NATURAL GAS ENGINEERING

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

CONTENTS
Chapters in this Course:
-

Properties of Natural Gas

Natural Gas Production, Gathering and Transportation
Gas Flow Measurement
Gas Well Testing and Analysis (Deliverability Test)
Gas Flow Performance (Static & Flowing Bottom Hole
Pressure)
Natural Gas Processing
Gas Material Balance and Reserves Calculation

LESSON LEARNING OUTCOME

At the end of the academic session, students should be able to:
Explain the properties of Natural Gas
Calculate flow parameters(flow rate, pressure) by using
different flow equations
Understand flow measuring devices and calculate gas
volumes for transportation
Evaluate Gas well deliverability by applying Gas Well Testing
Methods ( Gas reservoir Performance )
Determine Flowing Bottom Hole Pressure (FBHP)and Static
Bottom Hole Pressure(SBHP)
Understand and Evaluate Gas Processing
Calculate Gas reserves by using different Equations

Natural Gas

Natural gas is defined as gas obtained from a

natural underground reservoir.

It generally contains a large quantity of methane

along with heavier hydrocarbons such as ethane,
propane, butane, pentane, etc.

Also, in the raw state it often contains a

considerable amount of non-hydrocarbons, such as
H2S and CO2, N2.

It is also generally saturated with water.

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NATURAL GAS
Definition:
Natural Gas is considered to be a naturally
occurring mixture of
hydrocarbons
[C1 , C2 , C3 , C4 , C5 , C6,]

and
non-hydrocarbons
[H2S, CO2, N2, H2O, etc.]

NATURAL GAS
Natural Gas as supplied by the Oil & Gas
companies ,
usually

etc.

contain 80 to 95% CH4 , with C2H6 , C3H8 , N2 ,

heating or calorific value ranging from 900 to

1200 Btu/SCF.

specific gravity (w.r.t. air = 1.0) varying from

0.58 to 0.79 .

NATURAL GAS
Volume of Gas is presented as Standard Cubic Feet

1000 SCF ( 1 MSCF ) of Natural Gas is equivalent to

58 kg of Wood
52 kg of Coal
28 liters of Kerosene
0.168 barrel of Crude Oil (petroleum)
285 kwh of Electricity
0.024 ton of Furnace Oil
21 kg of LPG
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NATURAL GAS in Malaysia

Natural Gas Consumption by Sectors 1990 - 2007

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Malaysian Natural Gas Reserve

Malaysia has the 14th largest gas reserves as at January 2008.

As at January 2008, Malaysia's gas reserves stood at 88.0 trillion
standard cubic feet (TSCF) or 14.67 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
Malaysia's gas reserves expected to last another 36 years.

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Gas is sold for commercial use.

The gas that is sold is not specified by chemical composition,
but rather by a series of specific properties such as
1.Heating value
2.Delivery pressure, psia
3.Delivery temperature, degree F
4.H2S content, mole%
5.CO2 content, mole %
6.Water content, lbm/MMSCF
7.Cleanliness ( within allowable solid concentration)
These are also known as Contract Terms.
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Following Table gives heating values of various hydrocarbons

BTU= British Thermal Unit for Energy
SCF= Standard Cubic Feet

Gas
Methane (C1)
Ethane (C2)
Propane (C3)
Butane (C4)
Pentane (C5)
Hexane (C6)
Heptane (C7)
Octane (C8)
Nonane (C9)
Decane (C10)
Hydrogen sulfide(H2S)

Heating Value(BTU/SCF)
1012
1783
2557
3354
4001
4755.9
5502.5
6248.9
6996.5
742.9
637.1

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If H2S and SO2 are consisting in natural gas,

gas processing is necessary.

A natural gas processing plant will remove all the

acid gas compounds, H2S and CO2 and water.

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Thank You

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