Special Topic - LNG

Engineering with Ni steel for LNG applications

(Part 1): 9% Nickel steels

ener joints require welding in 4F/4G po-

Having a viable way to transport and store mass amounts of liquefied natu- sition. To that end, the Nyloid 4 electrode
ral gas (LNG) has become extremely important in recent years, due to LNG has been developed to weld in an overhead
being widely considered a form of clean energy. Although austenitic stain- position. The electrode has a special slag
less steels 304 and 316 offer excellent ductility and notch-toughness at the design ensuring a stable arc, as well as pro-
LNG storage temperature of -161.5°C or below, 9% nickel (Ni) steel poses as viding sound-weld metal.
the superior option. • Inner-tank horizontal joints: Both 9%
Worldwide, 9% Ni steel is already most commonly used for the construction Ni plates are welded in the vertical-up po-
sition. Welding can be performed simulta-
of above, and underground onshore LNG tanks, due to its weight savings,
neously from both sides, or one followed by
higher yield strength, and reasonably good notch-toughness at the LNG stor-
another. Typically, alloy 276 is used.
age temperature. • Inner-tank vertical joints: Both of the
9% Nickel vertical joints are welded in ver-
By Pardip Goswami, P.Eng, IWE. Consultant Welding and Metallurgical tical-up. For this reason, either a shielded
Specialist Figure 2(2): A cross sectional view of a PC LNG metal arc welding (SMAW) electrode is
storage tank. applied manually, or flux-cord arc welding
(FCAW) for semi-automatic and fully-au-
Design descriptions of LNG tanks: tomatic welding is used.
LNG storage tanks can be built either from the carbon steel dome roof on the 9% • Inner-tank bottom: The bottom plates
above or below ground. Aboveground tanks Ni cylindrical shell. The rest of this article corners are welded in the 2G welding posi-
take the form of a dual shell structure, with will introduce aboveground LNG tanks, tion. In most designs, a horizontal 2G joint
a cylindrical shape and flat bottom, while with the inside made of 9% Ni steel, and is used. Bottom plates are pre-joined in the
underground tanks are of the membrane discuss welding consumables and proce- workshop using the submerged arc welding
type. Since the insides of these tanks are dures, and engineering-related issues. (SAW) process, and then will be welded to-
being exposed to LNG which requires the The various engineering components of gether with FCAW or SMAW, on the jobsite.
low temperature of -161.5°C, they must an aboveground LNG tank include:
have a very high level of notch toughness. •Vapor barrier: Made of carbon steel, Codes and standards
The boiling point of the natural gas, which normally of a very low thickness. This is A wide range of design codes and in-
is predominantly methane (Figure 1), de- a protective layer between the inner tank dustry standards define the design, con-
termines the material that will be used, due insulation and concrete. Having a very low struction, inspection and maintenance
to the liquefaction of the gas requiring such thickness, the best method to weld this ap- of 9% Ni steel LNG tanks. The American
a low temperature (-1600°C or below). plication will be cored wire to avoid unnec- Petroleum Industry (API) Standard 620
Figure 2 shows an aboveground, essary distortion. is widely used in the industry, and the
flat-bottomed, cylindrical LNG storage •Internal piping: Liquefied gas is trans- design principles are discussed as below.
tank, known as a prestressed concrete (PC) ferred to and from the tank via stainless API Standard 620: The design and
LNG tank. This structure has an inner shell steel piping. The piping requires special construction pressure of large, welded,
made of 9% Ni steel, a surrounding wall consumables to guarantee the required low-pressure storage tanks; Appendix Q:
made of PC, an outer shell and roof made of Figure 1(1): The boiling points of various lique- toughness/lateral expansion. Low-storage tanks for liquefied hydro-
low-temperature service carbon steel, and fied gases and applicable metals for cryogenic •Suspended deck: Carbon or stain- carbon gases at a temperature no lower
an inner aluminum deck that is suspended storage tanks. less-steel rods are attached from deck than −270°F (−168°C). Table 1 provides
stiffeners to the roof girders or rafters. The a snapshot of allowable stresses on abo-
suspended decks, made from aluminum veground LNG tanks made of 9% Ni steel.
alloy 5083, require a deck annular plate While calculating the allowable stress
to provide a vapor seal between the liquid of 9% Ni steel as per the API 620 Appen-
product and the vapor space above the pri- dix Q, the lower value of the strength be-

Stainless Steel mary containment.

