about 35% of the ethane is usually removed from the gas,
while 95% of the propane and heavier hydrocarbons are recovered.
The propane is sold as HD-5 LPG; normal butane is blended into
gasoline; while isobutane becomes a feedstock for a refinery's alky-
lation unit. Ethane is used primarily as a feedstock to a chemical
plant's ethylene units.
From this point on, natural gas is treated as a fungible mate­
rial. It is traded by pipeline companies and producers based on it's
BTU content. A pipeline company often transports gas for if s com­
petitors and sundry producers. The tariff that is charged for this
transportation is quite variable; 15# per 100 miles is an order of
magnitude guideline.
The velocity of gas in a pipeline ranges between ten to twenty
feet per second. A pipeline that is heavily loaded (i.e. "packed") will
exhibit a pressure drop of up to 10 PSI per mile, with 4 PSI per mile
being more normal. Pipeline pressures range from 400 PSIG to 1350
PSIG. The standard maximum design pressure for vessels used in
natural gas service is 1440 PSIG (100 atmospheres).
Most transmission lines will have booster stations located every
fifty miles or so. A typical booster station will raise the gas pressure
200 PSI. Gas entering a pipeline should be cooler than 120°F as the
protective exterior coating of the pipe deteriorates at a temperature
above 140"F. Between booster stations, the flowing gas approaches
the temperature of the ground that the pipeline is buried under.
Gas inside a transmission line is non-corrosive; it is the ex­
terior corrosion that one has to watch. On the other hand, upstream
of the gas conditioning station, along the collection laterals, internal
pipe corrosion is a serious problem.
Most of the cost of producing natural gas is incurred in explo-

XI
x
 Section

±3

Troubleshooting
At The
Well Site

"Now son, it's only a matter

of time and determination".
Production Supervisor
Larry Wflkes
Texas City, Texas
 1
INCREASING GAS FLOW
AT THE WELLHEAD

"I had left the gate open and now a large black cow was grazing
alongside the highway."
"What does this have to do with gas production," demanded Mr.
Howlaway, "I'm not paying you to listen to another cow story."
'Tm coming to that part, but the cow is part of the story too,"
I explained. "As you probably know, poor grazing land is a sure sign
of a tight gas formation. Cattle prefer ...."
"No it isn't", interrupted Mr. Howlaway, "Cows have nothing
to do with the permeability of a gas bearing sand formation. Kindly
stick to the point."
Trying to pacify my client, I drew the simplified sketch of a
typical gas well shown in Figure 1-1. Mr. Howlaway was interested
in methods to promote gas flow from low pressure wells without
spending significant sums to up-grade production. It was going to be
hard to proceed with my explanation though, without some reference
to the cattle:
"There are three basic problems which reduce the flow of gas
from a well which has a sufficient gas pressure, porosity and per­
meability in the surrounding sand formation to sustain a much
higher production rate:

1. Restriction to flow down hole such as occurs when sand covers

the perforations in the casing.
2. Liquid loading of the production tubing with water and natural
gasoline condensate.
3. Back-pressure on the wellhead tree caused by such factors as
high pressure in the gas collection header piping.

1
2 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 3

These points can best be understood by referring to Figure 1-1.

Simply observing the operation of a well does little to help differen­
tiate the causes of diminished gas production.
One of the questions asked by lease operators is how to calcu­
late the incremental gas flow that can be expected from a well due
High-low pressure shutdown Adjustable choke to reduced lateral collection header pressure. The formula used to
estimate this increase is:
Cap
^
_,n
w=J Q 2 = Qi
Pf - Pi
Gas to (1)
X collection P* - Pi2
header
Wellhead tree

where
\ Surface Qx = Initial gas flow.
Q2 = Final gas flow.
Ps = Stabilized shut-in pressure, measured at the wellhead
cap.
Pi = Initial wellhead pressure.
, Casing P2 = Final wellhead pressure.
n = The slope of the wellhead performance curve obtained
from a well's multipoint test.

• Tubing While P x and Qi are known from the current operating data,
and the lease operator will be able to estimate P 2 , (the final well­
head pressure) determining a reasonable value for the shut-in pres­
sure (Ps) and the slope of the wellhead performance curve (n) can be
.Packer a challenge. After a well has been blocked-in, the pressure on the
wellhead will increase for several hours, or even days. The reading
I77777T7777% /// /T7T on the wellhead tree pressure gauge after this pressure has
v ' ' , Gas-bearing fll/ . * sand formation / stabilized, is termed the shut-in pressure.
There are several problems which interfere with obtaining a
Perforations true wellhead shut-in pressure. One difficulty is that while one is
in casing waiting for the wellhead pressure to stabilize, the lease operator can
lose one to three days of production. Or, liquids may be accumulating
Bottom in the mile or two of tubing between the perforations and the
of hole wellhead. If a well accumulates 4,000 feet of condensate in the
tubing during a shut-in test, then the wellhead pressure will be sur-
pressed by 1,000 psig. For this case, the observed wellhead shut-in
pressure is meaningless. When the well is put back on-line and
Figure 1-1 Gas production from the tubing of a single completion well. resumes gas flow, the wellhead pressure will probably increase,
 4 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
rather than decrease! In many instances, the only practical way to
determine a shut-in pressure is to search back over production
records and find a time when the well was blocked-in for mainte­
nance. Next, check the reported wellhead pressure immediately after
flow from the well was resumed. If the flowing tube (i.e. wellhead)
pressure is somewhat lower than the shut-in wellhead pressure, one
may assume t h a t a reasonable value for the shut-in pressure has
been determined.
The numerical value for (n), the slope of the wellhead perfor­
mance curve, can often be obtained from the initial performance test
run on the well made immediately after completion. Usually (n)
varies from .65 to .95. For troubleshooting type approximations,
assuming that n = .8 will not introduce much of an error into the predi­
cated increment of gas flow due to a reduction in collection header
pressure.
WHY HAS GAS FLOW DROPPED?
We are assuming that the reservoir pressure and porosity are
adequate — that is, there is a plentiful supply of gas in the ground
for the well to draw on. Also, we are assuming that the permeability
of the reservoir is sufficient to allow a relatively free flow of gas to
the perforations in the casing. (Porosity and pressure are a measure
of the amount of gas trapped in the sand formation; permeability is
a measure of the resistance of the sand formation to gas flow).
We are concerned in this chapter with factors t h a t interfere with
gas flow from the sand formation immediately surrounding the casing
perforations up through and into the gas collection header. In this
regard then, what is the physical meaning of equation (1) above in the
context of our everyday experience?
When the flowing tube pressure (i.e. the wellhead pressure during
normal operation) is close to the shut-in pressure, a small reduction in
the collection header pressure (with a concurrent drop in the wellhead
pressure) causes a substantial increase in gas flow. On the other hand,
when the flowing tube pressure at the wellhead is much less than the
shut-in pressure, a small reduction in the wellhead pressure will not
effect gas flow significantly.
To emphasize this critical concept, note that when wellhead flow is
restricted by back pressure from the collection header piping, the shut-
in and flowing tube pressures will be similar. On the other hand, if gas
flow is restricted by a discarded tool stuck 8,000 feet down in the
tubing string, then the shut-in and flowing tube pressures will be
far apart. Why is this? Because, if the errant tool was removed from
the tubing, the shut-in pressure will not be effected, but the well­
head flowing tube pressure would greatly increase (assuming that flow
INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 5
from the well was choked back to maintain constant production).
This leads to an important troubleshooting principal: The first
point to establish in troubleshooting a well for lost production is
whether the problem is above or below the surface!
LIQUID LOADING
Although we have been talking about wellhead pressure (both
shut-in and flowing tube), the wellhead pressure is just an indirect
indication of the really important parameter-that is, the bottom hole
pressure. It is the pressure inside the casing at the level of the perfor­
ations that determines gas flow. By lowering a pressure sensing instru­
ment suspended on a wire-line to the proper depth, bottom hole pres­
sures can be directly measured. But this is an expensive and time
consuming procedure, and beyond the scope of the options available to
the field troubleshooter.
So we do not usually know the actual bottom hole pressure. If we
knew the density of the column of fluids (i.e. the mixture of gas, conden­
sate and brine) inside the tubing, we could calculate the bottom pressure
as follows:
P = P + (SG) H/2.31 (2)
p i
where
P = Pressure at perforations, psig
P i = Wellhead Pressure, psig
H = Vertical distance between wellhead tree and
perforations, ft.
SG = The average specific gravity of the three phase
mixture in the tubing, taking into account the
increase in gas density at greater depths.
It is the difference between the bottom hole pressure (Pp) and the
pressure in the surrounding sand formation t h a t determines the rate
of gas flow from a well. From equation (2) we can see that the bottom
hole pressure will increase as the density (SG) in the tubing rises. This
increase in P p reduces the gas production from the well according to
the formula:
2 2
Q-P'-Pp
r
where (3)
Q = Gas Flow
P — Reservoir Pressure
6 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 7

The main point t h a t the troubleshooter must absorb from the Once the liquid is cleared out of the tubing (this takes 30 minutes
preceeding paragraphs is that any increase in the average fluid density to a few hours), the flow stabilizes for several hours and then slips
in the tubing will surpress gas flow. An increase in this density is away as the pressure in the sand formation around the casing perfor­
always due to the accumulation of condensate and/or brine in the tub­ ations is dissipated. Once the velocity through the tubing drops below
ing. Unfortunately, there is no way to measure this accumulation. that needed to continue entraining the liquids, gas production drops
Hence, the troubleshooter cannot really make direct use of equation rapidly, and the cycle, as shown in Figure 1—2 is repeated.
(3). However, with a little experience, it is possible to determine the
approximate effect of liquid loading on many wells. SUSTAINING ENTRAINMENT VELOCITY
When I first started troubleshooting partially depleted natural
ENTRAINMENT VELOCITY gas wells, I often wondered why so many of the hundred odd wells I
A well that produces 100,000 SCFD of gas as a minimum, but visited were averaging 200-300 MSCFD. I had expected a more linear
periodically reaches a peak production rate of 300,000 SCFD once a distribution between the minimum gas production per well (20
day, is continuously loading and unloading liquids. The sequence of MSCFD). Actually, 30 to 40% of the wells I observed clustered around
events are: an average production rate of 250 MSCFD.
• The velocity of gas flowing up through the tubing is insufficient to
entrain liquids out of the tubing to the surface.
• Liquids accumulate (load) in the tubing.
• The weight of liquid increases the pressure differential between
the wellhead tree and the bottom of the hole, as per equation 2.
• The gas flow from the well drops, as per equation 3.
• Gas flow continues to bubble-up through the tubing; but at a rate
insufficient to entrain liquids out of the tubing.
• The gas pressure inside the tubing at the bottom of the well, and
also in the sand formation surrounding the perforations continues
to build as the gas flow diminishes.
• At some point, the well reaches a condition of instability. For
example, a small reduction in the wellhead pressure due to a
downstream pressure reduction causes a small increase in gas
flow. This promotes a small amount of liquid unloading from the
I
tubing. The resulting decrease in average fluid density in the
tubing drops the bottom hole pressure. Gas is now sucked out
of the sand formation, and through the perforations, at an
accelerated rate.
• A chain reaction has been set in motion. Accelerated gas flow
speeds liquid unloading; which in turn drops the bottom hole
pressure, and progressively increases the rate of gas production.
An atomic bomb is detonated by creating a critical mass of
plutonium. A gas well is unloaded by reaching the well's entrainment
velocity; a point encountered suddenly and in a dramatic fashion. The
sound of slugs of brine and condensate blasting through the wellhead
tree and surface equipment is quite audible. Typically, both the well­ TlME
head pressure and the gas flow will increase as the slugs of liquid "hit"
the surface piping with increasing frequency. Figure 1-2 Peaks indicate cyclic unloading of liquids.
8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
Wells with average production rates below 150 MSCFD, all had
one factor in common - low wellhead pressure. The lower the wellhead
pressure, the greater the velocity developed in the tubing with a given
volume of gas. For example, 150 MSCFD of gas flowing at a pressure
of 600 psig develops the same velocity as 240 MSCFD flowing at a
pressure of 1000 psig. For those readers familiar with Stokes Law:
V « gr 2 (D L - Dy) / (vis) (4)
where
V = velocity of a droplet of liquid falling in a gas phase
under the influence of gravity.
g = Gravitational constant.
D L = Density of liquid droplet.
Dy = Density of the continuous gas phase.
r = Radius of droplets
vis = Viscosity of gas phase.
One can see t h a t as the density of the liquid droplets decreases,
the gas velocity necessary to entrain the droplets also decreases. Hence,
one would anticipate that entraining condenate would require a lower
velocity than that required to entrain water. Also, dispersing the liquid
(i.e. reducing V in equation (4) such as by forming an aerated foam)
would also lower the minimum velocity required to entrain liquids. I
have observed the flowing gas volume and corresponding wellhead
pressure for a dozen odd wells just as they reached their minimum
entrainment velocity. That is, the point in time when I could hear
repeated slugs of liquid passing through the wellhead tree. Using the
tubing inside diameter (see Table 1), I then calculated the minimum
or incipient velocity needed to unload liquids from each well. This data
was then correlated using the standard relationship for liquid entrain­
ment employed in the chemical process industry:
V E = K / D L - DyV/2
V Dv ) (5)
where
V E = Incipient entrainment velocity
K = An empirically derived constant
D = Density, lbs./ ft3
INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 9
Of course, my objective was to derive a value for "K" which I
could use to predict with confidence V E for hundreds of other wells. For
my data base, I calculated values for "K" ranging from 0.85 to 1.10.
The density of brine is about 63 lbs./ft. and condensate is about 42
Ibs./ft. .The gas density is calculated at the wellhead temperature and
pressure.
TABLE 1-1
COMMON TUBING DIMENSIONS (Inches)
Size,O.D.* Size, I D .
2% 1.995
27/s 2.441
3V2 2.992
4 3.476
4V2 3.958
*Tubing size in gas field parlance only refers to the outside diameter.
Equation 5 and the corresponding "K" values were developed for
8-10,000 ft. wells, with wellhead pressures varying between 100 to 500
psig. The liquid phase was always brine and 18 molecular weight
natural gas was being produced. The tubing strings were either 2%"
or 2%" O.D. I do not suggest that one should use any particular "K"
value for an individual gas field. The idea is to get out of the office
and play with the wells. Then, using Equation 5 as a basis, develop
"K" values applicable to one's own gas field. " V E " is a^so referred to
as the "flowpoint", and a rather detailed review of this subject has been
published. 2
KEEPING WELLS UNLOADED
Mr. Howlaway eyed my equations suspiciously, "I can see that
you have developed a method to predict the combination of the gas
production rate and wellhead pressure necessary to keep my wells from
loading -up with liquid. But suppose the production rate that the
reservoir can support is too low, or the wellhead pressure is too high
to achieve the minimum entrainment velocity. What should I do about
that?"
Of course, there were a wide variety of answers to Mr. Howlaway's
question. Major industries have been created to assist gas producers
to keep wells from loading up with liquids. Gas lift Mandrels and

10 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
plunger lift systems are just two of the many gas lift downhole methods
commonly employed to remove liquids from gas wells. However, as
far as retrofitting low pressure wells at the surface is concerned, the
simplest most cost effective means to remove accumulated liquids from
a well is a n "Intermitter."
Figure 1-3 illustrates a typical Intermitter installation. A motor
on-off valve located downstream of the high pressure separator alter­
nately shuts-in and opens-up flow from the well. Wellhead pressure is
allowed to build to several hundred psig above the pressure in the gas
collection lateral. When the intermitter motor valve springs open, the
sudden release in pressure creates a surge in gas flow through the
tubing string. The accelerating gas flow reaches and surpasses the
entrainment velocity, and the well is thus unloaded.
PROBLEMS WITH CISE OF INTERMITTERS
The valve trim on the intermitter should be at least twice the
diameter of the choke. When the intermitter valve opens it should not
restrict gas flow from the well. Unfortunately, if the wellhead pressure
builds to an excessive level, the sudden surge in gas flow when the
intermitter opens may have two detrimental effects:
1. The flow recorder may be over-ranged to such an extent that it is
damaged.
2. The high pressure separator may fill with liquid so rapidly that the
dump valve may not be able to drain liquid down fast enough to
prevent liquid carry-over into the instrument gas bottle shown in
Figure 1-3.
Ordinarily, the intermitter motor valve is controlled by a timer
(Electronic digital timers with a variety of built-in. computer features
are now available). The well may be set to flow on a 24 hour open/12
hour shut-in cycle. To prevent the problems described above, a high-
pressure over-ride is set to open the motor valve when the pressure
build-up is more rapid than anticipated. The electronic timer mentioned
above already incorporates this pressure over-ride feature.
The optimum time intervals for cycling between opening and
closing the motor valve are learned from experimenting on individual
wells. Once experience has shown that a well begins to load up with
liquids after free flowing for 28 hours, the intermitter controller should
be set to shut the well in for pressure build up after 30 hours of
production.
SOAP STICKS
Equation 5 implies that the lower the density of the liquid
INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 11
accumulating in the tubing, the lower the entrainment velocity. This
means that less gas flow is required to keep a well unloaded of liquids,
when the liquid density is reduced. Addition of soap sticks to a well is
a simple method to reduce the density of liquids in the tubing. Adding
soap sticks achieves this objective by causing the water to turn to froth.
The soap sticks are approximately 18 in. long by V/z in. in diameter
and consist simply of soap. They are dropped down the well by placing
them into the wellhead tree between the two master valves on the
vertical section of the tree. A typical rate of soap-stick addition is two
sticks every four days.
Two different types of soap sticks are available: A hydrocarbon
soluble stick for removing naphtha-i.e., natural gas condensate from
the tubing and a corresponding water-soluble stick. Using both types
in conjunction is often an effective means of stimulating gas flow. Note:
Hydrocarbon-soluble sticks may create an emulsion in the naphtha
that may subsequently have to be chemically treated in order to sell
the condensate.
Improper and excessive use of soap sticks can damage the gas
bearing sand formation. Dropping sticks into a shut-in well and
permitting the soapy solution to permeate back through the perfora­
tions in the casing should be avoided. Also, the froth carried out of a
well after soap sticking may over-load the high pressure separator and
result in the entrainment of liquid to down stream equipment. This
can be an especially troublesome problem when compressors are located
downstream of wells being soap sticked.
Often the most cost effective method to unload wells is to increase
the velocity of gas flowing through the tubing by reducing the wellhead
pressure. For example, if the wellhead pressure is reduced from 315
psig (i.e. 330 psig) down to 150 psig (i.e. 165 psig), the velocity in the
tubing string will double. However, according to Equation 5. V E , the
entrainment velocity, will also increase by 41%. This occurs because
halving the pressure also halves P v , the vapor density, and this in­
creases V E by the V2~] The sum of these effects is to reduce the SCFD
of natural gas required to exceed the entrainment velocity by 30%,
when the wellhead pressure is halved. The most cost effective method
to cut the wellhead pressure is to install a small, reciprocating, gas
engine driven compressor at the well-site down stream of the high
pressure separator. Techniques to adjust and troubleshoot these
machines will be discussed in a later chapter.
DOWN HOLE PROBLEMS
"Let's hold it a minute", interjected Mr. Howlaway. "It's not that
I haven't been trying to listen to you for the past two hours . . . . but
12 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 13

my mind tends to wander. I'm thinking about our Juanita # 5 well,

down in Jim Hogg County. That well doesn't make any liquids - brine
or condensate. When we first put it on line it flowed 4,200 MSCFD.
Now, just a year later, it can barely sustain 80 MSCFD with a wellhead
pressure floating on the gas collection lateral pressure of 600 PSIG. I
tried installing a wellhead compressor to increase gas flow. The com­
pressor worked okay. It reduced the wellhead pressure to 300 PSIG.
The results were real disappointing; the incremental gas flow of 10
MSCFD barely was enough to run the compressor." Mr. Howlaway
stared out of the window at the emaciated cattle searching for the last
blades of withered grass and continued. "I noticed though, that while
the well was shut-in to permit the compressor piping to be tied-in, the
wellhead pressure rapidly increased to 1900 PSIG. You would think
that a well with all that high pressure gas behind it could produce
more than 80 MSCFD with a W wellhead choke? What do you think".

SAND COVERING PERFORATIONS

c The points t h a t Mr. Howlaway had enumerated:
• No liquids produced.
e • A recent past history of high gas production.
5 • Low gas flow at a reasonable low wellhead pressure through a
relatively large choke.
• Rapid build-up to a high shut-in pressure.
• No significant improvement in gas flow even when the wellhead
c
pressure was sucked down with a field compressor.
J2 These factors were all indicative of down hole problems — most
T3
3 probably sand covering the casing perforations (see Figure 1—1). Some­
times a sand bridge forms above the perforations. Either way, the effect
is the same; a great reduction in gas production.
Equation 1 explains why all of Mr. Howlaway's observations were
consistent. The recent 4,000 MSCFD of gas flow indicated the permea­
bility of the gas bearing sand formation was excellent. See if you can
calculate from Equation 1 why the installation of the wellhead compres­
1 sor was a mistake.
J
TAGGING BOTTOM

O
I Rapidly opening the wellhead valves on a high pressure well
flowing into a low pressure collection system is a good way to ruin a
well when the following two criteria are met:
• The wellhead choke is large.
• The well has been shut-in for a while.
14 TROUBLESHOOTING NATCIRAL GAS PROCESSING INCREASING GAS FLOW AT THE WELLHEAD 15

The surge of gas flow resulting from following this procedure may,
depending on the producing formation, suck sand out of the formation,
through the casing perforations and into the tubing. To determine if
sand is indeed covering the perforations, a weighted wire line is lowered
through the tubing through a device called a "lubricator". When the
wire line loses tension, the operating personnel at the surface surmise
t h a t the weight has "tagged bottoms". This tagged depth is compared
to the well's completion record to determine if any or all of the casing
perforations are submerged in sand. If more t h a n 20% to 30% of the
perforations are covered, it is a good idea to wash the well out with a
"coil tubing unit".
REFERENCES
1. Smith, R.V., "Practical Natural Gas Engineering, Pennwell,
Tulsa, Okla., 1984, page 108.
2. Greene, William R., "Analyzing the Performance of Gas Wells",
Journal ofPetroIeum Technology, July, 1983, pages 1378-1384.
3. Otis Engineering Corp., General Sales Catalogue, Dallas, Texas.
Gas Lift Equipment & Services, page 250.

The cost to tag bottoms with a wire line unit is only a few thousand
dollars. Washing a well clear of sand with a coil tubing unit can cost
ten times as much. A coil of tubing — perhaps 10,000 feet long, is
lowered into the well. Water and high pressure nitrogen are employed
to force the sand out of the bottom of the well and up through the
annular space between the tubing and the outside of the coil tubing.
It is not uncommon to see gas flow triple, after a well has been relieved
of it's load of accumulated sand.
Prior to placing a compressor on a partially depleted well, it is a
good idea to obtain at least a qualitative idea of difference between
the shut-in and the flowing wellhead pressure. If this difference is
large, then it is far better to check for sand in the tubing than to blindly
install the wellhead compressor. Certainly, if sand is covering the
casing perforations, it is a waste of time and money to install a wellhead
compressor.
Of course, the presence of sand in a relatively young well is indi­
cative of a sloppy operation at some previous occasion. This is especially
true if the material being pulled into the tubing is frac sand rather
than formation sand. There is no sense pumping frac sand into a for­
mation and then crushing the sand and sucking it out of the formation
by over-rapid natural gas production.
The sun, having burned the last trace of moisture from the already
parched hills, dipped below the horizon. Mr. Howlaway stared out the
window at the reddening sky. "What about the black cow. Is the cow
still relevant".
"Of course. The cow is part of the story too", I explained. "Men
have been shot for leaving gas field gates open. Driving cattle back
onto a lease is always relevant to troubleshooting gas production. As
for the black cow, when it saw that I meant business; when it understood
that I wasn't leaving until it went back through the gate; it just natur­
ally marched back onto the lease. It was only a matter of time and
determination. Sure, the cow is part of the story too", I concluded.

2 • 30% of the wells did not exhibit any observable increase in gas
ADDITIONAL IDEAS
TO ENHANCE GAS FLOW
One of the more puzzling phenomenon I have observed in gas
field production happened during my tenure as an operator of well­
head compressors. One would intuitively assume that the faster the
wellhead compressor ran, the more gas would be delivered through
the sales meter. Normally, as the compressor speed was increased by
manually screwing open the governor speed control valve, the com­
pressor suction pressure fell. Of course, this also reduced the well­
head pressure and the gas flow would be expected to increase accord­
ing to the formula:
Q=C(PR2 -Pf )°
where
_ Gas flow, SCF
Q
— Reservoir pressure
PR
PI = Wellhead pressure
C,n = Constants peculiar to <in individual well
The above equation is really of little use to the field trouble-
shooter because C,n and P R are unknown for partially depleted
wells. But,the equation does positively indicate that gas flow will
never decrease as the wellhead pressure is dropped. Much to my sur­
prise, I began to observe that as I dropped the wellhead pressure by
speeding-up the wellhead compressors that:
16
ADDITIONAL IDEAS TO ENHANCE GAS FLOW 17
flow.
• An additional 10% of the wells actually lost production as the
wellhead pressure dropped.
If the reader will consult equation 1, of the previous chapter,
he will note t h a t when wells have relatively high stabilized shut-in
pressures, as compared to their flowing wellhead pressure, that the
incremental gas flow obtained from a further reduction in the flow­
ing wellhead pressure may be quite small. It transpires that there
is another factor which tends to negate the effects of decreased well­
head pressure. This factor is water.
CONING WATER INTO A WELL
"Mendoza, this meter is broken", I complained. "Every time we
increase the compressors speed to pull-down the wellhead pressure,
the recorded gas flow drops. I just raised the rpm from 375 to 425,
and the wellhead pressure fell from 220 PSIG to 15 PSIG. But the
metered flow decreased from 180 MSCFD to 150 MSCFD. That's im­
possible; the meter must be broken".
"Yes Sir", responded Mendoza, "you mentioned the same thing
last week about that old well down near the river. But when we
checked it out, the flow meter was okay".
"So you think it's water again", I ventured.
Mendoza settled himself comfortably on the trucks tailgate and
explained. "Yes Sir, it looks like we're just sucking water into the
well. The harder we suck with the compressor, the more water we
bring up".
"I can see that, but why don't we increase our gas make too".
"You know more about these things than I do Sir. But what
I've been told is that the gas in the reservoir is floating on top of
a pool of brine. Once the gas pressure in the reservoir is pretty
much reduced, the brine starts working it's way towards the casing
perforations. The lower the pressure at the perforations, the more
easily the brine flows up into the gas formation and into the well.
That's called "coning", because the water is supposed to be flowing
up at an angle to the perforations. Once the water enters the pro­
duction tubing, gas flow from the wellhead always drops off'.
"Yes Mendoza, the water rising to the surface interfers with
gas production. This happens because of the following:
1. The average density of the fluid inside the subsurface tubing
increases.
18 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING ADDITIONAL IDEAS TO ENHANCE GAS FLOW 19

2. The downhole pressure increases relative to the surface TUBING

pressure. PRODUCTION
3. The pressure difference between the reservoir and the casing
is diminished and hence the flow of gas from the sand
formation through the casing perforations slows".

"After all", I continued, "the rate of natural gas production is

really not a direct function of the wellhead pressure. Rather, the CASING
controlling variables are really the reservoir pressure and the down-
PRODUCTION
hole pressure: 7
Q = C(PR2-PDH2)n

where
=
PDH The pressure inside the casing at the level of the PERFORATIONS
perforations. FOR CASING A
PRODUCTION ^
"Mr. Lieberman", interrupted Mendoza, "aren't you getting off
the subject again. What I want to know is what do we do now".
"Suppose we get a sample of water from the high pressure
separator", I answered. "We could get it analyzed for salt. If the salt
content of the water is a lot lower than that of the brine produced PACKER PERFORATIONS
when the well was first put on line, we can assume that water is FOR TUBING
leaking around the outside of the casing. A "squeeze-job" (i.e. forcing PRODUCTION
more cement around the casing) is supposed to correct this problem.
But if, as you say, we are promoting water flow (i.e. coneing) from
a water zone below the gas bearing sand formation, we had better
just slow the wellhead compressor back down to 375 rpm. After all,
the flowing water is probably promoting the formation of channels
that will make future coneing of brine into the well even worse".
Figure 2-1 A dual completion well.
DUAL COMPLETION WELLS
the annular space inside the casing, will act as lift gas. This lift gas
By perforating the casing both below and above the packer, as will prevent the casing from loading up with liquids and thus sur-
shown in figure 2 - 1 , a lease operator can produce natural gas from press gas production. If this "button hole", is made too large, a re­
two different zones simultaneously. Thus, a dual completion can strictive choke may be required on the casing's gas production. This
double the intiial gas flow from a well. If, as often happens, the for­ will probably negate the effect of the lift gas, as the restrictive
mation being drained by the tubing is depleted first, a serious prob­ choke will raise the pressure at the perforations above the packer
lem arises. If the casing pressure substantially exceeds the tubing in the same way as would liquid loading.
pressure, the tubing can collapse and gas flow to the tubing side of
the wellhead tree will be restricted. If the casing side formation is JET EJECTORS
first to depressure, an attractive opportunity may develop. A small
hole, the size of a button, may be shot into the tubing string just Figure 2—2 shows how high pressure gas from the tubing side
above the packer. The flow of high pressure gas from the tubing into of dual completion can be employed to compress the low pressure
 2 0 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING ADDITIONAL IDEAS TO ENHANCE GAS FLOW 21

worth of natural gas, a portable sand separator may be installed be­

casing gas. An ejector, an apparatus in common use in process
tween the wellhead tree and the permanent production equipment.
plants, acts as a compressor without moving parts. The installed cost
While portable sand separator skids may be rented, a sketch has
of the apparatus pictured in figure 2-2, is less t h a n $10,000, and
been provided in figures 2-3A and 2-3B for those producers who
there are no operating costs. Use of an ejector in this service re­
may wish to build their own unit.
quires that both the tubing pressure and flowing gas volume be
much higher than the collection header pressure and the casing gas MAWP = 2TO0 PSIG
ESTIMATED WALL THICKNESS 1 2
flow, respectively. Note also, that the ejector must be protected VESSEL TO BE STRESS RELIEVED

against the errosive sand produced form the well.

Gas leaking into, and pressuring up, the casing of a partially Z\t
QUICK-CONNECT FITTING

depleted well must be bled down periodically. A W line connecting

the casing to the tubing will permit this gas which slowly accumu­
lates in the annulus to be recovered for sales instead of being vented 2 1.0 STELLITE LINED
NOZZLE FITTED FOR
to the atmosphere. TANGENTIAL ENTRY-

THE BIRTH AND DEATH OF A GAS WELL

When a well is completed, it must be cleared of sand before it's
production can be lined up to the collection laterals. This is ac­
complished by "flowing-back", or "flaring", the well. For a typical
gas well, this requires venting the tubing to the atmosphere for 3
or 4 days at a typical rate of 5 MMSCFD. To avoid wasting $50,000
95UF QUICK-CONNECT FITTING

2 0 0 0 M SCFD
I0O0 PSIG-) X MOTIVE
GAS

■ 80°F Figure 2-3A Facility to recover wellhead gas during initial flaring.
TUBING

EJECTOR

CASING
2 2 0 PSIG
2 0 0 M SCFD
5 0 0 PSIG

MAIN LATERAL GAS DRIVEN

DUAL PUMP
COMPLETION
WELL

Figure 2-2 CIse of an ejector to produce low pressure casing gas from a dual
completion well using high pressure gas from the tubing string
as motive gas. Figure 2-3B Details of portable sand separator.
22 TROUBLESHOOTING NATORAL GAS PROCESSING
Towards the end of a well's life, it should probably be placed
on an intermittent type operation as described in the previous chap­
ter. This will keep the well from loading up with liquids. As time
goes by, the back-pressure from the collection lateral will be too
high to permit the entrainment velocity (or flow point) to be
achieved when the well is opened-up, even though it has been shut-
in for many days. Under such circumstances, the well must be
flowed-back to the atmosphere. Addition of a few soap sticks through
the wellhead cap twenty minutes prior to venting the well to the at­
mosphere (really to a pit to contain the brine that will be blown out)
is a good procedure. Figure 2-4 illustrates the piping configuration
at wellhead required to routinely acomplish the above. It may take
15-30 minutes to successfully blow the brine out of a tubing string.
If the procedure is working, the wellhead pressure will climb as the
slugs of brine pass up through t h e flow-back connection. Of course,
once a well has declined to this point, installation of wellhead com­
pressor or downhole corrective measures are appropriate.
SOAP STICK
LAUNCHER
M 5 ATM. VENT
TO PIT
X gas specific gravity (i.e. its density relative to air) is 0.60. The tub­
NORMAL GAS
1X1
FLOW FROM
TUBING
WELLHEAD
TREE
Figure 2-4 Facilities to unload a depleted well.
ADDITIONAL IDEAS TO ENHANCE GAS FLOW 23
AN INTERESTING EXPERIMENT
If a well has been killed with water—that is, gas will not flow
from the well even when the atmospheric vent is left open—an in­
teresting observation can be made. Drop a soap stick down the well
and listen as it hits the joints in the tubing string. Each joint is
30-40 feet apart, and the stick makes a quite audible sound, which
can be heard at the atmospheric vent, as it passes each joint. On one
12,000-foot well, I heard the stick splash into water after descend­
ing past 120 joints (4,800 feet).
A well that has this much water accumulation normally can­
not be resuscitated with soap sticks. It must be cleared of water by
being swabbed out, a procedure that mechanically removes water
out of the well.
The loading up of wells due to condensate and water formation
in production tubing is a highly complex subject. This is particularly
true in deeper wells. The inter-action between the surface equipment,
the reservoir characteristics, and the two or three phase flow occur­
ring in the tubing string really requires a computer analysis with
the input of all the historical data available from the well. The re­
quisite software to achieve this capability are available from a
number of organizations. 1
By way of summarizing the concepts discussed in the last two
chapters, the reader may wish to work through the following ex­
ample which is based on observations made for an actual, flowing
natural gas well in South Texas.
EXAMPLE:
J.B. Smith # 4 is flowing steadily at 1,300 MSCFD with a well­
head pressure of 815 PSIG and a wellhead temperature of 80° F. The
ing I.D. is 2%" and the well is producing water at a rate of 10 bbl/
MMSCF. An unexpected incident at a downstream pipeline booster
station causes the field pressure to increase from 800 PSIG to 870
PSIG for several hours. Later, the field pressure drops back to 800
PSIG. However, the well is now flowing erratically at an average
production rate of 420 MSCFD. Calculate the entrainment ve­
locity, V E and the coefficient, K, in the entrainment velocity
equation:
V E = K VP T . - P7
Pv
Answer = 6.3 fUsec., K = 1.37
2 4 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING

REFERENCES
1. Sim Sci, Simulation Sciences Inc., PLPEPHASE Fullerton,
California. 3
WELLHEAD SURFACE EQUIPMENT

A fully outfitted gas well will be equipped with the following

items at the wellhead:
• The wellhead tree with a fixed choke.
• Heater with an adjustable choke.
• High pressure separator.
• Low pressure, three-phase separator.
• Gas flowrate orifice meter.
• Condensate tank.
• Brine tank.
Figure 3—1 summarizes the functions and the relationship of
these components. Many gas wells are not equipped with low pres­
sure separators or tanks; the lease operator, may feel that insuffi­
cient liquids will be produced to justify their expense. Also, once the
wellhead pressure diminishes to the 1,000 psi range, a heater (used
to retard hydrate formation) is not necessary.

THE WELLHEAD TREE

My initial impression of the collection of valves sitting atop a
gas well was that the assemblage of hardware was unnecessarily
complex. This turns out to be a false first impression.
Both the casing and the tubing strings terminate at the tree.
Figure 3-1 assumes that only the tubing string wiil be used to pro­
duce gas. This is called "single completion well". The casing below
the packer has- been perforated to communicate with a gas bearing
sand formation. If the casing has also been perforated to draw gas
from a shallower formation, then the well would be termed a "dual
completion".
The wellhead pressure is shown on a gauge atop the tree. This

25
 WELLHEAD SURFACE EQUIPMENT 2 7

pressure does not bear a direct relationship to the critical bottom

hole pressure (i.e. the pressure inside the tubing at the level of the
perforations). There are a minimum of two valves available on the
tree to shut-in the high pressure gas flow from the tubing; the mas­
ter and the secondary (or wing) valve. The master valve is upstream
of the secondary valve. The master valve is intended to last the life
of the well, while the secondary valve is replaced when it starts to
leak. Whenever a high pressure, flowing gas stream is blocked-in,
the valve so used will be subject to the erosive force of rapidly mov­
ing sand. When two valves are located in series on a gas line, the
valve closed first will erode. Alternately, when gas flow is to be re­
stored, the valve opened last will experience the effect of high vel­
ocity, erosive sand. This concept applies to casing wellhead valves
and liquid drains from high pressure separators, as well as produc­
tion tubing isolation valves.
How does one know when a secondary isolation valve is leaking
and requires replacement? Simply close the valve and see if it stops
the gas flow to downstream equipment. If a secondary valve (which
I like to call the "throwaway valve") is not replaced in a timely fash­
ion, the master valve (which I refer to as the, "permanent valve")
will also start leaking. I leave it to the reader to imagine the dif­
ficulty and expense of replacing a leaking master block valve on a
4000 psig gas well.

CASING PRESSURE
Ideally, there should not be any gas accumulation inside the
casing of a single completion well. If gas does infiltrate the annular
space between the casing and the tubing, excessive pressure will
build-up inside the casing. If the casing pressure greatly exceeds the
tubing pressure, the tubing will collapse. If you observe the opera­
tion of a well that has a collapsed tubing string, the only signs will
be low wellhead pressure and diminished gas production. Unfortu­
nately, there are a host of other illnesses that beset gas wells that
have identical systems:
• Well loaded up with fluids.
• Perforations covered with sand.
• Low bottom hole pressure.
• Production tubing bridged with sand.
To prevent the collapse of the tubing string, the well operator's
duties include venting off pressure from the casing. A cost effective
method to accomplish such venting is shown in figure 3-2. Instead
of depressurizing the casing to the atmosphere, the excess gas in the
casing is vented into the production tubing downstream of the well­
head choke. This saves money. For example, venting a 1000 psig
2 8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING WELLHEAD SURFACE EQUIPMENT 29

casing from a well 10,000 feet deep into a production line operating
at 550 psig saves about $60 per venting incident.
HEATER OPERATION
Why are there two chokes shown in figure 3—2. Certainly, gas
flow could be controlled with a single choke. One reason is that the
erosion of the choke is reduced by limiting the pressure drop
through a single restriction. Note the pressure profile between the
wellhead and high pressure separator shown in figure 3 - 1 . The
other rationale for utilizing two chokes on high pressure wells is to
prevent hydrate formation.
A following chapter, presents the causes and cures of pipeline
freeze-ups. Suffice it to say here that excessive throttling across a
choke will form a water-hydrocarbon solid inside the choke. To pre­
vent this, the flowing gas is partially reheated as follows:
• Gas flows to the surface at 3500 psig and 130° F.
• The gas pressure is reduced to 2400 psig across the fixed
wellhead choke. As a consequence of this pressure drop, the
gas cools to 80° F.
GAS PRODUCTION
FROM TUBING
• The gas stream is reheated to 140° F in the first loop
through the heater.
• The adjustable choke—which is an integral part of the heater,
throttles the gas pressure down to 1100 psig. This pressure
reduction again cools the gas to 80° F.
It is clear from the above data that attempting to break a 3500
psig wellhead pressure down to the 1100 psig separator pressure
across a single choke would cause the choke to freeze up (1100 psig
natural gas may form hydrates at temperatures below 70°F) and the
gas flow to cease.
To illustrate this idea, let's assume that a heater's adjustable
choke is freezing up. The heater is operating as hot as possible. To
overcome this problem, install a smaller fixed choke in the wellhead.
This will permit operating with the heater's adjustable choke in a
more open position and hence reduce the temperature drop across
the adjustable choke.
Inadequate heater capacity can be caused by a low water level.
Exposing heat transfer tubes to air also accelerates exterior corro­
sion of these tubes.
Heating natural gas from 80° F to 140° F as described in the
above example consumes about 0.2% of the well's gas flow. While
this is not much of a loss, always keep in mind that hotter gas re­
duces compression capacity and creates dehydration problems at
downstream facilities. Hence, heaters must be shut down when the
danger of hydrate formation expires.

