Method for expanding a gas flow and device thereby applied
AssigneeAtlas Copco Airpower, Naamloze Vennootschap
InventorsKris Van Campfort, Kristof Pascal Hubin
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for expanding a gas flow between an inlet for the supply of the gas flow at certain inlet conditions of inlet pressure and inlet temperature and an outlet for the delivery of expanded gas at certain desired outlet conditions of outlet pressure and outlet temperature, whereby this method at least comprises the step of at least partly expanding the gas flow between the inlet and the outlet through a pressure reducing valve and at least partly expanding it through a pressure reducing unit with a rotor driven by the gas for converting the energy contained in the gas into mechanical energy on this shaft.
Claims22
A method for expanding a gas flow of a gas or gas mixture between an inlet for the supply of the gas to be expanded at certain inlet conditions of inlet pressure and inlet temperature and an outlet for the delivery of expanded gas at certain desired outlet conditions of outlet pressure and outlet temperature, the method at least comprising the steps of:
- at least partly expanding the gas flow between the inlet and the outlet through a pressure reducing valve and at least partly expanding the gas flow through a pressure reducing unit with a rotor driven by the gas with an outgoing shaft for converting the energy contained in the gas into mechanical energy, and
- controlling a first subflow of the gas flow to be expanded to flow through the pressure reducing valve and a second subflow to flow through the pressure reducing unit,
- wherein the gas flow to be expanded is driven through the pressure reducing valve and through the pressure reducing unit in parallel, and
- wherein a controller is configured to control the flow and expansion of the first and second subflows, and the first and second subflows are controlled separately to a desired, set outlet pressure, after which the first and second subflows are combined at the same desired, set outlet pressure for the supply of the expanded gas flow at the desired outlet conditions at the outlet.
A method for expanding a gas flow of a gas or gas mixture between an inlet for the supply of the gas to be expanded at certain inlet conditions of inlet pressure and inlet temperature and an outlet for the delivery of expanded gas at certain desired outlet conditions of outlet pressure and outlet temperature, wherein the method at least comprises the steps of:
- at least partly expanding the gas flow between the inlet and the outlet through a pressure reducing valve and at least partly expanding the gas flow through a pressure reducing unit with a rotor driven by the gas with an outgoing shaft for converting the energy contained in the gas into mechanical energy, and
- controlling the pressure reducing valve and the pressure reducing unit,
- wherein a controller is configured to control the flow and expansion of the gas flow such that after the first expansion stage an intermediate operating point with an intermediate pressure and temperature is obtained that ensures an expansion in the second expansion stage to a pressure and temperature corresponding to a desired, set outlet pressure and outlet temperature,
- wherein the gas flow to be expanded is driven in two successive expansion stages in series through the pressure reducing valve and through the pressure reducing unit.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.