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International Compressor Engineering Conference School of Mechanical Engineering

1990

Design Considerations for High-Pressure

Reciprocating Compressors for Refinery Services
S. N. Dwivedi
Bharat Pumps & Comprs. Ltd.

Follow this and additional works at: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/icec

Dwivedi, S. N., "Design Considerations for High-Pressure Reciprocating Compressors for Refinery Services" (1990). International
Compressor Engineering Conference. Paper 715.
https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/icec/715

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 !IES IGN CON SIDE RAT IONS
F<:R HIGH -ERE SSU RE
REX :Iffi0 ::AT IN3 COM ml>S SCR
S FOR REF !NEa Y
SEFI.VJCES

S. N, !IWI VED I
Man ager .Cem pres sor Des ign
Bha rat Pumps: & Com pres sors
~ sub sidi ary of Bha rat Ltd .
Nai ni.A llah aca d-2 11 010 , Yan tra Nigam)
IND IA, '

Rec ipro cati ng Com pres

app lica tion s in the Ref inersors are used for a vid e var iety of
nec ess itat es some spe cial y serv ices . The refi ner y env iron men t
so as to res ult in a smo oth con side rati ons ~Y the com pres
ins tall atio n, trou ble free ope rati on ctf sor des ign er
the mac hine
The pre sen t pap
tion s req uire d fer a er brin gs out some pra ctic al
suc ces des ign con side ra-
foll owi ng the sug ges tion s sful des ign of the com pres sor bes ides
der atio ns incl ude a thor oug cov ered in API Sta nda rds. The se con si-
h ana lysi s of the gas and
sele ctio n of suit abl e met allu
rgy its pro per ties
sion of suit abl e dyn ami c $ea for the wet ted com pon ents , pro vi-
ilde qua te des igni ng of dam ls, typ e of lub rica tion as wel l as
knocktoOut drum te take carpne rs. inte rco ole rs am sep ara tors or
who le des ign pro cess culm e of ~he con den sate s,
slud ge, etc . The
the safe and reli abl e ctpeinat
rati
ing into an ana log stud y res
ults in
refi ner y pla nt. on of the mac hine as wel l as the

The pap er con clud es with spe

for wha t they sho uld look cifi c sug ges tion for the use
fer whi le mak ing spe cifiscati
cem pres sor mea nt for the refi
rs
ner y serv ice. ons for the

INl'R 0000'1' !ON

Ref ine ries invo lve a var iety
com pres sors for han dlin of serv ices
a wid e var iety of gasreq
hyd roge n, met han e,et han eg to
uiri ng use of
es, rang ing from
Many of the se app lica tion s a mix ture of var iou s hyd roca rbo ns.
mos t Qf thes e now -a-d ays areinvo lve Rec ipro cati ng com pres sors and
com pres sors , hor izo nta l bala nce d ~ opp osed

Rec ipro cati ng com pres sors ,

cap able of ach ievi ng the due to the ir inh eren t des ign
hig hes t pre ssu res invo , are
In fac t, the hig hes t pre ssu lved in any serv ice.
re tha t can be ach ieve d by a rec ipro -
cati ng com pres sor is lim ited
the mat eria ls emp loye d for only by the phy sica l pro per
its con stru ctio n. In add ties of
mac hine s hav e the adv anta ge o£ high flex ibil ity to itio n thes e
var ied ope rati ng con diti ons ope rate at
and pre ssu re tha t may be invo lvin g a broa d rang e of
req uire d dur ing var iou s pha cap acit ies
pro ces s, ses of a
App lica tion s do var
des ign er is to end eav our y.to but the sole aim of the com pres sor
para met ers by a jud icio us ach ieve the req uire d
pro ces sing for ind ivid ual com bina tion <:~f des ign s, ope rati ng
com pres sor com pon ents somat eria ls and
as to ens ure

273
 highest economically and practically feasible, t'foul:lle-free
working life feu:" the ccmpress~r. 'this ultimately helps the
reffinery maintain ~ even increase their processing capabili~
ties over a longer duration.

