Liquefaction Process Cycles Patents: Top Companies & Trends 2026
- Concentrated leadership. the top 5 assignees hold 66.2% of all 133 records in scope, and the top 10 hold 88.7% — this field is not a long tail of small filers.
- Filing has cooled since the 2022 peak. activity ran from 21 filings in 2021 to 0 by 2024, a complete three-year span the data confirms, though 2025-2026 counts are still filling in due to publication lag.
- Almost everything sits in one class. F25J gas liquefaction and separation covers 97.0% of the 133 records, while marine and control-system classes each stay under 7%, marking where sub-claims are thinner.
Filing growth compares 2021 (21 records) with 2024 (0) — a three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year we treat as complete: publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so 2025 onwards are still filling in and any growth rate that ends there would understate the field. Top-5 share is the combined record count of the five largest assignees divided by all 133 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What this patent set covers
This landscape tracks 133 published records filed against mixed refrigerant liquefaction, propane precooled cycles and cascade liquefaction, narrowed further to filings that also address refrigerant composition control, precooling circuits, minimum temperature approach, ambient air cooling, end flash gas handling or single mixed refrigerant configurations. The scope spans 2015 through the 2026-07-31 data cut-off, which means the newest filings are still incomplete.
Because publication trails filing by roughly 18 months, any read of the most recent one to two years understates real activity. The safer signal is the completed run through 2024, which shows where cycle innovation actually concentrated before recent filings finish publishing.
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Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 133-record set: how filing volume moved year over year, and which IPC subclasses carry the claim density.
Filing trend, 2017-2026
Filings rose from 5 in 2017 to a peak of 25 in 2022, then fell sharply — 21 filings in 2021 dropped to 0 by 2024, a -100% move over that complete three-year span. Treat 2025 and 2026 as still filling in rather than as evidence of a continued decline.
IPC subclass composition
F25J (gas liquefaction and separation) appears in 97.0% of the 133 records, confirming this is the anchor classification for the field. Pump classes (F04B, F04C, F04D) and control systems (G05B) each sit at 6.0%, while marine-specific classes (B63B, B63H) and pressure vessel storage (F17C) stay under 4% — these are the thinner, more peripheral claim areas rather than the core cycle mechanics.
Shares are the percentage of the 133 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Liquefaction Process Cycles with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about liquefaction process cycles and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaMost-cited records in this set
Mixed Refrigerant Liquefaction System and Method (US20160298898A1)
A system for liquefying a gas includes a liquefaction heat exchanger having a feed gas inlet adapted to receive a feed gas and a liquefied gas outlet through which the liquefied gas exits after the gas is liquefied in the liquefying passage of the heat exchanger by heat exchange with a primary refrigeration passage. A mixed refrigerant compressor system is configured to provide refrigerant to the primary refrigeration passage. An expander separator is in communication with the liquefied gas outlet of the liquefaction heat exchanger, and a cold gas line is in fluid communication with the expander separator. A cold recovery heat exchanger receives cold vapor from the cold gas line and liquid refrigerant recovery.Filed 2016-10-13. One of the two most-cited records in this set, cited 49 times within the corpus.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20170167787A1 | Method of Natural Gas Liquefaction on LNG Carriers Storing Liquid Nitrogen | 59 |
| 2 | US20160298898A1 | Mixed Refrigerant Liquefaction System and Method | 49 |
| 3 | US8490565B1 | Method for processing and moving liquefied natural gas with dynamic positioning system | 20 |
| 4 | US8308518B1 | Method for processing and moving liquefied natural gas using a floating station and a soft yoke | 20 |
| 5 | US20180058753A1 | Methods and configurations for LNG liquefaction | 18 |
| 6 | US8490563B1 | Floating liquefaction vessel | 18 |
| 7 | US8490562B1 | Liquefied natural gas dynamic positioning system processing and transport system | 15 |
| 8 | US20170089637A1 | Parallel Compression in LNG Plants Using a Positive Displacement Compressor | 14 |
| 9 | US20190204007A1 | System and Method for Removing Freezing Components from a Feed Gas | 10 |
| 10 | EP3255126A1 | Method of processing a coal seam gas | 10 |
Citation counts reflect influence within the searched corpus and favour older filings; they are not a measure of current commercial relevance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Read together, the concentration figures, the trend line and the class composition point to a field where the core cycle mechanics are well claimed and the openings sit at the edges.
Leadership is settled, not fragmented
The top 5 assignees combined account for 66.2% of all 133 records, and the top 10 reach 88.7%. A new entrant is filing into a space where a handful of established players already hold most of the granted claim territory on core cycle design.
