CFD Study for Slug Catcher Design and Analysis

A slug catcher, which is a part of the gas pipeline system, is essential equipment at the receiving terminal of a multiphase-flow processing plant. In the past, sizing of multiple-pipe slug catchers was based primarily on experience and rules of thumb. Not surprisingly, most of the existing slug catchers are overdesign. In the present, CFD Simulation can visualize and quantify flow characteristics in slug catcher. These include swirling, misdistribution, standing wave, reverse flows, high velocities and liquid entrainment. Further assessment on the simulation outputs will provide guidelines for improvement slug catcher design performance.