JP3493377B2 - Pig launching device, pig stopping device, and pig launching and landing station - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for firing and stopping a pig for wiping the inside of a pipe by applying a fluid pressure.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Slurry or solution foods and drinks, raw materials for manufacturing chemicals or inks, algae, microorganisms, and other scales adhering to the inner wall of pipes reduce the fluid transfer capacity and generate bacteria and mold. It is not good for hygiene. Further, when the transfer fluid is changed to a completely different substance, there is an adverse effect that the substance adhering to the inner wall of the pipe cannot be completely removed by washing by simply passing water through the pipe and the substance is dissolved in the changed fluid. As a means for solving this problem, a pig that wipes and cleans the deposits in the pipe by applying a fluid pressure is known. The pig is generally integrally formed of an elastic material such as rubber or urethane so that it can travel smoothly even in a curved portion and an uneven portion in the pipe.

In a system for cleaning the inside of a pipe using a pig, a pig launching device is provided at the beginning of the pipe and a pig stop device is provided at the end of the pipe. As the fluid that gives the running pressure of the pig, a compressible fluid (gas or the like) such as air, nitrogen or water vapor, or incompressible fluid (liquid or the like) such as tap water or a cleaning solution is used. By applying fluid pressure, the pig loaded in the pig launching device is pumped into the pipe, and the pig runs in close contact with the inner wall of the pipe to scrape off the highly viscous substance adhering to the pipe wall. When the pumped pig reaches the end of the pipe,
The pig is stopped by the pig stop device. JP-A-5
The 9-95983 publication is a pig launcher (launcher).
And an example of a pig stop device (catcher) is disclosed.

[0004]

By the way, in the conventional pig launching apparatus, the firing of the pig may become impossible due to the leakage of the fluid pressure. In addition, it is difficult for the conventional pig stop device to appropriately relax the fluid pressure in the forward direction of the pig, so that the pig cannot be received at the desired stop position, and in some cases, the pig stops in the pipe. There is also. When these obstacles occur, it is not only necessary to collect the pig each time to perform maintenance and repair of the device, but also the pig is damaged due to excessive fluid pressure applied to the pig or the pig colliding inside the device. However, it also shortens the useful life of the pig. Therefore, the pig launcher reliably fires the pig,
The pig stop device is required to surely stop the pig at a desired position.

On the other hand, in the case of a conventional pig system in which two devices, a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, are provided independently of each other, it has been impossible to construct a pipe in a circulation path. Therefore, there is no choice but to use unidirectional piping that does not circulate, and the traveling of the pig is limited to either the one-way system or the reciprocating system. In the one-way system, the pig fired from the start end of the pipe by the pig launcher is stopped by the pig stop device at the end of the pipe, and then the pig is taken out from the pig stop device and loaded into the pig launcher by a worker's hand. Requires work,
There is a problem that continuous running of pigs is virtually impossible and requires a lot of work. Further, in the reciprocating method, one pig launching device and one pig stopping device are provided at each of the start end and the end of the pipe, which leads to an increase in cost due to an increase in the number of devices. In order to solve these problems, a device having both functions of a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, which are separate devices, is required, but conventionally, the pig launching device is only a pig launching device and a pig stopping device. Can only stop the pig, and no single device can both fire and stop the pig.

Therefore, the present invention provides a pig launching device and a pig stopping device capable of reliably launching and stopping a pig,
It is another object of the present invention to provide a device that has the functions of both a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, which are separate devices conventionally.

The pig launcher according to the present invention comprises a housing (20) having a chamber (21) and a sleeve (30) fixed to the housing (20) and having a receiving portion (36). The housing (20) has a supply port (23) for supplying a fluid into the chamber (21),
The sleeve (30) has an inner tube portion (32) extending into the chamber (21) and forming a receiving portion (36) communicating with the chamber (21), and a loading port formed at one end of the receiving portion (36). (41), a connecting part (33) extending to the outside of the housing (20), and a discharge port (51) connected to the starting end (92) of the pipe and formed at the other end of the receiving part (36). . A tapered portion (40) having a diameter reduced from the loading port (41) toward the firing port (51) is formed in the receiving part (36).
Fluid pressure can be applied to the chamber (21) from the supply port (23), and the pig (70) arranged in the receiving part (36) can be pumped into the pipe from the firing port (51).

The pig launching device of the present invention comprises a sleeve (3
0) the inner tube portion (32) formed by the receiving portion (36)
Since the pig (70) can be properly loaded in the firing position by the taper portion (40) of the above, leakage of the fluid pressure can be prevented and the pig (70) can be fired reliably. In this specification,
"Inside the receiving part (36)" means that the entire pig (70) is present inside the receiving part (36) of the sleeve (30), and part of the pig (70) is in the receiving part (36). ) Including the case.

