Papers - Engineering Research - Equilibrium Constants for Hydrocarbons in Absorption Oil (T.P. 1252, with discussion)

The economical recovery of the valuable constituents from the effluent of gas-con-densate wells has developed into a problem of balancing the cost of recovery against the cost of compressing the residual gas back into the formation. A possible method of extracting the gasoline and distillate from the natural gas is by oil absorption at high pressures. In order to design and evaluate an absorption plant, fundamental data on the composition of the coexisting hydro- carbon vapor and liquid phases at various temperatures and pressures are essential. A review of the literature indicated that the necessary data for the design of such plants are lacking. The nearest approach to desired published data is that of Katz and Hackmuth,~ who experimentally deter-mined the composition of the coexisting vapor and liquid phases in a natural gas-crude oil system at pressures up to 3000 lb. per sq. in. and at temperatures from 40' to zoo°F. This paper presents the results of the experimental determination of the equilib-rium distribution of the hydrocarbons methane through hexane between natural gas and a typical absorber oil. The ranges of temperature and pressure chosen were from 33' to r8oUF. and from 100 to 5000 lb. per sq. inch. Materials The absorber oil was a typical naturally occurring, Straw-colored distillate that had previously been steam-distilled to an initial boiling point of 300 F. The physical and chemical properties, including the results of an Engler distillation, are presented in Table I. A large volume of this oil was obtained and it was used throughout the complete set of experiments. Table i.—Properties of the Absorption Oil Gravity .......................... . . 32.5' A.P.1. Molecular weight by benzene freezing- point depression.................. 183 Viscosity, poises; at 100°F........... 0.0a80 At 200°F...................... 0.0102 Composition, PeR Cent Aromatics........ 24.0 Naphthenes..... 36.7 unsaturates,Aromatics...... .I24.00.3 1 Parafins Naphthenes.....36.7 39.o EngLeR Distillation Per Cent /ncg. F. Per Cent Dez. P. Initial boilins rmint.. 300 I 60....... 523 5.................. 402 I 70....... 538 10.................. 421 180....... 557 20.................. 462 90....... 570 30.................. 480 1 95....... 623 40.................. 49 .................1 511 Residue, z .o per cent; loss, 0.3 per cent. See refrence I. The n-hexane was obtained from the Ohio Chemical and Manufacturing Co., Cleveland, Ohio. This liquid had a boiling range of from 149" to 152.6'F., with a density of 0.667 at 60°F. and a molecular weight of 85 by benzene freezing-point depression. The propane, isobutane, wbu-tane, isopentane and n-pentane were ob-ta,ined from the Philgas Department of the Phillips Petroleum Co. Certified analyses of these compounds showed their purity to be in excess of 99.5 per cent and they were riot further purified.