Development of mobile miniature natural gas liquefiers

With increasing consumption of natural gas(NG),small NG reservoirs,such as coalbed methane and oil field associated gas,have recently drawn significant attention.Owing to their special characteristics(e.g.,scattered distribution and small output),small-scale NG liquefiers are highly required.Similarly,the mixed refrigerant cycle(MRC)is suitable for small-scale liquefaction systems due to its moderate complexity and power consumption.In consideration of the above,this paper reviews the development of mobile miniature NG liquefiers in Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry(TIPC),China.To effectively liquefy the scattered NG and overcome the drawbacks of existing technologies,three main improvements,i.e.,low-pressure MRC process driven by oil-lubricated screw compressor,compact cold box with the new designed heat exchangers,and standardized equipment manufacturing and integrated process technology have been made.The development pattern of"rapid cluster application and flexible liquefaction center"has been eventually proposed.The small-scale NG liquefier developed by TIPC has reached a minimum liquefaction power consumption of about 0.35 kW.h/Nm^(3).It is suitable to exploit small remote gas reserves which can also be used in boil-off gas reliquefaction and distributed peak-shaving of pipe networks.

Numerical analysis on seismic performance of underground structures in liquefiable interlayer sites from centrifuge shaking table test

When an underground structure passes through a liquefiable soil layer,the soil liquefaction may pose a significant threat to the structure.A centrifuge shaking table test was performed to research the seismic response of underground structures in liquefiable interlayer sites,and a valid numerical model was obtained through simulation model test.Finally,the calibrated numerical model was used to perform further research on the influence of various distribution characteristics of liquefiable interlayers on the seismic reaction of underground structures.The key findings are as follows.The structure faces the most unfavorable condition once a liquefiable layer is located in the middle of the underground structure.When a liquefiable layer exists in the middle of the structure,the seismic reactions of both the underground structure and model site will increase with the rise of the thickness of the liquefiable interlayer.The inter-story drift of the structure in the non-liquefiable site is much smaller than that in the liquefiable interlayer site.The inter-story drift of the structure is not only associated with the site displacement and the soil-structure stiffness ratio but also closely associated with the slippage of the soil-structure contact interface under the condition of large deformation of the site.

Numerical Simulation of Liquified Natural Gas Boiling Heat Transfer Characteristics in Helically Coiled Tube-in-Tube Heat Exchangers

Helically coiled tube-in-tube(HCTT)heat exchangers are widely applied to the process technology because of their compactness and higher heat transfer efficiency.HCTT heat exchangers play an important role in liquified natural gas(LNG)use and cold energy recovery.The heat transfer characteristics,pressure distribution,and degree of vaporization of LNG in HCTT heat exchangers are numerically investigated.By comparing the simulation results of the computational model with existing experimental results,the effectiveness of the computational model is verified.The numerical simulation results show the vapor volume fraction of the HCTT heat exchanger is related to the inlet Reynolds number,inner tube diameters,and helix diameter.The vapor volume fraction increases rapidly from the fourth to the seventh equal division points of the helix tube length.On condition that the inlet Reynolds number is greater than 33500,the pressure drop rate gradually increases.When the magnitude of the vapor volume fraction is below 0.2,the heat transfer coefficient increase rate is greater than that when the vapor volume fraction is above 0.2.The heat exchange efficiency of HCTT heat exchangers increases with the decrease of the ratio of helix diameter to inner tube diameter.

大型LNG船用惰气发生器系统特点及其应用

为提高液化天然气(Liquefied Natural Gas,LNG)船与惰气发生器系统的匹配度,基于惰气制取流程,对不同类型惰气发生器的应用范围进行归纳,对大型LNG船用惰气发生器的系统特点、要求和布置准则进行分析,并对不同厂商惰气发生器的结构形式和性能特点进行对比。研究表明:惰气发生器的油耗、整机功率、排量等参数为大型LNG船选型的首要依据。研究成果可为大型LNG船用惰气发生器的选型与应用提供一定参考。

大型LNG船再液化设备基座静刚度分析及结构优化

为了保证大型液化天然气(Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG)船再液化设备的基座在设备工作载荷作用下具有较高的抵抗变形能力,提高再液化设备运转过程中的安全性,以大型LNG船用再液化设备的基座所受载荷为基础,进行整个再液化设备的基座结构设计,并基于有限元分析软件进行刚度计算。计算结果表明:在工作载荷作用下,基座抵抗横向和纵向变形的能力较弱,在结构优化加强时,增加结构的板厚对整个基座的静刚度改善作用亚于增加纵向或横向支撑型材。研究结果可为船舶类设备基座结构的设计及加强优化提供一定参考。

