1、I w GPA PUBL*1167 83 W 3824699 O000018 T W I GPA Publication 11 67-83 GPA Glossary Definition of Words and Terms Used in the Gas Processing Industry Adopted as Tentative Standard, 1967 Reprinted 1972 Revised and Adopted as a Standard, 1977 Revised, 1983 Gas Processors Association 1812 First Place Tu
2、lsa, Oklahoma 74103 GPA PUBL*LLh7 83 m 3824699 OOOOOL9 L m GPA G I ossa ry Definition of Words and Terms Used in the Gas Processing Industry Preface The GAS PROCESSING INDUSTRY employs various words and phrases to describe and define its activities. These transactions are concerned with gas from the
3、 time it is separated from the effluent of an oil or gas well, a petroleum refining process, or a synthetic gas plant until the salable gaseous residue is delivered to a pipeline system. These activities include the movement of the gas and the separation of liquid and gaseous components from each ot
4、her. The separated components may be useful products or contaminants that must be removed to make the residue gas salable. Sulfur can be made if the produced gas contains hydrogen sulfide. The GAS PRDCESSING INDUSTRY is a segment of the 1s)rger Energy Industry. While many words and phrases are in co
5、mmon use throughout the industry, shades of meaning may differ in various sections of the Petroleum Industry. The definitions herein represent common usage in the GAS PROCESSING INDUSTRY and were developed principally by Technical Committee, Section C. In a lesser number of cases, a source of defini
6、tions was the “Glossary of Terms Used in Petroleum Refining published by the API. It is hoped that the definitions will be a source of information for those seeking knowledge of the terminology of the GAS PROCESSING INDUSTRY. The definitions as presented herein cannot take precedence over definition
7、s in contracts or other legal documents. While the GPA is publishing the Glossary, the GPA can take no responsibility for its use. The user of these definitions is responsible for the results of such use. NOTE: If words in common usage have not been defined, please advise GPA of such omission so tha
8、t definitions can be included in future editions of this publication. GPA PUBLPLLb7 83 m 382Lib O000020 8 m Definitions of Words and Terms Used in the Gas Processing Industry absorbent Refer to definition of “absorption oil.” absorber A tower or column that provides contact between natural gas being
9、 processed and absorption oil. absorber capacity The maximum standard cubic feet per day of natural gas that can be processed through an absorber at specified absorption oil rate, temperature, and pressure without exceeding pres- sure drop or other operating limitations. absorption The transfer of c
10、onstituents from natural gas to absorption oil. absorption factor A factor used in engineering calculations which expresses the propensity for a constituent in natural gas to be absorbed in absorption oil. This factor is generally found in the literature as A=WKV where L and V are the mols of liquid
11、 and.vapor respectively from a tray, or an average value for the section or total absorber. K is similarly the vapor-liquid equilibrium ratio for the particular component. absorption oil A hydrocarbon liquid used to absorb and recover components from the natural gas being processed. absorption plant
12、 A plant that processes natural gas with absorption oil. absorption-refrigeration cycle A mechanical refrigeration system in which the refrigerant is absorbed by a suitable liquid or solid. The most common system uses ammonia as the refrigerant and water as the absorbing medium. Refer to definition
13、of “compression refrigeration cycle.” absorption tower Refer to definition of absorber. accumulator A vessel used to facilitate the control of the flow of liquid or the separation of liquid from accompanying gas or vapor as the liquid flows through the plant for further processing. acid gas The hydr
14、ogen sulfide and/or carbon dioxide contained in or extracted from gas or other streams. adiabatic expansion The expansion of a gas, vapor, or liquid stream from a higher pressure to a lower pressure in which the enthalpy of the stream does not change. adsorbent A solid substance used to remove compo
15、nents from natural gas being processed. adsorption Removal of certain components from a gas stream-including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: acid gases, water vapor, or heavier hydrocarbon vapors. These com- ponents are adsorbed on a bed of granular solids due to their molecular a
16、ttraction to the adsorbent surface. adsorption plant A plant that processes natural gas witfi an adsorbent. AGA (American Gas Association) A national trade association of the petroleum industry whose members are U.S. and Canadian distributors of natural, manufactured, and mixed gases. AGA provides i
17、nformation on sales, finances, utilization, and all phases of gas transmission and distribution. air-cooled exchanger (air-fin unit or aerial cooler) An atmospheric fin tube exchanger which utilizes air for cooling. Ambient air contacts the external fins by fan-forced or natural draft. allowable The
