EP4650054A1

EP4650054A1 - Priority control

Info

Publication number: EP4650054A1
Application number: EP24176700.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Per-Gustaf Larsson; Staffan Königsson; Viktor LAHTI
Original assignee: Alfa Laval Corporate AB
Current assignee: Alfa Laval Corporate AB
Priority date: 2024-05-17
Filing date: 2024-05-17
Publication date: 2025-11-19
Also published as: WO2025237676A1

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method of controlling operation of a centrifugal separator (1), and a separator (1) performing the method.

In an aspect, a method is provided of controlling operation of a centrifugal separator (1) upon the separator performing a separation process, comprising presenting (S101), to an operator, a plurality of separator operational modes available for selection, receiving (S102), by operator selection, information indicating an order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator in response to said user selection, determining (S103), from the received information, operational parameters of the separator to be controlled upon the separator performing the operational mode and performing (S104) the operational modes by controlling the determined operational parameters upon the separator (1) performing the separation process.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a method of controlling operation of a centrifugal separator, and a separator performing the method.

BACKGROUND

Centrifugal separators are generally used for separation of liquids and/or for separation of solids from a liquid mixture. During operation, liquid mixture to be separated is introduced into a rotating centrifuge bowl and e.g. heavy particles or denser liquid accumulate at the periphery of the rotating bowl whereas less dense liquid accumulates closer to the central axis of rotation. This allows for collection of the separated fractions, e.g. by means of different outlets arranged at different distances from the rotational axis.
A separator maybe controlled to operate in different operational modes depending on a desired output to be achieved by an operator, and selecting a correct operational mode and subsequently controlling the separator to perform the selected operational mode is challenging.

