Patent ID: 9534837
Date: 2017-01-03
CPC Classifications: C10L,F25J

Claim:
1. A process for recovery of natural gas liquids, comprising: fractionating a gas stream comprising nitrogen, methane, ethane, and propane and other C separating the light fraction into at least three fractions including a nitrogen-enriched fraction, an intermediate nitrogen-content fraction, and a nitrogen-depleted fraction in a first separator; compressing and cooling the nitrogen-depleted fraction; separating the compressed and cooled nitrogen-depleted fraction into a propane-enriched fraction and a propane-depleted fraction in a second separator; feeding at least a portion of the propane-enriched fraction to the fractionator as a reflux; recycling at least a portion of the propane-depleted fraction to the first separator; exchanging heat between two or more of the gas stream, the light fraction, a portion of the propane-depleted fraction, the nitrogen-enriched fraction, the nitrogen-depleted fraction, the compressed and cooled nitrogen-depleted fraction, the intermediate nitrogen-content fraction, and a refrigerant; separating the nitrogen-enriched fraction in a nitrogen removal unit to produce a first nitrogen-depleted natural gas stream, a first nitrogen-enriched natural gas stream, and a recycle stream; and feeding the recycle stream to at least one of the first separator and an upstream end of the nitrogen removal unit.