The design of the TITAN tank is based upon Lincoln Composites' TUFFSHELL® technology. It has a high density polyethylene (HDPE) liner, a filament wound carbon fibre/epoxy composite shell (the primary structural member of the container), plus a polyurethane coating applied to the outer surface.

The TITAN tank is almost 12 m in length and over 1 m in diameter and is designed for the bulk transportation of compressed natural gas (CNG), hydrogen, nitrogen and helium. It is designed to operate at 250 bar and will store over 1840 kg of CNG.

The results of performance testing of the TITAN tank include:

  • an average hydrostatic burst pressure of 717 bar;
  • completed 45 000 pressure cycles from 20 bar to 375 bar;
  • completed 5000 high temperature cycles from atmospheric pressure to 250 bar at temperatures of 60-70°C;
  • completed 5000 low temperature cycles from atmospheric pressure to 250 bar at temperatures of -50-60°C.

A 40 ft ISO modular storage system for transporting four TITAN tanks has also completed the necessary testing to be certified to ISO 1496-3. The testing highlights for this approval included transverse/longitudinal racking, lateral/longitudinal inertia, dynamic impact and a bonfire test.

A 40 ft TITAN module, with four TITAN tanks, will contain over 7380 kg of CNG at service pressure, which equates to over 10 000 standard m3.

"We are excited at the opportunities presented by TITAN for the bulk hauling and gas storage markets," says Dale Tiller, President of Lincoln Composites. "These users will no longer be weighed down with hauling heavy steel cylinders that are also a 'plumber's nightmare' due to the multiplicity of fittings and tube runs required. TITAN tanks are four times more efficient than competing storage systems with respect to payload, and cost competitive with liquefied natural gas (LNG) in certain duty cycles over moderate transport distances."

Lincoln Composites Inc, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA, is a subsidiary of Hexagon Composites ASA of Norway.