Technical characterization and economic evaluation of recovery of flare gas in various gas-processing plants

Today in the worldwide quest for production and economic preference, only industries will survive that have proper solutions for waste disposal and environmental pollution. In industrial applications, a blow down network of gases is used in order to control system pressure and safety instruments. At the end of this network, the excess gases are burnt in the flare tower, which have severe consequences on the environment. Different methods have been proposed and several alternatives have been introduced for reduction and recovery of flaring gases. In this paper, three methods including gas to liquid (GTL), gas turbines generation (GTG) and gas to ethylene (GTE) are introduced and compared with the best method from economic point of view being identified. For this purpose, a natural gas sample is taken from Asalloyeh Refinery Plant and the process has been simulated using Aspen HYSYS. Meanwhile, estimation of the capital and operating costs and evaluation of the processes involved were made using Aspen Capital Cost Estimator. According to the results obtained, production of the electric power from flaring gases is one of the most economical methods. GTG method, with an annual profit of about 480e+006 $, has a greater ROR percent.