Biphase Turbine Tests on Process Fluids

Abstract

The Biphase turbine is a device for effectively producing shaft power from two-phase (liquid and gas) pressure let-downs and for separating the resulting phases. No other device is currently available for simultaneously performing these tasks. The performance of the Biphase turbine and its advantages over single-phase, energy-conversion devices has been demonstrated with subscale and commercial scale steam/water (geothermal wellhead) operations. Its development and application to two-phase process streams is now being pursued and is the subject of this paper. The two-phase working fluid may be a single component, two-phase stream, as in a steam/ water combination, or it may be a multicomponent, two-phase process stream which may also include foam and/or entrained solids. Performance data from initial tests using a subscale Biphase turbine on a two-phase, expanding, gas-cleaning application (Selexol/C02 mixture) are presented. Turbine designs for tests scheduled for gas/oil wellhead applications are described.