Activity peaked in 2022, then dropped off a cliff
Filings ran from 21 in 2021 to a peak of 25 in 2022, then to 0 by 2024 — a complete and confirmed -100% move. Recent-year momentum tables show the largest historical filers all sitting at 0 in the latest tracked year, consistent with a post-peak lull rather than any single company pulling back.
One class dominates; adjacent classes are thin
F25J covers gas liquefaction and separation and touches nearly every record in scope. Pump mechanisms, control systems and marine-specific classes each sit at 6.0% or below, suggesting the bulk of inventive activity is written directly against the liquefaction cycle rather than its supporting hardware.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to liquefaction process cycles, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who holds the claim territory
The leader in this set holds 34 records, more than double the fifth-place assignee's 13, and the gap widens further by tenth place at 4 — a steep concentration curve rather than a gradual one.
A clear frontrunner
The leading assignee's 34 records sit well ahead of the field; the fifth-ranked company holds 13, and by tenth place the count is down to 4. This is a steep drop-off, not a gradual taper.
US and Australia lead filing venues
United States (37) and Australia (24) are the top receiving offices, ahead of EPO (17), WIPO/PCT (15) and Canada (14). The Australia figure is notable given the country's LNG export infrastructure, suggesting filings track downstream project geography as much as R&D location.
Co-filing is limited and concentrated
Only 9 co-assignee pairs appear across the set, and the strongest pairings recur around the same handful of organisations. This points to filing being mostly a solo activity for the leading players rather than a joint-venture pattern.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Praxair Technology, Inc. | 0 | — |
| Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. | 0 | — |
| Chart Energy & Chemicals, Inc. | 0 | — |
| Shell Internationale Research Maatschappij B.V. | 0 | — |
| ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company | 0 | — |
| HOWARD HENRY EDWARD | 0 | — |
| Shell Oil Company | 0 | — |
| SHIVERS III ROBERT MAGEE | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to a mature, concentrated core with specific thinner branches. Two directions make sense from here.
Map the white space claims directly
The under-claimed branches — marine integration, ambient cooling circuits, end flash gas recovery — carry low record counts but sit adjacent to a densely claimed core. A freedom-to-operate check against the leading assignees' claim scope is the logical next step before drafting there.
Explore white space in EurekaTrack the post-2022 filing pattern as it fills in
The drop from 21 filings in 2021 to 0 by 2024 is confirmed, but 2025-2026 data is still incomplete. Re-checking this trend in six to twelve months, once publication lag clears, will show whether the lull was cyclical or structural.
Monitor filing trends in EurekaCommon questions about liquefaction process cycle patents
The ranked list covers 22 companies, with the leading assignee holding 34 of the 133 records in scope — well ahead of the fifth-place company's 13. The top 5 assignees combined hold 66.2% of all records, and the top 10 hold 88.7%, so filing activity is heavily concentrated rather than spread across many small players. Anyone assessing freedom to operate in this space should expect to run claim checks against a short list of established filers rather than a fragmented field.
Filings peaked at 25 in 2022 after rising from 5 in 2017, then fell to 0 by 2024 — a confirmed -100% move from the 21 filings recorded in 2021. That 2021-2024 window is the most reliable trend because publication typically lags filing by about 18 months, so 2025 and 2026 figures are still incomplete and should not be read as continued decline. The honest read is a post-peak lull with the most recent data still filling in.
F25J, the IPC subclass covering gas liquefaction and separation, appears in 97.0% of the 133 records in this dataset, making it the clear anchor classification. Supporting classes — pump mechanisms (F04B, F04C, F04D) and control systems (G05B) — each appear in about 6.0% of records, while marine-specific and pressure-vessel classes sit even lower. This tells you the bulk of claimed invention sits directly on cycle thermodynamics and refrigerant handling, not on peripheral hardware.
The thinner classes in this dataset — marine propulsion integration, ambient air cooling circuit design, end flash gas recovery, and control-system tuning for refrigerant composition — each cover a small share of the 133 records compared to the F25J core. Low record counts do not guarantee an easy path, since some of these areas intersect with claims held by the leading assignees, but they are less densely occupied than the core cycle mechanics. A targeted prior-art search on these specific branches is a reasonable starting point before drafting new claims.
The United States leads with 37 filings, followed by Australia at 24, the European Patent Office at 17, WIPO under the PCT route at 15, and Canada at 14; Malaysia registers 8. The strong Australia and Malaysia showing likely reflects proximity to LNG export infrastructure and project siting rather than R&D concentration alone. Applicants targeting downstream LNG markets should expect these jurisdictions to carry meaningful existing claim density.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company’s registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.