SUMMARY

One objective is to solve, or at least mitigate, this problem in the art and thus to provide an improved method of controlling operation of a separator.
This objective is attained in a first aspect by a method of controlling operation of a centrifugal separator upon the separator performing a separation process. The method comprises presenting, to an operator, a plurality of separator operational modes available for selection, receiving, by operator selection, information indicating an order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator in response to said user selection, determining, from the received information, operational parameters of the separator to be controlled upon the separator performing the operational mode and performing the operational modes by controlling the determined operational parameters upon the separator performing the separation process.
This objective is attained in a second aspect by a centrifugal separator configured to perform a separation process, comprising a processing unit being configured to control the centrifugal separator to be operative to present, to an operator, a plurality of separator operational modes available for selection, receive, by operator selection, information indicating an order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator in response to said user selection, determine, from the received information, operational parameters of the separator to be controlled upon the separator performing the operational mode and to perform the operational modes by controlling the determined operational parameters upon the separator performing the separation process.
Advantageously, allowing an operator to select operational modes and hence values of operational parameters being controlled during a separation process will be prioritized. Thus, the selection of a correct operational mode and subsequent control of the separator to perform the selected operational mode is improved..
In an embodiment, the performing of the operational modes comprises controlling the determined operational parameters to vary within a set allowed range configured to favour an operational mode having higher order of priority.
In an embodiment, said set range is configured to be based on previously performed operational modes for the separator.
In an embodiment, the determined operational parameters and the set range in which the parameters are allowed to vary are presented to the operator.
In an embodiment, information indicating an adjusted set range in which the parameters are allowed to vary is received by operator selection, the adjusted set range being utilized upon performing the operational modes.
In an embodiment, the operator is allowed to set a desired operating range for one or more of the operational parameters before separation commences.
In an embodiment, a quality measure is acquired from the operator and/or the separator indicating the operator's and/or the separator's degree of satisfaction with a performed separation process of the separator, wherein the separator is given an indication of accuracy of the set allowed ranges for the determined operational parameters for the currently selected order of priority.
In an embodiment, in case the quality measure exceeds a predetermined threshold value, the set allowed ranges for the determined operational parameters is maintained, and if not at least one of the set allowed ranges is adjusted.
In an embodiment, the operational modes comprises at least one of separator throughput, power consumption, sound level, light phase quality, heavy phase concentration. The operational modes may in addition comprise "gentleness of the heavy phase", i.e. a mode that prioritizes treating the heavy phase as gentle as possible. This may for example be in applications in which cells are separated as the heavy phase. The "gentleness of the heavy phase" operational mode may then aim to decrease the shear forces experienced by the cells through the centrifugal separator.
In an embodiment, the operational parameters comprises at least one of separator throughput, rotational speed of separator bowl, light phase pressure.
In a third aspect, a computer program is provided comprising computer-executable instructions for causing a policy administration node to perform steps recited in the method of the first aspect when the computer-executable instructions are executed on a processing unit included in the policy administration node.
In a fourth aspect, a computer program product is provided comprising a computer readable medium, the computer readable medium having the computer program according to the third aspect embodied thereon.
Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitly defined otherwise herein. All references to "a/an/the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc." are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of any method disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless explicitly stated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Aspects and embodiments are now described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a prior art centrifugal separator in which embodiments may be implemented;
Figure 2 shows a more detailed view of a centrifuge bowl of the centrifugal separator of Figure 1;
Figure 3 illustrates a graphical interface showing an order of priority of selected operational modes of the separator in an embodiment;
Figure 4 shows a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling the separator of Figure 1 in an embodiment;
Figure 5 illustrates a graphical interface showing another order of priority of selected operational modes of the separator in an embodiment;
Figure 6 illustrates a graphical interface showing still another order of priority of selected operational modes of the separator in an embodiment;
Figure 7 illustrates a graphical interface showing yet another order of priority of selected operational modes of the separator in an embodiment;
Figure 8 shows a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling the separator of Figure 1 in a further embodiment; and
Figure 9 illustrates a separator 1 according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The aspects of the present disclosure will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown.
