Apparatus and method for producing low-temperature compressed gas or liquefied gas

An apparatus for cooling and compressing a fluid to produce a low-temperature compressed fluid, the apparatus using a Rankine cycle system comprising:

• a first compression device configured to adiabatically compress a heat transfer medium;
• a first heat exchanger configured to provide constant-pressure heating to the adiabatically compressed heat transfer medium;
• at least one expansion device configured to adiabatically expand the heated heat transfer medium;
• a second heat exchanger configured to provide constant-pressure cooling to the adiabatically expanded heat transfer medium;
• a first flow passageway configured to guide the heat transfer medium from the second heat exchanger to the first compression device;
• and
• at least one second compression device that is coupled to the expansion device or one of the expansion devices;
• wherein, at the second heat exchanger, a low-temperature liquefied natural gas (LNG) and the heat transfer medium undergo heat transfer,
• wherein, at the first heat exchanger, a fed material gas and the heat transfer medium undergo heat transfer to produce a low-temperature fluid from the material gas, and
• wherein, the low-temperature fluid is thereafter compressed at the second compression device to produce a low-temperature compressed fluid.