Increasing the thermal resistance of shell gas-support structures for use as gas hydrates storages

Currently, in the world and Ukraine there are difficulties with the provision of natural gas. However, one of the problems is its storage. So, the object of research is the process of storing natural gas in land storages in gas hydrate form. An alternative to traditional technologies can be the transportation and long-term storage of natural gas in the form of gas hydrates. However, the existing reinforced concrete and metal structures, in addition to a significant price, also cannot sufficiently provide effective thermal insulation of the gas hydrate and its tightness. The paper substantiates the possibility of using gas support structures and pneumatic building structures as gas hydrate storage facilities. The possibility of improving the proposed structures by using non-hardening foams as a thermal insulation material has been proposed and confirmed by calculations. The study was aimed at calculating and analyzing the effectiveness of such a method of thermal insulation of a ground gas storage facility for storing natural gas in gas hydrate form. A method acceptable for the current level of technology development is proposed for increasing the thermal resistance of gas support structures for their use as gas storages in the gas hydrate state. It consists in using stable liquid foams as an effective thermal insulation material to fill the space between the layers of a two-layer coating. In the course of the study, the high efficiency of the proposed method of thermal insulation of ground hydrate reservoirs with stable liquid foams was shown. Calculation of thermodynamic characteristics of gas support storages for gas hydrates at their thermal insulation by liquid foam is made. The efficiency of the technological process of storing gas hydrate in the form of blocks is analyzed depending on the time of year. The main parameters of operation of such facilities are substantiated. It has been established that storage of hydrate blocks in storage without their dissociation during insulation with a layer of foam requires short-term additional cooling during the summer period of storage. Thus, this technology has prospects for widespread adoption.