These aspects may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limiting; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and to fully convey the scope of all aspects of invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description.
Figures 1 and 2 illustrates a separator 10 to which a control scheme may be applied in an embodiment. As is understood, the control scheme according to embodiments described herein may be applied to any appropriate separator type, such as such as a clarifier, which is a centrifugal separator for solid - liquid separation, a purifier, which is a centrifugal separator for liquid - liquid - solid separation, and a concentrator, which is a centrifugal separator designed to separate three different phases, one solid phase and two liquid phases of different densities, and clean the densest/heaviest liquid phase.
Figure 1 shows a cross-section of an embodiment of a centrifugal separator 1 configured to separate a heavy phase and a light phase from a liquid mixture. The centrifugal separator 1 has a rotatable part 4, comprising the centrifuge bowl 5 and drive spindle 4a. As is understood, this is just an example of a separator in which embodiments can be implemented.
The centrifugal separator 1 is further provided with a drive motor 3. This motor 3 may for example comprise a stationary element and a rotatable element, which rotatable element surrounds and is connected to the spindle 4a such that it transmits driving torque to the spindle 4a and hence to the centrifuge bowl 5 during operation. The drive motor 3 may be an electric motor. Alternatively, the drive motor 3 may be connected to the spindle 4a by transmission means such as a drive belt or the like, and the drive motor may alternatively be connected directly to the spindle 4a.
The centrifuge bowl 5, shown in more detail in Figure 2, is supported by the spindle 4a, which is rotatably arranged in stationary frame 2 around the vertical axis of rotation (X) in a bottom bearing 22 and a top bearing 21. The stationary frame 2 has an upper hood that surrounds centrifuge bowl 5.
In the centrifugal separator as shown in Figure 1, liquid mixture to be separated is fed to the bottom to the centrifuge bowl 5 by means of inlet feed pump 25 via the drive spindle 4a. The drive spindle 4a is thus in this embodiment a hollow spindle, through which the feed is supplied to the centrifuge bowl 5. However, in other embodiments, the liquid mixture to be separated is supplied from the top, such as through a stationary inlet pipe extending into the centrifuge bowl 5. The pump 25 may be utilized in order to control flowrate of the fluid mixture being input to the separator 1, which thus affects the separator throughput for the supplied fluid mixture.
After separation has taken place within the centrifuge bowl 5, separated liquid heavy phase is discharged through stationary outlet pipe 6a, whereas separated liquid light phase is discharged through stationary outlet pipe 7a. Valve 23 may be used to control the counter pressure in stationary outlet pipe 7a and valve 24 may be used to control the counter pressure in stationary outlet pipe outlet pipe 6a. These counter pressures may be used to regulate the radial level of the interface between the liquid heavy phase and the liquid light phase within the centrifuge bowl 4.
Figure 2 shows a more detailed view of the centrifuge bowl 5 of the centrifugal separator 1.
The centrifuge bowl 5 forms within itself a separation space 9a and a sludge space 9b, located radially outside the separation space 9a. In the separation space 9a, a stack 10 of separation discs is arranged coaxially around the axis of rotation (X) and axially below a top disc 50. The stack 10 is arranged to rotate together with the centrifuge bowl 5 and provides for an efficient separation of the liquid mixture into at least a liquid light phase and a liquid heavy phase. Thus, in the separation space 9a, the centrifugal separation of the liquid mixture takes place during operation. The sludge space 9b is in this embodiment confined between an inner surface of the centrifuge bowl wall 13 and an axially movable operating slide 16.
The disc stack 10 is supported at its axially lowermost portion by distributor 11. The distributor is arranged to conduct liquid mixture from the center inlet 14 of the centrifuge bowl 5 to a predetermined radial level in the separation space 9a.
The inlet 14 is arranged for receiving the liquid mixture and is in the form of a central inlet chamber formed within or under the distributor 11. The inlet 14 communicates with the separation space 9a via passages 17 formed in the distributor 11.
There is a number of outlet conduits 30 in the form of channels or pipes for transporting separated liquid heavy phase from the sludge space 9b to the second outlet 6. In Figure 2 the outlet conduits 30 are executed as pipes having their inlet end portions 31 stretching out in the sludge space 9b to a diameter larger than the disc stack diameter. The plurality of outlet conduits 30 have their inlet end portions 31 extending into the sludge space 9b. The outlet conduits 30 extend from a radially outer position of the sludge space 9b to the second outlet 6. The outlet conduits 30 consequently have their inlet end portions 31 arranged at the radially outer position and a conduit outlet 32 arranged at a radially inner position. The outlet conduit are arranged axially above the top disc 50 and in close proximity of the surrounding upper inner wall of the centrifuge bowl 5. Further, the outlet conduits 30 are arranged with an upward tilt relative the radial plane from the inlet end portions 31 to the conduit outlet 32.
In embodiments, the centrifuge bowl 5 comprises at least four outlet conduits 30. However, the centrifuge bowl 5 may comprises a single outlet conduit.
The radially inner portion of the disc stack 10 communicates with a first outlet 7 for a separated light phase of the liquid mixture. This first outlet 7 of the centrifuge bowl 5 communicates with a stationary outlet pipe 7a for discharging the separated liquid light phase from the centrifuge bowl 5.
