Cryogenic Transfer Spill Containment via Segmented Receiving Room
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems for transferring cryogenic fluids, such as LNG, pose risks due to equipment brittleness at low temperatures, potential for human injury, and inefficiencies in spill management, especially during transfers between vessels or installations with limited access and single mooring points.
Innovation Solution
A system featuring closable receiving rooms with insulation and cold-resistant materials, double-mantled transfer pipes, and inert gas evacuation systems to contain and manage spills, ensuring personnel safety and flexible transfer solutions, including the use of vacuum insulation and heated elements to maintain equipment temperature.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If transfer of cryogenic fluid is performed using conventional loading arms and open piping, then transfer operation is simple and equipment is accessible, but spillage causes equipment brittleness and structural failure due to cryogenic temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The transfer system is divided into separate functional zones: a protected transfer zone with insulated piping and connection equipment, and an unprotected operational zone. The receiving room is segmented to contain only the essential transfer equipment, allowing other vessel structures to remain conventional carbon steel construction.
Solution Approach 2:
A receiving room acts as an intermediary protective enclosure between the cryogenic transfer equipment and the vessel's carbon steel structure. This intermediate space contains the cryogenic equipment while protecting the surrounding structure from direct thermal exposure that would cause brittleness.
2Ease of operation
If personnel are allowed access to transfer areas, then operational flexibility is maintained, but human exposure to cryogenic liquid or cold gas may result in serious injury or death
Solution Approach 1:
The receiving room is equipped with inert gas flooding capability that can be activated before personnel entry. This preliminary action displaces oxygen and creates a safe atmosphere, allowing personnel to enter the space during or after transfer operations without exposure to cryogenic hazards.
Solution Approach 2:
The receiving room can be filled with inert gas (such as nitrogen) to create a protective atmosphere that prevents both cryogenic exposure and potential combustion hazards. This inert environment allows safe personnel access while maintaining transfer operations.
3Reliability
If cryogenic fluid spillage occurs in enclosed spaces, then containment is improved, but cold product gas accumulates at the bottom and displaces original atmosphere, requiring active management
Solution Approach 1:
The receiving room includes gas composition monitoring and temperature sensing that provide feedback on spill conditions. This feedback system triggers appropriate responses such as inert gas flooding or active ventilation, enabling dynamic management of cold gas accumulation based on actual conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The receiving room design allows passive containment of spills through its enclosed structure, while the cold gas naturally accumulates at the bottom due to density differences. This self-organizing behavior reduces the need for active intervention, though monitoring and inert gas flooding capabilities are maintained for safety.
4Ease of manufacture
If transfer pipes are located outdoors with drip pans, then spill collection is simple, but rapid cool down of steel structure causes brittleness and mechanical break-down
Solution Approach 1:
The cryogenic transfer equipment and piping are extracted from the open environment and placed within the protected receiving room enclosure. This separation allows the transfer equipment to be thermally isolated from the vessel's carbon steel structure, preventing the rapid cool-down that would cause brittleness while maintaining simple spill collection capabilities within the enclosed space.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively prevents equipment damage and personnel exposure by containing spills and maintaining equipment temperature, allowing for safe and efficient transfer of cryogenic fluids between vessels and installations, even under challenging conditions.
Implementation Method 1
a first layer arranged around the inner pipe and comprising vacuum insulation
Implementation Method 2
a second layer arranged around the first layer and comprising perlite insulation
Implementation Method 3
the heating element arranged to heat the cryogenic fluid in the inner pipe
Implementation Method 4
any spillage will be collected in drip pans underneath the connection point... Any boil off will evaporate to the atmosphere
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention regards a system for transferral of at least one cryogenic fluid between two objects. At least one transfer pipe extending from the installation extends into a receiving room in the vessel, the transfer pipe being connectable with piping on the vessel through a connection in the receiving room. The receiving room is closable, the connection, and or at least a part of the construction forming the receiving room and or other elements in the receiving room are constructed to withstand eventual leakage of the cryogenic fluid and the system also provides for evacuating the receiving room for eventual spilled fluid. The invention also regards a flange for use in the system.