US2025724A

US2025724A - clendenin

Info

Publication number: US2025724A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1935-12-31
Anticipated expiration: 1952-12-31

Description

Dec. 31, 1935.

E. H. CLENDENIN SYSTEM OF PRODUCING STEAM AND WATER Filed March 6, 1934 w L Q ./Patented Dec. 3l, 1935 N UNITED sur SYSTEM F PRODUCING STEAM AND WATER f Application March 6,

2 Claims.

This invention relates to the production of steam and water for refinery purposes.

The invention will be fully understood from the following description taken in connection 5 with the accompanying drawing, in which latter the gure is a diagrammatic representation of a.` preferred form of apparatus for carrying out the invention.

Referring particularly to the drawing, reference numeral designates a condenser box, tar cooler or the like containing a coil 2 through which hot oil or vapor from a petroleum oil refining operation is passed. The condenser box may be a plurality of heat exchangers used in cooling oil or vapor in the operation of refining petroleum oil. The hot oil or vapor is cooled by means of water such as salt water, which may be passed into the heat exchanger I from a line 4 containing a pump 5 and having its inlet end opening into the water of the ocean designated 1. The sale water in passing through the heat exchanger I becomes heated to an elevated temperature, such as from, approximately, 160 to 212 F., and is delivered from the heat exchanger I through a line 8. .1

'I'he hot salt water passing through the line 8 is delivered to an evaporator ||l in uniform quan,- tities to be subjected to flash evaporation through the following arrangement of parts. The line 8 opens into a stand pipe where the hot salt water is permitted to accumulate to a predetermined level at indicator I2. A waste line I4 leading from the stand pipe at level I2 conducts excess salt water to a suitable place of disposal such as the ocean 1. A line I6 leads from the stand pipe below the level I2 and opens into the evaporator I0. The salt water and vapors from the line I6 are drawn into evaporator I0 at substantially constant volume being regulated by the constant head AI2 in the stand pipe II, thus resulting in a substantially constant transformation of the liquid into vapor during the evaporatlngaoperation. A drain line I9 leads from the stand pipe to a suitable place of disposal.

Evaporator ||l is subjected to lower than atmospheric pressures suicient to flash a portion of the salt water into vapor. During this flashing operation the major portion of the salt water remains in liquidform and becomes chilled.- This major fraction or unevaporated portion of the salt water is delivered from the' evaporator I0 through a tail pipe or barometric column 2|. The barometric column 2| communicates through a valve 22 with a pump 23 which delivers the cold major fraction of the salt water through a line 1934, Serial N0. 714,275

(Cl. 202-52l 24 into the line 4 to be mingled with fresh salt water passing into the. heat exchanger I. Ex-

cess portions of the major fraction can be Withdrawn from the barometric column 2| through a valved tail pipe 25 to a suitable place of disposal, such as the ocean 1.

Y The evaporator I0 is subjected to lower than atmospheric pressures by the following arrangement of parts. The cooled minor fraction is conducted through an overhead line 30 to a condenser 3| where the vapor is condensed. The condenser 3| is cooled by a suitable cooling fluid, such as sea Water, pumped into the condenser 3| through a line 32 and discharged from the condenser 3| through a line 33. The condensate is withdrawn from the condenser 3| through a line 35 containing a pump 36 and is delivered to a steam boiler 38 where the condensate is converted into steam. Fresh feed water may be supplied to the boiler as desired by means of the valved line 49. The steam is conducted from the boiler 38 into a steam header 39 common to other boilers. A portion'of the steam in header 39 is passed into a. steamA jet air eductor or vacuum pump 4|. This air eductor or vacuum pump 4| communicates with the condenser 3| through a line 43. The air and other non-condensibles are removed from the condenser 3| through the line 43, thereby generating less than atmospheric pressure within the condenser 3|. 'Ihe steam from the steam jet air eductor 4| and non-condensibles from condenser 3| are passed from the eductor 4| through a cooler 45 in which the steam iscondensed and returned to the condenser 3| through line 41, the air and non-condensibles being discharged to the atmosphere. The excess steam from the steam header 39 is delivered for refinery use through valve 48. To start the equipment the vacuum pump 4| isactuated to evacuate the condenser 3|, conduit 30 and evaporator I0. Thenon-condensibles are eliminated from the condenser 3| during the operating period. When sunicient'vacuum has been obtained in the evaporator I0, the salt water flows from line I6 into the evaporator I9. The minor fraction becomes flashed and passes through the conduit 30 to the condenser 3| at the expense of the sensible heat of the major fraction which leaves the evaporator |0 by the barometric tube 2 |V at a lower temperature than the entering feed water passing through line I6.

By the procedure described, fresh water and cooled circulating water are obtained for petroleum oil renery purposes from warm waste feed water without the addition of heat by flashing the waste feed water at sub-atmospheric pres.

sures, and steam also for oil renery purposes, is produced as a product.

Various changes and alternative arrangements may be made within the scope of the appended claims, in which it is my intention to claim all novelty inherent in the invention as broadly as the prior art permits.

I claim:

1. The method of producing steam for petroleum oil refinery purposes, which comprises passing salt water in heat exchange with petroleum oil in an oil renery operation whereby the water is heated, ashing the heated water at less than atmospheric pressures to obtain a cooled minor fraction of vapors and a cooled major fraction of unvaporized water, separating the cooled minor fraction as an overhead product, condensing the overhead, withdrawing thecondensed overhead heating the same togetherwith fresh feed water to generate steam, and returning a portion of the steam to suitable eductors or vacuum pumps to remove noncondensibles from the zone of subatmospheric pressures thereby establishing and maintaining the sub-atmospheric pressures.

2. The method of producing steam and water for refinery purposes, which comprises passing salt water in heat exchange with petroleum oil 5 in an oil refinery operation, whereby the water is heated, ashing the heated water at less than atmospheric pressures to obtain a cooled minor fraction of vapors and a cooled major fraction of unvaporized water, separating. the cooled minor 10 fraction as an overhead product, condensing the overhead, withdrawing the condensed overhead heating the same together with fresh feed water to generate steam,'returnng a portion of the steam to suitable eductos or vacuum pumps to 15 remove non-condensibles from the zone of subatmospheric pressures thereby establishing and maintaining the sub-atmospheric pressures, and separating the cooled major fraction from the hashing zone and returning it to the heat ex- 20 exchanger. r

EDWARD H. CLEN'DENIN.