【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Engineering Equipment】1944–2024: SHENGU delivered China’s first low-temperature centrifugal compressor for LNG ships

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Safety first. Prevention first: Let’s give praise and support to the achievements made in China’s chemical engineering technology and equipment. **********************【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Engineering Equipment】A continuously updated summary post is available; feel free to join the discussions at https://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-3576046-1-1.html (Source: Haichuan Chemical Engineering Forum) ***************** Recently, China’s landmark project aimed at utilizing the Yangtze River for energy purposes – the world’s first, and China’s first, 14,000 cubic meter liquefied natural gas (LNG) refueling ship, the “Huaihe Energy Navigator” – was delivered after leaving port. This marks the official commissioning of China’s first LNG ship-based cryogenic centrifugal compressor, developed by SHENGU Group for this project, representing a significant breakthrough in China’s technology for developing key equipment for LNG ships. “The \"Huaihe Energy Qihang\" was independently developed, designed, and built by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co., Ltd., which is part of China State Shipbuilding Corporation. It is currently the LNG storage and transportation equipment manufactured in China with the highest degree of domestic production. LNG ships are vessels specifically designed to transport liquefied natural gas. Since the liquefied natural gas transported needs to remain in a liquid state at extremely low temperatures, LNG carriers are also aptly referred to as \"sea-based super refrigerators\". As the most critical component of LNG carriers, low-temperature compressors have previously been monopolized by foreign countries. Ge Liling, deputy chief engineer and senior expert at SHENGU Group, explained: “The function of low-temperature compressors is primarily to meet the needs for recovering LNG vapor as well as for fuel supply. Their safe and stable operation is directly related to the safety, efficiency, and operational costs of LNG carriers.” ”The SHENGU team carried out rigorous material selection, process design, and research and development in response to conditions such as low-temperature environments and sea transportation. They worked on the pneumatic design, structural design, and dynamic analysis of marine centrifugal natural gas compressors, as well as on the development of complete systems and performance testing and verification. They overcame key technical challenges such as model-level development techniques for marine natural gas compressors, mechanical property analysis techniques, and low-temperature insulation technologies. After 14 months of effort, China’s first LNG ship-mounted centrifugal natural gas compressor was successfully developed by SHENGU Group. In May this year, after undergoing factory testing, supervision by users and classification societies, on-site installation and commissioning, as well as trial operations, the unit was successfully delivered for use. The successful development and delivery of this engine set not only a milestone by filling a gap in the domestic industry but also marked a breakthrough as China’s LNG carriers were able to move away from reliance on imported centrifugal compressors, which is of great significance for ensuring autonomy and control over China’s LNG carrier industry chain. Shenmu Group stated that it will further enhance its capacity to supply a full range of large, medium, and small LNG ship cryogenic centrifugal compressors in the future, thereby contributing to increasing the proportion of domestically produced ship equipment in China.