US3577697A - High-pressure gas-filling apparatus and method - Google Patents

Abstract

A high-pressure gas-filling apparatus and method for filling gas containers such as lamps to a positive pressure of several atmospheres to minimize waste of supply gas. Empty lamp bodies are attached to a filling manifold and the filling apparatus is evacuated to a desired pressure range before filling occurs. After the lamps have been filled and sealed, control valves are closed to trap unused supply gas in the system. The trapped gas is then liquified and collected in a freezeout chamber by applying cooling to the freezeout chamber. When cooling is discontinued, the liquified gas in the chamber revaporizes and when sufficient pressure builds up, the gas reenters the highpressure supply side of the apparatus for reuse. Through the use of the freezeout chamber one of the supply containers can be purged, when its pressure will not operate a regulator, and the residual gas therein be placed into the other supply container.

Description

United States Patent [72] Inventor Teddy J. Peacher Huntsville, Ala. [21] Appl. No. 838,117 [22] Filed July 1, 1969 [45] Patented May 4, 1971 [73] Assignee the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army [54] HIGH-PRESSURE GAS-FILLING APPARATUS AND METHOD 4 Claims, 1 Drawing Fig.

[52] US. Cl 53/12, 53/79, 316/20, 316/30 [51 Int. Cl B65b 31/00 [50] FieldotSearch 53/7,12, 22, 86, 88,112, 79; 316/20, 30

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,768,488 10/1956 Shelnutt 53/1 12 2,963,834 12/1960 Stanley et a1. 53/88X Primary Examiner-Travis S. McGehee AttorneysHarry M. Saragovitz, Edward J. Kelly, Herbert Berl and Charles R. Carter ABSTRACT: A high-pressure gas-filling apparatus and method for filling gas containers such as lamps toa positive pressure of several atmospheres to minimize waste of supply gas. Empty lamp bodies are attached to a filling manifold and the filling apparatus is evacuated to a desired pressure range before filling occurs. After the lamps have been filled and sealed, control valves are closed to trap unused supply gas in the system. The trapped gas is then liquified and collected in a freezeout chamber by applying cooling to the freezeout chamber. When cooling is discontinued, the liquified gas in the chamber revaporizes and when sufficient pressure builds up, the gas reenters the high-pressure supply side of the apparatus for reuse. Through the use of the freezeout chamber one of the supply containers can be purged, when its pressure will not operate a regulator, and the residual gas therein be placed into the other supply container.

I7 29 '25 =ir= 5 Q E 5 E PRESSURE REGULATOR VACUUM PUMP PATENTED HAY 4m INVENTOR Teddy J. Peocher,

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to the field of high-pressure filling of containers such as lamps. In present systems used for filling gas short are lamps to positive pressures of several atmospheres, the systems are pumped down by a vacuum pump to a desired level. A vacuum valve is closed and the regulator opened to allow gas to fill the lamps. After the lamps have been filled, sealed, and removed from the filling manifold, the gas remaining in the system is allowed to escape before another vacuum is pulled on the system. The gas supply container cannot be exhausted; it must be considered empty when its internal pressure drops below 10 atmospheres, even though there is 20 percent or more of the gas remaining which is wasted. The high cost of gas such as zenon, neon, and argon, for example, makes this situation undesirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The single FIGURE shown in the drawing is a schematic of the gas filling apparatus.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION A group of containers such as lamp bodies A to be filled are attached to a filling manifold 1 that is connected to gas supply containers 3, 5, and other elements to be described later by conduits of tubing. The supply containers contain gas, such as zenon under 500 p.s.i.g. internal pressure and have their respective valves 3a, 5a closed. Control valves 7, 9, ll, l3, l5,