18、 maximum rate of production from an oil or gas well or group of wells that is allowed by a particular state or governing body. The rate is set by rules which vary among the various states or governing bodies. amine Any of several compounds such as, but not limited to, monoethanolamine, HOC2H4NH2, (M
19、EA), employed in treat- ing natural gas. The amines are generally used in water solutions to remove hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide from gas and liquid streams. -1- GPA PUBLULL67 83 m 3824699 000002L T m API (American Petroleum Institute) A national trade association of the petroleum industry wh
20、ich is a standardizing organization for the drilling, producing, refining, transportation, and marketing segments of the industry. ash Non-combustible residue from the gasification or burning of coal or a heavy hydrocarbon. associated gas Natural gas, commonly known as gas-cap gas, which overlies an
21、d is in contact with crude oil in the reservoir. Where reservoir conditions are such that the production of as- sociated gas does not substantially affect the recovery of crude oil in the reservoir, such gas-may be reclassified as non- associated gas by a regulatory agency. ASTM (American Society fo
22、r Testing and Materials) A national organization which promotes knowledge of the materials of engineering and the standardization of specifi- cations and methods of testing. ASTM distillation Any distillation made in accordance with an ASTM pro- cedure. Generally it refers to a distillation test to
23、determine the initial boiling point, the temperature at which percentage fractionations of the sample are distilled, the final boiling point, and quantity of residue. (See ASTM method D-86.) atmospheric pressure The pressure exerted on the earth by the earths atmosphere. A pressure of 760 mm of merc
24、ury, 29.92 inches of mercury, or 14.696 psia is used as a standard for some measurements. The various state regulatory bodies have set other standards for use in measuring the legal volume of natural gas that is sold or processed. Atmospheric pressure may also refer to the absolute ambient pressure
25、at any given location. automated plant A plant which contains instruments for the measurement and control of temperatures, pressures, flow rates, and properties of resulting products and thereby makes necessary cor- rections in the plant operating conditions so as to maintain specification products.
26、 Such a plant would contain shutdown and other automatic devices to minimize damage in the absence of operating personnel. back pressure The pressure held on a piece of equipment or a system through which a fluid (gas and/or liquid) is flowing. barrel A unit of liquid volume measurement which in the
27、 petroleum industry equals 42 U.S. liquid gallons for petroleum or natural gas products measured at 60F and equilibrium vapor pres- sure. Chemicals may be packaged in barrels or drums having capacities of 55 U.S. liquid gallons. bath Liquid placed in a container that is held at a controlled temperat
28、ure to regulate the temperature of any system placed in it or passing through it. bcf (billion cubic feet) An abbreviation of “billion cubic feet.” In the United States, a billion is a thousand million, or 109. blanket gas A gas phase in a vessel above a liquid phase. The purpose may be for protecti
29、ng the liquid from air contamination, for reducing the hazard of detonation, or for pressuring the liquid. The source of the gas is external to the vessel. bleed To remove or drain liquid, gas, or other contents at a slow rate from a vessel or pipeline. blow case A small tank in which liquids are ac
30、cumulated and drained by applying gas or air pressure above the liquid level. Such a vessel is usually located below a pipeline or other equipment at a location where an outside power source is not convenient for removing the drained liquids. Sometimes referred to as a drip. blowdown The act of empt
31、ying or depressuring a vessel. This may also refer to the discarded material such as blowdown water from a boiler or cooling tower. boilaway test Sometimes used to describe the GPA weathering test for LP- gas. Refer to definition for “weathering test.” boiling point The temperature at which any liqu
32、id boils under a given pressure level. In the distillation of petroleum products, the initial boiling point is the observed temperature at the instant the first drop of condensate falls from the end of the condenser tube. bottled gas Liquefied petroleum gas (LP-gas) which has been placed in a genera
33、lly small portable container for sale to the consumers. bottom hole pressure The pressure measured in a well at a depth which is at the mid- point of the thickness of the producing zone. -2- GPA PUBL*IIb7 83 bottom hole temperature The temperature measured in a well at a depth which is at the mid-po
