3.

EQUIPMENT DESIGN

3.1 EQUIPMENT LISTING

Generally, the production of ethylene from natural gas using Oxidative Coupling of Methane
(OCM) consists of six main subsystems including OCM reactor, Air Separation Unit (ASU),
acid gas removal, absorber, demethanizer and C₂ splitter. The auxiliary units that can be
found in our design includes heater, cooler, isothermal compressor, dryer and separator.
Besides, there is also recycle stream in our plant design to increase the purity of ethylene.

i. Isothermal compressor 1
ii. Air separation unit
iii. Isothermal compressor 2
iv. Heater 1
v. Isothermal compressor 3
vi. Heater 2
vii. Oxidative Coupling of Methane (OCM) reactor
viii. Cooler
ix. Absorber/Dryer
x. Acid Gas Remover
xi. Demethanizer
xii. C2 Splitter
xiii. Separator
 3.2 SIZING

UNIT CHOSEN: C2 Splitter Distillation Column

We decided to choose one out of the 13 units that can be found in our plant to specify
its size and its design parameters. The C2 splitter distillation column is selected for us to
specify and design its process and mechanical designs. Distillation method is used to
separate the key component, ethylene from ethane to obtain the desired purity. C 2 splitter
distillation column was designed with specific parameters in order to achieve our aim.

While designing an industrial grade distillation column there are two main factors
that requires scrupulous details-process design and mechanical design. With the help of
process design, the number of theoretical stages, diameter and height of the tower can be
determined.

MECHANICAL DESIGN AND MECHANICAL DRAWING

To fulfill the requirements of the project, the calculation parameters have been
done to estimate the whole figure of our distillation column design. Based on the design
parameters that have been finalized, there are several important unit calculations to
accomplish a drawing such as design parameters, column dimensions, plate parameters and
plate dimensions. Our group has developed 2D mechanical drawing using AutoCAD consist
of cross section view of distillation column, side view of sieve plates with liquid flow
demonstration, top view with layout of odd sieve plate and top view with layout of even
sieve plate. There are also several equipments with particular function and specification that
has been developed in our distillation column.

First, manholes will influence the entire vessel orientation to a certain degree. The
location of the manholes must be compatible with the location of the tray down comers.
Second, the attached line originated at a fired heater characterizes the feed nozzle
installation. Third, reboilers are heat exchangers typically used to provide heat to the
bottom of industrial distillation columns. They boil the liquid from the bottom of a
distillation column to generate vapors which are returned to the column to drive the
distillation separation. Then, a skirt is the most frequently used and most satisfactory means
of support for vertical vessels.
 Reflux liquid return refers to the portion of the overhead liquid product from a
distillation column that is returned to the upper part of the column as shown in the
schematic diagram of a typical industrial distillation column. Inside the column, the
downflowing reflux liquid provides cooling and condensation of the upflowing vapors
thereby increasing the efficiency of the distillation column. Last but not least, the present of
insulation is to reduce heat losses by guarantees protection against contact by minimizing
the surface temperature.
 3.3 DESIGN PARAMETERS OF C2 SPLITTER DISTILLATION COLUMN
Parameters Value

Feed specification Cold liquid feed,(q=1.127)

Composition Ethylene (49.874%)
Ethane (50.126%)
Flowrate 1011.847 kmol/hr
Temperature 241.3455 K
Pressure 11.9 bar

Distillate specification Liquid

Composition Ethylene (99.95%)
Ethane (0.4644%)
Flowrate 94.984 kmol/hr
Temperature 151.367K
Pressure 11.9 bar

Bottoms specification Liquid

Composition Ethylene (5.4085%)
Ethane (94.592%)
Flowrate 916.863 kmol/hr
Temperature 224.37 K
Pressure 11.9 bar

Design parameters
Reflux ratio 10.653
Number of theoretical plates 25(including reboiler)
Feed plate number 20
Tower height 9.241 m

Column dimensions
Column area 4.1548 m²
Column diameter 2.3 m
Downcomer area (12%) 0.4986 m²

Plate parameters
Overall plate efficiency 50.004%
Type of plate Perforated plate/Sieve plate

Plate dimensions
 Plate material stainless steel
Plate spacing 0.25 m
Plate thickness 5.0 mm
Hole Pitch 12.5mm
Weir length 1.771 m
Weir height 45 mm
Active area 3.1576 m²
Holes diameter 5.0 mm
Holes area of one hole 1.964 x 10⁻⁵ mm²
Number of hole 16080
Plate pressure drop 125.1118 mm liquid

