Chemical & Process Technology: July 2012

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Some Milestones for LNG Development

Natural gas is used in industry and household to provide heating energy. It is explored from gas well, treated transported to customer via large and long pipeline. It is become non-cost effective once the pipeline length is exceeded 3000 - 3500 km. Thus, another mode of transportation, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is considered cost effective. Liquefied Natural gas (LNG) is a process of cooling down the natural gas to form liquid for easy storage and transportation. A LNG is normally contains of Methane (CH4) which is more than 90% and other light hydrocarbon such as Ethane (C2H6), Propane (C3H8), Butane (C4H10) and Nitrogen (N2) inert gas. LNG is non-corrosive, non-toxic, non-carcinogenic, odorless and colorless. However, it is flammable and explosive and create greenhouse effect to environment.

Following is an simple development milestones for LNG since 19th century

Year	Event	Remark
19th Century	Michael Faraday, a British Scientist liquefying various gases (including natural gas) in laboratory
1873	Karl Von Linde, a German engineer build 1st practical compressor refrigeration machine in Munich
1912	1st LNG plant is built in West Virginia
1914	1st (U.S.) patent awarded for LNG handling/shipping to Godfrey Cabot
1917	Start operation of 1st LNG plant in West Virginia
1941	1st commercial LNG plant is built in Cleveland, Ohio	2000 tpa
1944	At an LNG peak-shaving plant in Cleveland, an LNG storage tank with a low Nickel steel content (only 3.5%) fails. LNG spills into a sewer. Explosion within the sewer kills 128 people
1959	World 1st LNG tanker "The Methane Pioneer", safely carries LNG from Lake Charles, LA., to Canvey Island, United Kingdom, initiating commercial LNG shipping.	2000 tonnes LNG
1960	Conch International Methane conducts pioneering series of experiments involving small-scale LNG spills on land at Lake Charles, LA for U.S. Bureau of Mines.
1964	1st baseload LNG plant (CAMEL) in Algeria used Technip/Air Liquide's Cascade liquefaction process (three loops i.e. Propane, Ethylene & Methane) and Steam turbine to drive compressors The British Gas Council begins importing LNG from Algeria, making the United Kingdom the world's 1st LNG importer and Algeria as its first exporter.	3-trains with capacity of 1 mtpa, located in in Arzew, Algeria
1967	National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) adopts its first LNG safety standards, NFPA 59A Standard for the Production, Storage, and Handling of LNG.
1969	1st LNG plant (Kenai, Alaska) used Phillips Cascade liquefaction technology and 1st to use gas turbine (single shaft) 1st LNG cargoes from Alaska to Japan (world largest LNG importer)	1.5 mtpa in single train
1970	1st LNG plant in Marsa El Brega, Libya used APCI's SMR liquefaction technology	0.75 mtpa per trains
1971	Distrigas Corporation opens an LNG receiving and regasification terminal in Everett, MA.
1972	1st LNG baseload plant used APCI's C3MR liquefaction technology in BLNG 1st LNG plant used Technip 's Tealarc two pressure SMR technology in Skikda, Algeria 1st US federal LNG safety regulations adopted, incorporating NFPA 59A standards.	Skikda - 3 trains of 1 mtpa
1986	South Korea receives its 1st LNG shipment (from Indonesia).
1989	1st LNG plant (NWS) adopting Air-Cooling
1990	Taiwan’s 1st LNG terminal receives a shipment from Indonesia.
1991	1st LNG deliveries from Australia’s North West Shelf (NWS) arrive in Japan and South Korea.
1995	1st LNG plant adopting Gas turbine GE Frame 6/7
1999	1st LNG plant in West Hemisphere (Trinidad)
2000	1st peak shaving LNG plant in Pudong, Shanghai, China
2004	The 1st offshore LNG terminal is approved, Port Pelican. Explosions and fire destroy a portion of the LNG liquefaction plant in Skikda, Algeria, killing 27 people.
2007	1st LNG plant use Linde's Multi Fluid Cascade Cycle (MFCC) technology (Snohvit, Norway)	4.1 mtpa
2009	1st LNG plant use Shell's DMR technology (Sakhalin, Russia)	2 trains of 4.8 mtpa
2011	Qatar becomes world largest LNG exporter (using APCI's AP-X technology and gas turbine GE Frame 9E)	6 trains of 7.8 mtpa
Dec 2016	Petronas FLNG SATU - World 1st Mid scale FLNG (with N2 refrigeration cycle) comes on stream.(Kanowit gas field offshore Sarawak, Malaysia.)	1.2 mtpa
March 2018	Golar Hilli Episeyo FLNG, 1st FLNG (with PRICO SMR refrigeration process) converted from Moss LNG carrier, come on stream. (offshore Kribi in Cameroon)	4 x 0.5 mtpa
March 2018	Yamal LNG plant in Russian Arctic area in operation	5.5 mtpa
2018	World 1st large FLNG expected to comes on stream	3.6 mtpa

Sources ：

1) University of Texas, Austin
2) California energy commission

3) "Next Generation Onshore LNG plant design", Marjan et.al
4) "Liquefaction Technology : Developments through History", Paul Bosma et.al.
5) "Shell and Petronas to race on Floating LNG"