34、int of the thickness of the producing zone. bottoms The liquid or residual matter which is withdrawn from the bottom of a fractionator or other vessel during processing or while in storage; also, the heaviest product remaining in the liquid phase after distillation. Boyles Law Part of the ideal gas
35、laws dealing with pressure. Boyles Law states that for any ideal gas or mixture of ideal gases at any definite temperature, the product of the absolute pressure times the volume is a constant, i.e., PV=K. B-P mix A liquefied hydrocarbon product composed chiefly of butanes and propane. If it originat
36、es from a refinery, it may also contain butylenes and propylene. More specifically, it con- forms to the GPA specifications for commercial B-P mixes as defined in GPA Publication 2140. breathing The movement of vapor in or out of a storage tank because of the change of level of the stored liquid, a
37、change in the temperature of the vapor space above the liquid, or of atmospheric pressure. bs specifically, the hydrocarbon liquid separated from natural gas because of changes in temperature and pressure when the gas from the reservoir was delivered to the surface separators. Such condensate remain
38、s liquid at atmospheric temperature and pressure. It may also be water condensed and returned to boilers in a steam system. condensate gas reservoir A hydrocarbon reservoir with natural gas which will yield condensate. condensate plant An obsolete term for a gas processing plant designed for the rec
39、overy of condensate and other products from the gas produced from a gas condensate reservoir. condensate well A gas well producing from a condensate gas reservoir. condenser A heat exchanger for cooling and condensing vapors. connate water Water which settled with the deposition of solid sediments a
40、nd which has not existed as surface water at atmospheric pressure. Also, water in a particular formation which fills a portion of the pore space. control valve A valve designed to regulate the flow or pressure of a fluid. convergence pressure The pressure at a given temperature for a hydrocarbon sys
41、tem of fixed composition at which the vapor-liquid equilibria values of the various components in the system become or tend to become unity. The convergence pressure is used to adjust vapor-liquid equilibria values to the particular system under consideration. cooler A heat exchanger which reduces t
42、he temperature of a fluid by transferring the heat to a non-process medium. cooling tower A structure to cool, by contact with air, a stream of circu- lating water. The air flow can be induced by natural draft or by fans. copper strip test A test using a small strip of pure copper to determine quali
43、tatively the corrosivity of a product. Refer to GPA LP- gas corrosion test (see copper strip method)-ASTM D-1838- 64 test procedure. corrosion coupon A metal strip inserted into a system to monitor corrosion rate and to indicate corrosion-inhibitor effectiveness. corrosion test One of a number of te
44、sts to determine qualitatively or quantitatively the corrosion inducing compounds in a product. corrosive product A hydrocarbon product which contains corrosion inducing compounds in excess of the specification -limits for a sweet product. CRC (Coordinating Research Council, Inc.) A non-profit organ
45、ization supported jointly by the American Petroleum Institute and the Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc. It administers work of the CFR and other committees that correlate test work and other studies on fuels, lubricants, engines, and engine equipment. critical density The density of a substance
46、at the critical temperature and pressure. critical pressure The pressure necessary to condense a vapor at its critical temperature. critical temperature The highest temperature at which a fluid can exist as a liquid. Above this temperature, the fluid is a gas and cannot be liquefied regardless of th
47、e pressure applied. crude line A pipeline designed to transport crude oil. cryogenic plant A gas processing plant which is capable of producing natural -5- GPA PUBL*KLLb7 83 gas liquids products, including ethane, at very low operating temperatures. cushion gas Refer to definition of “blanket gas.”
48、cuts Portions or fractions of hydrocarbons that have been sepa- rated according to boiling point or gravity. cycle condensate Condensate produced from cycle gas. cycle gas . Gas which is compressed and returned to the gas reservoir to minimize the decline of reservoir pressure. cycling The process w
49、hereby effluent gas from a gas reservoir is passed through a gas processing plant or separation system and the remaining residue gas returned to the reservoir. The word “recycling” has also been used for this function, but it is not the preferred term. cycling plant A plant cycling residue gas back into the reservoir. cylinder gas Liquefied petroleum gas (LP-gas), oxygen, acetylene, or any other gas which is compressed and confined in a pressure cylinder. damper A valve, or plate, used to regulate the flow of air or other gases. days storage A volume of product storage capacity w
