The use of inert gas as cushion gas in underground storage: Practical and economic issues

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1991

OSTI ID:6028827

Foh, S E

The 395 underground natural gas storage fields in the United States are operated by both transmission and distribution companies as an integral part of the gas industry's delivery system. Base (cushion) gas is required to maintain storage reservoir volume and pressure to ensure adequate deliverability. Base gas is a major investment cost for new storage field development. An inert gas, such as nitrogen, that is less expensive than natural gas can be used to fill all or part of the base gas requirement and yield significant savings in the cost of storage field development. Inert base gas use, tested originally in France, should not dilute the pipeline quality of natural gas withdrawn from storage. Therefore, the key technical issue is the degree to which natural and inert gases mix in the storage reservoir. The nature of the rock pore spaces that comprise storage fields inhibits the mixing process. A systematic planning approach has been developed to ensure that there are no long-term operating problems with storage fields containing inert base gas. The first field test of inert base gas technology in the US is being planned. The use of inert base gas is a promising technique with the potential to significantly reduce storage investment costs. 9 refs., 7 figs., 2 tabs.

• Research Organization: Institute of Gas Technology, Chicago, IL (United States)
• OSTI ID: 6028827
• Report Number(s): CONF-910240-1; ON: TI92002558
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
030600 -- Natural Gas-- Economic
Industrial
& Business Aspects
032000* -- Natural Gas-- Transport
Handling
& Storage
ECONOMICS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENERGY SYSTEMS
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
INERT ATMOSPHERE
NATURAL GAS
NATURAL GAS DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS
RESERVOIR ROCK
STORAGE
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
UNDERGROUND STORAGE