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Performance Analysis of a Helium Turbo-expander for Cryogenic Applications with a Process Modeling Tool: Aspen HYSYS

Joshi DM

Cryogenic system refers to interacting group of components involving low temperature. Cryogenic engineering deals with the development and improvement of low temperature techniques, processes, and equipment. They are applicable to helium refrigerators and various liquefiers. Nowadays, the energy crisis has forced the need to recover the energy which is normally wasted in other industrial processes. Reduction of gas pressure is one of such process in which there is a high loss of energy. To prevent such high wastage of energy, Turbo-expander which is the heart for the production of low temperature by reducing the pressure to a low value, has been introduced in the industries. Turbo-expanders are used in almost every segments of the oil and gas industry to produce Cryogenic refrigeration. Before implementation of such a critical component in the plant, it is necessary to carry out the performance analysis of turbo-expander.

In this paper, a process simulator called Aspen HYSYS is used for the analysis of Helium turbo-expander (Helium gas is taken as a process sample gas) and detailed observation is carried out for checking the performance of helium turbo-expander at various adiabatic efficiencies. The results provide useful indications on the selection of turboexpander to obtain required output at various efficiencies with variation in temperature. Keeping the constraints of the plant in mind, this analysis can thus result in the design of an efficient productive plant