Cryogenic liquefaction system and method
AssigneeNearshore Natural Gas, LLC
InventorPedro T. SANTOS
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An oversized liquefaction system operates discontinuously, for example only during hours when energy for powering the liquefaction system is relatively cheap and/or more plentiful than during peak hours. A cryogenic liquid, for example liquid air, from the oversized liquefaction system or another source is used to directly (or indirectly via an intermediate cryogenic liquid) cool and liquefy another gas, for example natural gas, in a liquefaction plant.
Claims30
A method comprising:
- using a liquefaction system to cryogenically liquify a gas and provide a resulting cryogenic liquid within a cryogenic liquid storage vessel at an average rate X for a time period L,
- wherein the vessel has a cryogenic liquid storage capacity of V liters,
- wherein L is a discontinuous portion of a time period T and the liquefaction system is used discontinuously to cryogenically liquify the gas over the time period T,
- wherein 2L<T,
- wherein T>48,
- wherein T and L are measured in hours,
- wherein X is measured in liters of cryogenic liquid provided within the vessel per hour,
- wherein an average cost of energy consumed by the liquefaction system during the time period L is lower than an average cost of energy over the time period T, and
- V
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A system comprising:
- a cryogenic liquid storage vessel shaped and configured to store a cryogenic liquid;
- and
- a cryogenic liquefaction system operatively connected to the vessel and configured to cryogenically liquify a gas and provide a resulting cryogenic liquid into the vessel,
- wherein the liquefaction system has a liquefaction rate that is at least 2 times larger than the average consumption rate of the cryogenic liquid from the vessel.
A natural gas liquefaction method comprising:
- transferring liquid air into a cold side of a heat exchanger;
- transferring gaseous natural gas into a hot side of the heat exchanger;
- transferring heat from the natural gas in the hot side to the air in the cold side, resulting in the gasification of air in the cold side and liquefaction of natural gas in the hot side;
- transferring gaseous air out of the cold side;
- and
- transferring liquid natural gas out of the hot side.
A natural gas liquefaction system comprising:
- a heat exchanger having a hot side with an inlet and outlet, and a cold side with an inlet and outlet;
- a source of liquid air connected to the inlet of the cold side to provide liquid air to the cold side;
- and
- a source of gaseous natural gas connected to the inlet of the hot side to provide gaseous natural gas to the hot side,
- wherein the system is configured to transfer heat from the natural gas in the hot side to the air in the cold side, resulting in the gasification of air in the cold side and liquefaction of natural gas in the hot side.
A natural gas liquefaction method comprising:
- transferring heat from argon to liquid air in a first heat exchanger to cool the argon;
- transferring the argon from the first heat exchanger to a second heat exchanger;
- and
- transferring heat from gaseous natural gas to the argon in the second heat exchanger, which causes gaseous natural gas in the second heat exchanger to liquefy.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.