Safe and Economical Design and Operation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Pipelines

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010: 1288
Challenges of Change. © 2010 ASCE
Safe and Economical Design and Operation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)
Pipelines: From the Perspective of Hydraulic Transients
Yong Tang1, Pinar Cakir Kavcar2, Zhiyong Duan3

1
Ph.D., Hydrology and Hydraulic Engineer, Bechtel Corporation- G&HES, MS19,
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES on 04/12/16. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
3000 Post Oak Blvd., Houston, TX 77056, phone: (713) 235-3342, email:
ytang@bechtel.com
2
pkavcar@bechtel.com
3
zduan@bechtel.com
Abstract
Hydraulic transient events can result in excessive pressures leading to catastrophic

pipe and/or equipment failures, and possibly injuries or even fatalities, if water
hammer phenomena are not accounted for in the design and operation of the
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and/or LNG byproduct conveying pipelines.
Additionally, leaking of hazardous liquid due to water hammer damage can
contaminate the environment and threaten the health of wild life and human beings.
With the steady increase of LNG trading worldwide, a large number of LNG loading
and unloading pipelines have been built in the past decades. Using lower piping class
and schedule is a common cost-saving choice. However, it puts the pipeline systems
in greater danger as various hydraulic transient events occur within the increasingly
complicated pipelines during loading or unloading to or from the dedicated LNG
carriers (ships). In this study, transient pressures and dynamic loads associated with
pump trips, valve closures, column separation, and column rejoining initiated by the
potentially troublesome operating conditions are simulated numerically.
Recommended pressure and loading mitigation measures include slowing down of
valve closure, increasing pump polar moment of inertia, placement of surge relief
vessels, avoiding check valve slamming, and establishing safe system operation
procedures.
1. Introduction
Design and operational failures of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and/or LNG
byproduct conveying pipelines due to undesirable hydraulic transient events
(commonly known as water hammer) are significantly frequent. Operating conditions
generating pressure transients include, but are not limited to, the following worst case
scenarios: 1) Shut-down of pumps due to system power failure, 2) Pump switch, and
3) Emergency Shut-Down Loading (ESDL) procedure by fast closure of valves.
These events can result in excessive pressures and loads leading to minor or
World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

catastrophic pipe, pipe support, and/or equipment failures, and possibly injuries or
even fatalities. It is therefore recommended that comprehensive hydraulic transient
studies be carried out for the design and operation of the LNG and/or its byproduct
pipelines. This paper addresses the safe and economic design and operation of the
transfer, loading and unloading pipelines of the LNG projects from the perspective of
hydraulic transients by several case studies.
The Bechtel Standard Application Program CE099 “Transient Analysis of Liquid

Systems” (Bechtel Power Corporation 2002) was used to simulate transient events.
CE099 is a computer program that uses the method of characteristics to solve one
dimensional unsteady flow equations in a pipe network. This method assumes
constant fluid density throughout the pipe system. It is able to handle complex
networks with different boundary conditions such as pumps, valves, surge tanks, air
valves, air vessels, and so on.
2. Power failure
2.1. The effect of pump polar moment of inertia
This case study demonstrates the effect of pump polar moment of inertia during pump
trip as a result of system power failure. The studied system is a condensate (a
byproduct of the LNG plant) loading pipeline through which the condensate is
transported to ships via loading pumps. The design flow rate for each pump is 1,667
m3/h and the combined loading rate is 5,000 m3/h. The power failure case is simulated
as simultaneous shutdown of the three loading pumps at the beginning of the
simulation. It is assumed that no automatic response takes place and all the control
valves remain open. The storage tank is assumed to be at low liquid level because it
poses worse condition as down-surge takes place. Therefore, it facilitates more
conservative design for safety assurance.
In order to simulate the dynamics of pump coast-down, the polar moments of inertia
of pump impeller, motor, and any other rotating parts are needed, in addition to the
pump performance characteristic curves in four quadrants. The moment of inertia is
one of the parameters that control the run-down time of the pump (Thorley 1991).
Bigger moment of inertia slows down the pump run-down and creates milder
transients and prevents severe column separation and rejoining. Liquid column
separation is the condition in a pipeline under which the pressure is decreased to
vapor pressure and vapor pockets are created at certain points. The collapse of the
vapor pockets (known as column rejoining) due to pressure rise creates pressure
spikes based on Joukowski equation (Wylie and Streeter 1993). In this study, the
original moment of inertia obtained from the manufacturer is 12 kg-m2. Using this
information, the simulated maximum pressure is found to be about 31 bar gauge
occurring at the high point downstream of the flow control valve due to column
separation and re-joining. The maximum thrust load resulting from pump stoppage
was found to be approximately 534 kN occurring in the common header downstream
of the flow control valves. The maximum pressure exceeds the maximum allowable

