US1555531A

US1555531A - Distillation apparatus

Info

Publication number: US1555531A
Application number: US674680A
Authority: US
Inventors: Milon J Trumble
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1923-11-14
Filing date: 1923-11-14
Publication date: 1925-09-29
Anticipated expiration: 1942-09-29

Description

Sept. 29, 1925. 1,555,531

. M. J. TRUMBLE DISTILLATIQN APPARATUS Filed Nov. 14, 9 'Y 2 Sheets-Shet 1 TOE:

M ONJ 77POM5L;

Sept. 29, 1925. I 5 1,555,531

, M. J. TRUMBLE DI STILLATI ON APPARATUS Filed Nov. 14, 3 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS.

Patented Sept. 29, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MILON J. TRUMBLE, DE LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

DISTILLATION APPARATUS.

Application filed November 14,1923. Serial No. 674,680..

My invention relates to the art of distillation and more particularly to the production of hydrocarbon oils from various raw materials.

the shales, may be made to yield hydrocarbons if subjected to heat and pressure.v

Such, for example, are the so-called oil sands which yield complex, mixtures of hydrocarbons commonly and hereinafter termed crude oil.

It is an object of my invention to provide an apparatus by which hydrocarbons of high commercial value can be cheaply produced from such crude oil or other materials containing hydrocarbons, all such materials being hereinafter termed raw materials.

I have found that where such raw material contains or is mixed with comminuted wood, straw, brown coal, lignite, or other material containing a large proportion of woody fibre, (all such materials being hereinafter termed ligneous material) that a molecular rearrangement of the hydrocarbons seems to take place upon the application of heat to the mixture, the result being a complex mixture of hydrocarbon oils of high volatility and low specific gravity. Oils of this character are at the present time in great demand and their commercial value ishigli.

It is therefore a further object of my invention to provide means for distilling a mixture of raw material and ligneous materialfor the purpose of producing volatile hydrocarbons.

It'is ound that where raw material is di'stilledin fire stills, that is in closed vessels, to the exterior of which hot gases of combustion are applied, coking is liable to occur in the still due to local overheating. This can ,be partially overcome by using steam as a heating agent, but unless superheated steam. is employed the difference in temperature between the steam aiid the still contents is so low that unduly large stills must be employed. I therefore, employ able condensers.

superheated steam internally applied to the S t1ll 01' treater through pipe coils. It is a further object of my invention to provide mechanicalimeans for cleaning off any deposits which may form on'the exterior surface of said coils.

. Theuse of steam in steam coils placed in the still is old and has previously been considered uneconomical due to the large amount of heat required to convert water i v into steam, i. e. the latent heat of vaporizer There occur in nature many deposits which contain hydrocarbons, or which, like tion \Vhere steam is so used in the ordinary -fefining process, large quantities of fuel are burned to supply this latent heat of vaporization, this heat being afterwards removed from the vapors and steam in suit- It is a further object of my invention toprovide means by which a considerable portion .of the heat applied to the steam is recovered as mechanical power..

Further objects and advantages will be made evident hereinafter.

In'the drawings which are' for illustrative purposes only, j v

Fig. 1 is an isometric diagram of apparatus adapted to carry on my process.

Fig. 2 is a cross section through a preferred form of still.

Fig. 3 is an isometric view of the tubes and scraper of the still.

In the form of invention illustrated, I employ a battery of boilers 11, a battery of heaters 12, three stills 13, 14 and 15, two

preheaters

16 and 17, a prime mover 18, a condenser 19, and a separator 20.

The boilers 11 are of conventional form and supply saturated steam through a pipe to the heaters12. The heaters 12 consist furnace 29, which is fired by a gas burner 30.

The steam is superheated in the vessel 26 and is conducted through a pipe 31 to the first still or treater 13. ,The pipe 31 is joinedas' shown in Fig. 3 to two pipes 32, each of which projects into one of two'large pipes 33. The pipes 33 project into the still 13 and are closed at their anterior end by caps 35. The anterior ends 36 of the pipes 32 are open and the steamis delivered therethrough'into the anterior ends of the pipes 33. The pipes 33 are secured at their posterior ends in flanges 37 Welded or otherwise secured in the shell of the treater 13. A pipe 40 is also secured in the pipes 33 and has secured thereto a pipe 41 which extends down and conducts the partially cooled steam to the second vessel 27.

In the vessel 27 the steam is again raised in temperature, being delivered through a pipe 42 to a pipe corresponding to the pipe 32 in the second treater14; the.treaters 13, 14 and 15 being of identical construction. The steam after passing through pipes similar to 32 and 33 in the treater 14 is carried by a pipe 43 to the third vessel 28, being again raised in temperature therein. Steam is then conducted from the vessel 28 through a pipe 44 into the third treater 15.

The partially cooled steam from the third treater 15 is conducted through a pipe 45 to one or the other-of the

preheaters

16 and 17, the pipe 45 having branches provided with valves 46 which may be used to direct the steam into either of the

preheaters

16 or 17. p

The

preheaters

16 and 17 are identical in construction and may be filled with comminuted ligneous material through removable covers 50. Raw material, such as crude oil, is delivered through a pipe 51, having branches closed by valves 52, into either of the

preheaters

16 or 17. .Vapor is delivered from a main through branches having valves 56 into either of the

preheaters

16 or 17. Each of the preheaters l6 and 17 has a pipe 57 having a 'valve 53, through which material from either of the preheaters may be delivered to the third still 15.

