The Floating Liquefied Natural Gas Production, Storage and Offloading Technology Research

The current status of the FLNG research project is introduced in this paper. Primary focus is placed on the six key technical areas which have been addressed in the phase I of this project, i.e. liquefaction process, LNG tank sloshing, single point mooring system, LNG tank selection and arrangement, LNG offloading and FLNG risk assessment. Firstly, the selection and design of liquefaction process is presented. Based on the result of comparison with other liquefaction process, an optimized and patented propane pre-cooled nitrogen two-expander cycle process is proposed. Secondly, LNG tank sloshing is considered through numerical simulation and model test. Thirdly, single point mooring system is discussed and considered the impact of different ballast types of FLNG, Both internal turret and external turret are analyzed. Fourthly, a comparison of three commonly used types of LNG containment system is performed considering of both the system characteristics and technical competence in China. In addition, the arrangement of LNG tank is also considered in this paper. Fifthly, both side by side offloading and tandem offloading are discussed. It is pointed out that both types of offloading should be deeply studied in further for applicability for the specified environment condition in South China Sea. Finally, the FLNG risk assessment process and framework is established. Furthermore, a full scale quantitative risk analysis covering all the major hazards of FLNG will be studied in the phase II of the project. In addition to the six key technical areas, future works during phase II of this project in the next five years from 2011 are also proposed.