REFINERY APf'I.ICAT ION:!,

Refinery applications involve compressors for handling

'Crude Over-head' ·ijas containing a complex mixture of hydro-
carbons including petroleum cuts. Compressors are also required
fc:~r handling a miXture of hydrogen and hydrocarbons in varying
proportions. ~arge high pressure Reciprocating compressors are
required for tne hydrogen-make-up service for hydrocracker
plants intended to enhance the yield of middle distillutes
from a refinery.
These services normally involve hazardous environment 1l1
Which the compressors are required to operate. API Standard 618
'Reciprocating C~essors for General Refinery services' now
running in the Third Edition ef February 1966 is based upon the
accumulated knowledge and experience of manufactures and users
of reciprocating compressors and intends to establish the
minimum mechanical requirements. This standard has been univer-
sally accepted for Reciprocating compressors, in general and
ref ~ery service compressors in particular.
A designer, however, weuld l~k in the minutest details
of the service, gas handled and the operating conditions for
deciding upon the best suited design ~f the compressor and all
its oompenents so as to match the expe<:tations of the user.

APPLICATION CONSIDERATIONS
It is important that·a11 the operating parameters involved
in the particular service are well specified in the beginning
itself. indicating the minutest details as accurately as
possible. The design is normally based on the following
parameterss
- Gas to be handled.
- Suction & Discharge pressures & temperaturese
-Capacity required i.'OI.i.ic:o.ting capacity control requirements
Lubrication conditions
Drive arrangement and Prime mover
Location & environment
thorough knowledge of the properties and behavious of
the gas to be handled is moGt essential for the proper applica-
tion of a compressor. The usar should specify the exact gas
composition(or the range of composition, in case of a variation
at various operating stages of the refinery) enumerating the
mole percentages of the individual constituents of the mixture
including pseudo-cuts in case of complex hydrocarO.n mixture.
Based on this, by means of a computer program using Soave-
Radlick-Kwang and UNIFAC methods. the thorne-physical properties
of the gas can be determined, as well as flash calculations are
done to estimate the amount of condensate to be taken out of
gas stream after each cooler. This data is used further for the
sizing of the cylinders of va rlo ,,._s stages as well as the design
of separators.

274
 It is also important that any component s causing corrosion ,
condensat ion er polymeris ation shoUld be identified and the
design of compresso r should take care of these.
ased on suction ~d disch~ge c~nditions and the capacity
required, the number of stages and power requireme nts for
compressio n are calculated . 'I'hia leads t• frame selection and
design of cylinders fer the various stages. Cylinder si21ng is
also affected by lubricati~n condition s, viz. mineral oil
lubricated , synthetic oil lubricated , or non-lubri cated, which
depend upon the process. In general, however, an optimum
lubricatio n is the best recommend ed ce~mdition.
Capacity control, in stepped or stepless mapner as required
f~ plant starting and operation as also in view of energy
conservat ion. can be suitably incorpora ted into the design,
depending upGn user's requireme nts.
The compresso r can be driven through a •v' belt for low
power ranges, a gear box in moaerate/ high power ranges or
directly through a flexible or rigid ~upling for almost any
power range. The prime mGYer could be 5lectric motor, diesel
engine, gas engine, gas turbine or steam turbine. The compresso r-
driver system is examined thoroughly for compatib ility of drive
elements, by conducting torsional analysis by means of a
computer program.
The location and environme nt ef the plant alongwith data
on available utilities must be furnished by client so as to
enable the designer design a suitaele compressio n system.Cl imatic
condition s may necessita te suitable preventiv e measures to avoid
any mal-funct ioning. while availabil ity of utilities dictate the
limitation s, within which the heat e~hangers, etc. are to be
designed. li:nviro~ntal area classifica tions based. on NEx:: or
other standards specified by the client, are necessary in order
to make a proper selection of li:lectric motors, instrumen ts and
control panel to suit the hazardous area classifica tion.
COMPRESSa l. COMPONENI'S DESIGN

While for_compr essor frame, crankshaf t,eonnecti ng rods,

cross-head s ate. standard designs and metallurg ies are used,
cylinder component s are designed to withstand the pressures and
forces involved and their metallurgy is selected based on their
compotab ility with the gas to be handled.. Cylinders in Cast Iron,
SGICI,stee l casting as well as forgings are used depending upon
the pressures to be handled. Piston rods and valves in stainless
steel (13% Cr) metallurgy are employed for normal non-lube or
corrosive services, while for gases involving H25 the piston
rods made of 17-4 l'H precipita tion hardening stainless steels are
used. While the normal 13% Cr stainless steel rods are surface
hardened to so HRC or mere in the packing zone, the 17-4 PH rods
are through hardened to upto 33 HRC which is the maximum hardness
level allowable for this material in H2S environme nt. Most other
materials while ceing used in H25 environme nt are not recommend ed
for hardening above 22 HRC, wbich is insufficie nt to orovide
necessary strength for the rod. -
While dealing with gases involving high percentag es of
hydrogen it is important to provide a very good h~ish for
achieving a perfect seal at all metal to metal sealing contacts,
~~ch as those between the cylinder head, liner and cylinder,
valve sealing faces, stuffing heX packing cups, etc.