The first and second outlet chambers 6, 7 are mechanically sealed with seals 12a, 12b. As this is an airtight design, they are also often called hermetic seals. The inlet channel 4b is also sealed at lower end of the hollow spindle 4a, thus preventing communication between the inlet channel 4b and the surroundings. This mechanical seal is not shown in the Figures.
In this example, the centrifuge bowl 5 is further provided with outlets 15 at the radially outer periphery of the sludge space 9b. These outlets 15 are evenly distributed around the rotor axis (X) and are arranged for intermittent discharge of a sludge component of the liquid mixture. The opening of the outlets 15 is controlled by means of an operating slide 16 actuated by operating water channels below the operating slide 16, as known in the art. In its position shown in the drawing, the operating slide 16 abuts sealingly at its periphery against the upper part of the centrifuge bowl 5, thereby closing the sludge space 9b from connection with outlets 15, which are extending through the centrifuge bowl 5.
During operation of the separator as shown in Figure 1 and 2, the centrifuge bowl 5 is brought into rotation by the drive motor 3. Via the spindle 4a, liquid mixture to be separated is brought into the separation space 9a, as indicated by arrow "A". Depending on the density, different phases in the liquid mixture is separated between the separation discs of the stack 10. Heavier component, such as a liquid heavy phase and a sludge phase, move radially outwards between the separation discs of the stack 10 to the sludge space 9b, whereas the phase of lowest density, such as a liquid light phase, moves radially inwards between the separation discs of the stack 10 and is forced through the outlet pipe 7a via the first outlet 7, as indicated by arrow "C". The liquid of higher density is instead discharged via the outlet conduits 30 to the second outlet 6 and further out via stationary outlet pipe 6a, as indicated by arrow "B". Solids, or sludge, which accumulate at the periphery of the sludge space 9b and is emptied intermittently from within the centrifuge bowl by the sludge outlets 15 being opened, whereupon sludge is discharged from the separation chamber 15 by means of centrifugal force, as indicated by arrow "D". However, the discharge of sludge may also take place continuously, in which case the sludge outlets 15 take the form of open nozzles and a certain flow of sludge and/or heavy phase is discharged continuously by means of centrifugal force.
Now, the separator 1 may be controlled to operate in different operational modes depending on a desired output to be achieved by the separator.
For instance, in case a high separator throughput is desired for the fluid mixture being supplied to the separator 1 via the inlet pipe 4a, then the flowrate of the supplied fluid mixture typically must be high requiring the pump 25 at the inlet to operate at a high speed.
In another example, if the separated liquid being discharged through the stationary outlet pipe 7a is to be clear and thus have a low turbidity, the separator will typically operate the centrifuge bowl 5 at a high rotational speed to effectively separate the two liquid phases and any solids from each other.
As is understood, in order to attain separated liquid having a low turbidity, it may further be necessary to reduce the flowrate of the fluid mixture being supplied via the inlet pipe 4a to allow the separator to thoroughly separate the liquid and the solids from the supplied fluid mixture. Hence it may be practically difficult to attain a high separator throughput and a low turbidity for the separated liquid at the same time, i.e. during one and the same operational mode of the separator 1.
In a further example, sustainability measures in the form of e.g. energy consumption and operating sound level of the separator 1 may be taken into account, which operational mode may be incompatible with both high throughput and low turbidity of the light phase. As is understood, other parameters for determining light phase quality other than light phase turbidity may be envisaged such as the purity of the light phase, or some other parameter related to concentration of the heavy phase or degree of particles in (or visibility/permeability of) the separated light phase.
In other words, a specific operational mode will be performed by the separator 1 depending on certain functionality to be attained during the separation process, where typically the specific operational mode indicates that control of a desired operational parameter is to be favoured before another operational parameter. For instance, in case a low-energy operational mode is performed, the rotational speed of the bowl 5 is typically controlled to be low while if a low-turbidity operational mode is performed, the rotational speed of the bowl 5 is typically controlled to be high.
As can be concluded, there are many challenges to overcome when operating a separator such as the centrifugal separator 1 illustrated with reference to Figures 1 and 2.
Figure 3 illustrates an embodiment of a method of controlling operation of the centrifugal separator 1, where a user/operator of the separator 1 is allowed to select from a number of predetermined operational modes which operational mode(s) to prioritize.
Reference will further be made to Figure 4 showing a flowchart illustrating the method of controlling operation of the centrifugal separator 1 according to the embodiment discussed with reference to Figure 3.
In an embodiment, the operator may indicate via a user interface, such as a display of the separator or a control device such as a smart phone or a tablet, for which particular application the separator 1 is to be utilized. In this example, the separator is to be used in a brewery application, where for instance sludge in the form of yeast/mash is to be separated from the beer being brewed. Clarified beer is separated as the liquid light phase (C) and yeast is separated and discharged in a liquid heavy phase (B). However, with large volumes of yeast, some may be discharged via the sludge outlets 15 (D).
Hence, when the user selects the brewery application, the separator 1 will present four operational modes to the operator: "Light phase turbidity", "Heavy phase concentration", "Product flow" and "Energy & Sound" where, as the names imply:

