Applications & Handling of Gas for Power, Fertilizers, Transport and City Use

Natural gas is a naturally occurring hydrocarbon gas mixture consisting primarily of methane. Natural gas is widely used and is an important energy source in many applications such as:Natural gas is a major source of electricity generation through the use of gas turbines and steam turbines. Natural gas dispensed from a simple stovetop can generate heat in excess of 2000F (1093C) Making it a powerful domestic cooking and heating fuel. In transportation sectors it is used in the form of CNG which is a cleaner alternative to Other automobile fuels such as gasoline (petrol) and diesel. Natural gas is a major feedstock for the production of ammonia, via the Haber process, for use in fertilizer production. Natural gas offers a number of significant environmental benefits over other fossil fuels. Largely a result of its chemical simplicity, it is the cleanest burning of all fossil fuels. Natural gas is primarily composed of methane, with most of the impurities removed by gas processing at the field and gas plant. Electricity Generation Electricity generation is the main non-residential use of natural gas. Globally, there is an increasing demand for electricity, coupled with reduced tolerances for nuclear and hydro plants, tightening limits on air, water, and noise pollution emissions, as well as high cost for wind and solar energy. This leaves gas-fired generation as one of the only remaining options for electrical utility companies. Because the cost of fuel accounts for around 65% of the cost of electricity, the choice of fuel is an important decision for power plant developers. The development of IPPs and the increased efficiency of gas-fired combined cycle plants have allowed gas to become the fuel of choice in both intermediate and peak load phases. In many parts of the world where gas is relatively cheap, such as the Middle East, gas plants have also become the choice for base load power plants. Gas is also preferred where permitting additional nuclear or coal plants is difficult. This trend will undoubtedly accelerate in the future. In conventional steam power plants, fuels such as gas, coal, or oil generate steam, which then powers a turbine to generate electricity. This process generates waste heat from the steam generator as well as low-pressure steam from the turbine. The low-pressure steam can be used for district heating, if demand exists, but cannot be used to generate additional power. The total efficiency, or ratio of energy input versus electricity energy produced, for conventional power plants is around 34%. A combined cycle plant, by contrast, generates power directly from a gas generator when gas is burned directly in a turbine to generate electricity. It also generates power from steam generated from heat exhausted by the gas generator. Because the gas generator runs at high temperatures, steam generated from the gas turbines excess waste heat has sufficient energy to drive a steam turbine. Combined cycle plant efficiencies have increased from 40% to 50% in the 1980s to around 55% in the most advanced plants. The cost of power generation varies by fuel type. On a full cost (including fuel as well as capital depreciation costs) basis, gas is more expensive than existing nuclear power generation, but significantly cheaper than coal or renewable power. If environmental costs are added to this analysis, the advantages of gas will be greater. However, it should be noted that gas fuel costs have risen significantly over the past two years thus reducing some of the price advantages.

Petrochemicals, Steel, and Fertilizer

More than 97% of the worlds synthetic fertilizer is produced from synthetically produced ammonia derived from natural gas. The process requires relatively high temperatures and pressures, and thus requires cheap energy to be economic. Natural gas, with its relatively cheap price, provides both the energy and the feedstock for the process. The steel industry is the single largest industrial energy consumer, absorbing about 4% of worlds energy production. In developed countries, the cost of energy is between 15% and 20% of the overall cost of steel production. The modern Direct Reduced Iron method for producing steel directly removes oxygen by reacting the ore with a hydrogen-rich and CO-rich gas produced by catalyzing methane derived from natural gas. As in fertilizer production, natural gas provides both the energy and the feedstock for the process Remote, smaller gas fields not economic for LNG or pipeline development may be ideal candidates for commercializing via petrochemical, fertilizer, or steel developments. Production of Aluminium requires large amounts of electric power, which may be generated using natural gas. Energy costs account for an estimated 30% to 45% of total aluminium production costs. Such investments can be economic at both large and small scales, may be relatively quick to build, and can often be project or debt financed.

Transport Fuel Though the benefits of natural gas as a transport fuel are well-known, growth in direct natural gas usage in the transportation sector has been slow to materialize. Studies indicate that vehicles operating on natural gas versus conventional fuels such as gasoline and diesel fuels can reduce CO output by 90% to 97% and CO 2 by 25%. The switch can also significantly reduce NO x emissions, as well as nonhydrocarbon emissions and particulates. Fuel supply infrastructure around the world heavily favors reliance on traditional liquid fuels, making conversion to natural gas difficult. Natural gas in the form of compressed natural gas (CNG), which is basically methane gas pressured to 200 bar to 250 bar, is an ideal transportation fuel. LPGs are also commonly used transport fuels. Natural gas holds the greatest promise as a fuel for fleet vehicles that refuel at a central location, such as transit buses, short-haul delivery vehicles, taxis, government cars, and light trucks. There are currently approximately 65,000 natural gas vehicles (NGVs) in operation in the United States using CNG and LNG as their main fuels. There are an estimated 10 20 million vehicles around the world that use CNG and LPG as their primary fuel. Notable countries are (Argentina, Pakistan, Brazil, Italy, India, Iran, US (for CNG) and Italy, Australia and Japan (for LPG vehicles). Residential Gas Markets Gas has been consumed in the residential market since the 1800s, when gas produced from coal, known as coal gas, was piped to city streets for lighting. Today, most large cities in North America, Europe, and Northern Asia have extensive natural gas networks supplying residential and commercial consumers with clean and reliable natural gas, primarily for space heating, water heating, and cooking. Many cities in developing countries are also installing local gas pipelines and networks. City Gas & Transport Application of Natural Gas in India This sector comprises of:

i. Domestic household use ii. Commercial use in hotels, hospitals, restaurant and offices iii. Transport sector use in Three wheelers, buses, trucks and cars iv. Industrial Sector use in the Small Scale Industry P o w e r generation.

