System and method for gas line purging in engines

Abstract

The present invention provides a gas line purging system and method for an engine. The gas line purging system of the engine according to the present invention comprises: an inert gas generator that generates carbon dioxide; a carbon dioxide compressor that compresses the carbon dioxide generated from the inert gas generator; a carbon dioxide reserve tank that stores the compressed carbon dioxide; and a purging gas supply line that connects the carbon dioxide reserve tank to the engine's gas line, and is characterized by purging the engine's gas line using the carbon dioxide stored in the carbon dioxide reserve tank.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a gas line purging system and method for an engine, and more specifically, to a gas line purging system and method for an engine that uses carbon dioxide generated from an inert gas generator for purging the engine's gas line. Background Technology

[0002] Recently, the shipping industry has been actively transitioning from fossil fuels to liquefied gas due to stricter environmental regulations and economic reasons.

[0003] Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) are attracting attention as clean fuels capable of significantly reducing the generation of harmful emissions, such as sulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and carbon dioxide (CO2), compared to conventional heavy fuel oil and diesel. This transition enhances fuel efficiency, complies with global environmental regulations, and enables long-term cost savings.

[0004] Meanwhile, in the case of Liquefied Natural Gas Carriers (LNGCs) and Liquefied Petroleum Gas Carriers (LPGCs), natural gas is used as the primary fuel for the vessels and is supplied to the engines in gas mode.

[0005] When such fuel gas lines are used in gas mode and then switched to gas trip or fuel oil mode, the fuel gas inside the said fuel gas lines must be replaced with an inert gas for the safety of the vessel.

[0006] Generally, the above inert gas mainly uses nitrogen gas.

[0007] However, supplying natural nitrogen requires a separate nitrogen generator, and since the generator is also used for the inactivation of cargo storage systems and cargo areas, it has the disadvantage of requiring a large capacity. Consequently, there is a problem of increased initial investment and maintenance costs (rising CAPEX / OPEX). The problem to be solved

[0008] Accordingly, the present invention aims to solve the aforementioned problems by utilizing carbon dioxide (CO2) gas generated using an inert gas generator (IGG) already equipped in an LNG / LPG vessel for the purpose of replacing the fuel gas in the engine's fuel line.

[0009] That is, the present invention provides an engine gas line purging system and method that uses carbon dioxide generated from an inert gas generator for purging the engine's gas line. means of solving the problem

[0010] The present invention relates to an inert gas generator that produces carbon dioxide;

[0011] A carbon dioxide compressor for compressing carbon dioxide generated from the above inert gas generator; a carbon dioxide reserve tank for storing the compressed carbon dioxide; and

[0012] It includes a purging gas supply line connecting the carbon dioxide reserve tank and the engine's gas line;

[0013] A gas line purging system for a ship engine is provided, characterized by purging the engine's gas line using carbon dioxide stored in the above-mentioned carbon dioxide reserve tank.

[0014] Specifically, the carbon dioxide reserve tank may include: a carbon dioxide detector; a pressure transmitter; and a control unit that receives signals from the carbon dioxide detector and the pressure transmitter and controls the carbon dioxide concentration and pressure of the carbon dioxide reserve tank.

[0015] The above control unit can control the operation of the carbon dioxide compressor by receiving the pressure measured by the pressure transmitter, and can control the operation of the inert gas generator by receiving information measured by the carbon dioxide detector.

[0016] Specifically, the gas line purging system of the engine of the present invention may further include an integrated automatic monitoring unit capable of monitoring whether there is an operational abnormality of the carbon dioxide compressor.

[0017] In the event that an operational abnormality of the carbon dioxide compressor occurs in the integrated automatic monitoring unit according to one embodiment of the present invention, a nitrogen gas supply unit may be further included to purge the engine's gas line using nitrogen gas instead of carbon dioxide.

[0018] The above nitrogen gas supply unit may include an air compressor that compresses air; a nitrogen generator that generates nitrogen from the air compressed by the air compressor; and a nitrogen buffer tank that stores the nitrogen generated from the nitrogen generator.

