Thermodynamic Analysis of Refrigerant Systems for Ethane Recovery and Helium Extraction in Medium-Pressure Natural Gas Processing

Hong Jiang, Wentang Huang () and Xiang Cheng
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Hong Jiang: Petroleum Engineering School, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Wentang Huang: Petroleum Engineering School, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Xiang Cheng: Southwest Branch of PetroChina Engineering and Construction Company Limited, Chengdu 610041, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 13, 1-17

Abstract: Based on the medium-pressure natural gas ethane recovery and helium extraction process, this paper proposes three different refrigerant Schemes. Thermodynamic analysis and adaptability evaluation of the three Schemes were conducted using Aspen HYSYS V12 software. The ethylene–propane cascade refrigeration Scheme demonstrated superior energy efficiency in terms of comprehensive energy consumption, heat exchange performance in the cryogenic cold box, and exergy analysis. Adaptability analysis indicated that this Scheme exhibits strong tolerance to variations in feed gas temperature as well as N 2 and CO 2 content. The ethylene–propane cascade refrigeration process demonstrates significant energy-saving advantages and exhibits robust operational performance.

Keywords: ethane recovery; helium extraction; thermodynamic analysis; adaptability analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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