| 摘要 |
A semisubmersible, loading, mooring and storage (LMS) facility for handling petroleum products at offshore locations. The LMS facility is comprised of a submerged storage section and a central tower section. The submerged storage section is comprised of a plurality of dual crude/water tanks, each of which has a flexible diaphragm therein to prevent any contact between the crude and the water. The central tower section contains crude only tanks through which the LMS facility is loaded and offloaded with crude and has an offloading and mooring structure on the top thereof. When the LMS facility is in an operable position and the dual tanks are filled with water, the profile of the LMS facility in the water is fixed and will not substantially change during loading or offloading of crude. The LMS facility is loaded by flowing crude into the crude only tanks and then filling the dual tanks from crude only tanks at a rate necessary to compensate for the water being displaced from the dual tanks. The LMS facility is offloaded by flowing water into the dual tanks to displace crude from the dual tanks into the crude only tanks. Crude from the crude only tanks is loaded onto a vessel at a rate to compensate for the water being flowed into the dual tanks. |
