There are four main reasons why the water content in natural gas must be low: avoiding hydrate formation, avoiding water knocks in surface equipment, optimising the combustion process and avoiding corrosion. A residual quantity of brine from the solution mining process always remains in gas storage caverns. At the brine-gas interface, water evaporates into the dry stored natural gas. Depending on the pressure and temperature conditions, brine surface and passage of time, the water vapour content in the gas can rise to its maximum value. This is approx. 75 % of the saturation concentration from pure water. Therefore the gas must be dried after withdrawal from the cavern. There are two basic options for solving the problem: removal of the residual brine from the cavern and prevention of water evaporation into the gas. For various reasons the latter has proved unsuitable. A method for sump draining of the cavern by replacing the brine with an organic liquid that mixes with brine is presented. The liquid is pumped into the the sump through the brine removal string, then the resulting mixture is removed by injection of gas, processed above ground and the processed liquid pumped in again. This cycle is repeated until the brine has been almost completely replaced by the organic liquid.
Water in gas storage caverns - problems and solutions
Wasser in Gasspeicherkavernen - Probleme und Lösungen
2002
12 Seiten, 5 Bilder, 1 Tabelle
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Englisch
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