Dividing wall column (DWC) modeling was conducted to apply to natural gas liquids (NGL) fractionation to find if there were any benefits in the design. Regarding the convergence of a unique column with an internal dividing wall, a search was conducted for commercial simulation software that would be applicable. In terms of operational reliability, the study attempted to determine which traditional distillation columns in an NGL fractionation plant are more favorable for integration with a DWC. The results of capital cost and energy consumption are summarized in this article, along with a case study that compared traditional binary columns to DWCs, as well as tertiary separation columns without dividing walls, in an oil refinery where all three column types observe the same product specification.
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