transient pressure of the pipe and the maximum load is beyond the limit for which the
pipe support can accommodate. Because the column separation and rejoining are
caused by pump trip and the maximum pressure and load are found near the pumps,
the simple and economic solution for this problem is to increase the moment of inertia
of the pump. Consequently, a suggested moment of inertia of 36 kg-m2 is applied to
re-simulate the model and the maximum pressure is reduced to as small as 8 bar
gauge and the maximum load is reduced to 76 kN.
Figure 1 below shows how pump speed reduction curve during power failure is
changed by increasing the pump moment of inertia. By slowing down the pump run-
down, it was possible to lower down the transient pressures and thus the dynamic
loads. The disadvantage of such a modification on the pump inertia is that the pump
consumes more power during operation.
Figure 1- Pump speed change following power failure
2.2. The effect of surge relief pipe
In this case, an LNG send-out system was investigated. In this system, LNG is
transferred from the storage tanks to the send-out (booster) pumps from which the
LNG is transferred to the recondenser and send-out pipelines. There are five LNG
storage tanks within which three operating pumps are located. There are 24 send-out
pumps with 8 pumps located on each of the three banks. The studied case examines

the power failure scenario while LNG is loaded from three of the five tanks to the 24
send-out pumps. The power failure causes simultaneous shutdown of the in-tank
pumps as well as the send-out pumps. All the control valves are assumed to continue
to operate to achieve their target flows or pressures. Due to column separation and
rejoining, excessive pressures and loads are found to be located at the upstream of the
flow control valve that controls Bank 3 pump vent flow and the two jetty cool-down
lines modeled.
To remedy this occurrence, three flow control valves that control the vent flow or
cool-down flow are recommended be ramped-open within one second after power
failure. The ramped-open of valves avoids pressure wave reflection and amplification
and effectively reduces most of the peak pressures. However, a local high pressure
still exists in the vent header of Bank 3 and the dynamic water hammer load is
excessive. Because the pipeline was already built at the time the study was
performed, it would be too expensive and time consuming to strengthen the pipe
support. After trying a number of other options, it was found that a surge pipe would
be the only practical way of keeping these pressures low enough. A surge pipe with
15 ft3 gas volume was proposed in the vent header of Bank 3. The gas in the surge
pipe can be either nitrogen or vaporized LNG which consists of mostly methane and
nitrogen.
Figure 2 demonstrates the time history of the gas volume as well as the pressure
inside the surge pipe during simultaneous shutdown of all the pumps. It is shown that
the gas functions as cushioning when pressure wave hits the location of the surge pipe
and dampens the transients. To ensure the surge pipe functions properly, the liquid
level inside the surge pipe must be measured and controlled via external gas supplies.
Figure 2- Time history of the gas volume and pressure inside the surge pipe

2.3. The effect of free gas in the liquid systems
According to the Joukowski equation, the pressure change due to flow change is
proportional to the wave speed, which is not only a function of liquid and pipe
properties but also a function of the free gas content in the pipeline (Wylie and
Streeter 1993). In this study, an investigation into the impact of free gas content on
the transients resulting from system power failure is conducted. The studied pipeline
is a LNG run-down line through which the LNG is transferred from the flash drum to
the LNG storage tank. In the 16-inch main transmission line, a level control valve is
placed to make sure that the LNG is being transferred while liquid level inside the
flash drum stays within the normal range. Two 12-inch branches are tied to the main
header and feed the two LNG storage tanks. In addition to the transfer line, a 4-inch
LNG cooldown line delivers a slipstream from the LNG transfer pumps to maintain
the loading line temperature. The slipstream is fed into the LNG loading line at the
dock where it then flows back to the LNG storage tanks.
Initially, a power failure case which causes the stoppage of the LNG transfer pumps
is simulated by assuming no free gas content in the liquid. The results show excessive
dynamic loads near the pump station. Because this system did not originally
incorporate the dynamic loads of hydraulic transients, these discovered excessive
loads warrant revamping of the pump station’s foundation. However, field experience
proved the adequacy of the original design, which is standard in all of the previous
projects. It led to the conclusion that the hydraulic transient model overestimated the
pressures and loads. It is argued that the existence of free gas in this particular system
is one of the reasons that cause the overestimation. Therefore, a sensitivity study is
carried out to identify the impact of free gas content. According to Wylie and Streeter
(1993), the wave speed equation is as follows if free gas content exists,
Km
a= (1)
ρm
where K m = the gross bulk modulus of the liquid-gas mixture, ρ m = the mixture
density which are calculated as:
K liq
Km = (2)
1 + (Vg / V )( K liq / K g − 1)
Vg Vliq
ρm ρ g
= + ρliq (3)
V V
where K liq = the bulk modulus of the liquid, K g is the bulk modulus of the gas, Vliq =
the volume of the liquid, Vg = the volume of the gas, ρliq = the density of the liquid,
and ρ g = the density of the gas.
Based on the mole fractions of the components, the phase properties, are calculated
using the National Institute of Standard and Technology (NIST) Reference Fluid

