LNG Fuel Supply Return-Line Cooling for Faster Engine Start
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing LNG fuel supply systems require separate cool-down operations, which prolong the time before fuel can be supplied to the engine and may result in unstable engine operation due to temperature and pressure mismatches between stored LNG and engine requirements.
Innovation Solution
A system with a fuel supplying line, a boosting pump, and a high pressure pump that pressurizes LNG, along with a return line to the storage tank, allowing for LNG return during cool-down operations and enabling rapid fuel supply after standby mode completion, without the need for separate cool-down procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If separate cool-down operation is performed before fuel supply, then the pumps are cooled to operating temperature, but the time required before fuel can be supplied to the engine is prolonged
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the cool-down operation with the fuel supply operation by connecting the fuel supply line to enable dual functionality. During standby mode, the same line that will later supply fuel is used to circulate LNG through the pumps for cooling, eliminating the need for a separate cool-down phase and reducing the time before fuel supply can begin.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary cooling of the pumps by circulating LNG through the fuel supply line during standby mode, before actual fuel supply is needed. This preliminary action prepares the pumps for operation in advance, ensuring they are at the correct temperature when fuel supply begins, thus reducing delays.
2Device complexity
If LNG is supplied directly from storage tank to engine, then the system is simple, but the temperature and pressure of stored LNG do not match engine requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces boosting pumps and a return line as intermediary components between the LNG storage tank and the engine. These intermediaries enable temperature and pressure adjustment of the LNG through controlled circulation and pressurization, ensuring the fuel meets engine requirements while maintaining a relatively simple overall system architecture.
3Productivity
If boosting pump and high pressure pump operate simultaneously, then fuel supply efficiency is high, but the pumps require separate cool-down operations increasing complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the cool-down operations of the boosting pump and high pressure pump into a single integrated process. By connecting both pumps to the same fuel supply line and using the same circulation path during standby mode, the system cools both pumps simultaneously through the same LNG flow, reducing operational complexity while maintaining high fuel supply efficiency when both pumps operate together.
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
This solution allows for rapid LNG supply to the engine after standby mode, enhancing operational efficiency and ensuring stable engine operation by managing temperature and pressure changes effectively.
Implementation Method 1
a boosting pump provided on the fuel supplying line and configured to pressurize LNG outputted from the LNG storage tank
Implementation Method 2
a high pressure pump configured to pressurize the LNG outputted from the boosting pump to high pressure
Implementation Method 3
the LNG is returned from the high pressure pump to the LNG storage tank through the return line when a cool-down operation of the boosting pump is performed
Data Source
AI summary
A system for supplying LNG fuel includes a fuel supplying line connected from an LNG storage tank to an engine, a boosting pump provided on the fuel supplying line and configured to pressurize LNG outputted from the LNG storage tank and cool down in a standby mode, a high pressure pump configured to pressurize the LNG outputted from the boosting pump to high pressure, and a return line connected between the LNG storage tank and the high pressure pump, in which the LNG is returned through the return line.