Simulation of Dry Reforming of Methane to Form Synthesis Gas as Feed Stock for Acetic Acid Production

Abstract

The Natuna gas field is one of the largest natural gas reserves in Indonesia with estimated natural gas reserves of 222 TCF. However, until now, the use of Natuna gas is still hampered because of the very high CO 2 content reaching 71%, while the methane content is around 28%. The dry reforming of methane (DRM) process is one of the potential ways to be applied for solving these problems to convert CH 4 and CO 2 to synthesis gas containing CO and H 2 as a raw material that can be applied to manufacture as intermediate products or end products in the petrochemical industry such as acetic acid. The simulation of the acetic acid production was conducted by using ASPEN HYSYS v.10, considering mass and heat balances. The PengRobinson was applied for dry reforming of methane process. In order to produce 496.8 kmol/h of the acetic acid, the 500 kmol/h for each CH 4 and CO 2 were used as feed gas. The total energy required is 4.7 MMBtu per ton of acetic acid. The acetic acid has a purity of 99.4% with a concentration of 500 ppm methanol, and moisture content of 5,700 ppm.