JP2010151215A - Flow control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a flow control device which is superior to sealing performance and quantity adjusting capacity. <P>SOLUTION: The flow control device 1 includes a housing 3, an outer tube 5 which is provided with a window 21 opening to a flow path 33 on a side face of the outer tube 5 and an inner tube 7 which is rotatably provided inside the outer tube 5 and is provided with the inner tube 7 which is provided with an inflow hole 23 in side face of the inner tube 7 and in a position opening to the window by rotation of the inner tube, an inside rotating plate 9 which is provided with an inside outflow hole 25 in a position opening to the flow path by rotation of the inner tube, and an outside rotating plate 11 which is provided with an outside outflow hole 27 opening to a flow path 33. In this case, an area opening to the flow path 33 of an inflow hole 23 and an area opening to the flow path 33 of the inside outflow hole 25 vary along with to the rotation of the inner tube 7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a flow regulating valve used in natural gas wells, oil wells, power plants, various plants, and the like.

  Conventionally, in a natural gas well, an oil well, various plants, and the like, a flow regulating valve is used to control the flow of fluid. In particular, in natural gas wells and oil wells, high pressure gas or high pressure oil or the like is extracted from underground high pressure fluid sources, and therefore a flow regulating valve for decompressing fluid plays a major role.

  The flow regulating valve is generally configured as shown in FIG. The adjustment valve adjusts the flow rate by opening (70A to D, 84A to D) provided in the skirt portion. More specifically, the adjustment valve opens the stem (42) by moving it up and down. The flow rate of the fluid, which will be proportional to the area, is adjusted. However, the above prior art has the following drawbacks. First, since the flow regulating valve shown in FIG. 1 is configured to move the stem (42) up and down, the gap between components changes as the usage time increases due to the pressure applied when moving the stem (42) up and down. It was easy to do and there was a problem in sealing performance. That is, the ability to shut off the fluid was insufficient. Further, the flow rate adjusting valve has a configuration in which the flow rate is adjusted only by the opening (70A to D, 84A to D), that is, a configuration in which the flow rate is adjusted in one stage, and the flow rate adjusting capacity has a limit. In the present specification, the flow rate adjustment capability refers to the capability related to the degree of flow rate change caused by the flow rate adjustment valve, and the one that causes a large flow rate change is regarded as an excellent flow rate adjustment capability.

  Further, not only in the prior art shown in FIG. 1, but also in natural gas wells, oil wells, various plants and the like that handle high-speed fluids, erosion has become a problem in recent years due to the demand for increased production. . Note that erosion refers to a reduction in thickness reduction that occurs in plant piping, and is also referred to as FIC (Flow Induced Corrosion). Here, it refers to erosion due to physical or mechanical action such as collision of high-speed fluid and powder and cavitation, but at the same time, erosion caused by corrosion (corrosion) due to electrochemical action is also included.

  Further, from the viewpoint of improving the working environment, it is also required in the technical field to reduce noise in natural gas wells, oil wells, various plants, and the like.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,821,968

  An object of the present invention is to provide a flow control valve that eliminates the drawbacks of the prior art. More specifically, an object of the present invention is to provide a flow rate adjusting valve with excellent sealing performance. It is another object of the present invention to provide a flow rate adjustment valve having a better flow rate adjustment capability. Furthermore, it aims at providing the flow regulating valve which suppresses erosion. In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a flow rate adjusting valve that reduces noise.

  The flow regulating valve of the present invention is a housing having an inlet port, an outlet port, and a flow path communicating the inlet port and the outlet port, and an outer cylinder fixed inside the housing, wherein the flow path A window that opens in a side surface of the outer cylinder, and an inner cylinder that is rotatably provided inside the outer cylinder, the side surface of the inner cylinder, and the rotation of the inner cylinder The inner cylinder provided in contact with each other so as to prevent the flow of fluid between the inner side surface of the outer cylinder and the outer side surface of the inner cylinder, wherein an inflow hole is provided at a position opening in the window by An inner rotating plate provided at an end of at least one of the inner cylinders and provided with an inner outflow hole at a position opened to the flow path by rotation of the inner cylinder; and an outer rotating plate fixed inside the housing. Outside outflow opening into the flow path A flow regulating valve comprising: the outer rotating plate provided in contact with each other so as to prevent a fluid flow between the outer rotating plate and the inner rotating plate, and corresponding to the rotation of the inner cylinder Then, the flow rate adjusting valve is characterized in that an area of the inflow hole opening in the flow path and an area of the inner outflow hole opening in the flow path are changed.

