Solid desiccant dehydration system

Solid desiccant: A solid substance used in a dehydrator to remove

water from a process stream.
Dehydrator :A vessel or process system for the removal of liquids from
gases or solid by the use of heat, absorbents, or adsorbents.
Desiccant : A substance used in a dehydrator to remove water from a
process stream.
Adsorption : Solid desiccants adsorb water molecules onto their surfaces.
Adsorption is the physical phenomenon of molecules
clinging to a molecular surface. The molecules do not
react with the surface material. Instead, van der Waals
forces hold them to the surface.
Van der Waals adsorption :Adsorption in which the cohesion
between gas and solid arises from van der Waals forces.
Van der Waals force: An attractive force between two atoms or
nonpolar molecules, which arises because a fluctuating
dipole moment in one molecule induces a dipole moment
in the other, and the two dipole moments then interact.
 • Best method for processing very sour gases.
• Reach very low dew points.
• Ease of regeneration (for simplicity and economics
f
operation)
• High adsorptive capacity because it reduces
ontactor size
• Inert to chemicals (non-reacting type)
• Low cost
• Low resistance to gas flow
• Non corrosive and non toxic properties
 The following are the most commonly used
ypes
of solid desiccants:
Activated alumna - Regenerable aluminum oxide
ase
desiccant.
 Calcium chloride (consumable, cannot be
egenerated)
 Molecular Sieves - Regenerable solid desiccants
 CHARACTERISTICS OF SOLID DESICCANTS
DISADVANTAGES
Does not adsorb selectively
Not used where free water present
(free
water destroys silica).
Does not adsorb selectively.
Most expensive solid desiccant.
More easily contaminated by
carryover of amine, glycol, or
methanol from
upstream.
Average 3-year life in industry.
Require more heat to
regenerate.
Low dehydration capacity
ADVANTAGES SOLID
DESICCANTS
Adsorbs twice as much water as
molecular sieves for saturated
Activated
gases. Alumna
Costs about half as much as silica gel
and molecular sieves.
Resists physical damage best.
Gel Adsorbs twice as much water as
molecular sieves for saturated gases
Silica Gel
Regenerates at much lower
temperatures
Possesses high water capacity at low
relative humilities.
Molecular
Produces lowest dew points. Sieve
Simultaneously sweetens and dries.
Does not co adsorb heavy
hydrocarbons.
Cannot be regenerated, consumable
desiccant.
Calcium
Does not require heat or fuel. Chloride
Efficient for remote location
Principles of Adsorption
Adsorption is a physical phenomenon that occurs when molecules of
gas are brought into contact with a solid surface and some of them
adhere on the surface. Dehydration of a gas (or liquid hydrocarbon)
with a dry desiccant is an adsorption process in which water
molecules are preferentially held by the desiccant and removed from
the hydrocarbon stream.
During the drying cycle some molecules passing the adsorbent
adhere on its surface (physical adsorption as opposed to chemical
absorption). After some finite time the molecules saturate the surface
of adsorbent. After sufficient time, a state of equilibrium is reached.
The number of molecules adsorbing on the surface is a function of
the following factors:
• The nature of the adsorbent [A solid or liquid that adsorbs other
substances ]
• The nature of the molecule being adsorbed (the adsorbate)[A solid,
liquid, or gas that is adsorbed as atoms, molecules, or ions by an
adsorbent.]
• The temperature of the system
• The concentration of the adsorbate over the adsorbent surface
(vapor-phase or liquid-phase)
 The dehydration cycle of a typical solid desiccant
dehydrator involves the following steps:
Contacting the solid desiccant with the gas stream (typically
for 12 to 36 hours).
Drying the solid desiccant with a hot regeneration gas
(450°F to 600°F). The higher the temperature of the
regeneration gas, the lower the dew point of the gas stream
being dried.
Cooling the solid desiccant with cool regeneration gas.

 Solid desiccant dehydration systems normally

consist of two, three, or four drying towers.
The following figure for a simple two-tower system. One
tower is on stream adsorbing water from the gas while the
other tower is being regenerated and cooled. Hot gas is used
to drive off the adsorbed water from the desiccant, after
which the tower is cooled with an unheated gas stream.
The towers are switched before the on-stream tower becomes
water saturated.
Solid Desiccant Dehydrator Twin Tower System
 Function of Major Components of Solid Desiccant
dehydration
 The following are the essential components of any
solid desiccant dehydration system:

 An inlet gas stream separator/liquid coalesce.

