Techniques are disclosed for systems and methods to reduce the overall physical size of and mechanical vibrations within a cryocooler/refrigeration system configured to provide cryogenic and/or general cooling of a device or sensor system. A refrigeration system includes an annular linear compressor configured to generate a compression wave of working gas for the system. The annular linear compressor includes an annular cylinder head with a pressure plate and a neck protruding from one side of the annular cylinder head, a compressor housing configured to mate with the pressure plate and the neck of the annular cylinder head and form a sealed cavity therebetween, and an annular cylinder assembly disposed within the sealed cavity and about the neck of the annular cylinder head. The annular cylinder assembly includes an annular piston assembly disposed within an annular cylinder of the annular cylinder assembly.

Provided is a cooling device with which it is possible to cool a fluid to be cooled, even before maintenance work, if a fault such as a blockage or a breakage occurs in a part of a channel. The cooling device (1) is provided with four heat exchangers (1A-1D) and a plurality of heat exchanger connection parts (111-120), each of the heat exchanger connection parts allowing natural gas to flow therethrough. Each of the heat exchangers has: a drum (101, 102, 103, fourth drum 104), a refrigerant reservoir (T), a plurality of heat exchanger core parts (121, 122, 123, 124) immersed in liquid propane in the refrigerant reservoir (T), and a demister (106). A plurality of cooling channels allowing natural gas to flow therethrough are installed, independent of each other, from the first heat exchanger (1A) to the fourth heat exchanger (1D).

A mixing device for distributing a mixture of a first phase and a second phase of a first fluid in a longitudinal direction in at least one passage of a heat exchanger, said mixing device including at least one lateral channel configured for the first phase to flow from at least one first inlet; a series of longitudinal channels extending in the longitudinal direction and each configured for the second phase to flow from a second inlet to a second outlet, said longitudinal channels succeeding each other in a lateral direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction; and at least one opening fluidly connecting said lateral channel to at least one longitudinal channel such that the mixing device is configured to distribute a mixture of the first phase and the second phase via the second outlet of said longitudinal channel.

A method is disclosed for start-up of a system for liquefying a feed gas stream comprising natural gas. The system has a feed gas compression and expansion loop, and a refrigerant system comprising a primary cooling loop and a sub-cooling loop. The feed gas compression and expansion loop is started up. The refrigerant system is pressurized. Circulation in the primary cooling loop is started and established. Circulation in the sub-cooling loop is started and established. A flow rate of the feed gas stream and circulation rates of the primary cooling loop and the sub-cooling loop are ramped up.

A system and method for cooling an oxygen stream by heat exchange with a warming supply nitrogen stream having of a heat exchanger having at least a Zone A and a Zone B, the system having indirect heat exchange between a gaseous oxygen stream, and a high-pressure liquid nitrogen stream split into at least a first portion which passes through a Zone A, and a second portion which passes through a Zone B during a first phase of operation. And a high-pressure liquid nitrogen stream passing through Zone A, thereby producing a high-pressure nitrogen vapor stream, which passes through an expansion turbine, thereby producing an expansion turbine outlet stream which then passes through Zone B, during a second phase of operation, thereby producing a liquid oxygen stream.

A liquefaction and subcooling system, comprising a refrigeration device to provide a refrigerant fluid at a first and a second cold temperature that correspond to temperatures of the first and second gases, a subcooling arrangement coupled to the refrigeration device such that the refrigerant fluid is supplied to the subcooling arrangement, the subcooling arrangement having first and second subcoolers for exchanging heat between a gas to be liquefied and/or subcooled and the refrigerant fluid, wherein, when the gas to be liquefied and/or subcooled is the first gas, the refrigeration device is configured to provide the refrigerant fluid and the subcooling arrangement is configured to guide the refrigerant fluid and the gas through the first subcooler; and, when the gas to be liquefied and/or subcooled is the second gas, the refrigeration device is configured to provide the refrigerant fluid.

A method for liquefying a stream of hydrocarbons from a feed stream, including introducing the feed stream and a first cooling stream into a first heat exchanger, extracting a plurality of partial cooling streams obtained from the first cooling stream from the heat exchanger via separate outlets, introducing each partial cooling stream into an expansion element to produce a plurality of biphasic cooling streams at different pressures, introducing each biphasic cooling stream into a phase separator element to produce a gaseous cooling stream which is diverted from the first exchanger and a liquid cooling stream which is introduced into the first exchanger via respective inlets, evaporating each liquid cooling stream by heat exchange with at least the feed stream and the first cooling stream so as to extract a cooled hydrocarbon stream at the outlet from the first heat exchanger and to extract a plurality of evaporated cooling streams.

This specification relates to operating industrial facilities, for example, crude oil refining facilities or other industrial facilities that include operating plants that process natural gas or recover natural gas liquids.

An oxygen liquefier system may be configured to defrost an oxygen line included therein. The system may include one or more sieve beds, a liquid oxygen reservoir, an oxygen line, a controller, a heating apparatus, and/or other components. The one or more sieve beds are configured to extract oxygen from air obtained from an ambient environment. The liquid oxygen reservoir is configured to store oxygen extracted at the one or more sieve beds that has been liquefied. The oxygen line is configured to provide fluid communication between the one or more sieve beds and the liquid oxygen reservoir. The controller is configured to detect a blockage caused by frozen liquid within the oxygen line based on a liquid oxygen production rate. The heating apparatus is configured to defrost the oxygen line to melt frozen liquid within the oxygen line responsive to the detection of the blockage.

The invention relates to a liquefied gas storage facility, in particular for liquid hydrogen, comprising a liquefied gas tank intended to contain gas in liquid form and a gaseous phase, a device for cooling the contents of the tank, the cooling device comprising at least a first refrigerator with a cycle for refrigerating a cycle gas, said first refrigerator comprising, arranged in series in a cycle circuit: a member for compressing the cycle gas, a member for cooling the cycle gas, a member for expanding the second cycle gas and a member for reheating the expanded cycle gas, the cooling device comprising a first heat transfer fluid loop comprising a first end exchanging heat with a cold end of the first refrigerator and a second end comprising a first heat exchanger located in the tank, the first heat transfer fluid loop comprising a member for circulating the heat transfer fluid, characterized in that the first heat exchanger exchanges heat directly with the inside of the tank, that is to say that the first heat exchanger exchanges heat directly with the fluid which surrounds it in the tank.