Sunday, December 15, 2013

The Basics Of Crude Oil Transportation

By Eugenia Dickerson


With the current industrial growth, many economies of the world have come to rely on petroleum products as the main power source in their industries. Because mankind has always been trying to understand nature, modern technologies have made it possible for oil to be mined in far flung mines and supplied to global markets. Most of the available crude oil transportation methods have been devised because markets and supply centres are not located at one point.

From the oil field, the product is delivered via pipelines to the loading terminal for tankers or trains. These bulk movers then deliver it to the pipelines that serve the demand side of the market. Due to the sensitive nature of some end products, it is safer to refine the oil on the consumer side than to ferry them over the open seas.

Pipelines are the ideal means of transporting petroleum because they are located underground away from curios eyes. Most field networks converge at the main collection point where the fluid is measured for consistency before being containerized. The consumer side is fitted with booster pumps at predetermined points to guarantee efficient flow to retail points. A single pipeline may be used to transfer more than one product depending on the schedule used by the controller.

It is quite unfortunate that the largest consumers of oil usually have to purchase it from sources located on other continents. Crude from middle east, Africa and Latin America is transported to major consumers by large tankers. Because tankers may accidentally spill some of their cargo, marine authorities all over the world have devised many stringent laws governing this sector.

It is commonplace for major shipping companies to install monitoring mechanisms on their carriers to monitor their location and to avoid catastrophic collisions on the open seas. There also exist specialized ships such as replenishment oilers that can supply moving vessels on the oceans. Nevertheless regulations governing marine transportation must be observed to minimize the risks of pollution through spillage.

Chartering can either e voyage, bareboat, time or affreightment based. Every merchant ship must have a flag state which indicates the country in which it is registered. Registration efforts are also aimed at conducting inspection of both vessels and onboard equipment to ensure it meets the stipulated safety standards. Due to the stringent nature of these standards, tankers account for the largest percentage of scrapped vessels in the world.

Tanker loading usually involves pumping fluids into the reservoirs through the cargo manifold. During this process, the vapors must be vented to the atmosphere to maintain pressure balance in the reservoirs. All ships have cargo pumps with a large capacity for the transfer of crude to offshore reservoirs at the destination. Tank cleaning is done from time to time to facilitate the handling of another product or inspection by the appointed authorities.

Sometimes, hot water may be enough to clean residues of a soluble fluid. Most crude oil transportation tankers have installed washing systems to prepare their holds for the ext cargo. To thoroughly clear remnant hydrocarbons, an inert gas is pumped in at a high pressure.




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