Ft gtl apparatus and method for producing single synthetic crude oil

Abstract

Disclosed are a Fischer-Tropsch (FT) gas-to-liquid (GTL) apparatus for producing unitary synthetic crude oil and an FT GTL method for producing unitary synthetic crude oil. The FT GTL apparatus for producing unitary synthetic crude oil of the present invention is an FT GTL apparatus for producing unitary synthetic crude oil from floating production, storage, and off-loading (FPSO), and characterized by comprising: a gas injection stabilization unit for performing stabilization on the produced natural gas to generate a natural gas condensate; and a modification unit for modifying the natural gas, which has been treated in the gas injection stabilization unit, to produce a synthetic crude oil product.

1 . A Fischer-Tropsch (FT) gas-to-liquid (GTL) apparatus for producing a single synthetic crude oil in a floating production, storage, and off-loading (FPSO) unit, comprising:
 a gas injection stabilization unit producing a natural gas condensate by stabilizing produced natural gas; and   a reforming unit producing a synthetic crude oil product by reforming the natural gas treated in the gas injection stabilization unit.   
     
     
         2 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a product treatment unit mixing the natural gas condensate with the synthetic crude oil product to produce a single synthetic crude oil.   
     
     
         3 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein the gas injection stabilization unit comprises a first three-phase separator separating CH 1  to CH 40  and H2O injected in the separator into CH 1  to CH 4 , the natural gas condensate (CH 5  to CH 40 ), and water (H2O). 
     
     
         4 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 3 , wherein the synthetic crude oil product is FT naphtha, FT heavy oil, and FT wax, and the reforming unit comprises an FT reactor producing the FT wax and a second three-phase separator producing a first mixture of the FT naphtha and the FT heavy oil. 
     
     
         5 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 4 , wherein the second three-phase separator separates syngas treated in the FT reactor into a tail gas, H 2 O, and the first mixture through heat exchange of the syngas in a first heat exchanger. 
     
     
         6 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 5 , wherein the product treatment unit comprises: a product mixing tank mixing the first mixture with a second mixture of the FT naphtha, the FT heavy oil, and the FT wax and the natural gas condensate; and a storage tank storing a GTL liquid prepared in the product mixing tank. 
     
     
         7 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 6 , wherein the product treatment unit further comprises a second heat exchanger performing heat exchange of the FT wax produced in the FT reactor, a reactor producing the second mixture by subjecting the FT wax subjected to heat exchange in the second heat exchanger to hydrocracking or mild hydroisomerization, and a separator separating unreacted tail gas from the second mixture. 
     
     
         8 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 7 , wherein the product treatment unit further comprises a first compressor for compressing a tail gas and a second compressor for adding hydrogen, and the unreacted tail gas separated in the separator is supplied to the second heat exchanger through the first compressor and the second compressor. 
     
     
         9 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 2 , further comprising:
 a tail gas separation unit separating the synthetic crude oil into a tail gas and a first mixture of FT naphtha and FT heavy oil, and the first mixture separated in the tail gas separation unit is supplied to the product treatment unit.   
     
     
         10 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the reforming unit comprises: an F-T synthesis unit producing synthetic oil from syngas produced from the natural gas; and a control unit controlling the F-T synthesis unit to maintain wax content in the synthetic crude oil reformed into the synthetic oil at a predetermined level so as to adjust wax content of the synthetic crude oil. 
     
     
         11 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein the F-T synthesis unit is provided with an LT-FT reactor and an HT-FT reactor in series or in parallel and adjusts flow rates of the LT-FT reactor and the HT-FT reactor depending upon the composition of a synthetic crude oil produced at a downstream side of the F-T synthesis unit. 
     
     
         12 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein the control unit is provided with a wax detection unit detecting wax content of the synthetic crude oil and an unreacted gas detection unit detecting unreacted gas content. 
     
     
         13 . The FT GTL apparatus according to  claim 12 , wherein the control unit controls the wax content to be maintained at a minimum level to a degree to which unreacted gas content is maintained within a predetermined range. 
     
     
         14 . A Fischer-Tropsch (FT) gas-to-liquid (GTL) method for producing a single synthetic crude oil in a floating production, storage, and off-loading (FPSO) unit, comprising:
 (a) producing a natural gas condensate from natural gas;   (b) producing FT wax and a first mixture of FT naphtha and FT heavy oil from syngas;   (c) producing a second mixture of FT naphtha, FT heavy oil, and FT wax; and   (d) producing a single synthetic crude oil by mixing the natural gas condensate with the first mixture and the second mixture.   
     
     
         15 . The FT GTL method according to  claim 14 , wherein step (c) is performed though wax hydrocracking or mild hydroisomerization. 
     
     
         16 . The FT GTL method according to  claim 15 , wherein the single synthetic crude oil produced in step (d) is stored and transported without heat treatment. 
     
     
         17 . The FT GTL method according to  claim 15 , further comprising:
 (e) refining the single synthetic crude oil in an on-shore refinery plant.