ABSTRACT:

A new swirling device composed of some vanes and an ellipsoid was designed for the supersonic separator. The effects of swirls on natural gas flow were computational simulated with the Reynolds Stress model (RSM). The results show that the strong swirls result in the non-uniform radial distribution of the gas dynamic parameters. The presence of the strong swirls damages the expansion characteristics of the Laval nozzle. With moderate swirls, the low temperature (–60°C) and strong centrifugal field (106 m/s2) are obtained to condense and separate water and heavy hydrocarbons from natural gas in the supersonic separator.

INTRODUCTION

The concept of supersonic separation is a new technology to condensate and separate water and heavy hydrocarbons from natural gas, working on two major principles of the gas expansion and cyclone separation. The idea was first patented in 1989 by Stork Product Engineering, as the condi-cyclone, a method to remove water from air by forcing it through a tube at supersonic speed, intended for use in air conditioners (Kontt, 2000). The supersonic separator prevents the hydrate problems and eliminates the needs for inhibitor and regeneration systems due to the short residence time in the device, providing an environmentally friendly facility. As a static device, there are no rotating parts to enable high reliability and availability. Alferov, Baguirov, Feygin, Arbatov, Imayev, Dmitriev and Rezunenko(2004) and Betting, Holten and Veen (2003) proposed a method and apparatus for the separation and liquefaction of the gas mixtures, respectively.There are two structures for the supersonic separators. One is called "Twister I", in which a swirl generation device is installed in downstream portion of the supersonic nozzle, and the other is named "Twister II" or "3-S (Super Sonic Separator) separator", where the swirl generation device is installed in the entrance of the nozzle.

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