• Inner-tank knuckle joints: Top stiff-
tween the plate (e.g. quenched-and-tem-
pered ASTM A553 Type I: σB ≥ 690 MPa;

Alloy Steel Code or

Design standard
Formula to calculate
allowable stress
Standard
strength (MPa)
Allowable
stress (MPa)
API 620 Smaller value between σBM*1 ≥ 660 220

Specialty Alloys Appendix Q 1/3 σBM*1

and 2/3 σYM*2
σYM*2 ≥ 360

*1: Tensile strength of weld metal.

*2: Proof/Yield strength of weld metal.

Table 1: Allowable stresses of aboveground LNG tanks made of 9% Ni steel.

Standard ASTM JIS G 3127

A353 A553 SL9N 520 SL9N 590
Type I
Max. Plate thick. (mm) 50 50 50 50
Heat treatment NNT QT NNT QT

Custom Bar Processing C (%)

Si (%)
≤ 0.13
0.15-0.40
≤ 0.12
≤ 0.30
Mn (%) ≤ 0.90 ≤ 0.90
P (%) ≤ 0.035 ≤ 0.025

Bar Drawing ● Bar Grinding

S (%) ≤ 0.035 ≤ 0.025
Ni (%) 8.50-9.50 8.50-9.50

Bar Peeling ● Bar Cutting

0.2%PS (MPa) ≥ 515 ≥ 585 ≥ 520 ≥ 590
TS (MPa) 690-825 690-830
El (%), t: Thick (mm) ≥ 20.0 ≥ 21 (6 ≤ t ≤ 16) *1
Bar Straightening ≥ 25 (t > 16) *1
≥ 21 (t > 20) *2
Charpy Impact ≥ 34 ≥ 34 ≥ 41

We Service All Quantities (J) at −196°C

LE*3 (mm) at −196°C ≥ 0.38 ----
*1: With a plate-type specimen as per JIS Z 2201 No. 5 (GL: 50 mm).
*2: With a round specimen as per JIS Z 2201 No. 4 (GL: 50 mm).
*3: Lateral expansion.
713-849-0055 GoBarStock.com
Table 2: ASTM and JIS specifications for 9% Ni steel.

