Evaluating a tunable filter spectrometer online gas analyzer

Evaluating a tunable filter spectrometer online gas analyzer Juan Escobar, measurement specialist, Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Aramco) May 2015 © Copyright 2015, Saudi Aramco. All rights reserved. Saudi Aramco: Public

Contents Introduction Relevance of composition in Measurement Alternative Technologies Tunable Filter Spectroscopy Analyzer Testing Results Saudi Aramco: Public

Saudi Aramco Gas Pipelines Network Saudi Aramco: Public

Over 120 customers Kingdom-wide Refineries Power Plants Petrochemicals Mining Large and Small scale industry Saudi Aramco: Public

Volumetric Flow Rate gas equation Orifice calculation factor Reynolds number Fluid velocity Density is heavily depending on composition (AGA 8) Saudi Aramco: Public

Slope factor Real gas relative density Molecular weight Supercompressibility factor Compressibility is heavily depending on composition (AGA 8) Saudi Aramco: Public

GC is the incumbent methodology • Very well-known technology. Gas Chromatography has been the reference technique since late 1970 s • Heating value (BTU) & Wobbe Index for energy content • Hydrocarbons C 1 through C 9+, COx, NOx, H 2 S, Diatomics • Long response time. Requires the physical separation of molecules in the samples which takes long. • Carrier gas requirement (He, Ar, H 2, N 2) and safety considerations • Relative method with calibration gases • Complicated and costly operations and maintenance • Bulky and requires a lot of space Saudi Aramco: Public

GC Alternatives over the years • Mass Spectroscopy • GC-MS • FTIR (optical vibrational, absorption) • Raman (optical vibrational, emission) • NIR/FT-NIR (optical vibrational, emission) • TDL (tunable diode laser) • QCL (quantum cascade laser) • Now enters TFS (tunable filter spectroscopy) Saudi Aramco: Public

Tunable Filter Spectroscopy • Near real-time gas composition response time with fast updated results. • Easy installation with less space requirements. • Field mounted, robust and rugged; suitable for harsh industrial environments and hazardous area installation. • Minimal maintenance with no consumables. • No requirement of carrier gases or calibration gases. • New technology. • No direct measurement of the diatomic homonuclear components such as H 2 (hydrogen), O 2 (oxygen) and N 2 (nitrogen). www. precisive-instruments. com Saudi Aramco: Public

Operational Principle Chemometrics Example Configuration Ch. # Compound Range Accuracy 1 Methane 0 - 100% +/- 0. 2% 2 Ethane 0 – 25% +/- 0. 2% 3 Propane 0 – 25% +/- 0. 2% 4 iso-Butane 0 – 10% +/- 0. 1% 5 n-Butane 0 – 10% +/- 0. 1% 6 Propylene 0 – 10% +/- 0. 2% 7 Ethylene 0 – 10% +/- 0. 2% www. precisive-instruments. com Saudi Aramco: Public Speciated and Quantified Compounds

www. precisive-instruments. com Saudi Aramco: Public

Lab trial - Natural Gas Mixtures TFS Ref Error CH 4 81. 23 81. 301 0. 071 CH 4 81. 78 81. 864 0. 084 CH 4 87. 68 87. 505 -0. 175 C 2 H 6 2. 80 2. 833 0. 033 C 2 H 6 3. 07 3. 08 0. 01 C 2 H 6 7. 54 7. 539 -0. 001 C 3 H 8 0. 34 0. 391 0. 051 C 3 H 8 0. 44 0. 482 0. 042 C 3 H 8 1. 65 1. 721 0. 071 i. C 4 H 10 0. 064 i. C 4 H 10 0. 03 0. 077 0. 047 i. C 4 H 10 0. 25 0. 17 -0. 08 n. C 4 H 10 0. 14 0. 073 -0. 067 n. C 4 H 10 0. 16 0. 095 -0. 065 n. C 4 H 10 0. 25 0. 19 -0. 06 C 5 0. 02 0. 043 0. 023 C 5 0. 00 0. 055 C 5 0. 02 0. 049 0. 029 N 2 14. 50 14. 19 -0. 31 N 2 12. 30 12. 015 -0. 285 N 2 0. 80 0. 939 0. 139 CO 2 1. 02 1 -0. 02 CO 2 2. 23 2. 209 -0. 021 CO 2 1. 86 1. 848 -0. 012 C 6 N/A CV (Superior, Gross) Wobbe Index 0. 043 C 6 N/A CV (Superior, Gross) Wobbe Index 34. 901 35. 09 0. 1881 43. 486 43. 7 0. 2131 0. 077 C 6 N/A CV (Superior, Gross) Wobbe Index 42. 506 42. 45 53. 262 53. 17 35. 393 35. 68 0. 2869 43. 922 44. 23 0. 3077 Saudi Aramco: Public 0. 03 0. 0565 0. 0924

Lab trial - Synthetic Mixtures TFS Ref Error CH 4 86. 29 86. 183 -0. 107 CH 4 83. 37 83. 284 -0. 086 CH 4 82. 10 82. 091 -0. 009 C 2 H 6 8. 47 8. 542 0. 072 C 2 H 6 3. 07 3. 056 -0. 014 C 2 H 6 3. 88 3. 893 0. 013 C 3 H 8 1. 84 1. 963 0. 123 C 3 H 8 0. 40 0. 46 0. 06 C 3 H 8 0. 88 0. 949 0. 069 i. C 4 H 10 0. 31 0. 227 -0. 083 i. C 4 H 10 0. 073 -0. 027 i. C 4 H 10 0. 18 0. 146 -0. 034 n. C 4 H 10 0. 48 0. 422 -0. 058 n. C 4 H 10 0. 11 0. 093 -0. 017 n. C 4 H 10 0. 17 0. 148 -0. 022 C 5 0. 02 0 -0. 02 C 5 0. 00 0 0 N 2 1. 10 1. 12 0. 02 N 2 11. 23 11. 344 0. 114 N 2 9. 80 9. 793 -0. 007 CO 2 1. 55 1. 543 -0. 007 CO 2 1. 72 1. 69 -0. 03 CO 2 3. 01 2. 979 -0. 031 0. 00 0 0 C 6 0. 0568 0. 0368 CV (Superior, Gross) Wobbe Index 0. 0002 0. 0018 CV (Superior, Gross) Wobbe Index 36. 731 36. 742 0. 0106 45. 310 45. 336 0. 0257 CV (Superior, Gross) Wobbe Index 43. 163 43. 107 53. 712 53. 676 35. 975 44. 972 44. 971 Saudi Aramco: Public

Field trial – Natural Gas Mixtures TFS Ref Error CH 4 88. 878 88. 492 0. 386 C 2 H 6 8. 348 8. 2506 C 3 H 8 0. 410 N 2 2. 268 TFS Ref Error CH 4 89. 338 88. 587 0. 751 0. 097 C 2 H 6 8. 037 8. 1416 0. 5854 -0. 175 C 3 H 8 0. 273 1. 7188 0. 549 N 2 2. 258 TFS Ref Error CH 4 89. 963 89. 037 0. 926 -0. 105 C 2 H 6 7. 402 7. 6049 -0. 203 0. 4544 -0. 181 C 3 H 8 0. 167 0. 3566 -0. 190 1. 7114 0. 547 N 2 2. 382 1. 7509 0. 631 Errors obtained when the equipment is tested in a field environment are bigger than the ones obtained at a lab environment. It is planned to perform another trial with an extended composition, C 1 -C 6+ which is normally used for custody applications, and throughout the year to assess the impact of different seasons on instrument performance. Saudi Aramco: Public

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