HIGH PRESSURE SEPARATOR

3/4"TUBING To prevent metering difficulties, and to reduce corrosion and
pressure drop in downstream piping, liquids are removed from well­
head gas. Water plus natural gasoline condensate are drawn off as
WELLHEAD a mixed phase. Gas flows out of the separator, through the sales
meter, and into the collection (i.e. lateral) piping. The two main
CHOKE problems associated with the operation of high pressure separators
are:
CASING • Liquid carry-over.
tXl=y
- / VENT • Loss of gas through a leaking liquid dump valve.

Only rarely do high pressure separators carry-over due to ex­

cessive gas rates. The vessel, if properly sized to handle the initial
'S/// / //// /// well production, will be adequate to de-entrain liquids from their di­
Figure 3-2 A piece of 3/4" tubing can recover gas leaking into the casing minishing gas flow as the well ages. Usually, liquid carry over is
of a single completion well. due to high liquid levels. The liquid dump valve shown in figure 3-1
 3 0 TROUBLESHOOTING NATORAL GAS PROCESSING
is actuated by "instrument gas" (i.e. natural gas) flow from a con­
nection on the high pressure separator. Once the instrument gas
bottle illustrated in this sketch fills with water, the dump valve may
become inoperable due to water in the instrument gas. The resulting
high liquid level in the separator will keep the instrument gas bot­
tle liquid full and hence continue to prevent the dump valve from
operating and draining the high pressure separator. Installing a
larger instrument gas bottle and instructing field personnel to drain
it daily is one answer. The ideal solution though, is to supply dry
instrument gas from a nearby glycol dehydrator. Dump valve instru­
ment gas tubing improperly aligned to resist freeze ups is also an
. important factor in liquid carry over (see chapter on preventing
pipeline freeze ups).
The most common cause of high liquid level carry over from
high pressure separators is simply that the liquid dump valve be­
comes mechanically inoperable, or it is calibrated to hold too high
a level. If one of the level gauge glass taps are plugged; or the glass
has become opaque with dirt, field personnel wil never realize there
is a problem.
My first assignment in troubleshooting gas field operations was
to survey the high pressure separators in a system encompassing
four hundred wells for undersized vessels. The dehydration station
servicing these wells was being menaced by an ever increasing brine
content in the inlet gas. I discovered not a single undersized
separator. What I did find was a hundred inoperable liquid dump
valves. Almost without exception, the gauge glass isolation ball
check valves had become stuck with age and disuse. As these valves
could not be opened or closed, field operating personnel had discon­
tinued blowing down the gauge glass to unplug the taps and clear
the glass of fouling deposits. Without being able to visually locate
the liquid level in the separator, they could not properly calibrate
the liquid level control or know when the dump valve had become
inoperable.
It is usually pretty easy to find a leaking liquid dump valve on
a high pressure separator. Continuous or frequent venting from the
low pressure, three phase separator is one tipoff. A cool line down­
stream of the dump valve, as well as lack of a liquid level in the
separator's gauge glass, are other indications of a leaking dump
valve.
A grain of sand that has become lodged in the dump valve's in­
strument gas bleed-off port will cause an "Air-to-Open" dump valve
to stick open. Oft times, a stuck dump valve can be made operable
by manually opening and closing it a few times. Not uncommonly,
dump valve internals are damaged by erosive sand. To minimize
WELLHEAD SORFACE EQUIPMENT 3 1
this effect, the usual short stem plug inside the dump valve body
should be replaced with a long stem carbide plug. On occasion, I
have seen dump valves blowing through because a pebble had be­
come lodged between the plug and the seat. The only tool required
to disassemble a liquid dump valve to rectify such a problem is a
large hammer.
LOW PRESSURE THREE PHASE SEPARATOR
The high pressure liquid flows into the low pressure separator.
Typically the low pressure vessel operates at 30 to 60 psig. Below
20 psig, there will not be enough pressure to push the accumulated
liquids into adjacent tanks. Above 60 psig, natural gasoline conden­
sate will generate excessive vapors when it is introduced to a
storage tank.
The low pressure separator's purpose is to separate three
phases:
• Brine
• Natural Gasoline Condensate
• Evolved Vapors.
When the high pressure liquid flashes in the low pressure
separator, substantial volumes of hydrocarbon vapor are generated.
For example, when one barrel of a typical natural gasoline conden­
sate is depressured from 1000 psig to 65 psig, roughly 1.3 moles of
28 molecular weight is vented through the low pressure separator's
back pressure regulation. A typical composition of this flash gas is:
Carbon Dioxide 3%
Methane 53%
Ethane 22%
Propane 13%
Butanes 6%
Pentanes Plus 3%
The condensate is drawn off to control the separators liquid
level, while the brine is withdrawn to hold the condensation-brine
interface level. It is quite important that the gas supply used to
operate the liquid level dump valves not be withdrawn from the low
pressure separator itself. The moisture content of gas withdrawn
from a 40 psig vessel will be 18 times higher than gas flowing from
a 1000 psig high pressure separator. Also, any surge in the liquid
level in the low pressure separator will cause a liquid carryover
32 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
into the gas supply to the liquid dumps. For these reasons, the first
step in correcting level control problems in low pressure separators
is to connect a source of high pressure gas (dried if possible) to the
liquid level dump valves.
If the dump valves are operating properly, but surges of liquid
from the high pressure separator cause natural gasoline to blow out
of the low pressure separator's vent, raise the pressure setting on
the back pressure controller. This will force liquid out of the low
pressure separator at a greater rate.
CONDENSATE TANK
Maintaining the low pressure separator at too high a pressure
can cause the natural gasoline condensate holding tank to over-pres­
sure. As a rough approximation, about half a mole of gas is vented
from a condensate tank for each barrel of condensate collected. This
gas evolution rate is based on a 65 psig low pressure separator pres­
sure and an average vapor molecular weight approximating pro­
pane.
Most often, roofs on condensate collection tanks are ruptured
when the upper liquid dump valve on the low pressure separator
sticks open. This permits all the low pressure separator flash gas to
blow into the condensate tank. On one occasion, I observed an
operator by-pass liquid from the high pressure separator around the
low pressure separator and directly to the condensate tank. He
explained that the upper liquid level dump valve was stuck closed,
and that consequently gasoline was blowing out of the low pressure
separator's vent. While I agreed that spewing gasoline over a nearby
road was dangerous, I also correctly predicted t h a t bypassing the
low pressure separator would blow a hole in the roof of the conden­
sate collection tank.
BRINE TANK
If the interface level controller on the low pressure, three phase
separator malfunctions, a well's entire production of natural
gasoline may wind up in an open top brine holding tank. Of course,
losses in hydrocarbons will be accelerated due to evaporation. More
importantly, the lease operator may lose all the well's condensate.
It can happen that the brine disposal truck which empties the brine
tank also disposes of the accumulated condensate. The condensate is
recovered by whoever operates the local salt water disposal facility.
Naturally, this enterprising individual will then keep the conden­
sate and sell it at a substantial profit.
It has been alleged that on rare occasions, t h a t the interface
level controllers on the low pressure, three phase separators are en-
WELLHEAD SURFACE EQUIPMENT 33
couraged to malfunction by human intervention. Certainly, the theft
of natural gasoline from wellhead storage tanks is not unknown.
Dumping condensate to the brine storage tank is one method to foil
auditors monitoring production losses in condensate.
ORIFICE METERS
Permitting a wellhead meter to read high robs your employer.
The royalty and severance tax payments made by the lease operator
are based on the meter readings. Pulsations in the meter run (such
as those induced by wellhead reciprocating compressors) will invar-
ibly cause the meter to read high. Occasionally, field personnel in­
stall a smaller orifice plate in the meter run and forget to note this
fact on the flow chart. This greatly increases the recorded gas flow
rate. Incidentally, most meter runs are equipped with facilities to
permit change of the orifice plate without interrupting the flow of
gas through the meter. This is called a "Senior Meter Run".
WELLHEAD FLASH GAS RECOVERY
For each barrel of natural gasoline condensate collected in stor­
age, roughly 1,300,000 BTU's worth of gas is flashed-off from the
low pressure three phase separator. This assumes t h a t the high
pressure separator is operating at 1000 psig and the low pressure
separator is running at 50 psig. In addition to being environmen­
tally reprehensible, this venting waster $400 per day of recoverable
gas on a well that is producing 100 BSD of condensate.
Figure 3—3 illustrates a system to recover these vented hydro­
carbons. Both a volume pot and a suction pressure spill back control
loop are needed to even out surges in gas flow produced when the
high pressure separator dumps liquid into the low pressure
separator. The action on the high pressure separator's liquid dump
valve should be slowed down. The compressor net discharge gas is
best injected hot into the gas production line. This is done to prevent
the recondensation of the recovered vapors in the compressor after-
cooler or in the cooler natural gas product. The gas flowing into the
spill-back loop must, however, be cooled to avoid overheating the
compressor suction.
Typically, the compressor suction spill-back is set to open at 20
psig; while the atmospheric gas vent will open at a pressure of 70
psig. It is a little difficult to precisely size these vent gas recovery
compressors. A rough rule of thumb is to calculate the compressor
horsepower and suction volume based on the average gas rate at 40
psig. Then double both these calculated values for the final compres­
sor sizing.
Remember t h a t this vent gas recovery installation will only be
34 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING WELLHEAD SURFACE EQUIPMENT 35

needed for a year or two. As wellhead pressure and condensate rates

fall, the economics of continued compressor operation will diminish.

COQ.

(§>-0i
 WELLHEAD COMPRESSION 37

Head-End Operation

4 The compressor cylinder valves have been disabled in the

crank-end (i.e. second-stage), so that only the head-end does
compression work. This type of operation is summarized in
Figure 4—1.

Crank-End Operation
The compressor cylinder valves have been disabled in the
head-end (i.e. first-stage), so that only the crank-end does
compression work.
WELLHEAD COMPRESSION
Note that the head-end cylinder's volumetric capacity is much
greater than that of the crank-end. However, the volumetric capac­
ity of the head-end can be adjusted with the cylinder clearance valve
(see Figure 4-1), whereas the volumetric capacity of the crank-end
is fixed.
A wellhead field compressor appears to be a simple enough de­ In addition to these permutations, the compressor speed can be
vice. Thousands of these small, gas engine driven, reciprocating varied over a wide range, the suction flow may be throttled, engine
machines are in service throughout the country. When properly fuel can be drawn from either the suction or discharge, and the dis­
matched to a well, a field compressor is a cost effective method to charge, and the discharge cooler may be by-passed.
maintain or increase gas flow from older wells. However, in spite of Reducing the surface pressure by compression reduces the gas
their superficial simplicity, the adjustment of field compressors to pressure in the tubing at the level of the perforations and hence in­
maximize gas flow is a complex job. This is attributable to the many creases the flow of gas from the formation through the casing per­
modes in which a small field compressor can operate and to the forations. The incremental flow of gas obtained from a well by sur­
dynamic nature of the well itself. It is the inter-action of the com­ face compression is a function of many complex variables.
pressor, the collection header pressure and the gas well flowing Gas wells that have become water-logged may double or triple
characteristics t h a t make adjusting field compressors a challenging
assignment. INTERSTAGE COOLER
795 PSIG
\
COMPRESSOR CONFIGURATION llO°F 8 0 0 PSIG
Figure 4-1 illustrates a typical two-stage compressor. Machines 2lO°F
of this type range from 30 to 300 horsepower. They are driven by CYLINDER
CLEARANCE
a gas engine; fueled by natural gas. Engine speed is 250 to 450 rpm, GAS ENGINE — CRANK END HEAD END ADJUSTMENT
with the compressor inter-cooler and after-cooler air fans driven by
the engine. Such machines are rugged, reliable and flexible. To il­
lustrate their flexibility, there are three principal modes of opera­ ■I38"F
tion.
FUEL GAS" SPEED CONTROL
Two Stage (Tandum) Operation
- 2 0 0 PSIG
Both compressor stages are fully operational. Note that the 80°F-
first-stage is called the "head-end" and that the second-stage GAS TO PIPELINE S 790 PSIG ; GAS
is termed the "crank-end. -*FROM
WELL

Figure 4—1 A wellhead compressor, two stage, gas driven set-up for "head­
36 end only" operation.
3 8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
production when joined to a properly sized and operated field com­
pressor. For example, a well was producing gas at a rate of 300,000
SCFD with a compressor suction (i.e. wellhead pressure) of 400
PSIG. The compressor configuration was altered from crank-end op­
eration to head-end operation. In effect, the volumetric capacity of
the machine was doubled. Consequently, the wellhead pressure was
reduced to 280 PSIG, and gas flow rose to a rate of 350,000 SFCD.
After operating for a short time in this manner, slugs of water
began to pass up through the wellhead valves. The hammering
sound of water entering a wellhead tree is called "water hits". As
the slugs of water raced up the tubing, the weight of water suppres­
sing gas flow was removed (i.e. the well unloaded). Both the well­
head pressure and the flow increased. Hours later, the well perfor­
mance stabilized at 780,000 SCFD and a 350 PSIG compressor suc­
tion pressure.
ENTRAPMENT VELOCITY
This incident illustrates the importance of adjusting field com­
pressor operation to maintain a minimum velocity in the production
tubing. The velocity must be sufficient to entrain water, which mi­
grates into the well, up into the high pressure separator. Based on
a limited amount of data taken in gas field operation and a more
substantial data base developed in the process industry, the follow­
ing rule of thumb is suggested:
V E = 1.2 ( DT -Dv
\ Dv
where
VE = Entrainment velocity, ft./sec.
Dv = Density of gas, lbsVft.3
DL = Density of liquid, lbs./ft.3
This equation for entrainment velocity is in the form of Stokes
Law for settling of particles in a fluid. The coefficient of 1.2 will
vary with gas viscosity, depth of the producing formation and the
presence of surfactants in the well liquids. The reader should
develop a suitable coefficient from his own experiences. Correlations
developed by other workers in this field suggest that the minimum
velocity to "unload" a well is greater than t h a t shown above. *' 2
Note t h a t adding soap sticks to a well reduces the D L term in the
above equation by over 50% and thus effectively lowers the entrain­
ment velocity.
WELLHEAD COMPRESSION 39
INCREASING WELLHEAD TUBING VELOCITY
The easiest, but least cost effective method, to operate a field
compressor is the crank-end mode. When only the Crank-end (i.e.
second stage) is in operation, capacity, compression ratio, as well as
engine horsepower load and compressor rod loading are minimized.
Left to their own devices, field personnel oft-times run compressors
on the crank-end only. To increase the wellhead tube velocity, it is
usually necessary to switch the compressor operation to the head­
end mode. This involves removing the crank-end cylinder valves and
re-installing the head-end cylinder valves.
The head-end cylinder clearance valve should then be closed as
far as possible so as to fully utilize the available engine horsepower.
To calculate approximate horsepowerT the following equation may be
used:
HP = THFX MSCFD (Per Stage)
6.7
where
THP = Theoretical horsepower per mole obtained from
Figure 4—2.
HP = Actual engine horsepower required including
auxiliaries.
Maximizing engine horsepower and hence gas flow immediately
after switching to head-end operation is helpful in achieving the
tubing entrainment velocity. A gradual increase in gas flow will not
be as effective in unloading the well. Therefore, the engine rpm
should be set at maximum and the head-end cylinder clearance set­
ting should be minimized as soon as the machine is put back on line.
HORSEPOWER BOTTLENECKS
There are three fundamental limits to which all field compres­
sors are subject:
• Compressor rod loading
• Speed
• Engine horsepower
In addition to calculating the actual engine horsepower by the
above equation and comparing it to the name plate rating, the en­
gine exhaust gas temperature should be checked. The engine man­
ufacturer specifies a maximum exhaust temperature for the engine
when running at maximum load. If this design temperature is
40 TROUBLESHOOTING NATORAL GAS PROCESSING WELLHEAD COMPRESSION 41

750°F, while the observed engine exhaust is 600°F, it is quite appar­ when field compressors are installed.
ent that the engine is not running at its maximum load. On the • Withdraw gas from the suction of the compressor, rather than
other hand, if the cylinder clearance valve is closed a few turns, and the discharge, for engine fuel. A 100 horsepower compressor
the machine slows down (or even stalls) the engine is positively will require 30 MSCFD of fuel or several percent of the unit's
working as hard as it can. Of course, as with a car engine, adjust­ capacity.
ments to the carburetor and ignition systems can correct horsepower • Do not simply disable compressor valves when either the head­
limits. end or crank-end is to be taken out of service. Remove the
Do not forget that for a field compressor to develop its rated valve assembly completely from the cylinder. Even though the
horsepower, -it must be operating at its maximum design speed. valve plate may have been removed from the suction valve, the
Slowing an engine down without reducing its horsepower load will remaining portions of the valve will still offer a substantial re­
raise the temperature of the exhaust gas. To economize on the avail­ sistance to flow and hence absorb horsepower.
able engine horsepower one can: • By-pass the inter-cooler when on "crank-end" operation; alter­
nately by-pass the after-cooler when on "head-end operation.
• Minimize pressure drop between the wellhead and the com­ • Wash the inter-cooler fin tubes to remove bugs and dust. Com­
pressor suction. If the pressure difference between these two pressor horsepower required is proportional to gas inlet
points exceeds 10 PSIG, there is an unnecessary restriction to temperature.
flow. Perhaps the positive choke in the wellhead has not been
removed. Oft-times the surface piping diameter has not been ROD LOADING LIMITS
sized for low pressure gas. Gas heaters, necessary to prevent As the wellhead pressure falls, the differential pressure that
hydrate formation on high-pressure wells, should be by-passed the field compressor must deliver increases. This is because the col­
lection header into which the compressor discharges remains rela­
tively constant. As this differential pressure rises, the compressor
may become limited by "rod loading". A machine may be only utiliz­
ing a fraction of the available engine horsepower and trip-out due
to low suction pressure or high discharge temperature. Both of these
trip points are a function of the maximum compressor rod loading
which, is, in turn, a function of the differential pressure across an
individual stage and the cylinder geometry. Note that at a fixed dis­
charge pressure, a falling suction pressure always results in an in­
crease in discharge temperature.
Naturally, operating field personnel will try to avoid repeated
compressor shut-downs due to low suction pressure or high discharge
temperature. The proper response would be to convert the compres­
sor from single-stage to tandum (i.e. two-stage) operation. However,
for reasons enumerated below, field personnel may choose to remain
on single-stage operation and:

• If on crank-end operation, reduce rpm.

• If on head-end operation, open the cylinder clearance valve.

1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 Both of these methods will effectively eliminate trips caused by
COMPRESSION RATIO high discharge temperature or low suction pressure. Unfortunately,
they also reduce natural gas production. Why is it then, that operat­
Figure 4—2 Theoretical horsepower for a 0.65 S.G. natural gas. ing field personnel do not go immediately to tandum operation to
42 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
eliminate trips caused by excessive rod loading? A few of the reasons
are:
• Making the conversion requires tools, valve parts and time.
Also, the machine must be shut-down and re-started.
• Often, the well will produce large quantities of water or con­
densate for several hours after the tandum operation is
initiated. The vapor-liquid separator drum on the compressor
suction line may not be able to keep up with the liquid flow.
Manual draining of the drum is therefore appropriate. In
practice, this means that an operator must remain at the well
site for half a day to monitor and control the liquid level in the
compressor suction drum.
• It is human nature to avoid step-changes. Converting from
single stage to tandum operation entirely alters the wells
characteristics; whereas small reductions in speed or suction
volume may be made gradually over a period of time.
Converting to tandum operation reduces the rod loading by
spreading the differential pressure out over two stages. For a given
wellhead pressure, the two-stage operation also lowers the compres­
sor discharge temperature.
VARYING SPEED
If a compressor has an excessively high second-stage (crank-
end) discharge temperature and a low first-stage (head-end) dis­
charge temperature, one should proceed as follows:
• Reduce the adjustable clearance on the head-end.
• Slow the machine down.
• Balance the above two steps to restore the original wellhead
pressure.
This technique switches load from the crank-end to the head­
end without changing gas flow. Note that to minimize horsepower
the pressure ratio for both stages should be about equal. Operating
with the "head-end" cylinder clearance valve wide open will tend to
over-load the crank-end, under-load the head-end and waste net en­
gine horsepower. Regardless of other circumstances, a compressor
should never be run over its rated speed. However, if the machine
will not come-up to its rated speed when it is runnning below its
rated horsepower (as calculated above), then something is amiss
with the engine.
WELLHEAD COMPRESSION 43
TRANSIENT EFFECTS
To further complicate the adjustment of a field compressor, one
needs to be aware of certain transient effects that the well imposed
on the compressor.
• Many wells, immediately after unloading liquids exhibit an
increase in wellhead pressure sufficient to overload and stall
the engine.
• Opening the head-end cylinder clearance valve to reduce the
first-stage discharge temperature will immediately increase
this discharge temperature and can trip-off the compressor.
However, once the wellhead pressure rises due to less gas being
moved, the head-end discharge temperature will drop.
• After switching a compressor from single-stage to tandum oper­
ation, the second-stage discharge temperature will tend to in­
crease for a few days as the wellhead pressure drops. This often
leads to compressors tripping off unless corrective action is
taken.
• The immediate effects of soap-sticking a well (i.e. unloading
liquids by adding a foaming agent into the well's tubing) may
be to over-load the engine due to excessive suction pressure.
• A compressor which has operated properly in a tandum mode is
shut-down for maintenance and thereafter repeatedly trips off
on high discharge temperature. The problem is that the well
has loaded-up with liquids and the resulting low wellhead
pressure is causing too high a compression ratio.
MINIMUM SCICTION PRESSURE
Figure 4-3 illustrates how an extraneous factor may cause a
field compressor to trip-off prematurely. In this case, the field
operators were reporting that they could not operate a compressor
suction below 70 PSIG. Their experience had taught them the
following:
1. They would set the compressor to operate in the tandum mode.
2. Over a period of a few days the wellhead pressure would
diminish from 120 PSIG to 70 PSIG.
3. At 70 PSIG (as indicated by the flow chart pressure recorder)
the unattended compressor would trip-off.
Figure 4-3 shows that this was not quite true. The cause and
solution to this problem resided in the pressure setting of the three-
phase, low pressure separator. As this vessel was set to hold 65
PSIG, it followed t h a t the high pressure separator could not drain
 WELLHEAD COMPRESSION 45

whenever it's pressure reached 65 PSIG. The liquid level in the high
pressure separator would then rise and carry-over water to the field
compressor. As engine fuel was being drawn from the compressor
suction line, the water overflowing from the separator entered the
engine and caused it to stall. The simple solution to this problem
was to reduce the three-phase separator pressure from 65 PSIG to
30 PSIG.

DOAL COMPLETIONS
Attempting to utilize a single compressor to service both the
casing and tubing flows on a dual completion well can present some
real problems. On one installation, both the casing and tubing were
piped into the suction of the reciprocating machine. However, the
operators observed that when the tubing flowed unrestricted into the
compressor suction, the casing flow stopped. To "correct" this sit­
uation, a restrictive choke was placed in the tubing side of the well­
head tree. This resulted in a wellhead tubing pressure higher than
the compressor discharge pressure! This odd situation resulted in a
net reduction of gas flow from the well as a consequence of the com­
pressor installation. The reason for this detrimental effect was that
the wellhead compressor was too small.

FUEL SAVINGS IDEA

One method to achieve significant fuel economies on a wellhead
compressor, is to utilize the flash gas vented from the low pressure,
three phase separator, as compressor fuel. Assuming that the com­
pressor suction pressure is 300 psig, and the low pressure separator
pressure is 30 psig, the equivalent of 1,000 SCF of 1,000 BTU nat­
ural gas, will be evolved from the low pressure separator, for every
two barrels of condensate collected. For example, a well serviced by
a sixty horsepower compressor produces twelve BSD of natural
gasoline. Tying in the low pressure separator vent gas to the com­
pressor fuel gas knock-out drum will reduce the net compressor fuel
gas consumed by fifty percent.

SUMMARY
The objective in adjusting field compressor operations is to
maximize the use of available engine horsepower while simultane­
ously maximizing wellhead pressure by keeping the tubing velocity
above the entrainment velocity. Compressor rod loading (or high dis­
charge temperature) limits are minimized by adjusting inter-stage
pressure with the head-end cylinder clearance valve.
4 6 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
TABLE 4-1
FIELD TROUBLESHOOTING CHECKLIST
FOR WELLHEAD COMPRESSORS
1. Check interstage line temperatures to determine which valves
have been removed from a cylinder.
2. Remove disabled valves, cages, and valves in ends taken out of
service and replace with gaskets. This reduces parasitic
pressure loss.
3. By-pass crank-end when not in use through fuel gas lines.
Saves horsepower.
4. Is engine exhaust temperature at least 600°F? Lower temper­
ature indicates inadequate compressor utilization.'
5. Is engine "missing" more than ten times a minute? This also
indicates inadequate engine utilization.
6- Can a dual acting machine operating on crank-end be changed
to head-end?
7. Can a dual acting machine operating on head-end have the
cylinder clearance reduced?
8. Can a dual acting machine operating on head-end be switched
to dual acting without exceeding rod loading, maximum
exhaust temperature or maximum horsepower?
9. Can tandem machine operating on crank-end be switched to
head-end?
10. Is a tandem machine, operating on head-end, limited by max­
imum rod load and/or discharge temperature? If so, correct by
going to tandem operation.
11. Are there any bad valves indicated by hot valve caps (suction
valves can easily be identified as bad).
12. When switching to tandem, do not maximize gas production
first day. Compressor will have a tendency to trip-off due to
high discharge temperature.
13. When operating a compressor in tandem, the crank-end dis­
charge temperature can be reduced at constant suction pressure
and flow by closing the head-end clearance pocket and slowing
down the machine. However, this is a small effect.
14. Opening a clearance pocket to reduce discharge temperature
will immediately raise the discharge temperature! However,
once the wellhead pressure rises due to less gas being moved,
the discharge temperature will drop.
15. For wells served by a three-phase separator, adjust the three-
phase separator pressure down when going to tandem op­
eration. When the compressor suction falls below 65 PSIG,
WELLHEAD COMPRESSION 47
liquid will carry-over from the high pressure separator and trip
the compressor unless the 3-phase separator pressure is reduced.
16. About one out of three wells will start making water "hits"
when the compressor suction is dropped significantly. Usually
the high pressure separator will not be able to drain suffic­
iently fast for the first hour. It needs to be drained manually for
this period. Such wells will double or triple their gas flow after
making the water hits.
17. Some wells, after making water hits exhibit an increasing well­
head pressure. This may trip off the compressor due to overload.
18. Is compressor at maximum rpm?
19. Some engines bog down below rated horsepower due to inade­
quate fuel gas flow.
20. Check liquid dumps for leakage (i.e. dump line is cool).
21. Is compressor suction pressure not less than 20 psi below well­
head pressure?
22. Is discharge to suction bypass check valve leaking and/or
blocked-in?
23. Does metered flow match the flow predicted by curve charts?
About 20% of the time they do not match. Indicates bad valves
in cylinders or wrong meter reading.
24. For compressor's with meters on suction, is the engine fuel
gas flow being deducted from royalty payments.
25. Is fuel gas from the suction of the compressor? On average, a
compressor will use 2% — 5% of it's production for fuel. For
tandem machines operating at maximum this can be a much
higher percentage.
26. Is a well soap-sticked and flowed back properly?
27. Remember that the discharge temperature from a compressor
will increase as the well pressure is depleted.
4 8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING

REFERENCES
1. J.O. Duggan "Estimating Flow Rate Required to Keep Gas *
Wells Unloaded". J. Pet. Tech. (December 1961) p. 1173.
2. R.V. Smith "Practical Natural Gas Engineering, Pennwell
Publications (1983) pgs. 204-210.
5
PROCESS COOLING
IN REMOTE LOCATIONS

Those of us trained in the process industry think in terms of

circulating cooling water or electric powered fans when we envision
a cooling operation. None of this applies in the gas fields. Power to
provide cooling is supplied by auxiliary drives connected to gas dri­
ven engines. There are three basic cooling functions required in the
gas fields:

• Natural gas compressor discharge.

• Engine cooling water.
• Combustion air discharge from a turbocharger.

Air, rather than water, is the usual heat sink employed in gas
fields. As an approach temperature of less than 20° is difficult to
achieve in an air cooler, summer-time cooling is often marginal. For
example, with 105°F ambient conditions, one would not expect to be
able to cool a compressor discharge below 115°F to 120°F.

GAS COOLING
Underground gas transmission pipelines are externally wrapped
in a protective plastic type coating. Gas temperatures in excess of
130°F to 140"F can cause embrittlement and eventual failure of this
coating. For this reason, the usual industry practice is to specify
that natural gas discharging into a transmission pipeline be cooled
to less than 120°F. Also gas entering a pipeline is cooled to promote
efficient glycol dehydration. For example, with a n ordinary
triethylene glycol dehydration unit, operating at a 900 PSIG contac­
tor temperature, an inlet gas temperature of not more than 125°F

49
50 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PROCESS COOLING IN REMOTE LOCATIONS 51

is necessary to meet pipeline moisture specifications. HEAT TRANSFER COEFFICIENTS

Natural gas effluent from a compressor is typically 150°F to
200°F. Wellhead gas from high pressure wells is also in this tem­ To check the overall performance of a fin-fan exchanger being
perature range. Most often, gas is cooled in a fin-fan air cooler as used to cool natural gas, the exchanger's heat transfer coefficient
shown in figure 5-1. The fan is rotated by a belt drive powered by "U", should be calculated as follows:
a compressor's engine. Alternately, the fan may be powered by cir­
culating high pressure oil. U = Q
T.A
20O"F
AIR OUTLET-N
NATURAL
LOURVERS I
where
GAS IN
A = Extended tube surface area, ft2.
mm Q = Duty, based on specific heat, mass flow and
NO'F- BELT temperature reduction of the gas being cooled,
BTU's per hour.
GAS T = The log mean temperature driving force between
ENGINE
GAS COMPRESSOR =$£= the air and natural gas, °F.

PULLEYS A typical value for "U", when cooling 800 to 1000 PSIG gas
FUEL- using 3/4" O.D. tubes is four to five BTU's/HR/°F/Ft 2 . Coefficients
much lower than this value indicate fouling or a leaking tube-side
£
COOLED
I20°F pass partition baffle. The only difficulty in calculating the heat
transfer coefficient is obtaining a representative temperature for the
GAS exchanger air outlet temperature. A hand held digital pyrometer is
OUT about the best solution to this problem.
Figure 5—1 Gas field cooler.
INSUFFICIENT AIR FLOW
If the air flow existing from the tube bundle is hotter than the
effluent gas, the chances are there is insufficient air flow to properly
WHAT CAN GO WRONG cool the gas. In particular, if the air temperature blowing out of the
effluent end of the tube bundle is only 10°-15° cooler than the
Air cooling is deceptively simple. For instance, I have encountered effluent gas, lack of air flow is almost certainly the culprit.
the following problems while troubleshooting air coolers:
FAN TIP SPEED
Air leakage around the tube bundle. Most fans are designed for a maximum fan tip speed of 14,000
Fan speed too low. feet per minute. To calculate the tip speed of the fan, do not calcu­
Belts loose. late the fan rpm, from the pulley size and driver speed. The belts
Fan blade pitch wrong. may be slipping. Measure the fan speed directly with a tachometer.
External tube fouling. Then calculate the fan tip speed as follows:
Internal tube fouling.
Maldistribution of gas in parallel tube passes. 3.14 . 2ir. (RPM) . (F) = T.S.
Excessive number of tubes plugged.
Pass-partition baffle leaking. where
Excessive gas inlet temperature. F = Fan blade length, ft.
52 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
T.S. = Fan tip speed, ft./min.
If T.S. is less than 14;000 feet per minute, first check the ten­
sion of the fan belts. Next, for fans powered via a belt drive from
a gas driven engine, determine if the fan speed corresponds correctly
to the engine speed:
Fan RPM = Engine RPM X (PDE/PDF)
where PDE = Diameter of the fan pulley
PDF = Diameter of the engine pulley
The smaller t h e pulley (also called a sheave) the faster the fan
speed. A number of standard size pulleys for fans are readily avail­
able. For example, if you decided more air flow was needed on a
cooler, and the calculated fan tip speed was only 10,000 feet per
minute, a smaller pulley could be placed on the fan. For instance,
changing a 24" pulley to a 20" pulley (both are standard sizes)
would increase the fan tip speed to 12,000 feet per minute. The end
result of such a reduction in pulley size would then be:
• Air flow would increase by 20% (i.e., linear with fan speed.
• The pressure head developed by the fan should increase by 44%
(i.e., fan speed squared).
• The engine horsepower consumed by the fan would increase by
73% (i.e., fan speed cubed)
As the horsepower absorbed by a fan is typically in the three
to five percent range of total engine horsepower, t h e 73% increment
to obtain an increase in cooling air flow of 20% is normally not pro­
hibitive. Caution: It is good engineering practice to check with the
fan manufacturer prior to reducing the size of t h e fan pulley.
FAN BLADE PITCH
Air flow from a fan will vary considerably with t h e blade pitch.
The pitch is adjustable. To save engine horsepower, an operator may
set the blade pitch at 15° during the winter. During the summer, he
may attempt to maximize air flow by setting t h e blade pitch up to
maximum—22.5°. Almost all fan cooler blades are adjustable over
this range.
Watch for loss of air flow through the finned tube bundle by
air by-passing the bundle. Especially in older units, the tube bundle
may no longer "square-up" with the fan's frame very well. Seal the
leaking areas with strips of sheet metal.
In southern Texas, the most common cause of reduced air flow
PROCESS COOUNG IN REMOTE LOCATIONS 5 3
is attributed to moths. In their uncounted millions, these tiny
kamikazes clog the tube bundle. Along with dust and other assorted
bugs, moths must be hydro-blasted from the exterior of tube bundles
several times a year.
GAS SIDE PROBLEMS
Whenever finned—tubed cooling bundles are arranged in paral­
lel, as shown in figure 5-2, a potential exists for poor cooling due
to gas maldistribution. A low gas outlet temperature from an in­
dividual bundle is indicative of lack of gas flow through that bundle.
To correct this situation, measure the total pressure drop across the
coolers. Next, install restriction orifices in the inlet of each bundle,
with openings calculated to double the observed pressure drop. This
should bring the outlet temperatures from each bundle reasonably
close together. If not, take the tube bundle with the low gas outlet
temperature off-line for hydro-blasting of the tube side.
PASS PARTITION LEAKAGE
Figure 5-3 illustrates the function of the pass partition baffle
in a two pass air cooled bundle. If this baffle starts leaking, hot inlet
IOO°F
wwww
MWWW
I80°F
220°F^ ■I60°F
1
COMPRESSOR COOLED
DISCHARGE GAS
Figure 5—2 Restriction orifices are often needed to insure adequate cooling.
5 4 TRCKIBLESHOOTfNG NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PROCESS COOLING IN REMOTE LOCATIONS 55

gas bypasses the tubes and flows directly to the outlet. To trou-
bleshoot this problem, see if the temperature at the back end of the
o bundle is cooler than the gas outlet temperature. If so, a leaking
»—
< pass partition baffle is positively to blame for the high gas cooler
Wt- outlet temperature.
incc
5t^f
a. a. EXCESSIVE GAS INLET TEMPERATURE
\ There are three factors which increase an air cooler's inlet tem­
perature:
\
UJ • The compressor valves are faulty.
Qx • The compression ratio has increased.
< o2
uJ" • High pressure, high temperature natural gas is being produced
X oo o o from the wellhead.

2 ^ oo oo c
For air coolers limited by air flow (as opposed to inadequate
heat transfer surface area) a 10°F increase in compressor discharge
> <] 'o temperature may increase the air cooler outlet temperature by 5 -
o o oo 8°F. The correlation between compression ratio and temperature rise
is presented in Chapter 7. "Troubleshooting Reciprocating Compres­
sors." Temperature rises above those obtained from this correlation
.1— oo oo UJ indicate bad compressor valves (plates or springs broken) or, less
3
(0

%K o o oo OD
O
0)
.c
to
aj
commonly, leakage across the piston rings in a double-acting cylin­
der.
o Depending on the compression ratio, a 10°F increase in the
-a compressor inlet pressure will translate into a considerably larger
oo o o (0
increase in compressor discharge temperature. Thus, it is conceiva­
ble that the cooler outlet temperature may increase due to the effect
of putting high temperature wells on line.
oo o o
(0 GLYCOL DEHYDRATORS INCREASE GAS TEMPERATURE
XI
We invariably cool the compressor discharge prior to dehydra­
oo oo c
o
+3 tion. Unfortunately, natural gas will be reheated—sometimes by
CO 10°F — in a typical gas field dehydration contactor. This occurs be­
a. cause of two factors:
< to
Q. • The circulating glycol may be 70° hotter than the contactor gas
c inlet temperature.
01 • The heat of condensation or absorption of the water vapor
contained in the wet natural gas must be dissipated into the
dried natural gas.
sIDLE
ONT-
O-PA

(T»
OLE

If the glycol contactor is properly designed (see chapter 6) this

c?5o
U_(— CD O 1 temperature rise will not effect dehydration efficiency. However,
transmission temperatures will increase.
5 6 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PROCESS COOLING IN REMOTE LOCATIONS 57

HYDRAULIC DRIVEN COOLIMG FANS
As electricity is normally not available in remote locations, the
use of hydraulic powered fans is not uncommon. Normally, a cir­
culating hydraulic oil pump is powered by a belt drive from an en­
gine driving a compressor. The pressurized oil flows to an hydraulic
motor which is used to rotate the fan blades, Any reduction in the
discharge pressure of the circulating hydraulic oil pump will reduce
the fan's speed. Other t h a n reduced engine speed, increased clear­
ance between the pump's impeller and wear ring due to erosion, is
the usual cause of a decrease in hydraulic oil pressure.
cooling water circulation, through the tubes, as indicated by a high
water outlet temperature, is one common difficulty. A high water
inlet temperature is a sign of a problem with the air cooler used to
remove the heat picked-up by the cooling water circulating through
the turbocharger after-cooler. Note that the shell side pressure drop
for the compressed air should be only a few inches of water. A high
air pressure drop through the turbocharger discharge after-cooler
will reduce a reciprocating engine's horsepower output.

