Scientific Adviser – Vladimir A.Vinokurov Featured Scientist – Albert L. Lapidus

Article Annotations 

Advanced Treatment of Associated Petroleum Gas for Processing into Marketable Product
V. A. Kissin, L. A. Tyurina

The article contains several results of joint work by scientific and production teams aimed at developing technologies and equipment that could already today ensure the APG utilization profitability in the most complex segment of low-pressure hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans-rich gas production from mature fields in the absence of a gas trunkline. The authors review a flow chart for the APG gas utilization process. The authors describe in detail the deep (residual concentration of hydrogen sulfide up to 0.1–0.001 PPM) APG desulfurization process comprising two main stages (for processing 300 mln m³ of gas with 1.5–2.0 per cent hydrogen sulfide content): gas flow treatment without prior hydrogen sulfide removal via direct catalytic oxidation of H₂S into sulfur with atmospheric oxygen; and alkali free demercaptanization.

Basic Approaches to Developing Integrated Associated Petroleum Gas Utilization Programs for Oil Production Companies
N. A. Chernysheva, M. D. Shambazov

The article describes the basic approaches to developing APG utilization programs at oil production companies’ fields as well as provides a feasibility study of APG utilization ways.
Oil companies are recommended to use a four-stage flowchart for the development of an APG utilization program as the base case. A focus is also placed on domestic and international technologies of APG utilization, its processing (utilization) plants, as well as the factors influencing the selection of an effective option in APG utilization projects. It is proved that almost every field has a favorable option for investments in APG utilization.

Specific Indices Variation Impact on Power Generation Depending on Various Fuel Types
A. A. Rogov, N. A. Chernysheva

According to the International Energy Agency data, Russia spends six times as much energy as Canada and twelve times as much as Germany on an average basis. Such low energy effectiveness of the Russian economy is a significant hindrance on the way of the country’s economic development since many developing and crucial branches of the national economy today are sustaining energy deficit. This also refers to oil and gas production companies in Western Siberia. The article provides for capital investments break-up by fuel types calculated on the basis of fuel type options. It also contains calculations of capital investments required for the construction of power supply facilities based on fuel types.

Highly-Efficient Technology for Natural or Associated Petroleum Gas Conversion to Liquid Engine Fuels
D. L. Astanovsky, L. Z. Astanovsky, E. V. Ivanov

The improvement of the technology for natural or associated petroleum gas conversion to synthetic natural gas with its further conversion to liquid engine fuels using conventional equipment do not ensure radical positive shifts in economy and ecology of operational processes.
The utilization of catalytic reactors, heat-exchange and mass-exchange apparata of a principally new design allows to develop new highly-efficient energysaving technologies. Natural or associated petroleum gas conversion to liquid engine fuels is becoming a highly-efficient, environmentally-friendly operational process.

Production of Synthetic Oil and Fuels Using HiT GTL Method – Breakthrough in Associated Gas Utilization Technology
V. Z. Mordkovich, V. S. Ermolaev, L. V. Sineva, I. G. Solomonik, M. N. Mikhailov, Ya. V. Mikhailova, S. A. Svidersky, S. N. Potapova, D. N. Kharitonov, E. B. Mitberg

The article provides for an integrated solution ensuring reduction in the cost of synthetic oil and fuels production from CO and Н₂ and preserving product quality and process reliability without extending the process chain. The authors highlight the GTL technology including membranecatalytic conversion of hydrocarbon gas into synthetic natural gas and the next stage of Fisher-Tropsch synthesis in reactor-catalytic units on the basis of a bifunctional catalyst.
 
Associated Petroleum Gas Processing with Plasma Technologies
K. A. Arapov, E. V. Ivanov, D. Ya. Choporov, V. A. Vinokurov

The article describes a plant for plasmachemical conversion of raw materials to synthetic natural gas developed by the I. M. Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas together with the General Physics Institute (Russian Academy of Sciences) in order to meet hydrocarbon gases processing challenges. The article also contains a flowchart of the experiment for the investigation of synthetic gas production efficiency under plasmachemical microwave degrading of methanebearing raw material (which may include ethane (up to 25 per cent), propane (up to 5 per cent), unsaturated hydrocarbons (up to 2 per cent; organosulfur compounds are undesired) together with water vapors, oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Energy-Saving Technology for Hydrogen Production
D. L. Astanovsky, P. A. Gushchin, L. Z. Astanovsky