Two or more adsorption towers (contactors) filled with solid
desiccant.
A high-temperature heater that provides hot regeneration
gas to reactivate the desiccant in the towers.
A regeneration gas cooler that condenses water from the
hot regeneration gas.
A regeneration gas separator (knockout) that removes the
condensed water from the regeneration gas.
Piping manifolds, switching valves, and controls that direct
and control the flow of gases according to the process
requirements.
 INSTRUMENTATION

The monitoring of solid desiccant dehydration requires

a variety of instrumentation to measure or control the
following process variables:

 Flow rate, temperature, and pressure of the process fluid.

 Water content of the product fluid.
Flow rate and pressure of the regeneration gas.
Inlet and outlet temperatures of the regeneration gas.
Temperature of the regeneration gas leaving the
regeneration gas cooler.
 Adsorbent differential bed pressure. Cycle time controllers
 TROUBLESHOOTING SOLID DESICCANT
DEHYDRATION

 ANALYSIS TO DETERMINE STEPS TO OPTIMIZE

DEHYDRATOR REGENERATION

To optimize the regeneration of solid desiccants, inspect a

temperature trace from the dehydrator.

 From the temperature trace, determine whether the outlet

temperature of the regeneration gas peaks before or after
the heating cycle ends.
From moisture analyzer data, determine if the dried product
gas meets or exceeds product specifications. (If the product
gas does not meet specifications, the dehydrator requires
troubleshooting.)
 DIAGNOSIS SITUATION
Regeneration Gas Temperature Peaks Before Heating Cycle Ends
Flow rate of regeneration gas is sufficient or too Product Gas meets Specifications
high
Heating cycle is too long
Regeneration gas temperature is too high
Flow rate of regeneration gas is too high Product Gas exceeds
Or, heating cycle time is too long Specifications
Or, regeneration gas temperature is too high

Regeneration Gas Temperature Peaks After Heating Cycle Ends

Flow rate of regeneration gas is sufficient Product Gas meets

Heating cycle time is sufficient
Regeneration gas temperature is sufficient Specifications
Regeneration gas heater may not be firing at
maximum rate

Flow rate of regeneration gas is too high Product Gas exceeds

Or, heating cycle time is too long
Or, regeneration gas temperature is too high Specifications
  TROUBLESHOOTING SOLID DESICCANT
DEHYDRATOR CAPACITY PROBLEMS
CORRECTIVE ACTIONS POSSIBLE CAUSES PROBLEM
Shorten drying cycles. Increases in feed rate. Adsorbed bed
Reduce feed rate. Increases in amount of overloads
Determine adsorbed size based on new load; component(s) which during
increase amount of desiccant or tower size, if co-adsorb on desiccant. drying cycle.
necessary. Increase in feed water content.
Measure DP across tower. Fines in process stream plugged Obstruction of
Compare measured and the bed. adsorbed bed.
calculated DP. Glycol, methanol, or heavy
If measured DP is too high, replace of hydrocarbons in process stream
remove and clean adsorbent as necessary. caked the bed.
Salt water in process stream caked
the bed.
Increase temperature of Temperature of hot regeneration Inadequate
regeneration gas. gas is too low. regeneration.
Raise flow rate of regeneration gas. Flow rate of regeneration gas is
Increase heating cycle time. too low.
Measure oxygen content. Duration of heating cycle is too
Determine the impact and adjust dehydrator short.
regeneration parameters as required. Regeneration gas contains oxygen.
Steam leak from regeneration
water.
  TROUBLESHOOTING SOLID DESICCANT
DEHYDRATOR EFFICENCY PROBLEMS

CORRECTIVE ACTIONS POSSIBLE CAUSES PROBLEM

Increase temperature of Temperature of hot Inadequate
regeneration gas. regeneration gas is too low. regeneration.
Raise flow rate of regeneration Flow rate of regeneration gas is
gas. too low.
Increase heating cycle time. Duration of heating cycle is too
Measure oxygen content. short.
Determine the impact and adjust Regeneration gas contains
dehydrator regeneration oxygen.
parameters Steam leak from regeneration
as required. water.
Inspect valves and, if necessary, Mechanical damage. Leaking switching
repair or replace valves. Valves not closing completely. valves.
Inspect and adjust valve and
actuator and, if necessary, repair or
replace.
Increased flow rate. Increased flow rate. Excessive water content in
Higher temperatures. Higher temperatures. wet feed gas
Lower pressure. Lower pressure.
  TROUBLESHOOTING SOLID DESICCANT
BED LIFE PROBLEMS

Desiccant bed life can be extended by doing several or

all of the following activities:

 Prevent the desiccant particles from moving.