(a) the light phase turbidity (LPT) operational mode controls operational parameters of the separator 1 to attain a liquid light phase (i.e. the separated beer) which is clear and thus has a low turbidity when exiting via the outlet pipe 7a,
(b) the heavy phase concentration (HPC) operational mode controls operational parameters of the separator 1 to attain a liquid heavy phase (i.e. the separated liquid phase comprising yeast) which has a high concentration and thus is compact upon being discharged via the outlet pipe 6a.
(c) the product flow (PF) operational mode controls operational parameters of the separator 1 to attain a high throughput for the liquid mixture passing through the separator, and
(d) the energy and sound (E&S) operational mode controls operational parameters of the separator 1 to attain a low energy consumption and sound level when the separator 1 is operating.

Thus, in a first step S101, a plurality of separator operational modes available for selection is presented to the operator, in this example the four different modes (a)-(d) discussed hereinabove.
When presented with the four different operational modes available for selection for the particular application ("brewery") in S101, the operator selects in S102 in which order the operational modes are to be prioritized when the separator 1 starts the separation process. For instance, the operator may perform ordering of the operational modes via e.g. a touch-screen display of the separator 1.
In this particular example, the light phase turbidity mode is given the highest priority, followed by heavy phase concentration mode and the product flow mode, while the energy and sound mode is given the lowest priority.
In this particular example, the operator is further allowed to state a desired product flow of 20 m³/h with a maximum deviation of ± 5 m³/h to be applied by the separator 1 during the performed separation process, and a desired turbidity of 50 NTU with a maximal allowed turbidity of 200 NTU for the separate liquid (i.e. the beer) exiting the separator 1 via the outlet pipe 7a, where NTU stands for "Nephelometric Turbidity Unit", which is the unit used to measure the turbidity of a fluid (i.e. the presence of suspended particles in the fluid). In other words, the higher the concentration of suspended solids in the fluid is, the cloudier the fluid looks and the higher the turbidity is.
Hence, in S102 the separator 1 receives, by the operator selection, information indicating an order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator 1 in response to the selection.
In response to the information received from the operator indicating the selected priority for the operational modes in S102, the separator 1 determines in S103 operational parameters of the separator 1 to be controlled upon the separator 1 performing the prioritized operational mode during the separation process, the highest-priority operational mode in this example being the light phase turbidity operational mode.
The operational parameters determined to be controlled in S102 are indicated with three meters shown in a right-hand section of Figure 3.
As can be seen in the right-hand section of Figure 3, giving the highest priority to the light phase turbidity operational mode implies that the range of values that can be controlled in S104 during the separation process for the product flow is fairly broad, from about 16 to 24 m³/h. In other words, to maintain a low turbidity for the separated liquid, the separator 1 must be able to decrease the product flow and thus the separator throughput such that the rotation of the rotational bowl 5 causes a thorough separation of the mash/yeast from the liquid mixture supplied to the separator 1 in order to achieve a low turbidity for the separated liquid.
In this example, since the product flow only is prioritized as the third operational mode after light phase turbidity and heavy phase concentration, implying that the separator 1 has greater degrees of freedom for product flow as an operational parameter to attain a desired turbidity.
Further, as illustrated in the second meter below the product flow meter indicating rotational speed of the bowl 5, it is important that the rpm ("rotations per minute") of the bowl 5 is allowed to be controlled up to its maximum value of 6250 rpm in the light phase turbidity operational mode, since a high rotational speed of the bowl 5 generally results in low turbidity of the separated liquid.
Moreover, as shown in the third meter indicating light phase pressure, which controls the counter pressure on the liquid light phase outlet; similar to the product flow, this is allowed to be controlled in a relatively broad range of values ranging from 1 to 8.5 bar, which while not being particularly important for the light phase turbidity operational mode indeed is required to attain a heavy phase concentration being the second-highest prioritized operational mode.
A high light phase pressure increases the pressure in the bowl 5 which results in a thicker and more viscous heavy phase being output from the separator 1.
As further can be concluded from Figure 3, both the product flow and the rotational speed of the bowl 5 is allowed to be controlled up to high parameter values, which generally is not beneficial for energy consumption and sound level, which is in line with the energy and sound operational mode being least prioritized in this example.
Figure 5 illustrates a further embodiment, where the operator in S102 indicates a different order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator 1.
