MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

FOR EDUCATION PURPOSES(OR INFO)

SHIPBUILDING TECHNOLOGY FOR ECONOMIC

PRODUCTION

LNG CARRIER

MUHAMAD IKHWAN BIN MUHAMAD AZIZIE

FAIZAL B. ABD. HADI
YUFARIZA BT HAIR ZAKI
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

CONTENT

NO TITLE PAGE(S)
1. Introduction 1
2. LNG Tanker design 2

3. Explanation 3-7
 Full Containment Tank
 Membrane
4. Comparison of design and structure of tank 8

5. Most Economical LNG 9

6. Conclusion 10
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

1.0 INTRODUCTION

An LNG carrier is a tank ship designed for transporting liquefied natural gas (LNG). As
the LNG market grows rapidly, the fleet of LNG carriers continues to experience tremendous
growth. There are 2 types of LNG carrier covered in this assignment which are Full containment
and membrane tank type of vessel. Today there are four containment systems in use for new
build vessels. Two of the designs are of the self supporting type, while the other two are of the
membrane type. The liquefied natural gas was turn into a liquid form instead of gases in order to
make it feasible to transport over long distances.

Furthermore, liquid takes up less space than the gas does. The LNG tanker purpose is to
transport the LNG from point A to point B. For this assignment we did a research on the LNG
tanker design, explanation of full containment and membrane tank, comparison between design
and structure of full containment and membrane tank and lastly, which one is the most
economical to be used widely.

LNG Carrier

Self Supporting Membrane

Gaz Transport

Spherical MOSS

Prismatic IHI
SPB
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

2.0 LNG TANKER DESIGN

The design of liquified natural gas tank ships look different from regular tank ships
carrying oil and chemicals. Most LNG tank ships have two hulls, so that, if a collision or
grounding punctures the outer hull, the ship will still float and the LNG will not spill out. LNG
tanks are either spherical (and the upper half of the sphere sticks out above the deck), or box-
shaped. The ships tend to ride high in the water, even when loaded. A typical LNG ship is 950
feet long and 150 feet wide, and many new ships being built are even bigger.

Figure 1: LNG with membrane tank sketch Figure 2: LNG Carrier with different
design and general arrangement
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

Figure 3: General Arrangement of LNG Carrier with Membrane Tank

Figure 4: General Arrangement of LNG Carrier

MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

Figure 5: Membrane gaz transport

Figure 6: LNG carrier moss tanks

Figure 7: The Futuristic design of Membrane LNG carrier, X-BOW® vessel. The vessel is a
combination of an LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) carrier and PAX (cargo and passenger transport
vessel).
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

3.0 TANK TYPE OF LIQUIFIED NATURAL GAS (LNG)

3.1 Full Containment Tank

Full-containment tanks typically feature a primary liquid containment open-top inner tank and a
concrete outer tank. The outer tank provides primary vapor containment and secondary liquid
containment. In the unlikely event of a leak, the outer tank contains the liquid and provides
controlled release of the vapor. It is self supporting and independent.

Figure 8: Moss Tank inside an LNG Vessel

MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

3.2 Membrane Tank

Membrane tank is a cargo tank that is not self-supporting and consists of a thin layer
supported through insulation by the adjacent hull structure. Besides that, prismatic membrane
tanks utilize the hull shape more efficiently and thus have less void space between the cargo-
tanks and ballast tanks. Therefore, the design of membrane tank has been used widely in
shipping industry around the world. The concept of the membrane containment system is based
on a very thin primary barrier (membrane – 0.7 to 1.5 mm thick) which is supported through the
insulation. Such tanks are not self-supporting like the independent tanks. An inner hull forms the
load bearing structure. Membrane containment systems must always be provided with a
secondary barrier to ensure the integrity of the total system in the event of primary barrier
leakage.

The membrane is designed in such a way that thermal expansion or contraction is compensated
without over-stressing the membrane itself. There are two principal types of membrane system in
common use – both named after the companies who developed them and both designed primarily
for the carriage of LNG. These two companies have now combined into one.

Figure 9: Membrane Tank

MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

Figure 10: Inside the membrane tank Table 1: Membrane Tank Details
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

4.0 COMPARISON OF DESIGN AND STRUCTURE

Based on research, pictures, general arrangement and sketches, it can be seen that the
design and structure are different. Thus, we would like to make comparison between full
containment and membrane tank.

4.1 Comparison of Design

Full Containment Membrane
A full containment tank does not require a dike Have a barrier wall to contain leakage. Usually
or bund wall to contain any leakage, resulting there are 2 barriers which are primary and
in saving of space. secondary barrier.
Appropriate parts of the ship’s hull are Designed in such a way that thermal expansion
constructed of special steel capable of or contraction is compensated without over-
withstanding low temperatures. stressing the membrane itself.
The outer tank is capable of both containing Membrane containment systems must always
any leakage of LNG and controlled venting of be provided with a secondary barrier to ensure
vapor created from any LNG leakage. the integrity of the total system in the event of
primary barrier leakage.

4.2 Comparison of Structure

Full Containment Membrane
Self-supporting; do not require inner hull Not self-supporting; require inner hull.
Do not form part of the ship’s hull structure. Form part of the ship hull structure.
Do not contribute to the hull strength of a ship. An inner hull forms the load bearing structure.
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

5.0 THE MOST ECONOMICAL TANK

The most economical is the membrane tank because it is built directly in the form part of
the ship hull structure, thus reducing the time and cost consuming for construction and financial
in order to build the ship. Furthermore, the internal size of the tank is much larger than the full
containment tank. Thus it is really flexible in terms of moving large quantity of liquid from one
place to another especially when the sailing sets to be in long term. The design is also
economical because of the tank were form as part of the ship hull which is an advantage for
construction times which can be shorten instead of moss tank, which required the tank to be
build outside of the ship and then assemble it together with the ship hull while the membrane
tank were directly made with the hull of the ship itself.
MUHAMAD IKHWAN MUHAMAD AZIZIE (UNIKL MIMET)

6.0 CONCLUSION

For conclusion, it has been proof that the most economical LNG tank is the membrane tank
for LNG carrier. There are 2 types of LNG carrier covered in this assignment which are Full
containment and membrane tank. From this assignment, we know that prismatic membrane tanks
utilize the hull shape more efficiently and thus have less void space between the cargo-tanks and
ballast tanks. Thus by reducing space, less cost and spending on budget can be reduce which are
important key in shipbuilding industry.