This specification relates to operating industrial facilities, for example, crude oil refining facilities or other industrial facilities that include operating plants that process natural gas or recover natural gas liquids.

A device for distributing a fluid to a processing component includes a vessel having an inlet port for receiving a stream of fluid. A vapor outlet line is in fluid communication with the fluid processing component and has a vapor outlet line inlet in fluid communication with the headspace of the vessel. A liquid outlet line has a liquid outlet line inlet in fluid communication with a liquid side of the vessel and the fluid processing component. A bypass line has a bypass line inlet in fluid communication with the liquid side of the vessel and a bypass line outlet in fluid communication with the vapor outlet line and is configured so that liquid travels through the bypass line and into the vapor outlet line when a liquid level within the vessel reaches a predetermined level so that a headspace is maintained above the liquid level as liquid enters the vessel through the inlet port, and liquid does not travel from the bypass line into the vapor outlet line when a liquid level within the vessel is below the predetermined level.

To provide a process for separating hydrocarbons capable of recovering ethane or propane, including improved cold heat recovery enabling a reduction in compressor power. A process for separating hydrocarbons, in which a residual gas enriched with methane or ethane and a heavy fraction enriched with a lower volatile hydrocarbon are separated, includes: a) partially condensing the feed gas by cooling using the residual gas and another refrigerant as a refrigerant, followed by vapor-liquid separation; b) depressurizing and supplying the liquid obtained from step (a) to the distillation column; c) expanding a part or all of the gas obtained from step (a) by an expander to cause partial condensation, followed by vapor-liquid separation; d) feeding the liquid obtained from step (c) to the distillation column after using it as the further refrigerant in step (a); e) feeding a part or all of the gas obtained from step (c) to the distillation column; and f) obtaining the residual gas from the top of the distillation column and the heavy fraction from the bottom of the distillation column.

An improved process and apparatus integrate a deethanizer column with a cryogenic heat exchanger by condensing the deethanizer column overhead with a refrigerant stream in a cryogenic heat exchanger. A refrigerant compressor may provide refrigerant to the deethanizer overhead cryogenic condenser and a main cryogenic heat exchanger. Expansion of the refrigerant may provide sufficient cooling duty in one or both cryogenic exchangers.

A system for removing freezing components from a feed gas includes a heat exchanger, a scrub column and a return vapor expansion device. The heat exchanger includes a reflux cooling passage and a return vapor passage. Vapor from the scrub column is directed through the return vapor expansion device, where the temperature and pressure are lowered. The resulting cooled fluid then travels to the return vapor passage of the heat exchanger and is used to cool a vapor stream in the reflux cooling passage to create a reflux fluid stream that is directed to the scrub column.

A low cost and efficient design is used to convert a propane recovery process based on low nitrogen content feed gas to an ethane recovery process based on a high nitrogen feed gas while achieving over 95 mole % ethane recovery while maintaining a 99% propane recovery, and achieved without additional equipment.

Provided are an apparatus and a method for separation and recovery of propane and heavier hydrocarbons from LNG. The apparatus has, from the upstream side toward the downstream side of LNG supply, first column (3) equipped with first column overhead condenser (2), first column bottom reboiler (4) and side reboiler (5), and second column (14) equipped with second column overhead condenser (11) and second column bottom reboiler (15). The first column (3) separates methane and a part of ethane as an overhead vapor and separates remaining ethane and C3 or higher hydrocarbons as a bottom liquid. The second column (14) separates ethane as an overhead vapor and separates C3 or higher hydrocarbons as a bottom liquid.

One or more specific embodiments disclosed herein includes a method for separating hydrogen from an olefin hydrocarbon rich compressed effluent vapor stream, employing a single heat exchanger, multiple gas-liquid separators, multiple expander/compressor sets, and a rectifier attached to a liquid product drum.

An improved method for separating hydrocarbons for separating feed LNG into product LNG and a liquid fraction enriched in C3+ components is provided. Feed LNG is heated and partially vaporized by a heat exchanger to obtain a vapor-liquid two-phase stream; the whole or a liquid phase of the vapor-liquid two-phase stream is separated into first overhead vapor enriched in methane and first bottom liquid enriched in ethane and C3+ components at a first distillation column; the first bottom liquid is separated into second overhead vapor enriched in ethane and second bottom liquid enriched in C3+ components by the second distillation column; the second overhead vapor is cooled and wholly or partially condensed to obtain condensed liquid; one of two or more streams obtained by dividing the condensed liquid is mixed with the first overhead vapor; the mixed stream is totally condensed to obtain a liquid stream by heat exchange with feed LNG by the heat exchanger; the whole or a part of the liquid stream is discharged as product LNG; another of the divided streams is refluxed to the second distillation column; and the second bottom liquid is discharged as the liquid fraction enriched in C3+ components.

A system of interlocks for controlling flow of low temperature process streams in a manufacturing process through a cold box to equipment not specified for such temperatures by opening and closing valves and stopping pumps. At least one interlock affects streams heated in the cold box. At least one interlock affects the streams cooled in the cold box. The interlocks are activated due to temperature determinations of process lines by temperature sensors and automatically send a signal to predetermined controllers depending on the process line with the low temperature in order to prevent exposure of equipment to low temperatures while preventing the shutdown of the cold box.