ENGINE COOLING WATER

The finned tube bundle used to dissipate engine heat is nor­
mally placed in the same structure as the gas cooling bundle. Hence,
troubleshooting engine cooling problems are similar to those difficul­
ties encountered in gas cooling; with two exceptions:

• On start-up, you may find that it is impossible to adequately

cool the circulating engine water. One 4000 horsepower recip­
rocating machine that I was attempting to bring on-line re­
peatedly tripped-off due to high engine water temperature. I
was at the point of concluding that there was something rad­
ically wrong with the water circulation through the cooler,
when a more experienced operator corrected the problem. By
opening the vent on the header box shown in figure 5—3, he re­
stored the air cooler's heat exchange capacity. The tube bundle
had become "vapor bound"; air was trapped in the header box
and the upper rows of tubes. This trapped air prevented the cir­
culation of hot engine water through the majority of the tube
bundle.
• Increased impeller tip to wear ring clearance inside the engine
cooling water circulation pump can cause high engine water
outlet temperatures. Lower than normal pump discharge
pressures, accompanied by a low air cooler water outlet temp­
erature, is indicative of this type of pump defficiency.

TURBOCHARGER DISCHARGE COOLERS

A turbocharger is nothing more t h a n a small, single stage, cen­
trifugal air compressor powered by the engine exhaust gas. If a re­
ciprocating engine is limited by the power cylinder exhaust temper­
ature (as most are), reducing the turbocharger discharge tempera­
ture by after-cooling will expand the engine's horsepower rating.
This can be accomplished by passing the turbocharger discharge (i.e.
compressed combustion air) through a shell and tube cooler. Lack of
 Section
Troubleshooting
At The
Dehydration &
Compression
Station
"Even so-called 'complex
questions' are not complex but
rather a composite of simple
questions. If you break it down,
it becomes a series of simple
questions; you solve one at a
time, and then you put them
together"
Paul Treen, Inventor of the
Automobile Thermostat,
and the Bicycle Kickstand.
6
GLYCOL DEHYDRATION
Natural gas transported through common carrier pipelines
must meet a moisture specification of 7 pounds of water per MMscf.
Gas is usually dried to meet this requirement by scrubbing with a
concentrated glycol solution. Figure 6-1 shows a standard glycol
contactor tower, regenerator, and pump.
Gas flows into the bottom of this tower where entrained water
and naphtha drop out and are withdrawn under level control. The
upflowing gas is contacted with the circulating glycol and dried. The
glycol is pressured from the contractor to the regenerator, where it
is heated to its boiling point to drive off water. Typically, 100
pounds of circulating glycol absorbs 3—4 pounds of water. After cool­
ing, the reboiled glycol is pumped back to the contractor tower.
On the surface it would not seem possible that much could go
awry with such a simple system. But, of course, the experienced pro­
cess operator knows that it is only a matter of time for anything
that can go wrong to go wrong. As a case in point, consider the op­
eration of the glycol circulating pump.
This ingenious positive displacement pump is driven by ex­
panding gas withdrawn along with the wet glycol, from the contac­
tor tower (see Figure 6-1). The speed of this pump is set by a small
valve that controls the amount of expanding gas emitted into the
pump. An operator judges the amount of glycol circulation based on
the audible strokes made by the pumps internals. The quicker the
strokes, the greater the glycol circulation.
But suppose the pump has developed mechanical problems that
reduce the volume of glycol normally pumped per stroke? Or
perhaps the pump internals have deteriorated to the point that
59
60 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 61

glycol circulation has stopped. Since glycol drying units are not nor­
mally equipped with flow meters on the circulating glycol, how can
the process operator of the troubleshooting engineer recognize the
problem.

GLYCOL PUMP DEFICIENCIES

Our company's natural gas dehydration station was located in
a picturesque section of the desert just south of El Gringo, Texas.
I arrived there one evening to consult on excessive moisture prob­
lems in our gas shipments.
The dehydration station consisted of six drying towers, each
served by a dedicated glycol reboiler and pump. For the past two
weeks the combined effluent gas from these six towers had become
progressively wetter. Finally, the owner of the pipeline who received
our gas drew the line: either we dried our gas to the 7 Ib/MMscf
specification within two days, or we would have our connection to
the pipeline blocked in. I had no idea which of the six parallel con­
tactor towers was not drying the gas.

INDICATIONS OF REDUCED GLYCOL CIRCULATION

The first oddity I noticed was the noise from the vents as­
sociated with the individual reboilers. As Figure 6-1 shows, the ex­
panding gas, used to drive the glycol pumps is also used as fuel to
reboil the glycol. The excess gas not burned in the reboiler is vented
under pressure control to the atmosphere. When the efficiency of the
glycol pump is reduced due to mechanical problems, two factors act
to increase excess gas venting:

• The reboiler firing rate drops because less glycol must be re­
heated.
• The amount of gas flowing from the tower to the glycol pump
increases because there is less glycol liquid to restrict the flow
of gas.

Hence, the net result of a reduction in glycol circulation rate

due to reduced pumping efficiency is increased venting of excess nat­
ural gas. Of the six vents (one for each reboiler), only one was blow­
ing hard. I also observed that the main burner on this particular re­
boiler was rarely on. Note: Temperature control on glycol reboilers
works hke your home heater—either full on or full off. Lack of firing
on a glycol reboiler—that is, low reboiler heat duty—is another in­
dication of a low glycol circulation rate.
The usual cause of glycol pump failure is deterioration of the
O ring seals. Next morning, I requested that the suspect pump be
62 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
overhauled. While this work proceeded, I continued my investiga­
tion.
GLYCOL REGENERATION TEMPERATURE
The gas exiting the top of the contactor in Figure 6-1 can be
assumed to be in equilibrium with the reboiled—i.e., dry—glycol.
The higher the glycol reboiler temperature, the dryer the glycol. The
dryer the glycol, the dryer the treated natural gas. For most of the
year in El Gringo, critical control of the glycol reboiler temperature
gas was not vital. Relatively cool ambient temperatures maintained
the top temperature of the contactor towers below 110°F. But now,
in mid-July, this temperature was peaking at 122°F every afternoon.
I checked my gas purification data book 1 and calculated that, for the
1,020 psig operating perssure of the contactors, it should be possible
to meet the required moisture specification. My calculations were
based on a reboiler temperature a t 375°F. For triethylene glycol,
which is the work horse of the gas drying industry, the maximum
recommended reboiler temperature to prevent thermal degradation
of the glycol is 400°F. The six El Graingo dehydrator reboilers were
all set to hold 375°F. But by checking the actual reboiler temper­
atures with a calibrated thermometer, I determined that one of the
reboilers was actually operating at 350°F as opposed to 375°F. This
reduced temperature was sufficient to greatly increase the water
concentration of the "dry" glycol, so that the moisture content of gas
treated with this glycol stream was doubled.
A simple recalibration of the reboiler temperature controller
rectified this problem. Incidentally, operating a triethylene glycol re­
boiler at 375°F-400°F does not necessarily result in a noticeable in­
crease in glycol degradation. The trick is to keep the glycol filters
in good repair. Dirty glycol fouls the reboiler heat-transfer tube.
This in turn causes hot spots on the heat-transfer surface, which ac­
celerates thermal decomposition.
LEAKING FEED-EFFLUENT EXCHANGER
The hot glycol from the reboiler is cooled by heat exchange
with the wet glycol from the contactor. This heat transfer typically
takes place in a double-pipe or plate-type exchanger. On one of the
double-pipe heat exchangers, I noticed that the reboiled glycol was
being cooled to a rather low temperature. I suspected that this could
be an indication of a leaking feed-effluent exchanger. That is, cooler
(120°F) wet glycol might be leaking into warmer (165°F) dry glycol.
To verify my suspicions, I blocked in the dry glycol at the reboiler
and at the suction to the pump. The appearance of a steady stream
of liquid at an intervening bleeder confirmed that the feed-effluent
GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 63
exchanger was leaking, hi effect, wet glycol was bypassing the re­
boiler and flowing straight back to the contactor tower.
After fixing the leak, this reboiler and the units that had suf­
fered from an inefficient pump and a faulty temperature controller
were put back on-line. The treated natural gas was checked and
found to meet pipeline moisture specifications.
FURTHER IMPROVEMENTS
As a follow-up to the above .problem, several other modifica­
tions were made to the El Gringo operation. To extend the life of
the glycol pumps' O-ring seals, an aerial cooler, constructed from a
section of finned-tube piping, reduced the dry glycol temperature by
20°F. Pumping the cooler glycol halved the amount of maintenance
required on the glycol pump.
The composition of the glycol was also altered. A 50-50% mix­
ture of tetraethylene-triethylene glycol was substituted for the 100%
triethylene glycol. This mixed glycol, while equally as effective for
drying as its predecessor, is quite a bit cheaper than 100%
triethylene glycol. 2 More important, it can be reboiled at a higher
temperature to improve gas drying without encountering thermal
decomposition. 3 Note that using pure tetraethylene glycol, while ef­
fective in a process sense, is much more costly than triethylene
glycol.
FLOODING DEHYDRATOR TOWERS
The field supervisor's first indication of a flooded contactor
tower is usually a report of excessive glycol loss. A check of a low-
point bleeder on the gas pipeline downstream of the tower will show
glycol. After refilling the glycol reboiler, the level in the reboiler
gauge glass noticeably decreases after a few hours. This is a further
indication of flooding. Of course, a dehydration system loosing glycol
this fast cannot dry natural gas on a continuous basis.
One simple explanation of such glycol losses is a leaking dry
gas to dry glycol heat exchanger (Figure 6-2). Note that the glycol
pressure in this heat exchanger will be slightly higher than the gas
pressure. To check for leakage, shut off and block in the glycol
pump, block in the dry glycol at the contactor tower, and open an
intervening bleeder between the pump and the tower. If gas does not
blow out of the bleeder, the exchanger is not leaking.
FOULING VS FLOODING
A distillation column can flood due to dry damage, undersized
liquid downcomers, high liquid level in the bottom of the tower, foul-
 64 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 65

ing, or excessive vapor velocity. Only the latter two difficulties are This equation is not intended for design purposes; rather it is
commonly encountered in natural gas conditioning. The trouble- based on field observations for towers exhibiting noticeable but tol-
shooter should first check for flooding due to excessive vapor ve­ lerable glycol looses. These towers had been in service for some time
locities. The following correlation may be used for trayed columns and had been exposed to a moderate amount of fouling. If the actual
2 feet or more in diameter with a standard 2—foot tray spacing: volume of gas exceeds the allowable volume as calculated above, you
may be confident that an intolerable glycol loss is due to an ex­
1/2
All. scfd = 2 . 4 8 / z Pa \ DS cessive vapor velocity. Note that for sizing a new contactor tower,
\ s g Ta / a coefficient of 2.0 in the above equation would be suitable.
where
Z compressibility, typically 0.9 for most PLUGGED TRAYS
natural gas drying operations Drying towers in natural gas service can become rapidly fouled
sg Specific gravity of gas relative to air; an 18 with drilling mud or formation and frac sand. The sand appears in
molecular weight gas has a specific gravity the wellhead gas when the rate of gas production becomes excessive,
of 0.62 and the sand is thus sucked out of the formation and into the well's
Pa Absolute pressure, psia tubing. Drilling mud is found in natural gas for two reasons:
Ta Absolute temperature (°F + 460)
D Tower inside diameter, ft 1. A new well is not properly circulated and flowed-back to clear
All. scfd Maximum volume of gas that can be dried the drilling mud out of the production tubing prior to commis­
before glycol losses become excessive, ft 3 /day sioning.
at atmospheric pressure and 60°F 2. During the drilling operation, excessive mud pressures are
accidentally applied to the well, and the drilling mud is thus
DRY GLYCOL inadvertently forced into the producing formation. Some of this
FROM REBOILER 250°F
— TO WET GLYCOL FLASH DRUM mud must eventually reappear in the downhole production
tubing.
2psig ,^370°F -70 psig
Not infrequently, a dehydrator loses its ability to dry gas from
, GLYCOL HEAT a field in which a new well has been put on-line. When this occurs,
EXCHANGER the culprit is invariably drilling mud plugging the contactor inter­
nals. For remote locations, one procedure that has proved to work
I60°F- is as follows:
-75 psig
1. A large water truck equipped with a pump to deliver about 50
■120° F psig, is sent to the site.
2. The dehydrator tower is blocked in and depressured. Both the
psig-
tower inlet and outlet are disconnected from the gas piping. A
GLYCOL-DRIVEN special flange attachment, designed to mate up with a hose
PUMP connection, is installed on the gas outlet line.
1/050 psig- 3. A two-inch hose from the discharge of the truck's pump is con­
•(,000 psig
nected to the dehydrator tower gas outlet line.
4. The pump is started and adjusted so that the pressure at the
DRY GLYCOL WET GLYCOL top of the tower—i.e., the water inlet—is about 5 psig. It is
FROM CONTACTOR FROM CONTACTOR important not to apply too great a pressure because the trays
could collapse.
Figure 6—2 A leaking exchanger permits wet glycol to bypass the reboiler. 5. Once the water draining from the bottom of the contactor tower
6 6 TROUBLESHOOTING NATCIRAL GAS PROCESSING
appears clear, switch the water inlet to the bottom gas inlet.
Over-flow the tower until the water is again clear. The water
overflow rate must be substantially higher than the normal
glycol circulation rate to obtain enough liquid traffic to effec­
tively wash the trays.
Why, you might ask, it is necessary to initially wash a badly
fouled tower from the top, down? A tray plugged with mud will se­
verely restrict the flow of water. The resulting pressure drop may
be sustained by the tray when it is pressed down onto the tray sup­
port ring when applied from the bottom of the tray.
In more accessible locations, it is a good practice to acidize a
contactor tower after water washing. Acidizing consists of circulat­
ing an inhibited hydrochloric acid solution (typically 5% HCI) to the
bottom of the tower with an acid truck. This is an effective method
to clean contactors without promoting channeling of the gas flow
through the trays. Acidizing is especially effective when iron scale
deposits make up a portion of the fouling deposits. Including the
acid disposal expense, acidizing a drying tower can cost between
$20,000-50,000. When hydrocarbon deposits consisting largely of
polymers formed in the glycol reboiler are the major fouling compo­
nent, a caustic wash, as opposed to acidizing, is in order. In the
caustic washing procedure, a degreaser is also employed. A more
elaborate, but thorough, procedure is summarized in Table 6 - 1 .
TABLE 6-1
CHEMICAL CLEANING A DEHYDRATOR CONTACTOR
1. Circulate a solution of 9% sulfamic acid plus 1% citric acid plus
6% degreaser in hot water.
2. Circualte a 5% soda ash solution dissolved in water.
3. Circulate a 1% solution of whichever glycol is being employed.
4. Drain down and refill with concentrated glycol to normal liquid
level.
After G.R. Daviet et al., "Switch to MDEA Raises Capacity." Hydrocarbon Processing,
May, 1984.
BLOWN SEAL
A sudden surge in gas flow, or a sudden loss in glycol circulation
can cause a serious reduction in dehydration efficiency. This happens
because the glycol liquid seal on the dehydration contactor tower's
trays is lost. When this occurs, and gas starts flowing up the down-
comers shown in figure 6—1. In effect, gas is now by-passing the efficient
GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 67
contacting that takes place on the tray deck. The glycol cannot refill
the downcomer pipes and displace the up flowing gas until the end of
the downcomer pipe is resealed (i.e. submerged) in the glycol on the
tray decks. Once unsealed, it is necessary to slow down, or even stop,
the gas flow to the contactor to permit the downcomer pipes to refill
with glycol.
A blown seal in a glycol dehydration contactor is also indicated
by glycol carry-over into the effluent gas stream. Depending on the
configeration of the glycol reboiler, a low liquid level will be observed
in either the gas-wet glycol separator or the dry glycol surge compart­
ment of the reboiler.
To re-establish the glycol seal on one six bubble cap tray dehyd­
ration tower, I observed an operator block in the gas flow to the tower
and then continue normal glycol circulation for thirty minutes before
re-establishing natural gas flow.
DEHYDRATION CAPACITY VS TEMPERATURE
Three process requirements must be met for gas to be dried in a
standard glycol dehydration unit:
1. The gas velocity through the contactor tower must not be great
enough to entrain glycol into the dried gas. Theoretically, the
entrainment of glycol does not interfere with drying. In practice,
the continuous loss of glycol will knock a drying plant off-line as
the unit's inventory of glycol disappears. Incidentally, it is not
possible to measure the water content of gas containing a glycol
mist.
2. The glycol pump must have the capacity to circulate enough glycol
to absorb the water vapor contained in the natural gas. Of course,
hotter gas can contain more water vapor. Increasing the gas
temperature from 80°F to 100°F may double its water content.
3. The glycol reboiler must have a sufficient heat-duty capacity to
regenerate the glycol at a high enough temperature to adequately
dehydrate the gas.
As the temperature of the gas flowing through a dehydration
contactor tower rises, its capacity will decrease as follows:
2
C 2 = C1f % + 460 V
\ T2 + 460 J
where
C2 = Contactor capacity at temperature T 2 , °F
Cj = Contactor capacity at temperature T l f "F
6 8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 69

If a tower temperature increases from 80°F to 120CF, a tower's
capacity will decrease by barely 3V2%.
On the other hand, the amount of glycol circulation may or
may not greatly increase as the gas inlet temperature rises. Figure
6-3 clarifies this point. A large booster compressor is serving a con­
centrated gas field. The gas produced from the wells enters the com­
pressor's suction scrubber at a temperature independent of seasonal
fluctuations. However, the aerial cooler on the compressor's dis­
charge cools the gas to 80° in the winter versus 120°F in the sum­
mer. Question: How much more glycol circulation is required to dry
the gas? The requisite data to perform the calculation are given in
Figure 6-^4.
AERIAL
COOLER
I5CTF
At first glance, it would appear that three or four times as
much glycol circulation is required. But remember that the 120°F
compressed gas is not saturated with water vapor; it is really
superheated. The compressed gas will have the same water content
until it is cooled by the aerial cooler to below its dewpoint, in this
case 79°F. If a contactor tower with 10—15 trays were employed,
there would likely be no effect at all on glycol circulation require­
ment. For the typical 6-tray contactor, industry correlations indicate
that a n additional 10-30% of glycol circulation is needed; that is, far
less that the 300—400% required if the gas were saturated with
water at the compressor discharge temperature. 4
Suppose, however, that the gas coming out of the ground is hot,
perhaps 110°F. This gas, after compression and cooling to 1,000 psig
and 120°F, would be saturated with moisture. Then, during winter
operation, when the gas is cooled to 80°F, only one-third as much

SUCTION
SCRUBBER
-e 1,030
psig
COMPRESSOR
VWW
OfO
T
80 F-WINTER
I20°F -SUMMER
glycol circulation would be required as in the summertime. The con­
densed water corresponding to the difference in water content of
110°F, 700 psig gas vs 80°F, 1,000 psig gas would drop out in the
bottom section of the contactor tower.

SATURATED DRY G A S r - ,000

GAS 700 psig
FROM , PSig
WELLS 70 Q F /^\
DRY GLYCOLy-
CONTACTOR 160

140

t 120
WET GLYCOLr- uu
100
CD

80
LJ
v^ -z. 60
o
o
cc 401
UJ

I 20[

60 70 8<> 9(5 lOO" HO" rfo

Figure 6—3 Superheated gas requires less glycol circulation than saturated SATURATED GAS TEMPEPATURE^F
gas. Figure 6—4 The water content of saturated gas.
7 0 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 71

INCREASING GLYCOL CIRCULATION
The minimum circulation rate for a glycol dehydration contac­
tor is determined by the temperature and pressure of the natural
gas at the station inlet. Locating a compressor upstream of the de­
hydration tower does not particularly change the required glycol cir­
culation rate. I have observed on several occassions that once the
glycol circulation rate fell below two gallons of glycol per pound of
absorbed water, the moisture content of the dried gas would sub­
stantially increase the amount of water in a natural gas stream
(making the proper assumption that the gas is saturated at the sta­
tion inlet) may be calculated from Figure 6-4.
In one instance, I was troubleshooting a glycol contactor that
was drying gas to only 8.5 lbs. of water per million SCF. I calculated
the glycol rate and determined that only 1.5 gallons of glycol per
pound of water was being circulated. When I asked the station
operator to increase the circulation rate, he reported that the gas
driven glycol pump was already running with it's speed control
valves wide open and hence there was no way he could increase the
pump's speed beyond it's current 27 strokes per minute.
To rectify this defficiency, I made the following operating
changes (refer to Figure 6-1):
tower may use 15 gpm of glycol flow, whereas a distillation tower
of the same size may have 300 gpm of liquid flowing across its trays.
Doubling or halving the glycol circulation rate does not appreciably
affect the depth of liquid on the trays, and hence, it does not alter
the trays' capacity. In simplest terms, a drying tower cannot be
made to flood by speeding up the glycol circulation pump unless the
glycol downcomers are partially plugged.
TRAY DESIGN
To accommodate low liquid rates, trays of the design pictured
in Figure 6-5 are widely used in drying towers. The depth of liquid
on the tray deck is such that the slots in the bubble caps are sub­
merged. This forces the upflowing vapors to bubble up through the
glycol. The depth of liquid on the tray is maintained by the height
that the dual downcomer pipes protrude above the tray floor. The
edges of these pipes are the equivalent of the straight outlet weir
used on conventional distillation trays; the main difference is that
there is very little height of liquid over the weir in glycol service
due to the extremely low liquid rates.

• The heat exchangers downstream of the net glycol side of the

gas driven glycol pump were by-passed.
• More significantly, the pressure in the wet glycol flash drum
was reduced from 80 psig to 30 psig. (Note that one cannot
reduce the pressure in this drum below that required to provide
adequate fuel gas pressure to the reboiler burner.)

The above steps reduced the back-pressure against the expend­

ing gas used to drive the glycol pump. The pump speed increased
from 27 to 36 strokes per minute and the glycol circulation rate rose
to two gallons per pound of water absorbed. Concurrently, the dried
gas moisture level dropped to it's required pipeline specification of
7.0 pounds of water per million SCF.

GLYCOL CIRCULATION VS TRAY CAPACITY

If a 300% increase of glycol circulation is truly needed due to
hotter saturated gas, will not this increased liquid rate affect the
contactor's tray capacity? After all, in distillation column design,
liquid flow rate over the tray weir is an important correlating
parameter.
A glycol drying operation uses very small liquid rates in com­ Figure 6—5 A bubble cap tray with pipe downcomers (courtesy Smith
parison to a distillation column. A typical 6—foot diameter drying Industries).
72 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 73

Valve trays are used in leiu of bubble-cap trays in some drying contact dry glycol twice while transversing the paired towers.
columns. Valve trays are less expensive than bubble-cap trays and The result of this modification was to reduce the moisture con­
generally exhibit about 10% more capacity. In a practical sense, tent of the dried gas from nine pounds to six pounds of water per
these advantages are outweighed by the superior turndown ratio of MM SCFD, without any reduction in drying capacity.
bubble-cap trays. I once had an occasion to run a field test on two
drying towers operating in parallel. Both towers had the same DRY DRY
WET GLYCOL
number of trays. The bubble-cap trayed column dried its natural gas GLYCOL GLYCOL
feed to 7.5 lb H 2 0/MMscf at a flow rate varying from 70-95% of de­
sign. The valve tray column produced 9.8 lb H 2 0/MMscf a t 65% of
design capacity and 8.4 lb H 2 0/MMscf at 90% of its design gas flow WET
rate. I attribute this improved performance of the valve tray to re­ GLYpOL
duced glycol leakage through the valves as the gas flow is increased. ORY
By contrast, a bubble-cap tray deck is leakproof. GAS

CONVERTING TO PARALLEL DEHYDRATOR OPERATION

A large dehydration station was servicing an area of declining pro­

duction. As gas flow was reduced, both the gas field and dehydration I-
glycol contactor pressures spiraled down. After five years of opera­
tion, the contactor pressure and flow had declined from an initial
1050 psig and 335 MM SCFD respectively to 650 psig and 195 MM
H-
SCFD. Due to the location of a large number of wellhead compres­
sors, the summertime gas inlet temperature to the glycol contactor
towers would peak in the late afternoons at 125°F. At 650 psig and J L J L
125°F inlet temperature, the gas could not be dried to pipeline
specifications. The operating supervisor noted that reducing the gas
flow and increasing the glycol flow to individual towers did not im­
prove the situation. Increasing the glycol reboiler temperature from
390°F to 420°F made a positive reduction in the moisture content of
the dried gas. Unfortunately, the 420°F reboiler tempreature caused
T
TO
CONDENSATE
T
excessive rates of glycol degradation and consequent plugging of the TANKS
glycol filters.
One day the operating supervisor noted that one of the five
towers that operated in parallel was producing pipeline specification
dried gas. This tower was equipped with eight bubble cap trays;
whereas the other four towers had only four trays. The evidence all
indicated that the dehydration operation was limited by equilibrium
considerations and not by gas through-put rates.
Based on these observations, the operating supervisor decided
to re-arrange the contactors in a series configeration. This revised
flow scheme is shown in Figure 6-6. Each of the two, four bubble-
cap tray towers were paired-off, so that the natural gas flowed WET GAS
through eight bubble-cap trays. The circulating glycol was left to op­
erate in parallel on each pair of towers. This permitted the gas to Figure 6—6 Retrofitting for series operation to enhance drying.
7 4 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
THE CRITICAL VARIABLE—REBOILER TEMPERATURE
Even if gas is superheated so that it does not contain any more
moisture than a colder stream, it is much harder to dry. On one
tower that was drying gas to 10 lb H20/MMscf, I tried to improve
drying by doubling the glycol rate and halving the gas rate. The ef­
fect was nil. Only when I raised the glycol reboiler regeneration
temperature by 10°F did the moisture content of the tower effluent
gas diminish. It is all a matter of top tray equilibrium. That is, the
moisture content of the dried gas cannot be any lower than the par­
tial pressure of water in the glycol leaving the reboiler.
The temperature at which this equilibrium limit applies is the
mixed temperature of the dried glycol and the wet gas plus the heat
of condensation of the moisture removed with the glycol. Note that
in this calculation of the temperature of the gas is typically 25 times
more significant than the temperature of the glycol.
As a rule of thumb, the glycol reboiler temperatures should be
increased by 10°F for every 5°F increase in the equilibrium top tray
temperature of the contactor tower. Therefore, if you are drying gas
from the discharge of an aerial cooler, you must raise your reboiler
temperature by 10°F when the ambient temperature rises by 5°F to
maintain a constant moisture specification in your dried gas. And
remember, this is true regardless of the water content or flow rate
of the wet gas.
The capacity of a contactor tower drying natural gas is not sig­
nificantly reduced during hot weather, If, as the weather gets
warmer, an operator neglects to increase the glycol circulation rate,
it may appear to him t h a t he must cut the tower's gas rate to main­
tain on-spec gas. Or he may run out of the reboiler heat duty re­
quired to heat the glycol sufficiently in hotter weather and also at­
tribute this deficiency to excessive tower throughput. The fact of the
matter is, however, that given sufficient glycol circulation of the
proper moisture content, a contactor will properly dry natural gas
until the trays in the tower flood.
OVERHEATING GLYCOL
The maximum recommended temperatures for continuous
glycol reboiling are:
Diethylene 340°F
Triethylene 400°F
Tetraethylene 430°F
Exceeding these temperatures is a self-defeating process. The glycol
will begin to degrade. In this state it tends to foam in the contactor
GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 75
and cause premature flooding. A black, viscous glycol solution indi­
cates that heavy hydrocarbons are carrying over in the gas to the
contactor. A sweet, burnt-sugar smell, accompanied by a low pH and
a dark but still transparent solution, signals that thermal degrada­
tion is occurring in the reboiler. 5 Salt laydown on the reboiler heater
surface also produces the sweet smell indicative of glycol degrada­
tion.
The best way to improve drying when limited by the contactor
top tray equilibrium is to use stripping gas in the reboiler. This is
a patented process (U.S. Patent No. 4,179,328) and involves the in­
jection of natural gas into the boiling liquid phase of the glycol re­
boiler. A horizontal sparger pipe is used to distribute the stripping
gas, which reduces the partial pressure of steam in the reboiler and
hence results in a drier glycol. The moisture content of the dried gas
can be reduced by several lb H 2 0/MMscf using stripper gas. Several
scf per gallon of glycol circulated is a typical stripping gas rate. Un­
fortunately, all of the striper gas is vented off the reboiler to the at­
mosphere and lost.
Figure 6-7 shows an alternate design for injecting stripping
gas into a glycol reboiler. A mini-stripping tower is welded onto the
back end of the over-flow baffle inside the reboiler. The "tower" con­
sists of a box packed with one foot of 1/2" ceramic berl saddles. The
required cross-sectional area of the box is calculated as if it was a
packed column. A support grid is attached to the bottom of the box,
the reboiled glycol pours into the box across the over-flow baffle. The
entire assembly may be purchased as a retrofit kit from Smith In­
dustries. Field tests have shown that stripping gas injected into a
glycol reboiler, fitted with this type of facility, produces drier glycol
than adding stripping gas through the sparger pipe described above.
LOBE OIL IN GLYCOL
An operator once asked me to inspect his dehydrator to deter­
mine the cause of excessive moisture in dried gas. All the normal
parameters checked out O.K.:
• Reboiler temperature high enough to regenerate the glycol.
• Adequate glycol circulation.
• Stripping gas on.
• Contactor temperature and pressure adequate to achieve proper
dehydration.
What could the problem be? I asked the operator, a quick wit-
ted fellow called Little Red, if he was experiencing unusual glycol
losses. Sometimes severe flooding and carry-over of glycol into the
dried gas will cause an increase in the gas moisture's content.
7 6 TROUBLESHOOTING NATCIRAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 77

"Not only are we not losing any glycol", he responded, "but we

actually seem to be gaining. I've noticed that my liquid level in the
surge compartment at the end of the glycol reboiler (see Figure 6-8)
has come up recently."
My first thought on hearing his comment was t h a t a large
quantity of compressor lube oil had leaked into the gas stream and
commingled with the circulating glycol accumulated in the reboiler.
I checked the amount of oil in the reboiler sight glass and noted an
inch or two of brownish oil floating atop the glycol.
"There doesn't appear to be much oil in the reboiler," I ob­
served; "but to be safe, let's open up the skimming valve (see Figure
6-8) and drain off the oil that is there."
T VENT
T0 o
<
REBOILER
"o
u
l'/2" _>,
GLYCOL
FROM *1
REBOILER
600 G/H>
_H
I" BERL
o
CVJ SADDLES .2
I<v
a.
M
STRIPPING * en
GAS ja
CO
1300 SCFH -|5j 3 /IS" HOLES
a>
CO
3
£0
CO

GLYCOL TO I
COOLER
f
Q_j /uJ(o

Figure 6—7 External giycol stripper reduces moisture in dried gas by two
pounds of water per MM SCF.
_J_i OO
I
78 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLYCOL DEHYDRATION 79

After expressing his dissatisfaction with an activity that was A FINAL WORD
transparently a waste of time, Little Red complied. To our mutual In summary, the essence of troubleshooting glycol dehydrators
surprise, several barrels of a dirty, heavy, hydrocarbon liquid was depends on differentiating between capacity and equilibrium prob­
removed. lems. The glycol reboiler temperature and the pressure and gas inlet
"Mr. Lieberman", asked Little Red, "I don't understand this at temperature to the contactor largely control drying equilibrium. The
all. The volume of oil we have drained from the glycol surge com­ glycol pump, gas rate (on an actual volumetric basis), and the phys­
partment is greater then the volume of the entire compartment— ical condition of the tower's trays determine the drying system's ca­
even if it was full! But it wasn't full. The liquid level in the sight pacity limits.
glass was below the internal baffle. And even now, after we have
drained so much oil, there is still a liquid level in the sight glass. REFERENCES
Where did all this oil come from?" 1. Kohl and Riesenfield's Gas Purification is an excellent data
"Pump a few barrels of glycol back into the reboiler and I'll source for most types of glycol (Houston: Gulf Publishing, 1974)
draw a picture explaining what happened," I answered. Figure 6-8 2. R.J. Verritt, Manager, Glycol Product, KMCO Inc., Crosby,
is a reproduction of the sketch I made. Texas, private communication to N. Lieberman, January 25
To understand this drawing, you need to understand that the 1984.
level in the sight glass is hot necessarily representative of the level 3. Silvano Grosso, "Glycol Choice for Gas Dehydration Merits
in the reboiler's surge compartment. If the density of the liquid in Close Study," Oil and Gas Journal, February 13, 1978, pp 107-
the sight glass is greater than the density of liquid inside the surge 111.
compartment, the liquid level observed in the sight glass will be less 4. Smith Industries Inc., Equipment Manual, "Section E: De­
than the actual liquid level in the reboiler's surge compartment. hydrators," Houston, Texas.
(Recall how a two-phase manometer functions). As the hot oil inside 5. P.D. Hall et al., "Analytical Techniques Can Pinpoint Glycol
the surge compartment had a lower density than the cooler glycol Problems," Oil and Gas Journal, September 24, 1979, pp. 176-
in the sight glass, the liquid level inside the reboiler was actually 188.
above the internal baffle. Apparently, a thick layer of lube oil had
backed-up over this baffle and covered the boiling layer of glycol on
the upstream side of the baffle. It was this layer of oil that Little
Red had drained off into the now steaming barrels. Because of the
location of the level taps, the contents of the sight glass (i.e. the
ratio of oil to glycol) was not representative of the contents of fluid
in the surge compartment.
"So what I thought was an accumulation of glycol in the re­
boiler was really just compressor lube oil picked up by the natural
gas," concluded Little Red. "1 suppose the dryer gas we now see is
a result of better generation of glycol in the reboiler because the
boiling glycol is no longer covered with the heavy oil."
"I suspect that's part of the answer. But more to the point, you
were likely pumping a mixture of glycol and lube oil back to the
contactor. You were really circulating less glycol than you had cal­
culated based on the glycol pump's speed; hence the wet gas."
Then what happened to those barrels of glycol that we lost,"
asked Little Red?
"That's easy; the heavy hydrocarbon caused the contactor to
foam, and liquid glycol was carried over into the natural gas prod­
uct," I concluded.
 RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS 81

7 EVALUATING LOST COMPRESSION HORSEPOWER

The first step in troubleshooting reciprocating compressors is to
quantify the extent of the problem. How much compression work has
actually been lost? An approximate rule of thumb is:

HP = n- & - 1
Pi 520
where
RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS n = MMSCFofgas
P2 = Discharge pressure, psia
Px = Suction pressure, psia
Ti = Suction temperature (460 + °F), *R
HP = A number proportional to compression work
Inserting the data from the El Gringo operation in the above
Sitting in the courtroom in New York, I had been napping for
equation I found:
several hours, while the drone of litigation provided a soothing lul-
labye. Attired in my three-piece suit, I was being compensated quite
handsomely as an expert consultant in a gas transportation dispute. H P (current) = 90 (1100/850 - 1) .520/ 520 = 2JL9
HP (two weeks ago) = 100 (1100/800 - 1). 520/520 =37.5
Suddenly, my reverie was broken. My client, the operator of a large
(Note that the station inlet temperature had remained con­
gas transmission company sat down next to me. "What are you
stant at 60°F)
doing here," he said. iEWe have problems in El Gringo, Texas and
you're fooling around in New York."
No wonder my client had chased me out of that courtroom in
"But you told me to be here today," I argued.
New York: useful compression work had dropped by 28% in just two
"That has nothing to do with it. We have compression problems weeks!
in El Gringo. I want you down there as soon as possible.
The next step in my investigation was to decide if the lost com­
"I'll be there on Wednesday," I offered. pression work was due to an engine deficiency or a compressor prob­
"No," my client glared at me. "I want you there today. Leave lem. To ascertain t h a t a gas engine driver is not limiting compres­
immediately!" sion work, the following questions should all be answered in the
Hoping for a reprieve, I pleaded, "But 111 ruin my new Italian affirmative:
shoes. I've only got this suit I'm wearing and there aren't any flights
from Kennedy International to the El Gringo Ranchers Co-Op Air­
• Are all engine exhaust gas temperatures running below
port."
maxium?
Eight hours later, bathed in the blackness of a humid Texas
• Is the compressor running at its rated speed?
night, I re-materialized at the compressor station south of El Gringo.
• Is the fuel gas manifold pressure below maximum? (At a
"At least I'm the best dressed engineer in Hogg County," I decided.
constant speed, the engines torque is linearly proportioned to
It quickly became apparent why my client was upset. The inlet
the fuel gas manifold pressure.)
pressure to the El Gringo compression station had increased from
• Are all unloader pockets closed?
785 psig to 835 psig, while the transported gas rate had dropped
from 100 mm scfd to 90 mm scfd. The pressure downstream of the
For the El Gringo station, the answer to the above questions
station held constant at 1085 psig. All this had transpired within a
was yes. Hence, it was not the gas engine's fault that I was ruining
period of two weeks.
my expensive Italian shoes.
Next, I checked the unloader pockets. An unloader is a
80
mechanical devise used to reduce the capacity of a compression cyl-
82 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS 83

inder, without reducing the compressor's efficiency. Figure 7—1 illus­
trates the function of an unloading pocket. By increasing the clear­
ance between the piston and the cylinder head, the volume of the
gas compressed per stroke is reduced. As the engine was not limit­
ing, and we were trying to move maximum gas, all the unloader
pockets were closed.
jobs is that the theoretical temperature increase of gas due to com­
pression is linearly proportional to compression horsepower. An ex­
tremely useful application of this rule of thumb is the following ap­
proximation:
T 3 - Tj ~ (P 2 / Pi - 1)

UNLOADER FAILURE where

Most large transmission compressors are equipped with Tx, T 2 = Suction and Discharge temperature, °F
pneumatically operated, automated unloaders. A mal-functioning un­ Pi, P2 = Suction and Discharge pressure, psia.
loader remains in an open position and thus reduces the capacity of
the compressor. To identify this problem, proceed as follows: It is not too much to say that this relationship is the most im­
portant concept in this book in that it is the most useful. Note that
• Set the compressor to run at a constant speed. the anticipated temperature rise is independent of compressor speed,
• Close the suspect unloader pocket and note the effect on the unloader configuration or gas volume; it is only a function of the
engine's fuel gas manifold pressure. compression ratio—and of course compression inefficiency. While
• If the fuel gas manifold pressure did not increase, the unloader Figure 7—2 can be used to calculate the theoretical temperature in­
pocket did not really close, and it is probably broken. crease for compressing natural gas, I used the concept in a more di­
rect manner at El Gringo.
Using this technique, I discovered that one end of the compres­ Table 7-1 shows that the temperature rise for the individual
sor's two, double acting cylinders had a defective unloader. This fail­ cylinder compression varied from 28°F for the No. 1 cylinder crank
ure reduced the capacity of the effected cylinder end by 40% and end to 42°F for the No. 2 cylinder crank end. The key point of this
hence reduced the compressor's capacity by 10%. table is that compression efficiency varies inversely with tempera­
I had now accounted for 10% of the 28% missing horsepower I ture rise. As both the suction and discharge pressures were the same
was searching for. My jacket, vest and tie were secure; but my for all cylinder ends, the only reason for the variable temperature
slacks and dress shirt were well splattered with lube oil. And so, in rise were different efficiencies of compression. Since the work per­
my well-lubricated attire, I proceeded to take a temperature survey formed by the piston at each cylinder end was about the same, (ex­
across the cylinders. cept for No. 2 cylinder head end, which had the bad unloader) the
observed temperature increases were inversely proportional to the
COMPRESSION WORK VS. TEMPERATURE RISE
TABLE 7-1
A handy rule of thumb to retain for compression troubleshooting
DISCHARGE TEMPERATURES OF A TWO-CYLINDER,
DISCHARGE
DOUBLE ACTING RECIPROCATING COMPRESSOR
ADJUSTABLE
UNLOADING Suction Discharge Temp. Relative
POCKET Compression End Temp..°F Temp..°F Rise. °F Efficiency
PISTON
CYLINDER No. 1 cylinder
EAD
crank end 60 88 28 100%
No. 1 cylinder
head end 60 95 35 75%
No. 2 cylinder
SUCTION crank end 60 102 42 67%
No. 2 cylinder
Figure 7—1 An unloading pocket reduces engine load and volumetric capacity. head end 60 90 30 93%
84 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS 85

gas flows. This means that if the No. 1 cylinder crank end was mov­ • Suction compressor valve leaking
ing 30 MM scfd of gas, then the No. 2 cylinder crank end was mov­ • Late suction valve closure
ing only 20 MM scfd and the No. 1 cylinder head end was moving • Discharge valve leaking
23 MM scfd. • High valve losses due to excessive flow

CYLINDER TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT TECHNIQUE
It is not necessary to measure the absolute discharge temper­
ature from each cylinder. If individual thermowells are not availa­
ble, one can still use the above technique to determine the relative
compression efficiency of individual cylinder ends. A contact ther­
mocouple may be used to measure the surface temperature of the
compressor discharge valve. It is the relative temperature rise of the
compressed gas that is of interest to us. To approximate the actual
gas temperature from a surface metal temperature, a rough rule of
thumb is:
T 2 = T m + .1 (T g - T a )
where
T 2 = Gas temperature
T m = Valve cap surface temperature
T a = Ambient air temperature
The compressor valve inefficiency, corresponding to the exces­
sive discharge temperature from the No. 2 cylinder crank end at El
gringo, could have been due to a variety of problems:
• Late compressor discharge valve closure
• Leaking piston rings
As I pondered these possibilities in the reddening light of
dawn, the chief mechanic appeared. "You know of course, Sehor En­
gineer, that we switched compressor valves last week. The new high
efficiency valves we installed are designed to reduce compressor fuel
consumption," said the chief mechanic.
This was a bit of unpleasant news. I responded to this develop­
ment by requesting that a local contractor perform a Beta Scan sur­
vey of the compression cylinders. A Beta Scan (other common trade
names are MIT, SEL, DECA, Enthalpy) is a Pressure-Volume Dia­
gram describing the actual compressor cylinder end performance.
The pressure inside the cylinder is plotted against the piston posi­
tion. A piston position of 2ero percent corresponds to the piston pos­
ition closest to the cylinder heat. A perfect Pressure-Volume Dia­
gram is shown in Figure 7-3. If the sketch looks familiar, you were
probably an "A" student in thermodynamics; Figure 7-3 is the famous
Carnot Cycle. Figure 7-4 shows Beta Scan for several maladies
A = SUCTION VALVE OPENS
B « PISTON REVERSES DIRECTION
C - DISCHARGE VALVE OPENS
D - END OF STROKE
\ DISCHARGE F -DISCHARGE PRES.

