Super Therm over Hot Water Tanks
In 2001 Century Rig 3 had a hot water problem at Moomba gas field in South Australia. They used a steel Frac tank (water storage) 35 ft long x 15 ft diametre and a small storage tank at the kitchen (6 ft X 6 ft square 3 side and the top only).
Both the hot and cold water temperature was 46°C.
The ambient day temperature was 44-48°C and the night temperature was 32-36°C.
Staff and crew could not have a shower as the water was too hot. They would sit on the floor with the shower rose up high hoping that the water cooled as it reached them.
Water from the Moomba Plant was 46°C and even when the water tanker was left in the shade the water temperature stayed at 46°C. When the water was transferred into the Frac tank, it was again, 46°C and no change. Even though the tanks were white they still allowed the infrared heat through which is 54% of the total solar heat.
To over come the problem we coated the tank with Super Therm at 250 microns dry which also blocks 99.5% of the infrared heat and finally the crew could have cold water showers.
To cool the hot water, we opened the small 4 inch cam lock on top of the tank and also the 1 ft hatch this allowed the hot air to flow out. To make the air flow quicker, we installed a wind operated whirlybird air extractor.
The water temperature reduced to 24°C and went lower when a full tank of water at 46°C was pumped into the Frac tank. The water temperature rose slightly and dropped down very quickly due to the hot air extraction.
The only time the cam lock was sealed was during a rig shift. If the tank stayed sealed we would have created a giant thermos flask. The last time we saw this tank was about 2014 and it was still working.