JUSTIFICATIONS FOR THE CHOSEN PARAMETERS IN DISTILLATION

COLUMN
 Distillation is a process used to separate a mixture of two (or more) components into
its virgin state by heating the mixture to a temperature between their respective boiling
points. The distillation column is made up of a series of stacked plates. A liquid feed
containing the mixture of two or more liquids enters the column at one or more points. The
liquid flows over the plates, and vapour bubbles up through the liquid via holes in the
plates. As liquid travels down the column, the vapour comes in contact with it several times
due to the multiple plates – a critical process in distillation columns. The liquid and vapour
phases are brought into contact because as one molecule of higher boiling material converts
from vapour to liquid phase by energy release, another molecule of the low boiling material
utilizes the free energy to convert from liquid to vapour phase.

The separation of ethylene from ethane by distillation is normally the final step in
the production of ethylene. The required purity of ethylene usually exceeds 99.9%, and the
economic level of recovery is approximately 99%. Traditionally, the separation process is
performed in distillation columns containing about 100-130 plates that requires higher cost
and high energy-intensive separation. Hence, a meticulous engineering works should be
carried out when considering a distillation column for ethylene separation. The distillation
column that is chosen in our project to obtain higher purity of ethylene by recovering it
from ethane is C2 splitter.

Firstly, the selection between the packed column and tray column is important when
designing the distillation column. This selection can be made by considering the pros and
cons of each column and its pertinent to the aim for the distillation tower. A key parameter
when designing an distillation unit is the pressure drop. The higher the pressure drop, the
higher the gas velocity, thus the down falling liquid will experience greater resistance
whereby the liquid starts to gradually fill the packing voids and flooding occurs. Therefore, a
condition that favours in packed column is that it has a lower pressure drop. However, the
packed tower could not handle lower liquid rates while tray towers are better in this. Tray
columns can be designed with more assurance than packed column. There is always some
doubt that good liquid distribution can be maintained throughout a packed column
particularly in larger dimensions. Moreover, the tray columns provide holdup for a portion
of liquid through which the vapour flows to accomplish the mass transfer required for
separation. The deck and downcomers found on the trays also plays a significant role in the
distillation of the ethane-ethylene mixture by increasing the plate efficiencies. In the context
of maintenance, it is easier to make provision for cleaning in a plate column. So considering
all the reasons, we personally choose tray tower for the C2 splitter as the tray tower offer
better predictability than packed tower. Besides that, the lower liquid flow rate as in the
case may result in poor wetting of packing in packed tower thereby resulting poor mass
transfer. Therefore, using a tray tower instead of a packed tower is the best choice for our
project as its performance prediction is easier.

The design of a distillation column also involves many parameters: product

compositions, product flowrates, operating pressure, total number of trays, feed tray
location, reflux ratio, relative volatility, column diameter, column height, type of trays and
so on. In our project, the C2 splitter distillation column is used for ethylene recovery to
obtain ethylene with 99.95% purity. The distillation column that we designed has 1 feed
input and 2 outputs which are the distillate (top product) and waste (bottom product). The
feed is a cold liquid mixture of ethane and ethylene. The feed flowrate of the distillation
column is 1011.8473 kmol/h while the flowrate of distillate is 94.9844 kmol/h and bottom
product has a flowrate of 916.8629 kmol/h. The composition of ethylene in the feed, Xf is
0.1775 mol/mol , distillate,Xd is 0.9995 mol/mol and bottom , Xw is 0.05 mol/mol. The
reflux ratio of the distillation column is about 10.653:1 and the relative volatility is
1.79.Since it is a binary mixture, McCabe Thiele method is used to determine the number of
stages by sketching graph. By using all the data obtained, the theoretical number of plates
(plus reboiler) in our C2 splitter was calculated and it resulted in 25 plates with the feed
plate at 20. The theoretical number of stages obtained is acceptable since in industries a 40-
tray column is used to distillate mineral oils .The number of trays depends on the purity and
the difficulty in separating the mixtures. 25 trays is a considerable number of stages as we
aimed a purity of 99.95% ethylene.