In this particular example, product flow mode is given the highest priority, followed by the energy and sound mode and the light phase turbidity mode, while the heavy phase concentration mode is given the lowest priority.
In response to the information received from the operator indicating the selected priority for the operational modes in S102, the separator 1 determines in S103 operational parameters of the separator 1 to be controlled upon the separator 1 performing the prioritized operational mode, the highest-priority operational mode in this example being the product flow mode.
In this example, the operational parameters to be controlled are the same as in the previous example, albeit with differently assigned ranges. As is understood, the examples described herein are for brevity illustrated to control (the same) three parameters while in a practical scenario, tens of operational parameters may be controlled and different operational parameter may be controlled for differently prioritized operational modes.
As can be seen in the right-hand section of Figure 5, giving the highest priority to the product flow operational mode implies that the range of values that can be controlled in S104 for the product flow will be set relatively narrow from about 19 to 21 m³/h, giving an accurate and well-predictable range for the product flow, which is desired by the operator when the product flow mode is given the highest priority.
Further, as illustrated in the second meter below the product flow meter indicating rotational speed of the bowl 11, the rotation speed of the bowl 5 is kept fairly low in the range 4000-4750 rpm, which is in compliance with the second-highest prioritized energy mode and the third-highest mode being the light phase turbidity mode. In other words, a low rotational speed will result in a low energy consumption and a relatively silent separator operation. Further, since the light phase turbidity mode has a low priority, it is not necessary for the separator 1 to rotate the bowl 5 at a high rpm.
The third meter indicating a low light phase pressure will further be beneficial for low energy consumption, and since the heavy phase concentration is the least prioritized operational mode of the four modes, it is not necessary for the separator 1 to be able to provide high parameter values for the light phase pressure.
Hence, as can be concluded, with the differently set ranges for the operational parameters, the new prioritization of Figure 5 (as compared to that of Figure 4) will advantageously be favoured by the separator and the characteristics associated with the product flow mode will be provided with the separator control, such as e.g. an accurate and predictable product flow range.
Figure 6 illustrates still a further embodiment, where the operator in S102 indicates still a different order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator 1.
In this particular example, light phase turbidity mode is given the highest priority, followed by the energy and sound mode and the product flow mode, while the heavy phase concentration mode again is given the lowest priority.
As in the previous example, the operational parameters that are determined to be controlled in S103 are the same, albeit with differently assigned ranges.
As can be seen in the right-hand section of Figure 6, giving the highest priority to the light phase turbidity operational mode implies (as in Figure 3) that the range of values that can be controlled in S104 for the product flow is fairly broad, from about 16 to 24 m³/h. In other words, as in the example of Figure 3, to maintain a low turbidity for the separated liquid, the separator 1 must be able to decrease the product flow and thus the separator throughput such that the rotation of the rotational bowl 5 causes a thorough separation of the mash/yeast from the liquid mixture supplied to the separator 1 in order to achieve a low turbidity for the separated liquid.
However, in contrast to the operational parameter settings of Figure 3, since the energy and sound mode in this example is the second-highest prioritized mode, the rotational speed of the bowl 5 is allowed to increase to a value of 5500 rpm, rather than to 6250 rpm as was the case in Figure 3.
Further, since the heavy phase concentration mode is the least prioritized mode, the light phase pressure is kept low at 1-2.5 bar, which is further beneficial for the energy and sound mode.
Figure 7 illustrates a fourth exemplifying embodiment, where the operator in S102 indicates yet a different order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator 1.
In this particular example, heavy phase concentration mode is given the highest priority, followed by the product flow mode and the light phase turbidity mode, while the energy and sound mode is given the lowest priority.
As in the previous example, the operational parameters that are determined to be controlled in S103 are the same, albeit with differently assigned ranges.
As can be seen in the right-hand section of Figure 7, giving the highest priority to the light phase turbidity operational mode and the second-highest priority to the product flow mode indicates that the product flow will be set relatively narrow from about 18 to 22 m³/h, giving a relatively accurate and well-predictable range for the product flow, which is desired by the operator when the product flow mode is given the highest priority. However, as compared Figure 5 where the product flow mode was given the highest priority, the set range of the product flow is somewhat wider (i.e. 18-22 m³/h rather than 19-21 m³/h), since a more varying product flow typically is required for attaining high heavy phase concentration, being the highest-priority mode.
