Process for converting a natural gas feedstock with inert content to chemical intermediates

A process for producing olefins comprising:

• (a) introducing a reactant mixture to an oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) reaction unit to produce a reactor effluent stream;
• wherein the reactant mixture comprises methane, oxygen (O2), and an inert compound;
• wherein the methane is present in the reactant mixture in a concentration of equal to or greater than about 40 mol %;
• wherein the reactor effluent stream comprises C2+ olefins, methane, hydrogen (H2), the inert compound, water, and carbon dioxide;
• and wherein the mole fraction of methane in the reactant mixture is greater than the mole fraction of methane in the reactor effluent stream;
• (b) removing at least a portion of the water and/or at least a portion of the carbon dioxide from the reactor effluent stream to produce a demethanizer feed stream;
• (c) feeding at least a portion of the demethanizer feed stream to a demethanizer unit to produce two or more vapor streams, and at least one liquid stream;
• wherein the two or more vapor streams comprise a methane rich stream and an inert rich stream;
• wherein the mole fraction of methane in the methane rich stream is greater than the mole fraction of methane in the inert rich stream;
• wherein the mole fraction of inert compound in the inert rich stream is greater than the mole fraction of inert compound in the methane rich stream;
• and wherein the at least one liquid stream comprises C2+ olefins;
• (d) withdrawing at least a portion of the inert rich stream as a purge stream;
• (e) recycling any remaining portion of the inert rich stream to the OCM reaction unit;
• and
• (f) recycling the methane rich stream to the OCM reaction unit.