[0019] The above nitrogen gas supply unit may further include a nitrogen gas supply line connected from the nitrogen buffer tank to the purging gas supply line; and a backflow prevention valve provided on the nitrogen gas supply line and installed at the downstream end of the nitrogen buffer tank.

[0020] In addition, the present invention provides a method for purging the gas line of an engine. In the method for purging the gas line of an engine according to the present invention, the purging is characterized by using carbon dioxide generated from an inert gas generator for purging the engine's gas line, wherein the pressure of the carbon dioxide is regulated by a pressure transmitter to be suitable for purging.

[0021] Preferably, this may be performed with carbon dioxide in which the carbon dioxide concentration is controlled by a carbon dioxide detector according to one embodiment of the present invention. Effects of the invention

[0022] An engine gas line purging system according to one embodiment of the present invention can reduce the initial investment and maintenance costs of a conventional nitrogen generator by using a large-capacity IGG that is basically provided instead of using a conventional nitrogen generator.

[0023] In addition, the engine gas line purging system according to one embodiment of the present invention has economic advantages by improving resource efficiency through the use of carbon dioxide generated by an IGG provided for the purpose of replacing the cargo tank in the case of LNG / LPGC for purging the engine gas line.

[0024] In addition, the engine gas line purging system according to one embodiment of the present invention is equipped with a nitrogen gas supply unit, so that even when the IGG fails or operates abnormally, the engine gas line can be purged with nitrogen generated from a nitrogen generator instead of carbon dioxide, thereby enabling stable operation of the engine gas line purging system and minimizing downtime or safety issues.

[0025] In addition, the engine gas line purging method according to one embodiment of the present invention can purge the engine gas line very economically and efficiently by using the IGG that is basically provided instead of using a conventional nitrogen generator. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0026] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating a gas line purging system of an engine according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0027] In order to fully understand the operational advantages of the present invention and the objectives achieved by the implementation of the present invention, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings illustrating preferred embodiments of the present invention and the contents described therein.

[0028] The structure and operation of a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. It should be noted that in assigning reference numerals to the components of each drawing, identical components are denoted by the same numeral whenever possible, even if they are shown in different drawings.

[0030] Hereinafter, with reference to Drawing 1, a gas line purging system and method for an engine according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0031] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the gas line purging system of the engine of the present invention comprises: an inert gas generator (100) that generates carbon dioxide; a carbon dioxide compressor (200) that compresses the carbon dioxide generated from the inert gas generator (100); a carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) that stores the compressed carbon dioxide; and a purging gas supply line (PL) that connects the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) to the gas line of the engine, and is characterized by purging the gas line of the engine using the carbon dioxide stored in the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300).

[0032] The fuel gas line of the engine has a temperature of 0 to 45°C, and the nitrogen used for purging the gas line does not need to be high-purity nitrogen.

[0033] Meanwhile, LNG / LPGC vessels are always equipped with IGG, and carbon dioxide can be generated using the equipped IGG. This allows the engine's gas line to be purged, thereby reducing the capacity of the nitrogen generator (500) and reducing initial investment costs and maintenance costs.

[0034] An engine according to one embodiment of the present invention may be a dual-fuel engine or a natural gas engine that uses liquefied gas, and examples of liquefied gas may include LPG, LNG, butane, propane, propylene, ethylene, etc., but are not limited thereto.

[0035] A gas line of an engine according to one embodiment of the present invention may refer to a line through which gas fuel is injected into the engine, and the purging may be the engine and the gas line of the engine.

[0036] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the carbon dioxide pre-tank (300) may include: a carbon dioxide detector (310); a pressure transmitter (320); and a control unit that receives signals from the carbon dioxide detector (310) and the pressure transmitter (320) and controls the carbon dioxide concentration and pressure of the carbon dioxide pre-tank (300).

[0037] The above control unit can control the operation of the carbon dioxide compressor (200) by receiving the pressure measured by the pressure transmitter (320) provided in the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300).

