Gas Processing Plants:
Automation
of Compressors
and Expanders
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to Optimize
Plant Performance
Typical Gas Processing Plant
Typical Gas Processing Plant Design
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Turbomachinery Overview:
– Inlet gas compressors
– Residue / sales gas compressors
– Turboexpander recompressors
Major Compressor Control Challenges:
Inlet Gas & Residue Gas Compressors
Accurate representation of the surge limit line in Steady State:
• the surge line must be represented in a set of coordinates that is
nearly invariant to majority of influencing factors
• the resulting coordinates must produce a signal of the distance
between present position of the operating point and the surge
line with good resolution, accuracy and repeatability
Dynamic Behavior:
• closed loop control
• open loop control
• adaptive response and it’s necessity
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• decoupling for various interacting loops
Compressor Control Requirements:
Inlet Gas & Residue Gas Compressors
Combining Open Loop Response
with Traditional Closed Loop Response
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Compressor Control Requirements:
Inlet Gas & Residue Gas Compressors
Necessity of an Adaptive response
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Compressor Control Requirements:
Inlet Gas & Residue Gas Compressors
Decoupling for Various Interactive Loops
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Compressor Control Requirements:
Inlet Gas & Residue Gas Compressors
• “Smooth” operation of compression units
within allowed operating envelope
• EGT limit is a typical example
• Performance control = maintaining primary
goal for control system
• Constant discharge pressure is typical for residue gas
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compressor
• Specialized equipment is justified for most
tasks
• Need for high execution speed
• Complexity of the task
CCC Control System:
Inlet Gas & Residue Gas Compressors
• Dynamic Behavior
– closed loop control
– open loop control (Recycle Trip)
– adaptive response
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– decoupling for various interacting loops
Antisurge Controller Operation Protection #1
The Surge Control Line (SCL)
Rc SLL = Surge Limit Line
• When the
SCL = Surge Control Line
operating point
crosses the SCL,
B PI control will
open the recycle
A
valve
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• PI control will give
adequate
protection for
2 small
Q
disturbances
• PI control will give stable control
during steady state recycle operation
• Slow disturbance example
Adaptive Gain Enhancing
the Effectiveness of the PI Controller
Rc
• When the operating point
moves quickly towards the
SCL, the rate of change
B
(dS/dT) can be used to
A dynamically increase the
surge control margin.
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• This allows the PID
controller to react earlier.
• Smaller steady state surge
control margins can be
2
used w/o sacrificing
Q reliability.
• Fast disturbance example
Antisurge Controller Operation Protection #2
The Recycle Trip® Line (RTL)
Rc Benefits:
SLL = Surge Limit Line – Reliably breaks the
SCL-2 = Open Loop Line surge cycle
SCL = Surge Control Line – Energy savings due to
smaller surge margins
needed
– Compressor has more
turndown before
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OP
recycle or blow-off
– Surge can be
prevented for virtually
any disturbance
Output 2
Q
to Valve
Recycle Trip®
PI Control
Action
Total Response
PI Control Response
+
Open-loop Response
To antisurge valve
Time
Improving the accuracy of
Recycle Trip®
• Recycle Trip® is the most powerful method known
for antisurge protection
• But, open loop control lacks the accuracy needed to
precisely position the antisurge valve
• Open loop corrections of a fixed magnitude (C1) are
often either too big or too small for a specific
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disturbance
• The rate of change (derivative) of the compressor
operating point has been proven to be an excellent
predictor of the strength of the disturbance and the
magnitude required from the Recycle Trip®
response
• Therefore, the magnitude of actual step (C) of the
Recycle Trip® response is a function of the rate of
change of the operating point or d(Ss)/dt
Recycle Trip® based on derivative of Ss
Recycle Trip® Benefits
Response calculation:
d(Ss)
• Maximum
C = C1Td
dt
protection
– No surge
where:
• C = Actual step to the valve – No compressor
• C1 = Constant - also defines damage
maximum step
• Td
• Minimum process
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= Scaling constant
• d(Ss)/dt = Rate of change of the
operating point
disturbance
Output Output – No process trips
to valve Medium disturbance to valve Large disturbance
100%
Total
PI Control
Total
PI Control
Recycle Trip® Recycle Trip®
0%
Time Time
Turboexpanders in
Gas Processing Plants
Typical Gas Processing Plant Design
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Overview of Turboexpanders
in Gas Processing Plants
• Turboexpanders began being used in gas
processing plants around 1960
• Presently, most gas processing plants use
turboexpanders
• A turboexpander recovers useful work from the
expansion of the gas
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• Turboexpander-equipped gas processing plants are
designed to recover ethane (C2) and heavier
hydrocarbons (C3, C4, etc.) from the natural gas
streams. The objective is to separate more
expensive products and to send methane (C1) into
the pipeline.
