Inert Gas plant

Components of plant
Boiler uptake valve- Provides a take off point for the flue gas, A cleaning arrangement
is fitted to prevent soot build up.
Scrubber- Flue gas passes to the scrubber via the uptake valve, here it enters at the
bottom via a waterseal and passes up through a series of sea water sprays and baffle
plates being cooled and cleaned before exiting via a demister
The water is supplied via the scrubber pump, the sprays reduce the
temperature to within
o
! of the sea water temperature, the sulphur dioxide content is
reduced "#$, and the gas is clear of soot.
The tower is rubber lined and other parts are made of inconel or glassfibre to
protect against the %& .The water seal at the bottom is provided by the weir
arrangement fitted to the drain system.
The following alarms are fitted;
High water level alarm and trip
Low water level alarm
Low water level alarm
ans-Two types of fans are fitted, a steam turbine driven one of sufficient capacity to
supply '.( re)uirements during cargo ops, and an electrically driven unit with sufficient
capacity for topping up only
Shut down of the fans occurs due to;
High gas temperature after the blowers
Low scrubber water pressure! high scrubber water lvl"
Blower failure"
A blank on a stub pipe may be removed to allow the fans to blow fresh air up the '.(.
main when gas freeing
#ecirculation and regulating valves- The pressure within the tanks is controlled by
automatic or manual operation of the regulating v*v, if the demand is low and the
regulating v*v nearly closed then the recirculation v*v opens thereby reducing the
possibility of the fan overheating by passing the gas back to the scrubber tower.
$%&gen monitor- Fitted +ust upstream of the regulating v*v and initiates an alarm if
oxygen content above ,$.
'eck water seal- The inert gas leaving the engine room to deck passes through the
deck water seal whose purpose is to prevent gases from passing back to the engine
room from the cargo tanks. A demister is fitted on the outlet side.
The seal is internally rubber lined and a heating coil fitted to allow use in low
temperatures. The weir controlled water level has a low level alarm fitted.
As the seal is a primary safety feature it is supplied from the general salt
water system when the scrubber pump is not in use. !hecks are made on the pipe
from the seal to the regulating v*v to ensure no -! prescience which would indicate
corrosion damage.
(on)return v*v- Purpose similar to the deck seal
'eck isolating valve-Allows the isolation of the deck system from the engine room
system
+ressure*vacuum breaker ,+-.- This is the safety valve for the system and prevents
both under and over pressurisation of the tanks. Flame screens are fitted to the P.
breaker vent. The P. breaker may be of the mechanical or li)uid type. The li)uid type
is filled with a li)uid of the correct specific gravity, such as monoethylene (lycol and
water.
'eck distribution s&stem
After the P. breaker the inert gas is led down a main and valve-less distributors to all
the tanks, excepting the slops tanks whose lines contain isolating valves. &n the main
there are three P. hi velocity safety vents, the slops tanks are fitted with individual
safety vents of same design.
&n the for/d end of the main is the for/d pressure release which allows
regulation of the inert gas pressure during loading
0uring loading the ballast is discharged at the same time as the cargo is
loaded thereby limiting vapour release to deck, the '.(. plant is kept running in a state
of readiness so in the event of sudden cargo stoppage pressure is not lost via the for/d
pressure release1 this may have to be throttled in to prevent overloading the fans.

Closed s&stem)
This describes the common '.(. main connected to all the tanks, this has the following
advantages
- The tanks are always kept at a positive pressure
- The volume of gas acts as a buffer for variations in loading*discharging rates
A disadvantage is that -!/s can re-enter a purged tank
Scrubber
Gas at inlet Gas at outlet
Temperature 23#
o
! 4
o
! above sea water
$
/
5-6$ less than 4$
S$
/
7 S$
0
#. - #.5$ less than #.#$
C$
/
2 - 26$ 24-28$
(
/
33$ 23$
Solids 24# mg*m
5
, mg*m
5

0ue to the corrosive nature of the atmosphere in the scrubber and the inside
of the scrubber is specially considered and is normally coated with a glass fibre
product or similar the scrubber is supplied by two sea water pumps. A small capacity
seal water pump which is run on continuous bases and ensures that the bottom of the
scrubber is continuously full to the weir level thereby ensuring that there is a gas seal.
A larger capacity spray water pump which is run when the system is in use supplying
inert gas. The drains from the scrubber is very acidic and special consideration is given
to the pipe run which may be internally coated
'eck Seals
There are thre types of deck seals in common use1
1et
The seal is kep full using a continuously running seal water pump which may
be backed up with a crossover from a secondary system as re)uired. %hould the
pressure on the downstream side exceed the upstream side the water is pushed up
the inlet pipe. The height of this pipe ensures that the head pressure generated is
greater than either the pressure release valve or any water seals
Semi)'r&
'r&
G2S -3(TI(G S4ST35
9hen loading cargo tanks at high rates, steps must be taken to avoid
pressure build up which can cause structural damage. This re)uires the release of the
vapours from the tank. This could be by pipes led up the mast with a release point via
a flame trap. An alternative as shown provides a high velocity release which carries the
gas well clear of the ship. 0epending on the pressure, the area between the fixed cone
and the orifice plate will change allowing the velocity to be maintained. At high
pressures the orifice is forced upwards against the bellows force, thus increasing the
flow area. At low pressure the counterweight pulls the orifice downwards thereby
reducing the flow area and maintaining the gas velocity