Natural Gas Engineering

(CHE-484)
Lectures 23 - 24:

Removal of Acid Gases

1
Acid gases
• The H2S and CO2 in natural gas wellstreams
- Form acids or acidic solutions in the presence of
water
- No heating value
- Cause problems to systems and the environment
• Sour gas refers to the gas containing H2S in amounts
above the acceptable industry limits
• A sweet gas is a non-H2S-bearing gas or gas that has
been sweetened by treating
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S)
• Toxic, poisonous gas
• Cannot be tolerated in gases if used for domestic
fuels
• Extremely corrosive in the presence of water
• Can cause
- premature failure of valves, pipeline, and
pressure vessels
- catalyst poisoning in refinery vessels
• requires expensive precautionary measures
• Most pipeline specifications limit H2S content to
0.25 g/100 ft3 of gas (about 4 ppm)
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
• Less detrimental effects than H2S
• CO2 removal is required when
- gas going to cryogenic plants to prevent CO2
solidification
• Carbon dioxide is corrosive in the presence of water
• Most treating processes that remove H2S will also
remove CO2
• The volume of CO2 in the wellstream is added to the
volume of H2S to arrive at the total acid-gas volume
to be removed
Acid gas removal (i.e., removal of carbon dioxide and
hydrogen sulfide from natural gas streams) is achieved
by application of one or both of the following process
types:
1) Absorption
2) Adsorption
• CO2 capture from natural gas can be performed by
several techniques
1. Solvent scrubbing
2. Adsorption process
3. Membranes
4. Cryogenic distillation

• CO2 capture by adsorption process has a potential in

reducing energy requirement and operational costs
due to smaller energy consumption and low
maintenance requirements
Acid gas removal
• Currently practiced, selective absorption of the
contaminants into a liquid, which is passed
countercurrent to the gas
• The absorbent is stripped of the gas components
(regeneration) and recycled to the absorber
• The process design will vary, may employ multiple
absorption columns and multiple regeneration
columns
Acid gas removal
• Classification of liquid absorption (below 50 ⁰C)
1. physical solvent processes
2. chemical solvent processes
• Physical solvent processes
‒ employ an organic solvent
‒ absorption is enhanced by low temperatures, or
high pressure, or both
‒ Regeneration of the solvent is often accomplished
readily
Acid gas removal
• Chemical solvent processes
‒ Employ alkaline solutions such as amines or
carbonates
‒ Regeneration can be brought about by use of
reduced pressures and/or high temperatures,
whereby the acid gases are stripped from the
solvent
1. Amine processes / Alkanolamine Sweetening
• The primary process for sweetening sour natural gas
• Extensively use for the removal of H2S and CO2 from
other gases
• Particularly adapted for obtaining the low acid-gas
residuals specified by pipelines
• Amine (olamine) solutions are used to remove the
hydrogen sulfide
• Alkanolamine encompasses the family of organic
compounds of
‒ monoethanolamine (MEA)
‒ diethanolamine (DEA)
‒ triethanolamine (TEA)
1. Amine processes/Alkanolamine Sweetening
(Cont’d)
• The sour gas is run through a tower, which contains
the olamine solution
• Either of these compounds (olamine) will absorb
sulfur compounds from natural gas as it passes
through
• The effluent gas is virtually free of sulfur compounds,
and thus loses its sour gas status
• The amine solution used can be regenerated for
reuse
1. Amine processes / Alkanolamine Sweetening
(Cont’d)
• Absorbing reactions are:
2𝑅𝑁𝐻2 + 𝐻2 𝑆 → 𝑅𝑁𝐻3 2 𝑆
2𝑅𝑁𝐻2 + 𝐶𝑂2 + 𝐻2 𝑂 → 𝑅𝑁𝐻3 2 𝐶𝑂3
• Extremely fast reaction
• Regeneration of the solution leads to near complete
desorption of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide
𝑅𝑁𝐻3 2 𝑆 → 2𝑅𝑁𝐻2 + 𝐻2 𝑆
𝑅𝑁𝐻3 2 𝐶𝑂3 → 2𝑅𝑁𝐻2 + 𝐶𝑂2 + 𝐻2 𝑂
1. Amine processes / Alkanolamine Sweetening
(Cont’d)
• MEA is preferred to either DEA or TEA solutions
‒ Stronger base
‒ More reactive and low-cost than either DEA or
TEA
‒ requires less circulation to maintain a given
amine to acid gas mole ratio
‒ Greater stability
2. Iron-Sponge Sweetening
• Batch process
• Sponge being a hydrated iron oxide (Fe2O3)
supported on wood shavings
• The reaction between the sponge and H2S is
𝐹𝑒2 𝑂3 + 3𝐻2 𝑆 → 𝐹𝑒2 𝑆3 + 3𝐻2 𝑂
𝐹𝑒𝑂 + 𝐻2 𝑆 → 𝐹𝑒𝑆 + 𝐻2 𝑂
• Regeneration
2𝐹𝑒2 𝑆3 + 3𝑂2 → 2𝐹𝑒2 𝑂3 + 6𝑆
2𝐹𝑒𝑆 + 𝑂2 → 2𝐹𝑒𝑂 + 2𝑆
• The reaction does not proceed without the water of
hydration
3. Glycol/Amine Process
• Simultaneous removal of water vapor, H2S, and CO2
from gas streams
‒ 10% to 30% weight MEA
‒ 45% to 85% glycol
‒ 5% to 25% water
• combination dehydration and sweetening unit
• lower equipment cost than…!
• Disadvantages: increased vaporization losses of
MEA, corrosion problems
4. Sulfinol Process
• Uses a mixture of solvents allowing it to behave as
both a chemical (diisopropanolamine) and physical
solvent (sulfolane)
• The solvent is composed of:
‒ Sulfolane
‒ Diisopropanolamine
‒ Water
• Good affinity for most of the acid gases
• Ability to release these gases in the regenerator
upon pressure reduction and heat application
4. Sulfinol Process (Cont’d)
• Used for the removal of
‒ hydrogen sulfide
‒ carbonyl sulfide
‒ mercaptan derivatives
‒ other organic sulfur compounds
‒ all or part of the carbon dioxide
from natural, synthetic, and refinery gases
• The total sulfur compounds in the treated gas can be
reduced to ultra-low ppm levels, as required for
refinery fuel and pipeline quality gases.