Mary Kay O'Connor Process Safety Center

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LNG Safety

List of Center Publications

About

Controversy over LNG facilities siting has focused attention on LNG safety issues, particularly the potential impact of large fires on adjacent areas. Participation in LNG projects over the past thirty years sparked the interest in updating LNG process safety R&D for several MKOPSC staff. The reason for continued research is that the massive size of LNG storage tanks and LNG tankers means that any containment releases may have the potential for a very large incident. The hazards posed by LNG can be minimized by good engineering design and an understanding of the physical properties of LNG.

Beginning with research in computational fluid dynamics in source modeling, vapor dispersion, and fire, MKOPSC has signed a contract with BP Global Gas SPU for “LNG Vapor Cloud Control and Mitigation Research”. This project will focus on improved detection, suppression, protection and vapor control methods. The results from this research will help in developing definitive guidelines on the engineering design criteria for mitigating the consequences of LNG spill and/or fire. In addition, results of this R&D will be used to improve the BP – Texas A&M LNG Fire Fighting School curriculum and training methods. And lastly, the results may assist in alleviating some of the causes of public concern about LNG safety and emergency preparedness. There is also research pertaining to LNG Reliability Data and discovering ways to further increase safety.

LNG Vapor Dispersion Modeling

One of the major hazards from accidental LNG release is the formation of flammable vapor cloud. Medium-scale experimental tests have been conducted at BFTF (Brayton Fire Training Field) since 2005 in College Station, Texas to study the nature of LNG vapor cloud for release onto land, water and underwater. The results of the tests were used to determine the exclusion zones using consequence models as it plays a vital role in the risk assessment of LNG operations to determine potential hazardous impact of worst credible accidents. Federal safety regulations require the use of validated consequence models to determine the vapor cloud dispersion exclusion zones for accidental liquefied natural gas (LNG) releases. One tool that is being developed in industry for exclusion zone determination and LNG vapor dispersion modeling is computational fluid dynamics (CFD).

LNG industry had been heavily relying on the comprehensive-integral models to predict the vapor exclusion zone. However, recent concerns had been focused on underprediction from the integral model due to the limitation in describing the complex behavior of LNG spills during its initial stage. A CFD code is capable of handling obstacles in a three-dimensional environment and can provide a detailed description of physical processes. They are efficient in handling complex geometries and can thus be used to predict the behavior of LNG vapor cloud dispersion in a site-specific risk analysis. The atmospheric dispersion of LNG vapor is a type of buoyant, multicomponent fluid flow. Hence the different key parameters involved in the vapor cloud phenomenon and its variation was computed by calibrating the CFD model with experimental data obtained at BFTF. The modeling phase is studied in two parts as the source term model and a dispersion model due to the different key parameters used to describe the physical process at each stage.

Expansion Foam Application for LNG Hazard Mitigation

High expansion foam has an expansion ratio of more than 200, which could be applied to provide blanketing effect to the surface of most hydrocarbon fuels and also have made it possible to be used as a mitigation measure against a boiling and evaporating pool of flammable gases and subsequent pool fires. Because of this fire suppression characteristic, the liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry has identified expansion foam as one of its safety provisions for pool fire suppression.

The effects of foam application on LNG and LNG pool fires through outdoor spill experiments at the Brayton Fire Training Field are being investigated. The study is aimed at obtaining key parameters such as temperature changes of methane and foam and the extent reduction of vapor concentration for evaluating the use of foam to control vapor hazard from LNG. The foam effectiveness in suppressing LNG pool fires is also studied to determine the thermal exclusion zone, by investigating temperature changes of foam and fire, profiles of radiant heat flux, and fire height changes with foam. Additionally, a schematic model of a LNG-foam system with fire for theoretical modeling was also developed. It is seen that expansion foam has positive effects on reducing flame height and radiant heat flux by decreasing heat release and radiant heat feedback from the LNG pool fire, ultimately reducing the safe separation distance. Through extensive data analysis, several key parameters, such as the minimum effective foam depth and the mass-burning rate of LNG with applied foam are identified. The CFD modeling is applied to understand the effects of expansion foam on LNG behavior and to the overall consequence of the release. This study can be used to design an effective expansion foam system as well as to develop defensive measures and emergency response plans for mitigating the consequences of LNG releases.

