Predictive Model for Estimating Energy Consumption by UOG Facilities

Joe Lukacs, CETAC-West
GL 904651

Fuel gas consumption by UOG facilities from the well head to product sales is a large and growing component of facilities total energy requirements. Fuel gas consumption also results in the greatest component of GHG emissions from this industry. Combined, the energy and GHG emissions represent an opportunity for improvement but in order for this to happen it is necessary to have better indicators of consumption and emissions for both industry and regulatory agencies.

A number of mechanisms to reliably predict and report energy consumption and GHG emissions have been developed in the past but these all have shortfalls including the inability to predict fuel consumption at field operations, simplistic assumptions and less than optimal energy requirements for the numerous unit operations employed and the absence of electrical energy consumption.

The objective of this project is to develop a comprehensive model that will allow individual facilities to select, from a suite of modules, a process configuration that matches their specific installation and to generate the optimal energy consumption from such a facility when processing the actual (as opposed to design) throughput.

An essential element of this work will be the ability to predict changing energy patterns based upon changes to inlet composition and flow rates and different product mixes. In concert with energy consumption, facility GHG emissions will also be predicted.