Vaporization systems that utilize heat from the atmosphere can cut natural gas consumption for heating in ocean tankers. SPX Cooling Technologies Inc.,

Heating tower technology allows LNG vaporization plant operators to reduce natural gas consumption.

Overland Park, Kan., developed a heating tower that can reduce natural gas demands by as much as 90 percent.

The transport of natural gas via ocean tankers is increasing in demand. The process involves cooling the natural gas to -260°F (-162°C) so that it is liquefied (LNG), after which it is loaded efficiently and transported via tanker.

At the receiving end, the LNG must be reheated back to a gaseous state. The amount of heat required to vaporize the LNG in a typical 1 billion ft³/day plant is approximately 850 MMBTU/hr. In most cases, this heat is delivered through burning natural gas in high-efficiency vaporizers, consuming between 1.5 to 2.5 percent of the terminal’s total throughput.

The heating towers from SPX Cooling Technologies, as a part of the vaporization system, use heat from the atmosphere in parallel with gas combustion units
.