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Bulk Gas Distribution Methods |
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Liquefied gases are transported in tank trucks with trailers and stored in cryogenic vessels. These tanks are available in various sizes, ranging from 600 to 15,000 gallons, to suit the customer's requirement. The tanks have an inner vessel or "liquid container" which is surrounded and supported by an outer vessel or "vacuum jacket". The space between the two is filled with a natural material that provides insulation and inertness.
The delivery system includes piping which carries gas from the inner vessel through the vacuum jacket to the outside, controlled by gauges and valves mounted outside of the tank. Other relevant accessories such as evaporators and remote tank-level monitoring are also available as required. An uninterrupted supply of either liquid or gas is thus assured at all times.
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| Within congested urban areas, it is sometimes difficult to find the space for a cryogenic tank, but the required quantity of liquid nitrogen or argon may make it undesirable to handle pallet tanks or dewars. In these cases, a microbulk truck can be used to keep smaller, self-contained storage vessels full of product. This engineered gas delivery system meets the unique needs of customers requiring at least 10,000 cubic feet (CF) per month. |
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| Another alternative for delivering larger amounts of gas are tube trailers, which as the name implies, are large high-pressure tubes bundled onto a semi-length trailer. These tube trailers can deliver gas product only. Depending on the gas product and trailer size, delivery quantities can range from 40,000 to 180,000 CF. |
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| Pallet tanks are small cryogenic tanks built into a self-contained, palletized system. They can be used for oxygen, nitrogen, argon and carbon dioxide. Tare weights are roughly 1300 lbs with capacities ranging from 8,300 to 13,000 CF depending on the gas. Dewars, liquid cans or LGs have a footprint roughly the size of a 55-gallon drum, but are taller. They contain liquid gas which can be drawn from the container as either a liquid or as a gas. Capacity varies by product from 3,000 to 5,000 CF. |
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| Extremely large gas requirements of oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon monoxide or syn-gas can be supplied via a pipeline or pipeline network. Several production plants may be connected to a pipeline network which serves a number of customers located within the same industrial cluster. |
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| These systems consist of a standard plant and a back-up unit to ensure uninterrupted supply. Plants are generally mounted in cabinets, on skids or in containers for fast, trouble-free installation, commissioning and relocation. Systems and system modules can be combined as required to create tailored solutions that suit local requirements. Automatic controls track fluctuations in demand, automatically activating the back-up unit to support peaks. Depending on the gas, ECOVAR® capacities can range from 4,000 CF/hour to 200,000 CF/hour. |
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