Propulsion Solution for Icebreaking LNG Carriers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuli Hanninen ◽  
Matko Barisic ◽  
Torsten Heideman ◽  
Krzysztof Goldon ◽  
Sampo Viherialehto ◽  
...  

Abstract Since 2007 the traffic volumes in the arctic seas have substantially increased, especially in the North-East Passage following the development of major oil and gas projects. In development of icebreaking LNG tankers the selection of propulsion system is playing a major role determining the vessel performance, safety and icebreaking capability. Recent success of YAMAL LNG project has led to accelerated development of new arctic LNG projects, such as Arctic LNG2. This paper will introduce some outstanding operational results from the revolutionary icebreaking LNG Carriers with modern azimuth propulsion system. This paper describes the methodology to use remote diagnostics systems (RDS) onboard ice-going LNG carriers to continually record, consolidate, upload, and analyze ice-breaking propulsion performance. We will further describe how vessel operational experience and RDS data can be used in development of icebreaking LNGC propulsion design and product development. The special focus in this paper will be given on propulsion system of large Arctic LNGC equipped with 3 × 15 000 kW azimuth thruster units. These propulsion devices help ship owners to access opportunities in the Arctic areas by providing safe and reliable operation in the region. Paper will highlight some of the key findings from the ship machinery data collected with RDS (Remote Diagnostic system) and further analyzed by engineer specialist in view of ice loading on machinery system and components. Podded propulsion solution has played major role on Arctic ship projects, making these challenging projects technically and economically feasible. We will present latest findings and unique results from Arctic LNG carriers, which is valuable information in development of future Arctic oil and gas transportation in the Northern hemisphere.

2020 ◽  
Vol 217 ◽  
pp. 04002
Author(s):  
Ksenia Derevtsova ◽  
Vladislav Ginevskii ◽  
Gleb Kataev ◽  
Semion Kim ◽  
Polina Veselova

The article tells about the risks of low-culture construction of oil facilities on the Arctic shelf. The long-term, practically neglected exploitation of the unique natural resources of the Russian North and the low culture of their development led in a number of its regions, including the waters of the Arctic seas with islands, to an emergency ecological situation - the partial and sometimes complete destruction of the fragile Arctic natural habitat of the small peoples of the North and the created cities and villages. Without proper environmental support, economic activities continue in the field of extraction, transportation and processing of natural resources. The progressive pollution of rivers and lakes leads to a qualitative depletion of water resources - a change in the composition of the waters of the Arctic Ocean. The danger of oil pollution of the marine environment is associated with plans for its production on the continental shelf of the Russian Federation. The oil and gas production complex in the Russian Arctic regions are being formed on the basis of already discovered fields and will develop as other promising fields are developed.


This article concerns the comparison of data collected in different high Arctic seas by the same team, mainly same platform (from the bridge of icebreaking RV Poarstern), and thus the same methodology. Drastic differences were noted, from high numbers in the Bering Strait and Chukchi Sea on the one hand, and Fram Strait and Barents Sea on the other. In contrast, abundance, mainly of seabirds, was very low in the Arctic Basin. Most numerous bird species varied in different areas, mainly fulmar, kittiwake, Brünnich’s guillemot and locally ivory gull. Biodiversity was low, as reflected by low numbers of species, a few of them representing the vast majority in numbers of individuals: between 85% and 95% of the total. Cetaceans were close to absent from the High Arctic Ocean, the Wandel Sea off North Greenland and the shallow seas along the North-East Passage; pinnipeds and polar bear were tallied on the Outer Marginal Zone OMIZ, basically absent in the Closed Pack Ice Zone CPI.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-40
Author(s):  
Vyacheslav A. Melkiy ◽  
Vladimir M. Pishchalnik ◽  
Valery A. Romanyuk ◽  
Alexey A. Verkhoturov

The goal of the strategy of the Russian Federation in the development of the Far Eastern’s and Arctic seas is an active, qualitatively new industrial, infrastructural and social development of the North and the East. The Arctic shelf of Russia have the main reserve of oil and gas resources, which belongs to the number of unique areas of the world, in terms of hydrocarbon reserves. The objectives of the policy of mining enterprises aimed at increasing the reserves of offshore fields, introducing the latest equipment and technologies in their development, creating an infrastructure that can ensure the smooth and trouble-free operation of mining complexes and the transportation of products. It is necessary to create a digital platform for ensuring safe operation on the shelf, accumulating data from satellite surveys of transport infrastructure facilities, for monitoring the hydrometeorological, ice and navigation conditions in the waters of the Far Eastern Seas and the Northern Sea Route (NSR) for navigation and hydrographic support of ship traffic, as well as icebreaker assistances. The system should support the laying of ship navigation routes of transport vessels and icebreaking fleets, taking into account the navigation and ice conditions in the specified water area, the organization of search and rescue operations, elimination of the consequences of emergency spills, pollution from ships with harmful substances or garbage.


