2025 Spring Meeting and 21st Global Congress on Process Safety
(87b) Ethylene Plant Flare Gas Recovery Operating Experience
Ethylene plant flare systems are a continuous source of emissions that typically contain a small quantity of valuable products during normal operation. Additional gas flows are also added to flare systems for safety and environmental purposes. These include safety purge streams to maintain a minimum flow velocity, keep oxygen out etc.—and supplemental combustion gases to comply with regulatory standards. However, recovering these gases rather than burning at flare tip offers a significant improvement opportunity and aligns well with climate goals. LyondellBasell aims to achieve a 42% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and is committed to reaching net zero targets for Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2050. Flare minimization at LyondellBasell has been an ongoing effort for decades that has been successfully implemented at multiple plants. New flare regulatory requirements (e.g., Ethylene MACT) also continue to drive improvements even further. This paper will review the flare gas recovery system at the US Gulf Coast gas cracker in La Porte, Texas, highlighting environmental benefits, operational experiences/challenges, and an overview of the system setup. The flare gas recovery project was installed & commissioned in 2022 and has demonstrated several advantages beyond compliance with regulatory requirements.