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Two Phase Separator Sizing - Vertical (beta)
Step 1 - Input Process Conditions
Operating Pressure, Pg
psig
Atmospheric pressure, Pa
psia
Operating Temperature, Tf
deg.F
Standard volumetric flow of gas, Qgs
mmscfd
Molecular Weight of gas, MW
lb/lbmol
Compressibility Factor, Z
Viscosity of gas, mu_g
cP
Volumetric flow rate of liquid, Ql
ft3/min
Density of liquid, rho_l
lb/ft3
Viscosity of liquid, mu_l
cP
Mixed fluid density rho_m
lb/ft3
Calculated density of gas, rho_g
lb/ft3
Mass flow rate of gas, mg
lb/min
Actual volumetric flow rate of gas, Qg
ft3/min
Calculate1
Step 2 - Calculate K Value
Calculated K Value, Kcalc
ft/s
Selected K value, K
ft/s
Calculated particle terminal velocity, Vmax
ft/s
Allowance for support ring, Da (typ 4 in)
in
Calculated inside diameter of vessel, Di_calc
in
Calculate2
Step 3 - Check De-Gassing of a 200 micron bubble
Selected inside diameter, Di
in
Liquid velocity, Vl
ft/s
Terminal velocity, Vt
ft/s
Verify1 (Vl <= Vt):)
Calculate3
Step 4 - Input Surge Times
Low Level Response time - LLLL to LLL, t1 (typ. 1-2 min)
min
Control Surge time - LLL to HLL, t2 (typ. 2-10 min, depending on application) - See Help
min
LLL to NLL, t3 (initial value - 50% of t2)
min
High Level Surge time - HLL to HHLL, t4 (typ. 1-2 min)
min
Calculate4
Step 5 - Calculate Liquid Levels based on surge times
Bottom Seam (or tan) to LLLL distance, H1 (typ. 12 - 18 in)
in
Calculated LLLL to LLL distance, H21_calc
in
Selected LLLL to LLL distance, H21
in
Calculated LLL to NLL distance, H22_calc
in
Selected LLL to NLL distance, H22
in
Calculated NLL to HLL distance, H23_calc
in
Selected NLL to HLL distance, H23
in
Calculated HLL to HHLL distance, H24_calc
in
Selected HLL to HHLL distance, H24
in
Selected LLLL to HHLL distance, H2
in
Calculate5
Step 6 - Check Inlet Velocity Head
Nozzle Pipe Nominal Size and Schedule
Selected Pipe Outside Diameter, NDo1
in
Selected Pipe Nominal Wall Thickness, Tn1
in
Selected Pipe Inside Diameter, NDi1
in
Inlet Velocity, Vin
ft/s
Gas velocity head, J1
lb/(ft*s2)
Gas velocity head limit, J1_Limit (See Help)
lb/(ft*s2)
Verify2 (Vl <= Vt):)
in
Calculate6
Step 7 - Check Outlet Velocity Head
Nozzle Pipe Nominal Size and Schedule
Selected Pipe Outside Diameter, NDo2
in
Selected Pipe Nominal Wall Thickness, Tn2
in
Selected Pipe Inside Diameter, NDi2
in
Outlet Velocity, Vout
ft/s
Gas velocity head, J2
lb/(ft*s2)
Gas velocity head limit, J2_Limit (See Help)
lb/(ft*s2)
Verify3 (J2 <= J2_Limit):
in
Calculate7
Step 8 - Calculate distance between components
Type of inlet device
Select Inlet Device
Diffuser
Other than diffuser
HHLL to feed nozzle bottom recommended distance, H3_rec
in
HHLL to feed nozzle bottom distance selected, H3
in
Nozzle Diameter, H4
in
Nozzle top to mist eliminator bottom recommended distance, H5_rec
in
Nozzle top to mist eliminator bottom selected distance, H5
in
Mist eliminator thickness, H6 (typ. 4 - 6 in)
in
Mist eliminator to top seam (or tangent) (conservative estimate), H7_rec
in
Mist eliminator to top seam (or tangent) (See Fig. 7.38 of GPSA), H7
in
Total Vessel Length (Seam to Seam) or (tan to tan), L
in
Calculate8
Step 9 - Final Design
Diameter of the vessel
Selected inside diameter, Di
in
Selected inside diameter, Di_ft
ft
Cumulative levels and heights from bottom seam (or tan)