The pig stopping apparatus of the present invention is provided with a chamber (2
Housing (20) having (1) and housing (2)
0) and a sleeve (30) having a receiving portion (36). The housing (20) has a pipe end (9) arranged on the same axis as the sleeve (30).
1) having an inlet (22) connected to the chamber (21) and an outlet (24) for discharging the fluid in the chamber (21), and the sleeve (30) has an inner pipe portion (3) extending into the chamber (21).
2) and a connecting portion (3) extending outside the housing (20).
3) and a loading port (41) formed at one end of the receiving part (36) communicating with the chamber (21). Loading port (4
The tapered portion (40) having a diameter reduced from 1) toward the traveling direction of the pig (70) is formed in the receiving portion (36), and the pig (70) sent from the end (91) of the pipe is received by the receiving portion (36). Stop inside.

In the pig stop device of the present invention, the pig (70) press-fitted from the end (91) of the pipe by the fluid pressure passes through the chamber (21) and the inner pipe portion (3) of the sleeve (30).
While the fluid in front of the pig (70) is discharged from the discharge port (24) of the housing (20) while entering the receiving portion (36) of (2), the pig (70) enters the receiving portion (36). Is done smoothly. Even after the rear end of the pig (70) separates from the end (91) of the pipe, the pig (70) continues to enter the receiving portion (36) due to the fluid pressure from the end (91) side of the pipe. Since the taper portion (40) of the portion (36) is reduced in diameter from the loading port (41) toward the discharge port (51), the taper portion (40) and the skirt portion (73, 75) of the pig (70) will eventually occur. ) And the pig (70) stops in the receiving part (36). Therefore, the pig (70) can be reliably stopped at a desired position in the receiving portion (36).

The pig landing station according to the invention comprises a housing (20) having a chamber (21) and a sleeve (30) fixed to the housing (20) and having a receiving portion (36). An inlet (22) connected to the end (91) of a pipe arranged on the same axis as the sleeve (30), a supply port (23) for supplying a fluid into the chamber (21), and an inside of the chamber (21). And a discharge port (24) for discharging the fluid, and the sleeve (30) has a loading port (41) formed at one end of a receiving part (36) communicating with the chamber (21) and a starting end of the pipe ( 92) and a discharge port (51) formed at the other end of the receiving portion (36). The receiving portion (36) is formed with a taper portion (40) whose diameter is reduced from the loading port (41) toward the launch port (51). A fluid pressure is applied from the supply port (23) into the chamber (21), and the pig (7) disposed in the receiving portion (36) is
0) is pressure-fed into the pipe from the firing port (51) and stopped in the receiving part (36) while the pig (70) is fed from the end (91) of the pipe.

This pig landing station is a device that has the functions of both a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, which were conventionally separate devices, and two devices, a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, must be prepared. Since only one device is required, cost reduction and space saving can be achieved. In addition, the pig (70) can be fired / stopped in the circulation path piping, which has been impossible in the past. Further, as described in the pig launching device and the pig stopping device, it is possible to reliably launch and stop the pig (70).

In the embodiment of the present invention, the tapered portion (4
The straight pipe part (50) connected to the same axis line as 0) and continuing to the discharge port (51) is formed in the receiving part (36). The straight pipe portion (50) can more reliably stop and fire the pig (70). The sleeve (30) may be provided with a flange portion (31) fixed to the housing (20), in which case the inner pipe portion (32) is provided with the flange portion (3).
1) extends into the chamber (21) and the connecting part (33) extends from the flange part (31) to the outside of the housing (20). By providing the connecting portion (33), the firing port (5
1) and the starting end (92) of the pipe can be easily connected, and by providing the flange portion (31), the housing (20)
The sleeve and the sleeve (30) can be smoothly maintained and repaired. The inner diameter of the loading port (41) is larger than the outer diameters of the skirt portions (73, 75) of the pig (70), and the firing port (5
The inner diameter of 1) is the skirt (73, 75) of the pig (70).
Slightly smaller than the outer diameter of. This allows the pig (70)
Can be smoothly introduced into the loading port (41), and the skirt (73, 7) of the pig (70) can be provided near the launch port (51).
Since 5) can be stopped, the pig (70) can be accurately arranged at the stop position and the firing position, and the stop operation and the firing operation can be reliably performed.

