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Membrane Systems News

05 Jun 2017

LNG as Fuel: Challenges & Opportunities

GTT has developed the Mark membrane system, a cryogenic liner for LNG tanks directly supported by the ship’s hull. Pictured is an LNG tank based on the technology. (Photo: © GTT / Roland Mouron)

Environmental regulations are the main driver in reducing these emissions worldwide. Although until recently ECA zones were limited to a few areas, the IMO has now decided to limit SOx emissions worldwide and by 2020 all newbuilds will have to comply with its new regulations. The challenge for the shipping industry, however, is not only to comply with the IMO 2020 sulfur cap but also to catch up with the planning of the regulation by identifying and implementing the solutions…

13 Apr 2016

GTT, AG&P to Tap Smaller Scale Modular LNG Market

GTT, (Gaztransport & Technigaz), an engineering company specialized in the design of membrane containment systems for the transportation and storage of liquefied gases, has signed a Technical Assistance and License Agreement (TALA) with AG&P (Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific Company), a provider of modular industrial delivery solutions, for the construction of membrane systems for onshore tanks, LNG bunkering infrastructure, LNG carriers and other LNG-related GTT systems. The two companies signed this milestone agreement during the 18th International Conference and Exhibition on Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG 18) in Perth, Australia which will make AG&P only the third company in the world to be certified as licensed outfitter (installer subcontractor) to utilize GTT's technologies.

28 Oct 2015

LR Approves GTT Pressurized Membrane Systems

Lloyd’s Register specialists have issued GTT an Approval in Principle (AIP) for a membrane cargo containment system (CCS) for bunker ships to allow an increase in vapor pressure of up to 2barg. The AIP follows a joint research and innovation program between GTT and LR investigating cargo containment behavior, looking at strength aspects in various applications, sizes and at different pressures. The close collaboration between Lloyd’s Register and GTT experts, through workshops using experimental and analytical results and data on internal pressures occurring in LNG tanks, studied the maximum compressive strength of the containment system on LNG carriers.

06 Jan 2015

Air Products: Pioneering Gas Processing Solutions

APAS delivered the nitrogen generator for Prelude – the world’s largest floating LNG plant anchored 200 kilometers off of the coast of Australia. “The scope of this project was huge – larger than any system that had been delivered.”  Tom Cantero Managing Director

As the first company to commercialize hollow fiber membranes for air separation onboard ships, Air Products AS, Norway (APAS) is a true pioneer. Managing Director Tom Cantero discusses  his company’s technology, developments and outlook. A manufacturer of gas processing systems for offshore, shipboard and land-based use, APAS manages all facets of the membrane process, from basic research, system design, engineering and manufacturing, through installation and service. Since the first membrane system was introduced by APAS in 1984…

13 Oct 2014

DSME Orders GTT Membranes for 2 LNGCs

Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT), a designer of membrane containment systems for the maritime transportation and storage of liquefied natural gas (LNG), received an order for two Liquefied Natural Gas Carriers (LNGCs) to be built by the Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME). GTT said the order adds to what it called an already strong third quarter 2014 order book. The vessels, be operated by BW Group, a Norwegian owner with a long history of operating GTT-designed LNG carriers, are expected to be delivered between 2017 and 2018. They will be built with the NO 96 GW membrane technology, which allows an optimized daily boil-off rate of cargo LNG, and helps to save fuel cost during journeys, GTT said.

30 Sep 2014

GTT Earns Five AIPs for Multi-gas Membranes

Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT), designer of membrane containment systems for the maritime transportation and storage of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) announced five AIPs for transportation of liquefied gases other than LNG. As an outcome of the shale gas revolution in the U.S., there is an abundant supply of ethane. In order to use this ethane, it must be transported, consequently, interest in ethane as a cargo is on the rise, giving way to the need for dedicated vessels. The five AIPs (Approval in Principle) received from Class Societies (ABS, BV, CCS, DNV and LR) confirm that membrane technology is in a solid position among the range of containment systems.

27 Aug 2014

Seaborne Ethane and Demand for a New Ship Type

Inside a moss tank (Photo courtesy of LR)

Lloyd's Register report looks at the commercial landscape, regulatory issues and technical realities of a new trade in ethane emerging as a result of increased U.S. U.S. ethane production capability, as a byproduct of total increased U.S. gas production, is underutilized. The potential exists for annual exports of 1 million metric tons of ethane to provide employment for 0.18 million cubic meters of shipping capacity if shipped to North Europe, a further 0.32 Mn Cu M if shipped to South Asia and a similar amount to China through the Panama Canal.

