USA: FERC Issues Report on Land Based LNG Spills

The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has prepared a report, in Docket No. AD13-4-000, examining potential changes to LNGFIRE3, the solid flame model required by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s regulations at Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 193 for predicting radiant heat from liquefied natural gas (LNG) pool fires on land.

The report investigates the effects of matching both individual modeling parameters/correlations to measured experimental data and overall radiant heat predictions to measured results from field experiments. The review specifically addresses experimental data from the Phoenix large scale LNG fire tests on water conducted by Sandia National Laboratories between 2008 and 2011 and from the Montoir large scale LNG fire test over land conducted by Gaz de France in 1989.

FERC staff concludes that LNGFIRE3, as currently prescribed by 49 CFR Part 193, is appropriate for modeling thermal radiation from LNG pool fires on land and is suitable for use in siting on shore LNG facilities. The report is available for public viewing on the FERC’s website using the eLibrary link.

The study, as well as any comments received, will be considered by FERC staff during preparation of the environmental assessments or environmental impact statements produced for LNG project applications filed with the Commission.

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LNG World News Staff, January 28, 2013; Image: FERC