Liquefied natural gas processing and transport system

A natural gas processing station and transport system for receiving, storing, and transporting liquefied natural gas, the system comprising:

• a. a transport vessel for receiving liquefied natural gas, temporarily storing the liquefied natural gas, and transporting the liquefied natural gas to another location, wherein the transport vessel comprises:
• (i) a hull with a bow, a stern, and a variable draft;
• (ii) at least one mooring socket mounted to the hull;
• (iii) a plurality of storage tanks mounted within the hull for receiving and storing the liquefied natural gas;
• and
• (iv) a vessel controller for monitoring:
• receipt of the liquefied natural gas, storage of the liquefied natural gas in the storage tanks, and offloading of the liquefied natural gas from the storage tanks;
• b. a natural gas processing station, wherein the natural gas processing station comprises:
• (i) a station hull with a station variable draft;
• (ii) a plurality of mooring lines, connecting the station hull with a seabed;
• (iii) a dry gas inlet conduit for receiving a dry gas from a pretreatment source;
• (iv) a station heat exchanger for receiving the dry gas from the pretreatment source;
• (v) a liquefaction train for cooling the station heat exchanger and forming the liquefied natural gas;
• (vi) an offload flexible outlet conduits for flowing the liquefied natural gas from the station heat exchanger;
• (vii) a vapor return flexible conduit for communicating hydrocarbon vapor formed during offloading back to the natural gas processing station from the transport vessel, wherein the vapor return flexible conduit communicates with the station heat exchanger;
• and
• (viii) a station controller for monitoring the dry gas inlet conduit, the station heat exchanger, and the flexible outlet conduit, and for actuating a primary quick connect/disconnect connector, a secondary emergency disconnect connector, and a tertiary emergency disconnect connector;
• and
• c. a soft yoke for connecting the transport vessel to the natural gas processing station, wherein the soft yoke comprises at least two telescoping soft yoke mooring arms, and wherein each telescoping soft yoke mooring arm comprises:
• (i) the primary quick connect/disconnect connector for engaging the at least one mooring bracket of the transport vessel, and the secondary emergency disconnect connector to allow quick connect/disconnect or emergency disconnect of the transport vessel, wherein the tertiary emergency disconnect connector additionally allows emergency disconnect of the transport vessel;
• (ii) an upper connecting mount engaging the soft yoke with the natural gas processing station;
• (iii) a lower connecting mount engaging the soft yoke with the natural gas processing station;
• (iv) a turn table connected to the lower connecting mount;
• (v) a king post engaged with the turn table and the upper connecting mount;
• (vi) a boom connected to the turn table and to at least one luffing wire, wherein each luffing wire engages a turn down sheave mounted to the king post;
• (vii) a tensioner for each luffing wire;
• (viii) a jib telescopically contained within the boom and connected to at least one centralizing cylinder for controlling a position of the jib within the boom when the natural gas processing station and the transport vessel are connected together and are affected by wave motion, current motion, wind motion, transport vessel dynamics, natural gas processing station dynamics, or combinations thereof, wherein the jib assists in maintaining a nominal standoff position holding the transport vessel at a predefined distance from the natural gas processing station, and wherein the jib and the boom form a gangway for moving personnel between the transport vessel and the natural gas processing station;
• (ix) a yoke offload flexible conduit for flowing the liquefied natural gas from the natural gas processing station;
• and
• (x) a yoke vapor return flexible conduit for flowing the hydrocarbon vapor from the transport vessel formed during offloading back to the natural gas processing station.