×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

C1 and C2 contamination in C3 refrigerant system

C1 and C2 contamination in C3 refrigerant system

C1 and C2 contamination in C3 refrigerant system

(OP)
Hi, all.

Our LPG recovery plant operate a refrigeration unit which utilizes propane as the refrigerant. The propane refrigerant is used as cooling media in two HE, one of them is a Deethanizer Overhead Condenser where the deethanizer overhead vapor (consist of H2, C1, C2, C3, and a little iC4) is condensed to form liquid reflux, and the other HE is a feed gas chiller where the feed gas (consist of H2 and C1-C6+) is chilled and condensed.

Some month later we found that the propane in the refrigeration system was contaminated by lighter hydrocarbon such as C1 and C2, and we suspected that there is a leak within the Deethanizer Ovhd Condenser since the process side in the condenser has a higher pressure than the refrigerant side and also because of we didn't find any hydrocarbon heavier than C4 in the contaminated propane.

In almost the same time, we saw that the condensing presure is higher than normal and there was a decrease in the HE's chilling capability. I thought that the increase in condensing pressure is a possible consequence for the existence of some non condensable gas in the system. But I haven't had any idea whether the second phenomenon is caused by the same cause or not. Does anybody have any idea about this?

Thank you in advance.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources