EP1131589B1 - Method and apparatus for regulating an atmosphere - Google Patents

Method and apparatus for regulating an atmosphere Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1131589B1
EP1131589B1 EP99958597A EP99958597A EP1131589B1 EP 1131589 B1 EP1131589 B1 EP 1131589B1 EP 99958597 A EP99958597 A EP 99958597A EP 99958597 A EP99958597 A EP 99958597A EP 1131589 B1 EP1131589 B1 EP 1131589B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
space
concentrator
nitrogen
unit
atmosphere
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP99958597A
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German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP1131589A2 (en
Inventor
Sven-Ake Johansson
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
AGA AB
Original Assignee
AGA AB
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Filing date
Publication date
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Publication of EP1131589A2 publication Critical patent/EP1131589A2/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP1131589B1 publication Critical patent/EP1131589B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B21/00—Arrangements or duct systems, e.g. in combination with pallet boxes, for supplying and controlling air or gases for drying solid materials or objects
    • F26B21/14—Arrangements or duct systems, e.g. in combination with pallet boxes, for supplying and controlling air or gases for drying solid materials or objects using gases or vapours other than air or steam, e.g. inert gases
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B25/00—Details of general application not covered by group F26B21/00 or F26B23/00
    • F26B25/005—Treatment of dryer exhaust gases
    • F26B25/006—Separating volatiles, e.g. recovering solvents from dryer exhaust gases

Definitions

  • the present invention relates generally to a method and an apparatus for regulating the atmosphere in an essentially closed space.
  • An apparatus according to the preamble of claim 7 is known, for instance, from US-A-5 214 924.
  • a preferred inert gas supplied to the space is e.g. nitrogen.
  • nitrogen e.g. nitrogen.
  • a large flow of nitrogen to the inerted space is often needed which leads to large costs for nitrogen.
  • solvent vapour in the space the outgoing process flow from the space will contain not only nitrogen and oxygen but also e.g. solvent vapour as well. This means additional costs for the solvent and also for environmental influence.
  • stricter environmental requirements have required investment in purifying equipment in order to keep the amount of discharged VOC low and thereby to continue with the operation.
  • the European patent publication EP-0 094 172 discloses a method and an apparatus for recovering solvent vapour from an oven chamber or driver wherein a material balance is maintained with respect to the chamber atmosphere.
  • the atmosphere is withdrawn from the oven at a substantially constant flow rate and the uncondensed gas stream is returned to the oven at a rate that depends on sensed changes in the solvent vapour concentration.
  • a problem with the described method and apparatus is that the requirements for low discharges of VOC are not fulfilled in a cost-efficient way.
  • An object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for regulating the atmosphere in an essentially closed space whereby the above mentioned drawbacks of prior art are avoided or at least mitigated and which are cost-efficient and limits the amount of discharged VOC.
  • the invention is based on the realisation, that the outgoing process gas flow can be purified in a cost-efficient way by means of a combination of a concentrator and a condensation plant.
  • a method for regulating an atmosphere in an essentially closed space said atmosphere containing a condensable substance, inert gas and oxygen, comprising the following steps: a) withdrawing said atmosphere from the space and passing the same, forming a process gas flow, to a concentrator unit wherein said condensable substance is separated from the rest of said process gas flow; b) returning at least a part of said process gas flow to the space; and c) bringing said condensable substance from said concentrator unit to a condensation unit and condensing said condensable substance in said condensation unit.
  • an apparatus for regulating an atmosphere in an essentially closed space said atmosphere comprising condensable substance
  • said apparatus comprising a source of inert gas connected to said space, and a condensation unit for condensation of said condensable substance
  • the apparatus further comprises a concentrator unit provided between said space and said condensation unit, said concentrator unit increasing the level of condensable substance in the flow leaving the concentrator unit to the condensation unit compared to that of the flow entering the concentrator unit from the space.
  • FIG. 1 a first embodiment of an apparatus and a process according to the invention for treatment of objects in an essentially closed space will be described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2.
  • the objects (not shown) that are to be treated are moved into and through an essentially closed space 2.
  • the space 2 is well known in the art and comprises openings for the objects to be treated, in some cases some type of gas curtain or other device in order to minimise the amount of oxygen entering the space through the openings etc.
  • the space 2 is connected to a concentrator 5 by means of an outgoing conduit 3 and an ingoing conduit 4.
  • An outlet valve 6 is provided in the ingoing conduit 4, the function of which valve will be described later.
  • the concentrator 5 is in turn connected to a cryo condensation plant (CCP) 9 through an outgoing conduit 7 and an ingoing conduit 8.
  • CCP cryo condensation plant
  • a source of liquid nitrogen (LIN source) 10 connected to the CCP 9 through a conduit 11.
  • the LIN source 10 is also connected to the space 2 through an evaporator 12 and conduits 13 and 14.
  • the conduit 13 also connects to the CCP 9.
  • the operation of the above-described apparatus will be described in the following.
  • the O 2 level in the space 2 exceeds a desired level, e.g. 3%.
  • a desired level e.g. 3%.
  • pure nitrogen is conducted to the space 2 from the LIN source 10 through the evaporator 12 and conduits 13 and 14.
  • the function of the evaporator 12 is to avoid having nitrogen in liquid form enter the space 2, which would lead to damage to the space and objects therein.
  • Nitrogen is supplied from the LIN source 10 to the space 2 until the O 2 level therein is lowered to the desired level.
  • the objects to be treated such as glass bottles or video tapes, are then brought into and through the space 2 through openings (not shown) provided therefor.
  • Nitrogen is constantly supplied to the space 2 in order to keep the oxygen level on the desired level, because new oxygen constantly leaks into the space 2.
  • a flow of process gas comprising nitrogen, solvent vapour and oxygen will then be conducted by means of a fan (not shown) from the space 2 through the outgoing conduit 3 and into the concentrator 5.
  • the fan can be provided in either conduit 3 or conduit 4.
  • the concentrator 5 will now be described in detail with reference to FIG. 2.
  • the process gas flow enters the concentrator 5 through the conduit 3 and is brought to one of two purifying beds 20a, 20b.
  • the bed not used for purifying the process gas flow is then shut off by means of the valves 21a-d. If e.g. bed 20a is to be used, valves 21a and 21b are open whereas valves 21c and 21d are closed.
  • the beds 20a, 20b comprise some suitable purifying material, such as zeolite or active carbon.
  • suitable purifying material such as zeolite or active carbon.
  • the beds 20a, 20b are also connected to the conduits 7 and 8 through valves 22a, 22b and 22c, 22d, respectively. These connections are used when the beds are to be cleaned, i.e., when they are saturated with solvent. This cleaning process will now be described.
  • a fan (not shown) is provided in the conduit 8 for the circulation of the nitrogen.
  • the nitrogen entering the concentrator from conduit 8 is brought to the one of the beds 20a, 20b that is saturated with solvent and therefore presently not used for purifying the process gas flow from the space 2.
  • the selection of bed 20a, 20b is effected by means of valves 22a-d.
  • the nitrogen from conduit 8 is brought to the saturated bed 20b and vice versa.
  • valve 22a when valve 21a is open then valve 22a must be closed and vice versa, i.e., the two valves 21a, 22a must not be open at the same time. However, it is possible for the two valves 21a, 22a to be closed at the same time, e.g. when the bed 20a has been cleaned but the other bed 20b is still functioning for purifying the process gas flow. The same applies for the other valve pairs 21b, 22b etc.
  • the solvent in the bed is evaporated and brought with the heated nitrogen flow leaving the concentrator 5 through the conduit 7 to the CCP 9. In that way the selected bed is cleaned and can thereafter be used to purify the incoming process gas from the space 2.
  • cryo condensation plant for condensing e.g. solvent vapour
  • the efficiency depends on the concentration of solvent in the process gas. At higher solvent concentrations, a larger part of the cooling effect can be used for condensation of solvent. At lower concentration a larger part of the cooling effect will be used for cooling nitrogen, and this leads to a less efficient use of the cooling capacity. In other words, in order to condense the same amount of solvent a much larger amount of LIN would be needed for cooling in the case no concentrator was used.
  • the incoming nitrogen-solvent flow from conduit 7 is cooled to a very low temperature, whereby a major part of the solvent is condensed.
  • the cooling is effected by means of liquid nitrogen brought from the LIN source 10 via the conduit 11.
  • the CCP 9 then works as a heat exchanger, wherein the liquid nitrogen from the LIN source is evaporated thereby cooling the nitrogen-solvent flow coming from the concentrator 5.
  • the condensed solvent is collected and can thereafter be returned to the inerted space 2 and reused in the process by means of some suitable piping means, shown as arrow 26 in the figures.
  • this reuse of solvent provides an inexpensive and effective means for lowering the costs for solvent.
  • the cooling process in the CCP 9 is a very effective one because the nitrogen-solvent flow from the concentrator 5 contains a relatively large portion of solvent.
  • the evaporated pure nitrogen from the LIN source 10 after being used for cooling, is then carried to the space 2 as a part of the nitrogen added through conduit 13.
  • the nitrogen used for the cryo condensation and the amount of nitrogen needed for inerting the space 2 is essentially balanced, i.e., all nitrogen used for cooling the CCP goes directly onward to the inerted space 2 and small amounts of or no nitrogen has to be used in the CCP that can not be used in the inerted space 2.
  • the CCP 9 also functions as an evaporator, further increasing the cost-efficiency of the inventive method and apparatus.
  • FIG. 3 A second embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to FIG. 3.
  • the only change from the embodiment described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2 lies in the CCP 9.
  • this functioned as a heat exchanger with two separate systems, viz. the system connected to the concentrator 5 with the function to condense the solvent and the system connected to the LIN source 10 with the function to cool the nitrogen carrying the solvent, respectively.
  • the CCP works in a different way.
  • the CCP 9 is still connected to the LIN source 10 and the liquid nitrogen supplied through conduit 11 is used for cooling.
  • the then evaporated nitrogen used for cooling is supplied to the concentrator 5 through the conduit 8.
  • This nitrogen is heated by heater 23, see FIG. 2, before being brought to one of the beds 20a, 20b to be cleaned, just as in the first embodiment.
  • the fan (not shown) used for circulating the nitrogen in conduit 8 can be omitted, as the pressure from the LIN source 10 is sufficient for forcing the nitrogen through the system.
  • the nitrogen used for cleaning the beds is carried through conduit 7 to the CCP 9, wherein the solvent is condensed. Thereafter, the nitrogen, now with only a minor part of solvent, is lead to the space 2 for inertion. Thus, the system CCP 9, concentrator 5 and conduits 7, 8 no longer forms a closed system for nitrogen.
  • the fan in conduit 8 can be omitted, thus saving costs.
  • the nitrogen supplied through this conduit 8 is pure, i.e., it contains essentially no oxygen as it comes essentially directly from the LIN source 10. This eliminates the hazards connected to the heater 23 as already small amounts of oxygen in contact therewith can cause an explosion.
  • FIG. 1 The self-regulating system of inerting nitrogen coming from the CCP 9 and the evaporator 12 will now be described with reference to FIG. 1.
  • the set pressure value of controller 28 is slightly higher than that of controller 29, e.g. 200 mbar and 190 mbar, respectively.
  • the nitrogen in conduit 13 then comes primarily from the CCP 9 and only in case there is not sufficient nitrogen supply therefrom, i.e., the pressure drops in conduit 13 before pressure controller 28, nitrogen will be supplied from the evaporator 12 and conduit 14.
  • a fundamental feature of the process is that oxygen leaks into the space and an inerting gas, e.g. nitrogen, must therefore be supplied to the space 2.
  • Oxygen and nitrogen together with solvent vapour is carried as a process gas flow from the space 2 to the concentrator 5.
  • the nitrogen together with oxygen is then returned to the space 2 through conduit 4.
  • this nitrogen-oxygen mixture is bled off through valve 6 and into the surrounding environment. This has been made feasible due to the fact that this nitrogen-oxygen mixture is essentially free of solvent vapour and thus does not constitute an environmental hazard.
  • the consumption of LIN can be substantially reduced. It has been experimentally shown, that the LIN consumption can be lowered by a factor 8-10. The number of times the nitrogen can be reused depends on how much oxygen is leaking into the space 2. In addition, the condensed solvent can be brought back to the process, whereby the amount of added solvent can be reduced.
  • the LIN used for reducing the level of oxygen can be used not only for that but also to condense the solvent after the concentrator.
  • VOC discharge can be kept on a low level complying with the requirements also in countries with very strict rules regarding VOC discharge.
  • inventive method and apparatus are not limited to VOC, such as solvents, but is also applicable to other types of condensable substances, such as hydrocarbons.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Crystals, And After-Treatments Of Crystals (AREA)
  • Vaporization, Distillation, Condensation, Sublimation, And Cold Traps (AREA)
  • Separation By Low-Temperature Treatments (AREA)
  • Furnace Details (AREA)
  • Battery Electrode And Active Subsutance (AREA)
  • Manufacturing Of Electric Cables (AREA)
EP99958597A 1998-11-12 1999-11-12 Method and apparatus for regulating an atmosphere Expired - Lifetime EP1131589B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
SE9803877A SE513147C2 (sv) 1998-11-12 1998-11-12 Sätt och anordning för reglering av en atmosfär
SE9803877 1998-11-12
PCT/SE1999/002068 WO2000029798A2 (en) 1998-11-12 1999-11-12 Method and apparatus for regulating an atmosphere