  According to the first embodiment of the present invention, when the inflow hole is closed by the side surface of the outer cylinder by rotating the inner cylinder, the inner outflow hole is closed by the outer rotation plate, The flow rate adjusting valve is characterized in that the outer outflow hole is closed by the inner rotary plate.

  According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the window is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the outer cylinder in the diametrical section of the outer cylinder, and the inflow hole is formed in the diametrical direction of the inner cylinder. In the cross section, the flow rate adjusting valve is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the inner cylinder.

  According to a third embodiment of the present invention, the inner outflow hole is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the inner rotary plate in the diametrical cross section of the inner rotary plate, and the outer outflow hole is In the diametrical cross section of the outer rotating plate, the flow rate adjusting valve is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the outer rotating plate.

  According to 4th embodiment of this invention, the said inflow hole consists of a some circular hole, It is a flow regulating valve characterized by the above-mentioned.

  In the present invention, the flow rate of the fluid can be adjusted by relatively rotating the inner cylinder as described above. Further, since the flow rate is adjusted by rotating the cylindrical part, the gap between the articles is not changed in principle, so that the flow rate adjusting valve of the present invention provides higher sealing performance. The present invention employs an inner rotating plate and an outer rotating plate, and when the inner cylinder is rotated and the fluid is sealed in the inner cylinder, a force is applied in the direction in which the two rotating plates are pressed against each other. . That is, since a force is applied in a direction in which the gap between the two rotating plates is further reduced, the two rotating plates are gas-liquid tight.

  The present invention has a configuration in which the first-stage fluid is closed between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder, and the second-stage fluid is closed between the inner rotary plate and the outer rotary plate. Therefore, it will be apparent that the ability to prevent the fluid flowing from the inlet port from flowing out of the flow regulating valve, that is, the sealing performance, is improved.

  Since the present invention performs the pressure reduction of the fluid in two stages, it has an excellent flow rate adjustment capability, and it is also clear that the flow rate adjustment valve of the present invention provides a large pressure reduction.

  In the present invention, erosion is suppressed by reducing the pressure of the fluid in two stages.

  Since the present invention is a rotary flow rate adjusting valve, noise is also suppressed.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the present invention.
First, the flow regulating valve 1 of the embodiment has a housing 3. The housing 3 includes an inlet port 31 through which the fluid flows into the housing, a flow path 35 through which the inlet port and the outlet port are communicated and through which the fluid flows, and an outlet port 37 through which the fluid is discharged from the housing. In FIG. 2, the flow of the fluid in the flow regulating valve 1 is indicated by an arrow.

  An outer cylinder 5 is fixed inside the housing 3. The outer cylinder 5 has a window 21 provided on the side surface thereof and facing the flow path 35. The fluid in the flow path flows into the outer cylinder 5 through the window 21 and further advances into the inner cylinder described later. The windows 21 are provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the outer cylinder in the diametrical cross section of the outer cylinder, and are configured to face each other (see FIG. 3B). The material of the outer cylinder is preferably a material excellent in wear resistance such as ceramic and tool steel in addition to tungsten carbide. In FIG. 3, the window 21 is substantially rectangular as viewed from the side, but the shape may be circular, elliptical, polygonal, or other shapes.

  In the outer cylinder 5, an inner cylinder 7 provided rotatably is provided. The inner side surface of the outer cylinder 5 and the outer side surface of the inner cylinder 7 are provided in contact with each other so as to prevent the flow of fluid. That is, the fluid flows into the inner cylinder 7 only through the inflow hole 23 described below.

  The side surface of the inner cylinder 7 is provided with an inflow hole 23 at a position that opens to the window when the inner cylinder is rotated. The inflow hole 23 is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the inner cylinder 7 in the diametrical cross section of the inner cylinder 7 (see FIG. 4B). The material of the inner cylinder is preferably a material excellent in wear resistance such as ceramic and tool steel in addition to tungsten carbide. In addition, in FIG. 4, the inflow hole 23 is a plurality of circular inflow holes when viewed from the side, but is not limited to this configuration, and may be another shape such as an ellipse or a polygon.

  As described above, the windows 21 and the inflow holes 23 are provided point-symmetrically with respect to the respective centers, and the windows 21 and the inflow holes 23 face each other. Then, fluid flows in from the opposing windows and inflow holes, that is, the respective windows and inflow holes at point-symmetrical positions, and as indicated by the arrows in FIG. Become a flow. As a result, the respective flows are canceled out, and a high decompression effect is generated.

  In FIG. 2, a rod 51 and a swinging crank 53 are connected to the upper end of the inner cylinder 7. The inner cylinder 7 is rotated by driving the crank 53 with the cylinder 55. In the present embodiment, the inner cylinder 7 is rotated using the cylinder 55, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the configuration is such that it is manually rotated using a handle or the like, or rotated electrically by a motor or the like. For example, the inner cylinder 7 may be rotated by other methods.

