Industrial and environmental safety has always been a critical component of all processing plant operations. But whereas in the past, regulators have kept an intense and vigorous eye on plant safety, recent national and international accidents, crises, and disasters have replaced their magnifying glass with an election microscope. Safety is not just imperative for plant employees – its consequences can have global effects.
Nowhere has safety become more critical than in the drilling and mining industries. Two international powerhouses in harnessing and distributing energy – Samsung Heavy Industries based in Asia, and Gazprom in Europe, have partnered with U.S.-based Clayton Industries to assure the utmost in safety for workers and the environment at two natural gas drill rigs being built for use in the Barantz and Kara seas.
Energy Leaders Working Together
Since its corporate birth in 1938, Samsung Heavy Industries has evolved into a world leader in technology, natural resources, energy, and industry. Still based in its home of South Korea, Samsung has some 90 offices in 43 countries worldwide. The company is an active player in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas fields around the world.
Gazprom, one of the world’s largest energy companies, specializes in geological exploration, production, transportation, storage, processing, and marketing of hydrocarbons as well as generation and marketing of heat and electric power. Gazprom’s mission is to ensure a highly efficient and balanced gas supply to its customers.
In 2008, Gazflot, a subsidiary of Gazprom, contracted with Samsung to build the upper platforms of two natural gas drill rigs. These rigs would be part of Gazprom’s Shtokman field campaign to develop a new natural gas and oil production center in the Kara and Barantz seas, along the Arctic Shelf.
The rigs needed to be compact, ultra-sturdy, and dependable so that they could withstand the severe Arctic conditions, extreme low temperatures, and wave heights as high as 32 meters. Samsung experts knew the equipment on the platforms needed to be the best in safety and reliability.
Small in Size – Huge in Safety
Every drill rig needs boiler equipment. But Samsung wanted ones with the highest safety standards and the smallest size. They turned away from the traditional and looked to Clayton Industries to supply three steam generators for each rig.
Clayton Industries high-efficiency Steam Generators are being used on the rigs for space heating, de-icing, and oil processing.
According to Samsung executive Kyung-Su Bae, space on an oil rig is at a premium, and there needs to be enough room to accommodate crew members. The vertical design of the generators is accepted and used by offshore companies worldwide and require only 1/3 of the space that a traditional boiler would. “The Clayton Steam Generators are compact, offering more usable deck space. These units heat-up faster, provide rapid response to load changes and can be turned on and off when needed, without the risk of damage to the system,” he said.
Clayton’s SigmaFire 200 BHP steam generator system allows for more steam per square-foot of deck space. The system is ideal for heating drilling mud, work floors and rooms, and unparalleled as a steam source for desalinization, de-icing, cooking, and general cleanup.
Most importantly, Clayton Industries steam generators are explosion-proof, providing the highest levels of safety in the boiler industry.
There has never been, nor can there be, a steam explosion of a Clayton Steam Generator. Steam explosions that cause death, injury, and serious property damage result from the near instantaneous, non-controlled, release of energy that is present in water at saturated conditions that exist in steam boilers. However, there is relatively little water in a steam generator and that water is contained in the helical coil heat exchanger. Even if there is a leak in this coil, the energy cannot be released instantaneously because the water must travel through the coil to reach the point of the leak.
Steam Generation’s Added Benefits
In addition, steam generators heat-up faster, provide rapid response to load changes and can be turned on and off when needed without the risk of damage to the system. The generator’s design creates less heat loss and chemical loss. They have higher thermal efficiency over typical older designs, with most Clayton Stam Generators incorporating PID Controls, fully modulating burners, and Variable Speed Drives. Clayton Steam Generators us controlled circulation, which results in reduced blowdown requirements compared to traditional boiler designs. That means reduced heat losses from blowdown compared to other designs.
Finally, Clayton Industries offers low NOx options to meet strict air quality requirements, and can offer low Nox options capable of producing low emissions
“With a perfect safety record, compact equipment and easy and efficient operations, the Clayton Steam Generators are the right fit for these rigs,” said Kyung-Su Bae.
Our past partnerships in the offshore drilling industries have always proven successful. We hope to be an important component in the efforts to expand clean energy exploration” said Clayton Industries.