[0038] Specifically, when the pressure in the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) is lower than the preset pressure, the pressure transmitter (320) equipped in the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) sends a signal to the control unit, and the control unit that receives the signal operates the carbon dioxide compressor (200) to supply high-pressure carbon dioxide to the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300).

[0039] In addition, the control unit can receive carbon dioxide concentration information measured by the carbon dioxide detector (310) and control the operation of the inert gas generator (100).

[0040] Specifically, the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) is equipped with a carbon dioxide detector (310), and when the concentration of carbon dioxide measured by the carbon dioxide detector (310) is lower than a preset carbon dioxide concentration, a signal is sent to the control unit, and the control unit that receives the signal operates the inert gas generator (100) to supply carbon dioxide to the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300), thereby increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide (amount of carbon dioxide) in the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300).

[0041] In this way, the gas line purging system of the engine of the present invention can ensure the stability of the gas line purging system of the engine using carbon dioxide supplied from the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) by controlling the appropriate pressure and concentration of the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300).

[0042] Preferably, the gas line purging system of an engine according to one embodiment of the present invention may further include an integrated automatic monitoring unit capable of monitoring whether there is an operational abnormality of the carbon dioxide compressor (200).

[0043] The above integrated automatic monitoring unit can monitor whether there is an operational abnormality of the carbon dioxide compressor (200).

[0044] When an abnormal operation of the carbon dioxide compressor (200) is detected by the above automatic monitoring unit, the engine's gas line can be purged using nitrogen gas instead of carbon dioxide supplied from the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) to ensure the stability of the engine's gas line purging system.

[0045] That is, the engine gas line purging system of the present invention may further include a nitrogen gas supply unit capable of purging the engine gas line using nitrogen gas when a problem occurs in the operation of the carbon dioxide compressor (200).

[0046] The above nitrogen gas supply unit may include an air compressor (400) that compresses air; a nitrogen generator (500) that generates nitrogen from the air compressed by the air compressor (400); and a nitrogen buffer tank (600) that stores the nitrogen generated from the nitrogen generator (500).

[0047] The above nitrogen gas supply unit may further include a nitrogen gas supply line (NL) connected to the nitrogen buffer tank (600) and the purging gas supply line (PL); and a backflow prevention valve provided on the nitrogen gas supply line (NL) and installed at the downstream end of the nitrogen buffer tank (600).

[0048] In detail, if an abnormality occurs in the operation of the carbon dioxide compressor (200), the integrated automatic monitoring unit detects this and stops the supply of carbon dioxide from the carbon dioxide reserve tank (300), and then operates the air compressor (400) to compress the air and supplies the compressed air to the nitrogen generator (500). The nitrogen generator receives the compressed nitrogen air, generates nitrogen, and supplies it to the nitrogen buffer tank (600). From the nitrogen buffer tank (600), nitrogen is supplied to the engine's gas line through the nitrogen gas supply line (NL) and the purging gas supply line (PL) to purge the engine's gas line.

[0049] The backflow prevention valve installed at the rear end of the nitrogen buffer tank (600) prevents carbon dioxide from flowing back into the nitrogen buffer tank (600) when carbon dioxide generated from the inert gas generator is used for purging the engine's gas line.

[0050] The above nitrogen buffer tank may further include a nitrogen buffer tank pressure regulator (610) to regulate pressure, and the operation of the air compressor may be controlled according to the signal of the nitrogen buffer tank pressure regulator.

[0051] In other words, if the pressure of the nitrogen buffer tank is lower than the preset pressure, the air compressor control unit, which receives a signal from the nitrogen buffer tank pressure regulator, can operate the air compressor.

[0052] In addition, the present invention provides a method for purging an engine's gas line using carbon dioxide generated from an inert gas generator (100) for purging the engine's gas line.

