Reach Your

Potential

True

Full-Scale Plant Modeling Workshop

Objective: Practice and apply many of the techniques used in this course and learn how to best approach modeling projects

Introduction to Aspen Plus

1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

258

Full-Scale Plant Modeling Workshop

Objective: Model a methanol plant. The process being modeled is a methanol plant. The basic feed streams to the plant are Natural Gas, Carbon Dioxide (assumed to be taken from a nearby Ammonia Plant) and Water. The aim is to achieve the methanol production rate of approximately 62,000 kg/hr, at a purity of at least 99.95 % wt. This is a large flowsheet that would take an experienced engineer more than an afternoon to complete. Start building the flowsheet and think about how you would work to complete the project.
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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

General Guidelines Build the flowsheet one section at a time. Simplify whenever possible. Complexity can always be
added later.

Investigate the physical properties. - Use Analysis. - Check if binary parameters are available. - Check for two liquid phases. - Use an appropriate equation of state for the portions of
the flowsheet involving gases and use an activity coefficient model for the sections where non-ideal liquids may be present.
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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Full-Scale Plant Modeling Workshop

Air Fuel FURNACE MEOHRXR

SYNCOMP COOL4 FL3 COOL2 COOL3 MKUPST M2 FEEDHTR COOL1 FL2

SPLIT1 E121 MIX2 CIRC E122 FL4 E223 E124 SPLIT2

BOILER FL1 H2OCIRC CO2 CO2COMP M1 REFORMER SATURATE

FL5

NATGAS CH4COMP REFINING

TOPPING

M4

MKWATER

Septiembre 12, 2001

Introduction to Aspen Plus

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 1: Front-End Section

From Furnace

MKUPST

M2

FEEDHTR To BOILER

H2OCIRC CO2COMP CO2 M1 SATURATE

REFORMER

NATGAS

CH4COMP

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 1: Front-End Section (Continued)

1. Front-end Section
Carbon Dioxide Stream CO2 Temperature = 43 C Pressure = 1.4 bar Flow = 24823 kg/hr Mole Fraction - CO2 - 0.9253 - H2 - 0.0094 - H2O - 0.0606 - CH4 - 0.0019 - N2 - 0.0028 Natural Gas Stream - NATGAS Temperature = 26 C Pressure = 21.7 bar Flow = 29952 kg/hr Mole Fraction - CO2 - 0.0059 - CH4 - 0.9539 - N2 - 0.0008 - C2H6 - 0.0391 - C3H8 - 0.0003 Septiembre 12, 2001

Circulation Water - H2OCIRC Pure water stream Flow = 410000 kg/hr Temperature = 195 C Pressure = 26 bar Makeup Steam - MKUPST Stream of pure steam Flow = 40000 kg/hr Pressure = 26 bar Vapor Fraction = 1 Adjust the makeup steam flow to achieve a desired steam to methane molar ratio of 2.8 in the Reformer feed REFFEED.

Introduction to Aspen Plus

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 1: Front-End Section (Continued)

Carbon Dioxide Compressor - CO2COMP Discharge Pressure = 27.5 bar Compressor Type = 2 stage Natural Gas Compressor - CH4COMP Discharge Pressure = 27.5 bar Compressor Type = single stage Reformer Process Side Feed Stream Pre-Heater - FEEDHTR Exit Temperature = 560 C Pressure drop = 0 Saturation Column - SATURATE 1.5 inch metal pall ring packing. Estimated HETP = 10 x 1.5 inches = 381 mm Height of Packing = 15 meters No condenser and no reboiler. Reformer Reactor - REFORMER Consists of two parts: the Furnace portion and the Steam Reforming portion Exit Temperature of the Steam Reforming portion = 860 C Pressure = 18 bar

Septiembre 12, 2001

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 2: Heat Recovery Section

SYNCOMP COOL4 FL3 To Methanol Loop

COOL2

COOL3

FL2

COOL1 From Reformer BOILER FL1

To REFINING

To TOPPING

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 2: Heat Recovery Section (Continued)

2. Heat Recovery Section

This section consists of a series of heat exchangers and flash vessels used to recover the available energy and water in the Reformed Gas stream. FL1 Pressure Drop = 0 bar Heat Duty = 0 MMkcal/hr FL2 Exit Pressure = 17.7 bar Heat Duty = 0 MMkcal/hr FL3 Exit Pressure = 17.4 bar Heat Duty = 0 MMkcal/hr SYNCOM Two Stage Polytropic compressor Discharge Pressure = 82.5 bar Intercooler Exit Temperature = 40 C

BOILER Exit temperature = 166 C Exit Pressure= 18 bar COOL1 Exit temperature = 136 C Exit Pressure = 18 bar COOL2 Exit temperature = 104 C Exit Pressure = 17.9 bar COOL3 Exit temperature = 85 C Pressure Drop = 0.1 bar COOL4 Exit temperature = 40 C Exit Pressure = 17.6 bar Septiembre 12, 2001