2020 ◽  
pp. 88-99
Author(s):  
A. A. Tolmachev ◽  
V. A. Ivanov ◽  
T. G. Ponomareva

Ensuring the safety of oil and gas facilities and increasing their facility life are today one of the most important tasks. Emergencies related to rupture and damage of steel pipelines because of their wear and tear and external factors are still the most frequent cases of emergencies during the transportation of hydrocarbons. To expand the fuel and energy complex in the north, in the direction of the Arctic, alternative types of pipelines are needed that solve the problems of reducing energy and labor costs in oil and gas companies, reducing the risk of environmental disasters and depressurization of pipelines during hydrocarbon production. Fiber-reinforced thermoplastic pipes can be such an alternative. This article is devoted to a comparative analysis of the materials of a composite system consisting of a thermoplastic pipe (inner layer) and reinforcing fibers (outer layer); we are discussing the design of the structural system consisting of polyethylene (inner layer) and aramid fibers (outer reinforcing layer).


2021 ◽  
pp. 57-68
Author(s):  
N. Yu. Moskalenkо

The relevance of the article is associated with the importance of the object of the research. Dozens of unique and giant oil and gas fields, such as Urengoyskoye, Medvezhye, Yamburgskoye, Vyngapurovskoye, Messoyakhskoye, Nakhodkinskoye, Russkoye, have been identified within the Cenomanian complex. The main feature of Cenomanian rocks is their slow rock cementation. This leads to significant difficulties in core sampling and the following studies of it; that is the direct and most informative source of data on the composition and properties of rocks that create a geological section.The identification of the factors, which determine the slow rock cementation of reservoir rocks, allows establishing a certain order in sampling and laboratory core studies. Consequently, reliable data on the reservoir and estimation of hydrocarbon reserves both of discovered and exploited fields and newly discovered fields that are being developed on the territory of the Gydan peninsula and the Bolshekhetskaya depression will be obtained. This study is also important for the exploration and development of hydrocarbon resources of the continental shelf in the waters of the Arctic seas of Russia as one of the most promising areas.As a result of the analysis, it was found that the formation of rocks of the PK1-3 Cenomanian age of the Bolshekhetskaya depression happened under conditions of normal compaction of terrigenous sedimentary rocks that are located in the West Siberian basin. Slow rock cementation of reservoir rocks is associated with relatively low thermobaric conditions of their occurrence, as well as the low content of clay and absence of carbonate cements. Their lithological and petrophysical characteristics are close to the analogous Cenomanian deposits of the northern fields of Western Siberia and can be applied to other unconsolidated rocks studied areas.


Author(s):  
Ю.Л. Бордученко ◽  
И.Г. Малыгин ◽  
В.Ю. Каминский ◽  
В.А. Аксенов

Арктическая зона в XXI веке становится важнейшим гарантом устойчивого развития Российской Федерации. Вклад Севера в экономику России во многом будет определяться масштабами и темпами развития Арктической транспортной системы. Необходимо расширение коммерческого и научно-исследовательского судоходства, развитие транспортных узлов и коридоров, полярной авиации, грузопассажирских морских полярных перевозок. В этих условиях Россия в целях обеспечения своих геополитических интересов должна постоянно поддерживать активное присутствие в этом регионе. Оно выражается в проведении научных исследований, разведке и добыче полезных ископаемых, обеспечении морских грузоперевозок с использованием ледоколов и специализированных ледокольно-транспортных судов. Этого невозможно достичь без развития уникального атомного ледокольного флота. В настоящее время Россия является мировым лидером в области применения атомного ледокольного флота для решения транспортных задач в морях Арктики и неарктических замерзающих морях. Для успешной конкуренции России необходимо не упускать этого лидерства и постоянно развивать и совершенствовать атомный ледокольный флот как ключевое звено инфраструктуры функционирования Северного морского пути. В статье представлен краткий обзор текущего состояния и перспектив развития атомного ледокольного флота России. Показана определяющая роль атомного ледокольного флота в обеспечении судоходства по трассам Северного морского пути для развития экономики Арктического региона России. The Arctic zone in the XXI century is becoming the most important guarantor of the sustainable development of the Russian Federation. The contribution of the North to the Russian economy will largely be determined by the scale and pace of development of the Arctic Transport System. It is necessary to expand commercial and research shipping, develop transport hubs and corridors, polar aviation, and cargo and passenger sea polar transportation. In these circumstances, Russia must constantly maintain an active presence in this region in order to ensure its geopolitical interests. It is expressed in conducting scientific research, exploration and extraction of minerals, providing sea cargo transportation using icebreakers and specialized icebreaker-transport vessels. This cannot be achieved without the development of a unique nuclear icebreaker fleet. Currently, Russia is a world leader in the use of nuclear-powered icebreaking fleet for solving transport problems in the Arctic seas and non-Arctic freezing seas. For successful competition, Russia must not lose this leadership, constantly develop and improve the nuclear icebreaker fleet as a key link in the infrastructure of the Northern Sea Route. The article provides a brief overview of the current state and prospects for the development of the Russian nuclear icebreaker fleet. The article shows the decisive role of the nuclear icebreaker fleet in ensuring navigation along the Northern Sea Route for the development of the economy of the Arctic region of Russia.