including

The Household use of gas has picked up in India especially when multiple use of Natural Gas in the houses was demonstrated. The gas can be used for cooking, water heating, space heating, air conditioning, refrigeration, power generation and fuelling the vehicle. The concept of a single switch solution in the household sector is picking up momentum. This concept provides that a household could be self contained gas users to meet its all energy needs atone go that means once the gas supply is switched on, all these services can be secured which are all gas based of course selectively or need based. I n t h e c o m m e r c i a l s e c t o r t h e c i t y g a s h a s f o u n d t o b e v e r y u s e f u l i n t h e application like cooking, air conditioning, power generation. In fact a concept of Combined Heat & Power (CHP) is getting popular in India. This system has much higher thermal efficiency as compared to other conventional services. The use of Natural gas in the transport sector has contributed to a great extent to contain the pollution due to vehicular exhaust emissions. Apart from this natural gas as CNG has been able to replace high priced hydrocarbon commodity like petrol and diesel. This has further helped India to reduce its Oil Import Bill. As a matter of fact, the international Gas Price is always 10-15% less as compared to crude oil price in energy terms. N a t u r a l g a s s u p p l y t o i n d u s t r i e s i n a n d a r o u n d a c i t y o r l o c a l a r e a h a s considerably helped reducing pollution in the cities apart from providing ease of operation and fuel handling to the industries. Development of City Gas in India In the early stage, the city gas was only started on experimental basis, primarily to utilize the locally produced gas. Such locations had been Duliajan, Moran, Nazira, Sibsagar in Assam, and Baroda in Gujarat. The structured use of Natural Gas in domestic sector in Assam, started after formation of Assam Gas Company in 1962. In addition, the metros of Mumbai and Kolkata used Coal Gas for City Gas Usage way back since preindependence. The coal gas which is also known as Synthesis Gas did not find a commercial business model and abandoned in Mumbai way back in 1981. In Kolkata this concept is still working after the original company the Oriental Gas was succeeded by G r e a t e r C a l c u t t a G a s S u p p l y C o r p o r a t i o n i n 1 9 8 7 , h o w e v e r i t i s o n t h e retardation phase. The development of City Gas in India remained localized for quite long time. It was only in 80s when structured development of City Gas took place in India. The Gujarat Gas Company is the example of this initiative when Govt. of India allocated gas for development of City Gas in Ankleshwar and Bharuch. In early 90s Supreme Court on a PIL filed by Sh. N.C. Mehta directed that the City Gas should be implemented in Delhi, Mumbai and Baroda by GAIL (I)Ltd. In pursuant to this direction, the CNG was introduced in all these three towns in 1993. In Mumbai a JV of GAIL, BG and Govt. of Maharashtra was formed to pursue City Gas Business. A company was registered in 1995 as M a h a n a g a r G a s L i m i t e d . T h i s c o m p a n y h a s b e e n p e r f o r m i n g v e r y successfully since then. I n D e l h i a f t e r c o n t i n u i n g i t s a c t i v i t i e s f o r 5 y e a r s , G A I L f o r m e d a J V w i t h Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd. and Govt. of NCT of Delhi and created a new company in 1998 by the name of Indraprastha Gas Limited. Subsequently, there have been various initiatives in the City Gas Distribution (CGD) Projects. As of now, the numbers of companies operating in CGD areas under: 1.Assam Gas Company Ltd, Duliajan, Assam 2.Tripura Natural Gas Company Ltd, Agartala, Tripura 3.Gujarat Gas Company Ltd (GGCL), Surat, Gujarat 4.Baroda Municipal Corporation Ltd, Baroda, Gujarat 5.Charotar Gas Sehkari Mandali Limited 6.Great Eastern Energy Corporation Ltd. 7.Mahanagar Gas Ltd (MGL), Mumbai, Maharashtra 8.Maharashtra Natural Gas Company Ltd, Pune, Maharashtra

9.Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL), Delhi 10.Bhagyanagar Gas Ltd, Hyderabad, AP 11.Green Gas Ltd, Lucknow, UP 12.Central UP Gas Ltd, Kanpur, UP 13.Avantika Gas Ltd. MP 14.Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Ahmedabad, Gujarat 15.Adani Energy Ltd, Ahmedabad, Gujarat 16.Sabarmati Gas Ltd, Gandhinagar, Gujarat 17.Kolkata City Gas Co. Kolkata WB 18.Haryana City Gas Limited, Gurgaon, Haryana 19.Sity Energy Limited, Delhi 20.Reliance Industries Ltd 21.Reliance Energy Ltd 22.Krishna Godavari Gas Ltd (JV of GSPCL & Govt of AP)

GAS SUPPLY TERMINAL AT CONSUMER END Removal of Condensate, dust and oil from the natural gas Measurement of Sulpher content in the gas Measurement of hydrocarbon dew point Measurement of moisture in the gas Analysis of Natural Gas Control of pressure and temperature of natural gas supplied to consumer Measurement of Natural Gas Supplied Flow Control Safety Systems

Conclusion Natural gas use is illustrated in this below chart (from production to end users for utilisation in various sectors)

TERMINAL
Terminal is like a node of any gas pipeline Network from which either natural gas comes in or goes out. Types of Terminals 1. RECEIVING TERMINAL: It is inlet point of the pipeline system or sub system from which natural gas enters in to the network. 2. DESPATCH TERMINAL: It is exit point of the pipeline system or sub system from which natural gas is received by the consumer.
54