Exxonmobil Upstream Research Company

Exxon Production Research Company

Ronald R Bowen

Moses Minta

E Lawrence Kimble

James Ronald Rigby

Eric T Cole

Eugene R Thomas

Edward L Kimble

Richard B Harley

Douglas Paul Fairchild

W Brett Wilson

John B Stone

Lonny R Kelley

Robert M Woodall

Jeffrey R O'Donnell

John A Vermersch

H Gary Winningham

Linda J Cote

Kevin N Stanley

Containers suitable for storing pressurized fluids at cryogenic temperatures of &#x2212;62&#xb0; C. (&#x2212;80&#xb0; F.) and colder are provided and comprise a self-supporting liner and load-bearing composite overwrap, whereby means are provided for substantially preventing failure of the container during temperature changes.

Containers and methods for containing pressurized fluids using reinforced fibers and methods for making such containers

Methods for producing toughness-optimized weld joints are provided. A welding procedure that will provide adequate toughness for the center-weld of the weld-joint is developed and used, and a welding procedure that will provide adequate toughness for the surface-weld of the weld-joint is developed and used.

Toughness-optimized weld joints and methods for producing said weld joints

Improved systems and methods for transporting fluids in containers are provided. Such improved systems and methods include floatable container vessels having one or more fluid containers and self-propelled marine transportation vessels that are adapted to be ballasted downwardly to permit the floatable container vessels to be floated onto or off of the marine transportation vessels, and are adapted to be deballasted so as to raise the floatable container vessels out of the water for transportation to another location.

Systems and methods for transporting fluids in containers

Fuel storage and delivery systems for compressed natural gas are provided that are constructed from ultra-high strength, low alloy steels containing less than 2.5 wt % nickel and having a tensile strength greater than 900 MPa (130 ksi). A primary benefit is that systems of this invention have substantially lower weight than that of currently available steel-based systems. Consequently, the fuel efficiency of a CNG vehicle can be improved due to the lower weight of the system of this invention, or the driving range of the CNG vehicle can be improved by increased fuel storage for the same volume at an elevated pressure, or the load-carrying capacity of the CNG vehicle can be improved. Another primary benefit is that systems of this invention have a cost per unit strength substantially lower than that of currently available systems.

CNG fuel storage and delivery systems for natural gas powered vehicles

Offshore facilities and methods are provided to enable the mooring of a ship carrying a liquefied gas to an offshore structure with one or more decks upon which are located (i) regasification facilities; (ii) single point mooring means for mooring a ship that is carrying a liquefied gas; (iii) means for offloading said liquefied gas into said regasification facilities; and (iv) means for transferring gas from said regasification facilities to a gas transport pipeline.

Single point mooring regasification tower

This invention is a method and apparatus for production of pressurized liquefied gas. First, a gas stream is cooled and expanded to liquefy the gas stream. The liquefied gas stream is then withdrawn as pressurized gas product and a portion is recycled through the heat exchanger to provide at least part of the cooling and is returned to the stream. Recycling the pressurized liquefied gas product helps keep the cooling and compression of the gas stream in the supercritcal region of the phase diagram. J-T valves in parallel with the expander permits running the system until the stream is in the supercritical region of its phase diagram and the hydraulic expander can operate. This process is suitable for natural gas streams containing methane to form a pressurized liquefied natural gas (PLNG) product.

Process for producing a pressurized liquefied gas product by cooling and expansion of a gas stream in the supercritical state

A process is provided for converting a boil-off stream comprising methane to a liquid having a preselected bubble point temperature. The boil-off stream is pressurized, then cooled, and then expanded to further cool and at least partially liquefy the boil-off stream. The preselected bubble point temperature of the resulting pressurized liquid is obtained by performing at least one of the following steps: before, during, or after the process of liquefying the boil-off stream, removing from the boil-off stream a predetermined amount of one or more components, such as nitrogen, having a vapor pressure greater than the vapor pressure of methane, and before, during, or after the process of liquefying the boil-off stream, adding to the boil-off stream one or more additives having a molecular weight heavier than the molecular weight of methane and having a vapor pressure less than the vapor pressure of methane.

Reliquefaction of boil-off from liquefied natural gas

The invention is an absorption process for recovering C components from a pressurized liquid mixture comprising C and C . The pressurized liquid mixture is at least partially vaporized by heating the liquid mixture in a heat transfer means. The heat transfer means provides refrigeration to an absorption medium that is used in treating the vaporized mixture in an absorption zone. The vaporized mixture is passed to an absorption zone that produces a first stream enriched in C and a second stream enriched in C components. The pressurized liquid mixture is preferably pressurized liquid natural gas (PLNG) having an initial pressure above about 1,724 kPa (250 psia) and an initial temperature above &minus;112&deg; C. (&minus;170&deg; F.). Before being vaporized, the pressurized liquid mixture is preferably boosted in pressure to approximately the desired operating pressure of the absorption zone.

