Supersonic separators : a gas dehydration device

Abstract

The ever growing demand for natural gas has led to the discovery and development of reservoirs in the most unreachable off-shore locations. Formation of hydrate is one of the most problematic issues involved in the production and transportation of natural gas. Gas dehydration is an effective and efficient method of preventing this difficulty. One of the main challenges in designing a dehydration unit for off-shore locations is its size. Supersonic separator is a device that combines the principles of Joule-Thompson expansion and cyclonic separation to efficiently remove the water content of natural gas produced from reservoir as a means of hydrate prevention. This device is small enough to suit the limitations of an off-shore location. This thesis is investigates the performance of supersonic separators in various operating conditions. A variety of design parameters are identified and analyzed through CFD techniques and a novel configuration is proposed for the supersonic separators. A lab test is set up for the validation of CFD results and extensive discussions are presented.