17 Jun 2014

DNV GL Approves GTT Membrane LNG Bunker Barge

GTT NA's membrane LNG bunker barge (Image courtesy of GTT NA)

Houston-based GTT North America (GTT NA), U.S. subsidiary of French engineering and technology company GTT (Gaztransport & Technigaz SA), has received an Approval in Principle from DNV GL for the design of a 2,200 cubic meter liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge. The distinctive design incorporates GTT’s proven membrane Cargo Containment System (CCS), which is utilized in roughly 70% of the global LNG carrier fleet and nearly 90% of LNG carrier projects on order. “This Approval in Principle from DNV GL…

28 Mar 2014

GTT: New LNG Technologies, Training Center

At its fourth Innovation & Technology seminar, held on March 28 at the end of Gastech, the gas technology conference and exhibition held in Seoul, Korea, GTT presented the new Mark V and NO 96 Max systems as well as a new training center, expanding the group's range of services for the LNG transportation and storage sector. The Mark V, a variant of the Mark III system, introduced in 2013 at the LNG 17 conference for LNG bunker tank projects with a new metallic secondary barrier, is now available for use in LNG carriers to be constructed in 2016 and delivered in 2018. In addition, the new NO 96 Max system, an upgrade of the NO96 GW design, incorporating an innovative pillar-type insulation box construction, will also be available as of 2016.

11 May 2010

ABS and CCS Conduct Joint LNG Forum

Increased interest in the building of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers at Chinese shipyards spurred the recent Large LNG Carriers Forum, held in Shanghai, and conducted jointly by classification societies ABS and CCS (China Classification Society) in conjunction with leading LNG operators. More than 150 representatives from the Chinese government, shipowners, shipbuilders, designers, energy corporations and universities attended the forum. Topics presented by leading industry participants Poten & Partners, NYK Line LNG Group and BG Americas included the global LNG market outlook, LNG carrier specifications and LNG carrier operations and fleet management.

06 Oct 2003

BV to Class LNG Carrier

Chantiers de l'Atlantique this week. and is due for delivery in 2005. vessel. new rules to allow the yard and owners to break new technological frontiers. commercial manager of BV's marine division. transportation. The ships have two key innovations. cargo gas will be carried in the new GTT CS1 membrane system. such engines. machinery plant. needed to develop the cost-effective CS1 containment system. BV concept approval in 2002. The dual fuel diesel electric propulsion system offers several advantages. space in the hull. conventional turbine installations. are now in short supply. taken off line and maintained on passage. cutting the risk of a power failure. and NO96 membrane systems. and a cost reduction of 15 per cent compared to existing systems.

13 Nov 2003

News: World's Biggest LNG Carrier Due in 2005

A 153,500 cu. m. LNG carrier ordered by Gaz de France from Chantiers de l'Atlantique - reported to be the largest ever LNG carrier - will be classed by Bureau Veritas and is due for delivery in 2005. The order includes an option for a second vessel. The vessels feature a long list of innovations, but two of them are particularly noteworthy. The traditional steam turbine plant will be replaced by a low-pressure dual fuel diesel electric system. BV cooperated with Wärtsilä for the development of the safety concept of the low-pressure dual fuel diesel/gas engine, and has issued new rules for such engines. The dual fuel diesel electric propulsion system is more compact as compared to a typical steam turbine plant installation, with the obvious benefit of providing for more cargo space.

06 Apr 2004

Gas Ships: Large LNG Carriers ABS Addresses Tech Concerns

As the LNG trade significantly increase over the next decade, transporting the fuel in ever larger, more sophisticated ships means particular attention must be paid to technical issues to ensure the present and long-term viability of the new generation of larger LNG carriers. Operators continue driving the demand for larger LNG ships to take advantage of the economies of scale. "By increasing the size of the standard LNG carrier from about 145,000 to 200,000 cu. m. and even larger, it is estimated that there could be a reduction in transportation costs by as much as 15 percent," said James Gaughan, ABS Senior Consultant, Energy Project Development Group. Another advantage with larger LNG ship designs is a reduction in the amount of cargo boiled off as a percentage of volume.