Further, while the range of the rotational speed of the bowl 11 is the same as that being set in Figure 6, the range of the light phase pressure must be greatly widened. In this example, the range of the light phase pressure is set to 1-10 bar, which is necessary in order to achieve a high heavy phase concentration.
While the ranges for the values of the operational parameters illustrated in the three meters in the right-hand part of Figure 3 and 5-7 not necessarily is displayed to the operator but may be set and kept internally in the separator 1, if the operator indeed is presented to the values of the operational parameter, for e.g. via visual meters of a display, it is envisaged in an embodiment that the operator is given opportunity to change the presented values.
Figure 8 shows a flowchart illustrating such embodiment. Thus, as previously described, the operator is presented with a plurality of operational modes in S101 via e.g. a touch-screen display of the separator 1 itself or a smart phone (not shown) utilized to control the separator 1 and indicates an order priority in S102. The separator determines in S103 operational parameters to be controlled - i.e. product flow, bowl rotational speed, and light phase pressure - and performs the operational modes in the selected order of priority by controlling the operational parameters accordingly in S104.
Now, in this embodiment, the operational parameters and their ranges are presented to the operator in S105, or example by means of the three meters in the right-hand part of Figures 3 and 4-7.
Turning to Figure 6 or an exemplifying embodiment; assuming that the separated liquid - i.e. the light phase beer being one of the products of the specific application, the other being the heavy phase mash/yeast - is considered by the operator to be sufficiently clear and thus to have a sufficiently low turbidity.
The operator may in such case make the decision in S106 to narrow the range of the product flow to e.g. 18-22 m³/h (rather than 16-24 m³/h) and possibly even lower the upper allowable rotational speed of the bowl 11 from 5500 rpm to, say, 5000 rpm, in order to advantageously utilize slightly more favourable operational parameters settings for the second-highest prioritized energy and sound mode, while still complying with requirements of the highest-prioritized light phase turbidity mode.
The changed parameters are thus fed back to the separator 1, for instance by the operator adjusting the ranges via the previously mentioned touch-screen display, which will take into the account the new ranges upon performing the operational modes in S104.
Optionally, as further shown in Figure 8, the operator and/or the separator 1 itself is in an embodiment given the opportunity to assign a quality measure to the performed separation process in S107, for instance a value between 0 and 1, where 0 indicates a very poor result of the separation process given the selected order priority, while 1 indicates a near-perfect result. Advantageously, with the quality measure, the separator 1 is given an indication whether or not the ranges of the selected operational parameters are accurately set given the order of priority selected by the operator.
For instance, for a quality measure exceeding a predetermined threshold value, e.g. 0.8, the ranges are considered to be accurately set, while if the quality measure is 0.8 or lower, at least one of the ranges are adjusted in order to achieve a higher quality measure for a next separation process.
Figure 9 illustrates a separator 1 according to an embodiment, where the steps of the method of controlling operation of the separator upon the separator performing a separation process in practice are performed by a processing unit 211 with which the separator 1 is equipped, the processing unit 211 being embodied in the form of one or more microprocessors arranged to execute a computer program 212 downloaded to a storage medium 213 associated with the microprocessor, such as a Random Access Memory (RAM), a Flash memory or a hard disk drive. The processing unit 211 is arranged to cause the separator 1 to carry out the method according to embodiments when the appropriate computer program 212 comprising computer-executable instructions is downloaded to the storage medium 213 and executed by the processing unit 211. The storage medium 213 may also be a computer program product comprising the computer program 212. Alternatively, the computer program 212 may be transferred to the storage medium 213 by means of a suitable computer program product, such as a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) or a memory stick. As a further alternative, the computer program 212 maybe downloaded to the storage medium 213 over a network. The processing unit 211 may alternatively be embodied in the form of a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a complex programmable logic device (CPLD), etc. The separator 1 may further comprise a communication interface 214 (wired and/or wireless) over which the separator 1 is configured to transmit and receive data.
The aspects of the present disclosure have mainly been described above with reference to a few embodiments and examples thereof. However, as is readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other embodiments than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the invention, as defined by the appended patent claims.
Thus, while various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