1984 ◽  
Vol 21 (02) ◽  
pp. 182-185
Author(s):  
Ben C. Gerwick

Rapidly expanding development is taking place in the Arctic and sub-Arctic seas of Alaska and Canada, driven by the discovery of immense resources of oil and gas and favorable geophysical conditions in adjoining areas. The Arctic regions are dominated by sea ice, from the central polar pack to the pressure ridges and rubble piles that form in the shear zone along the periphery. In the east, adjoining Labrador and Newfoundland, icebergs are encountered. Storm waves and surges during the summer, strong seismicity in certain areas, and weak and construction-difficult soils in many areas combine to make the design and construction of platforms abnormally difficult. Existing platforms for offshore exploration include sand and gravel islands in shallow-water areas, floating drillships accompanied by icebreakers, a concrete-caisson-retained island in the Canadian Beaufort Sea, and a converted VLCC, grounded on a prepared embankment and given additional protection by artificially constructed ice rubble. At the present time, two steel caissons, designed to be filled with sand after founding, and one floating drilling structure are under construction. In the design and planning stage are a number of new concepts for caissons, mostly constructed of prestressed lightweight concrete, designed to resist global forces in the range of 150 000 kips or more and local concentrated forces of 800 to 1000 psi over small areas. Prestressed lightweight concrete appears well suited to the demands of Arctic service. The towing, deployment, founding, and subsequent removal of exploratory platforms demands consideration of a wide variety of naval architectural aspects. One of the more critical areas facing designers is how to determine the forces and displacements caused by impact from a large ice floe or berg. The compliance of the structure and the hydrodynamic dissipation of kinetic energy need to be considered, as well as the crushing of the ice. The successful development of the Arctic demands consideration not only of a wide range of engineering and naval architectural aspects but also their integration with ecological, social, political and economic considerations.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Stokholm ◽  
Leif Pedersen ◽  
René Forsberg ◽  
Sine Hvidegaard

<p>In recent years the Arctic has seen renewed political and economic interest, increased maritime traffic and desire for improved sea ice navigational tools. Despite a rise in digital technology, maps of sea ice concentration used for Arctic maritime operations are still today created by humans manually interpreting radar images. This process is slow with low map release frequency, uncertainties up to 20 % and discrepancies up to 60 %. Utilizing emerging AI Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) semantic image segmentation techniques to automate this process is drastically changing navigation in the Arctic seas, with better resolution, accuracy, release frequency and coverage. Automatic Arctic sea ice products may contribute to enabling the disruptive Northern Sea Route connecting North East Asia to Europe via the Arctic oceans.</p><p>The AI4Arctic/ASIP V2 data set, that combines 466 Sentinel-1 HH and HV SAR images from Greenland, Passive Microwave Radiometry from the AMSR2 instrument, and an equivalent sea ice concentration chart produced by ice analysts at the Danish Meteorological Institute, have been used to train a CNN U-Net Architecture model. The model shows robust capabilities in producing highly detailed sea ice concentration maps with open water, intermediate sea ice concentrations as well as full sea ice cover, which resemble those created by professional sea ice analysts. Often cited obstacles in automatic sea ice concentration models are wind-roughened sea ambiguities resembling sea ice. Final inference scenes show robustness towards such ambiguities.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. SH19-SH31
Author(s):  
Gabriela Salomão Martins ◽  
Webster Ueipass Mohriak ◽  
Nivaldo Destro

The Sergipe-Alagoas Basin, situated in the north-east Brazilian margin, has a long tradition of oil and gas production and the presence and distribution of evaporites play an important role in petroleum systems in the basin. However, little research has focused on the structural evolution of the older, synrift evaporitic sections of the basin. We have focused explicitly in the detailed subsurface structural characterization of the rift in the Alagoas subbasin and the distribution of the Early Aptian evaporites. To accomplish this objective, we interpreted selected 2D and 3D seismic and well data located in two areas known as the Varela Low (VL) and Fazenda Guindaste Low (FGL). We identified diverse deformation styles in those two basin depocenters. Our interpretation indicates that VL consists of a half-graben with a significant rollover structure, controlled by two listric northeast–southwest border faults. The deformation in the hanging wall is also accommodated by release faults and minor antithetic faults. In this depocenter, we mapped in the seismic and the well data an older evaporitic sequence within the Coqueiro Seco Fm., known as Horizonte Salt. This evaporitic section occurs in the internal part of the VL half graben, where it is limited by release and antithetic faults. Significant salt strata growing toward the antithetic fault is observed. Whereas, the FGL represents a graben elongated along the north-east direction and is controlled by several types of structures. We recognized normal synthetic and antithetic faults, transfer zones, release faults, and rollover anticlines in the seismic throughout this depocenter. We mapped an evaporitic section within the Maceió Fm., known as Paripueira Salt, which consists of disconnected salt bodies, restricted to the hanging walls of synrift faults.


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