In an embodiment of a pig landing station,
One or more lateral holes (47) are formed in the sleeve (30) to connect the fluid pressure in the receiving portion (36) to the outside of the sleeve (30). Taper part (40) and straight pipe part (5
0), a lateral hole (47) is formed in the vicinity of the connecting portion (49), and the fluid pressure in front of the pig (70) in the receiving portion (36) is discharged through the lateral hole (47) and the chamber (21). The outlet (24) may be contacted. By forming the lateral hole (47), the fluid pressure in front of the pig (70) can be released when the pig (70) is stopped, so that the pig (70) can be released.
Is not pushed back in the direction opposite to the traveling direction, and the pig (70) can be stopped at a position as far as possible from the receiving portion (36). Therefore, when the firing operation of the pig (70) is performed thereafter, the fluid pressure is most efficiently applied to the pig (70), so that the pig (70) can be fired more reliably.

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of a pig landing station according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The present invention relates to a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, but since it can be easily understood by focusing on either the pig launching function or the pig stopping function of the pig landing station, the implementation of the single function pig launching device and the pig stopping device is described. The description of the form is omitted.

The pig landing station (10) shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a device having both functions of a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, which are conventionally separate devices,
It is connected to a pipe as shown in FIG. 3 and fires and stops a pig (70) as shown in FIGS. 4 to 8. Pig (70)
Has a substantially spherical head (71) and a rear skirt (7
5), an intermediate skirt (73) located between the head (71) and the rear skirt (75), and a head (7).
1), middle skirt (73) and rear skirt (7)
5) for connecting the shaft portion (77). Pig (70)
The outer diameter of the head portion (71) is smaller than the inner diameter of the pipe, and the outer diameters of the intermediate skirt portion (73) and the rear skirt portion (75) are slightly larger than the inner diameter of the pipe. When the pig (70) runs in the pipe, the middle skirt portion (73) and the rear skirt portion (75) are in close contact with the pipe wall, so that the inside of the pipe is cleaned.

The pig landing station (10) is identical to the sleeve (30), the housing (20) having the chamber (21), the sleeve (30) fixed to the housing (20) and having the receiving portion (36). A guide pipe (1) arranged on the axis and connected to the end (91) of the pipe.
5) and. The housing (20) has a guide tube (1
5), an inlet (22), a supply port (23) for supplying a fluid into the chamber (21), and a chamber (21)
A discharge port (24) for discharging the fluid therein. The sleeve (30) has a receiving portion (3) that communicates with the chamber (21).
6) has a loading port (41) formed at one end and a discharge port (51) connected to the starting end (92) of the pipe and formed at the other end of the receiving part (36). In the receiving part (36),
A taper portion (40) is formed whose diameter decreases from the loading port (41) toward the firing port (51).

When firing the pig (70) from the pig landing station (10), the pig (70) is loaded in the firing position shown in FIGS. 7 to 8 and the firing port valve (94) and supply port shown in FIG. Valve (95) is opened and inlet valve (93) and outlet valve (96) are closed.
In this state, a fluid pressure is applied from the supply port (23) into the chamber (21), so that the pig (70) arranged in the receiving portion (36) is pumped into the pipe through the firing port (51). The tapered portion (40) of the receiving portion (36) causes the pig (7
Since 0) can be properly loaded at the firing position, leakage of the fluid pressure can be prevented and the pig 70 can be reliably fired.

At the pig departure / arrival station (10), the pig (7
0) is stopped, the inlet valve (93) shown in FIG. 3 is used.
And the outlet valve (96) is opened and the outlet valve (94) and the inlet valve (95) are closed. The pig (70) sent from the end (91) of the pipe through the guide pipe (15) is stopped in the receiving part (36). As shown in FIG. 4, the end of the pipe (91) to the guide pipe (15)
The entered pig (70) passes through the chamber (21) by the fluid pressure from the end (91) side of the pipe, and then the sleeve (3).
0) to the receiving part (36), while the fluid in front of the pig (70) is discharged from the outlet (24) of the housing (20), the pig (70) enters the receiving part (36). Is done smoothly. Even after the rear end of the pig (70) is disengaged from the guide pipe (15) as shown in FIG. 5, the pig (70) receives the receiving portion (3) by the fluid pressure from the end (91) side of the pipe.
6), the taper portion (40) of the receiving portion (36) is reduced in diameter from the loading port (41) toward the ejection port (51), so that the taper portion (40) as shown in FIG. 40) and the skirts (73, 75) of the pig (70) come into contact with each other,
Eventually, the skirt portions (73, 75) come into close contact with the taper portion (40) and the states shown in FIGS. 7 to 8 are reached, and the pig (70) stops in the receiving portion (36). In this way, the pig (7
0) can be reliably stopped at a desired position in the receiving portion (36).