275
 DYNAMIC SEALS

The reciprocating compressor functions by sucking gas

through suct1$n valves int~ the cylinder during the backward
stroke of the piston and compressing the gas and delivering
it through the discharge valves to the discharge manifolc
during the forward stroke of the piston. 'I'hus the efficiency
of the c0111press1on cycle deJ;~ends to a large extent on the
effectiveness of ~he dynamic seals, viz ~iston rings, packing
rings and valves. This is the area which should and actually
does receive maximum attention from the designer particularly
while designing a compressor for handling refinery gases
containing good percentages of hydrogen which has a higher
teadency to deceive these seals due to its low molecular weight.
set of piston rings, pYOVided on the piston, sliding on
the inside surgaee of the cylinder liner, ~rcvide the seal
be~ween the suction and discharge ends of a double acting
cylinder. The nwnber of piston rings required for an applica-
tion depends on the pressure differential, the type of gas and
\IO."l....,. other factors such as speed and cylinder size ..
For most of the refinery applications, with lubricated or
non-lubricated cylinders, filled PTFE piston rings, in two-
piece construction can ce considered ideal upto moderately high
pressure differentials. This is recause of the fact that P!FE:
while rubbing on a metallic surface initially wears fast so as
to form a thin layer of PI'FE poWder on the counter surface so
that subsequent sliding takes place between PTiE an:i Pl'FE, for
which the coefficient of friction is extremely low. This
ensures consiQerably longer life for the piston rings as well
a.s the liner. ·
For higher pressure applications however PTFE may be
subject to extrusion through the gap between t6e piston and
liner and as such bronze piston rings are used, Which must be
adequately lubricated. Bronze piston ~ings can be used for the
highest pressures involved in refinery services.
Two-piece balanced design as shown in Fig .. l, serves well
in most refinery application.· ~ile the two-piece design with
parallel angle cuts at l::oth ends results in an ideal contact
and flying action, the presence of pressure balancing grooves
results 1n considerably low net radial force on the liner and
a~most uniform load shearing between all rings, so as to result
in reduced wear of ring as well. as liner.
So as to el:iminate the possibility of piston rings taking
the dead weight of the piston, a pair of rider rings mostly in
filled. PTFE material is mounted on the piston. The rider rir.g
(f1g.2) has an angle cut for expanding it over the piston for
asse bly and a suitable number of pressure-relieving grooves on
the outer surface so as to ensure that the rider ring does not
perform the work of piston rings.
The packing rings, provided in suitable housing cups
forming part of the stuffing box assembly, are usually a three-
piece segmental design kept together with the help of a garter
spring. The packing ring configuration for most high-pressure
refinery applications consists of a pressure-breaker ring on
the pressure side, followed by a suitable number of ~adial-
T angential (Ror) pair of seal rin?s and one or two Tangential-
Tangential iT-T) pair of seal rings in the last one or two cup&
(Fig.3J. Either filled-PTFE or bronze or a comcination of both

276
 are use d dep end ing upon
the nat ure · of app lica tio
n.
The suc tio n and -di sch arg
of the com pre sso r, thu s e val ves are known as the
'he art '
fun ctio nin g. For syc h a-ssig nif yin g the imp orta nce of the ir
sin ale pie ce of har dwa re eem ing ly sim ple dev ice , the
re is no
inf lue nce on its eff ici encon the cem pre sso r tha t has a gre ate r
is req uir ed in the des ign y. Thi s is the rea son why
dis cha rge val ves so as of com pre sso r suc n and utm ost car e
to ens ure des ire d pertio for ma nce .
Val ves of rin g typ e OJ:'
upo n the gas and the pla te typ e can be
des ign ed s0 as to res ope rati ng con dit ion s. tbe use d dep end ing
val ves are
ult
pre ssu re dro p, whi ch in in a smo oth ope rat ion wit h min
tur n res ult s in optimi imum of
tio n. Los ses in the val ~ed pow
e~~tl in rec ycl e
ves may assu me lar ge pro por tioner con sum p-
s pa rti -
var iat ion of suc tio nser vic e com pre sso rs. In app
typ e val ve (Fi g. 4) respre ssu re a dou ble -me cha niclica tio ns inv olv ing
ult s in optimum per for ma al dam pin g pla te
the fac t tha t use of com nce
mai n val ve pla te allo ws par ativ ely lig hte r wor kin. Thi s is due to
g spr ing s
pre ssu re, wh ile the pre val ve ope nin g at a sli gh t dif fer enton ial
the
wor kin g pla te aft er a parsen ce of dam per pla te whi
ch
t of its mcnrement, ens ure joi ns the
vel oci ty at the gua rd. s low er imp act

