Nitrogen-methane separation process and system

Patent · Tue Jun 19 04:00:00 EDT 1979

OSTI ID:5794989

Yearout, J D

Method and system designed particularly for separating or removing nitrogen from mixtures of nitrogen and methane, particularly natural gas, over a wide range of nitrogen concentrations, employing low temperature rectification, for recovery of methane containing a substantially reduced amount of nitrogen, either as a gas or a liquid, including the features of regenerative heat exchange to cool the feed mixture to near its saturation point, prior to introduction into a fractionating column, by-passing a small stream of the feed around the regenerative heat exchanger as a means of controlling feed temperature and reboil heat in the column, passing the overhead nitrogen gas from the column in indirect heat exchange relation with the rectifying section of the column to generate reflux continuously along the separation zone work expansion of the nitrogen waste stream to provide necessary refrigeration, providing downflow evaporation of the liquid product within the column in the case of gas producing plants, and subcooling the bottoms liquid product prior to evaporation of the product in the case of a gas producing plant, or prior to isentropic expansion to liquid storage in the case of a liquid producing plant. 20 claims.

• Assignee: TIC; EDB-79-137276
• Patent Number(s): US 4158556
• OSTI ID: 5794989
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
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Production
& Processing
090110 -- Hydrocarbon Fuels-- Properties-- (1979-1989)
10 SYNTHETIC FUELS
37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
400102* -- Chemical & Spectral Procedures
ALKANES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COOLING
CRYOGENIC FLUIDS
DENITRATION
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENERGY TRANSFER
EVAPORATION
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
HEAT TRANSFER
HYDROCARBONS
METHANE
MIXTURES
NATURAL GAS
NITROGEN
NONMETALS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
REFRIGERATION
SEPARATION PROCESSES