Are Kinder Morgan Treating MRU’s easy to operate?
One of the main principles behind the initial design of our MRU’s was to make them simple in their operation. Basically, if your field operator can work a separator, they can work our MRU. We give each operator a basic instructional manual and go over any unfamiliarity’s they may have.
The pipeline company says we are out of specification on our gas. What are the usual specifications for gas?
Pipeline company specifications vary. The most common are one of the following, or in some cases a combination:
• Hydrocarbon Dew Point: usually 20° to 40° F
• Iso-pentane (C5+): usually less than 0.20 gpm
• BTU: this one varies, but usually between 1050 and 1100 Btu.
What temperature do I need to process my gas to get it into pipeline specifications?
We will, at no charge to the customer, model your inlet gas analysis and obtain the required process temperature. We will also give you a theoretical yield of the amount of NGL’s that will be processed at both the processing pressure, and 215 psig and 80° F (normal NGL tank operating conditions). This will allow you to model the economics to ascertain if the recovery of the NGL’s would be profitable for your application.
What is your normal response time for operation related issues?
We have five trained and qualified service technicians that are on 24 hour, 7 days a week call. We maintain a complete inventory of spare parts on their vehicles and at our Tyler facility. Most service calls are performed within 12 hours of notification of any operational issue.
Ice has formed on the liquid flow line and dump valve, is there a problem?
This usually occurs on high humidity days and after rain. Remember that in most cases we are processing at temperatures less than 32° F, so if water vapor comes in contact with materials that are below 32° F, ice will form. This situation usually remedies itself as the humidity and ambient temperatures rise.
I was checking the MRU and none of the compressors are running, but the temperature in the cold separator is at its set point, why?
Remember that our staged cooling process allows the compressors to cycle on and off to maintain a set temperature. Once that process temperature is obtained the compressors cycle off, thus saving electricity costs. This is much more frequent on low ambient temperature days (winter) than on high ambient temperature days (summer).
The MRU is bypassed and no gas will flow through the unit, what is the problem?
This is our most frequent problem. The majority of the time the dehydrator and/or methanol pump is not functioning properly and the water dew point has exceeded the hydrate formation temperature. This requires defrosting the MRU (usually can be done by the operator with minimal instruction) and draining the free water from the MRU. The dehydrator and/or methanol pump should be placed back in service prior to flowing gas back through the MRU.