This material may be pulled from the posterior to the anterior end of each still by a sc'raper60 mounted on the pipes 33 and actuated by a pull rod 61 which projects through a stuffing box 62 in the anterior end of each still. The scraper not only acts to pull solid material to the anterior end of each still but also serves. to scrape off the outer surface of the pipes 33 any adhering solid matter. Material in the anterior end of still 15 can be discharged into the posterior end of still 14 through a pipe 63 having a valve 64. Material in the anterior end of still 14 can be discharged into the posterior end of still 13 through a pipe 65 having a valve 66. Material in the anterior end of still 13 can be discharged through a pipe 67 having a valve 68.

Excess liquid in still 15 discharges into still 14 through a pipe 70 having a valve 71: excess liquid in still 14 discharges into still 13 through a pipe 72 having a valve 73; and excess liquid may be drawn off from still 13 through a pipe 74 having a valve 75.

Vapor outlets are provided for each still 13, 14 and 15. The vapor outlet 'from still 13 discharges through a valve 81 with the main 55 or may be discharged through a valve 82 and an outlet pipe 83 to suitable condensers, not shown. The vapor outlet 85 from still 14 discharges through avalve 86 intothe main55, or through a valve 87 and an outlet pipe 88 to suitable condensers, not shown. The vapor outlet 90 from the still 15 discharges through a valve 91 into the main or through a valve 92 into an outlet pipe 93 to suitable condensers, not shown.

Vapor and steam may be delivered through valves 95 and a pipe 96'to the steam turbine 18, the exhaust therefrom passing through a pipe 97 to the condenser 19. Coridensates are delivered through a pipe 98 to the separator 20, the water and water soluble salts being then delivered through a pipe and the oil through a pipe 99 therefrom.

The. method of operation is as follows: The plant is designed to operate con tinuously, and when so operating the stills 13, 14 and 15' are filled with a mixture of raw and ligneous material.

In the stills 13, 14 and 15 this mixture is subjected to the heat of the steam in the pipes 33, this steam being superheated before being passed into each still by the

heaters

26, 27 and 28. The cooled steam from the third still 15 is blown directly nto a mixture of raw and ligneous material 1n one of the

preheaters

16 or 17. These preheaters are charged with oil from the pipe 51 and with ligneous material through the opening closed by the cover 50.

Vapors are produced in the stills 13, 14 and '15 and these vapors are either blown into one of the

preheaters

16 or 17 through the main 55, or are drawn off through one of the pipes 83, S8 or 93 and condensed. hen so condensed, they form valuable oils.

The material in the

preheaters

16 and 17 is delivered to the still 15 through the pipes 57 and is progressively passed through the stills 14 and 13. In its passage it is subjected to increasing temperatures and its volatile contents are distilled. Due to the presence of solids in the material in the stills, it isnecessary to utilize the scrapers 60 to pull this material to the anterior end of each still so that it can be dumped.

I prefer to blow the vapors from all the stills 13, 14 and 15 through the main 55 into the

preheaters

16 and 17. These preheaters 1 are alternately charged with raw and ligneous material. one being charged While the other is receiving steam and vapor.

In practice I use a plurality of sets of apparatus as shown, one battery of boilers and one turbine serving to operate all these sets. The pi e 96 would then be branched as shown at 101, and fed with steam and other vapors from other preheaters.

In practice I find that it is possible to produce valuable volatile vapors in the stills and preheaters if they are charged with suitable mixtures of raw and ligneous material The ligneous material apparently acts as a catalyzer, helping to break up the raw material into solids or semi-solids and volatiles. The ligneous material may be in I 'into steam. This steam, together with all other steam and vapors entering or formed in the

preheaters

16 and 17, 'is delivered to the steamturbine 18, where it does useful work, the valuable products carried therein being separated and recovered in'the separator 20. 7

By mixing a suitable liquid, for example asphalt oil, with the ligneous material, I, am also able to deliver a very valuable material through the pipe 67. The characteristics of this material can be varied} by changing the method ofoperation of the apparatus, but in general it consists of carbonized material which may contain sulficient tarry residue to permit of its being readily briquetted. This material forms a valuable fuel, high inthermal value, and substantially smokeless.

I claim as my invention:

1. An apparatus for distillation comprising: walls forming a preheating chamber means for passing raw material into said preheating. chamber; walls forminga vaporizing chamber; means for passing material from said preheating chamber into said vaporizing chamber; walls forming a heating channel, a portion of said walls bein in thermal contact with the material in said vaporizing chamber; means for passing hot vapors through saidheating channel, said vapors being at a sufiicient temperature to produce a vaporized product from the material in said vaporizing cham ber; means for passing the vapors after they leave saidheating channel into the raw material in said preheating chamber; and means for utilizing vapors from said preheating chamber in the production of power. i z

2. An apparatus for distillation comprising: walls forming a preheating chamber; means for passing raw materialinto said preheating-chamber; wallsforming a vaporizing, chamber; means for passing material from said preheating chamber into said vaporizing chamber; walls forming a heating channel, a portion of said walls being in thermal contact with the material in, said vaporizing chamber; means for passin" hot vapors through said heating channe said vapors being at a suflicient temperature to produce a vaporized product from the material in said vaporizing chamber; means for passing the vapors after they leave said heating channel into the raw material in said preheating chamber;

,means for injecting the vaporized product,

produced in said vaporizing chamber, into the r'awmaterial in said preheating chamber; and means for utilizing vapors from said-preheating chamber in the production of power.

In testimony whereof, I have hereuntoset my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 8th day of November, 1923.

MILON J. TRUMBLE.