  Here, as apparent from FIGS. 2 and 4, when the inner cylinder 7 is rotated by the cylinder 55, the area of the inflow holes 23 opened in the flow path and the number of the inflow holes 23 change. . That is, the total area of the inflow holes that open to the flow path changes corresponding to the rotation of the inner cylinder 7. Therefore, the flow rate of the fluid can be changed by adjusting the rotation angle of the inner cylinder 7.

  In FIG. 2, the lower end portion of the inner cylinder 7 includes an inner rotating plate 9. The inner rotary plate 9 has an inner rotary plate 9 provided with an inner outflow hole 25 at a position opened to the flow path by the rotation of the inner cylinder 7 and the inner rotary plate 9, and the fluid flows through the inner outflow hole 25 through the inner cylinder. 7 flows out from the inside through the flow path to the outlet port 37. In FIG. 2, the inner cylinder 7 and the inner rotary plate 9 are configured by combining separate members. However, by forming the inner cylinder 7 and the inner rotary plate 9 integrally, The structure provided with the inner side rotation board 9 as a part may be sufficient. The material of the inner rotary plate 9 is preferably a material excellent in wear resistance such as ceramic and tool steel in addition to tungsten carbide.

  An outer rotating plate 11 having an outer outflow hole 27 is further provided inside the housing 3. In FIG. 2, the outer rotating plate 11 is provided at the lower portion of the inner cylinder 7 and is provided such that the upper surface of the outer rotating plate 11 is in contact with the lower surface of the inner rotating plate 9. In the present embodiment, the housing 3 is configured to include the outer rotating plate 11 having the outer outflow hole 27, but the housing 3 itself may be configured to include the outer outflow hole 27. In this embodiment, the outer rotating plate 11 is fixed to the wear bushing 13, but the outer rotating plate 11 may be fixed to the housing 3.

  The inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27 are desirably provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center in the diametrical cross section (see FIG. 5B). This is because the pressure applied to the inner outflow hole is uniform in the diametrical direction, and the inner cylinder 7 and the inner rotating plate 11 are smoothly rotated. The material of the outer rotating plate 11 is preferably a material excellent in wear resistance such as ceramic and tool steel in addition to tungsten carbide.

  In FIG. 2, the lower surface of the inner rotating plate 9 and the upper surface of the outer rotating plate 11 are provided in contact with each other so that the flow of fluid flowing out from the inner cylinder 7 is prevented. That is, the fluid flows out from the inner cylinder 7 only through the opening formed by the inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27.

  In FIG. 2, erosion of the housing 3 can be further suppressed by providing the wear bushing 13 at the lower portion of the inner cylinder 7. The wear bushing 13 is preferably a material having excellent wear resistance, such as tungsten carbide, ceramic, tool steel, and the like.

  The inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27 in FIGS. 5 and 6 are both substantially fan-shaped and provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center. By adopting the same configuration, the area of the opening formed by the inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27 is approximately proportional to the rotation angle of the inner cylinder 7. Thereby, the adjustment of the flow rate and the degree of decompression can be more easily performed. In addition, the shape of the inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27 is not limited to a substantially fan shape. Therefore, other shapes such as a circle and a polygon may be used. Moreover, the shape of the inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27 may not be the same shape.

  As shown in FIG. 6, by combining the inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27, the opening area for fluid outflow changes according to the rotation angle of the inner cylinder 7 (FIGS. 6A to 6C). 6 (A1) and (B1) show a fully closed state where no fluid flows, and FIGS. 6 (A2) and (B2) show a half-open state where the fluid flows through part of the hole, FIGS. 6A3 and 6B3 show a fully open state where all the holes are open. The sum of the opening areas of the holes changes according to the rotation angle of the inner cylinder 7 and the rotation angle of the inner rotation plate 11 coupled to the inner cylinder 7. Therefore, by adjusting the rotation angle of the inner cylinder 7, it is possible to change the degree of flow rate adjustment and fluid pressure reduction.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 6 (B1), depending on the rotation angle of the inner cylinder 7, the flow path can be completely closed. When the flow path is completely closed, the high-pressure fluid in the inner cylinder 7 presses the inner rotary plate toward the outer rotary plate, thereby further improving the sealing performance.

  Further, as described above, the fully closed state in FIGS. 6A1 and 6B1 is a configuration in which when the inflow hole 23 is closed, the inner outflow hole 25 and the outer outflow hole 27 are also closed. Therefore, it will be apparent that the two-stage closing means of closing the inflow hole 23 and closing the outflow holes 25 and 27 is provided, and the sealing performance of the entire flow rate adjusting valve is improved. It will also be apparent that the flow rate is adjusted in two stages, so that it has an excellent flow rate adjustment capability.

