CONSERVING ENERGY–CONSERVING ENERGY–SUPERCONDUCTIVITY, HELIUM & SUPERCONDUCTIVITY, HELIUM & KUTHALAM NATURAL GAS FIELD KUTHALAM NATURAL GAS FIELD

(ONGC), SOUTH INDIA(ONGC), SOUTH INDIA

CONSERVING ENERGY

✪ Energy demand is continually increasing.

✪ Energy conservation is recognized as a

national priority.

✪ Inefficient use of energy produces excess

greenhouse gases.

✪ Has a negative impact on environment -

regionally and globally.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

☢ Promotion of energy efficiency and its

conservation is the optimum option to

reduce gap between demand and supply. ☢ Modernize energy conservation and

utilization.☢ Economically achievable Conservation –

Superconducting technologies hold the

greatest potential for conserving Energy.

SUPERCONDUCTIVITY

Superconductivity - a phenomenon observed in several metals and alloys such as Nb-Ti. When these materials are cooled to temperatures close to absolute zero ( 0 degree Kelvin, -273 degree Celsius) to around liquid helium temperatures (4.2K) their electrical resistance  drops very abruptly, down to zero.

Electrical resistance vs temperatureComparative behaviour of a normal metal

and a superconductorTc – Critical Temperature

Superconductor

Normal Metals

Res

ista

nce

0K Tc Temperature

SUPERCONDUCTING POWER

✪ Superconductors when turned into electrical

circuits exhibit no energy loss due to

electrical resistance.

✪ Superconductors repel external magnetic

fields.

✪ A magnet placed over a superconductor

experiences strong forces of repulsion that

lifts it, so that it floats above.

SUPERCONDUCTORS IN THE POWER SECTOR

☢ In the last 10 years, rapid improvements in superconducting materials and cooling techniques have found immense practical applications in low cost power generation, transmission and storage of electricity. Superconductivity has potential application in Fusion Technology as well.

☢ Superconductivity holds out great promise as a potential energy saving technology.

LIQUID HELIUM - FLUID OF THE FUTURE

✪Vital element in cryogenics. Fluid that is commonly used to reach low temperatures required for standard superconducting magnets.

✪Superconducting magnets are becoming customary features for high energy accelerators used by physicists for research on fundamental particles.

✪Superconducting magnets (MAGLEV) are used in Magnetically levitated trains.

NOVELTY OF NOBLE HELIUM

✪ An extraordinary gas that exhibits extreme physical and chemical properties.✪ A key element in

Space Research – Pressurizing liquid fuel for rockets.

Atomic Energy – Cover gas and cooling medium in nuclear reactors.

Defence – Supersonic wind tunnels, lasers.

Probe to Seismic Studies – Earthquakes & Volacanism, warning for ecological imbalance

Superconducting Technology – High field magnets, loss-less power transmission.

Semiconductor Industry – Protective gas for crystal growth in computer technology.

Fabrication Industry - Shielding gas for processing reactive metals such as titanium, molybdenum, tungsten etc. Prevents oxidation and corrosion.

Medicine – Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Magneto Rheological Elastomer (MRE) to determine cancer (by blood analysis).

SOURCES OF HELIUM

☢ Exceedingly low atmospheric abundance –

5.2 parts per million (ppm).

☢ Only commercial sources are derived from

natural gases.

☢ Geological distribution uneven.

☢ Present in higher concentrations (percent

levels) in the gas emanations of some hot

springs and geysers – but flow rates are low.

✪ Associated with natural gas in only a few

regions – principally USA, Russia and

Poland.

✪ ~98% of world’s commercial helium

supplies come from the USA.

✪ Recently found to be a component (approx.

500 ppm) of natural gas in India at the

ONGC Karaikal Asset at Kuthalam,

Tamil Nadu.

Map showing locations of a few sources of helium in India

W

T1

B1

K

B2

T2

B1 – Bakreswar (W.B) B2 – Baratang (A&N) K – Kuthalam (Tamilnadu) T1 – Tatta Pani (J&K) T2 – Tantloi (Jharkhand) Tamilnadu

Andhra Pradesh

Madhyapradesh

Rajasthan Uttar Pradesh

Karnataka

Kerala

Gujarat

Orissa

Punjab

Haryana

Himachal Pradesh

Maharashtra

Andaman & Nicobar

Gas↓ Spring gas (vol %) (Bakreswar-B1)

Natural gas (vol%)

(Kuthalam-K)