Thermodynamic and Transport Properties (REFPROP), version 8 (Lemmon et al.

2007). The volumetric fraction of the vapor ranging from 0% to 0.1% with 0.025%
interval was used to conduct the sensitivity analysis on the wave speeds. Table 1
shows that 0.1% of free gas can reduce the wave speed by more than half and the
maximum transient pressure and load are reduced significantly. Confirmation of the
amount of free gas in LNG could enable the hydraulic analyst to provide more
accurate simulated transient results.

Table 1- Sensitivity analysis results of free gas content
Gas fraction in Wave Speed of Maximum Pressure Maximum Load
volume (%) Transmission Main (kPa) (kN)
(m/s)
0 1156 1712 47.8
0.025 824 986 33.7
0.05 651 892 28.9
0.075 556 801 28.8
0.1 493 767 28.7
3. Pump switching
This case examines the same system as in Section 2.3. There are two LNG transfer
pumps in the system. During normal operation, one pump is running and the other is
spare. Under some circumstances, there is a need to make a switch from the running
pump to the spare one. This operation is carried out by turning on the spare pump first
and then shutting down the original running pump. For example, in Figure 3, Pump A
is the running pump and Pump B is the standby. The pump switching is completed by
turning on Pump B first and shutting down Pump A 30 seconds later.
Flash Drum
10'' 10''X6'' 8''X6''
Miminum Flow Bypass Flow Control Valve
30''X24''
4''
Isolation Valve
4''
24''
4'' 8''
4''
24''X20'' 16''X14'' 16''
Check Valve A
Transfer Pump A
16''
Transmission Main
24''X20'' 16''X14''
16''
Check Valve B
Transfer Pump B
Figure 3- Simplified schematic of the LNG transfer system

A common problem of pump switching is check valve slamming. If the check valve
of the shut-down pump (Check Valve A in this case) is not well designed, it will slam
shut while the flow is significantly reversed because of the high pressure at the outlet
(due to the running Pump B) and low pressure at the inlet (due to the trip of Pump A)
of the check valve. The ideal check valves are free of slamming and for this purpose
these valves should have low mass, short travel distance to the closed position, and
stronger spring to assist initial movement (Thorley 1991). However, not all the check
valves are designed that way and frequently the check valves subject to slamming are
chosen for many applications because they are less expensive. The dynamic
performance characteristics of a check valve commonly used in industry is plotted as
system deceleration versus maximum reverse velocity in Figure 4. The dynamic
performance curves are used to determine the timing of check valve slam and the
reverse velocity at the moment.
Figure 4- Dynamic characteristics for a standard and a super torque duo-leaf check
valve
Figure 5 demonstrates a comparison of the time histories of the pressures and flow
rate changes for the standard torque spring and super torque spring check valves. It is
shown that at the moment of check valve slam, reverse flow develops. Up-surge
occurs at the outlet and down-surge occurs at the inlet of the check valve. The
slamming of the super torque spring check valve is less severe than that of the
standard torque spring check valve because the super torque spring check valve closes
earlier and does not allow significant reversal flow to develop. The maximum

dynamic load is found to be 73 kN and 52 kN for the standard torque spring check
valve and super torque spring check valve, respectively. The dynamic load is reduced
by almost 30% if the super torque check valve replaces the standard torque check
valve.
Figure 5 Time histories of the pressures and flow at the slammed check valve
4. Emergency Shut-Down Loading
For LNG loading systems, one of the most typical and critical transient event is the
consequence of shut-down of loading in case of emergency. During this event, certain

