Natural gasCompressor Scrubber

Natural gas can travel through thousands of miles of pipeline. Compressors placed at key intervals keep the natural gas moving evenly and reliably. A typical compressor station consists of an inlet scrubber to collect liquids and slugs that may have formed in the gas pipeline. The scrubber consists of a primary section where liquids and solid parts are separated from the gas stream and a secondary section where oil mist is removed.

Challenges

The liquids collected from the suction scrubber are typically routed by way of scrubber level control valves to a low pressure (LP) tank. The vapors produced from the flashing liquids are vented to the atmosphere or to a flare. The low pressure condensate is periodically trucked out. Scrubbers are often equipped with high and low level alarms.