Integrity management systems for large LNG tanks
摘要
The integrity management systems and methods relevant to pipelines,equipments and concrete structures have been developed and applied in practice to some extent,whereas those for steel tanks,especially for large LNG tanks,involve a wide scope of disciplines and are still at the initial stage of development.The characters including special conformation,cryogenic operating temperature,hazardous nature of storage media,super-large inner volume,and strict functional request for non-interruption operating,determine that the distinct characteristics of large LNG tanks are different from those of normal steel tanks.Based on the analysis and experience of pipeline integrity management(PIM),the study on the origin of the PIM concept,and the core of the technical system,this paper proposes the concept of LNG tank integrity management(LNG-TIM) in accordance with the characteristics of LNG tanks and international codes.This paper also develops the integrity evaluation method and its main content based on the risk evaluation of steel tanks and the latest researches into the lifecycle of LNG tanks,which has great significance to the introduction of integrity management system to China's LNG industry.