Novel Impulse Turbine for Non-Combustion Power Generation at Offshore Platforms Towards Net Zero Carbon Emission Agenda

Abstract

Abstract Energy is a critical element that is greatly sought after in offshore facilities globally. For remote satellite platforms, oil and gas operators depend on the solar panel to power up their instrumentation and equipment. In certain cases, due to higher power requirements, Mini Turbine Generator (MTG) and Diesel Generator (DEG) are used to satisfy the energy demand of the operation. This paper introduces the Novel Impulse Turbine (NIT) technology for power generation for oil and gas offshore facilities and compares it to the conventional MTG. A techno-economic assessment and comparison for the two technologies are presented, with a case study at a Malaysian gas field. The NIT technology was developed through the extraction of the kinetic energy of the flowing gas and converting it to electrical energy using a novel impulse turbine. The preliminary concept was simulated using process simulation and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis was conducted to refine the critical parameters for prototype fabrication. A 35kW rated prototype was fabricated and tested for Leak Test, No-Load Spin Test, Load Performance Test, Oil System Test. All parameters were within the range of 5% of theoretical values. A two-steps technoeconomic assessment with a case study field was carried out to firm up field implementation. Based on testing and performance analysis carried out, the NIT can perform the rated power output without any combustion process compared to MTG. MTG and NIT have similar footprint requirements and replacing MTG with NIT technology will not yield significant footprint changes. Both MTG and NIT are rotating turbomachinery equipment and have similar maintenance requirements. However, since MTG generates electricity through the combustion of natural gas as fuel while NIT operates based on differential pressure, the latter generates clean energy without the need for fuel combustion. This provides cost savings to the operation as the fuel requirement of MTG increases the operating cost by $10,000 per year. For 20 years of operation, NIT has the lowest life cycle cost due to its advantage of not combusting any fuel to generate electricity. Based on this benchmarking with MTG, NIT provides 15% and 74% of reduction in terms of CAPEX and OPEX respectively. By foregoing the association of generating power with fuel combustion, NIT provides cleaner energy that is in line with global sustainability efforts to reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) such as CO2 and methane.