LIQUID EXPANDERS IN THE PHILLIPS OPTIMIZED CASCADE LNG PROCESS

摘要

Throughout the chemical and petroleum industries, liquid expanders offer the potential to improve process efficiency by recovering otherwise unused energy. Within the LNG industry, only a few of the more recent facilities utilize liquid expanders and typically only where the entering and exiting streams are fully liquid. Within the Phillips Optimized Cascade LNG Process, as with most processing technologies, a large potential exists to recover energy associated with flashing pressurized and saturated or slightly subcooled liquid stream(s). Once this energy is recovered, the next step involves integration of the energy within the process for optimal utilization. In addition, the corresponding temperature drop associated with expansion provides further opportunities for heat integration. Recent advances in liquid expander technology provide a promising future for flashing liquid expansion. Several liquid expander designers are actively marketing expander solutions for flashing liquid streams. rnThis paper will explore and discuss available liquid expander technology as well as the locations within the Phillips Optimized Cascade LNG Process providing the most beneficial application(s). The paper will also focus on methods for practical integration and utilization of the recovered energy.