Retrofit an LPG plant for improved output and ethane recovery

A. K. Shatla, El-Wastani Petroleum Co., Cairo, Egypt; and A. A. Abdelwaly, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt An LPG plant in Damietta, Egypt, operated by El-Wastani Petroleum Co. (WASCO), contains a turboexpander LPG recovery unit. Due to the increased demand for ethane and LPG in Egypt, a retrofit was recommended for the WASCO plant to increase LPG recovery and produce ethane as a new product. A conceptual design is presented here, along with a preliminary economic study for retrofitting the plant. The retrofit study was based on two proprietary ethane-recovery (ER) processes and was modeled on commercial process simulation software.* The results of the study showed that the ultra-high ER (