Keep contaminants out of the dehydrating portion of the bed
by upstream conditioning or by providing a sacrificial layer
of less expensive desiccant to act as a catcher of any
compounds such as amine, glycol or oil.
Prevent overheating the bed to reduce the formation of
carbon during the regeneration cycle.
Analyze the heating/cooling regeneration temperature
cycles to minimize the time the bed is at elevated
temperatures. This will also minimize energy requirements.
 in a normal cycle:
Stage 1—First bed-heating stage
Stage 2—Desorption stage
Stage 3—Second bed-heating stage
Stage 4—Bed-cooling stage
For a period of time after the heat source is introduced into

desiccant bed being dehydrated, the bed must be heated to a

temperature where the water will start to be desorbed
age1).
As the water is desorbed (Stage 2), the bed temperature
usually
rise only a few degrees because the regeneration gas heat is
zed
to provide the heat of vaporization of the water being
oved.
The completion of the water desorption stage is
racterized by a
rapid increase in bed temperature measured as the outlet
perature.
At this point the heating may be discontinued while bed
ting will
 Calcium Chloride Dehydration systems
Applications
Generally, calcium chloride dehydrators are used to dry small olumes
of natural gas that are gathered from wells located in remote areas.
CaCl2 dehydrators are particularly useful for wells located in areas in
which the terrain, climate, or other conditions make servicing
expensive. CaCl2 dehydrators are also useful for offshore retrofits
with severe space and weight limitations.
 Calcium Chloride Dehydrators
Calcium chloride dehydrators have separation, tray, and solid CaCl2 bed
sections. The separation section uses an inlet separator to remove free water
and other contaminants. The tray section uses three to five trays to contact
the process gas and the CaCl2 brine (20 wt % to25 wt % CaCl2). The design
of the trays maximizes contact between the brine and the process gas. The
bed contains solid CaCl2 pellets that adsorb water from the process gas. The
water and solid bed form brine that flows down into the tray section.
Calcium chloride dehydrators are simple and can operate unattended.
They dry natural gas to pipeline specifications and have low capital costs.
For these reasons, calcium chloride dehydrators are used to dehydrate small
volumes of natural gas produced by wells located in remote areas. They are
also useful for offshore retrofits with severe space limitations.
Advantages
Calcium chloride dehydrators have the following
advantages:
• Can operate unattended until they require fresh desiccant.
• Contain few moving parts.
• Do not require fuel or heat to operate.
• Have low capital costs.
• Present no fire hazard.
• Very compact.
Disadvantages/Limitations
Calcium chloride dehydrators have the following
disadvantages or limitations:
# CaCl2 solutions are highly corrosive in the presence of air.
#Even with five trays, 1 lb of CaCl2 removes only 3.5 lb of
H2O.
# The CaCl2-H2O equilibrium limits the dew point depression
they can achieve.
# They are subject to bridging, which normally causes
channeling.
Bridging is the joining or fusing (freezing) of adjacent CaCl2
pellets in the desiccant bed. Intermittent or cyclic operation of
a calcium chloride dehydrator is the most common cause of
Bridging

A slight temperature drop freezes the brine that drips off the CaCl2
pellets. This fuses the pellets.

 The dehydrator is removed from service, left idle, and returned to

service. While the dehydrator is idle, a slight temperature drop
causes the CaCl2 pellets to fuse together.

 Wet gas or free water contacts the bed, forms more brine, and
intensifies an existing bridging condition.
 Low Temperature Dehydration Systems
Applications

Low-temperature separation systems are generally selected for wells

producing sweet gas with wellhead pressures considerably higher
than pipeline pressure.
When wellhead pressures are high, low-temperature processes
efficiently perform the following tasks:

The dehydration of natural gas streams to pipeline specifications.

 The recovery of additional hydrocarbon liquids (condensate) from
gas streams.

 The separation of hydrocarbon liquids and water from natural gas

streams.

If the wellhead pressure exceeds that of the pipeline, then the gas
can be passed through a choke or throttled in a constant-enthalpy
Joule-Thomson expansion to provide cooling.
Low-Temperature Separation Units

Low-temperature separation units dehydrate natural gas

streams by expanding the natural gas from well head pressure
to pipeline pressure. The Joule-Thomson expansion of the gas
cools , the gas and condenses the water in it. It may also cause
the formation of hydrates. A separator removes the hydrate or
the free water from the process stream.

Low-temperature separation units have low operating costs.

With adequate wellhead pressure, they can dry gases to
pipeline specifications. However, the addition of hydrate
inhibition or mechanical refrigeration systems increases the
capital and operating costs of these systems. Therefore, low-
temperature separation units work best for high-pressure
wells that produce sweet gas.
 Advantages
 Because of minimal energy consumption, these units have
low operating costs.
 These units experience minimal corrosion, especially when
they do not use hydrate inhibitors.
 With adequate wellhead pressure, these units can achieve
pipeline specification for water and hydrocarbon dew points.

