LNG is the cleanest fossil energy widely used for thermal power generation. A part of the LNG chain from natural gas gathering and liquefaction to ship transportation is briefly described. In the description, the energy balance in the LNG chain is also discussed.
Since 1969, many LNG receiving terminals have been constructed in Japan. This is in line with the Japanese policy of increasing the calorific value of city gas, and also changing the feedstock for thermal power plants to pollution-free LNG. In 1995, about 44 million tons of LNG were imported into Japan, and more than 70% of the LNG was used as fuel for power plants. Recently, advanced combined cycle gas-turbine power plants with higher thermal efficiency have been developed, and because LNG is more a suitable fuel for the plants than other fuels, the demand for LNG use in power plants is increasing. This paper presents a process outline of LNG receiving terminal for power plants and the main processing equipment, and mentions special consideration for the design of the LNG receiving terminal.
This paper presents energy analyses of thermal power generation plants such as coal. oil and LNG. The input energy of power generation technology is estimated not only for the construction materials of the power plant but also for all fuel processes in mining, refining and transporting to a power station. Net and gross energy analyses on the power plants are calculated using the input and output energies of a generation plant. The analyzed net energy ratio of an LNG plant is one-third that of oil or coal plants, because it consumes a large amount of energy; approximately 10 to 15% of LNG production on the extraction, refining and liquefaction processes. Excellent liquefaction and re-gasfication processes are expected to be realized with the knowledge of cryogenic engineering.
The role of oxygen in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ/Ag thick films has been investigated by measuring the coherence lengths and irreversibility lines in two samples with extra oxygen contents of δ=0.17 and δ=0.27. The coherence lengths were estimated by measuring magnetization through the application of a magnetic field both perpendicular and parallel to the c axis. The coherence lengths of the two samples have conformity in the ab plane component, but in the c axis component. the coherence length of the sample with the extra oxygen content of δ=0.27 is 30% larger than that of the sample with the extra oxygen content of δ=0.17. This result led to understanding that the anisotropy parameter decreases when oxygen is introduced in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ thick films. Further, the irreversibility line, observed by measuring electric resistance, laid on the higher magnetic field and temperature when oxygen was introduced. Therefore, the reduction of anisotropy by introducing oxygen made the electronic coupling between the CuO2 superconductor plane stronger.