Patent ID: 8931306
Filing Date: 2015-01-13
Classification: B01D,C10L,F25J

Abstract:
1. Method of treating a hydrocarbon stream comprising methane, the method comprising: providing a wet hydrocarbon stream comprising at least methane and water; passing said wet hydrocarbon stream through a wet feed ambient heat exchanger thereby heat exchanging said wet hydrocarbon stream against ambient and thereby providing the wet hydrocarbon stream at a first temperature; cooling the wet hydrocarbon stream in a wet feed heat exchanger having a warm end approach temperature, thereby lowering the temperature from the first temperature to a second temperature; withdrawing from the wet hydrocarbon stream, in a water removal device at the second temperature, at least one wet disposal stream comprising water from the wet hydrocarbon stream and an effluent stream comprising the wet hydrocarbon stream from which the at least one wet disposal stream has been removed; passing the effluent stream to a further heat exchanger; passing a refrigerant stream in a compressed condition through an ambient heat exchanger thereby providing a source refrigerant stream at a refrigerant temperature equal to a third temperature, which is within 10° C. from the first temperature; passing at least a part of the source refrigerant stream to the further heat exchanger while maintaining the temperature of the source refrigerant stream essentially equal to the third temperature; and, cooling both the effluent stream and the at least the part of the source refrigerant stream in the further heat exchanger by indirectly heat exchanging against an evaporating refrigerant fraction; wherein said passing of the effluent stream to the further heat exchanger comprises indirectly heat exchanging between the wet hydrocarbon stream and the effluent stream in the wet feed heat exchanger, wherein the effluent stream is heated to restore the temperature of the effluent stream to the first first temperature within the limits of the warm end approach temperature of the wet feed heat exchanger; and, wherein said cooling the wet hydrocarbon stream comprises indirectly heat exchanging between the wet hydrocarbon stream and the effluent stream in the wet feed heat exchanger.