CYLINDER /y\R
INTERNAL N\/^WORK/ / A E
PRESSURE

75 £ SUCTION ^o -SUCTION PRES.

RISE F

CYLINDER VOLUME
OR
PISTON POSITION
COMPRESSION RATIO
Figure 7—3 Camot cycle for a reciprocating compressor.
Figure 7—2 Theoretical temperature rise due to compression.
8 6 TROUBLESHOOTING NATCIRAL GAS PROCESSING
effecting compressor valves.
Why guess about performance when it is possible to determine
precisely what is transpiring inside the cylinder? The Beta Scan plot
obtained from the No. 2 cylinder crank end is shown in Figure 7-5.
This plot clearly shows that the new valve installed in this cylinder
end was experiencing an abnormal 25-30% loss in compression work.
INTERPRETING BETA SCANS
The area encompassed by the Beta Scan plot is proportional
to the compression work performed by the piston. Unfortunately, not
all of this work is of use in moving gas down a pipeline. For in­
stance, the top horizontal line shown in Figure 7-5 is the compres­
sor discharge pressure. The area of the plot above this line is wasted
compression work caused by:
• Pulsation in the discharge line
• Discharge valve opening too slowly
• Excessive resistance to flow of gas through the discharge valve
The bottom horizontal line in Figure 7-5 is the compressor suc­
tion pressure. Area below this line also represents wasted compres­
sion work due to the same problems listed above; except of course
only the suction valves are involved. The peaks and valleys indi­
cated on the compression and expansion cycles are due to valve leak­
age and again represent wasted work. There should be no gas flow
into or out of the cylinder during the expansion or compression cy­
cles. If both the discharge and suction valves did not leak, the lines
VALVE SPRINGS TOO VAU/E SPRINGS TOO
TIGHT WEAK
CYLINDER
INTERNAL
PRESSURE
PISTON POSITION IN CYLINDER
Figure 7—4 Beta Scan plots are a powerful troubleshooting tool.
RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS 87
on the Beta Scan plot representing the expansion and compression
steps would resemble those of the Carnot Cycle; that is, smooth
curves. Drawing a curved line tangent to the peaks and valleys of
the expansion and compression steps inside the Beta Scan quantifies
the extent of wasted horsepower due to valve leakage during these
steps.
The shaded area shown in Figure 7-5 is then the sum of the
compression work wasted due to valve inefficiencies and piping pul­
sation problems. To this lost work must be added the detrimental ef­
fects of piston ring leakage.
GOING HOME
The chief mechanic was astonished when I instructed him to
put the old compressor valves back into service. "Senior Engineer,"
he gasped, "You do not impress us with your fancy clothes. If
everyone was like you, we would still be living in caves."
Regardless, the old compressor valves were installed in the
machine. The Chief Mechanic argued that he could eliminate the
peaks shown on the suction portion of the cycle in Figure 7—5 by
changing to weaker springs on the suction valves. Also, he felt that
discharge valve plates with a larger open area would minimize the
horsepower lost during the discharge cycle. All he wanted was a few
days to purchase the new springs and valve plates. He was probably
SHADED AREAS REPRESENTS
COMPRESSOR INEFFICIENCY
1085 PSIG
CYLINDER
PRESSURE
8 3 5 PSIG
PISTON POSITION
Figure 7—5 Beta Scan plot for El Gringo pipeline compressor, cylinder # 2 .
8 8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
right. But the old compressor valves were dropped back into the cy­
linder valve ports; the defective unloader valves were repaired; and
the machine was put back on-Une. A new Beta Scan was obtained
which showed compressor valve losses had dropped from 25-30% to
about 10%.
I was pleased to report that evening to my client that the situ­
ation at the El Gringo station had been restored. "Never mind that,"
he responded, "you're supposed to be in New York in the morning.
And make sure you're dressed decently for a change," he concluded.
REDUCING VALVE LOSSES
One cost effective means of reducing compression valve losses
and enhancing compressor efficiency is to replace valve plates with
thermoplastic valve plates equipped with additional flow ports (i.e.
openings in the plates for gas passage). Modifying valve plates in
this manner will reduce horsepower valve losses due to the frictional
pressure drop. While modifications of this type will save energy and
enhance capacity, they are appropriate only in those cases where in­
creased valve losses are related to increased gas flow. In my experi­
ence, large inefficiencies in reciprocating compressors are most often
related to increased compression ratios and not to gas flow rates.
Compression leaks through worn piston rings and leaky valves are
enchanced at higher compression ratios. Often, an unexplainable
temperature rise across a compressor cylinder end, as reflected in a
hot discharge valve cap, will moderate to a normal temperature rise,
when the compression ratio is only moderately reduced. For exam­
ple, for one machine equipped with plastic poppet valves (i.e. com­
pressor cylinder valves designed for high capacity; but low compres­
sion ratios), valve losses as measured by a Beta Scan were reduced
from 25% to 10% when the compression ratio was reduced from 1.42
to 1.28, even though the gas volume moved through the compressor
increased by over 50%.
Reciprocating compressors may be limited by a third factor (in
addition to engine horsepower availability and cylinder volumetric
efficiency) which is called rod loading. The piece of hardware t h a t
connects the piston to the crankshaft components is called the piston
rod.
ROD LOADING
One frequent cause of downtime in reciprocating compressor
operation is rod breakage. A piston rod is not designed with the
same philosophy as a bridge: Once the manufacturer's designated
rod loading is exceeded, the rod will likely fail. Rod loading is cal­
culated as follows:
RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS 89
Rod Loading = Ap • P d - (A p - Ar) • P s
where
Ap — Piston area, square inches
Aj. = Rod area, square inches
Pd = Discharge pressure, psig
Ps = Suction pressure, psig
Thus, regardless of the horsepower load or speed, there is a
maximum presure increase that a reciprocating compressor can
tolerate. While this is simple enough, there is a dangerous com­
plicating factor. The discharge pressure to be used in the above cal­
culation is not the discharge line pressure; it is the peak pressure
developed inside the cylinder (i.e. behind the discharge valve). As
can be seen from the Beta Scan plot depicted in Figure 7-5, this
peak pressure may be drastically higher than the discharge line
pressure. Both pulsation problems and inadequate valve lift, or
valve speed, raise the cylinder's internal peak discharge pressure.
For example, a piston rod failure on one compressor was precipitated
when weak valve plate springs were replaced with stronger springs
requiring a greater valve plate pressure differential to open.
COMPRESSOR PANEL BOARD PROBLEMS
If the pneumatic relays on a panel board begin to stick in a
closed or open position, the problem is likely failure of the rubber
O-ring seals. Traces of olefins in natural gas, as well as H 2 S and
C0 3 , will, with time, deteriorate the O-rings. The leaking or swel­
ling of seals that result prevent proper relay operation.
To prevent this deterioration dried air, as opposed to natural
gas, should be used as instrument gas to the panel board. Of course,
if the air is not dried below it's dew-point, the resulting presence of
moisture and solids and/or salts or freezing temperature in the in­
struments will do far more damage than traces of olefins.
REFERENCES
1. Bell Valve Company Technical Bulletin, "Compressor Cylinder
Capacity Control, Merriam, Kansas.
2. Cooper-Bessemer Performance Calculation Procedures for Gas
Engine Compressors, November 16, 1970.

8 all eight power cylinders. That is, when an engine slows down, the
RECIPROCATING ENGINES
One cannot drive very far in an active field without run­
ning into a reciprocating compressor. Machine sizes range from mod­
est 30 horsepower wellhead units to giant 4800 horsepower pipeline
booster compressors. Between these two extremes are a variety of
machines which cannot be rigorously divided into field or transmis­
sion compression service. Speeds range from 350 rpm (slow speed) to
1000 rpm (high speed). Almost all reciprocating compressors of mod­
ern vintage are driven by a separate reciprocating, natural gas
fueled, internal combustion engine. While troubleshooting these
ubiquitous engines is a highly complex job—mostly beyond the
scope of this book—there are a few concepts which the field engineer
should understand.
The critical symptom of trouble in a reciprocating engine is ab­
normal cylinder exhaust temperatures. For this reason, I always
begin an assignment involving reciprocating compressors by over­
hauling and recalibrating the thermocouples on the gas exhausts
from each power cylinder.
ERRATIC CYLINDER EXHAUST TEMPERATURES
A typical 1200 horsepower engine may have eight power cylin­
ders. A reasonable temperature spread between the lowest and high­
est cylinder exhaust temperatures is 80"F. If one of the exhaust tem­
peratures is very low, the cylinder is not firing properly. This is a
serious matter. When one cylinder mis-fires, the other seven cylin­
ders must work 14% harder to maintain the preset engine speed.
This is accomplished automatically by injecting more fuel gas into
90
RECIPROCATING ENGINES 91
governor speed controller steps on the accelerator to restore engine
speed. -This increases the cylinder exhaust temperature of all the
cylinders.
A high cylinder exhaust temperature rapidly reduces the horse­
power developed by each power cylinder. Principally, the piston
rings experience excessive wear. Really high temperatures sustained
for extended period's will also damage the cylinder liners and can
crack the cylinder heads. Also, the exhaust valves may become de­
fective and no longer seal properly. As the efficiency of the power
cylinders to convert heat to work are reduced due to overheating,
more fuel gas is consumed to keep the engine horsepower up to that
level required to maintain the gas compressor speed. This causes
progressive engine over-heating. Thus, a self-destructive cycle is
begun when a single power cylinder begins to mis-fire.
Mis-firing is caused by faulty ignition wires, fouled spark
plugs, magneto and timing problems, etc. Once a mis-firing power
cylinder is identified, a competent mechanic can easily correct the
problem. While low cylinder exhaust temperature is a good primary
indication of a mis-firing problem, there is a more sophisticated
method to continuously troubleshoot reciprocating engines.
TORSIONAL VIBRATION ANALYZER
The instrument which owns this fine sounding designation is
really a simple tachometer. When one of the power cylinders driving
a shaft mis-fires, the shaft momentarily slows down. The torque out­
put from the shaft is reduced for a fraction of a second. The Tor-
sional Vibration Analyzer records this brief period of reduced torque
by producing a spike on a recording strip chart. Identifying the mis­
behaving cylinder is then a simple matter. First, one of the power
cylinder spark plug wires is disconnected. Next, the strip chart re­
corder produced by the torsional vibration analyzer is checked. If the
number of spikes has doubled, the power cylinder with the discon­
nected spark plug is NOT the defective cylinder. By continuing this
trial and error procedure, one can determine that the cylinder that
is mis-firing will coincide with that spark plug which when discon­
nected, will NOT produce additional spikes on the torsional vibra­
tion analyzer.
Retrofitting a reciprocating engine with individual power cylin­
der exhaust thermocouples and a torsional vibration analyzer, is
akin to restoring the sight of a blind man. Unless an engine is going
to routinely be operated a t less than 70%—80% of it's rated horse­
power, the types of monitoring equipment described above will be re-
92 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING RECIPROCATING ENGINES 93

quired to obtain both a high horsepower output and a 95 + % engine the shrouded inducer and exits under pressure from the impeller.
on-line factor. The rotor is spun by hot engine exhaust gas passing over the tur­
bine blades. A typical set of turbocharger operating conditions are:
HIGH CYLINDER EXHAUST TEMPERATURE
Both a deficiency, or an excess in combustion air availability Fuel Gas Pressure 12.5 PSIG
may cause high cylinder temperatures. Leaking engine exhaust val­ Ambient Pressure 14.5 PSIA
ves, worn piston rings, improperly set fuel injection valves all may Suction Pressure 14.3 PSIA
contribute to a wrong fuel to air ratio. However, as this is not a Discharge Pressure 23.8 PSIA
book on the repair of internal combustion engines, we shall concen­ Ambient Air Temperature 78°F
trate on one extremely common cause of high cylinder exhaust tem­
Discharge Temperature 194°F
peratures; that is, turbocharged deficiencies.
What is the difference between a supercharged engine and a
turbocharged engine? Why does retrofitting an engine with a turbo- The compressed air delivered by the turbo charger ac­
charger increase its rated horsepower? Note that the horsepower av­ complishes two functions; first it scavenges the hot residual gases
ailable from an engine is ultimately proportional to the pounds of otherwise left in the power cylinder of the exhaust stroke, and re­
air the engine can force through itself. More air means more horse­ places these with cooler fresh air; second, it fills the cylinder with
power because more fuel can then be burned without exceeding the an air charge of higher density at the end of the suction stroke. The
metallurgical temperature limits of the cylinder and piston. provision of a greater amount of fresh air permits the combustion
of a correspondingly greater amount of fuel, 1 and an increase in en­
A supercharger draws power from the engine's shaft to com­
gine horsepower.
press and blow air into the engine inlet manifold. The supercharger
is then consuming a portion of the work produced by the engine. The For a fixed compressor speed, the fuel gas manifold pressure
turbocharger is powered by the hot, pressurized exhaust gases from should result in a pre-determined turbo charger speed. This data is
the engines exhaust gas manifold.
IMPELLER TURBINE
TURBOCHARGERS BLADES
Most modern separable (as opposed to integral) compressor-en­
gine combinations of 700 horsepower and above, are driven by turbo­ SHROUDED
charged reciprocating engines. One of the principal reasons for tur- INDUCER
bocharging an engine is the reduction in nitrous oxides (NOX) in
the engine exhaust gas. Even in the remotest wastelands of West
Texas, environmental restriction on NOX emissions must be obeyed.
Also, turbocharging an existing engine is a cost effective means to
up-rate its horsepower. For example, the standard diesel driven sub­
marine engine of World War II has been transplanted to the gas
fields and converted to natural gas fuel. The rated horsepower of
this six cylinder engine may be increased from 1350 horsepower to
1650 horsepower by retrofitting with a turbocharger. (The last time
I saw this done however, the air inlet line to the turbocharger was
not increased in size. This error negated the benefits of the
turbocharger.)

A turbocharger is simply a small gas turbine driven, single

stage, centrifugal air compressor. Figure 8—1 shows the rotor assem­ figure 8-1 A turbo charger rotating assembly. Engine exhaust gases spin
bly of a typical high pressure turbocharger. Air is drawn through the turbine, while combustion air is compressed by the impeller.
9 4 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING RECIPROCATING ENGINES 9 5

available from the turbo charger manufacturer, who can also pro­ BETA SCANS
vide a custom made tachometer for his equipment. The turbo-
charger speed should result in a discharge pressure, which again, More often than I had expected, I find that my engineering
may be calculated from the manufacturer's data. A deficiency in education can actually be used in solving problems in the real world.
turbo charger operation is indicated by a lower than calculated For example, I never imagined that the dull chapter on the Otto
speed and discharge air pressure. This inefficiency can result from Cycle in my thermodynamics text contained information I would
some day need. And so surrounded by stunted Mesquite trees and
several problems:
the ubiquitous Prickly Pear Cactus, I sketched in the sun baked
• Resistance to exhaust flow such as back pressure from a cata­ caliche earth, for the benefit of a compressor's stations untutored
mechanics, a crude rendition of an Otto Cycle, which I have now re­
lytic converter.
produced in Figure 8—2.
• Fouling of the rotor due to dust or dirt passing through t h e air
filter. This problem manifests itself by low discharge pressure Juan Garza, the compressor station's chief mechanic eyed the
rather than reduced turbo charger speed. Beta Scan machine suspiciously. "Mr. Lieberman, I've worked at
• Fouling of the turbine blades—possibly due to cracked engine this station for six years. Hernando and I, we know when a cylinder
cylinder heads permitting engine coolant to enter the exhaust is mis-firing. We can hear it. Also, we watch the individual cylinder
gas manifold. exhaust temperatures. A low temperature also indicates mis-firing;
• Partially plugged air inlet filter. a high temperature means we have to adjust the air to fuel ratio.
• Leakage at the turbine. The turbine to shroud tip clearances We don't really need such an expensive machine. Right Hernando!
should be compared to the original manufacturers specifi­ We don't need a machine to draw us pictures. We can do our job
without such pictures."
cations.
• Leakage at the impeller. The impeller to casing clearances
should also be compared to original specifications.
Inefficiencies on the compressor end will correlate with a
higher than predicted temperature rise of the air flow through the
turbo charger. For example, the discharge temperature of 194°F c
listed on the preceding page corresponds to a normal centrifugal INTERNAL 0
compressor efficiency of 77%. The correlation to calculate tempera­ CYLINDER M
ture rise due to compression is summarized in chapter 7 Figure 2. PRESSURE R
U Nk S
A S
AFTERBURN T
If you have t h e dubious privilege of observing an engine 1 \ K_
0 \ E
operating with a hole in the exhaust gas manifold, you are likely N
witnessing the effects of afterburn. I once saw a 4000 horsepower en­ WORK N.
gine's exhaust system disassembled to repair such a hole and con­
cluded: VfA
CQW^_
KR
• One cylinder, which had been running rather lean, supplied ESSI5FT-*-
enough oxygen to continue combustion in the exhaust manifold.
~~^B
• A localized hot spot was created which burned a hole through
the exhaust gas manifold. CYLINER VOLUME
The turbine end of the turbo charger was apparently also ad­ Figure 8—2 An idealized Otto Cycle. Side AB represents that instant when
versely effected by this afterburn. the exhaust valves and air intake valves function.
96 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
Signifying his assent, Hernando spit some tobacco juice on my
boots.
The pictures that had upset J u a n Garze were Beta Scan plots.
A Beta Scan is a recording of a cylinder's internal pressure plotted
against it's piston position. Pointing to my scratchings in the
caliche, I began to explain the meaning of an Otto Cycle to J u a n
and Hernando.
"I think of an Otto Cycle as a n idealized Beta Scan. What I
mean by idealized is that the combustion of the fuel gas would take
place instantaneously when the piston was closest to the cylinder
head (i.e. zero percent on the horizontal axis of Figure 8-2). Further­
more, the exhaust gases would exit from the cylinder completely and
instantaneously when the piston was furthest from the cylinder
head (i.e. 100% on the horizontal axis of Figure 8—2). I think you
all can visualize that any deviation from this ideal situation would
reduce the amount of work developed by the piston. These plots that
have just been produced by the Beta Scan machine for the two
power cylinders (as shown in Figures 8-3 A & B) illustrate how the
performance of a real engine deviates from an Otto Cycle".
"Excuse, please", J u a n interjected, "This Mr. Otto, does he re­
pair engines too?"
"No—I think he's dead, please allow me to continue! Now the
area enclosed by the Beta Scan plot is proportional to the work de­
livered by the piston to the crankshaft. Note how the area's enclosed
by the Beta Scan plots are smaller than the enclosed area of the
Otto Cycle. Actually, the Beta Scan machine has intergrated these
areas and calculated that the "A" cylinder (see Figure 8—3A) is de­
veloping 204 horsepower, while the "B" cylinder (see Figure 8—3B)
is developing only 142 horsepower. Don't you all agree that "A" Beta
50Q
250
50 100 0 50
CYLINDER VOLUME' ■ »
Figure 8—3 Actual Beta Scans for two identical cylinders. Cylinder "B" is
suffering from bad valves.
RECIPROCATING ENGINES 97
"What you think Hernando. Take a close look," suggested
Juan. Squirting tobacco juice over my rendition of an Otto Cycle,
Hernando moved closer to the Beta Scan plots. The brown caliche
was permanently imbedded underneath his fingernails,
"The value of the Beta Scan is that you can quantify the re­
lative performance of individual cylinders. For instance, cylinder "B"
is producing 62 less horsepower than cylinder "A". This indicates
that we need to replace the piston rings and possibly repair the en­
gine exhaust valves", I concluded.
Hernando jabbed a stubby and not overly clean finger at the
Beta Scans. He began to talk rapidly in Spanish.
"What's he saying, Juan. He's getting the plots dirty. I don't
understand Spanish!"
"I don't understand him either, Mr. Lieberman. He keeps talk­
ing about the peak pressure of cylinder "B", it is only 300 psig and
it should be 500 psig, Hernando says that the shape of the Beta
Scan plots may indicate inadequate exhaust gas scavenging by the
fresh air or that the firing timing is off. He wants to pull "A" 's cy­
linder head off for inspection. Hernando says your interpretation of
the Beta Scan plots is an oversimplification. Do you understand any
of this—maybe I'm not translating right".
"What else does Hernando say", I ventured, as my self-image
dwindled.
"Hernando says that routine Beta Scan checks of engines run­
ning near their rated horsepower is always a good idea. Especially
in hot weather, when engines lose 5% of their horsepower potential
for each 10°F increase in ambient air. Checking the actual horse­
power output for each cylinder, is a cost effective method of troub­
leshooting an engine. For routine tuning of an engine, such as ad­
justing the fuel injection valves to each cylinder checking compres­
sion pressure with a special pressure gauge is sufficient. The peak
pressure measurement gives some of the same information as the
Beta Scan. For example, the peak pressure for cylinder "A", as
shown on it's Beta Scan is 500 psig. A low peak pressure is a way
of detecting bad valves or faulty piston rings".
Hernando hitched-up his baggy pants and J u a n continued to
translate. "Hernando wishes to summarize the procedure he uses to
troubleshoot reciprocating engines. He suggests that you make a few
notes. To start with, he reviews the temperatures measured by the
individual cylinder pyrometers. A low temperature indicates lack of
combustion, which is not the same as no ignition. A cylinder with
a high exhaust temperature may be suffering from retarded firing
which results in late combustion.
98 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING RECIPROCATING ENGINES 99

Alternately, a hot cylinder may be the result of a high fuel-to- REFERENCES

air (i.e. rich) mixture. 1. Elliot Company, "Instructions for Installation, Operation, &
"Next, he checks the voltage and firing timing of each spark Maintenance of Type "H" High-Pressure Turbocharges, In­
plug. Then, using his Statiscope, he checks for ignition from the struction Book TC-30E", Jeannette, Penna.
spark plugs. Of course, an operable spark plug does not guarantee 2. Hudson, F.H., President RO-CIP, Canton, Texas; Private
ignition. Communications.
"Using his BMEP (Brake Mean Effective Pressure) gauge, he
measures the average pressure inside each power cylinder. The
BMEP reading is roughly proportional to the horsepower developed
by each cylinder. Afterwards, he adjusts the fuel gas valves to each
cylinder so that they develop the same BMEP reading, within the
constraints of maximum exhaust temperature, for each cylinder.
"Of course, one can hear severe detonation inside a cylinder by
placing one's ear in contact with the cylinder through an interven­
ing steel rod. However, to pick up less dramatic detonations, a Keine
Pressure Indicator is required. This instrument measures the peak
pressure reached inside a cylinder. A cylinder that exhibits both a
low BMEP reading and a high peak pressure is suffering from de­
tonation. Leakage of exhaust gas back into the cylinder through a
defective engine valve is one possible cause of detonation. A wrong
air/fuel ratio may also result in detonation.
"A Beta Scan, which produces an Otto Cycle plot, is as you de­
scribed, quite useful. Hernando would only add that a sign of deto­
nation is when the top of the Otto Scan plot is tall and narrow. By
the way, he says, you must read Edward Obert's, "The Internal
Combustion Engine (McGraw-Hill)", if you want to become know­
ledgeable in this area.
"Finally, he checks the exhaust gas composition using a Tele-
dyne 980. The combustible reading should not be more than 0.2%.
The oxygen reading should be between 10% to 12%. Excess oxygen
above 12% will waste fuel and reduce the horsepower developed by
the engine. More importantly, an oxygen deficiency reduces heat dis­
sipation from the cylinder, leaves exhaust gas behind inside the cy­
linder after the expansion step and thus may promote both detona­
tion and excessive exhaust gas temperature. Compression leaks,
such as those caused by bad piston rings or defective exhaust valves,
as well as turbocharger problems, are all rather common causes of
low oxygen in exhaust gas. Also, external factors which reduce the
intake air density diminish the oxygen content of engine cylinder
exhaust gas. 2 Hernando also says that it is important too . . . ."
But by this time, I was no longer listening to Juan. I began
edging away from Hernando, who had just sprayed my boots with
a fresh layer of tobacco juice.
 LOSS IN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSOR CAPACITY 101

9
charge temperature? Why was the temperature rise across Unit # 3
21°F (or 23%) greater than Unit #1?
COMPRESSION HORSEPOWER
PROPORTIONAL TO TEMPERATURE RISE
A few useful (but thermodynamically not prescise) rules of
thumb for field troubleshooting compressors are:

LOSS IN CENTRIFUGAL .BHP =* ( £*_ - 1

COMPRESSOR CAPACITY .BHP ^ A T x Q

where
AT = Discharge minus suction temperature.
.BHP = Work or horsepower delivered to the compressor
Why is it that three identical centrifugal compressors, aligned shaft.
in parallel were performing so differently? My client's Chief En­ P 2 = Discharge pressure, PSIA
gineer had fortunately already solved the problem. He explained P x = Suction pressure, PSIA
t h a t the compressor at the end of the piping header was being .Q = Gas flow, SCF or moles
"starved for gas". That was why the gas flow through that particular It is a characteristic of gas turbine driven compressors that the
compressor was so low compared to the other two machines. The driver horsepower is a function of the combustion air compressor
Chief Engineer's solution to this problem was to connect a new gas speed. For Unit # 1 and Unit # 3 , as shown in Table 9—1, the com­
line to the far end of the existing compressor suction piping. bustion air compressor speeds were identical. Hence, the horsepower
Table 9-1 shows the operating data for the three centrifugal delivered to both gas compressors were about the same. Note also
compressors. The pressure readings were taken with a single pres­ from Table 9 - 1 , t h a t (AT x Q) for Unit # 1 and U n i t # 3 were within
sure gauge so as to eliminate relative errors. Note that the suction 5% of each other:
pressure on Unit # 3 (i.e. the comprssor at the far end of the suction
Unit # 1 = 90°F x 90 MMSCFD = 8100
header) had a two PSIG lower pressure than Unit # 1 . The Chief En­
Unit # 3 = H I T x 69 MMSCFD = 7660
gineer took this as proof that Unit # 3 was "starved for gas".
Was he right? Could a two PSIG pressure drop in the suction TABLE 9-1
piping account for the difference in flow of 21 MMSCFD of natural
gas shown in Table 9-1? The answer to this query is contained in OPERATING DATA FOR THREE CENTRIFUGAL
Figure 9 - 1 . P 2 /Pi is the compression ratio. If you calculate the com­ COMPRESSORS RUNNING IN PARALLEL
pression ratios for Unit # 1 and Unit # 3 from the data in Table 9 - 1 , Unit#l Unit # 2 Unit # 3
you can see t h a t the loss in flow predicted from Figure 9-1 for Unit
# 3 versus Unit # 1 is only about 1.0 MMSCFD! Flow, MMSCFD 90 87 69
I explained these calculations to my client's Chief Engineer. Suction Pressure, PSIG 605 604 603
"Why then the difference in flow", he mused. "It must be t h a t the Discharge Pressure, PSIG 1015 1015 1016
flow meters need recalibration". Suction Temperature, °F 88 88 88
Examine the temperature in Table 9-1 to see why it was ob­ Discharge Temperature, °F 178 181 199
vious that the flow meters were correct. The suction temperatures Gas Compressor Speed, RPM 11,600 11,700 12,400
were, of course, all the same; but why the large variance in dis- Combustion Air Compressor
Speed, RPM 13,000 13,000 13,000
100
102 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING LOSS Di CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSOR CAPACITY 103

The Chief Engineer concluded from this analysis that the
horsepower being absorbed by the compressor per SCF of gas moved,
was greater in Unit # 3 than Unit # 1 , by 23%—that is, COMPRES­
SION WORK PER SCF OF GAS MOVED IS PROPORTIONAL TO
THE TEMPERATURE RISE OF THE COMPRESSED GAS. This
rule,. is an important concept for the troubleshooter to remember.
This rule of thumb explained how Unit # 3 could absorb the same
amount of horsepower as Unit # 1 , while only moving 75% as much
gas as Unit # 1 .
"I understand from everything you said, and the observed tem­
perature and pressure data, that for some unknown reason, the com­
pression EFFICIENCY of Unit # 3 , relative to Unit # 1 , has deterior­
ated", said the Chief Engineer.
To quantify the Chief Engineer's thoughts, the following ap­
proximation for relative compressor efficiency is applicable:
Of course, the above relationship cannot be applied when inter­
stage coolers are in service.
To summarize why Unit # 3 was moving less gas than Unit # 1 :
• Driver horsepower was the same.
• External piping problems were insignificant.
• The diminished flow through Unit # 3 was real, and not a
simple meter error.
Therefore, the problem had to be an internal compression prob­
lem. There are two factors which cause loss in flow through a com­
pressor accompanied by an abnormal temperature rise:
• Leakage of the gas back across the rotor wheels.
• Rotor fouling.

LABYRINTH SEAL LEAKAGE

R.E.
(s-0
=±-J—-—
Figure 9—2 is a simplified sketch of a three stage centrifugal
where AT compressor. The labyrinth seals serve the same function for a com­
R.E. = Relative compressor efficiency (only useful when pressor that a wear ring serves for a centrifugal pump—that is, it
comparing the operation of two similar machines). reduces leakage from the high pressure side of each wheel (i.e. im­
peller) back to the low pressure side. Leaking labyrinth seals result
in increased internal recycling and recompression of gas, with a con­
sequent heat build-up.
The erosive action of frac sand or formation sand, carried into
a compressor by natural gas, may cause labyrinth seal leakage.
1.75 More commonly, compressor surging or rotor vibration induced by
bearing damage are the culprits which lead to labyrinth seal leak­
age.
1.73
P'2 ROTOR FOULING
1.71
Pi The gas turbine driven compressor described in this chapter is
the common split shaft design. Figure 9—3 illustrates this arrange­
1.69 ment. Note that the turbine wheel driving the gas compressor is not
mechanically coupled to the combustion air compressor. Firing more
1.67 fuel gas in the turbine will speed-up the combustion air compressor,
which in t u r n drives the gas compressor faster. However, there is no
particular reason for both the combustion air compressor and the
gas compressor to run at the same speed. Referring to Table 9—1,
_l I I L. note that the combustion air compressors for Unit # 1 and Unit # 3
65 75 85 95 are both spinning at identical speeds. In contrast the gas compressor
MMSCFD end of Unit # 3 is running quite a bit faster than Unit # 1 .
Figure 9—1 Operating curves for a centrifugal compressor.
 LABYRINTH SEAL

SUCTION
BEARING

SHAFT DISCHARGE

DIFFUSOR
OR
DIAPHRAGM

Figure 9—2 A greatly simplified sketch of a 3-stage centrifugal compressor.

EXHAUST

PRODUCTS
OF
COMBUSTION
AIR
t-/COMBUSTION
ZONE
DISCHARGE
I
5
BEARING
BEARING SHAFT

COMBUSTION
AIR TURBINE GAS
COMPRESSOR (NOTE SPLIT SHAFT) COMPRESSOR

Figure 9—3 A natural gas fueled gas turbine driving a gas compressor of the split shaft design.
106 TROUBLESHOOTING NAT0RAL GAS PROCESSING
Figure 9—1 illustrates the principle that the faster a centrifugal
compressor rotates, the more gas it will move at a given pressure
ratio. The data in Table 9-1 seems to contradict this principle. The
Chief Engineer noted this abnormality, and observed, 'Terhaps the
speed indicator is wrong. How is it possible! We have two identical
compressors running in parallel, the faster of which is pumping less
gas".
It is a characteristic of split shaft gas turbine driven compres­
sors to develop a disproportionately high gas compressor speed when
the gas compressor's rotor fouls. The fouling deposits which adhere
to the rotor effectively reduce the centrifugal force imparted to the
gas by the rotor's impellers. This reduction permits the gas compres­
sor to spin with less resistance and hence t u r n faster for a given
combustion air compressor speed. Naturally, the fouled rotor's re­
duced capability to impart centrifugal force to the gas reduces the
gas compressors capacity and efficiency.
"You're talking in riddles", gasped the Chief Engineer. "What
you mean to say is that when a gas compressor rotor fouls, it will
spin faster but move less gas at a reduced compression efficiency".
"As a matter of fact", I added, "these are the factors which lead
me to believe that the cause of the reduced efficiency in Unit # 3 is
not labyrinth seal leakage, but fouling of the gas compressor rotor's
impellers".
TYPES OF FOCILING DEPOSITS
"What types of material do you think could have deposited on
the rotor. We do a pretty good job of removing drilling mud. and
sand from our gas prior to compression", said the Chief Engineer.
"Some of the fouling deposits I have seen consist of:
• Sulfur
• Salt
• Biological wastes produced from the action of bacteria which
live inside transmission pipelines and thrive by metabolizing
sulfates and the iron pipe.
• Paraffin
• Corrosion inhibitors, injected at the wellhead to protect the
gathering system piping"
The Chief Engineer concluded t h a t the time had come for ac­
tion. He ordered that Unit # 3 be shut down and the suction and dis­
charge piping be disconnected. When the suction pipe spool piece
was removed, we were able to see the entrance to the compressor.
LOSS IN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSOR CAPACITY 107
It was absolutely clean. The Chief Engineer's eyes gleamed with a
trace of hostility. However, when the discharge piping section was
removed, the tension melted away; the exit of the gas compressor
was fouled with a thick, black, greasy substance, commonly called
paraffin.
This black, greasy, waxy material is insoluble in water or
methanol, slightly soluble in natural gas condensate and quite sol­
uble in aromatics. One method of preventing it's build-up is to inject
a high boiling point aromatic solvent into the suction of the com­
pressor. Normally, injecting several pints per MMSCF of a solvent
obtained from Chemlink Chemicals minimized the accumulation of
paraffin inside a compressor. (See chapter on Corrosion and Fouling.)
SALT DEPOSITS
We disassembled the rotor on Unit # 3 , sand blasted each com­
ponent, and after installing a solvent injection system on the suction
line, returned the compressor to service. Table 9—2 summarizes the
results of this procedure. The Chief Engineer noted with gratifica­
tion that Unit # 3 now had a smaller temperature rise than Unit # 1 ,
thus indicating it had a higher compression efficiency.
A month went by before I was called back to the compressor
station. The Chief Engineer informed me that the same thing had
happened again. Unit # 3 had lost capacity, and was exhibiting a
high discharge temperature. Inspection of the compressor discharge
did not indicate any fouling deposits. Even though the solvent in­
jection program was working, we had not yet licked the problem.
"I know what's wrong", stated the Chief Engineer". The gas
compressor speed has increased relative to the speed of the combus­
tion air compressor. This has coincided with a gradual reduction in
capacity of Unit # 3 . Everything now indicates fouling of the gas
TABLE 9-2
DATA AFTER CLEANING UNIT # 3
Unit#l Unit # 3
Flow 90 93
Suction Pressure, PSIG 608 606
Discharge Pressure, PSIG 1010 1012
Discharge Temperature, °F 176 174
Gas Compressor Speed, RPM 11,500 11,400
Combustion Air Compressor
Speed, RPM 13,000 13,000
108 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
compressor rotor. However, it doesn't appear to be a paraffin deposit
this time. What else could it be"?
We.proceeded to disassemble the gas compressor. Inspection of
the internals showed that:
• The stationary components inside the compressor case were
reasonably clean.
• The first stage impeller on the rotor was clean.
• The second stage impeller was slightly encrusted with a gray­
ish deposit.
• The third stage impeller was 70% plugged with the same
deposit.
This deposit was rock hard, and could only be removed from
the impellers by sand-blasting. It was somewhat soluble in water,
but insoluble in gasoline. I tasted it to confirm my suspicion—It was
salt.
DEW POINT SOLID DEPOSITION
Almost all natural gas production contains entrained brine.
Passing natural gas through a filter-coalescer prior to compression
will reduce the brine content. However, to quantitatively exclude
brine from entering a compressor, the gas must be scrubbed. This
is done by dehydration in a triethylene glycol-to-gas trayed tower.
However, in the facilities we are discussing, the glycol dehydrator
was located downstream of the centrifugal compressors.
One can usually assume gas exiting from a vapor-liquid
separator, such as a filter-coalescer, is at it's saturation point in re­
gard to water. As the gas is compressed, it is also heated. The en­
trained droplets of brine thus dry out as they pass over the rotor's
impellers. When the gas is heated by compression above it's dew
point (i.e. dry point) temperature, the salt previously dissolved in
the brine, turns into a solid which then adheres to the rotor. If this
dry point is reached after the second stage of compression, then most
of the salt deposits will be found on the third stage impeller.
After we had cleaned the rotor and put Unit # 3 back on-line,
the Chief Engineer inquired, "Why are we getting salt deposition on
Unit # 3 , but not on Unit #1?
"We probably are getting some salt in Unit # 1 " , I answered,
"but the piping configuration is such that entrained particules will
preferentially flow into Unit # 3 . Regardless of the cause of the salt
deposition, I think I know a method that will permit us to live with
the problem".
LOSS IN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSOR CAPACTTY 109
NOT BLASTING
The crushed hulls from walnuts or pecans have a wide variety
of use in cleaning process equipment. Most often they are used to
remove scale deposits, on-stream, from the exterior surface of tubes
inside a fired heater. The crushed nutshells may also be used with
great effect in cleaning hard deposits from the internal parts of cen­
trifugal compressors in natural gas service. Figure 9-4 illustrates
the mechanical details of facilities used for routine nutblasting of a
centrifugal compressor. The procedures employed are:
• Shut-down the compressor and isolate the discharge and
suction.
• Remove the 4 inch suction plug and screwed discharge cap
shown in Figure 9—4.
• Bring the compressor up to about 70% of normal operating
speed. Vibration at this point indicates deposits have unevenly
broken off the impeller. Nut blasting may eliminate the vib­
ration by removing residual deposits.
• Slowly pour the crushed hulls into the opening on the suction
line with a sugar scoop.
• Observe the grey dust blown out of the discharge as a guide
for the amount of nut hulls to use. Typically 10-100 pounds of
hulls are required.
The above procedure was, and still is, successfully used on the
compressors described in this chapter. The Chief Engineer faithfully
monitors the:
(LD
AT
factor for each compressor. When the calculated value drops below
DISCHARGE
4 PLUG
" £ ^ 0 BLIND
SUCTION — J 7 1 ! f -*- ) ifi 8 SCREWED CAP
Figure 9 - 4 Connections for nut blasting.
110 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
a certain point, the compressor is taken oif-line for nut blasting.
Each compressor rotor has been nut blasted for salt deposit removal
a dozen times in the past two years. After each treatment, the com­
pressor is restored to it's clean efficiency and capacity. No erosive
effects on either the rotating or stationary parts of the compressor
internals have been noted.
EFFECT OF ANTI-SURGE
CONTROLS ON ROTOR FOULING
"I can't argue that our piping configuration is not part of the
problem", he said, "but don't you think there is more to the rapid
loss in compression efficiency of Unit # 3 than that".
There is another factor which we have not discussed. It has to
do with the anti-surge spillback control, and the effect of this control
on the third stage impeller operating temperature. Do you want to
hear about this; it's rather complex a subject", I ventured.
"If it's pertinent, III have to listen", allowed the Chief
Engineer.
"Do you know what the term surge means", I began, referring
to Figure 9 - 1 . "It is a characteristic of a centrifugal compressor
equivalent to an airplane stalling at slow speed. When a centrifugal
compressor surges, it's rotor is stalling due to low gas flow. This con­
dition is brought on by low suction volume. Each time a compressor
surges, it's rotor slides across it's radial bearings and impacts on it's
thrust bearing. Eventually, the labyrinth seals and bearings will be
damaged".
"So Unit # 3 has sustained damage to the labyrinth seals due
to surging; and this damage has resulted in reduced compression ef­
ficiency", concluded the Chief Engineer.
"A perceptive, but incorrect observation", I noted, "actually, as
I20°F
135°F
Figure 9—5 Anti-surge control may reheat gas being compressed.
LOSS IN CENTR1FCIGAL COMPRESSOR CAPAOTY 111
you can see in this sketch, (Figure 9-5), your compressors are pro­
tected from surging by anti-surge spill-back controls. Recall that
surge is initiated by the compressor suction volume falling below a
certain rate. The anti-surge controls permit gas to recirculate from
the discharge to the suction to increase suction volume. All evidence
indicates that the anti-surge controls on Unit # 3 are, and have been
functional.
"Unfortunately, as you can envision from the temperatures
shown in Figure 9-5, whenever the anti-surge valve opens, the in­
ternal compressor temperatures will rise. This increases the rates of
fouling on the rotor impellers. As a rotor fouls, it's compression ef­
ficiency drops. This in turn cuts the compressor's capacity to move
gas and forces the anti-surge valve to open in an attempt to move
the machine away from it's surge point".
"So, if you are running three centrifugal compressors in paral­
lel, here is what can happen:
• Due to wellhead problems, the flow of natural gas from the
field is diminished.
• The suction pressure to the three machines falls and/or the
suction volume is reduced.
• The gas flow to the least efficient compresor is lowest. The
anti-surge valve on this machine will open before the others.
This increases the rate of impeller fouling on the wheels of the
least efficient machine and hence makes it even less efficient".
The Chief Engineer sighed, "Why do you have to make every­
thing complicated. Don't you have simple explanations for any­
thing".

