Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Separator Sizing - Part-4 by Anand Patel
Separator Sizing - Part-4 by Anand Patel
Separator Sizing - Part-4 by Anand Patel
Separation Process
Separator - Sizing
By – Anand Patel
Three basic principles are used to achieve physical separation of gas, liquids and solids:
1. Momentum
2. Gravity
3. Coalescing (a subset of momentum)
Any separator may employ one or more of these principles to achieve separation.
Fluid phases must be “immiscible” and have different densities for separation to occur.
Fluid phases with different densities will have different momentum.
If a two-phase stream changes direction sharply, greater momentum will not allow particles of the
heavier phase to turn as rapidly as the lighter fluid, so separation occurs.
Momentum is usually employed for bulk separation of the two phases in a stream.
Liquid droplets will settle out if the gravitational force acting on the droplet is greater than the drag force of the
gas flowing around the droplet.
Drag Force of gas on Droplet
Particle Terminal velocity (Vt)
Vt is directly proportional to Dp
Liquid
Droplet
(Dp)
The maximum allowable gas velocity, VGmax, which prevents the entrainment of liquid
is obtained.
The terms ρG and ρL are the gas phase and liquid phase densities,
Per API 12J, “the maximum allowable superficial velocity, calculated form the above factors, is for
separators normally having a wire mesh mist extractor. This rate should allow all liquid droplets
larger than 10 microns to settle out of the gas.
The mist extractor is the final gas cleaning device in a conventional separator.
The selection, and design to a large degree, determine the amount of liquid
carryover remaining in the gas phase. The most common types include wire mesh
pads (“mesh pads”), vane-type (vane “packs”) and axial flow demisting cyclones.
Mesh pads are the most common type of mist extractors used in vertical
separator applications. The primary separation mechanism is liquid
impingement onto the wires, followed by coalescence into droplets large
enough to disengage from the mesh pad.