Pilot plant to showcase gas-to-liquids potential

Feb. 13, 2012
Gas2 has secured $8.7 million of funds to pursue development of its gas-to-liquids (GTL) technology, including construction of a pilot reactor plant.

Offshore staff

ABERDEEN, UK – Gas2 has secured $8.7 million of funds to pursue development of its gas-to-liquids (GTL) technology, including construction of a pilot reactor plant.

The company claims its proprietary process enables conversion of natural gas to liquid hydrocarbon more economically and cleanly than previously developed large-scale GTL processes.

It has developed a catalytic ceramic-based porous membrane (pMR) for use in its gas reforming (Syngas) reactors and fluid forming (Fischer Tropsch) reactors to create liquid hydrocarbons. Other developers of small to medium GTL use micro-channel technology, it points out.

Gas2 claims its approach could lead to lower capital and operational expenditure and a smaller environmental footprint than conventional GTL techniques.

Applications for the Gas2 technology include offshore associated gas - offering a ‘gas disposal’ solution for unwanted associated gas to avoid flaring and enabling development of remote oilfields where flaring is prohibited and/or gas reinjection wells are expensive or detrimental to reservoir performance.

The pilot reactor plant, designed to further test and demonstrate the technology, will be built on this year on a 0.4-acre (0.16-ha) site at the Wilton Centre in northeast England, with testing under way by year-end. Commercialization should start in 2013 for use as an integrated GTL system and as standalone Syngas and Fischer Tropsch reactors.

In the meantime, further laboratory work and computer modelling will be performed in Aberdeen.

2/13/2012