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This event will explore how turboexpander-generators (TEGs) create clean electricity by recovering unused energy in pressure letdown processes. A focus will be placed on how novel technologies can be integrated into TEGs to differentiate them from traditional rotating equipment offerings. A system to economically consume the electricity produced by TEGs in module data centers will be presented to operators in the natural gas midstream sector. A description of TEGs will be presented, noting how best-in-class technologies like magnetic bearings and high-speed permanent magnetic generators offer end-users improved equipment reliability and lower total cost of ownership. A comparison of capital expenditure and operating expense will be used to describe how best-in-class technologies underscore a value proposition for the operator of rotating equipment. A meta-analysis of pressure letdown processes in the midstream sector will be presented to describe different use cases for energy recovery in TEGs. This information will be combined with natural gas consumption trends to estimate the impact which TEG clean electricity generation may have on the midstream sector’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) commitments to greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.
Common uses of the generated electricity will be discussed, and a process in which electricity produced by a TEG is then consumed in a co-located module data centers will be described. Alternative consumption schemes relevant to the midstream sector will be reviewed, including the sale of power to a utility, the offset of an existing power load, and the consumption of power in a hydrogen electrolyzer. This paper describes an off-the-shelf system which midstream operators may immediately integrate into their assets to generate clean electricity.
Jeff Earl is the Business Development Manager at Sapphire Technologies and has been with the firm since its incorporation in 2021. Mr. Earl holds an M.B.A and a B.E. in Chemical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. He previously held commercial roles in the industrial gas industry, first working for Linde and then for Messer. Mr. Earl is the author of several technical papers and patent applications related to turbomachinery concepts.
Sapphire Technologies develops and manufactures energy recovery systems such as turboexpanders that harness the power of gas expansion to produce reliable and clean electricity – reducing global carbon footprint. Our systems are designed to convert energy wasted in pressure reduction processes into electric power without interrupting operations. By recovering this wasted pressure energy, we help companies maximize plant efficiencies, improve productivity, reduce carbon emissions, offset electrical costs and generate cashflow.