10
GAS TURBINE DRIVEN
CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSORS
While the majority of natural gas field and transmission com­
pressors are reciprocating machines, a sizable minority are cen­
trifugal compressors driven by gas turbines. Only on rare occasions
can electric, steam or deisel oil drives compete with natural gas as
compressor fuel in pipeline service.
A gas turbine works on the same principle as a jet engine. Air
is compressed (typically to 110 PSIG), and discharged into a combus­
tion zone. Fuel gas is also injected into the combustion zone. The
pressurized, burning gas expands as it passes across the blades of a
turbine. The turbine serves two functions:
• One or more wheels of the turbine drives the combustion air
compressor (as shown in Figure 9-3 of the previous chapter).
• One or more wheels of the turbine drives the gas compressor.
The major part of the horsepower developed in a gas turbine
is consumed by the combustion air compressor. The gas compressor
absorbs about one third of the gas turbines power output. Work done
by the combustion air compressors is recycled back to the turbine
blades via the pressurized combustion air.
An important feature of the gas turbine driven compressor
shown in Figure 9—3 is that the two ends of the machine are not
mechanically coupled. This is called a split shaft design; which
means that the combustion air compressor and the gas compressor
operate at different speeds. This permits the air compressor end to
run at a speed consistant with developing full horsepower, while the
112
GAS TCJRBINE DRIVEN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSORS 113
gas compressor end may be running at a lower speed due to factors
such as high discharge pressure.
GAS TURBINE DRIVES VS.
RECIPROCATING COMPRESSORS
It is instructive for the Troubleshooter to understand why a
centrifugal gas turbine driven compressor, rather than a reciprocat­
ing engine driven compressor was selected for service at bis particu­
lar booster station. One reason is mechanical simplicity. My operat­
ing experience indicates that the reliability and ease of maintenance
for centrifugal machines is preferable to that of reciprocating com­
pressors. While the compressor end of a reciprocating machine is re­
latively simple, a reciprocating engine contains a wide array of mov­
ing parts subject to fouling and wear.
A gas turbine centrifugal compressor requires, in theory, about
15% more fuel per brake horsepower than a gas driven reciprocating
compressor. As fuel is the largest cost incurred by natural gas trans­
mission operators, this is a matter of considerable importance. In
practice though, the energy efficiency advantage of reciprocating
over centrifugal compressors is often reduced. A 4,000 horsepower
reciprocating engine can have sixteen power cylinders. Each re­
quires careful adjustment to achieve a proper fuel/air ratio. The pis­
ton rings of each cylinder are subject to variable rates of wear, or
firing timing may be off. These problems, plus a host of other po­
tential difficulties inherent in internal combustion engines can re­
duce a reciprocating engine's fuel efficiency by 10%—20%. On the
other hand, if the rotating assembly of a gas turbine driven com­
pressor is kept clean, it will likely run at its design fuel efficiency.
In practice then, the actual gas usage per brake horsepower for
many facilities is about the same for both centrifugal and reciprocat­
ing machines. Hence, at least for manned stations using natural gas
as a compressor fuel, centrifugal rather than reciprocating compres­
sors are often employed.
TROUBLESHOOTING GAS TURBINE DRIVERS
A centrifugal compressor driven by a gas turbine at a pipeline
booster station is moving 80 MMSCFD of natural gas. It used to
move 95 MMSCFD. What's wrong? As the troubleshooter, consider
whether the problem is with the driver or the compressor. Actually,
there are three primary components involved:
• The natural gas compressor.
114 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GAS TURBINE DRIVEN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSORS 115

• The combustion air compressor.
• The turbine blades.
First, plot the current operating condition for the gas compres­
sor on the curves supplied by the manufacturer. A typical family of
compressor curves is shown in Figure 10—1. Point "A" shown in this
figure falls on the curve for 12,500 rpm. If you had measured a gas
compressor speed of about 12,600 rpm, you would conclude t h a t the
gas compressor was all right. On the other hand, if you had observed
a speed of 13,400 rpm, you could be reasonably positive that some­
thing was amiss with the gas compressor. The preceeding state­
ments assume t h a t the actual gas specific gravity, suction temper­
ature, compressibility, as well as the diameter of the impellers
(wheels), match the parameters stated in Figure 10—1. The effects of
deviations from these assumptions will be quantified later.
Having proved t h a t the gas compressor end of the machine is
performing properly, next decide if the driver is delivering as much
horsepower to the gas compressor as can be expected at current am-
bient conditions. Assume the rated horsepower of the gas turbine is
based on an ambient temperature of 90*F. As a rule of thumb, for
each increase of 10°F in ambient conditions, the horsepower of a gas
turbine drops by 5% (only assuming that neither the gas or combus­
tion air compressors are operating at maximum speed). Thus, a
110°F air temperature cuts the engine horsepower 10% below de­
sign.
After accounting for the effects of ambient temperature
(barometric pressure, while also important, does not change very
much) compare the gas compressor horsepower indicated on the
manufacturer's curves against the rated gas compressor horsepower,
after derating for ambient temperature.
Let's say that the turbine is rated for 3,000 horsepower. After
derating by 10% for 110°F air the turbine should be providing 2,700
horsepower to the gas compressor. Unfortunately, based on the cur­
rent suction pressure, discharge pressure and flow you only calculate
2,500 horsepower. We have already decided that the gas compressor
section of the machine is okay. What factors account, then, for the
reduction in driver horsepower from 2,700 to 2,500?

M.W. -18
1200 SUCTION EXHAUST TEMPERATURE LIMIT
TF_MP = 90°F
SUCTION PRES.= 500 PSIA
Gas turbines are limited, as are all rotating assemblies, by
either speed or power. For an electric motor, the power limit is man­
ifested by maximum amperage, (more precisely, the maximum per­
100- missible winding temperature). The situation with gas turbines is
similar. The ultimate amount of power (i.e. work, horsepower), t h a t
tO can be developed by the turbine blades, is limited by the turbine
o_ exhaust temperature.
A typical maximum turbine exhaust temperature is 1,100°F.
to 1000- This limit is imposed by the metallurgy of the turbine's blades. Con­
bj
tinuous operation above the turbines design exhaust temperature
a. will lead to accelerated deterioration of the blades and a consequent
reduction in engine horsepower.
UJ
ID When neither end of the centrifugal compressor is running at
< 900- its peak speed, and the turbine exhaust temperature is below it's de­
X sign limit, there are two other possibilities which may be limiting
o
to horsepower output:
1000 1200 1400 1600
• Fuel gas firing is limited by a faulty over-ride on the temper­
3
FLOW, ACFM XIO" ature controller. That is, the exhaust temperature is artifically
surpressed by an instrument malfunction.
Figure 10—1 Actual speed vs. the predicted speed based on compression • The fuel gas flow control valve is wide open; or it is partially
ratio andflowis a measure of centrifugal compressor efficiency. plugged by natural gas hydrates.
 116 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
When the turbine exhaust temperature is at it's limit, and
horsepower output is deficient, other possible causes are:
• Excessive wear to turbine blades.
• Air/fuel ratio problems.
• Carbon deposits on turbine blades. Periodic detergent washing
of the combustion air compressor will help reduce this effect.
• Lack of proper flow from the combustion compressor.
AIR COMPRESSOR PROBLEMS
One way of looking at a gas turbine centrifugal compressor is
that the combustion air compressor must pump sufficient air to sup­
port combustion across the turbine blades as needed to spin the gas
compressor at its required speed. Any factors which reduce the flow
delivered by the combustion air compressor will reduce horsepower
available to the gas compressor. The factors which reduce air flow
are identical to those parameters which reduce the capacity of any
centrifugal compressor:
• High suction temperatures due to elevated ambient
temperature.
• Mechanical damage.
• Low suction pressure due to plugging of the air filter suction
screen. A pressure drop of 4 inches of water will reduce the air
compressor capacity by roughly 2%
• Dirt accumulation in the rotors internals due to inadequate
suction filtration and dusty air.
• Slow speed due to the problems listed above with the gas
turbine driver.
To remove dirt and dust accumulations from the air compressor
rotor, detergent water washing is required. An aqueous detergent
solution is squirted into doors provided on the air intake ducting.
The machine is running at a reduced speed during this period, and
the natural gas process piping is isolated from the compressor. In
addition to washing the air compressor rotor, some of the detergent
solution may carry-over to the turbine blades and promote some
cleaning. During detergent washing, the turbine is powered in the
normal fashion—i.e. by firing natural gas.
Frequent cleaning or replacement of the air intake filters will
also improve air flow availability for combustion. To simplify this
procedure, a so called "Huff & Puff', self-cleaning air filter may be
retrofitted into existing equipment. Such a self-cleaning filter should
GAS TURBINE DRIVEN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSORS 117
operate for two years without manual maintenance. Also, it repor­
tedly reduces air filter pressure drop by an average of five inches
of water over this two year period for an effective increase in engine
horsepower availability of 2-3%.
The combustion air compressor should develop a certain dis­
charge pressure (110 PSIG is typical) as specified by the manufac­
turer's data. After correcting for suction pressure, suction tempera­
ture and speed, (see manufacturer's correlations), if the indicated air
discharge pressure cannot be achieved, the combustion air compres­
sor should be washed. If washing fails to correct the shortcoming,
the rotor should be checked for mechanical damage.
Keep in mind that not only will problems connected with the
turbine blades slow down the combustion air compressor, but that
deficiencies with the combustion air compressor will indirectly be re­
flected in lower combustion air compressor speed.
GAS COMPRESSOR PROBLEMS
Referring back to Figure 10—1, remember that we have com­
pared the actual gas compressor speed to the speed indicated by the
curve that passes through point "A". We calculated point "A" from
the natural gas flow, and the observed suction and discharge pres­
sure. We said that if the measured gas compressor speed exceeded
the speed indicated by point "A" on Figure 10-1, then the gas com­
pressor was deficient. This is not quite true. The following factors
all raise the actual speed as compared to the speed calculated from
Figure 10-1:
• Increased suction temperature.
• Increased gas compressibility
• Lower gas specific gravity
• Reduced impeller diameter
It is a relatively simple matter to reduce the diameter of the
gas compressor impellers; they can be turned down on a lathe. For
instance, on one centrifugal compressor, the impellers were trimmed
down from a 12" to an 11" diameter. Other factors being equal, the
speed of the gas compressor end of machine increased from 11,000
rpm to 12,000 rpm, while the speed of the combustion air compressor
held constant at 13,200 rpm.
GAS PROPERTIES EFFECT COMPRESSOR SPEED
As the molecular weight of natural gas drops, it's compressa-
118 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GAS TURBINE DRIVEN CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSORS 119

biiity factor (Z), increases. This will increase the required rotor speed
as compared to the manufacturer's operating curves. While the variabil­
ity of compressability with molecular weight is small, the correlation
between gas specific gravity and molecular weight is linear. More to
the point, specific gravity has a large effect on the speed required to
move a given volume of gas at a fixed pressure ratio. The specific
gravity of natural gas is calculated as follows:
pressors in natural gas service are also subject to fouling of the
rotor's impellers. The tip-off that reduced gas flow and/or compres­
sion ratio could be due to rotor fouling is an unexpected increase in
the compressed gas exhaust temperature. The incident described in
the preceding chapter amplifies the all too common effect of fouling
on a centrifugal compressor's capacity.

S.G. = M.W.
29
where
M.W. = Molecular weight of the liquid free natural
gas, pounds per mole.

An approximate rule of thumb is that each decrease of one

pound in molecular weight will require the gas compressor to spin
2% faster to maintain the same natural gas flow and pressure ratio.
High suction temperature also reduces the density of natural
gas. For each increase of 22°F, the density of gas is reduced about
4%. This is equivalent, as far as the compressor is concerned, to a
reduction in molecular weight of about 0.75 pounds per mole.

TEST YOCIR COMPREHENSION

Troubleshooting split shaft, gas turbine driven, natural gas

compressors is certainly a complex subject. You may wish to re-read
this material if you cannot answer the following questions:

1. The machine is running at it's maximum turbine exhaust

temperature. The molecular weight of the natural gas drops.
The compressor discharge pressure is fixed. Will the suction
pressure increase or decrease (1)? Will the gas flow increase or
decrease (2)? Will the gas compressor speed increase or de­
crease (3)?
Answers: (1) increase, (2) decrease, (3) increase.
2. The machine is running at it's maximum turbine exhaust
temperature. The ambient temperature increases. Will the
combustion air compressor speed increase or decrease(l)? Will
the gas compressor speed increase or decrease (2)? Will the
natural gas flow increase or decrease (3)? Will the amount
of fuel gas burned in the turbine increase or decrease (4)?
Answers: (1) decrease (2) decrease (3) decrease (4) decrease.

In addition to all the other complexities, centrifugal gas com-

 LIGHT HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 121

11 ciency does not noticeably increase, or even decreases as reflux is

raised, flooding is indicated.

FLOODING
There are two commonly accepted terms describing flooding in
a trayed distillation tower:

• Liquid flood
LIGHT HYDROCARBON • J e t flood
DISTILLATION Figure 11—1 shows the effect on tower pressure drop as the re­
flux rate and reboiler duty are increased. The liquid flood point is
characterized by a sudden increase in measured delta P. At this
point, the capacity of the downcomers to drain liquid pouring over
Whether one is troubleshooting a distillation tower in a natural the outlet weir is insufficient. The height of liquid in the downcom­
gas liquids recovery facility, or in a petroleum refinery, the compo­ ers shown in Figure 11-2 increases until the top of the weir is
nents of the problem causing inadequate fractionation are the same: reached; at this point liquid begins to stack-up on the tray deck and
drainage from the downcomer on the tray above is reduced. Thus,
• Damaged tower internals all trays above a tray that is flooding, will also begin to flood. Fully
• Low reflux rates developed downcomer flood will always greatly reduce fractionation
• Erratic control efficiency.
• Flooding

CONTROL PROBLEMS
5% -
There is a very straight-forward method to determine if a con­
trol problem is leading to the production of off-spec products. This
method is based on the following premise: 4%
"If you can't run it on manual, you'll never run it on auto". <7o BUTANE
Certainly, for the relatively simple operations of concern here— IN WITH
(i.e., deethanizers, debutanizers, propane-butane splitters and PROPANE
deisopentanizers)—LPG and gasoline fractionation specifications are PRODUCT 3%
achievable with manual control. If you cannot succesfully operate a
distillation column on hand control for a few hours, then check to
see if the control valves in the field are properly responding to the 2%
control center valve position signal. JET FLOOD^
Next, increase the reflux rate and the tower bottoms heat input
(reboiler duty). An unexpectly large improvement in the separation
t i i i
between the light and heavy key components indicates poor vapor-
liquid contacting due to dumping liquid through tray decks or vapor
2000 3000 4000 5000
channeling in packed beds. On the other hand, if separation effi-
REFLUX, BSD
120 Figure 11—1 Reduced separation at higher reflux rates indicates flooding.
122 TROUBLESHOOTING NATCIRAL GAS PROCESSING
Downcomers can flood at even relatively low liquid rates if the
bottom edge of the downcomer is not submerged in the liquid on the
tray deck. Unsealing the downcomer in this manner permits upflow-
ing vapor to interfere with liquid flow in the downcomer, thus re­
duces downcomer liquid handling capacity. Downcomers will also
flood at low liquid rates due to high pressure drop across the tray
decks. After all, the height of liquid in the downcomer must be suf­
ficient to overcome the pressure differential between trays. Thus,
fouling deposits on tray decks, which reduce the open area available
for vapor flow, can precipitate downcomer back-up and liquid flooding.
The downcomers do not have to be over-flowing for excessive
tray loads to reduce tower efficiency. Figure 11—1 shows data col­
lected on one NGL propane-butane splitter. The cause of increased
butane content of the tower overhead at the higher reflux rates was
excessive entrainment of liquid between trays. Factors, such as in­
creased reflux rates, which raise the liquid level on the tray decks,
promote entrainment which, when excessive, is called "Jet Flood'.
JET FLOOD
Of course, flooding induced by downcomer back-up will also
raise the liquid level on the tray decks; while liquid entrainment in-
Figure 11—2 The bottom edge of a downcomer should extend 1/2" below the
top of the weir.
LIGHT HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 123
creases downcomer loading. Hence, the terms jet and liquid flood are
somewhat a matter of semantics. Flooding—as far as operational
personnel are concerned—is indicated by the following:
• The temperature spread between the reboiler outlet and the
tower overhead is reduced as the feed rate is raised.
• The concentration of the heavy key component increases as the
reflux rate is increased.
• With the reboiler heat duty fixed, increasing the reflux rate
does not result in a proportionate increase in the bottoms
product rate.
Tray loading which corresponds to the type of incipient tray flooding
described above is characterized by the following:
AP .> 20%
CS.G.) (TN) (TS)
where
AP = Pressure drop in inches of water
S.G. = Specific Gravity of the liquid on the tray at the
appropriate temperature
TN = Number of trays
TS = Tray spacing, inches.
MEASURING TRAY PRESSURE DROP
To obtain an accurate pressure drop measurement across the
trays in a low pressure fractionator (less than 15 psig) a single pres­
sure gauge can be used. However, for most services involving pro­
pane, butane and natural gas condensates, a delta P gauge such as
a Magneholic must be employed. Magneholic gauges are available
for pressures up to 500 psig. For troubleshooting purposes, it is best
to locate the Magneholic gauge as shown in Figure 11-3, rather
then rely on inert gas purging of the pressure taps to prevent liquid
condensation in the pressure drops which distort the true measured
tray delta P.
CONFUSING INCIDENTS
Process plant troubleshooting is characterized by a decent into
realism. As a proof of this axiom, consider that measuring a low-
tower pressure drop does not prove the tower is not flooding, and
t h a t measuring a high tower pressure drop does not establish that
124 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
the trays (or tower packing) is overloaded. For example, the
operators at one NGL plant noted an unusually high butane content
in their depro'panizer overhead product. To rectify the problem, they
increased the reflux rate by 20%. This only seemed to degrade the
fractionation further. The operators checked the rectification section
pressure drop, expecting to find the trays flooded. To their surprise,
the measured pressure drop per tray was quite low. Did this mean
the tower was not flooding?
When I inspected the tower, I found an absolutely positive in­
dication of floodings; a vent line on the tower overhead line emitted
liquid when cracked open. This observation, coupled with the low
DELTA V GAUGE
OVERHEAD H
REFLUX *
VAPOR
INLET
BOTTOMS
Figure 11—3 Installation of a Delta "P" gauge with self-draining is vital to detect
tray flooding.
LIGHT HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 125
measured pressure drop per tray, indicated that only the top tray
was flooding. When we opened the tower for inspection, we found
the deck of the top tray encrusted with corrosion products. These de­
posits had caused a high pressure drop on only the top tray and had
caused the downcomer on only the top tray to back-up.
HIGH LIQUID LEVEL INDUCES FLOODING
Figure 11—4, illustrates the operation of a debutanizer equip­
ped with a kettle reboiler. The liquid level in the bottom of the
tower is determined by the pressure difference between the reboiler
and the tower (As the reboiler vapors vent back to the tower, the
reboiler must be at the higher pressure). The plant operators
observed that when they increased the reboiler heat duty beyond a
certain point, the tower's delta P gauge reading would dramatically
increase, indicating flooding. They therefore erroneously concluded
that the trays were overloaded.
However, the tower flooding was being induced by a high tower
bottoms liquid level. As the reboiler duty was increased, the reboiler
BOTTOMS
Figure 11—4 Increased AP in the vapor line will raise the liquid level in
the bottom of the tower to the vapor return nozzle, at which
point the bottom tray will flood.
126 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING LIGHT HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 127

VAPOR
pressure also increased. This raised the level in the tower bottoms.
When this level reached the reboiler vapor return nozzle, the tower
flooded due to e n t r a p m e n t of liquid from the bottom of the tower
T
up to the bottom tray. The operators had noticed that the liquid
level rose when the reboiler duty was increased, but they thought
that the bottoms liquid level would not cause tray flooding until this
level reached the bottom tray. This point deserves emphasis: ^REFLUX

When the tower bottom's liquid level rises to the

vapor inlet or reboiler return nozzle, the bottom tray
begins flooding. The flooding spreads up the tower
until liquid is carried overhead. However, even at
this point, the indicated liquid level in the tower is
still at the level of the vapor inlet nozzle.

A careful pressure drop survey indicated t h a t there was a n in­

explicably high pressure drop in the liquid inlet line. When the
tower was opened for inspection, the carcass of a dead rat was dis­
covered lodged in the reboiler liquid inlet nozzle. Inadvertenly, this
FEED*
r a t casued the tower to flood as the reboiler rate was increased. If
the rat had expired in the vapor outlet line, the effect would have
been the same.

VERTICAL TEMPERATURE SURVEY

One of the most powerful tools available to identify tray flood­

ing is a radiation scan. A vertical survey of a column using a
radioactive source measures hydrocarbon density inside the column -268°F
at various elevations. Such a survey will reveal both foam and liq­
uid levels in downcomers and tray decks. Unfortunately, this is a
rather expensive procedure; $25,000 per tower survey being a typ­
ical cost.
The objective of a radiation scan is to pin point the particular
tray that is initiating flooding. This tray acts as a pinch point in the
column. That is, the trays above the tray which is flooding will also
flood (but to a somewhat lesser extent). The trays below the pinch 297°F
point tray will not be particularly effected.
A "poor man's" method of locating the "pinch point" tray is the
vertical temperature survey. This is accomplished as follows:

• Using the tower vessel sketch as a guide, locate the position

of the downcomers.
• Cut a 1" diameter hole in the tower's insulation in line with
BOTTOMS
the center of each downcomer. Figure 11—5 Temperature inversion is a definite indication of flooding.
128 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING LIGHT HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 129

• Using a surface pyrometer (find a probe with a flat, flexible
head) carefully and accurately measure the external temper­
ature of each downcomer.
Figure 11-5 shows the results of one such survey. If a tower
is functioning properly, the tray temperature will always decrease
a t higher tray elevations. Even when tray efficiency is low, there
will still be a temperature gradient of constant direction. However,
the data shown in Figure 11-5 indicates a temperature inversion in
the stripping section of the column. There are two possible explana­
tions for this inversion:
• Tray flooding.
• Upset tray decks.
the tower's bottom level settles out below the vapor inlet nozzle and
the flooding and excess rates of amine carry-over stops.
To the operators, the cause of the flooding appears inexplicable.
It has apparently started and stopped by itself. However, it is pos­
sible to locate the level in the bottom of an amine natural gas scrub­
ber by touch. The liquid outlet normally is 20°F to 40°F warmer
t h a n the vapor inlet. This temperature difference, when noted on the
outside of the tower's shell, corresponds to the true bottom's liquid
level.
To prevent this situation from developing, hydrocarbon skim­
ming taps should be provided in the bottom of natural gas amine
H 2 S scrubbing towers.

If the observed pressure drop across the trays is small (in terms
of equation 1 above) the cause of the temperature inversion is upset
trays. On the other hand, if an increased reflux rate enhances a
temperature inversion between trays, flooding may be predicated
with confidence.

TWO PHASE BOTTOM LEVEL PROBLEM

When does the level indicated in a gauge glass not correspond
to the liquid level in a vessel? Assuming the level taps are unplugged, is -CO 1
it possible for the liquid level in the bottom of a distillation tower VAPOR
INLET -£
to be higher than the level in the gauge glass?
Figure 11-6 illustrates a rather common occurrence in a nat­
ural gas amine H 2 S scrubber. A light hydrocarbon with a 0.7 specific
gravity is floating atop amine with a 1.0 specific gravity. Due to the
location of the level taps, the liquid in the gauge glass is only
amine. If we think of the gauge glass and the bottom of the tower
as the two legs of a two-phase manometer, it's apparent why the liquid
(i.e. hydrocarbon) level inside the tower is above the level in the
gauge glass.
This phenomenon is a common cause of flooding in gas scrub­ - * / ' A M I N E . * ' / '»
bers. Due to an erroneous level indication, the liquid hydrocarbon is ',;*;s.G.=t.o;.-/
permitted to rise to the vapor inlet. The liquid is then entrained by
the upflowing gas onto the bottom tray. The mixing of the liquid hy­
drocarbon with the aqueous amine solution promotes foaming and ?
hence flooding of the bottom tray. The foaming/flooding spreads up
the tower until gross quantities of amine are carried overhead with
the sweet natural gas. Once the accumulated liquid hydrocarbon in Figure 1 1 - 6 The level observed in the gauge glass may not correspond to the
the bottom of the tower is flushed overhead by the flooding trays, liquid level in the tower.
130 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING LIGHT HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 131

FOAMING
Equation 1 above, states that a tray will become less efficient
due to incipient jet flood when the pressure drop per tray, expressed
in inches of liquid, equals 20% of the tray spacing. The inches of
liquid term assumes the liquid is deaerated. Of course, the liquid in
the downcomers and on the tray decks is closer to a froth t h a n to
a flat liquid. The more highly aerated the liquid is (i.e. the more
foam-like it becomes), the greater will be the depth of liquid corres­
ponding to a measured external pressure drop. Hence, liquids which
foam in distillation columns (such as dirty amine and ethane rich
fractionators) reach their incipient jet flood at pressure drops
below the 20% indicated in equation 1.
Ordinarily, this foam cannot be observed in the column's bot­
tom sight glass. Even if the bottom of the tower is retaining a foam
level above the vapor inlet (or reboiler return nozzle), the fluid in
the sight glass is a flat, deaerated liquid. To observe a high foam
level in the bottom gauge glass proceed as follows:
trays.
Maximize the number of caps or sieve holes on the tray decks.
Oft-times, a minor change in a downcomer dimension or the
width of a tray ring can accomodate an additional row of valve
caps or many more sieve holes.
Use a valve-cap retainer assembly that does not restrict vapor
flow. This, and the following items, all add slightly to the cost
of a tray.
Install tray decks fitted with venturi openings. This will reduce
tray delta P.
Slope the downcomers so that the outlet area is 65% of the top
downcomer area.
Use swept-back weirs as described in the KOCH tray design
manual. This will reduce the height of liquid over the weir.
Install recessed sumps under the downcomer outlets. In effect,
this modification increases the open area under the downcomer
and this reduces downcomer pressure drop.
Reduce the height of the outlet weir on each tray.

• Block in the bottom gauge glass level tap. Many trays come with adjustable weirs, and if a tower is flood­
• Open completely the top tap. ing due to liquid backing-up out of the downcomers, (which is indi-
• Crack open the gauge glass drain valve.
NON-RESTRICTIVE
VALVE CAP RETAINER
Assuming the foam is above the top tap, the foam will slowly
start running down the gauge glass and hence can readily be ob­
served.

EXPANDING TRAY CAPACITY

SLOPED DOWNCOMER
The capacities of existing towers can best be expanded by
changing from trays to structured type packing. Although this is an RECESSED
SUMP
expensive modification, increases in tower capacities of up to 35% ROUNDED
can be achieved. Unfortunately, one study showed that the internals DOWNCOMER
for one 8'-0" I.D. isobutane-normal butane splitter would cost OUTLET
$45,000 for trays and $290,000 for structured packing.
A less ambitious plan to expand distillation capacity is illus­
trated in Figure 11—7. Combining the ideas shown in this sketch
with some other common tray features can easily increase capacity
by 25% in many instances:

• Convert from single, to dual-pass (or even four-pass) trays.

Never use three-pass trays as poor vapor-liquid distribution
will surely result. Figure 11 —7 Methods to enhance tray capacity without sacrificing
• Use "anti-jump" baffles on the center downcomer of two-pass fractionation efficiency.
132 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
cated by a step increase in tray delta P, as the reflux rate is in­
creased), reducing the weir height may significantly enhance tower
capacity. Ordinarily, the top edge of the weir is ¥2 in. above the bot­
tom edge of the downcomer. This dimension keeps the downcomer
sealed in liquid so as to prevent vapor blowing up through the down­
comer. However, this seal height may be changed to zero (for small
diameter towers where the trays have been carefully and accurately
leveled). A zero seal depends on the hydraulic height of liquid over
the weir to submerge the downcomer outlet. Reducing the weir
height by ¥2" will drop the liquid level in the downcomer by one
inch. Decreases in weir heights should be undertaken with the
knowledge that, on occasion, rather unpleasant reductions in tray ef­
ficiency have been observed after such decreases.
DAMAGED TRAYS
Most often, tower packing supports are dislodged, or distillation
trays upset, when a tower is operated with an excessive bottom
liquid level. Forcing heat into a tower, when the liquid level is sev­
eral feet above the bottom tray deck, often results in dislodging the
bottom few trays. Occasionally, trays are mis-assembled during a
turn-around. The result of either of these mis-adventures is di­
minished fractionation efficiency.
While x-ray pictures of tower internals easily detect most type
of tray damage, this can be a cumbersome and expensive trouble­
shooting procedure. A simplier way to obtain almost the same infor­
mation is by a pressure survey. Tower pressure drops of less than
one inch of water per tray typically indicate tray damage.
12
AMINE REGENERATION
AND SCRUBBING
Figure 12-1 is a process flowsheet showing how amine solution
is circulated to various refinery scrubbers to absorb H 2 S and C 0 2 in
the scrubbers. The resulting rich amine is stripped in the re­
generator. Released acid gases (H 2 S and C0 2 ) are charged to the sul­
fur recovery plant.
Amines are an organic base. When mixed with water, they
turn pH paper blue. The two most common forms of amine used are
MEA and DEA. Monoethanolamine (MEA) is the most powerful and
reactive. DEA and a host of other less-reactive amines are also used
in the industry. Unfortunately, MEA is the most corrosive of the
amines. It is this corrosive aspect of amine solutions that makes the
operation of amine systems a challenging job.
DIRTY AMINE
Symptoms of a dirty, corrosive amine system are:
• Carry-over of amine from the scrubbers.
• Dilution of the amine system with water due to reboiler leaks.
• Plugging of instrument taps with particulates in the amine.
• Loss of amine to the sewer because of leaks.
• Rich amine leaking into lean amine in the cross exchanger.
Problems related to improper operation of the regenerator are:
• Too much H 2 S in sweet gas.
• Excessive energy use in the regenerator reboiler.
• Flooding in the regenerator tower.
133
 AMINE REGENERATION AND SCRUBBING 135
134 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING

The operating engineer troubleshooting an amine system

should first draw a sample of lean amine into a glass container. If
the unit is in trouble, the amine will be dirty. Determining what
has caused the build up of dirt and what can be done to clean up
the amine is the main subject of this chapter.

THE SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION

Take a glass quart sample bottle and fill it with unfiltered lean
amine. You can rate your amine. quality as follows:
Bright and clear. Amine is in excellent shape. A blue or
green tinge indicates the presence of cyanides, but this is
of no great consequence, except that excessively rich
amine can then promote hydrogen blistering in H 2 S
absorbers.
Grayish cast. Solution is a pale, dull gray. Objects can be
seen through the bottle without difficulty. This is okay;
c however, do not let the amine solution get dirtier.
O Translucent black. Objects can barely be seen through the
o
C5
bottle. Upon standing ten minutes, a small amount of
sediment is visible. You are now in trouble. Erosion-
CO
U corrosion is generating particulates faster than they can
'■&

c be removed.
Opaque black. Give the bottle a good shake. If you can't
see through it, start polishing up your resume. You will
notice a lot of particulates settling in the bottle. A similar
GZ
fouling process is proceeding in the plants equipment.
If the amine looks brownish, air is getting into the system.

I Oxidized amine is corrosive.

Submit a sample of unfiltered lean amine to the lab to deter­
mine quantitatively the wt% particulates. A good solution should be
less than 0.01 wt%.
IIS DIRTY AMINE RUINS OPERATION
a
(0

Running a sulfur recovery operation with dirty amine is

I analogous to deficit spending. You are borrowing against the future,
but the day of reckoning will surely come.
a: The insidious aspect of circulating dirty amine is its erosive na­
ture. Carbon steel is corroded by clean amine. However, the sulfide
products of corrosion stick to the metal surfaces and inhibit further
attack. Particulates in the circulating amine erode this protective
layer. New metal is exposed to corrosion, then more particulates are
generated as the corrosion-erosion cycle perpetuates itself. This en-
136 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
vironment is manifested by several signs.
Foaming. Dirt reduces the surface tension of liquids.
Particulates will cause amine to foam. Foaming in regen­
erators results in high amine concentrations in the regen­
erator reflux water. Foaming in the scrubbers causes
amine to be carried overhead with the hydrocarbon being
scrubbed.
Plugged instrument taps. Flow rates in dirty amine
systems tend to be erratic. Orifice taps on flow meters and
level taps on float chambers often plug. Level control in
the bottom of the scrubbers becomes unreliable and
massive carry-overs of amine are frequent.
Condenser fouling. Rich amine regenerator feed splashes
overhead. Particulates accumulate in the regenerator
condensers, heat transfer is impaired to a certain extent,
and the reflux temperature rises.
Reboiler tube failures. Enhanced corrosion rates are most
evident in the regenerator reboilers. Dirty amine has
caused tube failures after six months of service.
Filter plugging. The dirtier the amine, the shorter the
filter life. The shorter the filter life, the dirtier the amine.
For really bad amine, filter pressure drop can increase one
psi per hour.
Regenerator flooding. Eventually, dirty amine plugs the
regenerator trays and the massive carry-over of liquid
which follows shuts down the sulfur plant.
CLEANING OP AMINE
The iron sulfide particulates circulating in a dirty amine sys­
tem have built up from a combination of factors. Foremost among
these is inadequate filtering.
There are three common types of filters: rotary precoat filters,
cartridge filters, and stacked paper plates. In practice, cartridges
and paper plates are best. In particular, Sparkler stacked filters are
easy to maintain. Operation of rotary precoat filters is complex. Car­
tridge filters are good, except that the cartridge cost can be high
when frequent change-outs are necessary. Stacked paper plate filters
are quite simple: the paper is discarded after each use. On one unit
it was estimated that 1,000 lb of particulates had accumulated in
one 50-plate Sparkler filter.
The trick to successful filter operation is always to filter 10
AMINE REGENERATION AND SCRUBBING 137
percent of the circulating amine. In practice, two filters are piped up
in parallel. When one filter cannot pass 10 percent of the flow with-
.out exceeding 50-psi pressure drop, switch filters. Then immediately
change the paper in the spent filter.
For a clean, well-designed unit, switching on a one-month
cycle is typical. When amine is black, one may be switching filters
every day for a month before solution cleanliness is improved. It will
take two men three hours to renew a large paper-plate unit. The
operating engineer needs to convince the unit superintendent on the
necessity of investing this maintenance manpower to change filters
regularly on a priority basis.
CORROSION INHIBITORS
To clean up amine, the rate of particulate generation must be
slowed and the iron sulfide already in the amine filtered out. Reduc­
ing corrosion rates is the way to do this.
In one midwestern location, the amine solution was thick with
iron sulfide. Within two weeks, the solution was restored to a light
gray by constant filtering, maximum reclaimer operation (see follow­
ing section), and use of a corrosion inhibitor. Twenty-five percent
MEA was being circulated. A high molecular weight film-forming
amine corrosion inhibitor was slugged into the regenerator reboiler
inlet. Corrosion rates, as monitored by a probe on the reboiler outlet,
fell from 50 mil/yr to 3 mil/yr.
REBOILER CORROSION
Hot rich amine eats carbon steel tubes. To minimize corrosion
rates, the operating engineer must be sure t h a t incompletely
stripped rich amine is not reaching the reboiler.
If substantial reflux is provided, one can be sure that the
amine is well stripped before it is drawn off the reboiler trapout
tray. The regenerator reflux rate (lb/hr water) should be 10-30 per­
cent of the reboiler steam rate. To double-check stripping efficiency,
pull samples of lean amine and reboiler feed. Both should have the
same H 2 S concentration. Remember, H 2 S must be stripped out of the
regenerator trays, not in the regenerator reboiler. This is important
enough to repeat: keep a decent reflux rate in the regenerator to
prevent reboiler tube corrosion.
Make sure t h a t the steam condensate level in the reboiler
channel head is below the bottom row of tubes. Also check that the
reboiler steam supply has been completely desuperheated with clean
steam condensate. Preventing water submergence of tubes and using
desuperheated steam results in cooler reboiler tubes. This slows
down corrosion and particulate generation.
138 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING AMINE REGENERATION AND SCRUBBING 139

REGENERATOR FEED TEMPERATURE

Rich amine is heated in the cross exchanger (see Figure 12-1).
Over-heating causes acidic vapors to flash out of the rich amine.
These wet acidic vapors will corrode the cross exchanger. Keep the
rich amine below 190°F by diverting the lean amine around the ex­
changer.