18 Apr 2002

EVAC Receives Order to Outfit Empress

Envirovac Inc. received an order from Nichols Brothers Boat Builders for the vacuum collection and treatment system for the "Empress of the North." Owner of the boat is American West Steamboat Company. EVAC will provide a specially designed four ejector/four pump vacuum collection system with 155 wall mounted toilets, 104 vacuum interface valves for gray water collection by vacuum and (2) ORCA IIA-500's for treatment of all black and gray water. The 360-ft. cruise ship to be built at Nichols for the American West Steamboat Company that is designed for extended, overnight cruising. The first vessel "Queen of the West" was launched in 1995. ENVIROVAC provides total marine wastewater management packages.

10 May 2002

ABS Prepares For Anticipated LNG Growth

With the global LNG (liquefied natural gas) market forecast to double in size over the next decade, industry is readying to provide ample liquefaction capacity to meet demand. In the United States alone, LNG imports reached 4.9 million tons in 2000, about 5 percent of the global LNG trade, and up from 3.4 million tons in 1999. Drivers for the rapid LNG growth include continued demand for a cleaner-burning fuel and the need to bring "stranded" gas from deepwater and remote areas to market. Concern over long-term U.S. gas supply; a larger number of new supply projects; and lower LNG infrastructure costs from a decade ago also are contributors to the LNG growth spurt in recent years. But perhaps the reality of Sept.

08 Nov 2000

Gas Ship Design Challenges

Sophisticated they may be, but the designs of today's LNG, LPG and ethylene carriers are in reality based on the simple parameters of the ideal gas laws governing the relationships between pressure, temperature and volume. In addition, the materials in direct contact with the cargo must be matched with the properties and characteristics of the cargo. The key to the designs is the atmospheric boiling temperature of the cargo, i.e. ambient for fully pressurised LPG, -33 deg. C for anhydrous ammonia, -48 deg. C for propane, -104 deg. C for ethylene and -163 deg. C for LNG. In terms of fleet numbers the total number of gas ships is small compared with oil tankers, general cargo ships or passenger vessels.

30 Nov 2004

ABS Provides Approval In Principle To Ocean LNG Tank And Carrier Design

Class society ABS has issued Approval In Principle (AIP) to a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) tank containment system and carrier design developed by Houston-based Ocean LNG Inc. The tank design consists of a cylindrical tank with spherical dished ends. The 180,000m3 carrier design features five of these large 36m diameter and 40m high cylinder tanks each holding a volume of 36,000m3 of LNG. Ocean LNG asserts that the design maximizes the void spaces in the ship’s hull yet still provides full access around the tank for inspections of both the insulation and tank structure. Compared to the traditional spherical LNG tank containment system…

09 Jan 2003

Astillero Sestao Shipyard Developing New LNG Design

represent a step ahead in gas carriers. membrane systems. diesel engines whose operation is combined with a redundant re-liquefaction plant. after comprehensive comparisons among them. also operational and environmental. propulsion. Sestao technical team claims. carrier. can be integrated into a conventional LNG design. discharge to floating terminals and their solutions have been studied, such as partial fillings in cargo tanks or the response to steam turbine durins dynamic positioning operation. projects related to gas transport under pressure.

10 Mar 2003

Spain: IZAR Shows Its Mettle in the Gas Sector

As the sole shipbuilding organization outside eastern Asia with a current involvement in the construction of large LNG carriers, IZAR is determined to maintain a long-term position in a promising, higher value-added field of the newbuild market. The present business profile is based on a series of membrane-type vessels of 138,000-cu. m. capacity, contracted in recent years in the face of fierce international competition and oriental domination of gas tanker production. However, the gathering momentum behind the Spanish group's research and development drive has increased its offering to the LNG transportation sector beyond the impressive new generation of ships now taking form in Sestao and Puerto Real for Spanish and Norwegian interests.

20 Feb 2002

French Snag LNG Order

In February Gaz de France ordered a 74,000 cu. m. LNG carrier from Chantiers de l'Atlantique, with an option for a second vessel. The French have maintained a strong hold on this high-tech, high-value ship type despite the general migration of gas ship orders to the Far East. In particular, Bureau Veritas helped develop the concepts for the vessels, and developed unique new rules to allow the yard and owners to break new technological frontiers. "BV has consistently been the world leader in LNG carriage, since development of membrane LNG carriers was first begun," says Bruno Dabouis, commercial manager of BV's marine division. "Now we will class these new vessels, which are a quantum leap forward in cost-effective LNG transportation. The ships have two key innovations.