Objective Investigate the effect of inorganic salts and hydrogen sulfide(H₂S) on triethylene glycol dehydration of natural gas.

Methods The effects of inorganic salts and hydrogen sulfide on triethylene glycol dehydration of natural gas in the aspects of dehydration, regeneration, rheology, foaming and defoaming properties and corrosiveness were reviewed.

Results With the enrichment of inorganic salt and hydrogen sulfide in triethylene glycol solution, the rheological property of triethylene glycol solution decreased, foaming was easy and defoaming was difficult, and it would react with triethylene glycol, resulting in the deterioration of triethylene glycol, and the dehydration effect decreased obviously. The triethylene glycol solution containing hydrogen sulfide was corrosive and produced iron ions after corroding pipes and equipment, which further affected the performance of triethylene glycol.

Conclusions Because the chemical structure of triethylene glycol is easy to be destroyed and the ambient temperature is high, triethylene glycol is easy to deteriorate. When MDEA is used for desulfurization of natural gas, it is necessary to control the amount of MDEA. Suggestions indlude: (1) Study the deterioration mechanism of triethylene glycol deeply; (2) Establish a model for the effect of various inorganic salt ions and hydrogen sulfide on the dehydration of triethylene glycol solution; (3) Establish a unified standard for discarding triethylene glycol solution.