RECLAIMER OPERATION I
Only MEA solutions can be reclaimed at ordinary regenerator
pressures. Twenty-five percent MEA has been successfully used
when accompanied by a consistent reclaimer operating program.
MEA is the most reactive of all amines, and hence most subject
f
to degradation. For MEA service, the reclaimer can be the most im­ i
portant piece of equipment on the unit. Figure 12-2 shows a prop­
erly operating reclaimer. MEA exposed to oxidizing agents (COS,
S 0 2 , 0 2 ) reacts to form soluble products of degradation. These prod­
!
ucts are corrosive and must be removed from the circulating solu­
tion. cs
The reclaimer is simply a pot boiled with a steam coil. Vap­ 283
orized MEA solution is vented back to the regenerator. The products
of degradation remain behind. When soda ash is added to the re­
82" 1
claimer, the MEA tied up in the products of degradation are re­ -a
leased. Reclaimer duty should be maximized consistent with avail­ o
able heat transfer capacity. However, don't overheat the amine— JZ
300°F is the maximum temperature limit.
Reclaimer duty may be defined as pounds per hour of solution
vaporized. This is equal to the steam flow to the reclaimer. If the
steam meter isn't working, the operating engineer can measure the O
T3
duty as follows:

• Mark the amine liquid level on the reclaimer gauge glass.

• Block in the amine feed to the reclaimer, keep the steam flow TO

constant.
• Measure the time it takes for the gauge glass level to fall 4 in. £
• From the reclaimer geometry, calculate the volume of liquid
boiled off in Ib/hr. This is the reclaimer duty.
I
A reclaimer duty equal to 1 percent of the regenerator feed is i5
CM
acceptable. A more rigorous, method is to analyze the lean amine for
thiosulfate. The thiosulfate level is a measure of the products of de­
gradation in amine. Keep its level below 0.05 wt%.

I
140 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
WASHING THE RECLAIMER
A reclaimer first put on-line will have a vapor outlet temper­
ature of about 270°F. When this temperature reaches 295°F, the re­
claimer should be taken off-line and cleaned. You can delay remov­
ing the reclaimer from service by adding steam or water to the shell
side. Regenerator reflux water is the usual source of water.
The water dilutes the amine salts in the reclaimer, thereby re­
ducing the boiling point. If regenerator reflux water has been used,
the amine system water balance remains unchanged. Unfortunately,
the pounds per hour of dilution water added must be subtracted
from the reclaimer duty. When the reclaimer duty is 40 —50 percent
of its clean duty, it should be washed. The heavy ammonia odor
emitted from the reclaimer as it is steamed and washed is normal.
HOW MUCH SODA ASH TO USE
Soda ash or caustic may be used interchangeably to neutralize
the acid products of degradation in a reclaimer. To calculate the
moles per day of N a 2 C 0 3 or NaOH required, measure the reclaimer
feed rate (assume it is equal to reclaimer duty in lb/hr). Multiply
this by 24 hours. Next, submit a sample of lean amine to the lab­
oratory for thiosulfate concentration analysis. From the volume and
normality of KOH used in the lab to titrate for thiosulfate, calculate
the equivalent pounds of NaOH or N a 2 C 0 3 needed to titrate one
pint of lean amine. Soda ash will neutralize twice as much thiosul­
fate per mole as does caustic. Finally, multiply the reclaimer duty
(lb/day) by the previously calculated value.
Add the required amount of soda ash or NaOH on a batch basis
once per day. A typical value for a unit circulating 1,500 gpm is 1 0 -
40 lb/day of soda ash. Precise regulation of soda ash addition is not
necessary.
EXTENDING RECLAIMER TUBE LIFE
Reclaiming MEA is a tough service for carbon steel tubes. Cer­
tain stainless steels cannot be used in most applications because
chlorides concentrate in the boiling liquid and cause stress corrosion
cracking, (316 S.S. is one of the better materials used for bundle re-
tubing in this service.)
Retubing bundles every two years is not unusual. To prevent
excessive tube failures, keep the tube bundle submerged in liquid.
Place a prominent red line on the level gauge glass to show the
operators the height of the tube bundle. A pattern of tube failures
near the top of the bundle indicates the operators are often running
at too low a liquid level.
Use superheated 60-90 psig steam to reboil the reclaimer.
AMINE REGENERATION AMD SCRUBBING 141
Check this with a thermometer and pressure gauge. If the steam is
not saturated, your condensate supply to the desuperheater is not
working. The chemistry of MEA degradation and reclaiming is dis­
cussed in detail by Polderman et al.
USING A RECLAIMER INSTEAD OF A FILTER
In one large treating facility, filtering the MEA solution had
been temporarily discontinued. The amine had turned black. Consis­
tent use of the reclaimer alone effectively cleaned up the solution.
Twenty gpm of the 1,400 gpm lean amine circulation was charged
to the reclaimer.
To extend reclaimer washing cycles, steam was injected directly
into the shell side of the recleaimer. This diluted the amine and re­
duced the reclaimer temperature. To maintain the system water bal­
ance, only 100 percent MEA was used as make-up to the lean amine
storage tank. When the reclaimer contents had noticeably thickened
(usually after two weeks), it was washed out. After three such cy­
cles, the particulate content of the lean amine had been reduced by
80 percent.
FOAMING
Most large amine spills are a consequence of scrubber foaming.
The amine solution froths up on the trays and is carried overhead
with the sweet gas.
Foaming in a scrubber can be stopped by reducing the amine
flow to the scrubber. Install a Delta P cell across the scrubber trays
to observe when the scrubber is foaming over. If the indicated pres­
sure drop (in feet of water) equals 40 percent of the height between
the top and bottom trays, the scrubber is foaming over. Use a strain
gauge to connect the delta P cell to the scrubber, which eliminates
the problem of plugged pressure taps. Have the pressure drop read­
out activate an alarm in the control room.
CAUSES AMD CURES OF FOAMING
Dirt reduces the surface tension of amine; this is the principal
cause of scrubber foaming. Especially in MEA systems, products of
degradation precipitate foaming. Consistent filtering and reclaiming
can eliminate these problems.
Corrosion inhibitors cause foaming. Pour some freshly
made amine solution into a clean bottle. Add a typical
concentration of inhibitor and shake vigorously, then see
if any unusual foaming appears. Sometimes, the paper
142 THOuBLESHOOTTNG NATURAL GAS PROCESSING AMINE REGENERATION AND SCRUBBING 143

used i n filters is coated with a chemical than can cause
foaming. Tear off a piece of this paper and shake it with
amine to see if the solution foams up.
Silicone antifoam agents, when used i n excess, cause
foaming. A squirt of silicone defoamer will temporarily
stop foaming; too much will make the problem worse.
Charcoal filters need to be changed. You should be
passing several percent of the circulating solution through
a charcoal bed. The charcoal removes surfactants. Change
the charcoal a t the first indication of foaming, but be sure
not to let charcoal fines enter t h e regenerator and
scrubbers, as these fines also cause foaming.
Hydrocarbons condense in cold amine. The lean amine
temperature must be 10°F above the dew point of t h e
sweet gas. Cooler amine will condense liquid hydrocarbons
and initiate foaming. Cold amine (70°F) will in itself have
a tendency to foam.
Detergent cleaners may have been used during a unit
turnaround. When the unit is put back on line, the deter­
gent finds its way into the amine system. The charcoal
filter should absorb this detergent.
If none of these steps has identified the problem, it is likely
there is a regenerator reboiler tube leak. When the regenerator has
one reboiler, it cannot be taken off-line for leak testing. In this case,
inject a small qualtity of a tracer chemical into the steam supply.
Then check the regenerator bottoms by chemical analysis for the
tracer. Sulfur hexafluoride or lithium bromide can be used.
RETROFITTING TIPS
A few changes can reduce the amine unit's potential to corrode:
Velocities. Revamp process piping so that velocities are
less than 10 ft/sec. For exchangers, hold velocities below
3 ft/sec. Remember, rapidly flowing amine is erosive.
Rich amine flow control. Locate the regenerator feed
control valve downstream of the cross exchanger. This
will minimize vaporization of corrosive gases in this ex­
changer. The control valve internals and piping down­
stream of the control valve should be 300-series stainless
steel.
Reflux water D H . TO protect the regenerator condensers
from the corrosive effects of low pH water, a small amount

DECLINING AMINE STRENGTH RE GENERATOR

*
0-1 SPMflEAN
)
AM(NE
LEAN,
To determine why amine strength is weakening, send a sample AMINE' RELOCATE
VALVE 7
of lean amine to the lab for total dissolved solids (TDS). Also, submit i90°F
the water used for amine system to make-up for TDS. A high TDS
for t h e amine sample indicates a leaking amine water cooler. For
RICH,
AM1NE?"
JL"A*-7 «/
® ACID
GAS
each cooler check the inlet water pressure and the outlet amine 304
5TA1NLES5
pressure. If the water pressure is higher, proceed as follows: STEEL
-MAX. VELOCITY

~n
= 10 FT./SEC
• Block in the cooling water inlet and outlet valves (warm amine
DEHYDRATION
to a scrubber won't hurt for a few minutes). LINE
• Open the water drain valve on the exchanger.
• When the exchanger is almost drained down, check the drain
0-10 GPM
-®
with pH paper. If it turns blue, the exchanger is leaking.
REMOVE
Alternately, a low TDS result for lean amine shows that steam ROW 5 OF
TUBE
or condensate is entering the amine system. Verify that the conden­
sate make-up valve is closed. Then block in any cross connections
between the amine system and sour water pump-out lines, etc. Next,
block in t h e reclaimer vapor outlet and amine inlet. A leak in this
exchanger will then manifest itself by the presence of amine in the
channel head drain. Figure 12—3 Retrofit tips to cut corrosion.
144 TRCXIBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
of amine entrainment is needed. The reflux water must
have at least Vi% amine. To ensure this concentration,
tie a 1-in. line from the lean amine pump to the inlet of
the condenser. Incidentally, ammonia often accumulates
in the reflux water and can be accidentally titrated as
amine by the lab. This will not hurt anything.
Reboilers. Remove tubes to form vertical or diagonal vapor
passageways through the bundle. This reduces turbulent
boiling in the shell. Retubing with 304 stainless tubes
will reduce corrosion if the amine is low in chlorides.
Regenerator internals. Replace all carbon steel trays and
tray parts with 304 stainless steel. Use teflon gaskets.
Remove all copper and copper alloy equipment from rich
amine service.
Amine dehydration. A steam or water leak into the sys­
tem will dilute the amine. Weak, rich amine becomes
acidic and corrosive. To increase amine concentration,
reflux water can be diverted to a closed drain. This will
require piping the reflux water to a place where H 2 S can
be safely flashed off. Do not drain this water to an open
sewer; it is supersaturated with deadly H 2 S. This is one
mistake nobody makes more than once.
COT REBOILER STEAM USAGE
The principal energy requirement in a sulfur recovery complex
is the amine regenerator reboiler steam. The operating engineer can
significantly reduce energy usage through some simple field work.
All he needs is a test kit to measure H 2 S and C 0 2 concentrations
from 0.01 to 10% (Drager or equivalent):
1. Make a list of the scrubbers in the plant. Determine the per­
missible H 2 S concentration for sweet gas from each scrubber.
2. Multiply each scrubber's top pressure (psia) by its sweet gas
H 2 S spec (ppm). Use the same calculation for liquid propane
treaters.
3. Divide the value obtained above by a temperature correction
factor use only between 75°F tol30°F):
4. The scrubber with the smallest SR factor is your critical oper­
ation. Let's call this the critical scrubber.
5. With your H 2 S test kit, measure the H 2 S concentration in the
sweet gas from the critical scrubber.
6. Your regenerator reboiler duty should be controlled on the basis
AMINE REGENERATION AND SCRUBBING 145
of pounds of steam per gallon of lean amine circulated (lb/gas);
proceed by cutting reboiler steam 0.1 lb/gal. Note: Scrubber
sweet gas purity is controlled by the regenerator stripping
steam rate, not by the amine circulation rate to the scrubber.
7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 until the H 2 S in the sweet gas from the
critical scrubber reaches the maximum specification.
8. Using the test kit, measure the H 2 S and C 0 2 concentrations
in the sour and sweet gas at each scrubber. Calculate the
moles per hour of H 2 S and C 0 2 picked up by the amine.
9. Calculate the amine circulation required at each scrubber to
btain 0.5 to 0.6 moles of acid gas (H 2 S + C0 2 ) per mole of
amine circulated (See Table 12-1 for conversion factors).
10. Reduce the actual amine flow to each scrubber to the calculated
value. The 0.5 to 0.6 molal ratio includes a reasonable safety
factor.
Don't forget to reduce the steam to the regenerator reboiler
again, as per step 6. However, never reduce reboiler duty below the
amount needed to maintain a minimum regenerator reflux rate.
This is 10% of the reboiler (plus reclaimer) steam usage, in lb/hr.
Correction factor = 1.5 x scrubber top temp. (°F) - 90
For example, for a fuel gas scrubber with a tower top pressure and
temperature of 70 psig and 110°F:
150
SR = PPm x (70 psig + 14.7 _ 16Q
(1.5 x 110°F) - 90
where
SR = Scrubber rating factor
OTHER PROBLEMS
Poor sweetening. If scrubbed fuel gas is off spec(high H 2 S),
raise the regenerator reboiler steam. Check for excessive
acid gas loading by calculation (as discussed before). If
this doesn't help, check the cross exchanger for leaks.
Brown amine. Exposure of amine (especially MEA) to
oxygen will produce high concentrations of degraded
amine. A strong ammonia odor and a browm tinge is the
tip-off that the amine is exposed to an oxidizing agent.
Check the inert gas or kerosene blanket on the lean
amine storage tank.
146 TROUBLESHOOTING NATCJRAL GAS PROCESSING
AMINE REGENERATION AMD SCRUBBING 147

TABLE 12-1 Hydrocarbon skimming. The single biggest problem in

CONVERSION FACTORS operating a Clans sulfiir recovery plant is hydrocarbons
in acid gas feed. When the rich amine charged to the
grains of H>S X 0.00323 = molesofH2S/moleofMEA regenerator contains light liquid hydrocarbons, coking
gal of solution wt%MEA of the sulfur plant catalyst is almost certain. The hydro­
grains of H?S X 0.00557 = moles of H2S/mole of DEA carbons will distil overhead in the regenerator and com­
gal of solution wt%MEA bine with the acid gas product.
cu ft of CO, X 1.91 = moles of CCVmole of MEA
gal of solution wt%MEA If naphtha is accumulating in the regenerator reflux drum, exces­
cuftofCO? X 3.28 = molesofCCymoleofDEA sive concentrations of propane and butane will occur in sulfur plant
gal of solution wt%DEA feed. A commercially proven method to eliminate this problem is de­
Percent H 2 S (by weight) X 1.8 = molesofH2S/moleofMEA tailed in Figure 12—4. The rich amine surge drum is retrofitted with
wt%MEA baffles. Figure 12-4 is roughly drawn to scale. This baffle arrangement
Percent H 2 S (by weight) X 3.1 = molesofH2S/moleofDEA will automatically skim off the hydrocarbons.
wt%DEA The first compartment separates amine from hydrocarbons. A
Percent C0 2 (by weight) x 0.72 = cu ft of C02/gal of solution residence time of ten minutes is about right.
Percent H2S (by weight) x 558 = grains of H2S/gal of solution

VAPOR VENT TO
SOUR FUEL GAS SYSTEM
RICH AMINE
FROM SCRUBBERS

RETROFITTING A RICH
AMINE SURGE DRUM

MANUAL DRAIN

TO REFINERY
REGENERATOR SLOP SYSTEM
FEED
Figure 12—4 A properly designed rich amine surge drum can protect a
sulfur plant from plugging with coke deposits.

13
SULFCIR PLANT OPERATION
Natural gas, while valuable, has an unsatisfying etheral and
intangible quality. When properly treated, it is largely invisible,
weightless (compared to air) and odorless. Sulfur, one of the princi­
ple by-products of natural gas production, is of a much more sub­
stantial nature. Sulfur, is recovered in its elemental form from the
hydrogen sulfide produced in natural gas—especially gas flowing
from deeper formations. The yellow product is kept in it's liquid
form by maintaining it at about 300°F. At this temperature, sulfur
is about 80% denser than water and it has a low viscosity.
Sulfur, or claus plant feed consists of H 2 S, C 0 2 , moisture and
traces of miscellaneous light hydrocarbons, which have been dis­
solved or entrained in the rich amine used to scrub the sour natural
gas. The presence of carbon containing compounds, especially hydro­
carbons, promotes the formation of carbon disulfide (CS2) and car-
bonyl sulfide (COS), in the initial reaction stage. These compounds,
to an appreciable extent, carry through downstream reaction stages
and reduce the percent of sulfur recovered from the feed gas (i.e. the
conversion) as liquid sulfur. Both C 0 2 and hydrocarbons also reduce
sulfur plant capacity.
MEASURING SULFUR LOSSES
To measure sulfur losses, check for H 2 S and S 0 2 in the final
condenser effluent. Drager tubes are a simple and reasonably accu­
rate way to get this data. Don't submit sulfur plant tail gas samples
to the lab for analysis. The H 2 S and S 0 2 will react in the sample
container to form solid sulfur and water. To calculate conversion
148
SULFUR PLANT OPERATION 149
from these measurements:
1. Add the parts per million of H 2 S plus S 0 2
2. Add 2,000 ppm to the preceding (this allows for COS, CS 2 ,
sulfur vapors, and entrained sulfur droplets).
3. Divide the total parts per million of sulfur as obtained above by
300,000.
4. Express this result as percent.
5. Subtract this percent from 100 percent.
Poor conversion is 95 percent for a three-stage unit, 90 percent
for a two-stage unit, and 80 percent for a single stage plant.
WRONG AIR RATIO
Using too much air is the easiest way to lose conversion. For
best conversion, the ratio of H 2 S/S0 2 is 2:1. This ratio is measured
in the tail gas from the final condenser. Sulfur plants are best run
on closed-loop tail gas analyzer control. In practice, other methods
are often needed to adjust air to the reaction furnace.
If air flow to the reaction furnace is much too high, S 0 3 will
be formed in the incinerator and a white plume will result. A yel­
lowish plume indicates insufficient air to the front end of the sulfur
plant.
Incinerator temperature can also be used to indicate air re­
quired in the reaction furnace. A high incinerator temperature,
coupled with low incinerator fuel use, is a sure sign of insufficient
air to the reaction furnace. Alternately, if large amounts of fuel are
required to. maintain incinerator temperature, air to the reaction
furnace is in excess.
If the tail gas analysis showed SOg equal to H 2 S, one could cut
sulfur losses by 5 percent just by reducing air. A complete treatment
on the effect of air ratios on conversion has been reported by Kerr. 1
PLENTY OF CATALYST
Sulfur plants usually have excess catalyst. Typically, the
catalyst bed will be 3 feet deep. For catalyst in good condition,
equilibrium conversion is reached in the top 6 inches. This is shown
in Figure 13-2.
The operating engineer, when troubleshooting a conversion
problem, can depend on the following: overall conversion does not
decrease noticeably with higher throughput. Plant tests on one unit,
conducted over a range of 30 to 120 percent rate showed little dif-
150 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING StlLFOR PLANT OPERATION 151

ference in conversion. Therefore, you start your troubleshooting pounds can significantly contribute to S 0 2 in the incinerator.
program by assuming that cutting throughput will not help. One can essentially destroy both COS and CS2 by operating the
first reactor at a n outlet temperature of 650°F. At this temperature
REACTOR PROBLEMS the compounds are hydrolized to H 2 S and C 0 2 . An increase in S 0 2
emissions, accompanied by a lower t h a n normal first reactor inlet
It's hard to do much harm to sulfur plant catalyst without first temperature, is likely due to COS and CS 2 .
causing excessive pressure drop. If you suspect reduced recovery be­
cause of lost catalyst activity, check the temperature rise across LEAKING REHEAT EXCHANGER
each reactor. For example, for a three-stage Claus unit:
Some multistage sulfur plants reheat third-stage reactor feed
AT with first-stage reactor effluent. If your plant has one of these heat
Reactor f nutlet-inlet) exchangers, check it for leaks, which contribute to lost conversion.
1st 125°F A large increase in the third-stage inlet temperature indicates this
2nd 40°F type of reheat exchanger is leaking.
3rd 5°F
SCILFUR FOG
This is a good profile. If one day you find the heat of reaction
has shifted downstream, you may see the following: Sulfur plants have the peculiarity of converting less hydrogen
sulfide to sulfur as the unit charge drops. One of the reasons for this
AT is sulfur fog is formed.
Reactor fniitlpt-iTilft^
1st 90°F / \
2nd 55°F
3rd 20°F LOW PRESSURE HIGH PRESSURE
STEAM STEAM

This temperature shift means the effluent from the first stage
is not reaching equilibrium. Sulfur formation in the first reactor has
decreased 30 percent. In this overall catalyst effectiveness has de­
clined.
The problem may be due to catalyst deactivation caused by sul­
fur precipation. This is a result of low reactor feed temperatures.
Check the operation of the reheat exchanger upstream of the reactor
with the reduced temperature rise. Raise the reactor inlet temper­
ature 30°F. After a few days, this will dissipate the offending sulfur LOW PRESSURE
deposits. STEAM

If catalyst activity has been irreversibly lost, you may want to

change the catalyst. A following section describes a procedure to fNCINER4T0R (2S)£ RST
REACTOR

help make this decision. Reduction of catalyst activity with time on FUEL
stream, baring unusual incidents, is unlikely. GAS

TAIL
C O S AND C S 2 GAS

The presence of hydrocarbons and C 0 2 in the acid gas promotes

the formation of COS and CS 2 in the reaction furnace. These com- Figure 13—1 A single stage Claus plant
152 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING SULFCIR PLANT OPERATION 153

This fog does not drop out of the end of the condensers. Even­
tually, much of it appears as SOg in the incinerator. Damage to the
final condenser demister may also allow entrained sulfur to escape
to the incinerator. This demister can be extensively damaged from
sulfur fires during start-up.
COLD REHEAT GAS
Hot gas from the high-pressure boiler (Figure 13-1) is often
used to supplement the reheat exchangers. This hot gas contains
sulfur vapors. About 65 percent of the H 2 S in acid gas is converted
to sulfur vapors in the reaction furnace. Therefore, this hot reheat
gas increases the partial pressure of sulfur in the reactor.
When reheat gas is used, equilibrium in the reactor is ad­
versely affected. At reduced plant charge, the gas outlet temperature
from the high-pressure boiler drops. This means more reheat gas is
needed to compensate for its lower temperature. This is another
reason why you may see low conversions at reduced through-puts.
In practice, a change in reheat gas temperature has a notice­
able effect on conversion only when hot reheat gas is used in the
last reaction stage.
WHEN TO CHANGE CATALYST
A favorite question put to an operating engineer by the sulfur
plant supervisor is, "Do we need to change catalyst during the unit
,.
turnaraound?" With a little luck, he may remember to ask you be­
fore the plant is shut down.
If pressure drop is normal through the catalyst beds, this will
be a tough question. With adequate instrumentation, you can obtain
a vertical temperature profile through the first catalyst bed and
then develop data to make a firm decision. Figure 13-2 illustrates
the method. For catalyst that is in good condition, 90 -f- percent of
the heat of reaction is released in the top 6 in. If catalyst activity
is impaired, the reaction is shifted down the bed.
Damage to catalyst and reduced conversion can be a conse­
quence of many other factors besides lost activity: carbon deposits,
leaking condenser tubes, damaged support screens, sulfuric acid for­
mation, operation at the sulfur dew point. These problems are, how­
ever, invariably associated with increasing pressure drop. The most
common cause of lost catalyst activity is reversible—that is, sulfur
deposits due to low bed temperatures.
PRESSURE DROP
It is of utmost importance to watch for high sulfur plant pres­
sure drop. Sulfur plants don't suddenly plug without a prior pressure
drop increase. Troubleshooting a sulfur plant requires foresight. The
operating engineer will want to have the data plotted, as in Figure
13-3, for his unit. This figure illustrates the use of the capacity
ratio parameter, calculated as follows:
4Pc =XC
(F c ) 2

650 °F ^PD =X D

GOOD CATALYST (F D ) 2
RE AC'TOR 600 °F
TEMPEFIATURE X c / X D = CAPACITY RATIO
(F 550 °F

500 °F where
8A0 CATALYST AP C Current pressure at the reaction furnace inlet,
450 °F psig
Fc Current air flow to reaction furnace, scf/hr
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 AP D Design pressure at the reaction furnace inlet, psig
FD Design air flow to reaction furnace, scf/hr
DISTANCE FROM TOP OF BED Pressure drop in a sulfur plant is proportional to the square of
(FEET)
the throughput. When you find your plant not adhering to this rule,
Figure 13—2 Vertical temperature profile shows condition of catalyst there is something gone awry with your unit.
154 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING

CARBON DEPOSITS
The data plotted in Figure 13—3 were, in truth, not assembled
until after the catastrophic pressure rise. The plant operators had
not noticed the increase in reaction furnace pressure. Only when
they tried to increase acid gas charge and ran short of air blower
capacity, did they realize something was amiss.
An abnormality had been reported on the 30th day. A quantity
of light hydrocarbon was skimmed off the amine regenerator reflux
drum. When a sample of this hydrocarbon was drawn, it bubbled in
the sample container.
Light hydrocarbons had accidentally entered the amine re­
generator, along with the rich amine. The hydrocarbon was stripped
overhead. Some was condensed in the reflux drum; the rest re­
mained as a vapor and was charged, along with H 2 S, to the sulfur
plant.
Ten times more air is needed to oxidize a mole of propane than
a mole of H 2 S. When the light hydrocarbon vapors reaced the sulfur
plant, carbon black was made in the reaction furnace:

C 3 H 8 + 20 2 » 3C(S) + 4 H 2 0

The carbon black was deposited on the top of the first catalyst
bed. Gas flow was restricted, and high prssure drop resulted. Pro­
viding sufficient combustion air to the reaction furnace could have
prevented this incident.
The operating engineer can determine if increasing pressure
drop is due to carbon accumulation on catalyst by making the fol­
lowing observations:

• Is the S 0 2 concentration in the sulfur plant tail gas very low

(less than 1,000 ppm)? Low S 0 2 is a sign of insufficient air to
the reaction furnace.
• Are light hydrocarbons accumulating in the amine regenerator
reflux drum?

Having determined that the catalyst bed is plugged with car­

bon, the engineer will want to correct the situation. Over a period
of time, the carbon will react with SO2. Unfortunately, this reaction
proceeds slowly at low temperatures. Maximizing reactor inlet tem­
perature and S 0 2 levels will help. Significant (10 percent) reductions
in pressure drop can take weeks. Shutting down and changing out
t h e catalyst may be more practical.
The best solution to his incident would have been to keep car-
156 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
bon black from forming in the first place. This could have been done
by alert operators raising air to the reaction furnace. One might
even have hoped that the tail gas H 2 S to S 0 2 ratio -analyzer, would
have automatically increased air flow.
In the real world, there is only one reliable way to prevent
such situations? Liquid hydrocarbons must be separated from the
rich amine upstream of the amine regenerator.
LEAKS CAUSE PRESSURE D R O P
A tube leak in the high-pressure steam boiler can lead to dias-
ter. The high-pressure water will erode the metal, and the flow of
water into the hot gas stream will rapidly increase. Water quenches
the sulfur bearing gases. If the direct reheat line is open, sulfur pre­
cipitates on the catalyst. This stops gas flow through the plant.
The worst thing that can happen to a sulfur plant is a crash
shutdown. Sulfur plants should be cleared of sulfur by burning nat­
ural gas instead of H 2 S before a shutdown. Continue natural gas fir­
ing until the amount of liquid sulfur overflowing from the seal legs
is reduced to a trickle. When the plant suddenly shuts down, pre­
cipitating sulfur solidifies in the catalyst beds. Then flow through
the unit cannot be re-established.
An alert operating engineer must identify boiler tube leaks be­
fore it is too late. The capacity ratio plot (Figure 13-3) is the key.
A gradual increase in pressure drop is an early warning sign. When
this happens, check for low steam production rates from the high-
pressure boiler. Another tip-off is a low gas outlet temperature from
this boiler. If both steam production and outlet temperature are low
and pressure drop is high, shut down the plant. There is a tube leak.
On one unit, high pressure drop was observed. The operators
suspected a plugged condenser sulfur seal leg. They opened a drain
on the condenser with the intent of drawing off excess sulfur. Steam,
not sulfur, discharged from the drain. Six days later, the plant shut
down with a giant leak in the high-pressure boiler tube sheet.
Water (steam) leaks also reduce conversion of H 2 S to sulfur.
The Claus reaction shows that equilibrium is shifted to the left as
the water partial pressure increases.
PREVENTING BOILER LEAKS
There are two simple rules to minimize boiler leaks:
1. Keep total dissolved solids (TDS) in the boiler blowdown below
2,500 ppm;
SOUFOR PLANT OPERATION 157
2. Keep all boiler tubes submerged in water. Watch the steam
drum liquid level closely. For forced circulation boilers, circu­
late 10-15 pounds of water for each pound of steam generated.
Your boiler treating chemical supply vendor is a good source of
information on preventing boiler tube corrosion.
CONDENSER LEAKS
Tube leaks may also occur in the low-pressure steam conden­
sers. The leaking condenser-is identified through a pressure drop
survey. Measure the pressure drop across each condenser. The first
condenser in the train exhibiting a disproportionately high pressure
drop is the leaker. If the leaking tubes are found in the bottom of
the condenser, formation of sulfuric acid may be the cause (see fol­
lowing section on start-up tips). Often a sulfur plant t h a t has been
idled for several months will come back on line with condenser tube
leaks, due to attack by H 2 S 0 4 formed while the unit was off-line.
ROUTINE PRESSURE SURVEYS
The preceeding experiences illustrate the need for routine pres­
sure surveys on sulfur plants. A single 0-15 psig gauge is used. Sul­
fur will plug pressure taps very quickly. They can be drilled out or
melted with a propane torch. Do not open bleeders with a welding
rod.
Take a complete pressure survey just after the unit comes
onstream after a turnaround. This will give you a base point from
which to judge future problems. When comparing pressure drops at
different throughputs, normalize the data by:
AP is proportional to (air flow)2
PLUGGED SEAL LEGS
Liquid sulfur is drained from the condensers through seal legs
submerged in sulfur to prevent gas in the condenser from blowing
through. Required seal depth is:
Seal depth (ft) = condenser pressure (psig) X 2.31
SG of sulfur at condenser temperature
The specific gravity of sulfur between 250°F to 350°F is normally
about 1.79
When a seal leg plugs, liquid sulfur backs up in the condenser.
158 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
This restricts gas flow and results in high pressure drop. Again, the
best indication of this problem is a routine pressure survey. Having
determined that a condenser has excessive pressure drop:
• Locate the condenser tube-side drain connection.
• With suitable breathing protection from H 2 S (i.e., Scott Air
Pac), unplug and open the drain.
• If a steady flow of liquid sulfur is observed, the seal leg is
plugged.
Do not try to keep the condenser drained down in this manner.
Sooner or later, H 2 S-rich gas will blow through and create a poten­
tially fatal hazard. Plugged seal legs must be unplugged. Packing
glands, used with valves that bolt onto the seal leg flanges, can be
used to drill out seal legs on stream.
Plugged seal legs are often a problem just after start-up. Minerals
in the refractory are leached out by the moisture and acid produced
during heat-up. These minerals, as well as corrosion products, ac­
cumulate on the liquid sulfur surface in the seal legs. A steady in­
crease in pressure drop, shortly after start-up, is often caused when
these deposits solidify in the seal legs. Loss of steam to the jacketed
piping can also plug a seal.
CATALYST SUPPORT SCREENS
Sulfur plant catalyst is supported by thin flexible screens.
These screens are lapped and folded over to keep catalyst from leak­
ing through the support grating. Improper installation of screens oc­
curs frequently when catalyst is changed. The catalyst may wash
down into a seal leg and plug it. When you find normal-sized
catalyst balls in the condenser drains, you can count on a shutdown
to repair the support screens. Don't forget to seal the screens to the
walls of the reactor. One one unit, small but intact catalyst balls
were found in the seal legs. This indicates poor quality control in
the manufacture of the catalyst.
START-(JP TIPS
Most damage to sulfur plants occurs during start-up. You can
reduce troubleshooting activity later by closely monitoring the fuel
gas firing phase during heat-up.
Keep 0 2 levels in flue gas at about 1 percent. Excess 0 2 will
form sulfuric acid when mixed with sulfur and moisture in catalyst
beds. The H 2 S 0 4 disintegrates the catalyst. Low conversion and in-
SOLFCIR PLANT OPERATION 159
creased pressure drop result. The acid may also attack the catalyst
support screens.
This leads to plugged seal legs. Even worse, the lower tubes in
the condensers will get a diluted sulfuric acid bath, and con­
sequently corrode.
AVOID DEFICIENT OXYGEN
Burning a hydrocarbon with insufficient air produces sooty
smoke. The soot deposits on the first catalyst bed. To do a thorough
job of plugging a bed with this technique takes about 8 hours.
A foolproof way to make sure you are not badly oxygen defi­
cient is to connect a piece of tubing to the back end of the high-pres­
sure boiler. Then attach the other end of the tubing to a bottle filled
with clean, damp cotton. Observe the cotton. If it starts turning
black after a few minutes, you are running oxygen deficient. Person­
nel who have been unable to master other analytical techniques find
this method useful.
START-UP ATMOSPHERIC VENT
Putting a cold sulfur plant on line, when done properly, can
take almost two days. During the initial portion of the start-up, fir­
ing must be carefully controlled to avoid damaging the refractory in
the decomposition furnace (i.e. the thermal reactor) due to a too
rapid heat-up. Therefore, only a small volume of flue gas exits from
the decomposition furnace and the high pressure steam generator,
during the first 12 hours of the start-up. This amount of flue gas is
really not sufficient to appreciably warm the large weight of catalyst
in the fixed bed reactors. Hence, the water in the flue gas, produced
by the combustion of hydrogen in the decomposition furnace, may
condense on the catalyst beds. In the presence of sulfur (which is al­
ways present in the reactor beds after the unit is commissioned),
and oxygen, sulfuric acid is formed. This acid leaches out minerals
from the reactors' refractory walls, corrodes the condenser tubes,
forms a pressure drop producing crust on the top of the catalyst
beds, and may result in seal leg pluggage.
By exluding excess oxygen from the combustion gases, the for­
mation of sulfuric acid can be minimized. Of course, one then en­
counters the danger of converting the front end of the Claus train
into a Carbon Black Plant, and plugging up the catalyst bed in the
first fixed bed reactor with coke.
All of these invidious possibilities may be easily avoided by in­
stalling a removable start-up stack. For one unit, a 12" diameter, 20'
160 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING SULFUR PLANT OPERATION 161

length of pipe was bolted onto the manway entrance to the backend
of the fired tube boiler. The large butterfly valve at the outlet of the
Claus train was closed and the decomposition furnace was heated in
a normal manner but without taking care to minimize excess oxy­
gen, as the entire flue gas stream exited from the new temporary stack.
Once the decomposition furnace had been heated to 1400°F, the tem­
porary stack was removed and normal Claus plant warm-up proce­
dures were followed. However, by now, the rate of natural gas firing
did not have to be controlled carefully to avoid over-rapid heat-up
of the bricks in the decomposition furnace. Thus, a large volume of
flue gas could be generated which rapidly heated the catalyst beds
past the water dew point temperature. Also, excess oxygen of several
percent was tolerable, until sulfur fires were ignited in the catalyst
beds. However, this condition was readily apparent from the reac­
tors' temperature profile and corrected by pinching back on the com­
bustion air to the decomposition furnace.
MAXIMIZING PLANT CAPACITY
Innovative changes in the design and operation of some exist­
ing sulfur recovery plants can produce large increases in capacity.
The capacity of the majority of sulfur plants is limited by front-end
pressure (the acid gas pressure at the reaction furnace). While in
theory conversion of hydrogen sulfide to sulfur liquid is slightly re­
duced at higher gas throughputs due to reactor and condenser
limits, in practice such effects are quite small. For example, the
temperature profile of one lead fixed-bed reactor on a Claus plant
(Figure 13-2) shows almost all the reaction taking place in the top
30% of the bed.
• N 2 from combustion air
• H 2 0 (vapor)—contained in the acid gas from the amine regen­
erator reflux drum
• Miscellaneous hydrocarbons and mercaptains
OXYGEN ENRICHMENT
The use of oxygen to enrich process air for combustion purposes
is a common practice. For instance, oxygen has been added to the
air blower discharge of fluid catalytic cracking units in many re­
fineries. 2 Enrichment concentrations of 30% to 40% oxygen are typ­
ical.
Oxygen enrichment of the air supply to one 50 ton/day Claus
plants was initiated to reduce the amount of nitrogen flowing
through the reaction train. The overall Claus reaction for a typical
acid gas stream having the composition shown in Table 13—1 will
yeild an effluent with the following composition (in mole%). N 2 , 60;
H 2 0 , 30; C 0 2 5; H 2 and other, 5.
Because the capacity of a Claus plant is essentially propor­
tional to the volume of the effluent gas, substituting oxygen for air
will result in a large capacity increase. For the 30 ton/day Claus
plant discussed in this chapter, an oxygen enrichment of up to 31%
was demonstrated.
Naturally, the use of enriched air resulted in an increase in
reaction furnace temperature. Both the calculated increased capacity
and the theoretical temperature rise in the reaction furnace have
previously been published. 3 The observed changes in capacity and
temperature for the 50 ton/day Claus plants are summarized in

The parameters which limit maximum front-end pressure are: TABLE 13-1
TYPICAL ACID GAS COMPOSITION
• Seal leg depth
• Air blower maximum head MOLE %
• Reaction furnace design pressure C02
• Acid gas supply pressure. 12
Hydrocarbons' 1
H20 8
Front-end pressure will vary with the square of the moles of air H2S
plus acid gas that enters the reaction furnace. 78
Other 1
The principle constituents of these streams are:
TOTAL 100
• H 2 S from natural gas
• C 0 2 absorbed from natural gas
• 0 2 from combustion air *Average molecular weight of hydrocarbon is typically equal to propane.
162 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING SCILFCIR PLANT OPERATION 163

Table 13—2. Further information on oxygen enrichment in Claus riched combustion air on a Claus unit were evaluated. The results
plant operations can be found in other publications. 4 ' 6 ' 7 of this study are summarized in Figure 13-4. The safety system
• shown was installed and functioned satisfactorily on the 50 ton/day
TABLE 13-2 Claus plants at oxygen concentrations of up to 31%. The principle
features of this system were:
OBSERVED EFFECT OF OXYGEN
ENRICHMENT ON A 50 T/D CLAUS UNIT • Reaction furnace temperature monitored by an optical
Oxygen Concentration 21% 29.5% pyrometer.
*Thermal Reactor Temperature 2050°F 2170°F • High reaction furnace temperature trips off oxygen flow.
*Front End Pressure 14PSIG 10PSIG • High oxygen concentrations trips off oxygen flow.
*Temperature Rise Across Three • Low flow of acid gas trips off oxygen flow.
Fixed Bed Reactors 151°F 169°F • Low oxygen supply temperature, indicating possible liquid
oxygen in the supply gas, trips off oxygen flow.
• Low air supply pressure trips off oxygen flow.
*Equates to an increase in capacity of 18%. • Oxygen flow control on flow recorder reset manually based on
concentration of oxygen in air supply to the reaction furnace.
FAIL-SAFE WITH 0 2 • Oxygen pressure to preceeding FRIC set by a pressure recorder.
• Oxygen flow could be shut-down from either the control room
The hazards of oxygen or enriched air are well known in the or the field.
industry. The unique safety problems associated with use of en-
BYPASS REHEAT EXCHANGER
The feed to the first fixed bed reactor must be reheated from
370*F to 440°F. On many sulfur units, this is accomplished by a heat
exchanger utilizing high-pressure steam (Figure 13-1).
While this type of "indirect reheat" exchanger is a fine way to
expedite sulfur plant start-ups, it does very little to improve conver­
sion of H 2 S/S0 2 to liquid sulfur. For the 50 ton/day Claus unit, a
bypass to direct reheat gas to the first fixed bed reactor was in­
stalled. Figure 13-5 illustrates the location of the bypass.
The partial bypassing of both the reheat exchanger and the
first stage condenser reduced the Claus train front-end pressure
from 10.2 psi to 9.2 psi. This reduction in front-end pressure ex­
panded capacity by 5%.
Theoretically, the increase of sulfur vapors to the first reactor
would reduce conversion. In practice, a small shift in the reactor
temperature rise from the lead reactor to the second and third reac­
tors was noted. The theoretical reduction in conversion was too
small to observe with a Drager tube analysis of the sulfur plant tail
P L A - P R 6 S S U 0 £ LOW ALABM
F B C - F L O W RECOSDEB
M L S - M A N U A L LOAO STATION
gas.
AB - A N A L Y Z E * R E C O B M B
H T T = H I G H TEMPEHATUR6 T R I P
L T T . L O W TEfctPEBATUBE TBIP
The use of oxygen-enriched air and the partial bypassing of the
P R C I P R O C E S S BECOSMB
first stage condenser and reheat exchanger resulted in a combined
capacity increase of 24%. However, these two operating parameters
Figure 1 3 - 4 Safety controls for O2 enriched air in a claus unit were only used during periods of limited sulfur recovery capacity.
164 TROCIBLESHOOTINQ MATORAL GAS KlOCESSiriG SCILFUR PLANT OPERATION 165

Enriched air was limited because of oxygen cost. Use of the re­
heat bypass line required frequent and inconvenient adjustments to
the reheat valve, shown in Figure 13-5, in order to control the first
fixed bed reactor outlet temperature.

