US 11,692,555 B2Granted

System and method for preventing total plant shutdown due to low temperature excursion

AssigneeWpt LLC

InventorsTiong-Ee Ting, Kenneth M. Istre, Newton Landreneau, W. Ryan Pitt, Gregory M. Guillory, Jr., Charles R. Demarest, Toby Darbonne, Troy L. Irwin

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Abstract

A system of interlocks for controlling flow of low temperature process streams in a manufacturing process through a cold box to equipment or piping not specified for such temperatures by opening and closing valves and starting and stopping pumps. At least one interlock affects streams heated in the cold box. At least one interlock affects the streams cooled in the cold box. The interlocks are activated by temperatures of process lines to prevent exposure of equipment and piping to low temperatures while preventing the shutdown of the cold box. An override controller including a predictive failure capability is also provided.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A system for monitoring a set of interlocks comprising:

a master controller, having a memory;
a set of interlock controllers, associated with the set of interlocks, operatively connected to the master controller;
a set of temperature sensors, operatively connected to the set of interlock controllers and the master controller;
an artificial neural network, operatively connected to the master controller, having an input layer and an output layer;
and
a set of instructions, in the memory, that when implemented cause the master controller to carry out the steps of:
obtaining a set of temperature readings from the set of temperature sensors;
monitoring an activity state of the set of interlock controllers, for a set of failure states, based on the set of temperature readings;
logging the activity state of the set of interlock controllers, at a set of discrete time intervals, into an activity table;
training the artificial neural network with the activity table;
submitting a current failure state, of the set of failure states, to the input layer;
and
reading a predictive failure state from the output layer.

10 more elements

A method for monitoring a set of interlocks comprising:

providing a master controller, operatively connected to a memory;
providing a set of interlock controllers, associated with the set of interlocks, operatively connected to the master controller;
providing a set of component controllers, operatively connected to the set of interlock controllers and the master controller;
providing a set of temperature sensors, operatively connected to the set of interlock controllers and the master controller;
and
providing a set of instructions, in the memory, that when implemented cause the master controller to carry out the steps of:
obtaining a temperature reading from a first temperature sensor of the set of temperature sensors;
deriving a comparison condition between the temperature reading to a present temperature;
monitoring an activity state of a first interlock controller, of the set of interlock controllers, based on the comparison condition;
if the activity state indicates a failure state, then setting the activity state to an override state;
and
setting a first component controller, of the set of component controllers, according to the override state.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 18/051,374Filed 31 Oct 2022 · continuation
Priority: 28 Oct 2013
Published: US 2023/0085037 A116 Mar 2023
Granted: 4 Jul 2023
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification17 codes

F04D 27/0284
Surge control: conjoint control of two or more different functions
B01D 3/00
Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous
B01D 3/14
Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping: fractional distillation or use of a…
B01D 3/32
Fractional distillation or use of a fractionation or rectification column: other features of fractionating columns ; Constructional details of…

Family

Application14/065,049Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 28 Oct 2013
Application16/397,891Parent of this continuation · filed 29 Apr 2019
US 10,274,907 B2Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 30 Apr 2019
US 11,486,409 B2Parent of this continuation · filed 1 Nov 2022
US 2023/0085037 A1Pre-grant publication · published 16 Mar 2023
Application16/397,891Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 2015/0120066 A1Published application
US 2019/0257316 A1Published application
US 11,692,555 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.