1. Multicomponent droplet growth in supersonic natural gas separators
Barbara Wyslouzil, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210
Natural gas is an important part of the U.S. energy supply. Water and higher hydrocarbons must be separated from the raw natural gas before it can be transported in pipelines. One approach is to expand and cool the gas in a supersonic nozzle so droplets comprised of water and the hydrocarbons form. These droplets are then separated and the gas is recompressed. Measuring the droplet formation and growth rates under conditions that are far from equilibrium in order to improve the performance of these devices is the main theme of our research.
In situ small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) and FTIR experiments are key in our research because they let us follow the growth of the droplets and their composition with unprecedented detail. The figure on the left compares the growth of droplets during condensation when one or two components are present in the nozzle. The figure on the right shows how the nonane spectra change from that of the pure vapor to one that is rich in liquid as condensation proceeds in the nozzle.