INCREASED FRONT-END PRESSURE

The 50 ton/day Claus unit was designed for a maximum operat­ usoc
ing pressure of 15 psig for vessel mechanical integrity and air
blower discharge pressure. Unfortunately, the front-end pressure
was limited to 10 psig by the depth of the sulfur seal leg drains.
Above 10 psig, the process gas in the reaction furnace would blow
out through the sulfur drain leg, and toxic vapors would be emitted
to the atmosphere.
To permit a 14 psig front-end operating pressure, the seal legs
were "cascaded" as shown in Figure 13-6. Sulfur drains from the
boiler and the first stage condenser were looped into the second
stage condenser. This prevented a seal leg blowout from occurring Ld
until the second stage condenser reached a pressure of 10 psig. The
effect of this change, which allowed an operating front-end pressure £UJ
6?
of 14 psig, was to up plant capacity by 23%. o
QuJ
The 4 psi increase in the reaction furnace pressure increased Z O
the acid gas pressure by an equivalent amount. This pressure rise O Z
backed up through the amine regenerator and raised the amine re- oo
in
v
DIRECT REHEAT LINE a.
/ T \ REHEAT v
\<J EXCHANGER
660°F- c
-o« *L—440°F CO

a:
FIRST REACTOR

BOILER
n
SP (0

uJcc o <u
ac-i
o< ta
TO SECOND STAGE UJ to
CONDENSER 3 ^ -a
AIR UJ a>
z "a
u
to
tn
370° F U
ACID GAS 1
Figure 13—5
SULFUR

Direct reheat bypass line increases capacity.

2><
UJlO i
166 TROUBLESHOOTING NATORAL GAS PROCESSING SULFUR PLANT OPERATION 167

boiler temperature by 6°F. Because the reboiler tube metallurgy was years of use will note the crust deposited on the top of the reactor
carbon steel, this increased temperature was of concern in regard to bed. This crust may account for a large portion of the pressure drop
decreased reboiler tube life. To avoid accelerated corrosion, a corro­ build-up seen as a run progresses.
sion inhibitor was injected into the reboiler inlet line. As indicated Figure 13—7 illustrates one method to mitigate this problem.
by a corrosion probe, the inhibitor effectively controlled rates of cor­ Baskets, partially filled with catalyst support balls, are inserted in
rosion at the higher reboiler temperatures. the Claus plant catalyst bed. The depth of the baskets are sufficient
to double the exposed surface area at the top of the bed. While the
effect on the initial reactor pressure drop is small, during the course
HYDROCARBON IN ACID GAS of a 1 year run, the average reduction in pressure drop was esti­
mated to be 30%. The baskets shown in Figure 13-7 were only in­
A single mole of propane will consume as much sulfur plant ca­
stalled in the first reactor, as encrustation at the top of the second
pacity as 10 moles of H 2 S. and third reactors is less of a problem.
Propane dissolved or entrained in the amine regenerator feed
The loss in overall conversion of H 2 S to liquid sulfur due to the
will appear in the acid gas feed to the Claus train.
shorter average catalyst bed depth of the first reactor was too small
To minimize the hydrocarbon content of the acid gas, the rich
to observe. Also, no shift in reactor temperature rise from the first
amine flash drum (i.e., the amine regenerator feed drum) was mod­
to second reactors was observed. This too indicated that the shorter
ified to operate at 10 psig instead of 50 psig. The resulting reduction
average reactor bed did not adversely affect conversion. The average
in the hydrocarbon content of the acid gas was difficult to gauge be­
30% reduction in the first reactor pressure drop resulted in an ap­
cause of its normal variability.
proximate increase in Claus capacity of 2%.
The average reduction approximated 0.5 mole % which rep­
resented a 5% gain of sulfur recovery capacity. IMBEDDED BASKETS REDUCE PRESSURE DROP
WATER VAPOR AND CARBON DIOXIDE INLET
Reducing the water vapor content of acid gas to a minimum
also increased Claus capacity. During periods when one of the two
sulfur trains was out of service, the amine regenerator reflux drum
temperature was reduced from 135°F, to 110°F. This was achieved BASKET
by spraying treated water on the exterior of the amine regenerators' U rm-t-nrm..
overhead fin fan tube bundles. This reduced the water content of the fccoeaoaal
acid gas from 10% to 5% and thus increased sulfur recovery capacity
by 2%. BALLS
By changing the feed location of the lean amine (MEA) to the
gas scrubber, the rejection of C 0 2 to sweet fuel gas was increased pwfv«TTWMi"»yyiini
nmmsmmnm
from 5% to 60%.
The C 0 2 content of the acid gas dropped from 12% to 6%. This
resulted in an increase of 2% in overall sulfur plant capacity.
The feed point change on the natural gas scrubber consisted of ~M
dropping the MEA inlet nozzle down from tray 20 to tray 5. Note
that an even greater reduction of C 0 2 to sweet fuel gas may be
achieved by substituting MDEA for MEA. 5

REACTOR INLET BASKETS OUTLET

Anyone who has ever inspected a Claus reactor after several Figure 13—7 Imbedded baskets reduce pressure drop.
168 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING SULFUR PLANT OPERATION 169

OTHER MODIFICATIONS
A few other changes which supported the increases achieved
above by increasing the process air pressure to the reaction furnace
were:
• The air blower check valve internals were modified to elimi­
nate a substantial pressure drop.
• The air blower suction filters were altered to reduce pressure
drop.
• The automatic vent on the blower discharge was overhauled
to prevent unintended leakage of process air.
that if you put out such a fire with water or nitrogen, the pyrophoric
iron will reignite when it dries out and is again exposed to air. The
nitrogen purge on the reactors also prevents the infiltration of air
and moisture into the catalyst during a unit outage. Air, moisture,
and sulfur make sulfuric acid, which causes catalyst deterioration
and eats condenser tubes.
A typical three stage claus train, showing a normal tempera­
ture and pressure profile, is illustrated in figure 13-8. Pressure
drops or temperature differences, which vary widely from the
parameters shown, are likely indicative of a process problem.
STEAM REHEAT
EXCHANGERS

Table 13-3 summarizes the net capacity gains achieved by the

process modification detailed above. 4

PYROPHORIC IRON
During a sulfur plant outage, quantities of S 0 2 may be ob­
served emanating from open manways. Also, a blue fire can some­
times be seen in cold process vessels and lines. Pyrophoric iron is
the cause of these phenomenon. When dry, it spontaneously ignites
after exposure to air. The heat evolved from pyrophoric iron combus­ 777777"
tion in catalyst beds can lead to high reactor temperatures. Also, ir­ SULFUR CONDENSERS
ritating S 0 2 vapors interfere with maintenance personnel working
to repair the unit.
AIR SLOWER
A small nitrogen purge, connected to the top of each reactor,
will effectively suppress pyrophoric iron fires. Remember, however,
Rgure 1 3 - 8 Typical temperature and pressure profile for a gas field sulfur
TABLE 13-3 recovery train processing acid gas with 85% of H2S through a
Three State Claus Plant
COMTJLATIVE EFFECT OF MODIFICATIONS
TO INCREASE CLAUS PLANT CAPACITY *
1. Oxygen Enrichment 18%
2. Direct First Stage Reheat 5%
3. Cascaded Seal Legs 23%
4. Minimize Hydrocarbons in Acid Gas 5%
5. Minimize Water Vapor Content of Acid Gas 2%
6. Minimize C 0 2 Content of Acid Gas 2%
7. Reactor Baskets 2%
171%*

*Items # 1 through # 7 were multiplied together to arrive at the cumulative effect.

170 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSIMG

REFERENCES
Section
1. Kerr, E.K., "The Claus Process". Energy Processing/Canada,
, July-August, 1976.
2. Hansen, T.S., "Oxygen/Resid Relationships in FCC Operations",
0 & GJ, August 15,1983.
3. Gray, M.R., "The Profitability of Oxygen Combustion Air Use
In Claus Sulfur Plants", M. Eng. Thesis, University of Calgary,
1980.
4. Linde, Union Carbide, "Claus Plant Oxygen Enrichment",
Technical Bulletin, 1983.
5. Daviet, G.R., et. al, "Switch to MDEA Raises Capacity", Hydro­ Pipeline Problems
carbon Processing, March, 1979.
6. Fischer, H., "Sulfur Costs Vary With Process Selection", Hydro­
carbon Processing, March, 1979.
7. Fischer, H., "Here's How the Modified Claus Process Treats
Low Sulfur Gas", O & G International, July, 1971.
8. Goar, B.G., et. al, "Claus Plant Capacity Boosted By Oxygen-
Enrichment Process, O & GJ, September 30, 1985.

"Malfunctioning mechanical
devices combine passive
resistance with malicious
obediance. You have to
conquer them with your
persistence. It's not a matter
of luck; but a matter of pride."
Norm Lieberman
 HYDRATES 173

14 water and light hydrocarbons) will form at temperatures well above

HYDRATES
I first realized how serious a freeze-up in a natural gas field
can be on a cold, cloudy morning in December, 1983. During the
night, the temperature had dipped below 20°F, and our gas flow had
fallen by 30%. By the time 1 had my first cup of coffee, the situation
had become even more serious; one of our competitors was offering
to buy gas from us at $2.00 per MSCF above our normal price. With
an inducement such as this, our V.P. of Production did not hesitate
to order our engineering staff into the field with instructions to re­
store the lost production.
The freeze-up had effected many areas of our operation:
the freezing point of water. Actually, freezing of the water produced
at the wellhead is relatively unlikely because this water typically
contains appreciable quantities of salt. Figure 14—2 summarizes the
effect of an adibatic expansion of natural gas. Reducing the pressure
of flowing gas across a restriction causes the gas to cool. It is this
phenomeon that accounts for the tendency of gas lines that have be­
come partially plugged with hydrates, to maintain the pluggage
after ambient conditions have returned to a relatively warm state.
MAIN UNE COMPRESSION
On this December morning, our most immediate problem was
the inability of the operating crews to keep the pipeline booster com­
pressors on line. These gas turbine driven centrifugal compressors
were mysteriously slowing down. Our investigation revealed t h a t
the problem was low fuel gas pressure. Once the fuel gas control
6000

• Wellhead compression
• Separation of water, condensate and gas at the wells
• Gas collection (lateral) piping flow PSIG
• Dehydrator glycol losses
• Main line compressors

As I investigated these various manifestations of hydrate for­

mation, I drew two general conclusions:

• The "ice" plugs did not melt when the ambient temperatures
rose above 32°F.
• Once formed, an "ice" (really a hydrocarbon hydrate) plug
would not melt, even when ambient temperatures had returned
to normal.

Figure 14-1 shows that solidified hydrates (a compound of

Figure 14—2 Hydrate formation is favored by high pressure and molecular
172 weight
174 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING HYDRATES 175

valve to the turbine was wide open, the turbine would begin to slow
as the flow of fuel diminished. Figure 14r-3 depicts the fuel gas sys­
tem. Note t h a t the take-off for the gas turbine fuel was upstream
of the dehydrator. The pressure let-down through the pressure re­
ducing "Big Joe" valve produced a temperature drop sufficient to
bring the flowing gas below it's hydrate formation temperature.
As shown in Figure 14—2, dropping gas pressure from 800 psig
to the normal fuel gas pressure of 150 psig (which is preset by ad­
justing the threaded bolt on top of the "Big Joe" pressure regulator)
theoretically reduces the gas temperature by 44°F. The fuel gas con­ I
sumed by the subject turbines had an eighteen molecular weight
(i.e. a specific gravity relative to air at 0.62). As one can see from
B
Figure 14-1, gas of this gravity will form hydrates at 36°F, assum­ to
i—
ing entrained liquid water is present. Hence, one can calculate that
if the gas temperature at the takeoff for the gas turbine fuel dropped I
Cj
below 80°F (i.e., 36°F + 44°F). solidified hydrates would form as the <u
3
fuel gas passed through the "Big Joe" pressure regulator. Once the -a
o a.
% CO
</> 3
O UJ
I - *■

tflui, ( Q_

O
o J2
o 3
oo

I
\Lw In m
i
1$ 1
1
I

ao 30 40 so JO TO eo so IOO no izo 130 i4o i:o

o
3
TEMPERATURE REOUCTION^F — Q(J> >-
_l
o CD
Figure 14—2 Joules - Thompson expansion cools flowing gas.
E
176 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
flow of gas was restricted by the newly formed solids, hydrate for­
mation would be accelerated by the fuel gas pressure dropping below
150 psig.
To thaw a line plugged with hydrates, it is best to depressure
the line and apply an external source of heat to the "Big Joe" valve.
The difficulty of implementing this suggestion is a consequence of
the problems in depressuring that portion of the fuel gas line up­
stream of the "Big Joe" pressure regulator. If the "Big Joe" valve
has plugged completely with hydrates, the high pressure gas be­
tween the fuel gas take-off and the "Big Joe" is trapped. With no
flow through the line, this trapped fuel gas rapidly cools to ambient
conditions. As the hydrate formation temperature of wet, eighteen
molecular weight gas at 800 psig is only 58°F, hydrate crystals will
quickly accumulate inside the fuel gas line when the ambient tem­
perature is hovering at a chilly 45°F.
On our particular gas turbines, we noticed that thawing the
"Big Joe" valves only restored gas flow for a few seconds. Upon dis­
assembling the "Big Joe" valves we found ice crystals solidly packed
into the upstream side of the valve. Only by unbolting the flanged
sections of the fuel gas line were we able to gradually depressure
and eventually melt the accumulated hydrates.
To avoid a reoccurance of this long and costly defrosting pro­
cedure we eliminated the problem at it's source. Hydrates will only
form in the presence of free, liquid water. Gas dried to pipeline
moisture specifications in a glycol dehydrator is not subject to hyd­
rate formation, except in the most frigid conditions. Hence, we sim­
ply relocated the fuel gas take-off to our gas turbines downstream
of the glycol dehydrators.
Of course, as oft times happens in gas pipelining, solving one
problem created another. The new dry fuel gas source, while
eliminating the low fuel gas pressure problems to our turbine driven
compressors, was found to contain entrained glycol. To our dismay,
this glycol mist fouled the firing mechanism (i.e. the "spark cells")
on a reciprocating engine, which was served by the same fuel gas
supply. We researched the problem, and discovered that our pre­
decessors at this compression station had located the fuel gas take­
off upstream of the glycol dehydrators to avoid this very problem.
But that is another story.
GLYCOL LOSSES
For the reasons just described it is vital to dry gas to pipeline
specifications during the winter. Common carrier pipelines cannot
be expected to accept wet natural gas which will form hydrates
HYDRATES 177
when depressured in their customers equipment. Unfortunately, t h e
glycol losses in our gas drying facilities had increased dramatically
with the on-set of cold weather. Figure 14—3 shows that upstream
of our glycol drying towers we had installed knock-out drums to re­
move entrained liquids (primarily natural gasoline condensate).
If liquid hydrocarbons enter a glycol tower, they will mix with
the circulating glycol and promote foaming on the tower's bubble
cap trays. The foaming glycol is carried out the top of the dehyd­
ration tower along with the dried gas. When the glycol inventory in
the circulating system falls below a minimum level the flow of dried
glycol back to the tower becomes erratic. This results in inadequate
drying of the natural gas.
When we investigated the cause of our glycol losses, we found
that the liquid level in the knock-out drum upstream of the largest
glycol dehydrator tower, had risen to the gas inlet nozzle. When the
condensate reached this level, it was re-entrained into the up-flow­
ing gas.
The reason for the high liquid level was apparent; the liquid
dump valve used to control this level was frozen. The condensate
flashing from 800 psig down to 50 psig (i.e. the pressure of the low
pressure separator) auto-refrigerated sufficiently to freeze the dump
valve with hydrates. To eliminate this problem we installed a
"flameless heater" around the dump valves on each knock-out drum.
The flameless heater consists of a sheet metal box which is de­
signed to enclose a wide variety of valves. A small stream of natural
gas is oxidized to produce a small amount of low level heat. A source
of electricity (normally obtained from a twelve volt car battery) is
needed to start the heater. This device is intrinsically safe in that
it will not provide a source of ignition for natural gas. The installed
cost of a typical flemeless heater is roughly $1,000.
GATHERING SYSTEM FROZEN
With the situation at the dehydration and compression station
under control, our engineering staff went into the gas fields to assist
the production personnel in restoring the diminished gas flow. We
found that many of our wells had developed a high wellhead pres­
sure, but that the metered gas flow had greatly been reduced. It was
mostly the older wells that were effected in this manner, because
the wellhead heaters had been removed from these wells as their
pressure flow had diminished over the years.
Once a pressure restriction starts in a pipeline due to the for­
mation of hydrates, the resulting pressure drop promotes the forma­
tion of further solid hydrates due to the self-cooling of the expanding
178 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING HYDRATES 179

gas (i.e. the Joule-Thompson expansion). In this way a pluggage in
a gathering system pipeline can sustain itself, even when ambient
temperatures moderate. The best way to melt out hydrates from un­
derground piping is by injecting methanol into the gas flowing from
a well. A few pints of methanol per million SCF of gas should melt
hydrates out of a restricted pipeline. Of course, if the methanol had
been injected prior to the freeze-up, the pipeline could have been
prevented from plugging in the first place.
Methanol is injected from barrels with a small chemical injec­
tion pump. The pump is powered with high pressure natural gas.
The required rate of methanol injection varies with the free water
content of the flowing gas. Methanol costs only about a dollar per
gallon and is certainly the cost effective method to prevent freeze-
ups in a variety of natural gas operations.
WELLHEAD COMPRESSION
In our particular gathering system, about 20% of the produc­
tion originated in wells equipped with reciprocating wellhead com­
pressors. Driving through the gas fields, we found 50% of these com­
pressors had been knocked off-line. Several of the compressors had
been tripped-off due to high liquid levels in the compressor suction
drum. The majority of the idled machines were found to be inoper­
able due to plugged fuel gas lines, as evidenced by the low pressure
sure reducing valve. This succesful modification is also shown in
Figure 14—4.
WELLHEAD VAPOR-LIQCIID SEPARATION
The gas supply to the liquid level dumps on the wellhead high
pressure separator is normally saturated, high pressure gas, unless
a glycol dehydrator is conviently located to provide a source of dry
gas. If the gas supply to these dump valves is stopped, the valves
will not operate, and liquid may carry-over from the high pressure
separator to downstream equipment such as wellhead compressors.
For this reason, the instrument gas supply and signal transmission
lines should be self draining and short. Also, the instrument gas
should pass through a small liquid K.O. bottle. Pocketed instrument
gas lines seemed to account for the majority of liquid dump failures
on high pressure separators during cold weather.
WELLHEAD
GAS
200^-
70°F
R 10'

(COMPRESSOR ENGINE
\
in the fuel gas knock-out drum.
The problem with the small, wellhead reciprocating compres­
sors paralled the difficulties we had just resolved with our main line IT FUEL
GAS
turbine driven compressors. That is, hydrates had formed in the K.O.
"Big Joe" fuel gas pressure regulator. Figure 14—4 shows the fuel DRUM
gas piping. Note that the gas field operators had lined-up the com­ ■ - ■ « ^ F

pressor fuel gas from the discharge, rather than the compressor's ROZEN
suction. Their idea was to use the relatively warm compressor dis­ # 8IG JOE'
1000
charge flow as a source of compressor fuel gas. Unfortunately, they 90°F
failed to realize that 1000 psig, 90°F gas would be more likely to —DO-
form hydrates than 200 psig, 70°F gas (i.e. the conditions at the OPEN
compressor suction). Referring to Figure 14^-2, we can see t h a t gas GAS TO
from the compressor discharge would cool-off by 55°F more than the PIPELINE 1X3
lower pressure gas from the compressor suction. This meant that the CLOSED
cooler gas from the suction of the compressor would actually be
warmer after being reduced to the 5 psig fuel gas pressure, t h a n fuel Figure 14—4 Avoid using high pressure gas as compressor fuel during cold
gas diverted from the compressor discharge. weather.
To avoid future freeze-ups which could ocur even when low
pressure gas was used as compressor fuel a portion of the engine
exhaust gas was piped-up to flow over and warm the "Big Joe" pres-

15
PRODUCTION METERING
Natural gas flow at the wellhead is metered for the purpose of
determining tax and royalty payments, to observe state regulations
as to the amount of gas that may legally be produced from indi­
vidual wells, and to permit the lease operator to plan the well's op­
eration intelligently. The meter consists of an orifice plate with
pressure sensing taps both upstream and downstream of the orifice
plate. The plate itself may be changed without interrupting gas
flow. The meter "run" (i.e. the straight lengths of pipe upstream and
downstream of the orifice plate) is sized to minimize the effect of el­
bows and other fittings on the measured flow. The orifice pressure
taps and flanges, the devise permitting the orifice to be changed
onstream, and the meter run piping spool pieces are purchased as
a unit.
The meter usually reads zero to 100 inches of water. This
means that the hole in the orifice plate is sized to obtain a pressure
drop of about 3 psi (28 inches of water equals 1 psi) at the maximum
anticipated gas rate. Each meter run will be limited to a maximum
size orifice which corresponds to the maximum gas rate which may
be measured with the meter run. It is possible to change the range
spring on the meter from 100 to 200 inches of water. This permits
an increase in measured flow of 41.4% (i.e., V 200/100 ).
PULSATION EFFECTS
It would really seem that anything as simple as an orifice
meter could not require any real fortitude or intelligence to troub-
leshoot. That is why I was surprised to find myself assigned to de­
termine why a wellhead meter was recording a flow of 1100 M
ISO
PRODUCTION METERING 181
SCFD while a custody transfer meter on the same gas was measur­
ing only 380 M SCFD. Both meters had been carefully zeroed and
calibrated, and found to be in good working order. The only differ­
ence between the meters was t h a t the meter showing the higher
flow was located between the well's high pressure separator and a
small, slow speed (360 rpm) wellhead reciprocating compressor. The
meter recording the low flow was a mile downstream at the custody
transfer point. Now it is not unknown for gas to be stolen by tapping
into an underground collection lateral. Leaking lines are also a pos­
sibility. However, in this case I quickly summarized that neither of
these mischances were appropriate. By making the following obser­
vations on the wellhead reciprocating compressor:
• Suction and discharge pressure.
• Suction temperature.
• Head end clearance pocket adjustment.
• Cylinder valve configuration.
• Engine speed.
I was able to calculate the maximum amount of gas that the
compressor could be moving. This calculated flow was 450 M SCFD.
As it was impossible for this particular compressor to move more
than 450 M SCFD, the measured flow of 1100 M SCFD was wrong!
It is possible—actually quite probable—for meters located im­
mediately upstream or downstream of sources of pulsations (such as
reciprocating compressors) to read high. Depending on how much
the pulsation is attenuated, this phenomenon can introduce very
large errors into the metered flow, to determine if pulsations are
contributing to a high meter reading pinch back on the valve
nearest the meter run enough to introduce a pressure drop of five
to ten psi. If a meter is reading high due to a pulsation problem,
this pressure drop will be sufficient to dampen out the pulsations so
that a correct gas flow can be recorded.
When I followed this procedure for the meter I was trouble­
shooting, the indicated flow dropped to 410 M SCFD. Taking into ac­
count that 20 M SCFD of metered gas was being consumed for fuel
for the wellhead reciprocating compressor, the recorded flow for the
custody transfer meter and t h e wellhead meter were brought into
close agreement. An orifice plate sized to create a ten psi pressure
drop (i.e. 300 inches of water) was placed in line near the wellhead
meter a few days later and the gate valve, which had been partially
closed, was returned to its normal wide open position.
182 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
PRODUCTION METERING 183

OVER PAYMENTS DOE TO METERING ERRORS small orifice, may be quite inadequate when a larger orifice is in­
As wellhead meters are the basis for royalty production pay* stalled to accomodate greater natural gas flows.
ments to landowners and to States for severance taxes, over-pay­
ments due to erroneous metering can add up to a big dollar revenue ERRODED AND PLUGGED ORIFICES
loss for the lease operator. For example, I observed a well that was I once encountered a meter on a new installation t h a t was
recording 320 M SCFD gas flow. The small wellhead reciprocating reading an inordinately high gas flow. The meter was zeroed and re­
compressor induced a pulsation that resulted in a high meter read­ calibrated, but the recorded flow remained high. Finally, the orifice
ing. When I attenuated the metered flow with an orifice plate to plate was pulled for inspection and a small pebble was found par­
dampen the pulsations, the recorded flow dropped to 240 M SCFD. tially plugging the orifice. The pressure drop created by this pebble
As taxes and royalty payments for this well totaled 25%, the lease
operator's daily over payments (based on $3.00 per M SCFD gas)
was $60.00 per day. As the compressor had been sitting at this par­ BETA RATIO = ORIFICE DIAMETER DIVIDED BY
ticular site for approximately three years, I estimated that this pul­ PIPE DIAMETER
sation induced metering error had cost the lease operator $60,000!
Relatively minor piping pulsations can lead to very large errors L = MINIMUN LENGTHS OF STRAIGHT PIPE
in gas metering when the tubing lines connecting the orifice meter REQUIRED EXPRESSED IN PIPE DIAMETERS
taps and the flow recorder have not been properly installed. The re­
sulting aberation can cause the meter to read 50% or more above ... B .1
the actual gas flow.
To avoid this difficulty, when the possibility of pulsations are ^
anticipated in a meter run, the tubing lines should be coiled. This
ORIFICE ^
means t h a t 1/4" stainless steel tubing connecting the flow recorder
to the orifice meter taps should be installed with half a dozen six
to eight inch loops. This coiling will attenuate the pressure pulsa­
tion effect on the tubing connections themselves, but will not elimi­
nate the erronous high readings associated with the orifice plate it­
self.

WELLHEAD COMPRESSORS AND METERS

To avoid this type of debit, it is a good idea to calculate the
theoretical gas flow expected from wellhead compressors by the
manufacturers curves. If the compressor's cylinder valves are in
good condition, the calculated flow should be 5% to 10% greater than
the metered flow. If the metered flow is greater than the flow cal­
culated from the compressor characteristics, the installation of a pul­
sation damper and the recalibration of the meter are positively in
order.
Locating meter runs too close to elbows or piping reducers also
can distort recorded flows. A run of straight pipe both upstream and
downstream of a n orifice is required to minimize this distortion.
Figure 15-1 quantifies those lengths. The "Beta" values shown on .2 .3 A .5 .6 .7
the horizontal axis are the ratio of the orifice diameter to the pipe
inside diameter. One can correctly conclude from this figure that a
BETA RATIO
piping configuration t h a t provides satisfactory metering with a Figure 15—1 Correlations to size meter runs.
184 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PRODUCTION METERING 185

was interpreted by the meter as a high gas flow. example, the gas flow through a choke with an upstream pressure
Erosion of an orifice plate with sand also results in erroneous of 1000 psig is nearly the same whether the pressure in the high
measurements of gas flow. In this case, the pressure drop through pressure separator is 300 psig or 10 psig. The reason for this
the orifice is reduced and the recorded gas flow is lower than the phenomenon is that the gas reaches a critical or sonic velocity
actual gas flow. Of course, this type of situation artifically reduces through the choke. This concept can be used to check an orifice
the lease operator's royalty and tax payments below what they meter to determine if it is reading a substantially incorrect flow:
should be.
Q = £-»P
GAS FIELD BALANCES V SG • T • Z
The operator of one large producing district was concerned that
metered gas sales at custody transfer points could not be reconciled where
with the daily wellhead production figures reported by operating Q = Gas flow, M SCFD
personnel. An investigation revealed the following: C = Choke Nipple Coefficient
P = Wellhead, Pressure, psig
• Calculations used to determine daily wellhead gas flows did not T = Temperature, °F
include correction factors for temperature or compressibility. SG = Specific Gravity of gas relative to air.
• Fuel gas used to run wellhead compressors was withdrawn Z = Gas compressibility
downstream of the wellhead meters and thus was reported as
produced gas even though this gas never left the well site. Table 15—1 lists choke nipple coefficients for several typical
• A standard specific gravity of 0.65 was being used in wellhead choke sizes. Table 15—2 is a summary of calculated flows through
gas flow calculations; while actual specific gravity measure­ choke nipples. As can be seen whether the ratio of the upstream
ments indicated a 0.62 gravity. wellhead pressure to the downstream pressure is ten to one or two
• Fuel gas usage to outlying compressor booster stations were to one, the flow through the choke is almost the same. However, as
being estimated rather t h a n measured; the estimated values shown in Table 15—3, once this pressure ratio drops below two to
were consistently too low. one, the flow through a choke nipple is substantially reduced. Using

Brine or condensate, which is entrained out of the high pres­ TABLE 15-1
sure separator and carries through the meter run, will result in an
erroneously high measurement of gas flow. For instance, a well was COEFFICIENTS FOR CHOKE NIPPLES ASSUMING
subjected to a vigorous "soap stick" program. (Soap sticking is a pro­ CRITICAL FLOW
cedure to promote the emulsification of fluids in the downhole tub­
Choke Size Choke Nipple Coefficient
ing string). The resulting emulsion carried over through the meter
run and created the impression of a substantial enhancement in gas
1/8" .347
production as a result of the soap stick program. In reality, the in­
5/32" .553
cremented flow of gas was quite modest.
3/16" .802
1/4" 1.470
MEASURING GAS FLOW WITH A CHOKE NIPPLE
9/32" 1.885
Bernoulli's equation, which we all learned in high school, tells 5/16" 2.340
us that pressure drop is proportional to flow squared. However, for 11/32" 2.866
compressible fluids, this relationship does not hold when substantial 13/32" 4.063
changes in pressure are involved. In particular, when the wellhead
7/16" 4.730
pressure is at least double the pressure downstream of the choke,
1/2" 6.260
the flow of gas through the choke is linearly proportional to the
3/4" 14.490
wellhead pressure only—regardless of the downstream pressure. For
186 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PRODUCTION METERING 187

the type of information supplied in Table 15—3, it is possible to es­ REFERENCES

timate the flow from a gas well with reasonable certainty at pres­
sure ratios down to 1.3. Using data developed for non-critical flows 1. "Measuring Variable Gas Flow in a Rapidly Changing Market' :
through choke nipples (as shown in Table 15-3) can be a handy way Gas Industries, February 1985, page 16-18.
to check orifice meters, even when the lateral collection header pres­
sure is within a few hundred psi of the wellhead pressure.
VARIABLE FLOWS AT CUSTODY TRANSFER POINTS
Metering highly fluctuating flows at custody transfer points
may not be a practical proposition with a single meter run unless
the orifice plates are changed frequently. To achieve accurate nat­
ural gas metering under such conditions, a turbine meter, rather
than an orifice meter is required. The Rockwell Auto Adjust Turbo
Meter 1 has been reported to have been successfully applied in one
installation to measure flow varying between 10 MM SCFD to 240
MM SCFD at a custody transfer point.
TABLE 15-2
CHOKE NIPPLE CAPACITIES FOR CRITICAL
FLOWS (M SCFD)
Upstream Downstream Choke Diameter
Pressiirp Prpssurp 3/32 in fi/32in 9/32 in

1000 100 240 816 1900

1000 600 235 797 1860
1100 100 264 895 2090
1100 600 263 885 2080
1200 100 299 980 2280
1200 600 288 980 2280

TABLE 15-3
CHOKE NIPPLE CAPACITIES FOR NON-CRITICAL
FLOWS (M SCFD)
Upstream Downstream Choke Diameter
Prpssnrp PrpssnrR 3/32 in fi/32in 9/32 in

1000 600 235 797 1860

1000 800 192 649 1520
1100 600 263 885 2080
1100 800 235 800 1860
1200 600 288 980 2280
1200 800 272 920 2150 60984]i81800
 PIPING PULSATIONS I 89

16 HZ
a = Speed of sound, ft./sec. (typically 1400 ft./sec.
in natural gas pipelines)
— Hertz (i.e. compressor speed in revolutions
per second)

To calculate the speed of sound:

PIPING PULSATIONS
The vibrations set-up by reciprocating compressors in natural
gas pipeline service can be a severe and complex subject. The effects
on gas flow metering and compressor efficiency have been discussed
in previous chapters. The effects of the vibrations induced by recip­
rocating compressors are controlled by proper compressor suction
and discharge piping design and by the use of acoustical filters (i.e.
pulsation dampening bottles).
The information presented in this chapter should be viewed as
an introduction to a subject that is a "Science Unto Itself.
PIPING PULSATION
The development of a resonant frequency in the suction or dis­
charge piping of a reciprocating compressor is called pulsation. One
of the common detrimental effects of pulsation is t h a t isolating or
by-pass valves may begin to leak due to the alternating force of the
pulsation. A valve in a closed position, located within a few hundred
feet of a reciprocating compressor, making a continuous rattling
sound, is being subjected to pulsation induced by the compressor.
To correct this problem, you will need to either shorten or
lengthen the isolated piping run "L".
First, calculate the value of "L" as follows:
L =—a—
4»HZ
where
L = Resonant piping length, ft.
188
a = 41.5 V K « Z » T
SG
where
K = Ratio of specific heats, Cp/Cv
Z = Compressibility factor
T = Temperature, °F
SG = Specific gravity relative to air
All multiples of "L" will develop resonant frequencies; the first
resonant frequency being the strongest and hence the most destruc­
tive.
To reduce the piping pulsation, you should modify the dead-
ended or isolated piping length so that it is much shorter or much
longer than a multiple of the resonant piping length.
For more complex piping pulsation problems, contact Southwest
Research Institute with offices in San Antonio, Texas. An analog
computer simulation of a piping system may be required to deter­
mine the cause and cure of pulsations. Often, the installation of
damping orifice plates or pulsation bottles will be required toelimi-
nate a resonant frequency. Southwest Research can make these de­
terminations. For a comprehensive treatment of this subject, consult
the listed references. 1,a
RUNNING COMPRESSORS IN PARALLEL
There are three general types of compressors used in the gas
fields:
• Slow speed reciprocating (less than 400 rpm).
• High speed reciprocating (900-1000 rpm).
• Centrifugal.
I have seen severe piping pulsations introduced into a formerly
stable system by retrofitting a slow speed reciprocating machine to
operate in parallel with several high speed reciprocating compres­
sors. Also, I have been told that it is difficult to add a centrifugal
compressor to operate in parallel with reciprocating machines with-
190 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PIPING PULSATIONS 191

out having the performance of the centrifugal machine adversely ef­
fected by the reciprocating compressors. Locating reciprocating and
centrifugal compressors in series is no problem, provided that suf­
ficient intervening pulsation dampening is provided.
A glycol dehydration tower makes an excellent pulsation dam-
pener. At one station that exhibited severe piping pulsation at a
compressor discharge meter run, relocating trhe compressor up­
stream of the dehydration column eliminated the problem.
The Gas Processors Suppliers Association Engineering Data
Book 3 has a section for the sizing of pulsation dampening bottles.
Alternately, just like any other piece of process equipment, pulsation
bottles can be purchased from a variety of vendors.
Basically the pulsation dampener (or acoustical filter) consists
of a device with the characteristics shown in Figure 16—1. Flow of
the gas through the choke shown in this figure dampens the pulsa­
tions set up by the reciprocating compressor. The diamensions of the
choke and the pulsation bottle shown in Figure 16-1 can best be cal­
culated from correlations in the literature. 2 However, as an approx­
imation, the following is a good rule of thumb:
The above criteria completely defines the dimensions of a pul­
sation dampener bottle. However, it is best to design thihs bottle fol­
lowing the more rigorous correlations available in the literature
cited above.
Of course, as discussed in the chapter on metering, pulsation
dampening can blso be accomplished with an orifice plate. However,
this does not seem to be as effective as an acoustical filter bottle,
and the orifice plate also requires more pressure drop.
REFERENCES
1. Controlling the Effect of Pulsations and Fluid Transients in In­
dustrial Plants, Published by Southwest Research, San Antonio
Texas.
2. Barta, M.L., T.P. Bass. "Gas Piping Design For High Speed
Reciprocating Compressor Units", Journal of Engineering for
Industry, November 1971, Pages 1183-1189.
3. Gas Process Suppliers Engineering Data Book, 9th edition.
Page 4-17.

