CHEVRON USA PRODUCTION COMPANY CARTER CREEK GAS PLANT FLEXSORB? TAIL GAS TREATING UNIT

摘要

The Chevron USA Production Co. Carter Creek Gas Plant, located in southwest Wyoming 35miles northeast of Evanston, was constructed in the early 1980’s to process sour gas recovered fromgas wells in the surrounding fields. The plant removes sulfur from the gas and yields natural gas,NGL’s, hydrocarbon condensate and sulfur. The initial design and current operation includes a 1000ton per day Claus Plant with a Stretford Tail Gas Treating Unit (TGTU).The Stretford unit at the Carter Creek Gas Plant has a history of high maintenance andoperating costs. A process review revealed that significant operating and maintenance cost savingswere achievable by converting the existing Stretford unit to a FLEXSORB?SE Plus unit.An analysis of the overall operation was made to determine the impact of implementing theconversion. Although challenging to operate, the Stretford plant is very efficient in controllingemissions from the plant. The FLEXSORB?SE Plus process is equally efficient, but has a higherreliability and is much easier to operate than the Stretford unit. The new FLEXSORB?SE Plus processwill react to upsets in the sulfur plant with only minor changes to operational protocols.The FLEXSORB?SE Plus Tail Gas Unit has been designed for an inlet flow rate equal to a gasplant front-end rate of 150-170 MMSCFD and a turndown rate of 50 percent. Normal H_2S inlet to thetail gas unit is approximately 0.75 percent. The unit is designed for 0.75 to 1.07 percent H_2S, whichprovides for upside capabilities and has been calculated to encompass future drilling plans.Project objectives include:? reduce operating and maintenance costs associated with the existing Stretford tail gas unit,