Effective Use of Water Curtains in Dispersing LNG Vapor Cloud

One of the major hazards is the formation of a flammable vapor cloud from an inadvertent LNG release, which may lead to a massive fire. Therefore, the mitigation of accidental release consequences of LNG is a serious concern. Federal safety regulations and standards require a “dispersion exclusion zone” for LNG facilities so that vapor generated during releases of LNG will not propagate beyond the plant boundaries. This exclusion zone begins at the LNG spill site and extends to the predicted distance at which the average vapor concentration in air is 2.5% volume. An effective technical approach to create this safety zone is forced dispersion of LNG vapor through control and mitigation measures. Water curtain is recognized as an efficient engineering method to mitigate various types of hazards in the petrochemical and gas industries because of its availability, simplicity of use, efficiency, and adaptability for various hazards such as gas dispersion, absorption, and fire inhibition. Today, water curtain is recognized as a promising technique to suppress LNG vapor clouds.

Even though extensive theoretical and experimental research has been carried out to determine the effectiveness of water curtain in dispersing LNG vapor, there is no comprehensive and substantiated engineering guideline for water curtain design. The aim of this research is to provide comprehensive guidance towards the development of engineering design criteria of an effective water curtains to disperse LNG vapor and establish an effective safety zone for LNG storage facilities. The research had been focused to determine the effectiveness of water curtain through comprehensive theoretical and experimental analysis of its LNG dispersal mechanisms. Medium –scale experimental works had been conducted at BFTF using various commercially available water nozzles to evaluate the effectiveness in dispersing the LNG vapors. The CFD modeling had been used to understand the fundamentals of complex interaction between the droplet and air-vapor mixture. Finally, the results from experimental measurements using the industrial water curtain information and the droplet-vapor system modeling will be used to provide an engineering analysis which can serve as fundamentals to support formulating guidelines for water curtain applicable for LNG industry.

List of Center Publications

Effective Use of Water Curtains in Dispersing LNG Vapor Cloud

  1. Diaz-Ovalle, C., R. Vázquez-Román, R. Lesso-Arroyo, and M.S. Mannan, “A Simplified Steady-State Model for Air, Water and Steam Curtains,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 25, no. 6, November 2012, pp. 974-981. Link
  2. Kim, B.K., D. Ng, R.A. Mentzer, and M. Sam Mannan, “Modeling of Water-Spray Application in the Forced Dispersion of LNG Vapor Cloud Using a Combined Eulerian-Lagrangian Approach,” Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, vol. 51, no. 42, 2012, pp. 13803–13814. Link
  3. Kim, B.,D. Ng, R.A. Mentzer and M. Sam Mannan, “Evaluation of Key Parameters for Designing Effective Water Curtain Systems for LNG Facilities using Computational Fluid Dynamics,” Proceedings of 8th Global Congress on Process Safety, Houston, Texas, April 1-4, 2012.
  4. Rana, Morshed A., Benjamin Cormier, Jaffee Suardin, Yingchun Zhang, and M. Sam Mannan, “Experimental Study of Effective Water Spray Curtain Application in Dispersing LNG Vapor Clouds,” Process Safety Progress, vol. 27, no. 4, December 2008, pp. 345-353. PDF
  5. Rana, M.A., Y. Guo and M.S. Mannan, “Use of Water Spray Curtain to Disperse LNG Vapor Clouds,” vol. 23, no. 1, January 2010, pp. 77-88. PDF
  6. Rana, M. and M.S. Mannan, “Forced Dispersion of LNG Vapor with Water Curtain,” Proceedings of the 12th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 27-28, 2009, pp. 338-347. PDF
  7. Suardin, J.A., R. Qi, B.R. Cormier, M. Rana, Y. Zhang, and M.S. Mannan, “Application of fire suppression materials on suppression of LNG pool fires,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 24, no. 1, January 2011, pp. 63-75. PDF
  8. Rana, M.A. and M.S. Mannan, “Forced dispersion of LNG vapor with water curtain,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 23, no. 6, November 2010, pp. 768-772. PDF

