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US 12,398,050 B2Granted
Vacuum evaporative heat exchanger
OwnerJohn Troy Kraczek, John Arthur Kraczekinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Techniques are described herein for using a high-pressure reactor to separate clean water from dirty water without filtration and to extract and concentrate contaminants from dirty water for use as a fuel. In particular, techniques and systems are described for separating water from hydrocarbon contaminates, other BTU-laden compounds, and dissolved minerals, while also boiling water and condensing the resulting steam into distilled water. In addition, system in which the described techniques are performed can be used as a high-pressure pump for moving the separated hydrocarbon contaminates forward into other processes, such as a high-pressure reactor or incinerator.
Claims20
A system comprising:
- a supercritical water oxidation reactor configured to oxidize combustible fuel to produce heat and hot steam as a result of oxidation of the fuel;
- a first chamber having a hollow first cavity configured to contain water and the fuel;
- a vacuum pump operationally connected to the hollow first cavity and configured to reduce a pressure in the hollow first cavity to lower a boiling point of water in the hollow first cavity to a lowered boiling point below 192° F.;
- a second chamber including a hollow second cavity that at least partially surrounds the hollow first cavity, the hollow second cavity being operationally connected to the supercritical water oxidation reactor to receive the hot steam from the supercritical water oxidation reactor, such that hot steam received from the supercritical water oxidation reactor into the hollow second cavity causes water in the hollow first cavity to boil to cold steam;
- a movable piston located within the hollow first cavity and in sealable contact with an inner wall of the first chamber and configured to move along a length of the first chamber to mechanically move residual fuel in the hollow first cavity to the supercritical water oxidation reactor, wherein the residual fuel remains in the first cavity after water in the hollow first cavity boils to cold steam before the residual fuel is moved to the supercritical water oxidation reactor;
- and
- a hydraulic pump operationally connected to the hollow first cavity and configured to pump liquid in and out of the hollow first cavity to move the movable piston between a first position in which the fuel and water is in the hollow first cavity and a second position in which the residual fuel is moved from the hollow first cavity to the supercritical water oxidation reactor.
4 more elements
A method comprising:
- oxidizing combustible fuel in a supercritical water oxidation reactor to produce heat and hot steam as a result of oxidation of the fuel;
- loading a hollow first cavity of a first chamber that is operationally connected to the supercritical water oxidation reactor with water and the fuel;
- reducing a pressure in the hollow first cavity to lower a boiling point of water in the hollow first cavity to a lowered boiling point below 192° F.;
- providing the hot steam from the supercritical water oxidation reactor to a hollow second cavity of a second chamber that at least partially surrounds the hollow first cavity, such that hot steam received from the supercritical water oxidation reactor into the hollow second cavity causes water in the hollow first cavity to boil to cold steam at the lowered boiling point;
- moving a movable piston located within the hollow first cavity and that is in sealable contact with an inner wall of the first chamber along a length of the first chamber to mechanically move residual fuel in the hollow first cavity to the supercritical water oxidation reactor, wherein the residual fuel remains in the hollow first cavity after water in the hollow first cavity boils to cold steam before the residual fuel is moved to the supercritical water oxidation reactor, wherein residual fuel that is moved into the supercritical water oxidation reactor provides the combustible fuel for oxidation in the supercritical water oxidation reactor;
- and
- pumping liquid in and out of the hollow first cavity to cause movement of the movable piston between a first position in which the fuel and water is loaded into the hollow first cavity and a second position in which the residual fuel is moved from the hollow first cavity to the supercritical water oxidation reactor.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.