Today, industries are exploring more and more avenues of renewable energy and seeking transitions away from fossil fuels—sometimes for sustainability concerns, other times to meet regulatory guidelines, and even, as this example shows, for improved efficiency.

One of the common problems in traditional fertilizer production processes is the loss and inefficiencies of natural gas transfer. These emissions can be costly for producers—not only because of potential fines from government bodies but also the day-to-day cost of production needing more fuel to make up for the wasted input. One solution to both these concerns is transitioning to synthetic methane production.

DIFFERENCE IN THE DESIGN

Logan Industries has successfully designed, manufactured, and delivered a new methantor pressure vessel to produce synthetic methane for a fertilizer plant in the mid-western United States. The methanator uses methanation, a process that combines carbon dioxide with hydrogen, to produce synthetic methane. The new vessel is fabricated from chromium and molybdenum and complies with the American Petroleum Institute’s (API) Recommended Practice 934C, placing Logan in the top 10 percent of all pressure vessel manufactures in the United States. 

MEETING THE STANDARD

Logan is extremely pleased to participate in this effort and deliver the equipment on time to our customer. This was our first foray into API 934C specifications and we managed complex timelines, acquiring materials from both domestic and international resources and successfully mitigated a range of HSE concerns as our team completed their work within an extremely hot and challenging environment.

PASSING THE TEST

Logan created the drawings, sourced materials, qualified the weld procedures and fabricated the vessel in less than seven months. The project required each heat to be qualified by weld procedure, which included very high interpass temperatures and welding performed in extreme heat. 

This project tested our capacity physically and mentally. We are stronger now and ready to do more. We appreciate a challenge and our team was able to deliver the vessel to our customer with great pride.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Dean Carey, technical director at Logan Industries, can be reached at dean.carey@loganindustries.net or 713.849.2979.  Headquartered northwest of Houston in Hempstead, Texas, we provide precision hydraulic energy and control management system solutions within a range of industries, including oil and gas, lumber, steel, industrial, dredging, mining, and marine. Logan Industries designs, engineers and manufactures fit-for-purpose equipment. We provide field commissioning and field service. We perform machine refurbishments and provide rental equipment. We back all of this up with strong engineering and corporate support for challenging projects. Logan Industries holds several manufacturing certificates (API Q1, 6A, 8C, ASME U & R, ISO 9001:2015), and we are qualified to work under API 16AR. For more information, visit www.loganindustries.net.

MODERN PUMPING TODAY, November 2023
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