Low low liquid level (LLLL), ht1
in
Low liquid level (LLL), ht2
in
Normal liquid level (NLL), ht3
ft/s
High liquid level (HLL), ht4
in
High high liquid level (HHLL), ht5
in
Feed nozzle center line, ht6
in
Feed nozzle outside diameter, NDo1
in
Mist eliminator bottom, ht7
in
Mist eliminator top, ht8
in
Total Vessel Length (Seam to Seam) or (tan to tan), L
in
Total Vessel Length (Seam to Seam) or (tan to tan), L_ft
ft
Retention Volume and Retention Time
Seam / tan to NLL distance, ht3
in
Retention Volume (Seam / tan to NLL), Vr
ft3
Retention time, tr
min
Calculate9
Sketch
Help
General Notes:
Note: Refer to the "Terms and Conditions" in the 'About' section before using the software.
1) Two Phase Vertical Separator Sizing is a software program that can be used to size 2 phase vertical liquid / vapour (gas) separators.
2) The procedure is based on Chapter 7 - Separation Equipment, presented in GPSA 14th edition.
3) The separator in consideration is assumed to be equipped with a mist extractor. The software is not designed and hence should not be used for other types such as vane type separators. Heads on either ends of the shell are not considered for volume calculations such as surge volumes, retention volumes etc., for the sake of simplicity.
4) The user needs to select / fill in relevant input data under Step1' and then click 'Calculate1' button so the program calculates the relevant parameters. The user then needs to fill in relevant data under 'Step2' and click 'Calculate2' button and so on. The procedure needs to be followed sequentially. When an update to any input is made, the procedure needs to be followed sequentially again by clicking the buttons in sequence, so the calculations are updated under each step.
5) Typical control surge times (LLL to HLL) for liquids for various types of separator vessels are as below.
Compressor Drum : 2 minutes
Flash Drum : 2 - 5 minutes
Reflux Drum: 5 minutes on product plus reflux
Surge Drum upstream of a Tower: 5-10 minutes
Surge Drum upstream of a Fired heat: 10 minutes
Net Product to Storage: 5 minutes
Refrigeration Accumulator: 5 minutes, or based on system or storage requirements
Refrigeration Economizer: 3 minutes
Heat Medium Surge Drum: Maximum liquid expansion, based on 25% to 75% full
6) Typical retention times (empty to NLL) for liquids for various types of separator vessels as as below.
Amine Flash Drum : 5 - 10 minutes, depending on presence of hydrocarbons
Glycol Flash Drum : 10 - 20 minutes, depending on presence of hydrocarbons
Cold Separator: Gas / NGL / Ethylene Glycol : 15 - 30 minutes, depending on internals
7) Suggested mixed phase velocity head range for the inlet nozzle, J_Limit
Diffuser distributor: 4,000 - 6,000 max lb/ft • sec2
No inlet distributor : 650 - 1,500 max lb/ft • sec²
Inlet half pipe or elbow distributor: 1,000 - 2,500 max lb/ft • sec2
V-baffle or other simple invert diverter designs: 1,000 - 2,500 max lb/ft sec2
Cyclonic inlet device: upto 10,000 lb/ft • sec2
Suggested outlet velocity head range, J_Limit: 3000 - 3600 max lb/ft • sec2
8) All numbers / amounts need to be entered without commas or $ sign. Empty boxes, non-numerical values are not allowed where numbers are expected.
9) Please provide any constructive feedback so we can improve the quality of the software.