As part of our partnership with the folks at Sunoco Logistics to explore the similarities and differences between wet and dry natural gas, today we are taking a look at the use possibilities. If you missed the first infographic, be sure to check out this post which explains the difference between the two types of natural gas produced in the Marcellus.
When wet natural gas is produced, it must be processed to separate the different components it contains, such as water and hydrocarbons. Natural gas liquids, such as butane, ethane and propane, are other forms of hydrocarbons, which can be used for many different products. Butane is commonly known as the flammable liquid in handheld lighters, propane is often used for heating in homes or as a fuel source for grills and propane is a chemical building block found in many different kinds of plastic products we use every day.
The average American citizen will come into contact with at least one product each day which can trace its roots back to wet natural gas. Everything from phone cases to food containers to tires to gasoline to fibers inside every kind of carpet is derived in part from a natural gas liquid.
Dry natural gas production allows for less processing due to lower to nonexistent levels of water and no additional hydrocarbons. This means that the methane will burn at correct temperatures for use in things like our stoves, in vehicles and in manufacturing processes.
The natural gas flows into pipelines which are strategically placed across the country delivering it to homes, businesses, manufacturers, agricultural centers and power generation plants. The methane separated from the wet gas mixture also flows into these pipelines. Natural gas recently overtook coal as the largest source of electric production in the United States, which in turn has helped to decrease our country’s carbon emissions to levels not seen in decades.
And as we’ve highlighted on the blog before, producing dry natural gas has the benefit of allowing companies to power equipment directly from the produced natural gas which replaces other fuels like gasoline and diesel.
Keep an eye on the @SXLupdates Twitter account for the next infographic detailing the differences between wet and dry gas.