procedures need to be established regarding valve closure and pump shut-down in

order to protect the pipeline against severe transient pressures and loadings. The
sequence that should be followed is to close the valves at the very dowsntream first
(valves close to the ship), then to close the valves closer to the pumps, and to shut
down the loading pumps lastly. The time delay between the pump shutdown and the
end of the last valve closure should be long enough to allow the previous transients to
dissipate to avoid pressure spikes’ superimposition. If the valves closer to the pumps
close faster than the valves downstream of them, the subsequent up-surge at the
downstream valves can potentially rejoin the liquid columns which were separated
due to the down-surge at the outlet of the upstream valves. Given that the recomended
shut-down sequence is followed, the operation of the Powered Emergency Release
Coupling (PERC) valves becomes most critical. The PERC valves are located on the
loading arms, the far end of the entire loading system (except for the pipelines on the
ship). It is well-known that slowing down the closure speed of PERC valves can
avoid high pressures. However, the flow coefficient curves also play an important
role in the valve closure events.
In this case study, an LNG loading system with eight loading pumps and two storage
tanks (4 pumps in each tank) is used to conduct the hydraulic transient modeling in
case of emergency shut-down loading. The eight pumps deliver 12,000 m3/h through
three loading arms. The PERC valves close linearly in 10 seconds. Four different
PERC valves’ flow coefficient (Cv) curves are shown in Figure 6.
Figure 6- Flow coefficient (Cv) curves of four different types of PERC valves, 90
degree indicates fully opened position and zero degree indicates fully closed position

The simulation results reveal that Type I PERC valve produces the highest pressure
(29 bar gauge), Type II produces the second highest (17 bar gauge) and Type IV
procures the lowest pressure (13 bar gauge). The conclusion is that the most favorable
Cv curve is the one that moves quickly through the region of least effect on the flow
then moves slowly when it is really making a flow change. It is usually only when
the coefficient of discharge is below 0.2 that the flow velocity really changes.
Consequently, as a recommended practice, the PERC valves should be closed down

to 0.2 of coefficient of discharge as fast as possible and then use the rest of the time to
slowly close off the rest of the way. If inappropriate PERC valves or closure speed
and fashion were chosen, additional cost would be required to increase the pipe class
to withstand the high transient pressures or repair the damages that could easily be
avoided.
5. Summary
In summary, the safe and economic design of LNG pipelines should include a
comprehensive hydraulic transient study which evaluates the transient pressures and
loads due to operational procedures or unplanned events such as shut-down of loading
or power failure. The adequacy of the water hammer studies relies on the system data
quality, reliability of the computer program, and the knowledge and experience of the
analyst. An adequate transient study not only identifies the magnitudes and locations
where the excessive pressures or loads occur but also provides mitigation measures
that are cost effective.
References
Bechtel Power Corporation (2002), “Transient Analysis in Liquid Systems – Version

4 – User’s Manual”, Bechtel Standard Application Program CE099, San
Francisco, California.
Lemmon, E. W., Huber, M. L., and McLinden, M. O. (2007), “NIST Reference Fluid
Thermodynamic and Transport Properties – REFPROP, Version 8, User’s
Guide.” NIST Standard Reference Database 23, Physical and Chemical
Properties Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology,
Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Wylie, E. B., and Streeter, V. L. (1993). Fluid Transients in Systems. Prentice Hall,
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.
Thorley, A. R. D. (1991), Fluid Transients in Pipeline Systems, D. & L. George Ltd,
Hadley Wood, Barnet, England.

Safe and Economical Design and Operation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Pipelines

Caricato da

Informazioni sul documento

Copyright

Formati disponibili

Condividi questo documento

Condividi o incorpora il documento

Opzioni di condivisione

Hai trovato utile questo documento?

Questo contenuto è inappropriato?

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Safe and Economical Design and Operation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Pipelines

Caricato da

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010: 1288

Challenges of Change. © 2010 ASCE

Yong Tang1, Pinar Cakir Kavcar2, Zhiyong Duan3

Hydraulic transient events can result in excessive pressures leading to catastrophic

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

The Bechtel Standard Application Program CE099 “Transient Analysis of Liquid

2.1. The effect of pump polar moment of inertia

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

gauge and the maximum load is reduced to 76 kN.

Figure 1- Pump speed change following power failure

2.2. The effect of surge relief pipe

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

2.3. The effect of free gas in the liquid systems

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

Thermodynamic and Transport Properties (REFPROP), version 8 (Lemmon et al.

accurate simulated transient results.

10'' 10''X6'' 8''X6''

Miminum Flow Bypass Flow Control Valve

24''X20'' 16''X14'' 16''

Figure 3- Simplified schematic of the LNG transfer system

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

4. Emergency Shut-Down Loading

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

procedures need to be established regarding valve closure and pump shut-down in

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

Consequently, as a recommended practice, the PERC valves should be closed down

Bechtel Power Corporation (2002), “Transient Analysis in Liquid Systems – Version

World Environmental and Water Resources Congress 2010

Potrebbero piacerti anche