User:Milton Beychok/Sandbox: Difference between revisions
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Expansion turbines are very widely used as sources of [[refrigeration]] in industrial processes such as the extraction of [[ethane]] and [[Natural gas processing|natural gas liquids]] (NGLs) from [[natural gas]],<ref>[http://freepatentsonline.com/US6915662.html Demethanzer]</ref> the liquefaction of [[gases]] (such as [[oxygen]], [[nitrogen]], [[helium]], [[argon]] and [[krypton]])<ref>[http://www.nzic.org.nz/ChemProcesses/production/1K.pdf BOC (NZ) publication]: use search function for keyword "expansion"</ref><ref>[http://www.hydrogen.energy.gov/pdfs/progress05/v_e_1_shimko.pdf US Department of Energy Hydrogen Program]</ref> and other low-temperature processes. | Expansion turbines are very widely used as sources of [[refrigeration]] in industrial processes such as the extraction of [[ethane]] and [[Natural gas processing|natural gas liquids]] (NGLs) from [[natural gas]],<ref>[http://freepatentsonline.com/US6915662.html Demethanzer]</ref> the liquefaction of [[gases]] (such as [[oxygen]], [[nitrogen]], [[helium]], [[argon]] and [[krypton]])<ref>[http://www.nzic.org.nz/ChemProcesses/production/1K.pdf BOC (NZ) publication]: use search function for keyword "expansion"</ref><ref>[http://www.hydrogen.energy.gov/pdfs/progress05/v_e_1_shimko.pdf US Department of Energy Hydrogen Program]</ref> and other low-temperature processes. | ||
[[Image:Demethanizer.PNG|right|thumb|350px|{{#ifexist:Template:Demethanizer.PNG/credit|{{Demethanizer.PNG/credit}}<br/>|}}Fig. 2: A schematic diagram of a demethanizer extracting hydrocarbon liquids from natural gas.]] | |||
==Applications== | ==Applications== | ||
Although expansion turbines are widely used in low-temperature processes, they are also used in many other applications. This section discusses one of the low temperature procesees as well as some of the other applications. | |||
===Extracting hydrocarbon liquids from natural gas=== | ===Extracting hydrocarbon liquids from natural gas=== |
Revision as of 13:26, 10 July 2008
An expansion turbine, also referred to as a turboexpander or turbo-expander, is a centrifugal or axial flow turbine through which a high pressure gas is expanded to produce work that is often used to drive a gas compressor.
Because work is extracted from the expanding high pressure gas, the expansion is an isentropic process (i.e., a constant entropy process) and the low pressure exhaust gas from the turbine is at a very low temperature, sometimes as low as -90 °C or less.
Expansion turbines are very widely used as sources of refrigeration in industrial processes such as the extraction of ethane and natural gas liquids (NGLs) from natural gas,[1] the liquefaction of gases (such as oxygen, nitrogen, helium, argon and krypton)[2][3] and other low-temperature processes.
Applications
Although expansion turbines are widely used in low-temperature processes, they are also used in many other applications. This section discusses one of the low temperature procesees as well as some of the other applications.
Extracting hydrocarbon liquids from natural gas
Power recovery in fluid catalytic cracker
Refrigeration system
Power generation
History
In 1939, Pyotr Kapitza of Russia suggested the use of a centrifugal turbine for the isentropic expansion of gases to produce refrigeration. Since then, centrifugal expansion turbines have taken over almost 100 percent of the gas liquefaction and other low-temperature industrial requirements.
References
- ↑ Demethanzer
- ↑ BOC (NZ) publication: use search function for keyword "expansion"
- ↑ US Department of Energy Hydrogen Program