Triethylene Glycol (TEG) dehydration remains one of the most widely used and reliable methods for removing water from natural gas. However, the design of the gas–liquid contactor and regeneration internals has evolved significantly over the last two decades. Where traditional designs relied heavily on trays or low-efficiency random packing, modern TEG units increasingly use structured packing in both absorbers and stripping columns. This shift is not just driven by vendor preference — it is supported by plant data, improved mass-transfer performance, and better hydraulic behaviour. Recent research based on operating industrial units provides strong technical evidence for why structured packing enables more compact, higher-capacity, and more energy-efficient TEG dehydration systems.
Structured packing consists of corrugated metal sheets arranged in a highly ordered geometry, creating:
In TEG dehydration contactors, structured packing promotes efficient counter-current contact between wet gas and lean glycol, allowing water to transfer from the gas phase into the glycol phase more effectively over a shorter column height. Common structured packings used in glycol service include geometries similar to Mellapak 250Y or equivalent products from other internals suppliers like us.
Historically, TEG contactor sizing has relied on:
However, these methods often fail to accurately predict performance in glycol systems because:
As a result, many operating units show significant deviation between predicted and actual performance, especially when units are pushed to higher throughput or when revamping older towers.
A detailed 2022 study by Filep, Todinca, and Dumitrel evaluated mass and heat transfer in industrial TEG units using structured packing, with plant data reconciled through Aspen HYSYS simulations.Key findings include:
For absorption in TEG contactors:
This supports the feasibility of higher gas throughput per unit diameter, enabling:
The study found that:
This matters because temperature profiles strongly affect:
Ignoring this effect can lead to under-prediction of dehydration performance or poor regeneration targeting.
The research highlights that:
Stripping performance was found to depend strongly on:
This reinforces the need for separate design approaches rather than assuming absorber and regenerator internals behave similarly.
With higher mass-transfer efficiency per meter of packing height, structured packing enables:
This is particularly important for:
For existing dehydration units, replacing trays or older packing with modern structured packing can:
These upgrades can often be achieved with internal modifications only, avoiding major shutdowns or vessel replacement.
Modern process simulators (such as Aspen HYSYS with Glycol or CPA property packages) increasingly support rate-based modelling of mass and heat transfer. Structured packing correlations derived from real plant data improve:
This enables engineers to move beyond simple stage-based or HETP-only approaches and design closer to actual operating behaviour.
While vessel diameter and height still define overall capacity limits, internals design is now the primary driver of performance in modern TEG dehydration systems. Structured packing provides:
As gas dehydration specifications tighten and facilities push for higher throughput and lower CAPEX, packing selection and internals configuration have become strategic design decisions, not just mechanical details.
As industry moves toward:
the role of high-performance internals such as structured packing will continue to grow.Future TEG systems are increasingly being designed with:
All aimed at delivering more performance from smaller equipment.
Whether you are:
a detailed review of internals, hydraulics, and mass-transfer performance can often unlock significant improvements without major plant modifications.