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US 2008/0296405 A1Published application
Rotary joint seal for a decoking tool
AssigneeFlowserve Management Company
InventorsLloyd D. Hanson, William B. Jones, JR.
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A rotary joint for a decoking tool. The rotary joint includes a seal assembly that has one or more primary seals and one or more secondary seals. The secondary seals become operative upon the presence of a leak in the primary seals such that the rotary joint can continue to be used until a scheduled maintenance outage. A selective vent is used to route leaking fluid so that one or the other of the primary and secondary seals can be activated.
Claims20
A rotary joint comprising:
- a rotatable flowpath;
- a non-rotatable flowpath in fluid communication with said rotatable flowpath;
- and
- a seal assembly disposed between said rotatable and non-rotatable flowpaths, said seal assembly comprising:
- a primary seal configured to limit leakage in a region defined between said rotatable and non-rotatable flowpaths;
- a secondary seal disposed relative to said primary seal such that said primary seal and said secondary seal define a space between them that is in selective venting communication with the ambient atmosphere;
- and
- means to effect said selective venting communication between said space and the ambient atmosphere such that in a first operating condition of said selective venting communication means, said space is vented to the ambient atmosphere, while in a second operating condition of said selective venting communication means, said space is substantially decoupled from the ambient atmosphere.
5 more elements
A decoking tool comprising:
- a fluid supply conduit;
- at least one fluid dispensing nozzle in fluid communication with said fluid supply conduit such that upon delivery of a fluid from said fluid supply conduit to said at least one fluid dispensing nozzle, said at least one fluid dispensing nozzle rotates relative to said fluid supply conduit such that said fluid being dispensed therefrom impacts solidified coke;
- and
- a rotary joint coupled between said fluid supply conduit and said at least one fluid dispensing nozzle to facilitate rotational movement therebetween, said rotary joint comprising:
- a rotatable flowpath;
- a non-rotatable flowpath in fluid communication with said rotatable flowpath;
- and
- a seal assembly disposed between said rotatable and non-rotatable flowpaths, said seal assembly comprising:
- a primary seal configured to limit leakage in a region defined between said rotatable and non-rotatable flowpaths;
- a secondary seal disposed relative to said primary seal such that said primary seal and said secondary seal define a space between them that is in selective venting communication with the ambient atmosphere;
- and
- a device to effect said selective venting communication between said space and the ambient atmosphere such that in a first operating condition, said space is vented to the ambient atmosphere, while in a second operating condition, said space is substantially decoupled from the ambient atmosphere.
9 more elements
A method of operating a rotary joint for a decoking tool, said method comprising:
- configuring a seal assembly in said rotary joint to comprise at least one primary seal and at least one secondary seal with a selectively operated venting region disposed fluidly between them such that upon attainment of a leakage level that exceeds a predetermined threshold past said primary seal, said selectively operated venting region can be manipulated such that secondary seal substantially contains said leakage;
- flowing a decoking fluid through said rotary joint;
- checking for leakage of said fluid around said at least one primary seal;
- and
- venting said region until said leakage exceeds a predetermined threshold.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.