How to quickly reduce the water content in methanol in low-temperature methanol washing? The current water content in methanol is 2%, which results in excessive levels of CO2 and total sulfur in the purified gas
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How to quickly reduce the water content in methanol in low-temperature methanol washing? The current water content in methanol is 2%, which results in excessive levels of CO2 and total sulfur in the purified gas
I’m not sure what is produced there. If it’s methanol, that would be ideal; replacing it with methanol could be the fastest solution, but it doesn’t address the root cause of the problem. To solve the issue properly, it’s necessary to start at the source and determine what is causing it.
To stabilize the operation of the methanol-water separation tower, check whether the conditions at the top of the tower and the related parameters exceed the specified limits
Agree with the view from the second floor; if methanol is to be produced, it should be replaced directly with pure methanol. But it is also necessary to find the root cause of the problem, starting with various parameters of the methanol/separation tower. Another point is that some plants can operate with a water content as low as 5%, though the circulation volume is relatively high. Are your levels of carbon dioxide and sulfur above the limits?
Some negative effects resulting from prolonged excessive water levels, which accelerate equipment corrosion, include an increased frequency of cleaning the pure methanol filter.
I suggest, as the others mentioned above, checking the operation of the methanol-water separation tower
This post was last edited by 654262293 on 2016-6-14 09:11. If we rule out the causes related to leaks in the water cooler and reboiler, it’s still necessary to carefully check the control of the temperatures at the bottom and top of the methanol-water separation tower.
I don’t know why steam can’t be supplied to the methanol-water separation tower. Have you encountered this issue as well?
Does “no steam coming up” mean that the tower temperature isn’t rising?
This post was last edited by ningzi521 on 2016-6-16 08:42. If the steam flow cannot be increased, check the drainage condition of the trap located after the reboiler; also consider using the bypass around the trap to see if that will help increase the steam flow.
The root cause of the high water content in methanol has been identified: it is a problem with the operation of the methanol-water separation tower during shutdown periods. However, our main issue now is that the water content in methanol has been reduced to below 0.5%. Yet, the total sulfur and carbon dioxide levels in the purified gas are above the specified limits. The operating temperature, pressure, circulation rate, and feed gas all are within normal ranges; it’s only the total sulfur and carbon dioxide levels in the circulating methanol that are too high. It is suspected that there might be a leak in the heater used to heat the feed to the thermal regeneration tower. I would appreciate any insights from those with more experience