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NGL Fractionation

Natural gas liquids (NGLs) are separated from natural gas and further fractionated into pure components through distillation. NGLs are heated and sent through multiple distillation towers. In each tower, the lightest component boils off as overhead vapor and is condensed for storage or reflux, while the heavier liquid moves to the next tower where the process repeats until the NGLs are separated into individual components like ethane, propane, butane based on differing boiling points. Fractionation takes advantage of distillation to obtain pure natural gas liquids from an initial mixed stream.

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79 views6 pages

NGL Fractionation

Natural gas liquids (NGLs) are separated from natural gas and further fractionated into pure components through distillation. NGLs are heated and sent through multiple distillation towers. In each tower, the lightest component boils off as overhead vapor and is condensed for storage or reflux, while the heavier liquid moves to the next tower where the process repeats until the NGLs are separated into individual components like ethane, propane, butane based on differing boiling points. Fractionation takes advantage of distillation to obtain pure natural gas liquids from an initial mixed stream.

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Shri Jr
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Natural Gas

Liquid Fractionation

Joshua Pe Raajan.
Petroleum Engineering and
Technology
De-ethaniser :
o A continuously operated distillation column used for the removal of ethane as distillate
from a mixed feed of light hydrocarbons. Any methane also leaves the top of the column
along with the ethane while heavier components leave the bottom.

De-propaniser :
o A de-propanizer is a special distillation system that is widely used in the oil & gas
industry in order to isolate propane from a mixture of substances containing butane and
other heavy organic components.
De-butaniser :
o A de-butaniser column is used to remove the lighter fractions from gases, which
are the overhead distillate coming from the distillation unit.
Natural Gas Liquid Fraction Unit
Process Description :
o Once natural gas liquids (NGLs) have been removed from the natural gas stream, they
must be fractionated into their base components, which can be sold as high purity
products.

o Fractionation of the NGLs may take place in the gas plant but may also be performed
downstream, usually in a regional NGL fractionation center. A typical process flow
schematic is shown in Figure.

o NGLs are fractionated by heating the mixed NGL stream and processing them through a
series of distillation towers.

o Fractionation takes advantage of the differing boiling points of the various NGL
components.
Process Description :
o As the NGL stream is heated, the lightest (lowest boiling point) NGL component boils off
first and separates.

o The overhead vapor is condensed and a portion is used as reflux and the remaining portion
is routed to product storage.

o The heavier liquid mixture at the bottom of the first tower is routed to the second tower
where the process is repeated and a different NGL component is separated as product.

o This process is repeated until the NGLs have been separated into their individual
components.

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