Liquefied Natural Gas Storage: Material Behavior of Concrete at Cryogenic Temperatures

Significant interest has been generated in recent years in the development, design, and construction of liquefied gas containment tanks, such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanks. Consequently, a large number of LNG tanks are planned for construction in the near future. Concrete is particularly well suited for construction of such tanks. Its properties and behavior at cryogenic temperatures (for example, -160 °C [-260 °FJ), however, differs significantly from known behavior at room temperatures. This paper presents the effect of cryogenic temperatures on the stress-strain response, compression strength, tension strength, flexural strength, Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, coefficient of thermal expansion, thermal conductivity, creep, and permeability. Available data indicate that concrete properties improve at cryogenic temperatures. The extent of improvement is highly dependent on moisture content.