LNG Equipment

A virtual pipeline moves natural gas as LNG by road tanker (and in some cases by ISO container or rail) to consumers that have no physical pipeline connection. At the receiving end, a satellite station stores the LNG in a vacuum-insulated tank, vaporizes it on demand, then regulates pressure, meters and where required odorizes the gas before it enters the plant or a local network. The equipment scope covers the storage tank, vaporizers, pressure regulation and metering, and the transfer connections used for tanker unloading.

LNG storage covers small satellite tanks serving a single industrial consumer through to larger units feeding a local network or a refuelling application. The working figure is the usable volume between the maximum fill level and the minimum operating level, not the geometric volume. Tank size is selected from daily gas consumption, the delivery interval, the tanker payload available on the route and the acceptable standstill period, and is confirmed per project.

Storage equipment holds LNG in liquid phase in a vacuum-insulated vessel with pressure control, relief protection and fill and withdrawal connections. Regasification equipment converts that liquid into gas at the flow, temperature and pressure the downstream system requires, using vaporizers followed by pressure regulation, metering, gas heating where needed and odorization where a network is fed. The two are normally engineered as one installation, but they are sized on different inputs: storage on delivery logistics, regasification on peak gas flow.

LNG storage tanks are commonly designed to EN 13458 together with EN 13445 for the pressure parts under PED 2014/68/EU, or to ASME Section VIII Division 1 where the US code basis applies. AD 2000 is used in German engineering practice, and transportable units reference EN 13530. Installation and layout of satellite plants are addressed separately by standards such as EN 13645 and NFPA 59A. The applicable set depends on the country of installation and the project specification.

Regasification is sized on peak instantaneous gas demand, not on average consumption, because the vaporizer must cover the highest simultaneous draw. Ambient vaporizer capacity also depends on design ambient temperature, humidity and duty cycle: the exchanger frosts during operation and needs a defrost period, so continuous service normally requires duty and standby banks with automatic changeover. Required outlet gas temperature at the interface is the other governing input. These parameters are reviewed against site conditions for each project.

Boil-off gas is the vapour formed when heat ingress through the insulation evaporates part of the stored liquid, which raises pressure inside the inner vessel. It is limited by the insulation system and managed operationally: where gas is consumed continuously, boil-off is drawn into the regasification line and used as feed gas, so pressure stays within the operating band. During long standstill periods pressure rises until it reaches the regulator or relief setting, at which point controlled release occurs, so tank sizing and turnover are the practical means of avoiding losses.

Yes. Satellite stations are configured with tanker unloading connections, normally both a bottom fill line and a top spray fill line, so that the operator can control tank pressure during filling: top filling condenses vapour and lowers pressure, bottom filling tends to raise it. The unloading arrangement also includes hoses or a loading arm, isolation and non-return valves, purge and drain points, and hardstanding with earthing for the tanker.

Typical requirements are a foundation dimensioned for the filled weight of the tank, separation distances to buildings, boundaries and ignition sources per local regulation, and a tanker route with hardstanding and safe turning space. The installation needs hazardous area classification with suitable electrical equipment, gas and fire detection, earthing and lightning protection, and an electrical supply for instrumentation, control and any forced-draft or heated vaporization. Where a network is fed, metering, pressure regulation and odorization are part of the layout. Requirements are confirmed against local rules for each site.