• The process involving turboexpander operates
isentropically (in ideal case)
Overview of Turboexpanders
in Gas Processing Plants
• In the process of producing work, a turboexpander
lowers the gas stream temperature. This results in
partial liquefication of the gas stream
• The work recovered in the turboexpander is used to
rotate the turbocompressor in the outlet of a plant,
returning the gas closer to the expected discharge
parameters of the plant
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• The use of an expander as a driver for the
compressor is very important. If the gas were to be
expanded without doing any driver work, the
expansion path would follow a constant enthalpy
line, named a Joule-Thompson, or a constant
enthalpy expansion. The outlet temperature and
pressure would be higher than that accomplished in
the expander (nearly isentropic) expansion process
Overview of Turboexpanders
in Gas Processing Plants
Use of the Recycle Valve
of the Turbocompressor/Turboexpander Train
for the Purpose of the Condensate Production Increase
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Turboexpander Design
• Features of Turboexpander Control Systems
• Throughput of the expander part of the train is
controlled by Inlet Guide Vanes
• Throughput of the recompressor is typically not
controlled
• The turboexpander, as a result, will operate in a
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wide range of speeds
• Turboexpander trains are equipped with a
compressor recycle valve that can be used for
surge control and protection
• Turboexpander trains are equipped by an expander
bypass valve (aka. J-T or Joule-Thompson valve)
• Turboexpander trains are either loaded to maximum
capacity or are operating at set flow rate
Traditional Turboexpander
Control System Design
• Traditional Turboexpander Control System
• Speed of the turboexpander typically is not
controlled. And, as a result of an upset
condition the speed may exceed the
allowable maximum
• Overspeed trip prevention is typically
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primitive. Trip is prevented by one of:
– 1) limiting opening of IGV by position of IGV;
– 2) limiting dP across the expander; or
– 3) limiting speed via IGV and J-T valve in split
level fashion
CCC Control System:
Turboexpanders
• CCC Turboexpander Control System (Patented)
• Speed of the turboexpander is reliably limited
• If speed exceeds allowable maximum:
– first, open expander compressor’s recycle valve to load up
the train
– second, at slightly higher set point start closing IGV. J-T
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valve is used only when IGV is controlling speed or when
IGV is 100% open
• IMPORTANT DIFFERENTIATION
• CCC control strategy has the potential to increase
production of condensate, since the amount of gas
passing through the expander is higher than for a
traditional control system
CCC Control System:
JT Valve Pre-Positioning
• In order to reduce the severity that tripping a train
has on the Feed Gas pressure, CCC implements a
special algorithm that “pre-positions” the JT valve
• CCC calculates an opening value that provides JT
valve capacity equivalent to the Turbo-expander’s
throughput prior to its trip.
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• The position of the JT valve will be a function of the
IGV of the expander.
• The inlet flow of the expander will then relate that to
an equivalent JT-valve stroke, and thus the initial
output of the JT Controller.
• This feature utilizes a 10-point characterizer, whose
function argument is the IGV position, and the
function result is the required equivalent JT valve
initial opening value.
CCC Control System:
Load Sharing with Parallel Expanders
• Maintain the pressure of the (upstream) Feed Gas
from Feed Dehydrators at setpoint by modulating
the throughput of each Turbo-expander’s IGV’s
according to a Load-Balancing strategy
• Load-Balancing strategy is based on equalizing the
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flow to each of the Turbo-expander’s. When the
Brake compressors operate safely away from their
respective Surge Control Lines (SCL), the flow to
the Turbo-expanders are balanced. The trains are
balanced based on equalizing each compressor’s
proximity-to-surge variable (S’) when the
compressors operate in the vicinity of the SCL.
• CCC’s strategy provides for a smooth transition
between both methods.
CCC Control System:
Load Sharing with Parallel Expanders
• If the process load exceeds the capacity of both
Turbo-expanders (i.e. both Turbo-expander IGV are
fully open), excess gas shall be bypassed around
the common J-T valve.
• Under these conditions, the control system will
equalize the total expander flow, in order to achieve
an equitable split of the excess load and thus
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preventing flow swings from one train to the other.
• In the event that either Turbo-expander is operating
close to the high speed limit, the Turbo-expander
speed will be limited.
• First, by opening the compressor antisurge valve
more than needed by the surge control response.
This will increase shaft load on the Turbo-expander
and reduce the speed.
CCC Control System:
Load Sharing with Parallel Expanders
• Subsequently, the speed of the Turbo-expander will
be limited by closing its IGV.
• If the Demethanizer column pressure becomes too
high, the JT valve will be closed.
• It is expected that the Demethanizer tower pressure
will reach a high pressure limit during times of high
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feed rate and the Turbo-expander would be
operating with the inlet guide vanes 100 percent
open and the JT valve open.
CCC Turboexpander Experience
• AGIP KCO (Kazakhstan) via MTC
• Aramco (Berri Gas Plant)
• bp Sonatrach (In Amenis) via GER
• Cabinda ChevronTexaco Sanha (Angola) via GER
• Formosa Petrochemicals
• Gas Authority of India
• GASCO (Abu Dhabi)
•
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PDO via GER
• PDVSA
• Pemex via GER
• Phillips TIGA Bayu Undan
• QGPC via MTC
• QP (Dukhan)
• QP via GER (order expected 1Q05)
• Shell (Shearwater, UK)
• Statoil (Karsto) via MTC & GER
• TGS (Cerri Gas Plant)
• Tengizchevroil (Kazakhstan)
**Partial listing