Lectures notes in Natural Gas Process Engineering

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION To
Natural Gas Engineering

1. General Introduction

Natural Gas is a vital component of the world's supply of energy. It is one of the cleanest,
safest, and most useful of all energy sources. Despite its importance, however, there are
many misconceptions about natural gas. For instance, the word 'gas' itself has a variety of
different uses, and meanings. When we fuel our car, we put 'gas' in it. However, the
gasoline that goes into your vehicle, while a fossil fuel itself, is very different from
natural gas. The 'gas' in the common barbecue is actually propane, which, while closely
associated and commonly found in natural gas, is not really natural gas itself. While
commonly grouped in with other fossil fuels and sources of energy, there are many
characteristics of natural gas that make it unique. Below is a bit of background
information about natural gas, what exactly it is, how it is formed, and how it is found in
nature.

2. What is Natural Gas ?

Natural gas, in itself, might be considered a very uninteresting gas - it is colorless,

shapeless, and odorless in its pure form. Quite uninteresting - except that natural gas is
combustible, and when burned it gives off a great deal of energy. Unlike other fossil
fuels, however, natural gas is clean burning and emits lower levels of potentially harmful
byproducts into the air. We require energy constantly, to heat our homes, cook our food,

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and generate our electricity. It is this need for energy that has elevated natural gas to such
a level of importance in our society, and in our lives.

Natural gas is a combustible mixture of hydrocarbon gases. While natural gas is formed
primarily of methane, it can also include ethane, propane, butane and pentane. The
composition of natural gas can vary widely, but below is a chart outlining the typical
makeup of natural gas before it is refined.

Typical Composition of Natural Gas

Methane CH4 70-90%
Ethane C2H6
Propane C3H8 0-20%
Butane C4H10
Carbon Dioxide CO2 0-8%
Oxygen O2 0-0.2%
Nitrogen N2 0-5%
Hydrogen sulphide H2S 0-5%
Rare gases A, He, Ne, Xe trace

Natural gas accumulations in geological traps can be classified as reservoir, field, or pool.
A reservoir is a porous and permeable underground formation containing an individual
bank of hydrocarbons confined by impermeable rock or water barriers and is
characterized by a single natural pressure system. A field is an area that consists of one or
more reservoirs all related to the same structural feature. A pool contains one or more
reservoirs in isolated structures. Wells in the same field can be classified as gas wells,
condensate wells, and oil wells. Gas wells are wells with producing gas-oil-ration (GOR)
being greater than 100,000 scf/stb; condensate wells are those with producing GOR being
less than 100,000 scf/stb but greater than 5,000 scf/stb; and wells with producing GOR
being less than 5,000 scf/stb are classified as oil wells.

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Because natural gas is petroleum in a gaseous state, it is always accompanied by oil that
is liquid petroleum. There are three types of natural gases: nonassociated gas, associated
gas, and gas condensate. Nonassociated gas is from reservoirs with minimal oil.
Associated gas is the gas dissolved in oil under natural conditions in the oil reservoir. Gas
condensate refers to gas with high content of liquid hydrocarbon at reduced pressures and
temperatures.

3. History of Natural Gas

Natural gas is nothing new. In fact, most of the natural gas that is brought out from under
the ground is millions and millions of years old. However, it was not until recently that
methods for obtaining this gas, bringing it to the surface, and putting it to use were
developed.

Before there was an understanding of what natural gas was, it posed somewhat of a
mystery to man. Sometimes, such things as lightning strikes would ignite natural gas that
was escaping from under the earth's crust. This would create a fire coming from the earth,
burning the natural gas as it seeped out from underground. These fires puzzled most early
civilizations, and were the root of much myth and superstition. One of the most famous
of these types of flames was found in ancient Greece, on Mount Parnassus approximately
1,000 B.C. A goat herdsman came across what looked like a 'burning spring', a flame
rising from a fissure in the rock. The Greeks, believing it to be of divine origin, built a
temple on the flame. This temple housed a priestess who was known as the Oracle of
Delphi, giving out prophecies she claimed were inspired by the flame.

These types of springs became prominent in the religions of India, Greece, and Persia.
Unable to explain where these fires came from, they were often regarded as divine, or
supernatural. It wasn't until about 500 B.C. that the Chinese discovered the potential to
use these fires to their advantage. Finding places where gas was seeping to the surface,

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the Chinese formed crude pipelines out of bamboo shoots to transport the gas, where it
was used to boil sea water, separating the salt and making it drinkable.

Britain was the first country to commercialize the use of natural gas. Around 1785,
natural gas produced from coal was used to light houses, as well as streetlights.

During most of the 19th century, natural gas was used almost exclusively as a source of
light. Without a pipeline infrastructure, it was difficult to transport the gas very far, or
into homes to be used for heating or cooking. Most of the natural gas produced in this era
was manufactured from coal, as opposed to transported from a well. Near the end of the
19th century, with the rise of electricity, natural gas lights were converted to electric
lights. This led producers of natural gas to look for new uses for their product.