Lu:ER:O:AT ION CCNS!DERA

T IONS
The re are twa
a rec ipr oca tin g comind epe nde nt lub ric ati on sys
pre sso r, one for the tem s emp loy ed in
ani the othe~ for the ~yl -cr ank gea r lub ric ati on
inder and stu ffin
~ila the cra nk- gea g
r lub~ication sys tem is box lUb ric atio n.
sso~s, the cyl ind a
er
elim ina ted in cas e ofand stu ffin g bcx lub ric atimu st on all com pre -
on sys tem is
non -lu bri cat ed comp~e sso~ appli~ations
.
Pet role um bas ed lub ric ant
con ven tio nal ly use d fo~ s of suit al:> le graCles hav
com pre sso r lub ric ati on. e bee n
How eve r, in some
bee n ach iev ed by usi of the app lica tio ns ver y goo d res ult s hav e
res ult ed int o foll owng die ste r bas ed syn the tic
ing adv ant age sz oil s whi ch hav e
EX tend ed c~ank-case dra
oxi dat ion sta J:;i lity 111f in int erv als due to bet ter the rma l
the se oil s.
- Ext el\d ed val ve ma inte
nan
of car bon aee ous dep osi ts.ce int erv als due to the al:;sence
- Red uce d oil con sum ptio
n due to low ve lat ilit y.
Imp~oved saf ety
as a res ult of hig her fla
~~t~ignition temper sh poi nt and
atu~e com bin ed wit
h
and abs enc e of car bon ace ous dep osi ts. low vo lat ilit y
- Ext end ed lif e of wea ring
ent of fri cti on and hig par ts due to the low er coe ffi ci-
h film str eng th.
Lower sump tempe~atu~es
con duc tiv ity and gre ate res ult ing from the bet ter the rma l
r hea t cap aci ty.
DES mN CONSIDERATIONS
FOR AUX ILIA RIE S

The com pre ssio n

suc tio n and dis cha rge sys tem con sis ts of aux ilia
rie s, suc h as the
int erc ool ers and aft er-pul sat ion dam pne es on eac h sta ge cyl ind er,
int erc onn ect ing pip ing .coo ler s, oil /co nde nsa te sep ara tor s and

277
 The pulsaticn dampners are desi,Jned, with or without
internals to dampen the flow and pressure pulsations generated
by the reciprGCating motion of the piston. ~oprietary tech-
niques are used to make affective designs which reduce the
pulsations at the outlet flange of the dampeners to a considera-
bly low level. When requ~red to sperate against a wide variation
of gas characteristic s the dampeners are suitably designed to
be effective over a wide range. These vessels are designed in
accordance with ASME Section v:III div.l or div.2 so as to
handle the pressure to which ehese are subjected during
operation.
The heat exchangers are designed, in most of the cases, as
shell and tube heat exchangers in accordance with !&MAC orTEMAR
based on the availability of cooling water. The metallurgy of
tubes and the shell is selected in view of the nature of gas
handled and the quality of water available. Duplex stainless
steel tubes and tube sheets have been used for a number of
applications. The meehaniea1 design coaforms to ASME Section
VIII ~iv.l or 2, as applicable.
The separators or kngelt-out drums, could either be plain
vertical vessels with a demister pad on top and oil collecting
portion at the bottom er could be high efficiency vane pack type
separators of proprietary designs. depending upon the gas
characteristic s and the process requirements~
Inter-connectin g piping of suitable metallurgy and pressure
t:ating is provided l::etween the stages so as to couple the
various awd.liaries to the comoressor cylinders. ANS:r stanciards
are followed for the piping design and flexiD11ity analysis is
conducted as required.