Process for recovering ethane and heavier hydrocarbons from methane-rich pressurized liquid mixture

Systems and methods are provided for delivering pressurized liquefied natural gas to an import terminal equipped with containers and vaporization facilities suitable for conventional LNG.

Unloading pressurized liquefied natural gas into standard liquefied natural gas storage facilities

The invention relates to a process of manufacturing a pressurized multi-component liquid from a pressurized, multi-component stream, such as natural gas, which contains C components and at least one component of C , C , C , or C . The process selectively removes from the multi-component stream one or more of the C components that would be expected to crystallize at the selected temperature and pressure of the pressurized multi-component liquid product and leaves in the multi-component stream at least one C component. The multi-component stream is then liquefied to produce a pressurized liquid substantially free of crystallized C components. The removal of the C components can be by selective fractionation or crystallization.

Process of manufacturing pressurized liquid natural gas containing heavy hydrocarbons

Systems and methods for producing and storing pressurized liquefied natural gas (PLNG) are provided, wherein the systems and methods include (a) a natural gas processing plant suitable for producing PLNG; and (b) at least one container suitable for storing the PLNG, the at least one container comprising (i) a load-bearing vessel made from a composite material and (ii) a substantially non-load-bearing liner in contact with the vessel, said liner providing a substantially impermeable barrier to the PLNG. The systems and methods also preferably include (c) means for transporting the at least one container containing PLNG to an import terminal.

Systems and methods for producing and storing pressurized liquefied natural gas

This invention relates to process for liquefying a pressurized gas stream rich in methane. In a first step of the process, a first fraction of a pressurized feed stream, preferably at a pressure above 11,000 kPa, is withdrawn and entropically expanded to a lower pressure to cool and at least partially liquefy the withdrawn first fraction. A second fraction of the feed stream is cooled by indirect heat exchange with the expanded first fraction. The second fraction is subsequently expanded to a lower pressure, thereby at least partially liquefying the second fraction of the pressurized gas stream. The liquefied second fraction is withdrawn from the process as a pressurized product stream having a temperature above &minus;112&deg; C. and a pressure at or above its bubble point pressure.

Process for making pressurized liquefied natural gas from pressured natural gas using expansion cooling

Pipeline distribution network systems arc provided for transporting pressurized liquefied natural gas at a pressure of about 1035 kPa (150 psia) to about 7590 kPa (1100 psia) and at a temperature of about &minus;123&deg; C. (&minus;190&deg; F.) to about &minus;62&deg; C. (&minus;80&deg; F.). Pipes and other components of the pipeline distribution network systems are constructed from an ultra-high strength, low alloy steel containing less than 9 wt % nickel and having a tensile strength greater than 830 MPa (120 ksi) and a DBTT lower than about &minus;73&deg; C. (&minus;100&deg; F.).

Pipeline distribution network systems for transportation of liquefied natural gas

A process is disclosed for converting liquefied natural gas (LNG), at a temperature of about -162.degree. C. (-260.degree. F.) and a pressure near atmospheric pressure, to a pressurized liquefied natural gas (PLNG) having a temperature above -112.degree. C. (-170.degree. F.) and a pressure sufficient for the liquid to be at or near its bubble point and at the same time producing energy derived from the cold of the LNG. The LNG is pumped to a pressure above 1,380 kPa (200 psia) and passed through a heat exchanger. A refrigerant as a working fluid in a closed circuit is passed through the heat exchanger to condense the refrigerant and to provide heat for warming the pressurized LNG. The refrigerant is then pressurized, vaporized by an external heat source, and then passed through a work-producing device to generate energy.

Producing power from liquefied natural gas

A process for using the cold of pressurized liquefied natural gas (PLNG) to compress boil-off vapors produced by handling of liquefied natural gas to produce a higher pressure gas product and at the same time produce power that preferably provides at least part of the power for the process. The PLNG is pressurized, passed to a first heat exchanger for vaporization, and the vaporous material is passed to a second heat exchanger for further heating to produce a first gas product. A refrigerant is circulated in a closed cycle through the first heat exchanger to heat the PLNG, through a pump to pressurize the refrigerant, through a second heat exchanger to vaporize the refrigerant, and through a work-producing device to generate energy. Boil-off gas is compressed and passed through the first heat exchanger, further compressed, and then passed through the second heat exchanger to produce a second gas product.

Growing community of inventors

Magnolia, TX, United States of America

Ronald R Bowen