Design and Optimization of Natural Gas Purification with Ionic Liquids

Abstract

As a relatively clean energy source, natural gas is playing an increasingly important role in the energy structure around the world. However, the raw natural gas obtained from the gas field is often accompanied by some gaseous impurities such as moisture, H2S and CO2. The presence of these gaseous impurities can cause unavoidable defects in the delivery, utilization and subsequent processing of natural gas. Therefore, these gaseous impurities must be removed from natural gas. This chapter aims to propose a new method for capturing these gaseous impurities by using relatively new green solvents, namely, ionic liquids (ILs) as absorbents instead of the traditional organic solvents, and conduct in-depth technical research on dehydration, removal acidic gases of H2S and CO2 from natural gas at the atomic, molecular and systematic scales. This chapter will systematically introduce the natural gas purification technology with ILs as absorbents, consisting of screening IL suitable candidates via the predictive thermodynamic models, identifying the natural gas purification and separation mechanisms at the atomic and molecular levels, establishing the mathematical model for the natural gas purification process, and carrying out conceptual design and process optimization at the industrial scale.