Assessment of LNG Tanks and Piping Systems Using Fitness for Service Method
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is produced by converting natural gas to a liquid state by cooling it down to -162°C. This phase change allows for more efficient transportation due to a 600-times reduction in volume. However, cryogenic service temperatures require using special materials and design methods for the safety of LNG storage and transfer systems. In this webinar, we will discuss our collaboration with industry representatives and regulators through multiple studies. We evaluated the response of single and full containment steel-steel tanks and piping systems to extreme loads that are not fully covered in design codes and performed fitness for service (FFS) assessments following API 579 guidelines. In these studies, we determined stresses in LNG containment systems for earthquake and abnormal operating loads. Additionally, we performed laboratory tests to characterize as-built material properties for our FFS assessment. Our presentation will share these case studies and FFS assessments from our research. Attendees will learn how LNG storage tanks and piping systems work, what the major hazards are, and how we can mitigate risks by using appropriate materials and advanced analysis methods.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Understand how LNG gets stored and transported.
- Identify the types of materials required for cryogenic (cold) service.
- Recognize the need for FFS assessments.
- Discuss the risks of cryogenic temperatures for tanks and piping systems.
Participants will earn 1 AIA CES Learning Unit (LU/HSW) for attending the seminar. Registration is free. Please note that space is limited – email events@sgh.com to join our waitlist if the session is closed when you register.
About the Speaker
Önder Akinci specializes in designing and assessing structures, equipment, and piping systems at oil and gas facilities and power plants. He has engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC); consulting; and owner’s engineering experience focusing on LNG, offshore, and petrochemical plant projects. He led FFS assessments and structural integrity management inspections for oil and gas facilities in North America and the Caribbean regions. His practice at SGH involves advanced analysis of structures and piping systems subject to fire, blast, dropped object impact, earthquake, and hurricane loads. Önder has published research and presented papers on a range of topics, including resilient design of LNG facilities, fire integrity analysis and passive fire protection (PFP) optimization, blast and fire design of piping systems, seismic design of offshore platforms, soil-pipeline interaction, and impact load analysis of nuclear power plant structures. Önder is the chair of the ASCE Energy Division Structural Fire Engineering Task Committee and voting member of API 2218 Fireproofing Practices in Petroleum and Petrochemical Processing Plants and ISO 19901-2 Seismic Design of Offshore Structures committees.
Steven Palkovic has more than ten years of engineering and applied research experience. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanics of Materials and Structures from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. During graduate school, he co-founded a start-up for nondestructively measuring mechanical properties of metals that is being used for field testing of oil and gas steel pipelines. At SGH, Steven works on advanced analysis, design, and experimental characterization of structures. Applications include energy infrastructure, offshore structures, LNG facilities, blast hardening, nuclear facilities, naval shipyards, and precision antennas.
Madhav Parikh has more than a decade of structural engineering experience, specializing in the oil and gas industry. He has contributed to a wide range of domestic and international EPC projects, providing structural designs for plant structures such as piperacks, process structures, heater and reformer structures, and steel-clad buildings, as well as for plant components including storage tanks. His work encompasses both new facilities and plant modifications, often in high-wind and high-seismic zones. In recent years, Madhav has expanded his focus to include forensic investigations of structural and component failures, as well as wind and seismic evaluations of existing facilities. His expertise includes the analysis and design of structures subjected to extreme and abnormal loads, including fire, blast, impact, and flooding. Madhav serves on the ASCE Energy Division Structural Fire Engineering Task Committee, contributing to the advancement of safety and resilience in energy infrastructure.
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