Foam Control in Natural Gas Systems: Key Parameters for Defoamer Selection

Foaming in natural gas processing originates from three primary sources: light hydrocarbon components (e.g., C5+ alkanes) escaping under high pressure to form gas-liquid mixtures; foam-stabilizing surfactants (e.g., sulfonated alcohols) in amine desulfurization; and shear-induced foaming during high-velocity flow. Uncontrolled foam reduces gas-liquid separation efficiency, increases corrosion risks, and causes hydrocarbon carryover losses.

Chemi Tech defoamers for natural gas systems must meet these core criteria:

High-Temperature/Pressure Adaptability

Modified polyether-siloxane copolymers maintain surface tension <22mN/m (below natural gas liquid phase's 25-28mN/m) at 80°C-150°C and >5MPa, ensuring rapid foam film penetration.

Chemical Inertness

Nonionic hydrophobic chains avoid degradation when contacting amine solutions (e.g., MDEA) or H₂S.

Dispersion and Longevity Balance

High-MW components (>15,000 Da) provide steric hindrance for foam suppression; low-MW fractions (<3,000 Da) enable fast bubble bursting;

Self-emulsifying properties allow spontaneous dispersion in turbulent pipelines without pre-emulsification.

Field Validation: Injecting Chemi Tech defoamers (0.01%-0.03%) at separator inlets reduced foam layer height by >90% with no activity loss after 120 days of continuous operation, outperforming conventional products in extreme conditions.