He 0.50 – 1.40 0.05 – 0.10

N2 82.0 – 93.0 1.0 – 40.0

Ar 1.68 – 2.40 0.0 - 0.62

O2 1.00 – 2.70 0.00 – 1.40

CO2 0.03 – 1.50 0.35 – 2.90

CH4 1.0 – 60.0 22.0 – 90.0

Flow Rate (Nm3/hr)

1.0 - 6.0 1000 - 7000

TYPICAL COMPOSITION OF A THERMAL SPRING AND NATURAL GAS

Geochemical monitoring set up at Bakreswar

GAS CHROMATOGRAPH

RADON MONITOR

Pipe lines Connecting Hot Spring with Gas Holders at Tantloi, Jharkhand

Helium Enrichment Plant based on Cryo-Condensation

at SINP/VECC, Kolkata

Helium Purification Plant based on Cryo-Adsorption at SINP/VECC, Kolkata

Ref: Anomalous fluctuation of He/CH4 ratio prior to an earthquake. Nisith K. Das, Rakesh K. Bhandari, Debasis Ghose, Prasanta Sen and Bikash SinhaCurrent Science, (2005) vol 89, No. 8, 1399-1403

Ref: Anomalous fluctuation of gamma dose emanating from a thermal spring prior to an earthquake. Nisith K. Das, Rakesh K. Bhandari, Debasis Ghose, Prasanta Sen and Bikash SinhaCurrent Science, (2005) vol 89, No. 8, 1399-1403

He

N2

CH4

D2

Ar+O2

He

RELATIVE

CONCENTARTION

Sumatra, IndonesiaM=8.7, 25-03-05

Ref: Explosive helium burst in thermal spring emanationsNisith K. Das, Rakesh K. Bhandari, Debasis Ghose, Prasanta Sen and Bikash SinhaAppl. Rad. Isotope (2006) vol 64, 144-148

Pakistan Earthquake M 7.6 October 8, 2006

Ref : Presented at International Workshop on “Electromagnetic Studies Related to

Earthquakes and Volcanoes”, Agra Nov 20 – 22, 2006

Ref : Presented at International Workshop on “Electromagnetic Studies Related to

Earthquakes and Volcanoes”, Agra Nov 20 – 22, 2006

Cryostat assembly

Cryostat being assembled with Magnet Iron

HELIUM GAS BUFFER TANKS

PRESSURE SWING ADSORPTION (PSA) TECHNIQUE FOR HELIUM

PURIFICATION

☢ Conventional helium separation from natural gas employs energy expensive gas liquefaction and cryo-adsorption techniques.☢ Recent developments in materials have added a new low cost – low energy technique for helium separation – the PRESSURE SWING ADSORPTION (PSA) TECHNIQUE

☢ PSA relies on differing adsorption properties of gases on adsorbents to effect helium separation from natural gas components.

ADSORBENT CONSTRAINTS

The adsorbents are the proprietary

items and owned by very few companies.

Exact nature of the breakthrough curves

are difficult to obtain experimentally.

Intra-particle diffusivity crucial to the

final stage of purification.

ENDEAVOUR

For the past couple of years we are engaged in developing adsorption based helium separation technology exploiting the helium bearing spring gases. Recently, we

are on the verge of commissioning a pilot scale helium purification plant at ONGC gas field, Kuthalam, based on Adsorption technique. A brief account of the plant is

outlined here. The plant consists of four different stages as

follows:

PURIFICATION STAGES OF A PRESSURE SWING ADSORPTION (PSA) HELIUM

PURIFIER

Stage -I : Removal of 99 mol% CH4

Stage -II : Removal of > 95 mol % N2

Stage -III : He – concentration attains ~10 mol%

Stage -IV : Helium purity ~ 99 + mol %

FOUR - BED PRESSURE SWING ADSORPTION UNIT

Dry feed gas

II I III IV

Purge Tank

Light-Flash Product

Heavy rich Product

Purge Tank

DESIGN BASIS OF PSA BASED PILOT PLANT FOR HELIUM EXTRACTION FROM

NATURAL GAS, KUTHALAM, TAMILNADU

(M/s ADSORPTION RESEARCH INC., DUBLIN OHIO, USA)

• Feed gas intake – 50 Nm3/hr

• Helium concentration - ~ 500 ppm

• No. of PSA stages – 4

• Helium yield purity - ~ 99%

SECTION OF PSA BASED HELIUM PILOT PLANT

FINAL STAGES OF HELIUM PILOT PLANT

HELIUM PRODUCTION STATISTICS - USA

OUTLOOK

It is expected that successful operation of the PSA based helium separation pilot plant at Kuthalam, Tamilnadu, will lead to a full-scale commercial plant from natural gas in India in near future.