Introduction to Aspen Plus

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 3: Methanol Synthesis Section

MEOHRXR To Furnace

SPLIT1 From SYNCOMP E121 SPLIT2 MIX2

CIRC E122

FL4 E223 E124 To FL5

Septiembre 12, 2001

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 3: Methanol Synthesis Section (Continued)

3. Methanol Synthesis Loop Section
Methanol Reactor - MEOHRXR Tube cooled reactor Exit Temperature from the tubes = 240 C No pressure drop across the reactor Reactions CO + H2O <-> CO2 + H2 CO2 + 3H2 <-> CH3OH + H2O 2CH3OH <-> DIMETHYLETHER + H2O 4CO + 8H2 <-> N-BUTANOL + 3H2O 3CO + 5H2 <-> ACETONE + 2H2O E121 Exit Temperature - 150 C Exit Pressure - 81 bar E122 Cold Side Exit Temperature - 120 C E223 Exit Temperature - 60 C Exit Pressure - 77.3 bar E124 Exit Temperature - 45 C Exit Pressure - 75.6 bar Septiembre 12, 2001

(Equilibrium) (+15 C Temperature Approach) (Molar extent 0.2kmol/hr) (Molar extent 0.8kmol/hr) (Molar extent 0.3kmol/hr) FL4 Exit Pressure = 75.6 bar Heat Duty = 0 MMkcal/hr CIRC Single stage compressor Discharge Pressure = 83 bar Discharge Temperature = 55 C SPLIT1 Split Fraction = 0.8 to stream to E121

SPLIT2 Stream PURGE = 9000 kg/hr Stream RECYCLE = 326800 kg/hr Introduction to Aspen Plus Slide 270
1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 4: Distillation Section

To Furnace From FL4

From COOL1

From COOL2

FL5

TOPPING REFINING M4

MKWATER

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 4: Distillation Section (Continued)

4. Distillation Section
Makeup Steam - MKWATER Stream of pure water Flow = 10000 kg/hr Pressure = 5 bar Temperature = 40 C Adjust the make-up water flow (stream MKWATER) to the CRUDE stream to achieve a stream composition of 23 wt.% of water in the stream feeding the Topping column (stream TOPFEED) to achieve 100 ppm methanol in the Refining column BTMS stream. Topping Column - TOPPING Number of Stages = 51 (including condenser and reboiler) Condenser Type = Partial Vapor/Liquid Feed stage = 14 Distillate has both liquid and vapor streams Distillate rate = 1400 kg/hr Pressure profile: stage 1 = 1.5 bar and stage 51 = 1.8 bar Distillate vapor fraction = 99 mol% Stage 2 heat duty = -7 Mmkcal/hr Stage 51 heat duty Specified by the heat stream Reboiler heat duty is provided via a heat stream from block COOL2 Boil-up Ratio is approximately 0.52 Valve trays The column has two condensers. To represent the liquid flow connections a pumparound can be used between stage 1 and 3. Septiembre 12, 2001

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 4: Distillation Section (Continued)

Distillation Section (Continued)
Refining Column - REFINING Number of Stages = 95 (including condenser and reboiler) Condenser Type = Total Distillate Rate = 1 kg/hr Feed stage = 60 Liquid Product sidedraw from Stage 4 @ 62000 kg/hr (Stream name PRODUCT) Liquid Product sidedraw from Stage 83 @ 550 kg/hr (Stream name FUSELOIL) Reflux rate = 188765 kg/hr Pressure profile: stage 1= 1.5bar and stage 95=2bar Reboiler heat duty is provided via a conventional reboiler supplemented by a heat stream from a heater block to stage 95 Boil-up Ratio is approximately 4.8 Valve trays To meet environmental regulations, the bottoms stream must contain no more than 100ppm by weight of methanol as this stream is to be dumped to a nearby river. FL5 Exit Pressure Heat Duty M4

5 bar 0 MMkcal/hr

For water addition to the crude methanol Septiembre 12, 2001 Introduction to Aspen Plus Slide 274
1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 5: Furnace Section

To REFORMER From FL5 Air From SPLIT2 FURNACE

Fuel

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.

Part 5: Furnace Section (Continued)

5. Furnace Section
Air to Furnace - AIR Temperature = 366 C Pressure = 1 atm Flow = 281946 kg/hr Adjust the air flow to achieve 2%(vol.) of oxygen in the FLUEGAS stream. Fuel to Furnace - FUEL Flow = 9436 kg/hr Conditions and composition are the same as for the natural gas stream

Septiembre 12, 2001

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1998 AspenTech. All rights reserved.