货物围护系统专用材料和预制件认证流程分析

为了明确液化天然气(Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG)船货物围护系统专用材料和预制件的认证流程,对认证过程进行总结,绘制成流程图,并对GTT公司在认证过程中的技术要求、评估和质量控制等内容进行分析。研究成果可为国内有较强技术能力且有认证需求的供应商提供一定参考。

LNG动力船舶修理安全管控

为了提升液化天然气(Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG)动力船舶修理期间的风险管控水平,对LNG燃料的基本特性展开介绍,分析LNG泄漏或失控所造成的危害,并对不同的LNG动力船舶系统的相应维修情况进行对比分析,同时阐述LNG动力船舶维修时存在的主要额外风险及相应风险产生的原因。在此基础上,提出船舶携带LNG修理期间在危险区域和安全敏感区域工作的相应预防措施。研究成果可为LNG动力船舶修理安全管控提供一定参考。

Comparison of two schemes for district cooling system utilizing cold energy of liquefied natural gas

Two schemes（scheme Ⅰ and scheme Ⅱ）for designing a district cooling system（DCS）utilizing cold energy of liquefied natural gas（LNG）are presented.In scheme Ⅰ,LNG cold energy is used to produce ice,and then ice is transported to the central cooling plant of the DCS.In scheme Ⅱ,return water from the DCS is directly chilled by LNG cold energy,and the chilled water is then sent back to the central plant.The heat transportation loss is the main negative impact in the DCS and is emphatically analyzed when evaluating the efficiency of each scheme.The results show that the DCS utilizing LNG cold energy is feasible and valuable.The cooling supply distance of scheme Ⅱ is limited within 13 km while scheme Ⅰ has no distance limit.When the distance is between 6 and 13 km,scheme Ⅱ is more practical and effective.Contrarily,scheme Ⅰ has a better economic performance when the distance is shorter than 6 km or longer than 13 km.

液化天然气池火固体火焰模型及预测工具

通过对陆上和水上LNG大尺寸火灾实验测试结果进行分析,得到影响LNG池火灾热辐射的关键参数,包括最大燃烧速率、最大表面热辐射能及LNG池火燃烧速率、表面热辐射能、火焰形状和传输率预测模型,并据此开发了基于固体火焰模型的LNG池火热辐射预测工具LNGFHR。与LNGFIRE 3模型的计算结果进行对比,表明LNGFHR在陆上圆形LNG池火灾热辐射预测值与LNGFIRE 3接近;对于水面LNG池火,LNGFHR采用了最新的大尺寸LNG水面池火实验的研究结果,其预测结果大于LNGFIRE 3模型的预测值。

Early Jurassic Soft-Sediment Deformation Interpreted as Seismites in the Wuqia Pull-Apart Basin and the Strike-Slip Talas-Ferghana Fault, Xinjiang, China

The early Jurassic soft-sediment deformation occurring within lacustrine sandstone is distributed mainly in the Wuqia region of SW Tianshan Mountains, Xinjiang, western China. Triggered by earthquakes, such deformation was found to occur in three beds overlying the lower Jurassic Kangsu Formation. The main styles of deformation structures comprise load cast, ball-and- pillow, droplet, cusps, homogeneous layer, and liquefied unconformity. The deformation layers reflect a series of three strong earthquakes at the end of early Jurassic in the Wuqia region. The differences of deformation mechanisms undergone might represent the varying magnitudes of the earthquake events. During the early Jurassic, the Wuqia region was located in a pull-apart basin controlled by the significant Talas-Ferghana strike-slip fault in central Asia, which initiated the soft-sediment deformation induced by earthquakes. Our research suggests that the paleoseismic magnitudes could have ranged from Ms 6.5 to 7.

Shake table test of soil-pile groups-bridge structure interaction in liquefiable ground

This paper describes a shake table test study on the seismic response of low-cap pile groups and a bridge structure in liquefiable ground. The soil profile, contained in a large-scale laminar shear box, consisted of a horizontally saturated sand layer overlaid with a silty clay layer, with the simulated low-cap pile groups embedded. The container was excited in three E1 Centro earthquake events of different levels. Test results indicate that excessive pore pressure （EPP） during slight shaking only slightly accumulated, and the accumulation mainly occurred during strong shaking. The EPP was gradually enhanced as the amplitude and duration of the input acceleration increased. The acceleration response of the sand was remarkably influenced by soil liquefaction. As soil liquefaction occurred, the peak sand displacement gradually lagged behind the input acceleration; meanwhile, the sand displacement exhibited an increasing effect on the bending moment of the pile, and acceleration responses of the pile and the sand layer gradually changed from decreasing to increasing in the vertical direction from the bottom to the top. A jump variation of the bending moment on the pile was observed near the soil interface in all three input earthquake events. It is thought that the shake table tests could provide the groundwork for further seismic performance studies of low-cap pile groups used in bridges located on liquefiable groun.

