Method and apparatus for liquefying a hydrocarbon stream

1. A method of liquefying a hydrocarbon stream, the method at least comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a hydrocarbon feed stream;

(b) passing the hydrocarbon feed stream through an NGL recovery system to separate the hydrocarbon feed stream into at least a methane-enriched overhead stream and a C 2 + enriched bottom stream;

(c) passing the entire methane-enriched overhead stream through at least a first compressor to provide a methane-compressed stream;

(d) liquefying the methane-compressed stream to provide a first liquefied stream;

(e) reducing the pressure of the first liquefied stream to provide a mixed-phase stream;

(f) passing the mixed-phase stream through an end gas/liquid separator to provide an end gaseous stream and a liquefied hydrocarbon product stream;

(g) passing the end gaseous stream through one or more end-compressors to provide an end-compressed stream; and

(h) feeding at least a recycle fraction of the end-compressed stream into the methane enriched overhead stream.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the NGL recovery system comprises an expander.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the NGL recovery system further comprises one or more turbo-compressors mechanically interlinked with the expander to be driven by the expander.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3 , wherein the NGL recovery system further comprises an NGL recovery column, and wherein at least a fraction of the hydrocarbon feed stream passes into the expander to provide a mixed-phase feed stream which passes into the NGL recovery column, which produces an overhead stream which passes through the turbo-compressor to produce the methane-enriched overhead stream.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 , comprising liquefying the methane-compressed stream in at least a main cooling stage comprising one or more main refrigerant circuits.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein at least one of the main refrigerant circuits comprises a mixed refrigerant comprising two or more of the group consisting of nitrogen, methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, butanes and pentanes.

7. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein at least one of the group consisting of the hydrocarbon feed stream and the methane compressed stream is cooled by one or more first refrigerant circuits comprising one or more first refrigerant circuit compressors before said liquefying in the main cooling stage.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the first refrigerant circuit comprises at least one heat exchanger for cooling the hydrocarbon feed stream and at least one heat exchanger for cooling the methane-compressed stream.

9. The method as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the refrigerant of the first refrigerant circuit essentially consists of one or more of the group consisting of nitrogen, methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, butanes and pentanes.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pressure of the methane-enriched overhead stream and the pressure of the recycle fraction of the end-compressed stream are in the range of 15 to 45 bar.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the first compressor is commonly driven together with at least one refrigerant compressor, by a first refrigerant compressor driver.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the refrigerant compressor is part of a first refrigerant circuit or a main refrigerant circuit.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the hydrocarbon feed stream is a natural gas stream and the liquefied hydrocarbon product stream is a liquefied natural gas stream.

14. A method of controlling the liquefaction of a hydrocarbon feed stream comprising at least the steps of:

(i) liquefying the hydrocarbon feed stream according to a method at least comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a hydrocarbon feed stream;

(b) passing the hydrocarbon feed stream through an NGL recovery system to separate the hydrocarbon feed stream into at least a methane-enriched overhead stream and a C 2 + enriched bottom stream;

(c) passing the entire methane-enriched overhead stream through at least a first compressor to provide a methane-compressed stream;

(d) liquefying the methane-compressed stream to provide a first liquefied stream;

(e) reducing the pressure of the first liquefied stream to provide a mixed-phase stream;

(f) passing the mixed-phase stream through an end gas/liquid separator to provide an end gaseous stream and a liquefied hydrocarbon product stream;

(g) passing the end gaseous stream through one or more end-compressors to provide an end-compressed stream; and

(h) feeding at least a recycle fraction of the end-compressed stream into the methane-enriched overhead stream;

(ii) adjusting the temperature (Tx) of the first liquefied stream to change the amount of the end gaseous stream from the end gas/liquid separator; and

(iii) controlling the amount of the recycle fraction of the end-compressed stream being fed into the methane-enriched overhead stream.

15. A method of maximizing the production of a liquefied hydrocarbon stream, comprising at least the steps of:

(a) providing a liquefaction system comprising at least an NGL recovery system, a main refrigerant circuit and a first refrigerant circuit and an end gas/liquid separator to separate an end gaseous stream from a mixed-phase stream and an end compressor to provide an end-compressed stream, the main refrigerant circuit comprising at least one or more main refrigerant compressors, and the first refrigerant circuit comprising one or more first refrigerant compressors;

(b) passing a hydrocarbon feed stream through the NGL recovery system to produce a methane-enriched overhead stream from the hydrocarbon feed stream;

(c) controlling the liquefaction of the methane-enriched overhead stream in the liquefaction system, by adjusting the temperature (Tx) of a first liquefied stream to change the amount of the end gaseous stream from the end gas/liquid separator;

(c1) passing the end gaseous stream through the end compressor to provide the end-compressed stream;

(d0) providing a recycle fraction from the end-compressed stream by a divider and feeding the recycle fraction into the methane enriched overhead stream; and

(d) controlling the fraction of the end-compressed stream provided as the recycle fraction;

(e) driving each of the one or more main refrigerant compressors and the one or more first refrigerant compressors at their maximum load.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the liquefied hydrocarbon stream is a liquefied natural gas stream.

17. Apparatus for liquefying a hydrocarbon stream, the apparatus at least comprising:

(a) an NGL recovery system to extract a C 2 + stream from a hydrocarbon feed stream to provide at least a methane-enriched overhead stream and a C 2 + enriched bottom stream;

(b) at least a first compressor arranged to receive the entire methane-enriched overhead stream to provide a methane-compressed stream from the methane-enriched overhead stream;

(c) a main cooling stage to liquefy the methane-compressed stream to provide a first liquefied stream;

(d) a pressure reducing device to reduce the pressure of the first liquefied stream to provide a mixed-phase stream;

(e) an end gas/liquid separator to separate the mixed-phase stream into an end gaseous stream and a liquefied hydrocarbon product stream;

(f) one or more end-compressors to compress the end gaseous stream to provide an end-compressed stream; and

(g) a recycle fraction line connecting the end-compressed stream with the methane-enriched overhead stream to feed at least a recycle fraction of the end-compressed overhead stream into the methane-enriched overhead stream.

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 17 , wherein said at least first compressor is provided between the NGL recovery system and the main cooling stage such that the methane-enriched overhead stream as obtained from the NGL recovery system is passed through said at least first compressor prior to passing into the main cooling stage.

19. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said methane-enriched overhead stream as obtained from the NGL recovery system is passed through said at least first compressor prior to said liquefying to provide said methane-compressed stream.

20. The method as claimed in claim 14 , wherein said methane-enriched overhead stream as obtained from the NGL recovery system is passed through said at least first compressor prior to said liquefying to provide said methane-compressed stream.