Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plays a critical role in the global energy market, especially as the demand for cleaner energy sources continues to rise.
LNG facilities are complex operations whose success relies heavily on the reliable and efficient operation of its rotating equipment. The most critical of these include centrifugal compressors, gas turbines, cryogenic pumps, and electric motors. These machines are integral to the compression and liquefaction processes, where natural gas is cooled to cryogenic temperatures for storage and transport.
Challenges
Refrigeration trains, which are vital for LNG production, often lack redundancy, making unplanned downtime extraordinarily expensive.
Historical failures of centrifugal compressors in LNG plants have included impeller erosion due to liquid carryover, dry gas seal failure due to hydrocarbon or lube oil contamination, varnish issues, and thrust bearing failures.
Gas Turbine combustion issues arising from the inability to handle a wide range of fuel gas heating values have been another persistent issue that has led to premature wear and downtime. Failures of in-tank cryogenic loading pumps have severely restricted LNG production, especially when emissions curtailment has been a factor.
Why Use Mechademy’s Turbomechanica Platform
Mechademy’s Turbomechanica platform, designed by experts with deep turbomachinery domain knowledge, offers a robust solution to the challenges faced by the LNG industry.
By integrating physics-based performance models with advanced machine learning and deep learning algorithms, Turbomechanica provides a diagnostic framework that identifies potential issues weeks or months before a failure occurs. This early detection capability has already delivered significant value to our LNG customers.
Some results include:
Detection of primary dry gas seal hang-up several months ahead of a potential failure
Detection of a leaking bearing jacking oil check valve, preventing catastrophic failure
Detection of drift in a centrifugal compressor flow meter preventing surge events
"The Turbomechanica platform has played an important role in Cove Point achieving its goal of being the most reliable LNG facility in the United States"
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