Selective conversion of syngas to propane over ZnCrO_x-SSZ-39 OX-ZEO catalysts

Oxide-Zeolite(OX-ZEO) bifunctional catalyst design concept has been exemplified in several processes to direct conversion syngas to value-added chemicals and fuels such as mixed light olefins, ethylene, aromatics and gasoline.Herein we demonstrate that the product can be steered toward liquefied petroleum gas(LPG) with a selectivity up to 89% in hydrocarbons especially propane selectivity reaching 80% at CO conversion of 63% using ZnCrOx-H-SSZ-39 catalyst.Interestingly, the quantity of the acid sites of SSZ-39 does not influence obviously the hydrocarbon distribution but the strength is crucial for selective formation of propane.This finding provides an alternative route of LPG synthesis from a variety of carbon resources via syngas.

Preparation of liquefied wood-based resins and their application in molding material

To investigate value in use of liquefied wood-based resin applications in molding material, Chinese fir （Cunninghamia lanceolata） and poplar （Populus tomentosa） wood meal were liquefied in phenol. The reactant was co-condensed with formaldehyde to obtain liquefied wood-based resin. For this paper, we investigated the characterization of the resin and its application in molding material. The result shows that the basic properties of liquefied wood-based resin were satisfactory; the bonding strength of plywood prepared with liquefied Chinese fir and liquefied poplar resin can reach 1.54 and 1.00 MPa, respectively. The compression strengths of the molding material prepared with two kinds of liquefied wood resin were 73.01 and 73.58 MPa, almost the same as that of PF resin molding material. The limiting volume swelling of molding material made with liquefied Chinese resin and liquefied poplar resin were 8.5% and 8.3%, thickness swelling rates of water absorption were 3.3% and 4.2%, and the maximum weight ratios of water absorption were 25.9% and 26.2%, respectively. The soil burial test result shows that the weight loss rate of the molding materials made with liquefied Chinese resin and liquefied poplar resin were 8.3% and 9.1% and that of the PF resin molding material was 7.9%. After the soil internment test, the reduction ratio of compression strength of the two kinds of molding material achieved 16.9% and 17.7%, while that of the PF resin molding material was 15.4%. The test results of wood fungi inoculation on the three surfaces of the molding material indicate the breeding rate of molding material prepared with liquefied Chinese resin and liquefied poplar resin were at level 4 and that of PF resin molding material was at level 1 of the ISO standard.

Seismic response comparison and sensitivity analysis of pile foundation in liquefiable and non-liquefiable soils

Case history investigations have shown that pile foundations are more critically damaged in liquefiable soils than non-liquefiable soils.This study examines the differences in seismic response of pile foundations in liquefiable and non-liquefiable soils and their sensitivity to numerical model parameters.A two-dimensional finite element(FE)model is developed to simulate the experiment of a single pile foundation centrifuge in liquefiable soil subjected to earthquake motions and is validated against real-world test results.The differences in soil-pile seismic response of liquefiable and non-liquefiable soils are explored.Specifically,the first-order second-moment method(FOSM)is used for sensitivity analysis of the seismic response.The results show significant differences in seismic response for a soil-pile system between liquefiable and non-liquefiable soil.The seismic responses are found to be significantly larger in liquefiable soil than in non-liquefiable soil.Moreover,the pile bending moment was mainly affected by the kinematic effect in liquefiable soil,while the inertial effect was more significant in non-liquefiable soil.The controlling parameters of seismic response were PGA,soil density,and friction angle in liquefiable soil,while the pile bending moment was mainly controlled by PGA,the friction angle of soil,and shear modulus of loose sand in non-liquefiable soil.

