Recent Progress in Cold Utilization of Liquefied Natural Gas

Liquefaction of natural gas occurs at –162 °C and atmospheric pressure for transporting it over long distances. In the customer's segment, the liquefied natural gas is regasified before distribution. Around 830 kJ kg−1 energy is required for the production of liquefied natural gas and is often saved as cold energy, which can be reused by regasification terminals. Hence, for the past few years, cold energy utilization has been an important topic of research in the energy sector. The different techniques to utilize cold energy for power generation, air fractionation, extraction of natural gas liquids, refrigeration systems, desalination, and dry ice manufacturing are reviewed and discussed. Applying the cold utilization of LNG technique in these systems can help to improve efficiency and decrease operating costs effectively. Cold energy utilization has evolved as an important topic of research in the energy sector. The various techniques to apply cold energy for power generation, air fractionation, extraction of natural gas liquids, refrigeration systems, desalination, and dry ice manufacturing are reviewed and discussed. Applying this technique can help to improve efficiency and decrease operating costs significantly.