Disadvantages/Limitations
Low temperature systems have the following
disadvantages or limitations:
The addition of a hydrate inhibition system increases both
its capital and operating costs.
The addition of mechanical refrigeration increases both its
capital and operating costs.
 They require adequate wellhead pressure, otherwise they
are unable to function properly.
Glycol (TEG) Dehydration Processes
Advantages
Glycol dehydration systems using TEG have the following
advantages:
 Can dehydrate natural gas to 0.5 lb H2O/MMSCF (0.25 lb H2O/
MMSCF in special applications).
Dehydrates natural gas continuously. (Solid desiccant dehydration
is a batch process).
 Easily automated for unattended operation in remote locations.
Operate effectively in the presence of materials that would foul
solid desiccant dehydrators.
Lower installed costs than solid desiccant dehydrators for smaller
plants (Solid desiccant plants cost about 50% more for 10-
MMSCFD applications and about 33% more for 50-MMSCFD
applications.)
Lower pressure drop: 5 psi to 10 psi for glycol dehydrators versus
10 psi to 50 psi for solid desiccant dehydrators.
Lower utility costs: glycol units require less regeneration heat per
pound of water removed than solid desiccant dehydrators.
 Simple to operate and maintain.
 Disadvantages

 Glycol dehydration systems using TEG have the

following disadvantages and limitations:

 Dehydrating gases to dew points below -25°F requires the

use of a stripping gas and column.
 Glycol is susceptible to contamination.
 When contaminated or decomposed, glycol is corrosive.
 Glycol is susceptible to foaming.
Regenerative Solid Desiccant Processes
Advantages
Regenerative solid desiccant dehydrators have the following
advantages:
Achieve dew points as low as -150°F [1 ppm(vol)].
Small changes in gas pressure, temperature, or flow rate affect
them less than other dehydrators.
They are less susceptible to corrosion and do not foam.

Disadvantages
Solid desiccant dehydrators have the following disadvantages
or limitations:
High regeneration heat requirements and high utility costs.
 High space and weight requirements.
 Higher capital costs.
 Higher pressure drops.
 Solid desiccants are susceptible to crushing and other mechanical
breakage.
 Solid desiccants are susceptible to desiccant poisoning by heavy
hydrocarbons, H2S, CO2, and other contaminants.
Applications

Solid desiccant dehydrators are generally used for the

following applications:
The dehydration of natural gas to dew points low enough
for cryogenic processing (below -30°F).
The dehydration of natural gas to pipeline specifications
(4 to 7 lb H2O/MMSCF or water dew points of 10°F to 30°F)
when TEG is not effective.
For example, desiccant dehydrators are used to dehydrate
sour gas and aboard floating production platforms, where
wave action disturbs glycol flow on the contactor trays.
To recover hydrocarbon liquids from lean (0.5 GPM C3+ or
less) natural gas (often with refrigeration).
To simultaneously remove water and hydrocarbons to meet both
water and hydrocarbon dew points.
 This section compares the dehydration
ocesses on the
basis of the following factors:
 Dew Point
 Capacity
 Maintenance
 Materials
Dew Point
All of the dehydration processes discussed in this module
meet
natural gas pipeline specifications (7 lb H2O/MMSCF).
h the use
of a stripping gas, TEG systems can dehydrate natural gas
ams
to 0.5 lb H2O/MMSCF. Solid desiccants that use molecular
es can
dehydrate natural gas streams to 1 ppm(vol) of water.
Capacity
Solid desiccant dehydrators most efficiently dehydrate the
est
capacities of natural gas.
Maintenance
None of the dehydration processes discussed in this module
require a lot of maintenance. Calcium chloride dehydrators
periodically need to be reloaded with solid desiccant. Because of
the high cost of replacing the contaminated desiccant, solid
desiccant dehydrators require more monitoring than the other
dehydration processes. Also, for efficient operation, the drying
cycles of solid desiccant dehydrators that do not use moisture
analyzers for control require periodic adjustment.
Materials
Only no regenerative dehydrators need a constant supply of
materials. Glycol dehydrators require periodic additions of glycol
to replenish losses. Solid desiccants need large investments in
desiccant when they are started, but do not require
replenishment until the desiccant bed can no longer economically
dehydrate natural gas. Except for calcium chloride dehydrators
and solid desiccant dehydrators that use pressure swing
adsorption, all of the dehydration processes require continuous
supplies of fuel or heat. Solid desiccant dehydration systems need
additional piping and instrumentation to control the adsorption/
regeneration sequence.