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1131589A2 EP1131589A2 (en) 2001-09-12
EP1131589B1 true EP1131589B1 (en) 2004-09-29

Family

ID=20413271

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP99958597A Expired - Lifetime EP1131589B1 (en) 1998-11-12 1999-11-12 Method and apparatus for regulating an atmosphere

Country Status (14)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1131589B1 (es)
AT (1) ATE278169T1 (es)
AU (1) AU1593400A (es)
BR (1) BR9915242A (es)
CA (1) CA2349857A1 (es)
CZ (1) CZ20011674A3 (es)
DE (1) DE69920740T2 (es)
ES (1) ES2230903T3 (es)
HU (1) HUP0104757A3 (es)
MX (1) MXPA01004790A (es)
NO (1) NO20012333L (es)
PL (1) PL348158A1 (es)
SE (1) SE513147C2 (es)
WO (1) WO2000029798A2 (es)

Family Cites Families (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
AU511678B2 (en) * 1977-08-29 1980-08-28 Airco Inc. Recovering solvents from drying ovens
US4475293A (en) * 1982-04-28 1984-10-09 The Boc Group, Inc. Controlled inerting of chamber atmospheres
ZA842148B (en) * 1983-04-01 1984-10-31 Boc Group Inc Dual vessel heat exchange system
DE4040389C2 (de) * 1990-12-17 1994-03-03 Air Prod Gmbh Verfahren zur Vermeidung oder Verringerung von störfallbedingten Zeitverzögerungen bei der Lösungsmittelrückgewinnung aus Fertigungsprozessen

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
DE69920740D1 (de) 2004-11-04
SE513147C2 (sv) 2000-07-17
AU1593400A (en) 2000-06-05
WO2000029798A3 (en) 2000-08-03
DE69920740T2 (de) 2005-10-20
ES2230903T3 (es) 2005-05-01
BR9915242A (pt) 2001-11-06
CZ20011674A3 (cs) 2002-03-13
EP1131589A2 (en) 2001-09-12
CA2349857A1 (en) 2000-05-25
HUP0104757A3 (en) 2002-05-28
HUP0104757A2 (hu) 2002-03-28
SE9803877L (sv) 2000-05-13
NO20012333L (no) 2001-07-04
SE9803877D0 (sv) 1998-11-12
ATE278169T1 (de) 2004-10-15
MXPA01004790A (es) 2003-07-21
WO2000029798A2 (en) 2000-05-25
PL348158A1 (en) 2002-05-06
NO20012333D0 (no) 2001-05-11

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