One of the first lengthy pipelines was constructed in 1891. This pipeline was 120 miles
long, and carried natural gas from wells in central Indiana to the city of Chicago.
However, this early pipeline was very rudimentary, and did not transport natural gas
efficiently. It wasn't until the 1920's that any significant effort was put into building a
pipeline infrastructure. After World War II welding techniques, pipe rolling, and
metallurgical advances allowed for the construction of reliable pipelines. This led to a
post-war pipeline construction boom lasting well into the 60's, creating thousands of
miles of pipeline in America.

Once the transportation of natural gas was possible, new uses for natural gas were
discovered. These included using natural gas to heat homes and operate appliances such
as water heaters and oven ranges. Industry began to use natural gas in manufacturing and
processing plants. Also, natural gas was used to heat boilers used to generate electricity.
The transportation infrastructure made natural gas easier to obtain, and as a result
expanded its uses.

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4. Natural Gas Resources

The current status of primary energy sources is summarized in Figure 1.1. Basically dry
natural gas (natural gas with natural gas liquids [NGLs] removed) is on a par with coal in
importance.

Six countries possess two thirds of the world’s gas reserves (Figure 1.2), with almost half
of the reserves located in Iran and Russia. The total reported natural gas reserves (~6,040
Tcf [171 TSm3] at the beginning of 2005 [Energy Information Administration, 2005c])
do not include discovered reserves that are not economically feasible to bring to market.
This “stranded gas” resides in remote regions, where the reserve size does not justify the
cost of the infrastructure required to bring it to market. Note that proven reserve estimates
are truly

Fig. 1.1 Primary sources of energy in the world in 2003. Total energy used was 405

quadrillion Btu (Energy Information Administration, 2005).

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Fig. 1.2 Major proven natural gas reserves by country. Total proven reserves estimated

to be 6,040 Tcf (Energy Information Administration, 2005)

As in the Oil and Gas Journal and World Oil publications, estimates world proved natural
gas reserves to be around 5,210.8 Tcf. As can be seen from the graph, most of these
reserves are located in the Middle East with 1,836.2 Tcf, or 34 percent of the world total,
and Europe and the Former U.S.S.R. with 2158.7, or 42 percent of total world reserves.
The United States, by this calculation, possesses 3 percent of the world total natural gas
reserves (Fig. 1.3).

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Fig. 1.3 World Natural Gas Reserves by Region Dec. 2006, (Oil and Gas journal 2006).

In Egypt (source : EGas), the total natural gas production has reached 52.2 BCM in
2005/2006 (including gas for export), out of which 34BCM were for local consumption
representing 61% of local natural gas consumption to the electricity sector which is the
largest gas consuming sector and has reached to 20.8BCM. Cumulative gas production
till 12/2006 is 1.9 TCF. Proven gas reserves is 68.2 TCF by 2005/2006

5. Natural Gas Uses

There are so many different applications for natural gas as fuel that it is hard to provide
an exhaustive list of everything it is used for. And no doubt, new uses are being
discovered all the time. Natural gas has many applications, commercially, in your home,
in industry, and even in the transportation sector! While the uses described here are not
exhaustive, they may help to show just how many things natural gas can do. Natural gas
is used across all sectors, in varying amounts. The graph below gives an idea of the
proportion of natural gas use per sector. The industrial sector accounts for the greatest
proportion of natural gas use in Egypt. Figures 1.4 and 1.5 present the use of the natural
gas as an energy source in different sectors in Egypt.

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Fig. 1.4 Egyptian natural Gas consumption by sector. (source : egas)

Fig. 1.5 Egyptian growth of local natural gas consumption

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The different applications of the natural gas uses and utilization can be listed as follows:

(1) Industrial Use

Natural gas has a multitude of industrial uses, including providing the base ingredients
for such varied products as plastic, fertilizer, anti-freeze, and fabrics. In fact, industry is
the largest consumer of natural gas, accounting for 43 percent of natural gas use across all
sectors. Natural gas is the second most used energy source in industry, trailing only
electricity. Lighting is the main use of energy in the industrial sector, which accounts for
the tremendous electricity requirements of this sector. The graphs below show some of
the industrial applications

Direct Contact Water Heaters

Direct contact water heating is an application that works by having the energy from the
combustion of natural gas transferred directly from the flame into the water. These
systems are incredibly efficient at heating water. Normal industrial water heaters operate
in the 60 - 70 percent energy efficiency range. However, direct contact water heaters can
achieve efficiencies up to 99.7 percent! Obviously, this leads to tremendous cost savings
in industries where hot water is essential.

Fig. 1.6 Natural gas water heater.

