CYNARA® Membranes
NATCO designs and builds custom pre-treatment equipment and Cynara® membrane systems, and provides field operations and support services for major oil and gas companies worldwide. With ongoing experience as operators in customer facilities and in broad field service support roles, we know the real world needs and concerns of our customers. We can recommend the most economical and reliable solution, whether it is a stand-alone membrane system or a hybrid system with other separation technologies.
Since the first installation (SACROC) in 1983, Cynara membranes have established an impressive track record for the industry. The technology keeps working every day with minimal downtime. The average availability maintained by the SACROC facility in West Texas since startup is over 99 percent.
NATCO technology is well-proven:
- Largest installed base of equipment by volume world-wide
- Turnkey projects, dehydrating the gas and recovering liquid hydrocarbons, as well as separating the CO2
- High-capacity projects of 700 million cubic feet per day and higher
- CO2 inlets from 5% to 90%, outlets from 1.5% to 50%
- World leader in EOR applications of membrane technology
Cynara® gas separation membranes operate on the basis of selective permeation. The technology takes advantage of the fact that CO2 and H2S dissolve and diffuse into polymeric materials. If a pressure differential is set up on opposing sides of a polymeric film (membrane), transport across the film (permeation) will occur. When a natural gas stream containing CO2 is fed to a membrane, the CO2 will permeate the membrane at a faster rate than the natural gas components. Thus, the feed stream is separated into a CO2 rich, low pressure permeate stream and a CO2-depleted, high pressure natural gas stream.
Cynara membrane modules consist of hundreds of thousands of asymmetric hollow fibers. Pressurized gas flows into the membrane case, where it contacts the fiber bundle. Gas flows radially inward. As the gas traverses the bundle, CO2 selectively permeates the fiber.
There are many inherent advantages of this design:
- maximize surface area per unit volume
- minimal pressure drop
- maximum separation
- withstands condensing hydrocarbons