The hydrogen generation costs reduction has always been an important task for producers and consumers. The utilization of catalytic reactors and heat-exchanging apparata of the proposed design will enable to make compact autonomous highly-efficient hydrogen production plants with any desired output rate including the minimum one. This reduces capital investments, raw materials and energy consumption, almost eliminates harmful environmental emissions. Heatexchangers of a new design may operate under significant pressure and temperature differences in heat-exchanging media, low vacuum and high pressure, a wide temperature range, as well as ensure the required permissible flow resistance in heat-exchanging media. Such a heat-exchanger may be rated at a few watts to dozens of thousands of kilowatts in micro heat-exchangers.

Aromatization of Ethane and Propane – Natural and Associated Gas Components – with ZnO + ZSM-5 Zeolites
A. L. Lapidus, V. A. Kostina, A. A. Dergachev, A. A. Silakova

The article highlights the investigation results for catalytic properties observed during the ethane and propane conversions promoted by zinc pentacyls with SiO₂/Al₂O₃ == 90 and 220. The authors review the independence of basic parameters of propane conversion catalyzed by 1%Zn + HZSM-5 (90) and aromatic hydrocarbons composition from weight hour space velocity of gas under T = 550 °С and various temperatures (U = 500 hours^-1). As a result of the carried out investigations it was found that Zn-bearing pentacyls with SiO₂/Al₂O₃ = 90 and 220 produced according to the three-phase modification method demonstrate high activity in ethane and propane aromatization under nearly the same selectivity of aromatic hydrocarbons formation.

Microbiologic Methods for Alternative Fuels Production from Synthetic Natural Gas
A. A. Novikov, P. A. Gushchin, V. A. Vinokurov, V. I. Berdnikov, D. A. Baranov

The article describes microbiological methods of alternative fuels production from synthetic natural gas, which can be obtained from various sources: natural gas, coal and organic biomass.
Synthetic natural gas may be processed according to microbiological methods based on the utilization of CO-consuming microorganisms in order to produce liquid fuels (ethanol, butanol) and hydrogen. Synthetic gas production via plasmachemical conversion of APG under microwave discharge is described. As opposed to catalytic processes, biotechnological ways of synthetic gas processing allow operation under milder conditions and do not require desulfurization of synthetic gas.

Impact of Low Concentration Non-Electrolytes on Velocity of Hydrate Formation from Methane in Dynamic Modes
A. P. Semenov, R. R. Faizrakhmanov, V. A. Vinokurov

The article describes the impact imposed by low concentration nonelectrolytes on the velocity of hydrate formation from methane in a dynamic mode and under isothermal conditions. An experimental part of the study is given in detail. The results of a series of experiments with distilled water and diluted lower alcohols (methanol, ethanol, propanol) aqueous solutions are provided. The experiments were carried out under dynamic conditions, 4 °С temperature and 100 atm pressure. The article contains a diagram of the gas-hydrate plant, which was used during the experiments. As a result, the pressure-time diagrams were obtained illustrating hydrate formation rates.

Thermodynamic Analysis of Natural Gas Liquefaction Technologies
I. V. Meshcherin, D. V. Zhuravlev, S. D. Barsuk

The authors consider the comparative analysis results for given indicators of basic technologies for natural gas liquefaction, including energy consumption. The processes utilizing mixtures containing natural gas components – hydrocarbons and nitrogen – as coolants are the most widely spread today. These processes are based on two or three closed cooling cycles. Many modifications of the processes based on two cooling cycles with mixed coolants have been developed. The authors describe only those modifications for which they have more information on process parameters.

Design and Operation Modes of Unique Low-Tonnage Plant for Methanol Production at Yurkharovskoye Field
K. G. Lyats

OAO NOVATEK and Metaprocess Companies implemented a project for the construction of a methanol production plant rated at 12 500 tpa at the Yurkharovskoye gas and condensate field. The construction of a methanol production plant directly at a gas production site ensures fail-safe methanol supply to a gas producing company, eliminates expensive oncoming traffic of methanol and natural gas required for its production, reduces environmental risks during transportation and lowers gas production costs. The production itself is a plant based on integrated supply using up-to-date energysaving technologies ensuring failsafe operation, as well as the desired-quality production release. The article describes the operation process based on vapor conversion of natural gas for methanol production.