Expansion Foam Application for LNG Hazard Mitigation

  1. Zhang, B., B.Z. Harding, Y. Liu and M.S. Mannan, “Liquefied Natural Gas Vapor Hazard Mitigation with Expansion Foam Using a Research-Scale Foam Generator,” Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, vol. 55, no. 20, 2016, pp. 6018–6024. Link
  2. Zhang, B., Y. Liu, T. Olewski, L. Véchot, and M.S. Mannan, “Blanketing Effect of Expansion Foam on Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Spillage Pool,” Journal of Hazardous Materials, vol. 280, September 2014, pp. 380-388. Link
  3. Yun, G., D. Ng and M. S. Mannan, “A medium-scale field test on expansion foam application – key findings of LNG pool fire suppression on land,” 10th Topical Conference on Natural Gas Utilization, 2010 AIChE Spring National Meeting, San Antonio, Texas, March 21-25, 2010. Link
  4. Suardin, J.A., Y. Wang, M. Willson and M.S. Mannan, “Field Experiment on High Expansion Foam (HEX) Application for Controlling LNG Pool Fire,” Journal of Hazardous Materials, vol. 165, no. 1-3, June 2009, pp. 612-622. PDF

LNG Vapor Dispersion Modeling

  1. Gopalaswami, N., R.A. Mentzer and M.S. Mannan, “Investigation of Pool Spreading and Vaporization Behavior in Medium-Scale LNG Tests,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 35, May 2015, pp. 267-276. Link
  2. Basha, O., T. Olewski, L. Véchot, M. Castier and M.S. Mannan, “Modeling of Pool Spreading of LNG on Land,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 30, July 2014, pp. 307-314. Link
  3. Kim, B.K., R.A. Mentzer, and M.S. Mannan, “Numerical Study on Physical Mechanisms of Forced Dispersion for an Effective LNG Spill Mitigation,” Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, vol. 53, no. 22, 2014, pp. 9488–9498. Link
  4. Kim, B.K., D. Ng, R.A. Mentzer, and M.S. Mannan, “Key Parametric Analysis on Designing an Effective Forced Mitigation System for LNG Spill Emergency,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 26, no. 6, November 2013, pp. 1670-1678. Link
  5. Kim, B.K., R. Ruiz, S. Nayak, R. Mentzer and M.S. Mannan, “Modeling Development for Evaluating Effective Mitigation Measures for LNG Safety and Spill Response,” Chemical Engineering Transactions, vol. 31, Part 2, 2013, pp. 589–594. PDF
  6. Olewski T., L. Véchot and M.S. Mannan, “Study of the Vaporization Rate of Liquid Nitrogen by Small- and Medium-Scale Experiments,” Chemical Engineering Transactions, vol. 31, Part 1, 2013, pp. 133–138. PDF
  7. Basha, O., Y. Liu. M. Castier, T. Olewski, L. Véchot and M.S. Mannan, “Modelling of LNG Pool Spreading on Land With Included Vapour-Liquid Equilibrium, and Different Boling Regimes,” Chemical Engineering Transactions, vol. 31, Part 1, 2013, pp. 43–48. PDF
  8. Siuta, D., A.S. Markowski, and M.S. Mannan, “Uncertainty Techniques in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Dispersion Calculations,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 26, no. 3, May 2013, pp. 418-426. Link
  9. Véchot, L., T. Olewski, C. Osorio, O. Basha, Y. Liu, and M.S. Mannan, “Laboratory Scale Analysis of the Influence of Different Heat Transfer Mechanisms on Liquid Nitrogen Vaporization Rate,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 26, no. 3, May 2013, pp. 398-409. Link
  10. Cormier, B.R., Qi, R., GeunWoong Y., Zhang, Y., Mannan, M.S. “Application of Computational Fluid Dynamics for LNG Vapor Dispersion Modeling: A Key Parameters Study”, Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 22, no. 3, May 2009, pp. 32-352. PDF
  11. GeunWoong Yun, William J. Rogers, M. Sam Mannan, “Risk assessment of LNG importation terminals using the Bayesian–LOPA methodology”, Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 22, no.1, January 2009, pp. 91–96. PDF
  12. Qiao, Y., H.H. West, M.S. Mannan, D.W. Johnson, and J.B. Cornwell, “Assessment of the Effects of Release Variables on the Consequences of LNG Spillage onto Water Using FERC Models,” Journal of Hazardous Materials, vol. 130, no. 1-2, March 2006, pp. 155-162. PDF
  13. Whipple, T., R. Coates, M. Wisby, K. Richardson, A. Murthi, H.H. West and M.S. Mannan, “Design of Experiments for LNG Spills on Land,” Proceedings of the 8th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 25-26, 2005, pp. 543-554 PDF
  14. Kim, K., K. Park, M.S. Mannan and E.S. Yoon, “Safety Analysis of LNG Terminal Focused on the Consequence Calculation of Accidental and Intentional Spills,” Proceedings of the 8th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 25-26, 2005, pp. 200-218. PDF
