Cheap Natural Gas Transportation Idea

March 31, 2012 · Posted in innovation · Comment 

Poor people in China transport natural gas in large plastic bags. If this could be made safe it’s a very low cost alternative to expensive pipelines. Natural gas could be quickly and cheaply distributed to places without infrastructure.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2108346/Chinese-villagers-carry-giant-balloons-stolen-natural-gas-heat-homes.html

Running underground pipes is a large investment. The small amount of natural gas these people would use doesn’t make that investment worth while.

The danger is if the gas is ignited. Three things are required to cause this danger, enough oxygen for ignition, natural gas mixed with oxygen, spark or flame.

A very simple solution is to put the natural gas bag inside another bag filled with carbon-dioxide. This would prevent ignition. CO2 could also be used to prevent an explosion while filling the bag with natural gas. First fill the bag with CO2 then use the natural gas to force out the CO2 into another empty bag of the same size. When the second bag is full you know the first bag is filled with natural gas. The process could then be repeated with the second bag.