Simulation of Glycol Regeneration in a Natural Gas Dehydration Unit to Minimize Losses at Optimal Operation Conditions

Abstract: The focal point of this study is to analyse the workings of a glycol dehydration unit in a natural gas plant and minimize the losses in the triethylene glycol solvent at the optimal operating conditions, by using Aspen HYSYS to simulate the plant, and to suggest different optimization paths that maximize the profit or functionality of the plant. The simulation was conducted in the steady-state mode by relying on the data provided from real data by the natural gas plant to establish a model that reflected the results seen in the actual plant accurately. On validation, the case studies were established by choosing the prominent operating conditions and gauging their effects on the characteristic process outputs of a dehydration unit. Furthermore, to find the optimum conditions to maximize the profit or functionality, 350,640 HYSYS cases were conducted to record the data of every possible sensible combination of operating conditions, then the weighted normalized method was applied to find the optimum conditions. Six alternatives were generated depending on the optimization problem. Among the suggested alternatives, two cases were recommended based on the objective function, where the first objective function was to provide the maximum profit, with 923 $/h over the base case, and the second objective function was to provide the minimum moisture content of 0.00014% wt., which eventually provides a less profit, thus only being recommended for processes that require extreme drying.