In the embodiment of the present invention, the tapered portion (4
The straight pipe part (50) connected to the same axis line as 0) and continuing to the discharge port (51) is formed in the receiving part (36). The straight pipe portion (50) can more reliably stop and fire the pig (70). The sleeve (30) comprises an inner tube portion (32) extending into the chamber (21) and a connecting portion (33) extending outside the housing (20). A flange portion (31) fixed to the housing (20) may be provided on the sleeve (30), and in this case, the inner pipe portion (3).
2) extends from the flange portion (31) into the chamber (21), and the connecting portion (33) extends from the flange portion (31) to the outside of the housing (20). By providing the connecting part (33), the firing port (51) and the starting end (92) of the pipe can be easily connected, and by providing the flange part (31), maintenance of the housing (20) and the sleeve (30).・
Repairs can be done smoothly. The inner diameter of the loading port (41) is larger than the outer diameter of the skirt portion (73, 75) of the pig (70), and the inner diameter of the firing port (51) is the outer diameter of the skirt portion (73, 75) of the pig (70). Slightly smaller than. As a result, the pig (70) can be smoothly introduced into the loading port (41), and the skirt portions (73, 75) of the pig (70) can be stopped near the firing port (51). (70) can be accurately arranged at the stop position and the firing position, and the stop operation and the firing operation can be reliably performed.

Further, in this embodiment, the receiving portion (3
6) One or more lateral holes (47) are formed in the sleeve (30) to communicate the fluid pressure in the outside of the sleeve (30). A lateral hole (47) is formed in the vicinity of the connecting portion (49) between the tapered portion (40) and the straight pipe portion (50), and the receiving portion (3) is formed.
The fluid pressure in front of the pig (70) in 6) is in the lateral hole (47).
And through the chamber (21) to the outlet (24). By forming the lateral hole (47), the pig (7
0) particularly when traveling in a position as shown in FIGS. 5 to 6, fluid pressure in front of the pig (70) can be released from the lateral hole (47), so that the pig (70) is opposite to the traveling direction. The pig (70) can be stopped at a position as deep as possible in the receiving part (36) without being pushed back to the position. Therefore, when the firing operation of the pig (70) is performed thereafter, the fluid pressure is most efficiently applied to the pig (70), so that the pig (70) can be fired more reliably. The lateral holes (47) are provided in the sleeve (30) at three positions at 120 ° intervals, for example.
The formation position of the lateral hole (47) is the inner tube portion (32) as shown.
However, it may be formed in the connecting portion (33).

The outlet (24) of the housing (20) is
In order to reliably advance the pig (70) in the traveling direction in the sleeve (30), the pig (70) is provided closer to the firing port (51) than the inlet (22). On the other hand, the supply port (2) of the housing (20)
3) the sleeve (30) so that when the pig (70) is fired, the fluid in the chamber (21) does not flow into the sleeve (30) through the lateral hole (47) and push the pig (70) in the opposite direction. ) Is provided in the vicinity of the loading port (41). Further, if the diameter of the lateral hole (47) is too large, the fluid will escape from the lateral hole (47) at the time of firing and it will be impossible to fire. The inner diameter of the lateral hole (47) is preferably 10 to 20% of the minimum inner diameter of the receiving portion (36). For example, the receiving part (36)
If the minimum inner diameter of 23 mm is 23 mm, the inner diameter of the lateral hole (47) is 3
Set to mm.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, but can be modified. For example, in the above embodiment, the supply port (23) is provided separately from the inlet (22), but the supply port (23) is omitted and the chamber (21) is introduced from the inlet (22).
A fluid may be supplied inside. Alternatively, supply port (2
The fluid may be supplied from the outlet (24) by omitting 3). Further, although the guide tube (15) is provided as a part of the pig landing station (10) in the above-mentioned embodiment, the guide tube (15) is omitted and the pipe arranged on the same axis as the sleeve (30). It is also possible to make the end (91) of the function as a guide tube.

[0024]

According to the present invention, it is possible to reliably start and stop the pig, and the pig landing station
Since it is possible to use only one device without preparing the two devices of the pig launching device and the pig stopping device, it is possible to achieve cost reduction and space saving. Since the pig landing station can be used as both a pig launching device and a pig stopping device, it can be used properly according to the application. In addition, it is possible to fire and stop the pig in the piping of the circulation path, which has been impossible in the past.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 is a cross-sectional view of a pig landing station according to the present invention.

