PROCESS FOR REMOVING NITROGEN FROM NATURAL GAS
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A process for separating the components of a gas mixture comprising methane, nitrogen, and at least one hydrocarbon having at least two carbon atoms, or a mixture of these hydrocarbons, including the following steps: a) demonization of the gas mixture with at least one demethenization column; b) extraction of a liquid comprising at least 85 mol % of the hydrocarbons having at least two carbon atoms, partial condensation of a gas mixture in order to obtain a liquid, at least a portion of which is treated in order to be extracted as denitrogenated natural gas product and a second gas; d) introduction of the second gas and/or the gas mixture into a nitrogen removal column, obtained from which are a gas and a liquid, e) treatment of the gas in a nitrogen removal system in order to produce a gas stream comprising 5 mol % at most of nitrogen.
5 Citations
18 Claims
-
1-9. -9. (canceled)
-
10. A process for separating the components of a gas mixture to be treated comprising methane, nitrogen and at least one hydrocarbon having at least two carbon atoms, or a mixture of these hydrocarbons, comprising the following steps:
-
a) removing methane from said gas mixture using at least one methane removal column; b) extracting from the methane removal column a liquid comprising at least 85 mol % of hydrocarbons having at least two carbon atoms initially present in the mixture to be treated; c) partially condensing a gas mixture extracted from the methane removal column in order to obtain a liquid, at least one portion of which is treated in order to be extracted as denitrogenated natural gas product, and a second gas; d) introducing said second gas and/or the gas mixture into a nitrogen removal column obtained from which are a gas and a liquid, at least one portion of which is treated in order to be extracted as denitrogenated natural gas product; e) treating said gas from step d) in a nitrogen removal system in order to produce a gas stream comprising 5 mol % at most of nitrogen and a gaseous nitrogen stream comprising at most 8 mol % of methane; wherein the operating temperature between steps b) and c) does not exceed −
50°
C. and the gas is reheated to a temperature above −
10°
C. before being cooled to a temperature below −
50°
C. in said nitrogen removal system. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
-
Specification