Determining shear rate and/or shear stress from sonar based velocity profiles and differential pressure
AssigneesCidra Corporate Services Inc., Suncor Energy Inc.
InventorsAlex M. Van Der Spek, Adrian Revington
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention provides a new method and apparatus for receiving signals containing information about a plurality of velocity profiles of a flow in a pipe and about a pressure gradient of the flow over a length of the pipe; and determining information about an injection of a chemical into the flow in the pipe based at least partly on the information contained in the signals.
Claims12
An apparatus for controlling an injection of a chemical into a slurry in a pipe in a mining operation, comprising:
- a signal processor or processing module having one or more modules configured to:
- receive signals containing information about a rate of a flow of a slurry having mature fine tailings (MFT) in a pipe and about a Tau profile of a shear stress related to a differential pressure gradient of the flow over a length of the pipe;
- and
- determine control signals containing information about an injection of a chemical into the flow in the pipe based at least partly on the information contained in the signals received.
A system for controlling an injection of a chemical into a slurry in a pipe in a mining operation, comprising:
- a data gathering module configured to respond to a flow of a slurry having mature fine tailings (MFT) in a pipe and provide signals containing information about a rate of the flow in the pipe and about a Tau profile of a shear stress related to a differential pressure gradient of the flow over a length of the pipe;
- and
- a signal processor comprising one or more modules configured to receive the signals, and determine control signals containing information about an injection of a chemical into the flow in the pipe based at least partly on the information contained in the signals received.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.