PROCESS

ENGINEERING DESIGN
CONTENT OF TRAINING COURSE

✓ Chapter 1: Overview of Process

Engineering in Oil & Gas Industry
✓ Chapter 2: Hydraullic Calculation/Line
Sizing
✓ Chapter 3: Pump Sizing
✓ Chapter 4: Separator Sizing
✓ Chapter 5: Tank Sizing
✓ Chapter 6: PSV Sizing
 Targets
➢ Understand engineering workflow
➢ Understand process design in chemical/oil & gas
industry
➢ Use design standards: API, PTS, NOC…
➢ Hydraullic calculation, line sizing for single phase
➢ Sizing main equipments: pump, separator, tank
 CONTENTS

1. Definition and Purpose of Separator

2. Classification and selection

3. Separator Design (General)

4. Two Phase Separator Design

5. Design Standard

6. Sizing Example
1. Definition and Purpose
of Separator
 1. Definition and Purpose of Pump
✓ Separator: is equipment which use for separation fluid in
mixed phase to individual phases by many working
principles
✓ In Oil & Gas Industry: separator is pressure vessel that is
used for separating the reservoir fluid components of
water, oil and gas stream into both gas and liquid.
✓ Purpose: primary separting for other processing of
offshore platform.
2. Classification and
Selection
Classification

By shape Phase Pressure Internal

• Horizontal • 2 phases • LP – Low Devices
• Vertical • 3 phases pressure • Vane pack
• Spherical • HP – High • Mesh mist
Pressure
Classification
Classification
Classification
Classification
 Classification
Specifications Vertical Horizontal Spherical

Efficiency Less efficient than Best efficiency Less efficient than

horizontal horizontal
Installtion Less plot spaces but More plot space but less Less space
Space more height height
Ship Cost Difficult to ship and Easier and cheaper to Very compact and easy
install ship and install to ship and install
Liquid control Not critical More critical Very critical

Fabricated Cost More expensive Cheaper than vertical Very inexpensive

separator
Cleaning Eassy to clean Harder to clean -> bad Better clean-out
choice in any sand-
producing area
Surge control Better surge control Limit surge space Very limit surge space

Ideal Low – intermediate High GOR/ foaming fluid Low – intermediate

Application GOR, large surge Wide range of operation GOR, prefer two-phase
volume separation
Classification
3. Separator Design
Separator Design

✓ Inlet piping/outlet piping

(outside of separator)
✓ Primary Separation (A)
✓ Gravity Settling (B)
✓ Coalescing/Demister (C)
✓ Liquid Collecting (D)
Separator Design
 Working Principle
Basis Principles of Separation in Separator:

➢ Three basic principles are used to achieve

physical separation of gas, liquids and solids:
✓ Changing momentum
✓ Gravity
✓ Coalescing (a subset of momentum)

➢ Any separator may employ one or more of

these principles to achieve separation.

➢ Fluid phases must be “immiscible” and have

different densities for separation to occur.
 Working Principle
Basis Principles of Separation in Separator:
Momentum
Momentum M = ρ.v2 (kg/m.s2 or Pa)
ρ: fluid density, kg/m3
v: fluid velocity, m/s

✓ Fluid phases with different density => different momentum

M
✓ 2 phases (gas / liquid) fluid stream change direction
sharply => greater momentum will not allow particles of the
heavier phase to turn as rapidly as the lighter fluid =>
separation occurs
✓ Momentum separation is as bulk separation of the two
phases in a stream
 Working Principle
Basis Principles of Separation in Separator:
Gravity

✓ Liquid droplets will settle

out if the gravitational
force acting on the droplet Drag
is greater than the drag Force

force of the gas flowing

around the droplet +
Bouyancy force of
Liquid
droplet. Droplet

Fgravity > Fdrag + Fbouyancy

Gas Flow
Working Principle
 Working Principle
Gravity Princple

✓ Terminal velocity or critical

velocity Vt = necessary velocity
for particles of size Dp to drop or
settle out of a continuous phase,
m/s
 Working Principle
Gravity Princple
 Working Principle
Gravity Princple
 Working Principle
Coalescing Princple

✓ In gas phase, small droplets join together to form

larger droplet
✓ This process occur very slowly in continuous
phase due to limited collisions between droplet
✓ High surface area device => accelerate
coalescing process => Demisting Device
4. Gas-Liquid Separator
Design
 Gas-Liquid Separator
Separation Fundamentals
✓ Souder-Brown Equation
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Zones in the Separator

✓ Inlet Section
✓ Gravity Separation Section
✓ Gas Polishing Section
✓ Liquid Accumalation Section
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Inlet Section

Diffuser
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Inlet Section
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Inlet Section
✓ Maximum mixed phase velocity head
(momentum) J is depent on type of inlet
device => Ensure good gas distribution
and minimum liquid shattering.
✓ Max J to sizing Inlet Nozzle

Inlet Device Max momentum

No Inlet Distributor 975 - 2250
Diffuer Distributor 6000 - 9000
Half Pipe / Elbow Distributor 1500 - 3750
Baffle Distributor 1500 - 3750