  With respect to the effect of suppressing erosion and the effect of suppressing noise, an experiment was conducted using the flow rate adjusting valve according to the above example in a gas well. In the experiment, flow control valves were used in two gas wells. In the experiment in the first well, the flow regulating valve was opened and inspected after one month of use in an environment of 300,000 m3 / d. Moreover, in the experiment in a 2nd well, after using it for 3 months by 300-500,000 m3 / d use environment, and using it for 10 months, respectively, the open test | inspection was carried out. No erosion was observed in any of the flow control valves. It was also confirmed that the noise during use of the flow regulating valve was reduced as compared with the conventional device.

It is sectional drawing of the conventional flow control valve. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the flow regulating valve by the Example of this invention. (A) It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the outer cylinder in the Example of this invention, (B) It is sectional drawing in BB in (A) of the outer cylinder. (A) It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the inner cylinder in the Example of this invention, (B) It is sectional drawing in BB in (A) of the inner cylinder. (A) It is a top view of the rotating plate in the Example of this invention, (B) It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the rotating plate. In the Example of this invention, it is explanatory drawing of the combination of a window and an inflow hole, and an inner outflow hole and an outer outflow hole, (A1) It is a diameter direction sectional drawing of the outer cylinder and inner cylinder of a fully-closed state, (B1 FIG. 4 is a top view of a fully closed rotating plate, (A2) a diametrical sectional view of an outer cylinder and an inner cylinder in a half-open state, (B2) a top view of the rotating plate in a half-open state, and (A3) fully open. It is a diameter direction sectional view of an outer cylinder and an inner cylinder in a state, and (B3) is a top view of a rotating plate in a fully opened state.

Explanation of symbols

1 Flow control valve,
3 Housing,
5 outer cylinder,
7 inner cylinder,
9 Inner rotating plate,
11 outer rotating plate,
13 Wear bushings,
21 windows,
23 Inflow hole,
25 inner outflow hole,
27 outer outflow holes,
31 entrance port,
33 channels,
35 exit port,
51 rods,
53 cranks,
55 cylinders

Claims (5)

A housing (3) having an inlet port (31), an outlet port (35), and a flow path (33) communicating the inlet port (31) and the outlet port (35);
The outer cylinder (5) fixed inside the housing (3), wherein a window (21) opening in the flow path (33) is provided on a side surface of the outer cylinder (5) ( 5) and
An inner cylinder (7) rotatably provided inside the outer cylinder (5), wherein an inflow hole (on the side surface of the inner cylinder (7) and at a position opened to the window by the rotation of the inner cylinder) 23), and the inner cylinder (7) provided in contact with each other so as to prevent the flow of fluid between the inner side surface of the outer cylinder (5) and the outer side surface of the inner cylinder (7); ,
An inner rotating plate (9) provided at at least one end of the inner cylinder (7), and provided with an inner outflow hole (25) at a position opened to the flow path by rotation of the inner cylinder;
An outer rotating plate (11) fixed inside the housing (3), provided with an outer outflow hole (27) that opens to the flow path (33), and the outer rotating plate (11) and the inner rotating plate A flow regulating valve (1) comprising the outer rotating plate (11) provided in contact with each other to prevent fluid flow between the plates (9),
Corresponding to the rotation of the inner cylinder (7), the area of the inflow hole (23) that opens to the flow path (33) and the area of the inner outflow hole (25) that opens to the flow path (33). Is a flow rate adjusting valve characterized by changing.   When the inflow hole (23) is closed by the side surface of the outer cylinder (5) by rotating the inner cylinder (7), the inner outflow hole (25) is formed by the outer rotation plate (11). The flow regulating valve according to claim 1, characterized in that it is closed and the outer outflow hole (27) is closed by the inner rotary plate (9).   The window (21) is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the outer cylinder (5) in the diametrical cross section of the outer cylinder (5), and the inflow hole (23) is formed in the inner cylinder (7). 3. The flow regulating valve according to claim 1, wherein the flow regulating valve is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the inner cylinder (7) in a diametrical cross section.   The inner outflow hole (25) is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the inner rotary plate (9) in the diametrical cross section of the inner rotary plate (9), and the outer outflow hole (27) 4. The flow regulating valve according to claim 1, wherein the flow rate adjusting valve is provided point-symmetrically with respect to the center of the outer rotating plate in a diametrical section of the outer rotating plate.   5. The flow regulating valve according to claim 1, wherein the inflow hole comprises a plurality of circular holes.