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US 10,920,624 B2Granted
Energy-recovery turbines for gas streams
AssigneeUop LLC
InventorsJason Lee Stahlman, Donald A. Eizenga, William M. Hartman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Processes for recovering electrical power from a process unit waste heat steam generation system are described. A power-recovery turbine reduces the pressure of a stream of superheated steam to a pressure lower than that needed by the steam reboiler for use in other process units or equipment in the plant.
Claims18
A process for recovering electrical power from a process unit waste heat steam generation system comprising:
- heating water or steam using heat from a convection zone of at least one heater in a catalytic reforming zone to provide a stream of superheated steam having a first temperature and a first pressure determined by a pressure requirement of a steam reboiler;
- dividing the stream of superheated steam into a first portion and a second portion;
- introducing the first portion into at least one desuperheater, the at least one desuperheater having a steam inlet, a steam outlet, and desuperheater water inlet;
- introducing a stream of desuperheating water into the desuperheater water inlet to reduce a temperature of the first portion to a second temperature less than the first temperature and produce additional steam to form a desuperheated stream, the second temperature being controlled by a temperature controller, and wherein the desuperheated stream has a pressure determined by the pressure requirement of the steam reboiler, the pressure of the desuperheated stream being controlled by a pressure controller;
- introducing the desuperheated stream into the steam reboiler comprising a heat exchanger having a steam inlet and a condensate outlet;
- heating a bottom stream from a column in the steam reboiler with the desuperheated stream forming a heated bottom stream and a condensate, wherein the condensate does not return to the at least one desuperheater;
- introducing the heated bottom stream to the column;
- directing the second portion of the superheated steam through a power-recovery turbine to reduce a pressure of the second portion to a second pressure less than the first pressure and less than the pressure of the desuperheated stream forming a depressurized stream;
- sending the depressurized stream to a steam header system;
- and
- recovering power from the power-recovery turbine.
8 more elements
A process for recovering electrical power in a catalytic reforming process comprising:
- reforming a naphtha-containing stream in at least one catalytic reforming zone comprising at least one reformer to form a reformate stream;
- separating the reformate stream into at least two fractions in a distillation column;
- heating water or steam using heat from a convection zone of at least one heater in the reforming zone to provide a stream of superheated steam having a first temperature and a first pressure determined by a pressure requirement of a steam reboiler;
- dividing the stream of superheated steam into a first portion and a second portion;
- introducing the first portion of the superheated steam to at least one desuperheater, the at least one desuperheater having a steam inlet, a steam outlet, and desuperheater water inlet;
- introducing a stream of desuperheating water into the desuperheater water inlet to reduce a temperature of the first portion to a second temperature less than the first temperature and produce additional steam to form a desuperheated stream, the second temperature being controlled by a temperature controller, and wherein the desuperheated stream has a pressure determined by the pressure requirement of the steam reboiler for a distillation column, the pressure of the desuperheated stream being controlled by a pressure controller;
- introducing the desuperheated stream into the steam reboiler comprising a heat exchanger having a steam inlet and a condensate outlet;
- heating a bottom stream from the distillation column in the steam reboiler with the desuperheated stream forming a heated bottom stream and a condensate, wherein the condensate does not return to the at least one desuperheater;
- introducing the heated bottom stream to the distillation column;
- directing the second portion of the superheated steam through a power-recovery turbine to reduce a pressure of the second portion to a second pressure less than the first pressure and less than the pressure of the desuperheated stream forming a depressurized stream;
- sending the depressurized stream to a steam header system;
- and
- recovering power from the power-recovery turbine.
10 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.