Pt.TI.SAT ION AND VIBRATION CONI'ROL CONSIDERATIONS

Flew and pressure pulsations generated by the reciprocating

compressor may semetimes get coupled ~c the p1p1ng.produci ng
vibrations and even fatigue faitures. On. the other hand. pulsa-
tions also result in decreased operat1onal efficiency of the
compressor on account of significant deviations in indicated
cylinder horsepower and capacity with consequent overloads and
loss in efficiency.
Pulsation and vibration control is achieved by sbitably
designed pulsatien dampners which are finally checked by
conducting an ~alog/Digital pulsation study and mechanical
response study in accordance with Design approach 3 of API 618-
1986. This study indicate·s any acoustical or mechanical
resonances that may result in exeessive vibrations and stresses
leading to failure and suggests necessary modifications in the
vessels and piping so as to eliminate these problems. As all
this evaluation can be done at the design stage itself without
actually building the plant, necessary changes/modif ications
can :t.e readily incorporated into the system so as to ol::tain an
optimum performance.

CO!•CLUSION

In view of the variou,s design considerations involved in

refinery service compressors, it is suggested that the compressor
user while making the specifications for the compressors should
specify all known and predictacle gas characteristic s and
variations in gas composition if any expected during the

Z78
 Gperat ion of the plant ~<i try to list ou.t all operati
tions to which the compre ssar may be subjec t during ng cc;mti-
run, Eb<i of run or regene ration c::onditi$ns~ The cap~itstart of
y
contro l require ments, in stsppe< i or steples s manner
shGuld be indicat ed and the area classif ication should as require d
elabor ated. It is also sugges ted that ~ufficient interac be
betwee n the proces s design ers and comp~essor design tion
be encoura ged during the design stage so that ers should.
to meet all anticip ated require ments from the the user is able
equipm ent •

.ACKNOWLEDGEMENl'

The author acknow ledges his gratitu d.e tQ the manage

of MVS Bharat Pumps & Compre ssors Ltd., for permit ment
publica tiQn of this paper. ting

REFEREN:ES
1. Dwived i s .N .a •.Perfor mance Evalua tion by analog study
a two-sta ge Recipr ocating compre ssor handlin g comple of
Hydroc arbon Mixtur es•- Procee dings of 1994 Intern ationa x
compre ssor engine ering confere nce at Purdue, USA. l
2. Dwived i,S.N.a ~ompressor Vibrati on Problem s due to
changed Gas compos ition-A case Stddyu - Proceed ing of
1986 Interna tional compre ssor engine ering confere nce
at Purdue, USA.
3. Dwived i,S.N.a QDesign feature s of a High pressu re compre
ssor far Insitu combus tion plant f~tr extrac tion of High -
Viscos ity rude in India• - Procee dings of UNITAR /UNOP
4th Interna tional confere nce on Heavy crude and Tar
August 7-12,19 88,Alb erta.Ca nada. sands,
4. Dwived i,S.N.: ~ole of Piston and rod seals toward s
improve d perform ance of Recipr ocating compre ssors• -
?rocee dings of 1994 Nation al eon£er ence on Indust rial
Tribol cgy,Ju ly '84,Hyd era.bad , India.
s. Dwived i,S.N.s ~ribologieal consid eraLio ns in the design
o£ recipro cating compre ssors•- Precee dings
Nation al Semina r on Tribolo gy in the chemicof 1985
al Proces s
Indust ry. Dec.'SS ,New Delhi, India.
6. Owived i,S.n.a •Design feature s of dynami c seals for
pressu re comprs . for air separa tion high
plant.-; " - Pr:>cee dings
of 9th Nation al semina r on Indust.ria..l. Gas, Jan. '87,
Bhuban ashwar ,India,.
7. Dwived i,S.N. e1hd. Nimitz. !"I.Von s •Role of analog study
toward~ better Perform ance Qf recipro cating
plants - Procee dings of semina r on compre ssor compre ssor
and improv ements. May '83 1 .\llahab ad, :India. perform ance
8. !:lWIV£D !,S .N.: "Lates t trends in the Design
of Reci,:r oca-
ting compre ssors• - Procee dings of 1989, Energy Source s
Techno logy Confer ence & Exhibition,Dallas,Texas,~SA, .

"279
FIG t: BALANCED.Z-PIEC£ PISTON RING

F"IG2: CUT RIDER RING WITH F'ULL PRESSURE REUEF

280
 PRES SURE
SREAK E.R RING
TANGE NTIAL TO ROO
PACKIN G RING WITH
BACK UP RING

DOUSLE. ACTION PACKING R.ING

FIG. 3 PAC.KING RING DES IGN S

FIG.4 VALVE' DOUB LE DAMP ING D£Sl 6N

281