Simultaneous Removal of H_2S and Organosulfur Compounds from Liquefied Petroleum Gas Using Formulated Solvents: Solubility Parameter Investigation and Industrial Test

The performance of four formulated solvents(labeled as UDS-I, UDS-II, UDS-III, and UDS-IV) for removing methyl mercaptan from liquefied petroleum gas was predicted based on a two-dimensional solubility parameter theory. The calculation results show that UDS-IV has the closest solubility parameter to that of methyl mercaptan as compared with other tested solvents, indicating the strongest affinity and the highest solubility for methyl mercaptan. The industrial tests at a plant for desulfurization of LPG produced from the delayed coker have shown that the UDS solvents have the excellent performance for removal of organosulfur compounds(mainly methyl mercaptan). Although the sulfur loading dramatically increases, the total sulfur content of LPG treated with UDS-IV can be reduced by about 50% in comparison with N-methyl diethanolamine. In addition, UDS-IV has superior regeneration performance and selectivity for sulfur compounds over hydrocarbons. The industrial test and the solubility parameter calculation results are in good agreement with each other.

Analysis of Efficiency of the Ship Propulsion System with Thermochemical Recuperation of Waste Heat

One of the basic ways to reduce polluting emissions of ship power plants is application of innovative devices for on-board energy generation by means of secondary energy resources.The combined gas turbine and diesel engine plant with thermochemical recuperation of the heat of secondary energy resources has been considered.It is suggested to conduct the study with the help of mathematical modeling methods.The model takes into account basic physical correlations,material and thermal balances,phase equilibrium,and heat and mass transfer processes.The paper provides the results of mathematical modeling of the processes in a gas turbine and diesel engine power plant with thermochemical recuperation of the gas turbine exhaust gas heat by converting a hydrocarbon fuel.In such a plant,it is possible to reduce the specific fuel consumption of the diesel engine by 20%.The waste heat potential in a gas turbine can provide efficient hydrocarbon fuel conversion at the ratio of powers of the diesel and gas turbine engines being up to 6.When the diesel engine and gas turbine operate simultaneously with the use of the LNG vapor conversion products,the efficiency coefficient of the plant increases by 4%–5%.

Numerical simulation of detonation of an explosive atmosphere of liquefied petroleum gas in a confined space

The detonation of an explosive atmosphere from liquefied petroleum gas disseminated in air in a confined space is studied using numerical modeling with software product ANSYS AUTODYN.

A Novel Process for Natural Gas Liquids Recovery from Oil Field Associated Gas with Liquefied Natural Gas Cryogenic Energy Utilization

A novel process to recovery natural gas liquids from oil field associated gas with liquefied natural gas (LNG)cryogenic energy utilization is proposed.Compared to the current electric refrigeration process,the proposed process uses the cryogenic energy of LNG and saves 62.6%of electricity.The proposed process recovers ethane, liquid petroleum gas(propane and butane)and heavier hydrocarbons,with total recovery rate of natural gas liquids up to 96.8%.In this paper,exergy analysis and the energy utilization diagram method(EUD)are used to assess the new process and identify the key operation units with large exergy loss.The results show that exergy efficiency of the new process is 44.3%.Compared to the electric refrigeration process,exergy efficiency of the new process is improved by 16%.The proposed process has been applied and implemented in a conceptual design scheme of the cryogenic energy utilization for a 300 million tons/yr LNG receiving terminal in a northern Chinese harbor.

Horizontal Normal Force on Buried Rigid Pipelines in Fluctuant Liquefied Silty Soil

The submarine pipelines that are buried in the Yellow River subaqueous delta can be subject to fluctuant local-liquefied soil caused by storm wave action, possibly causing pipeline damage. An experimental investigation was carried out in a wave flume to study the horizontal normal force on buried rigid pipelines in fluctuant liquefied soil. In this experiment, the soil bed was made of silt from the Yellow River Delta, whereas a steel pipe served as pipeline. Under the experimental conditions, the normal force range on the pipeline in fluctuant liquefied soil was several times higher than that in stable soil, specifically on the side of the pipeline exposed to the wave direction. The resultant force of the horizontal normal forces on the buried pipeline grew by about one order of magnitude after soil liquefaction.

Effect of Ca promoter on LPG synthesis from syngas over hybrid catalyst

Direct synthesis of liquefied petroleum gas （LPG） from syngas was carried out over hybrid catalyst consisting of methanol synthesis catalyst and modified Y zeolite with Pd and Ca by different methods. The decrease of CO conversion was mostly attributable to the sintering of Cu in methanol synthesis catalyst. On the other hand, coke deposition on Y zeolite was the reason for the decrease of LPG selectivity. The introduction of Ca decreased the strong acid sites of Y zeolite, suppressed coke formation, and thus improved the stability of hybrid catalyst.