Exxonmobil Upstream Research Company

Exxonmobil Technology and Engineering Company

J Tim Cullinane

Edward J Grave

Stephanie A Freeman

Norman K Yeh

Robert D Denton

P Scott Northrop

Frank Hershkowitz

Paul F Keusenkothen

Timothy Andrew Barckholtz

Charles John Mart

Paul Scott Northrop

Jaime A Valencia

Tracy Alan Fowler

Shwetha Ramkumar

Ian J Laurenzi

Donald P Shatto

P Scott Northdrop

Timothy A Barckholtz

Bhupender S Minhas

A co-current contacting system for removing impurities from a gas stream is described herein. The co-current contacting system includes a co-current contactor configured to co-currently flow a gas stream including impurities and a liquid stream through the co-current contactor. The co-current contactor is also configured to incorporate liquid droplets formed from the liquid stream into the gas stream, such that the impurities from the gas stream are absorbed by the liquid droplets. The co-current contacting system also includes a separator configured to remove the gas stream from the liquid droplets including the impurities, generating a purified gas stream and a rich liquid stream. The co-current contacting system is configured to recycle the rich liquid stream for reuse as a portion of the liquid stream flowing into the co-current contactor.

Removing impurities from a gas stream

A co-current contactor for separating components in a fluid stream, the co-current contactor comprising a first inlet configured to receive the fluid stream proximate to a first end of the co-current contactor, a second inlet configured to receive a solvent proximate the first end of the co-current contactor, and a mass transfer section configured to receive the fluid stream and the solvent and to provide a mixed, two-phase flow, wherein the mass transfer section comprises a surface feature along an inner surface of the mass transfer section configured to reduce film flow along an inner wall of the mass transfer section, and wherein the surface feature comprises at least one of a hydrophobic surface, a superhydrophobic surface, a porous wall surface, and a nonlinear surface irregularity extending radially inward or radially outward along the inner surface of the mass transfer section.

Inner surface features for co-current contractors

The disclosure includes a method, comprising passing a fluid into a co-current contactor, passing a solvent into the co-current contactor, dividing the solvent into solvent droplets having a first average droplet size, placing the fluid in contact with the solvent droplets to create a combined stream, coalescing at least a portion of the solvent droplets to create solvent droplets having a second average droplet size, wherein the second average droplet size is greater than the first average droplet size, and separating the fluid and the solvent.

Coalescer for co-current contactors

Coalescer for co-current contractors

Systems and methods for separating COand HS from a natural gas stream are provided herein. The system includes a first loop of co-current contacting systems configured to remove HS and COfrom a natural gas stream and a second loop of co-current contacting systems configured to remove the HS from the CO.

Separating carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide from a natural gas stream using co-current contacting systems

A vertically oriented co-current contacting system and methods for separating impurities from a gas stream including a vertically oriented co-current contactor (VOCC) located in-line within a pipe, a vertically oriented mixer (VOM) including an annular support ring configured to maintain the VOM within the pipe, a number of radial blades configured to allow a liquid stream to flow into the VOM, and a central gas entry cone configured to allow a gas stream to flow through a hollow section within the VOM, a vertically oriented mass transfer section downstream of the VOM. The VOM and the vertically oriented mass transfer section provide for efficient incorporation of liquid droplets including impurities from the gas stream formed from the liquid stream into the gas stream. The vertically oriented co-current contacting system also includes a separation system configured to remove the liquid droplets.

Separating impurities from a gas stream using a vertically oriented co-current contacting system

Systems and a method are provided for producing an aromatic hydrocarbon and generating electricity from a tail gas stream. The method includes feeding a first stream including a raw natural gas into a reactor. The method includes converting the first stream, at least in part, to a second stream including an aromatic hydrocarbon within the reactor. The method includes separating the second stream into a tail gas stream and a liquid aromatic hydrocarbon stream and combusting at least a portion of the tail gas stream to generate electricity.

Methods and systems for producing liquid hydrocarbons

The present disclosure provides a method for separating a feed stream in a distillation tower. The method may include forming solids in a controlled freeze zone section of the distillation tower; emitting radiation from a first radiation source in the controlled freeze zone section while the controlled freeze zone section forms no solids; detecting radiation emitted by the first radiation source as a first radiation level; detecting radiation emitted by the first radiation source as a second radiation level after detecting the first radiation level; and determining whether the solids adhered to at least one of on and around a first mechanical component included in the controlled freeze zone section based on the first radiation level and the second radiation level.

Method and device for separating a feed stream using radiation detectors

Growing community of inventors

Montgomery, TX, United States of America

J Tim Cullinane