Methanol process

Methanol production typically requires three steps:

 Syngas preparation
 Methanol synthesis
 Methanol purification/distillation

Syngas preparation
Syngas preparation is very similar to the Fisher- Tropsch (FT) gas to liquids (GTL) process, but a
major difference is the scale at which syngas is produced.
Syngas for methanol synthesis can be prepared
1. With partial oxidation (POX)
2. Steam reforming of the natural gas feedstock. For a natural gas feedstock with little
heavy-hydrocarbon and sulfur impurity in it, a steam-reforming-based plant is
considered most cost effective, with better reliability and higher energy efficiency.
POX-based units are generally more suited for syngas generation from heavy-hydrocarbon
Feed stocks (e.g., fuel oil). A POX-based unit for natural gas feed requires a larger air separation
Plant and typically produces sub-stoichiometric syngas, which requires additional processing for
Methanol synthesis.
Natural gas can be steam reformed with any of the following schemes:

 Tubular reforming with a fired reformer furnace

 Combined reforming with a fired reformer furnace followed by an oxygen-blown autothermal
reforming (ATR)
 Heat-exchange reforming without a tubular reformer furnace, but with ATR
Methanol synthesis
All the commercial methanol plants currently use gas-phase synthesis technology. The synthesis
loop pressure, reactor type used, and method of waste-heat recovery broadly differentiate gas-
phase methanol-synthesis schemes. All the modern large-capacity methanol processes use low-
pressure synthesis loops with copper-based catalysts. Quench-type, multi bed intercooled, or
isothermal reactors are used to minimize reactor size and maximize recovery of process waste heat

Methanol purification/distillation
Crude methanol, received from a gas-phase synthesis reactor that uses syngas with a stoichiometric
number [stoichiometric number is molar ratio of (H2 – CO2)/(CO + CO2)] of 2 or higher, will have
excessive water (25 to 35%). Besides removing the lighter components in a topping column, this
water and other heavies are removed in a refining column. Re-boiler heat duty is typically obtained
by cooling the syngas in the front end of the plant. A two- or three-column distillation scheme is
typically used.
Methanol distillation schemes used by different licensors are similar. The two-column distillation
scheme offers low capital expenditures, and the three-column distillation scheme offers low-energy-
consumption features. The scheme that integrates better with the syngas preparation and synthesis
section is normally selected. Several technology providers license the process technology for
methanol:

 Synetix
 Lurgi
 Haldor Topsoe
 Mitsubishi Chemicals
 KBR

Screening criteria
Until a few years ago, the size of a large-scale single-train methanol plant was considered to be
2000 to 2500 metric tons per day. However, economies of scale and market conditions are driving
the trend toward building larger-sized plants with capacities in excess of 3,000 thousand tons per
day. Two plants with capacities of 5000 metric tons per day are currently under construction, and
several large methanol plants are under discussion. The typical gas consumption for a world-scale
methanol plant ranges from 28 to 31 million Btu per metric ton of product based on LHV of the
feed; [1] [2] therefore, a 5000 metric tons per day methanol plant will use approximately 157 MMscf/D
of gas. For a project lifetime of 20 years, a gas-field size of at least 1.15 Tcf is required to support a
plant of this size.
The economics of methanol are very dependent on the cost of production and the selling price of
methanol. The market for methanol is volatile and competitive with large swings in the price. The
main components of the production cost of methanol are gas price and the investment cost of the
plant. A number of literature sources [1] [3] present the investment costs for steam-reforming-based
methanol plants. The investment costs for large-scale methanol plants based on advanced syngas
generation technologies are expected to be lower. A producer in a remote location must also
consider shipping costs for transporting the methanol product to the market

Parameters Biogas Bio-CNG CNG

Methane 55-60% 92-95% 95-98%

CO2 35-45% 2-8% 3-5%

H2S (ppm) 1000-35000 < 20 < 10

Moisture (0C dew Saturated <-40

point)

Calorific Value 5000 11600 11600

(Kcal/kg)
Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) in India 1. The estimated CBG potential from various sources in India is nearly
62 MMT with biomanure generation capacity of 370 MMT. CBG is envisaged to be produced from
various bio-mass / waste sources including agricultural residue, municipal solid waste, sugarcane press
mud, distillery spent wash, cattle dung and sewage treatment plant waste. 2. The other waste streams
viz. rotten potatoes from cold storage, rotten vegetables, dairy plants, chicken/ poultry litter, food
waste, horticulture waste, forestry residues and industrial Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs) treating
organic waste can be used in the generation of biogas. 3. The biogas produced contains approximately
55% to 60% methane, 40% to 45% carbon dioxide and trace amounts of hydrogen sulphide. Biogas is
purified to remove carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide gases to prepare CBG. The CBG can be
transported through cylinder cascades or pipelines to retail outlets. 4. Vide Gazette Notification no. 395
dated 16th June 2015, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Government of India had permitted
usage of bio-compressed natural gas (bio-CNG) for motor vehicles as an alternate composition of the
compressed natural gas (CNG). 5. Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) to be supplied shall meet IS 16087:2016
specifications of BIS (detailed below) and any other further revisions in the said specifications. Table 1 :
Composition of CBG IS 16087 : 2016 Standard S No. Characteristic Requirement 1 Methane percentage
(CH4), minimum 90.0 % 2 Only Carbon Dioxide percentage (CO2),, maximum 4% 3 Carbon Dioxide
(CO2)+ Nitrogen (N2)+ Oxygen (O2) percentage maximum 10% 4 Oxygen (O2) percentage maximum
0.5% 5 Total sulphur (including H2S) mg/m3 , maximum 20 mg/m3 6 Moisture mg/m3 , maximum 5
mg/m3 6. Also as per the IS 16087:2016 specifications, the following shall also be met i. CBG shall be
free from liquids over the entire range of temperature and pressure encountered in storage and
dispensing system ii. The CBG shall be free from particulate matter such as dirt, dust, etc. iii. CBG
delivered shall be odorized similar to a level found in local distribution (ref. IS 15319)