• The volume of the suction pulsation dampener bottle equals

twelve times the compressor cylinder head end volume of one
cylinder (same whether one or several cylinders are in use).
The length of the bottle equals twice the diameter.
• The volume of the discharge bottle equals sixteen times the
swept head end volume. The length of each bottle is four times
the diameter.
• The allowable pressure drop for the choke should be set at 1/2%
of the compressor discharge pressure or 1% of the compressor
suction pressure, whichever is less.
• The choke length should be one-half the length of the bottle,
while the internal separation baffle shown in Figure 16-1 is
located at the bottle's midpoint.

r
INLET

CHOKE--*' t r OUTLET

Figure 16—1 A pulsation dampener bottle for the discharge of a recipro­

cating compressor. Relative dimensions shown are typical.

17
CORROSION & FOOLING
Ortega scrapped the black viscous material from the cen­
trifugal compressor's inlet guide vanes and said, 'This is ".
I'm not thrilled to be here either, Ortega—but let's not resort
to profanity".
"But no; really Mr. Lieberman", protested Ortega, "This is re­
ally excrement. It is the accumulated waste from the biological ac­
tivity of sulfate reducing bacteria. These bacteria metabolize iron in
the presence of moisture and sulfates. They are a primal life-form.
Most likely though, they will outlast us".
"Where does the iron come from", I inquired.
"Unfortunately, the bacteria have a rather substantial supply
of iron to consume", responded Ortega. "They are eating our natural
gas collection piping system. These fouling deposits that we now see,
t h a t have reduced the capacity and efficiency of our pipeline booster
compressor, are also indicative of corrosion in our gas field lateral
piping system. Of course, not all this material is biological waste
products. Much of it is probably sodium chloride, with calcium and
potassium chloride salts also present. In addition, I am quite sure
we will find a significant percentage of organics in this deposit.
These organics often originate in the pipeline as corrosion inhibitors
which are injected at the wellhead to reduce downstream corrosion
by coating the pipeline interior with a protective coating. Careful
selection of a corrosion inhibitor t h a t is consistant with the temper­
ature, pressure and composition of the gas gathering system will
minimize downstream fouling. Also, proper inhibitor addition rate
and dispersion will help.
"Some of the deposit also consists of "paraffin wax". This wax
192
CORROSION & FOOLING 193
precipitates out of natural gas when it is compressed; possibly due
to the heat of compression. That is why there is a lot more paraffin
wax on the discharge side of the compressor opposed to the suction".
"It would be nice if we could poison the bacteria", I interjected.
"Actually, this is quite a common practice", responded Ortega.
"An aldehyde type microbiocide can be used both to reduce corrosion
and downstream fouling. To control the rate of fouling deposit ac­
cumulation on the compressor's internals due to organic deposits, an
organic solvent should be injected at a rate of several pints per mil­
lion SCF of gas. Chemlink, Nalco, and Betz market such solvents
with a typical price being $6 per gallon. However, many petroleum
refineries produce highly aromatic solvents as a by-product of the
naphtha reforming process. The solvents, which boil in the range of
450-500°F, sell for slightly more than gasoline and, at least in my
experience, are equally as effective as the high priced name brand
organic solvents".
MONITORING INTERNAL CORROSION
A corrosion probe is a device for inserting a thin strip of metal
through a 3/4" bleeder into a pipeline. The metal strip is called a
corrosion coupon. The probe is designed to permit the coupon to be
inserted and removed under full pipeline pressure. The coupon is
weighted prior to installation and then periodically thereafter.
Weight loss of the cleaned coupon is then correlated with the cor­
rosion rate on the pipeline (in mils per year). The key to the suc­
cessful application of this program is routinely weighing of the
coupon. Checking the coupon after leaks have developed in the gas
collection piping system is not especially informative.
Once natural gas has been sweetened and dehydrated with
triethylene glycol, it is no longer corrosive and internal pipeline cor­
rosion is no longer a danger. External corrosion of a pipeline, due
to moisture and minerals in the soil continues to be a hazard. To
protect underground pipelines, piping is wrapped with a thick plas­
tic coating which is impervious to moisture.
EXTERNAL PIPEUNE CORROSION
The external coating protecting a pipeline is subject to deterio­
ration. When this happens, the pipeline is exposed to the corrosive
effects of soil and water. To control this corrosion, cathodic protec­
tion is normally required. Both economic and safety factors, require
that the corrosion rate be slowed or mitigated to extend the lifetime
of pipelines.
194 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING

Cathodic protection is a corrosion mitigation method that can

GLOSSARY
effectively stop corrosion on buried pipelines. It involves the instal­
lation of grounding devices called "anodes" in the soil near the
A
pipeline to be protected. These anodes pass DC current onto the pipe Absorber A trayed or packed column used to recover light components
surfaces to neutralize the natural currents that cause corrosion. (H2S, propane) from natural gas.
Adjustable Choke Used to regulate the flow of gas from moderate pres­
There are two types of cathodic protection systems. A galvanic
sure weils.
cathodic protection system involves anodes that are more elec-
Afterbum Combustion of unbumt hydrocarbons in the exhaust gas man­
trochemically active than steel. The anode materials used are mag­
ifold of a reciprocating engine.
nesium, aluminum, or zinc. No external power is required. An im­
pressed current cathodic protection system involves anodes made of Amine Solution Used to remove H2S and C 0 2 from sour gas.
special cast iron, graphite or platinum. An external source of DC Annulus The space between the tubing and casing.
power is required. The most commonly used power source is a Anode A grounding device used in the cathodic protection of buried
rectifier which converts AC to DC. The anodes are also electrically pipelines.
connected to the structure in these systems to complete the electrical Anti-Surge The control system used to prevent surge in a centrifugal
circuit. compressor.
Attenuate Reduce the effects of pipeline pulsation.
Cathodic protection is an effective corrosion mitigation system.
However, a number of things can cause a cathodic protection system
to malfunction. It is critical to detect and correct these failures be­
B
fore corrosion can occur on the pipeline. Electrical surveys are the Beta Scan A picture of the internal cylinder pressure VS. volume displayed
most commonly used tool to detect these failures. on an oscillascope for a reciprocating compressor.
Big Joe A pressure reduction valve commonly used in the gas fields.
BMEP Gauge A device used in troubleshooting engines.
PIPE-TO-SOIL POTENTIAL Booster Station Compressor station located along a gas pipeline to boost
the pressure of the flowing gas.
The structure-to-environment potential is called the pipe-to-soil
Button Hole A small hole made in the tubing which permits gas from the
potential (P/S potential) when measured on a pipe in soil. This mea­
tube side to flow up the casing.
surement indicates the tendency for corrosion of a metal in a given
Bottom Hole Pressure The pressure in the wellbore at the level of the per­
environment. A change in pipe-to-soil potential is used to estimate
forations.
the effectiveness of cathodic protection on cathodically protected sys­
Brine Water produced from the wellbore.
tems.
Bundle The heat transfer device used in air coolers.
The measurement of pipe-to-soil potential requires little equip­
ment and is quick and relatively simple. A high resistance voltmeter c
is used on the DC scales. The structure of interest is electrically con­
Carbon Black The effect of burning light hydrocarbons with insufficient
nected to the ( + ) terminal of a digital voltmeter. A device called a
air.
reference electrode is connected to the (-) terminal of the meter. The
Carnot Cycle The ideal pressure-volume work cycle for compression.
reference cell is placed in the soil. The cell should be placed as close
Casing The pipe which is cemented in place, which isolates the wellbore
as possible to the point of interest.
from the surrounding earth.
The reference electrode generates a constant corrosion potential
Cathodic Protection An electrical method used to protect pipelines from
against which the variable structure potential can be measured.
external corrosion.
Copper in a saturated solution of copper sulfate is the most common
Choke A restriction used to control gas flow at the wellhead.
reference electrode. The voltage measured is called the "P/S Poten­
Choke Nipple The interchangable part of a fixed choke used to adjust gas
tial vs. the Saturated Copper/Copper Sulfate Reference". A Silver/
flow.
Silver Chloride cell is normally used in brackish or salty environ­
ments. Claus Plant Used to recover elemental sulfur from H 2 S.

195
196 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING
Coil Tubing CInit A devise used to wash sand out of a well using nitrogen
and water.
Common Carrier Pipeline Gas entering this pipeline must meet standard
specifications for temperature, moisture and BTCI content
CompressiabQHy The deviation of an actual gas from an ideal gas.
Compression Ratio The absolute discharge pressure divided by the ab­
solute suction pressure.
Condensate Light liquid hydrocarbon co-produced with natural gas.
Coning Water flow to the perforations from another level.
Contactor The trayed tower used in glycol drying of gas.
Conversion In sulfur recovery, the percent of H2S converted to elemental
sulfur and water.
Copper Sulfate Reference Used in monitoring external pipeline corrosion
rates.
Corrosion Probe Used to monitor rates of corrosion in pipelines.
Coupon Metal strip used in a corrosion probe.
Crank End The inside end of a reciprocating compressor.
Custody Transfer The point in a pipeline system where the title to the
flowing gas changes from seller to buyer.
Cylinder Clearance Valve A device attached to the head end of a recip­
rocating compressor to reduce the load on the engine.
Cylinder Exhaust Temperature A measure of the ioad efficiency for a re­
ciprocating engine.
D cations.
Dampening Bottle Pulsation bottle installed on the discharge and suction
of reciprocating compressors.
Delta P The pressure drop between two points.
Dehydration Drying gas to meet pipeline moisture specifications usually
seven pounds of water per MMSCF of gas.
Double Acting The characteristic of a cylinder that permits it to compress
gas when the piston moves in either direction.
Downcomer Downflow area for liquid from a distillation tray.
Drilling Mud A high density fluid pumped into a well to prevent gas from
flowing out of the well during drilling.
Dual Completion Wells Gas is produced from both the tubing and casing
sides of the annulus.
Dump Valve A pnematically operated valve which opens or closes com­
pletely to control a liquid level in a vessel.
E
Emulsification Promoting the mixing of gas, condensate and brine to form
a fluid of reduced density.
Entrainment Velodly The velocity of gas flowing through the tubing
necessary to unload liquids from the tubing string.
GLOSSARY 197
F
Filter Coalescer Used to remove solids and liquids from flowing gas.
Fixed Choke A choke to which no adjustment is possible.
Flameless Heater Generates low temperature heat by oxidizing natural gas
at a temperature too low to cause an explosion of leaking gas.
Flaring Venting gas from a well directly to the atmosphere to clear sand
or liquid from the tubing string.
Flooding When liquid cannot drain down freely in a trayed column.
Flowing Back Venting a well to the atmosphere or through a sand trap
to clear a newly completed well of sand and drilling mud.
Flowing Tube Pressure The pressure at the wellhead when gas is being
produced.
Flowpoint A gas flow rate corresponding to the entrainment velocity.
Flash Gas High BTU content gas vented from the low pressure separat­
ing.
Formation Sand The sand which appears in the high pressure separator
at the wellhead which has originated in the gas bearing sands.
Frac Sand A special type of sand pumped into a well to stimulate pro­
duction.
G
Galvanic Protection A form of cathodic protection of pipelines.
Gas Turbine A jet engine type of compressor drive.
Gas Driven Giycol Pump A pump used to circulate glycol in remote lo­
Gas Lift Using a well's gas flow to unload liquid.
Gas Turbine A jet engine type of compressor drive.
Gauger A gas field worker who checks the operation of wells.
GPSA Handbook Standard reference book for natural gas processing.
Glycol Degradation The result of overheating glycol.
Glycol Dehydrator Used to dry gas.
H
HD-5 LPG The common propane used commercially.
Head-End The outside end of a reciprocating compressor.
Hydrate Plug A pipeline which is frozen solid with hydrates.
Hydrates Solidified hydrocarbon and water mixture.
I
Impeller A wheel on the rotor of a centrifugal compressor.
Inert Gas Does not support combustion, i.e. Nitrogen.
Inhibitor A chemical used to control corrosion rates.
Interface The common level between brine and condensate.
Intermitter A devise used to unload liquid from gas wells by automatically
stopping and starting gas flow.
1 9 8 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLOSSARY 199

J Orifice Plate A specially drilled plate used to measure gas flow.

Jet Ejector A method of compressing gas without moving parts. Otto Cycle The ideal cycle taking place in a power cylinder of an internal
Jet Hood Excessive entrainment between tray decks in a distillation col­ combustion engine.
umn.
P
K Packed Pipeline Pressure drop through the pipeline has become excessive
due to excessive gas flow rates.
Kettle A type of reboiler used in distillation service.
Killing a Well Pumping water into a partially depleted well to stop gas flow. Packer A devise that isolates the tubing from the casing, placed just above
Knock Out Drum A small vessel placed ahead of a compressor to re­ the perforations.
move entrained liquids. Packing Rings dumped into a distillation tower to promote fractionation.
Paraffin A waxy, greasy substance deposited by natural gas.
L Partial Depletion A well that has lost most of its wellhead pressure but
Labyrinth Seal An internal component of a centrifugal compressor. still has significant amounts of gas left to recover.
Lateral Piping Small diameter pipe used to collect gas from scattered Pass Partition Baffle Used in air coolers to redirect the gas flow.
wells. Peak Pressure The maximum pressure generated in a power cylinder im­
Lease Operator Entity responsible for operation and meeting of a gas mediately after ignition.
well Perforations Openings in the bottom of the casing through which gas en­
Liquid Flood Downcomer back-up on a trayed distillation column. ters the wellbore.
Little Joe A small pressure reduction valve. Permeability The property of a gas bearing sand formation that deter­
Loading Excessive accumulation of liquid in the tubing. mines the rate at which gas can flow out of the reservior into the weilbore.
Lubricator The fixture through which a wire line is run down into a well. Pipe-To-SoQ Potential A measure of the external corrosion tendance of a
buried pipeline.
M Plunger Lift A method used to unload gas wells of liquid.
Mandrel A gas lift system. Porosity The property of a gas bearing sand formation that determines
Master Valve The upstream valve on a wellhead tree. the volume of gas stored in the reservoir.
Meterman A gas field worker who changes the charts once a week on Pulsation Fluctuation in pressure and flow in a gas pipeline.
wellhead orifice meters. Pyrophoric Iron A form of corrosion product which ignites at ambient
Meter Run The length of straight pipe required on either side of an orifice temperatures when dry and exposed to air.
meter. Precoat Filter A renewable type of filter used to remove particulates from
Microbiocide Used to control the growth of iron consuming bacteria living a circulating amine solution.
in pipelines. Pyrometer An instrument used to measure temperature.
Multipoint Test A series of readings of wellhead pressure, upstream of the
choke, at various gas flows. R
Radiation Scan Used to detect flooding on trays in a distillation column.
N Reaction Furnace The first vessel in a Ciaus Plant, also called a Thermal
Matural Gasoline Condensate recovered from natural gas. Reactor.
NGL Natural gas liquids—that is, ethane, propane and butane. Reboiler Used to drive moisture from the circulating giycol.
Normalize Data Compile the data in a form for comparison against a base Reclaimer Used in MEA circulation systems.
period. Recomplerjon A general term used, for example, in describing reperforat-
NOX Nitrious oxide emissions. ing a well at a higher level.
Nutblasting A common technique to clean a centrifugal compressor rotor. Regenerator Strips C 0 2 & H2S out of the circulating amine.
Reservoir The pressure of the gas in the sand formation in an area away
o from the wellbore.
Orifice Meter The usual device used to measure gas flow on individual Resonant Frequency The natural frequency of a pipeline. Pulsations at this
well. frequency can increase in amplitude.
2 0 0 TROUBLESHOOTING NATURAL GAS PROCESSING GLOSSARY 201

Rod Load A mechanical limit on a reciprocating compressor. Trip Point A setting that, when exceeded, causes a compressor to shut­
Rotating Assembly A centrifugal machine's rotor. down automatically.
Royalty The percent of gross receipts paid on a well to the owner of the Tubing String A pipe run into the wellbore casing to promote gas flow.
field's mineral rights. Turbine Meter An accurate way to measure large gas flows' at custody
Rat Hole The space in the wellbore below the perforations. transfer points.
Turbo Charger A small centrifugal air compressor driven by a exhaust gas
s from a reciprocating engine; the compressed air is used as combustion
Sand Bridge A blockage of sand in the tubing above the perforations. air to the reciprocating engine.
Separator Separates water, condensate and gas into three streams.
Severance Tax A state tax paid on the production of gas and liquids. In- a
Texas, 7%. Unloading Pocket Used on reciprocating compressors to reduce the load
Scrubber A trayed or packed column used to remove H2S or CO2 from on the driver.
natural gas.
Seal Leg Used on Claus plants to drain sulfur from the condensers. V
Sheave A pulley used on an air cooler. Valve Qnloader A device that temporarily disables compressor valves to re­
Shut-In Pressure The pressure at the wellhead when no gas is flowing. duce engine load.
Soap Stick A stick dropped into a well used to promote liquid unloading.
Sour Containing H2S or C0 2 . w
Specific Gravity The molecular weight of gas divided by 29. Water Hits The sound of slugs of water hitting the wellhead tree when a
Squeeze Job Forcing additional cement around the previously cemented well unloads liquids.
in casing. Weir The device that maintains the liquid depth on a distillation tower tray.
Stripper A regenerator. Wellhead Heater Used to prevent an adjustable choke from plugging with
Super Charger Same as a Turbo Charger, except it is driven directly by hydrates.
the engine and not by hot exhaust gas. Wellhead Compressor A small reciprocating compressor placed at a well
Surge An abnormal and dangerous operating mode of a centrifugal com­ to accelerate gas recovery.
pressor. Wire Line A long, weighted wire lowered into a well to perform a variety
Split-Shaft A common feature of gas field turbine driven centrifugal com­ of downhole tasks.
pressor.
Swabbing Remove fluids from the tubing string by a mechanical method. Z
Sweet Free of sulfur compounds. Zone A level of gas bearing sands capable of commercial production.

T
Tagging Bottom Using a wire line to determine the depth of sand in the
wellbore covering the perforations.
Tandum Operation Two stage operation of a reciprocating compressor.
Tariff A charge levied by a pipeline owner for moving gas owned by
another party through their pipeline. Typically 15£ per 100 miles, per
MSCF.
TDS Total dissolved solid content in an aqueous stream such as boiler
feed water.
Tetraethylene Glycol An expensive, thermally stable dehydration agent
Torsional Vibration Analyzer An instrument used to uncover misfires in an
internal combustion engine.
Tree The complex assembly of valves that fits on top of a gas well.
Triethylene Glycol The most common dehydration agent used in gas fields.

INDEX
A "Big Joe" Valve, 174
Acidizing, 66
Acid Blower, 154
Acid Gas, 154
Acid Gases, 133
Acidic Vapors, 138
Acoustical Filters, 188,190
Acoustical Filter Bottle, 191
Adibatic Dqpansion, 173
Adjustable Choke 25,29
Adjustable Clearance, 42
Adjustable Weirs, 131
Adlehyde Type Mictobiocide, 193
Aerated Foam, 8
Aerial Cooler, 68
Afterbum, 94
Air Compressor, 56
Air Compressor Rotor, 116
Air Cooling, 50
Air Fitter, 116
Air Inlet Filter, 94
Air Row, 51
Air to Fuel Ratio, 95
Amine Corrosion Inhibitor, 137
Amine Natural Gas Scrubber, 129
Amine Regenerator, 154
Amine Regenerator Feed, 166
Amine Solution, 133
Ammonia Odor, 140
Annulus, 20
Anodes, 194
Anti-Surge, 111
Aromatic Solvent, 107
Aromatic Solvents, 193
Atmospheric Gas Vent, 33
Automated Loaders, 82
Auxiliary Drives, 49
B Catalyst Support Balls, 167
Back Pressure, 4
Back Pressure Controller, 32
Baskets Reduce Pressure Drop, 167
Bearing Damage, 103
Beit Drive, 52,56
Bernoulli's Equation, 184
Beta Scan, 85,88,96
INDEX
Biological Wastes, 106
Blade Pitch, 52
Blower Check Valve, 168
Blue Fire, 168
Boiler Tube Leaks, 156
Boiler Tube Sheets, 156
Booster Compressors, 90
Booster Stations, intro.
Bottom Hole Pressure, 5,6
Brake Mean Effective Pressure, 98
Brine, 5,16
Brine Tank, 25,32
Bubble Caps, 71
Bubble Cap Tray, 66
Buried Pipelines, 194
Button Hole, 19
C
Capacity Ratio Plot, 156
Carbide Plug, 31
Carbon Accumulation on Catalyst, 154
Carbon Black, 154
Carbon Deposits, 153
Carbon Deposits on Turbine
Blades, 116
Carbon Disuifide, 148
COa, 148
Carbon Steel Trays, 144
Carbony! Sulfide, 148
Carry—over of Glycol, 75
Cartridge Filters, 136
Cascaded Sea Legs, 165
Casing Perforations, 14,18
Casing Pressure, 18
Catalyst Activity, 150,153
Catalyst Beds, 160
Catalytic Converter, 94
Catalyst Support Screens, 158
Cathodic Protection, 193,194
Center Downcomer, 130
Centrifugal Compressors, 100
Centrifugal Force, 106
Centrifugal Gas Turbine Driven
Compressor, 113
 2 0 4 INDEX
Charcoal Removes Surfactants, 142
Chlorides, 144
Choke, 13,19,28,45
Choke Nipple, 184
Choke Nipple Coefficient, 185
Choke Sizes, 185
Circulating Dirty Amine, 135
Claus Capacity, 166
Claus Plant Warm-up, 160
Claus Reaction, 156
Claus Recovery Plant, 147
Claus Sulfur Recovery Plant, 147
Claus Unit, 150
Coil Tubing Unit, 14
Collection Header Pressure, 4
Collection Laterals, intro.
Combustion Air, 92
Combustion Air Compressor, 103, 1
Common Carrier Transmission
Lines, intro.
Compressibility, 114,117,185,189
Compression Cylinders, 85
Compression Ratio, 100
Compression Work, 81,86
Compressor Booster Stations, 184
Compressor Curves, 114
Compression Efficiency, 83,102
Compressor Fuel Gas, 178
Compressor Lube Oil, 7 6
Compressor Speed, 117
Compressor Rod Loading, 39
Compressor Surging, 103
Computer Simulation of a
Piping System, 189
Condensate Tank, 2 5 3 2
Condensers, 152
Condenser Demister, 152
Coning Water, 16
Copper Alloy, 144
Correlations to Size Meter Runs, 183
Corrosion Inhibitor, 106,137,166,192
Corrosion Probe, 193
Corrosion Products, 125
Corrosive Aspect of
Amine Solutions, 133
Coupon, 193
Crank End, 36,86
Critical Flow, 185
Cross Exchanger, 133,138
Custody Transfer Meter, 181
Custody Transfer Points, 184
Cyclic Unloading of Liquids, 7
Cylinder Exhaust temperature, 9 0
Cylinder Head, 82,91
Cylinder Liners, 91
Cylinder Mis-Fires, 9 0
Cylinder Valves, 3 7
D Entrained Grycol, 176
Dampening Bottles, 190
Damping Orifice Plates, 189
Dampen out the Pulsations, 181
Debutanizers, 120
DECA, 85
Decomposition Furnace, 159
Defective Exhaust Valves, 98
Defrosting Procedure, 176
Degreaser, 66
Dehydration Efficiency, 5 5
Demister, 152
Desuperheater, 141
Detergent, 142
Detergent Washing, 116
Detonation, 9 8
Dew Point, 69,142
Dew Point - Solid Deposition, 108
Diethyiine, 7 4
Digital Pyromoter, 51
Digital Voltmeter, 194
Dirty Amine, 133
Dirty Glycol, 6 2
Discharge Temperature, 4 7
Discharge Valve, 86
Discharge Valve Leaking, 85
Distillation Column, 120
Double Acting Cylinders, 82
Double-Pipe Exchangers, 6 2
Down Hole Problems, 13
Downcomer, 63,121
Downcomer Pipes, 71
Drager Tubes, 148
Dried Air, 89
Drilling Mud, 65
Dry Fuel Source, 176
Dry Point, 108
Drying Tower, 71
Dual Completion, 25,45
Dual Completion Wells, 18
INDEX 205
E Formation Sand, 14,103
Electronic Digital Timers, 10 Fouling, 17,119
Emulsion, 11 Fouling Deposits, 30,192
Engine Deficiency, 81 Frac Sand, 14,65
Engine Horsepower, 39,115 Freezing Temperature, 8 9
Engine Speed, 90,181 Freeze Up, 172
Engine Water, 56 Fuel Efficiency, 113
Enriched Air, 161
Fuel Gas Manifold Pressure, 81
Entrained Brine, 108
Fuel Gas Valves, 9 8
Fuel Injection Valves, 92,97
Entrain Liquids, 6,11
Fuel to Air Ratio, 9 2
Entrainment Velocity, 6 , 1 1 , 2 2 3 8
Fungible Material, intro.
Entrain Water, 8
Equilibrium, 7 4 G
Erosive Sand, 2 7 Gas Compressor, 103,112,114
Ethane, intro. Gas Cooling, 4 9
Gas How, 16
Excessive Mud Pressure, 65
Exhaust Gas, 3 9 Gas Field Operators, 1 7 8
Exhaust Gas Manifold, 9 2 Gas Lift Downhole Methods, 10
Exhaust Gas Scavenging, 97 Gas Lift Mandrels, 9
Exhaust Gas Temperature, 81 Gas Metering, 182,186
Exhaust Temperature, 115 Gas Moisture Level, 70
Exhaust Valves, 91 Gas Processors Suppliers Assoc.
External Coating Protecting Engineering Data, 190
Gas Production, 5
A Pipeline, 193
Gas Scrubbers, 128
External Grycol Stripper, 7 6
Gas Specific Gravity, 118
Exterior Corrosion, intro.
Gas Transmission, 113
Gas Turbines, 112,174
F
Gas Turbine Centrifugal
Fan Blade Pitch, 5 0
Fan Blade Tip Speed, 51 Compressors, 173
Fan Speed, 50 Gasoline Fractionation, 120
Field Compressor, 3 6 Gauge Glass, 3 0
Filter Coalescer, 108 Glycol Circulation, 69
Fin-Fan Air Cooler, 50,166 Glycol Dehydration, 4 9
Firing Time, 97 Glycol Dehydration Tower, 190
Fixed Choke, 25,29 Glycol Dehydrator, 30,108,176,179
Flameiess Heater, 177 Glycol Drying, 61
Flaring, 2 0 Glycol Losses, 63,177
H a s h Gas, 31,45 Glycoi Mist, 176
Float Chambers, 136 Glycol Pump, 61
Hooding, 120,133 Glycol Reboiler, 61,74
How-Back Connection, 2 2 Grycoi Seal, 66
How Recorder, 182 Governor Speed Control, 91
Rowing-Back, 2 0
H
Rowing Tube Pressure, 4
Head-End, 3 6
Rowpoint, 9
Head End Cylinder Clearance, 4 5
Foaming, 130,177
Foaming Glycol, 177 Head End Clearance Pocket
Adjustment, 181
 206 INDEX
Heat of Condensation, 55
Heat Transfer Coefficient, 51
Heater Capacity, 29
High Meter Reading, 181
High Pressure Separator, 25,29
High Valve Losses, 85
Hot Discharge Valve Cap, 88
"Huff & Puff', Self-Cleaning
Air Filter, 116
Hydrate Formation, 28,172,174
Hydraulic Oil, 56
Hydrogen Sulfide, 148
H2S Scrubbing Towers, 129
Hydrauiic Height of Liquid, 132
Hydraulic Powered Fans, 56
Hydrocarbon Deposits, 66
Hydrocarbon Hydrate, 172
Hydrocarbon Skimming Tap, 129
Hydrocarbon Vapor, 31
Hydrochloric Acid, 66
Hydrolized, 151
I Liquid Level Dumps, 179
Ice Crystals, 176
Ignition Valves, 91
Impeller, 56,93
Impeller Diameter, 117
Impeller Fouling, 111
Impeller to Casing Clearance, 94
Incinerator Temp., 149
Incipient Entrainment Velocity, 8
Incipient Jet Rood, 130
Incremental Gas Flow, 3
Inducer, 93
Instrument Gas, 30
Instrument Gas Bottle, 10
Interface Level, 31
Intermitter, 10
Intermitter Controller, 10
Internal Combustion Engine, 90
Internal Peak Discharge Pressure, 89
Iron Sulfide Particulates, 136
Isobutane, intro.
J MIT, 85
Jet Erectors, 19
Jet Hood, 121,122
Joint Ventures, intro.
Joules Thompson Expansion, 174
K Motor Valve, 10
Kerosene Blanket 145
Kettle Reboiler, 125
Key Components, 120
Knock Out Drum, 177
L Natural Gasoline, 32
Labyrinth Seals, 110
Labyrinth Seal Leakage, 103
Late Combustion, 97
Leaking Condenser Tubes, 153
Leaking Liquid Dump Valve, 29
Leaky Valves, 88
Lean Amine, 133,138
Level Taps, 136
Lift Gas, 19
Liquid Backing Gp out of the
Downcomers, 131
Liquid Dump, 175
Liquid Rood, 121
Liquid Rood Point, 121
Liquid Loading, 1,6
Liquid Level in a Vessel, 128
Liquid Sulfur, 156
Liquid Unloading, 1
Lithium Bromide, 143
Lost Compression Horsepower, 81
Low Pressure Three Phase
Separator, 2531
Low Sulfur Gas, 170
Low Wellhead Pressure, 8
Lubricator, 14
M Peak Pressure of Cylinder, 97
Magneholic Gauges, 123
Main Line Compressors, 172
Master Valve, 27
MDEA, 166
Meter Recording, 181
Meter Run, 33,180,184,190
Metered Row, 47
Methanol, 178
Mineral Rights, intro.
Mositure Specifications, 59,62,176
Molecular Weight, 118
Monoethanolamine, 133
Moths, 53
Multipoint Test, 3
N Positive Choke, 40
Natural Gas condensate, 29
Natural Gas Hydrates, 115
Nitrogen Purge, 169
Nitrous Oxides, 92
Normal Butane, intro.
O Production Rubing, 16
Olefins in Natural Gas, 89
Open Area Gnder the Downcomer, 131 Propane, intro.
Orifice Diameter, 182
Orifice Meter, 25
Orifice Plate, 32,180,182,191
Organic Solvent, 193
Orifice Taps, 136
Otto Cycle, 95
Outlet Weir, 131
Oxidized Amine, 135
Oxygen Deficiency, 98
Oxygen to Enrich Process Air, 161
P
Packer, 18
Packed Beds, 120
Panel Board, 89
Paraffin, 106
Paraffin Wax, 192
Pass-Partition Baffle, 50
Peak Pressure, 89
Peak Speed, 115
Perforations, 1,16
Perforations Covered with Sand, 27
Permeability, 1,4
Pipe to Soil Potential, 194
Pipeline Booster Compressors, 173
Pipeline Moisture Specification, 50
Pipeline Pressures, intro.
Piping Pulsation, 87,182,189
Piping Reducers, 182
Piston, 82
Piston Position, 85
Piston Rings, 97
Piston Ring Leakage, 87
INDEX 207
Poppet Valves, 88
Porosity, 1,4
Portable Sand Separator Skids, 21
Power Cylinder, 90
Pneumatic Relays, 89
Pressure Drop in a Sulfur Plant, 153
Pressure at Perforations, 5
Pressure Sensing Taps, 180
Pressure-Volume Diagram, 85
Production Losses, 33
Promote Gas Row, 1
Propane-Butane Splitter, 122
Plugged with Hydrates, 173
Plugged Orifices, 183
Plunger Lift, 10
Pulsation, 33,86,181,182,188
Pulsation Bottles, 189
Pulsation Damper, 182
Pulsation Effects, 180
Pulsation Induced Metering Error, 182
Pulsation Problems, 89
Pulley, 52
Pumping Efficiency, 61
Pyrometers, 97
Pyrophonic Iron, 168
R
Radial Bearings, 110
Radiation Scan, 126
Reboiler, 125
Rated Speed, 42
Ratio of Specific Heats, 189
Reaction Furnace, 149,152,156
Reactor Inlet Baskets, 166
Reboiier Drum, 70
Reboiler Duty, 120
Reboiler Leaks, 133
Reboiler Temperature, 74
Reboiler Tube Corrosion, 137
Reboiler Tube Metallurgy, 166
Reboiier Vapor Return Nozzle, 126
Recessed Sumps, 131
Reciprocating, 45
Reciprocating Compressor, 81,89,181
Reciprocating Engine, 90,113,176
Reclaimer, 138
208 INDEX INDEX

Reclaimer Duty, 140
Reclaimer Operation, 137
Rectification Section, 124
Rectifier, 194
Reduced Compression Efficiency, 1
Reduced Conversion, 153
Reference Electrode, 194
Reflux, 137
Reflux Rate, 120
Refactory, 159
Regenerator, 140
Regenerator Boiler, 133
Regenerator ReboUer Tube Leak,
Regenerator Reflux, 137
Reheat Line, 156
Reheat Exchangers, 163
Reheat Exchanger, 150
Rejection of C0 2 , 166
Reservoir, 9
Reservoir Pressure, 4,16
Resonant Frequency, 188
Resonant Piping Length, 189
Retarded Firing, 97
Rich Amine, 133,148
Rich Amine Surge Drum, 147
Rod Loading, 39,41,88
Rotating Assembly, 113
Rotary Precoat Filters, 136
Rotor, 93
Rotor Fouling, 119
Rotor Vibration, 103
Royalty, 33
Royalty Payments, 180
S Suction Temperature, 118
Salt Deposits, 107,108
Salt Laydown, 75
Salty Environments, 194
Sand Bridge, 13
Sand Covering Perforations, 13
Sand Formation, 4
Sand Separator, 21
Scrubber, 133
Scrubber, Foaming, 141
Sea Leg Blowout, 164
Seal Legs, 157
Secondary Valve, 27
Self-Cleaning Air Filter, 116
Senior Meter Run. 33
Severance Tax, 33,182
Sheave, 52
Shut-In Pressure, 3,4,13
Sieve Holes, 181
Silicone Defoamer, 142
Single Completion, 25
Skids, 21
Soap-Sticking, 43
Soap Sticks, 10,11,2238
Soda Ash, 138
Solid Hydrates, 177
Solvent Injection System, 107
Sonic Velocity, 185
Spark or Stack, 136
Spark Plug, 98
Spark Plug Wires, 91
Sparger Pipe, 75
Steam Condensate Level, 137
Specific Gravity, 5,114,185
Speed Sound, 189
Spillback Control, 110
Split Shaft, 103,112
Squeeze-Job, 18
Stabilized Shut-In Pressure, 3
Stainless Tubes, 144
Stalling, 110
Statiscope, 98
Steam Boiler, 156
Stokes Law, 8
Stripping Gas, 75
Stripping Efficiency, 177
Specific Gravity of Sulfur, 157
Structure to Environmental
Potential, 196
Suction Valves, 87
Sulfate Reducing Bacteria, 192
Sulfur Fires, 152
Sulfur Fog, 151
Sulfur Hexafluoride, 143
Sulfur Plants, 149
Sulfur Plant Catalyst, 150
Sulfur Recovery Capacity, 166
Sulfur Recovery Plant, 133,135
Sulfuric Acid, 158,169
Sulfuric Acid Formation, 153
Sulfur Solidifies in the
Catalyst Beds, 156
Supercharged Engine, 92
Surfactants, 38
Surface Metal Temperature, 84
Surface Piping, 6
Surface Pressure, 37
Surface Tension, 136
Surge, 110
Sustaining Entrainment Velocity, 7
Superheated Gas, 68
Swabbed Out 23
Sweet Gas, 133
T Turbine Wheel, 103
Tachometer, 91
Tagged Depth, 14
Tandum, 36
Tariff, intro.
Tax Payments, intro.
Temperature Drying Force, 51
Temperature Increase of Gas
Due to Compression, 83
Temperature Inversion, 128
Temperature Rise, 55
Tetraethylene Glycol, 63
Thermal Degradation, 75
Thermocouples on the
Gas Exhausts, 90
Thermoplastic Valve Plates, 88
Theoritical Reduction
in Conversion, 163
Theoritical Gas Row, 120
Three-pass Trays, 130
Three Phase Separator, 32,45
Thrust Bearings, 110
Top Tray Equilibrium, 74
Torsional Vibration Analyzer, 91
Tower Internals, 120
Tower Pressure Drop, 121,132
Total Dissolved Solids, 142
Toxic Vapors, 164
Transmission Compressors, 82
Transmission Lines, intro.
Transmission Pipelines, 49
Transmission Temperatures, 55
Tray Capacity, 70
Trayed Columns, 64
Tray Damage, 132
Tray decks, 120
Tray Design, 131
Triethylene, 49
Triethyiene Glycol, 62,193
Trips, 42
Tube Fouling, 50
Tubing Dimensions, 9
Tubing Entrainment Velocity, 39
Tubing Pressure, 20
Tubing String, 4,9,25
Turbine, 112
Turbine Blades, 116
Turbine Metering, 186
Turbine to Shroud Tip Clearance, 94
Turbocharger, 49,56,92,98
Two-Stage Compressor, 36
a
Underground Collection Lateral, 181
Unloader Pocket, 81,82
Unloading Liquids, 6
Upset Tray Decks, 128
V
Valve Lift, 89
Valve Losses, 88
Valve Plate Springs, 89
Valve Plates, 87
Valve Ports, 88
Valve Trays, 72
Vapor Liquid Distribution, 130
Vertical Temperature Profile, 153
Vertical Temperature Survey, 126
Vibrations, 188
Vibration Induced by Reciprocating
Compressors, 188
Viscosity, 8
Volumetric Capacity, 37,82
W
Water Hits, 38,47
Wasted Horsepower, 87
Wear Ring, 56
Weir, 121
Weir Heights, 132
Wet Gr/col Flash Drum, 70
Wellhead Cap, 22
Wellhead Compressors 13,16,76
Wellhead Field Compressor, 36
Wellhead Liquids, intro.
Wellhead Performance Curve, 3
210 INDEX

Wellhead Pressure, 9,33

Wellhead Tree, 1,11,18,25
Wellhead Tubing Velocity, 39
Wire Line 5,14
Worn Piston Rings, 88

X
X-Ray, 132
 ABOUT THE BOOK

Troubleshooting Natural Gas Processing is based on Norm Lieberman's

experiences in gas fields in South Texas. Encompassing wellhead produc­
tion problems, as well as gas treating, dehydration, compression and
transmission, the book recounts the trials and tribulations of moving gas from
the wellhead to the common carrier pipeline from both a technical and
personal viewpoint. Each chapter describes the operating principles and
troubleshooting techniques of a particular process step in the context of the
time and place the problem was first encountered.

Troubleshooting sulfur recovery, amine treating and light hydrocarbon

distillation techniques are based on the Author's many years of experience in
petroleum refineries and process plants. Norm Lieberman's approach is to
attack problems from the most practical level possible.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Trained as

a chemical engineer at Cooper
Union and Purdue, Mr. Lieberman
worked for Amoco Oil and GHR
Energy prior to establishing Pro­
cess Improvement Engineering in
Metairie, La. He has held positions
as an operating superintendent,
technical manager and refinery
manager. His current activities en­
compass field troubleshooting and
teaching troubleshooting seminars
based on his previous best selling
books.

Norman P. Lieberman

ISBN 0-87814-306-8