[0053] The method for purging the gas line of an engine according to the present invention uses carbon dioxide generated in an inert gas generator (100) for purging the gas line of the engine, wherein

[0054] The above carbon dioxide is characterized by having its pressure adjusted to be suitable for purging by a pressure transmitter (320).

[0055] Preferably, the purging can be performed with carbon dioxide whose carbon dioxide concentration is controlled by a carbon dioxide detector (310).

[0056] Specifically, the method for purging the gas line of the engine according to the present invention uses carbon dioxide generated in an inert gas generator (100) for purging the engine's gas line,

[0057] A carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) that stores carbon dioxide generated in the above-mentioned inert gas generator (100), a pressure transmitter (320) and a carbon dioxide detector (310) provided in the above-mentioned carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) can control the pressure and concentration of carbon dioxide in the above-mentioned carbon dioxide reserve tank (300) to be suitable for purging the engine's gas line, thereby effectively purging the engine's gas line.

[0059] As described above, embodiments according to the present invention have been examined. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that, in addition to the embodiments described above, the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or scope. Therefore, the embodiments described above should be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive, and accordingly, the present invention is not limited to the description above but may be modified within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. Explanation of the symbols

[0060] PL: Purge gas supply line NL: Nitrogen gas supply line 100: Inert gas generator 200: Carbon dioxide compressor 300: Carbon dioxide reserve tank 310: Carbon dioxide detector 320: Pressure transmitter 400: Air compressor 500: Nitrogen generator 600: Nitrogen buffer tank 610: Nitrogen buffer tank pressure regulator

Claims

Claim 1 An engine gas line purging system comprising: an inert gas generator that generates carbon dioxide; a carbon dioxide compressor that compresses the carbon dioxide generated from the inert gas generator; a carbon dioxide reserve tank that stores the compressed carbon dioxide; and a purging gas supply line that connects the carbon dioxide reserve tank to the engine gas line, wherein the system purges the engine gas line using the carbon dioxide stored in the carbon dioxide reserve tank. Claim 2 In claim 1, the carbon dioxide reserve tank comprises: a carbon dioxide detector; a pressure transmitter; and a control unit that receives signals from the carbon dioxide detector and the pressure transmitter and controls the carbon dioxide concentration and pressure of the carbon dioxide reserve tank; a gas line purging system of an engine. Claim 3 In claim 2, the control unit receives the pressure measured by the pressure transmitter and controls the operation of the carbon dioxide compressor, thereby forming a gas line purging system of an engine. Claim 4 In claim 2, the control unit receives information measured by a carbon dioxide detector and controls the operation of the inert gas generator, thereby forming a gas line purging system of an engine. Claim 5 A gas line purging system of an engine, further comprising an integrated automatic monitoring unit capable of monitoring whether there is an operational abnormality of the carbon dioxide compressor in claim 1. Claim 6 In claim 5, an engine gas line purging system further comprising a nitrogen gas supply unit that purges the engine gas line using nitrogen gas instead of carbon dioxide when an operational abnormality of the carbon dioxide compressor occurs in the integrated automatic monitoring unit. Claim 7 In claim 6, the nitrogen gas supply unit comprises: an air compressor that compresses air; a nitrogen generator that generates nitrogen from the air compressed by the air compressor; and a nitrogen buffer tank that stores the nitrogen generated by the nitrogen generator; a gas line purging system of an engine. Claim 8 In claim 7, the nitrogen gas supply unit further comprises: a nitrogen gas supply line connected from the nitrogen buffer tank to the purging gas supply line; and a backflow prevention valve provided on the nitrogen gas supply line and installed at the downstream end of the nitrogen buffer tank; a gas line purging system of an engine. Claim 9 A method for purging a gas line of an engine, wherein the purging uses carbon dioxide generated from an inert gas generator for purging the engine's gas line, and the pressure of the carbon dioxide is regulated by a pressure transmitter to be suitable for purging. Claim 10 In claim 9, the purging is a method of purging an engine's gas line with carbon dioxide in which the carbon dioxide concentration is controlled by a carbon dioxide detector.

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