The height of a tray column is calculated by multiplying the number of stages by the
tray separation. The most common tray spacing is 0.6 m as it allows enough space to work
on the trays whenever the column is big enough that workers must crawl inside. Smaller
diameter columns may be able to get by with 0.3m and 0.45m tray spacing. In our design,
the tray spacing is fixed at 0.3 m, which results in the tower height of 9.2410 m. The bigger
the tray spacing, the taller the distillation column. The distillation column in oil refinery or
chemical plants can goes up to 30 m tall. It is really rare to see a distillation column with a
column height of 50 m. Thus, the height of the distillation must not exceed 50 m or 175 ft.

Furthermore, the column diameter is also one of the important features that should
be considered carefully when designing a distillation column. Column diameter is found
based on the constraints imposed by flooding. The vapour velocity is the main determinant
for the diameter. The most common column diameter is about 2.5 m, but 6m diameter is
also commonplace and there are also towers of 12 m diameters have been built. Height-to-
diameter ratio should be less than 20 .The column diameter for our designed distillation
column is 2.3m, which is almost similar to the common column diameter used in chemical
plants. The diameter chosen is also based on the maximum flooding velocity in our column
which 0.1639 m/s (top) and also the vapour velocity. The area of the column is about 4.1548
m2 and the downcomer area that is 12% of the total area is 0.4986 m 2 for the chosen
diameter and . The downcomers are conduits having circular cross sections that convey
liquid from upper tray to a lower tray in a distillation column.

The tray column is chosen over packed column for the distillation column hence the
tray selection should also be done carefully because the particular tray selection and its
design can materially affect the performance of distillation system. Each tray should be
designed so as to give efficient contact between the vapour and liquid as possible, within
reasonable economic limits. There are 5 major types of tray column: bubble cap, sieve tray,
dual flow tray, valve tray and baffle tray. In our distillation column, we choose sieve tray as
the tray columns. Sieve tray is a flat perforated metal sheet where the vapour passes
straight upward through the liquid on the plate through the holes. The first reason why
sieve trays are chosen is that it is the least expensive tray option. In terms of economics,
they are cheap, the construction is relatively simple and cheap, and besides that, the
maintenance cost is low compared to other trays, as it is easy to be maintained. Sieve trays
have small gas pressure drop, the upper liquid level drop is small and the plate efficiency are
higher than the bubble cap tower plate. Sieve trays also widely used in the distillation
columns in industries.

The material used in the sieve trays is stainless steel. Its high corrosion resistance
allowing it to be used in rigorous environments. Hygienic, the easy cleaning ability of
stainless makes it the primary choice for applications, which require strict hygiene control
and this is important in our project as our aim is to produce ethylene with the highest
purity. Hence, it is important to make sure there is neither contamination nor impurities.
The sieve trays from stainless steel ease the process of cleaning and ensure a good
maintenance. Even though ,the stainless steel is quite pricey, its durability ,corrosion and
heat resistance makes it more worth it as it cut downs the maintenance cost compared to
other materials like iron.

The sieve trays, which is also known as perforated trays, have numerous amount of
holes on it, which is the key structure that helps the distillation. The diameter and area of
each holes also gives impact to the performance of the plate. The diameter of the hole (for
one) is set at 5mm.The common diameter of hole that is widely used is between 5mm to
12mm. It is suggested that smaller holes at low vapour rates prevented liquid downfall due
to the capillary surface tension effects, thus increasing the tray liquid holdup and
efficiencies. Smaller flows are issued from smaller holes thus increasing the mass transfer
process. The smaller the holes, the more efficient the trays are as they can recover more
ethylene. The sieve tray follows a triangular pitch hole with hole pitch spacing of 0.0125m.
The area of one hole is 0.00001964 m 2 hence there is 16080 holes per tray. The number of
holes on the tray must not exceed 50000 because the distance between holes will be too
small. The overall efficiency of the plates used in our distillation column is 50.004%. The weir
height also affects the plate efficiency. A high weir will increase the plate efficiency but at
the expense of a higher plate pressure drop .For columns operating above atmospheric
pressure, the weir height is normally around 40-90 mm. In our design, we chose the weir
height to be 45 as the most recommended height is between 40-50mm. The plate efficiency
is also affected by mechanical design factors which includes the tray type and size, hole size,
weir height, operation conditions (liquid and vapour rates) and the characteristics of the
mixture on the tray.