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Industrial Combined Heat and Power

Industrial consumers reap great benefits from operating natural gas Combined Heat and
Power (CHP) and Combined Cooling, Heat, and Power (CCHP) systems, similar to those
used commercial settings. For instance, natural gas may be used to generate electricity
needed in a particular industrial setting. The excess heat and steam produced from this
process can be harnessed to fulfill other industrial applications, including space heating,
water heating, and powering industrial boilers. Since industry is such a heavy user of
energy, and particularly electricity, providing increased efficiency can save a great deal
of money. The industrial sector is also subject to regulations regarding harmful
emissions, and the burning attributes of natural gas help industry to reduce its emissions.
Click to learn more about the environmental advantages of using natural gas in industrial
processes.

Industrial Co-firing

Natural gas co-firing technologies are also helping to increase industrial energy
efficiency, and reduce harmful atmospheric emissions. Co-firing is the process in which
natural gas is used as a supplemental fuel in the combustion of other fuels, such as coal,
wood, and biomass energy. For example, a traditional industrial wood boiler would
simply burn wood to generate energy. However, in this type of boiler, a significant
amount of energy is lost, and harmful emissions are very high. Adding natural gas to the
combustion mix can have a two-fold effect. Natural gas emits fewer harmful substances
into the air than a fuel such as wood. Since the energy needed to power the natural gas
boiler remains constant, adding natural gas to the combustion mix can reduce harmful
emissions.

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Fig. 1.7 Industrial Co firing.

(2) Electric generation using natural gas

Natural gas, because of its clean burning nature, has become a very popular fuel for the
generation of electricity. In the 1970's and 80's, the choices for most electric utility
generators were large coal or nuclear powered plants; but, due to economic,
environmental, and technological changes, natural gas has become the fuel of choice for
new power plants. In fact, in 2000, 23,453 MW (megawatts) of new electric capacity was
added in the U.S. Of this, almost 95 percent, or 22,238 MW were natural gas fired
additions. The graph below shows how, according to the Energy Information
Administration (EIA), natural gas fired electricity generation is expected to increase
dramatically over the next 20 years, as all of the new capacity that is currently being
constructed comes online.

Many of the new natural gas fired power plants are what are known as 'combined-cycle'
units. In these types of generating facilities, there is both a gas turbine and a steam unit,
all in one. The gas turbine operates in much the same way as a normal gas turbine, using
the hot gases released from burning natural gas to turn a turbine and generate electricity.
In combined-cycle plants, the waste heat from the gas-turbine process is directed towards

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generating steam, which is then used to generate electricity much like a steam unit.
Because of this efficient use of the heat energy released from the natural gas, combined-
cycle plants are much more efficient than steam units or gas turbines alone. In fact,
combined-plants can achieve thermal efficiencies of up to 50 to 60 percent.

Fig. 1.8 Natural Gas Combined cycle in New York.

(3) Natural Gas in Transportation systems

Natural gas has long been considered an alternative fuel for the transportation sector. In
fact, the first internal combustion engine vehicle to run on natural gas was created by
Etienne Lenoir in 1860. According to the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition, there are
currently 150,000 Natural Gas Vehicles (NGVs) on the road in the United States today,
and more than 5 million NGVs worldwide. In fact, the transportation sector accounts for
3 percent of all natural gas used in the United States. In recent years, technology has
improved to allow for a proliferation of natural gas vehicles, particularly for fuel
intensive vehicle fleets, such as taxicabs and public buses. However, virtually all types of
natural gas vehicles are either in production today for sale to the public or in

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development, from passenger cars, trucks, buses, vans, and even heavy-duty utility
vehicles.

(4) Commercial Use

Commercial uses of natural gas are very similar to residential uses. The commercial
sector includes public and private enterprises, like office buildings, schools, churches,
hotels, restaurants, and government buildings. The main uses of natural gas in this sector
include space heating, water heating, and cooling. For restaurants and other
establishments that require cooking facilities, natural gas is a popular choice to fulfill
these needs

Fig. 1.9 Commercial energy use in USA, 2005 DOE.

(5) Residential (or domestic) Use

Natural gas is one of the cheapest forms of energy available to the residential consumer.
In fact, natural gas has historically been much cheaper than electricity as a source of
energy. The Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that in 2002, natural gas is the
lowest cost conventional energy source available for residential use. According to the
DOE natural gas costs less than 30 percent of the cost of electricity. Figure 1.10 shows a
comparison between the price of the BTU for each available energy type as USA
standard.

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Fig. 1.10 Residential Energy Costs pert BTU (source : US department of energy DOE,
2005)

Not only is natural gas cheap for the residential consumer, it also has a number of varied
uses. The best known uses for natural gas around the home are natural gas heating and
cooking. Cooking with a natural gas range or oven can provide many benefits, including
easy temperature control, self ignition and self cleaning, as well as being approximately
one-half the cost of cooking with an electric range. Many of the top chefs prefer natural
gas ranges for their quick heating ability and temperature control. Gone are the days of
temperamental natural gas ranges, the newer generations of natural gas ranges allow for
some of the most efficient, economical, and versatile cooking appliances ever

For local Use in Egypt, the next figure shows the different sectors and applications that
apply and produce the natural gas technologies.

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Fig. 1.11 Natural Gas sectors and applications in Egypt.

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