A method of controlling operation of a centrifugal separator (1) upon the separator performing a separation process, comprising:
presenting (S101), to an operator, a plurality of separator operational modes available for selection;

receiving (S102), by operator selection, information indicating an order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator in response to said user selection;

determining (S103), from the received information, operational parameters of the separator to be controlled upon the separator performing the operational mode; and

performing (S104) the operational modes by controlling the determined operational parameters upon the separator (1) performing the separation process.
The method of claim 1, the performing (S104) of the operational modes comprising controlling the determined operational parameters to vary within a set allowed range configured to favour an operational mode having higher order of priority.
The method of claim 2, said set range being configured to be based on previously performed operational modes for the separator (1).
The method of any one of claims 2 or 3, further comprising:
presenting (S105), to the operator, the determined operational parameters and the set range in which the parameters are allowed to vary.
The method of claim 4, further comprising:
receiving (S106), by operator selection, information indicating an adjusted set range in which the parameters are allowed to vary, the adjusted set range being utilized upon performing (S104) the operational modes.
The method of any one of claims 2-5, further comprising allowing the operator to set a desired operating range for one or more of the operational parameters before separation commences.
The method of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising:
acquiring (S107), from the operator and/or the separator (1), a quality measure indicating the operator's and/or the separator's degree of satisfaction with a performed separation process of the separator (1), wherein the separator (1) is given an indication of accuracy of the set allowed ranges for the determined operational parameters for the currently selected order of priority.
The method of claim 7, wherein in case the quality measure exceeds a predetermined threshold value, the set allowed ranges for the determined operational parameters is maintained, and if not at least one of the set allowed ranges is adjusted.
The method of any one of the preceding claims, the operational modes comprising at least one of separator throughput, power consumption, sound level, light phase quality, heavy phase concentration.
The method of any one of the preceding claims, the operational parameters comprising at least one of separator throughput, rotational speed of separator bowl, light phase pressure.
A computer program (212) comprising computer-executable instructions for causing a separator (1) to perform steps recited in any one of claims 1-10 when the computer-executable instructions are executed on a processing unit (211) included in the separator (1).
A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium (213), the computer readable medium having the computer program (212) according to claim 11 embodied thereon.
A centrifugal separator (1) configured to perform a separation process, comprising a processing unit (211) being configured to control the centrifugal separator (1) to be operative to:
present (S101), to an operator, a plurality of separator operational modes available for selection;

receive (S102), by operator selection, information indicating an order of priority in which the operational modes is to be performed by the separator in response to said user selection;

determine (S103), from the received information, operational parameters of the separator to be controlled upon the separator performing the operational mode; and

perform (S104) the operational modes by controlling the determined operational parameters upon the separator (1) performing the separation process.
The centrifugal separator (1) of claim 13, further being operative to, when performing (S104) the operational modes, control the determined operational parameters to vary within a set allowed range configured to favour an operational mode having higher order of priority.
The centrifugal separator (1) of claim 14, said set range being configured to be based on previously performed operational modes for the separator (1).
The centrifugal separator (1) of claims 14 or 15, further being operative to:
present (S105), to the operator, the determined operational parameters and the set range in which the parameters are allowed to vary.
The centrifugal separator (1) of claim 16, further being operative to:
receive (S106), by operator selection, information indicating an adjusted set range in which the parameters are allowed to vary, the adjusted set range being utilized upon performing (S104) the operational modes.