  15. Leake, J., D. Furry, A. Murthi and M.S. Mannan, “Application of Photographic Visualization and Thermal Detection Techniques for Non-Intrusive Imaging of LNG Leaks and Plumes,” Proceedings of the 8th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 25-26, 2005, pp. 164-182. PDF
  16. West, H.H., Y. Qiao, and M.S. Mannan, “LNG-Water Rapid Phase Transition: Part 2 – Incident Analysis,” LNG Journal, July/August 2005, pp. 28-30. PDF
  17. West, H.H., Y. Qiao, and M.S. Mannan, “LNG-Water Rapid Phase Transition: Part 1 – A Literature Review,” LNG Journal, May 2005, pp. 21-24. PDF
  18. Vasquez, R.R., S. Nayak and M.S. Mannan, “Study of the Effects of Obstacles in LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) Vapor Dispersion Using CFD Modeling,” Proceedings of 8th Global Congress on Process Safety, Houston, Texas, April 1-4, 2012.
  19. Qi, R., P.K. Raj and M.S. Mannan, “Underwater LNG Release Test Findings: Experimental Data and Model Results,” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, vol. 24, no. 4, July 2011, pp. 440-448. PDF
  20. Yun, G., D. Ng, and M.S. Mannan, “Key Observations of LNG Vapor Dispersion Field Test with Expansion Foam Application,” Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, vol. 50, no. 3, 2011, pp. 1504-1514. PDF
  21. Yun, G., D. Ng and M.S. Mannan, “Key Findings of LNG Pool Fire Outdoor Tests with Expansion Foam Application,” Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, vol. 50, no. 4, 2011, pp. 2359-2372. PDF
  22. Qi, R., D. Ng, B.R. Cormier and M.S. Mannan, “Simulation of LNG Vapor Dispersion in Brayton Fire Training Field Test with ANSYS CFX,” Journal of Hazardous Materials,” vol. 183, no. 1-3, November 2010, pp. 51-61. PDF
  23. Herrera, C., R.A. Mentzer, M.S. Mannan and S.P. Waldram, “Calculation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Burning Rates,” Proceedings of the 13th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 26-28, 2010, pp. 1034-1041. PDF
  24. Rana, M.A., R. Qi, G. Yun, D. Ng and M.S. Mannan, “Recent Advances in LNG Field Experiments and Modeling of LNG Release and Mitigation Scenarios,” Proceedings of 13th International Symposium on Loss Prevention and Safety Promotion in the Process Industries, Brugge, Belgium, June 6-9, 2010, pp. 57-64.
  25. Qi, R., O. Basha, M.S. Mannan, T. Olewski and S.P. Waldram, “Medium-Scale LNG Experiments at Brayton Fire Training Field, Texas and Their Relationship to Process Safety in the LNG Industries in Qatar,” Proceedings of 13th International Symposium on Loss Prevention and Safety Promotion in the Process Industries, Brugge, Belgium, June 6-9, 2010, pp. 65-72.
  26. Qi, R., D. Ng, S.P. Waldram and M. S. Mannan, “Uncertainties in Modeling LNG Vapor Dispersion with CFD Codes,” Professor Cedomir M. Sliepcevich Memorial Session, 10th Topical Conference on Natural Gas Utilization, 2010 AIChE Spring National Meeting, San Antonio, Texas, March 21-25, 2010. Link
  27. Qi, R., S.P. Waldram and M.S. Mannan, “Modeling Vapor Dispersion in an LNG Spill Test with CFD,” Proceedings of the 12th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 27-28, 2009, pp. 363-372. PDF
  28. Herrera, C., R.A. Mentzer and M.S. Mannan, “Absorption Characteristic of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as a Function of Infrared (IR) Wavelength,” Proceedings of the 12th Annual Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center Symposium – Beyond Regulatory Compliance: Making Safety Second Nature, College Station, Texas, October 27-28, 2009, pp. 316-323. PDF
  29. Ahammad, Monir (2017). Study of Cryogenic Vaporization Source-Term Due to Heat Transfer from the Solid Substrate. Doctoral dissertation, Texas A & M University. https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/handle/1969.1/175140
  30. Application of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to Simulate LNG Pool Fires
  31. Chaudhari, Dushyant Madhav (2016). Application of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to Study Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Pool Fires. Master’s thesis, Texas A & M University. https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/handle/1969.1/159022
Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center
Room 200, Jack E. Brown Building
Texas A&M University, 3122 TAMU
College Station, TX 77843-3122
E-mail: [email protected]
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