Is "Deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling" the same as a NGL recovery unit?

Yes — this model covers what is also called NGL recovery unit, ethane recovery, cryogenic gas plant, turboexpander plant. It runs the real process on the rigorous solver, so you can size and study it directly.

Which thermodynamic method does it use?

The PENG-ROBINSON property package, over methane, ethane, propane, n_butane — already selected. You can switch the method on the canvas before running.

Which unit operations are in the flowsheet?

It chains Chill, Demeth. Every block is a real, solvable unit operation you can reconfigure, add to, or remove.

Do I need to install software or buy a license?

No. Deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling runs entirely in your browser on MaximaLabs — free, no install, no license. Open the model to load it live and run the deterministic solver.

All guides

NGL recovery plant, Permian Basin, Texas, USA

How to simulate deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling

Associated gas is chilled by an external propane refrigeration package before a demethanizer recovers ethane and heavier as NGL bottoms from a methane-rich residue gas overhead — the cryogenic-chilling role Ortloff's CCS/GSP processes play ahead of the turboexpander in a real deep-ethane-recovery plant. The mechanical refrigeration loop itself (compressor/condenser/valve) isn't separately modeled here; the chiller's duty is represented directly as the feed's cooled outlet temperature (the same honest-simplification pattern used for LNG cold-box examples elsewhere in this library).

Also known as: NGL recovery unit, ethane recovery, cryogenic gas plant, turboexpander plant.

FEED

Chill

feed

dist

btms

Demeth

Residue GAS

NGL Product

1
Open the ready-made model
Open the "Deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling" model in the MaximaLabs workspace — no install, no license. It loads live on the canvas, ready to edit and run.
2
Confirm the thermodynamics
This process is modeled with the PENG-ROBINSON property package over methane, ethane, propane, n_butane — already selected, so the phase equilibrium and enthalpy are physically consistent from the first run.
3
Review the flowsheet
The flowsheet chains Chill, Demeth. Every block is a real, solvable unit op you can reconfigure on the canvas.
4
Run the simulation
Click Run. The deterministic solver converges the material and energy balances (recycles included) and fills the live stream table — the AI never invents a number.
5
Read the results and iterate
Inspect the converged streams, tweak a spec, and re-run — or ask the AI copilot to explain a result or diagnose a failed solve in plain English.

What you'll build

Thermodynamics: PENG-ROBINSON
Components: methane, ethane, propane, n_butane
Unit operations: ChillDemeth

Open this model in the workspace

Opens live on the canvas — free, no install.

Explore the model & flowsheet

Frequently asked questions

What does the Deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling model simulate?: Associated gas is chilled by an external propane refrigeration package before a demethanizer recovers ethane and heavier as NGL bottoms from a methane-rich residue gas overhead — the cryogenic-chilling role Ortloff's CCS/GSP processes play ahead of the turboexpander in a real deep-ethane-recovery plant. The mechanical refrigeration loop itself (compressor/condenser/valve) isn't separately modeled here; the chiller's duty is represented directly as the feed's cooled outlet temperature (the same honest-simplification pattern used for LNG cold-box examples elsewhere in this library).
Is "Deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling" the same as a NGL recovery unit?: Yes — this model covers what is also called NGL recovery unit, ethane recovery, cryogenic gas plant, turboexpander plant. It runs the real process on the rigorous solver, so you can size and study it directly.
Which thermodynamic method does it use?: The PENG-ROBINSON property package, over methane, ethane, propane, n_butane — already selected. You can switch the method on the canvas before running.
Which unit operations are in the flowsheet?: It chains Chill, Demeth. Every block is a real, solvable unit operation you can reconfigure, add to, or remove.
Do I need to install software or buy a license?: No. Deep ethane recovery with propane-refrigerated feed chilling runs entirely in your browser on MaximaLabs — free, no install, no license. Open the model to load it live and run the deterministic solver.

More guides like this

Gas processing plant, Permian Basin, Texas, USA

Cryogenic NGL recovery (GERG-2008 EoS)

A natural-gas dew-point-control / NGL knockout run on the GERG-2008 reference equation of state — the multiparameter Helmholtz model the LNG and custody-transfer industries use because cubic EoS (Peng-Robinson/SRK) are off by several percent on cryogenic natural-gas density. Rich pipeline gas is chilled, let down across a Joule-Thomson valve into the two-phase region, and flashed cold to drop out an NGL liquid (propane/butane-rich) from the methane sales gas. The value is accuracy: on this flowsheet GERG predicts an NGL liquid density ~10% different from Peng-Robinson at cryogenic conditions — enough to change vessel and exchanger sizing. Implemented via CoolProp's multiparameter Helmholtz mixture model (GERG-2008 binary reducing/departure functions), a validated implementation — not a hand-transcription of GERG's thousands of coefficients. Scope: natural-gas / light-hydrocarbon components only (every species must be a CoolProp fluid); see.

Gas processing (cold-separator dew-point control)

Cold-separator NGL recovery / dew-point control

A rich natural gas is chilled in the gas/gas exchanger + propane-chiller train (lumped here as one cold box) to -33 degC and let into a cold separator. The heavy hydrocarbons (C3+) drop out as a raw NGL liquid, leaving a leaner sales gas that meets its hydrocarbon dew-point spec — so no more liquid forms as the gas cools in the export pipeline. The cold separator is modelled as an adiabatic flash fed by the chiller, so the single knob (the chill temperature) drives both the NGL recovered and the refrigeration duty: colder recovers more NGL but costs more refrigeration (the built-in sensitivity). Peng-Robinson handles the hydrocarbon VLE; the companion gas-conditioning utilities (hydrate risk, water content, Joule-Thomson choke cooling, and compressor sizing for the sales-gas recompression) quantify the rest of the plant around it.

Permian Basin, Texas, USA

Associated gas conditioning

Field gas is compressed, chilled below its dew point, and flashed to knock out NGL/condensate — the sales-gas vs. liquids split every midstream gathering plant runs (Peng-Robinson).

Reference model (ChemSep)

Propane refrigeration cycle

A single-stage vapor-compression refrigeration loop: propane vapor is compressed, condensed to subcooled liquid, throttled through a valve, and superheated back to vapor in the evaporator before recycling — a small makeup feed and purge close the mass balance (inspired by ChemSep's Refrigeration_* reference cases).

Reference model (ChemSep)

Ammonia refrigeration cycle

A single-stage vapor-compression refrigeration loop using ammonia — the classic industrial (rather than HFC) refrigerant — condensed to subcooled liquid, throttled through a valve, and superheated back to vapor in the evaporator before recycling (inspired by ChemSep's Refrigeration_Ammonia-30C reference case).

Cold-storage terminal, Rotterdam, Netherlands

Ammonia refrigeration (−30 °C)

A closed single-stage ammonia vapor-compression cycle serving a −30 °C load: compressor → ambient condenser → JT valve → evaporator. The charge is set via tear_specs; metrics give duty and work (COP ≈ 2). From the ChemSep casebook (Refrigeration_Ammonia-30C).