2 is a left side view of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a state where a pig landing station is connected to a pipe.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view (1) showing the operation of the pig in the pig landing station.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view (2) showing the operation of the pig inside the pig landing station.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view (3) showing the operation of the pig in the pig landing station.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view (4) showing the operation of the pig in the pig landing station.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view (5) showing the operation of the pig in the pig landing station.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ・ ・ Pig departure / arrival station, 15 ・ ・ Guide tube,
20 · Housing, 21 · Chamber, 22 ·
・ Inlet, 23 ・ ・ Supply port, 24 ・ ・ Discharge port, 30
..Sleeve, 31..flange part, 32..inner tube part, 33..connection part, 36..receiving part, 40 ..
Taper part, 41 ... Loading port, 47 ... Horizontal hole, 49
..Connection parts, 50..Straight pipe parts, 51 ..
70 · · Pig, 73, 75 · · Skirt part, 91 ·
・ End of pipe, 92 ・ ・ Start of pipe,

Claims (11)

(57) [Claims] 1. A housing having a chamber and a sleeve fixed to the housing and having a receiving portion, the housing having a supply port for supplying a fluid into the chamber, the sleeve extending into the chamber and the chamber. An inner pipe portion that forms a receiving portion that communicates with the loading port, a loading port formed at one end of the receiving portion, a connecting portion that extends to the outside of the housing, and a connecting portion that is connected to the starting end of the pipe and is formed at the other end of the receiving portion. A taper part having a launch port and a diameter reduced from the loading port toward the launch port is formed in the receiving part, and fluid pressure is applied from the supply port into the chamber, and the pig arranged in the receiving part is piped from the launch port. A pig launcher characterized in that it can be pumped inside. 2. The pig launching device according to claim 1, wherein the sleeve includes a flange portion fixed to the housing, the inner pipe portion extends from the flange portion into the chamber, and the connecting portion extends from the flange portion to an outside of the housing. 3. A housing having a chamber, and a sleeve fixed to the housing and having a receiving portion, wherein the housing has an inlet connected to an end of a pipe arranged on the same axis as the sleeve and an inside of the chamber. The sleeve has an outlet for discharging fluid, and the sleeve has an inner tube portion extending into the chamber, a connecting portion extending outside of the housing, and a loading port formed at one end of the receiving portion communicating with the chamber. A pig stop device characterized in that a tapered portion whose diameter is reduced from the loading port in the traveling direction of the pig is formed in the receiving portion and the pig fed from the end of the pipe is stopped in the receiving portion. 4. The pig stop device according to claim 3, wherein the sleeve includes a flange portion fixed to the housing, the inner pipe portion extends from the flange portion into the chamber, and the connection portion extends from the flange portion to an outside of the housing. 5. A housing having a chamber, and a sleeve fixed to the housing and having a receiving portion,
The housing has an inlet connected to the end of a pipe arranged on the same axis as the sleeve, a supply port for supplying a fluid into the chamber, and a discharge port for discharging the fluid in the chamber. It has a loading port formed at one end of the receiving part that communicates with the chamber, and a launching port formed at the other end of the receiving part that is connected to the starting end of the pipe, and the diameter decreases from the loading port toward the launching port. A tapered portion is formed in the receiving portion, fluid pressure is applied from the supply port to the chamber, the pig arranged in the receiving portion is pressure-fed into the pipe from the firing port, and the pig fed from the end of the pipe is stopped in the receiving portion. A pig departure / arrival station characterized by this. 6. The pig landing station according to claim 5, wherein the straight pipe portion connected to the same axis as the taper portion and continuous with the launch port is formed in the receiving portion. 7. The pig landing station according to claim 5, wherein the sleeve includes an inner pipe portion extending into the chamber, and a connecting portion extending outside the housing. 8. The pig landing station according to claim 7, wherein the sleeve includes a flange portion fixed to the housing, the inner pipe portion extends from the flange portion into the chamber, and the connection portion extends from the flange portion to an outside of the housing. 9. The inner diameter of the loading port is larger than the outer diameter of the skirt portion of the pig, and the inner diameter of the firing port is slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the skirt portion of the pig. Pig departure and arrival station. 10. The pig landing station according to claim 5, wherein one or more lateral holes are formed in the sleeve to connect the fluid pressure in the receiving portion to the outside of the sleeve. 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein a lateral hole is formed in the vicinity of the connecting portion between the tapered portion and the straight pipe portion, and the fluid pressure in front of the pig in the receiving portion communicates with the outlet through the lateral hole and the chamber. Pig departure and arrival station.