and 17 are opened. A gas pressure regulator 19 is opened and vacuum pump 21 is started to pump the system down to mm. mercury pressure ascertained by vacuum gage 23. At this pressure, valves 9, ll, 13, and are closed as well as regulator 19. Supply container valve 3a is opened (or valve 5a if container 5 is to be evacuated) pressurizing a high-pressure manifold 25. A valve in regulator 19 is opened to regulate the pressure for filling the lamps as determined by a pressure gage 27. After the lamps are filled, valve 7 is closed;' the lamps are sealed by a known cold weld process, such as pinching off the lamp fill tube, and the lamps are removed from the manifold. Valve 11 is then opened and gas remaining in the filling system is now trapped between valves 7, 9, l3, and 15 as well as check valve 29. and pop-off valve 31. This trapped gas is not liquified and collects in the bottom of collecting means or freezeout chamber 33 by applying a cooling system 35 to the chamber. This cooling system may be a Dewar flask of liquid N or other suitable coolant, or a mechanical refrigeration unit. Valve 11 is then closed and the cooling to the freezeout chamber is discontinued. As the gas revaporizes and the pressure builds up to greater than that in the high pressure manifold, it will reenter the high-pressure manifold through check valve 29, which prevents backflow to 500 p.s.i. and open valve 17. A pressure gage records the pressure in the high-pressure manifold connected with the supply containers.

A second group of lamp bodies are mounted on the filling .manifold for filling. Valves 9 and 13 are opened and the system below valves 7 and 11 is pumped down to 10 mm. mercury pressure by the vacuum pump and the lamp filling cycle explained above is repeated.

The above filling procedure is repeated until the pressure in the gas supply container drops below that required to operate regulator 19 at the required filling pressure. When two supply containers are utilized, one can be used until its pressure is too low to operate the regulator, then the other container can b switched in.

Assuming that both containers have been used down to the minimum pressure for reliable system operation, container 3 can be purged and the residual gas therein placed into container 5. Valves 3a and 15 are opened and the cooling system is applied to the freezeout chamber until the pressure in supply container 3 falls within the range of 5-10 p.s.i.g. (amount required to be left in the container by the gas supplier) at which time valve 3a is closed and valve 50 is opened and the cooling to the freezeout chamber is discontinued. When all the gas has vaporized, valves 5a and 17 are closed and cooling is again placed on freezeout chamber 33 until all the gas in high-pressure manifold 25 is liquified at which time valve 15 is closed. At this point, it is noted that the cooling system must be kept on the freezeout chamber until the empty container is replaced and the filling system, other than the freezeout chamber, is pumped down. Valves 5a and 1 7 are opened and the cooling to the freezeout chamber is discontinued. Regulator 19 is closed and as the gas revaporizes, the pressure builds up; it will reenter the high-pressure manifold through valve 17 and into supply container 5.

Other gases such as neon and argon, for'example, can be used as the filling gas by varying the cooling technique from a bath of liquid nitrogen to another suitable coolant or mechanical cooling cycle.

Moderate and low-pressure containers may also be filled with the filling apparatus by varying the filling pressure of the gas.

I claim:

I. An apparatus for filling containers such as gas lamps to a positive pressure of several atmospheres comprising: a gas supply; a filling manifold and means for regulating the gas pressure therein disposed in communication between the lamps and said gas supply; means disposed in communication with said manifold and said gas supply for collecting and storing residual supply gases therefrom and for returning said gases to said supply; and means for cooling the residual gases.

2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a high-pressure manifold disposed in communication between said gas supply and said regulating means.

3. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 further comprising a vacuum pump for pulling a vacuum on the apparatus.

4. A method of filling gas lamps to a positive pressure of several atmospheres comprising: connecting lamps bodies to a filling manifold; evacuating the filling manifold; regulating the gas pressure from a supply to the filling manifold; and collecting the residual gases from said manifold into a collecting means after the lamps have been filled and sealed for return to the supply, said collecting performed by applying cooling to said collecting means.

Claims (3)

1. 2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a high-pressure manifold disposed in communication between said gas supply and said regulating means.
2. 3. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 further comprising a vacuum pump for pulling a vacuum on the apparatus.
3. 4. A method of filling gas lamps to a positive pressure of several atmospheres comprising: connecting lamps bodies to a filling manifold; evacuating the filling manifold; regulating the gas pressure from a supply to the filling manifold; and collecting the residual gases from said manifold into a collecting means after the lamps have been filled and sealed for return to the supply, said collecting performed by applying cooling to said collecting means.

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