Patent Application
20190039836
This invention relates generally to transport of solids. More particularly, we are interested in transporting solids between zones of differing pressures without losing pressure.
Solids handling is required in nearly all industries. One of the great difficulties in these industries is transferring solids across a pressure gradient. One common solution is to fluidize the solids. This can be done as a liquid slurry or by aeration of solids in pneumatic transport, as in fluidized beds and lift pipes.
Liquid slurries are excellent solutions, when the solids can be transferred in a liquid. However, in many solid transport processes, this would be a step backwards, as removing liquids is part of earlier processing steps. Further, solids may react or change as they are in the liquid.
Pneumatic transport works well in many cases. For example, transporting fuels into a burner, with the fuels being carried by air for combustion. However, pneumatic transport across a pressure gradient generally requires the solids be passed through lock hoppers or similar in order to step the solids up in pressure. Large amounts of dust are often produced, necessitating complex baghouses for dust suppression. Further, hot solids can be cooled, or cold solids warmed, during pneumatic transport, which can reduce efficiencies of heat exchange processes.
A solids conveyance process to pass solids across pressure gradients with minimal pressure losses and without fluidizing is required.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,001,652, to Schroeder, et al., teaches an apparatus for feeding finely divided solids. The present disclosure differs from this prior art disclosure in that the prior art disclosure requires aeration of solids and the piston does not rotate. This prior art disclosure is pertinent and may benefit from the devices disclosed herein and is hereby incorporated for reference in its entirety for all that it teaches.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,667,280, to Lane, et al., teaches a method for handling finely divided solid materials. The present disclosure differs from this prior art disclosure in that the prior art disclosure the piston does not rotate. Further, the solids are fluidized, being drawn through a check valve into the radial piston cylinder, and then are pushed out through a second check valve. This prior art disclosure is pertinent and may benefit from the devices disclosed herein and is hereby incorporated for reference in its entirety for all that it teaches.
A method and device for transferring solid particles between zones of different pressures is disclosed. A pressure barrier separates a solids source of a first pressure and a solids receptacle of a second pressure. A rotating annular disk spans the pressure barrier, comprising an exterior portion and an interior portion, and being disposed adjacent to and between the solids source and the solids receptacle. The rotating annular disk further comprises a radial piston cylinder connecting the exterior portion with the interior portion. The exterior portion of the radial piston cylinder is in sequential communication with the solids source and the solids receptacle. A piston is disposed within the radial piston cylinder comprising a proximal end and distal end, the distal end comprising a cam follower. A stationary closed cam device is located within the interior portion comprising an internal cam profile. The cam follower is in contact with the internal cam profile. As the disk rotates, the cam follower tracks the cam profile causing the piston to move rectilinearly through the radial piston cylinder. As the radial piston cylinder aligns with the solids source the piston retracts, providing a cavity in the radial piston cylinder into which the solid particles fall. As the radial piston cylinder aligns with the solids receptacle the piston returns, closing the cavity, ejecting the solid particles into the solids receptacle.
The solid particles may comprise comminuted ores, powders, grains, granulated sugars, powdered grains, salts, sand, cryogenic solids, metal particles, or combinations thereof.
The disk may rotate alternately clockwise and counterclockwise, or vice versa, to rotate the radial piston cylinder to face the source and the solids receptacle, respectively.
The disk may comprise a plurality of pistons in a plurality of radial piston cylinders. The disk may rotate in a complete circle. The plurality of radial piston cylinders may be equally spaced around the disk.
The source may comprise a hopper, tank, vessel, pipe, chute, stockpile, or combinations thereof. The source may be vibrated such that the solid particles fall into the cavity.
The solids receptacle may comprise a stockpile, tank, vessel, pipe, chute, hopper, or combinations thereof.
The source may be aerated to agitate the solid particles.
In order that the advantages of the invention will be readily understood, a more particular description of the invention briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through use of the accompanying drawings, in which:
It will be readily understood that the components of the present invention, as generally described and illustrated in the Figures herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following more detailed description of the embodiments of the invention, as represented in the Figures, is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, as claimed, but is merely representative of certain examples of presently contemplated embodiments in accordance with the invention.
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In some embodiments, the solid particles comprise comminuted ores, powders, grains, granulated sugars, powdered grains, salts, sand, cryogenic solids, metal particles, or combinations thereof.
In some embodiments, the disk rotates alternately clockwise and counterclockwise, to rotate the radial piston cylinder to face the source and the solids receptacle, respectively.
In some embodiments, the disk comprises a plurality of pistons in a plurality of radial piston cylinders. In some embodiments, the disk rotates in a complete circle. In some embodiments, the plurality of radial piston cylinders are equally spaced around the disk.
In some embodiments, the source comprises a hopper, tank, vessel, pipe, chute, stockpile, or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the source is vibrated such that the solid particles fall into the cavity. In some embodiments, the solids receptacle comprises a stockpile, tank, vessel, pipe, chute, hopper or combinations thereof.
In some embodiments, the source is aerated to agitate the solid particles.
In some embodiments, the source is caused to vibrate to cause the solid particles to fall into the cavity.
Disks, as used herein, also includes drums and barrels. Pistons, as used herein, also include cylinders.