✓ Inlet pipe: 5-10D straight length

 Gas-Liquid Separator

Gravity Settling Section

✓ Maximum allowable
horizontal velocity
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Gas Polishing Section

✓ Sizing Mist Eliminator

 Gas-Liquid Separator

Gas Polishing Section

De-rating K value on Operating Pressure

Kderating = K* De-rating factor

 Gas-Liquid Separator
Gas Polishing Section
Mist Eliminator is used to aid gravity separation with 2
functions:
✓ Capture liquid droplet
✓ Drain liquid without allowing re-entrainment into gas

Liquid Carryover mechanism:

- Droplet too small or velocity too low => low efficiency of
impaction-type mist extractor
- Re-entrainment of liquid. Gas moving through mist extractor is
exceed Drag force=> liquid torn off and carried away by gas
stream
- Increasing Gas flowrate  contact efficiency of mist eliminator
increase, BUT increase liquid carryover + limit separation capacity
Mist Eliminator Type
✓ Mesh Mist Eliminator
✓ Vane Mist Eliminator
✓ Cyclonic Mist Eliminator
 Gas-Liquid Separator
Gas Polishing Section

✓ Mesh Mist Eliminator

Principle: inertial impaction.
- Impingement of droplets
onto the wires =>
coalescence droplets large

Material of wire:
- Knitting wire
- Metal
- plastic

Efficiency depends on:

- Wire or fiber total thickness, normal 100-150 mm
- Mesh density
- Wire diameter
=> Smaller wire size and thicker mesh is more efficient
 Gas-Liquid Separator
Gas Polishing Section
✓ Vane Pack Mist Eliminator

Principle:
 Use closely spaced
blaled arrange =>
zig-zag gas flow
 Imingement of
droplet +
coalescence
Efficiency denpends on:
- Vane design Concern of vane type:
- Gas velocity - Dirt and fouling
- Gas properties (viscosity) - Pressure increase ->
efficiency decrease
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Vapour Outlet Section

Gas outlet nozzle:

Max momentum J = 4500 – 5400 kg/m.s2
Maximum velocity = 18 m/s
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Liquid Accummulation Section

HHLL: High high liquid level

HLL: High liquid level
NLL: Normal liquid level
LLL: Low liquid level
LLLL: Low low liquid level

Liquid outlet nozzle:

✓ Max velocity: 0.9-1.5 m/s
 Gas-Liquid Separator

Liquid Accummulation Section

Specification Abbreviation Typical Value

Retention time Btm - NLL 2 min
Max 15 min
High Level Surge HLL-HHLL 1-2 min
Time
Low Level Surge LLLL-LLL 1-2 min
Time
Total Surge Time LLL-HLL 5 min
5. Design Standard
 Design Standard

API 12J
 Design Standard
Comparision of Design Standard
Specification GPSA API 12J PTS
K factor K = 0.122 to 0.137 K = 0.122 to 0.152 NA
(L/3048)^0.56 (L/3.05)^0.56
L = length, mm L = length, m
L/D 2-4 NA 2.5 - 6
Btm - NLL 2 - 15 min 1 – 4 min NA
Btm - LLLL NA NA 0.25 m
HLL-HHLL 1-2 min/ 100 mm NA 1-2 min/ 100 mm
LLLL-LLL 1-2 min/ 100 mm NA 1-2 min/ 100 mm
LLL-HLL 5 min / 350 mm NA 3-10 min / 350 mm
Inlet Nozzle Diffuser: 6000-9000 Pa NA Diffuser: 8000 Pa
Half-open: 1500 - 3750 Pa Half-open: 2100 Pa
No devide: 975 - 2250 Pa No devide: 1400 Pa
Gas Outlet 4500 – 5400 Pa NA 4500 Pa
Nozzle Max velicty: 18 m/s
Liquid Outlet 0.9 – 1.5 m/s NA 1 m/s
Nozzle Min size 2”
6. Gas-Liquid Separator
Sizing
 Gas-Liquid Separator Sizing

Fluid Data
- Flowrate: G/L
- Density: G/L
- Visocisty: G/L Overall Sizing Steps

Separator Configuration Sizing Calculation

- L/D - Max gas velocity Vh Sizing Results
- Inlet Device - Assume HHLL/D - D and L
- Demister Device - Calculation min D => Select D - Liquid Level: LLLL, LLL,
- Calculation L NLL, HLL, HHLL
- Check Level Setting - Nozzles Size
- Sizing nozzles
Design Standard
- K factor
- Design margin
- Retention time
- Liquid level setting
- Momentum limit of
nozzles
 Gas-Liquid Separator Sizing
Section Volume of Cylindrical Separator
 Gas-Liquid
Separator Sizing

Section Volume of
Cylindrical
Separator
 Gas-Liquid Separator Sizing
Example:
Fluid data
Operating pressure = 1724 kPa (g)
Operating temperature = 490C
Gas flowrate = 12113.6 kg/h
Liquid flowrate = 121655 kg/h

Note:
l = liquid,
g = gas
m = mixed fluid