6 SSWAM - December 2018 | www.ssw-americas.com


Process AWS standard
SMAW A5.11/A5.11M:2005
FCAW A5.34/A5.34M:2007
GMAW A5.14/A5.14M:2005
GTAW
SAW
Process JIS standard
SMAW Z 3225:1999
GTAW Z 3332:1999
SAW Z 3333:1999
Table 3: AWS and JIS specifications for various welding electrodes and filler metals for welding
9% Ni steel.
σY ≥ 585 MPa) and the weld metal (e.g.
JIS Z 3225 D9Ni-1: σB ≥ 660 MPa; σY ≥
360 MPa), namely the strength of the weld
metal, is adopted as the standard allow-
able strength in general.
In addition, the Appendix Q allows
a tensile strength of 690 MPa, and the
proof/yield strength of 400 MPa as the
maximum permitted values for determin-
ing the allowable stress, though they must
be tested and proven. Thus, API allows
the adaptation of a higher strength de-
sign, making the reduction of plate thick-
ness possible.
Table 2 shows a snapshot of the mechan-
ical properties for 9% Ni steel conforming
to the American Society for Testing Mate-
rials (ASTM) and the Japanese Industrial
Standard (JIS) specifications, when used
for LNG tank construction. More details
about 9% Ni steel are available in respec-
tive design codes (API-620) and respective
ASTM and JIS specifications referred here.
9% Ni steel is ferritic and possess ex-
cellent mechanical properties at the cryo-
genic temperatures, and as well as good
fabrication and welding characteristics.
When compared to double normalized
and tempered (NNT), the quenching and
tempering (Q&T) material has the higher
0.2% proof strength as well as higher im-
pact toughness on thicker plate. Because of
these factors, Q&T-grade is mainly used,
particularly for the thicker sections such
as the shell and the bottom.
Here are important precautions to take
when handling 9% Ni steel before welding:
• During the cold-forming process, fi-
ber elongation should not exceed 3%. This
causes a sharp drop of impact property.
Post-forming heat treatment is recommend-
ed as specified in API 620 Appendix Q.
• 9% Ni steel has the disadvantage of
being easily magnetized. Use of magnetic
devices for lifting should be avoided during
manufacturing and fabrication such as
cutting and bending. Hence during trans-
portation, it is especially advisable to avoid
the use of magnetic cranes for lifting and to
keep the 9% Ni steel plate away from high
voltage power cables.
• The residual magnetism in 9% Ni steel
will cause a magnetic arc blow, making
the arc very unstable during the welding
process. Some fabricators prefer to speci-
fy their own limit of 50 Gauss or less when
accepting 9% Ni steel from plate suppliers.
Another solution for a magnetic arc blow is
to apply alternating current (AC) welding
for SMAW, which is already widely accept-
ed by fabricators.
Figure 3: CCT diagram of 9% Ni steel.
Specifications for
nickel and nickel alloy welding
electrodes for shielded metal
arc welding
nickel-alloy electrodes for
flux cored arc welding
nickel and nickel alloy bare
welding electrodes and rods
Specifications for
covered electrodes for 9%
nickel steel
filler rods and solid wires for
TIG welding of 9% nickel ste
submerged arc welding solid
wires and fluxes for 9% nickel
steel
Metallurgy (microstructure) of
9% Ni steel (3)
9% Ni steel is essentially a martensitic
steel, and this happens to be true for a Q&T
material up to the high thicknesses of 4in
(100mm), which is often a requirement for
the pressure vessel fabrication industry.
Figure 3 shows various possible mi-
crostructural phases and possible hard-
ness values in this steel as a function of
cooling rate.
Figure 4 shows a typical martensitic mi-
crostructure after quenching. Martensitic
microstructures formed in 9% Ni Steel are
low-carbon, nickel alloyed materials that
are strong and tough, with good ductility.
Similar microstructures are achievable in
the NNT grades of 9% Ni grade, but in a
lower thickness.
Figure 4: Typical 9% Ni steel martensitic mi-
crostructure.
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STAINLESS TUBULAR PRODUCTS
Special Topic - LNG
The historical background
Welding consumables for 9% Ni steel have
been a subject of discussion for more than
five decades. “Matching” ferritic consum-
ables, with up to about 12% nickel, would of-
fer an economic advantage. These consum-
ables typically containing 12% to 14% nickel
were developed and tried in the 1970s, how-
ever, the cost of production was such that
they did not compete with the nickel-based
alternative filler metal, which is now com-
monly used for welding 9% Ni steel. Even af-
ter 50 years or so, the best choice of consum-
able for welding 9% Ni steel is still within the Table 4: AWS and JIS specifications for covered
high-nickel alloy range. electrodes (SMAW) for 9% Ni steel. Note com-
9% Ni steel grades are weld-able with positions for GTAW, GMAW, SAW filers are al-
most of the arc welding processes, in- most back-to-back to SMAW products.
cluding SMAW, gas tungsten arc welding
(GTAW), gas metal arc welding (GMAW),
and SAW. GTAW and GMAW are very suit-
able for shop-welding pipes and thin-plate to weld 9% Ni steel with Inconel-type
material. However, they may not be suitable electrodes. However, with continual im-
for outdoor site welding conditions, where provements in welding automation, crack
wind draft could jeopardize the shielding resistance and strength of weld metal,
gas-protection. Also, due to low in-depo- Hastelloy-type welding consumables have
sition rate, GTAW may not be viable for increasingly been put into practice. An
thicker joints, however it still delivers the additional benefit is that the molybdenum
best quality. Manual GMAW requires ex- (Mo) content in Hastelloy-type welding
treme skill and endless concentration for consumables has been found effective in
out-of-position (3G and 4G positions). In preventing hot cracks.
addition, this process is relatively prone AWS specifies the welding consumables
to welding failures such as lack of fusion, for 9% Ni steel in SFA5.11, SFA5.14 and
especially in heavy thickness applications. SFA5.34, as part of the specifications for
Welding with SMAW however, is still a nickel and nickel alloy welding consum-
very flexible and viable process for welding ables. By contrast, JIS sets forth specific
under site conditions, all positions, and all regulations for welding consumables to be
materials. A reasonable economy is also of- used with 9% Ni steel in Z 3225, Z 3332
fered when using high recovery electrodes and Z 3333 as shown in Table 3.
that are 17in long. JIS does not recommend the FCAW
Whenever feasible, SAW offers the high- consumables to be used with 9% Ni steel.
est productivity due to increased deposi-
tion rates, especially when mechanized
(i.e. girth welding systems). This process is
suitable for almost all fillet and butt welds
in the horizontal welding position. For the
site welding of 9% Ni steel storage tanks,
the most effective welding processes are
SMAW and SAW.
9% Ni steel is commonly welded with
high-nickel alloys such as the Inconel-type
(Ni-Cr alloy), and the Hastelloy-type (Ni-
Mo alloy), even though their chemical com-
positions are quite different from those of
9% Ni steel. Although the ultimate tensile
strength of a high-nickel welding consum-
able is lower than that of 9% Ni steel, it does
not cause brittle fractures, even at cryogenic
temperatures, because of its full austenitic
microstructure of the weld metal.
Initially, the industry trend has been
Alloys, Inc.
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