Natural gas. Sand, water, oil. High pressure and temperature. Cooling process: using seawater, closed loop or outdoor air.

 
Millions of years ago. Small animals and plants in the sea form natural gas and petroleum as we know and find it today. The following process occurs: a thick layer of (river) sand and clay deposits on a layer of plankton. The high pressure and temperature of this thick layer turns plankton into natural gas and petroleum. We often find the two together. On occasion, natural gas will penetrate into other layers of the earth, as opposed to the much heaver petroleum. In which case, they will be separated.

Natural gas coming directly from the source - both on land and at sea - has a high temperature and is polluted with sand, water and oily substances. Therefore, the gas first must be cooled and cleaned before running it through pipes/lines. An air-cooled cooler brings the temperature of the gas down to approximately 25°C and a gas/gas heat exchanger cools it further to -15°C. Finally, using a Joule-Thompson valve, the temperature of the gas is further reduced to -30°C, at which point all liquid and solid parts are removed. The gas/gas heat exchanger then heats the cold gas again to well above zero, transporting the now clean and dry gas via pipelines to the clients.