Purification of Natural Gas with Impurities using Membrane Processes: Parameter Estimation

Problem statement: Membrane processes have received a significantly high attention on natural gas separation processes since this technology provides higher operating and cost advantages as compared to other technologies. One of the major problems related to natural gas separation using membrane is the existence of feed impurities including CO₂, heavy hydrocarbon and water. Approach: Hence, mathematical model that is able to study the effect of impurities towards the performance of the membrane is substantially crucial. In this study, a membrane transport model involves dual mode sorption and partial immobilization of the whole population was employed to predict the behavior of penetrant in the membrane. Results: Results related with sorption, diffusion, permeation and selectivity of Penetrants in the membrane were demonstrated in the present study. Conclusion/Recommendations: The sorbed concentration and permeability coefficient of a binary mixture were found to be lower as compared to pure gases, which represented the competition between Penetrants.