Thermal Stress Analysis of the LNG Corrugated Cryogenic Hose During Gas Pre-Cooling Process

TL;DR

This paper uses coupled thermal-fluid-solid simulations to analyze thermal stress in LNG cryogenic hoses during gas pre-cooling, providing insights for safer hose design and cooling strategies.

Contribution

It offers a comprehensive analysis of how various parameters affect thermal stress in cryogenic hoses, aiding in improved structural safety design.

Findings

Thermal stress is mainly influenced by boundary constraints and temperature gradients.

Different hose parameters significantly affect the distribution of thermal stress.

The study provides practical guidelines for optimizing pre-cooling processes.

Abstract

In this study, thermal-fluid-solid coupled simulations on the gas-phase pre-cooling operation of the corrugated cryogenic hoses were performed. Attention was focused on the temporal evolution and spatial distribution of transient thermal stress in the hose structure caused by convective heat transfer of the cooling medium, Liquefied Natural Gas Boil-Off Gas (BOG). The effects of different corrugated hose parameters, i.e., boundary conditions, hose lengths, BOG inlet flow rates, and corrugation shapes (C-type and U-type), on the transient thermal stress behavior were thoroughly assessed. The thermal stress developed at different locations of the corrugated hoses with these parameters is found to be governed by two major factors: the boundary constraint and local temperature gradient. The objective of this study is to offer practical insights for the structural strength design of corrugated cryogenic hoses and effective pre-cooling strategies, aiming to mitigate structural safety risks caused by excessive thermal stress.