Method for cavitation-assisted refining, degumming and dewaxing of oil and fat
AssigneeCavitation Technologies, Inc.
InventorsRoman Gordon, Igor Gorodnitsky, Varvara Grichko
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Abstract
A method for degumming and/or refining crude oil containing impurities involving mixing the crude oil with degumming agents, i.e., water or acid, and subjecting the mixture to flow-through, hydrodynamic cavitation processing. The cavitational processing transfers impurities in the crude oil to a water phase for easier separation. The water phase may be separated from the oil phase by commonly available separation methods.
Claims24
A method for degumming and/or refining crude oil containing impurities, comprising the steps of:
- providing a flow-through, hydrodynamic cavitation device having a flow path there through;
- mixing the crude oil with a degumming agent to form mixed fluid having an oil phase and a water phase;
- pumping the mixed fluid into the flow path of the cavitation device at a pre-determined pump pressure;
- generating cavitational features in the mixed fluid such that the impurities are transferred from the oil phase to the water phase;
- and
- separating the oil phase from the water phase.
A method for degumming and/or refining crude oil containing impurities, comprising the steps of:
- providing a flow-through, hydrodynamic cavitation device having a flow path there through;
- mixing the crude oil with a degumming agent to form mixed fluid having an oil phase and a water phase, wherein the degumming agent comprises water, steam, phosphoric acid, citric acid, oxalic acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, aspartic amino acid, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, alkali, salts, chelating agents, crown ethers, soluble or immobilized lipases, enzymes, or maleic anhydride;
- pumping the mixed fluid into the flow path of the cavitation device at a pre-determined pump pressure;
- generating cavitational features in the mixed fluid such that the impurities are transferred from the oil phase to the water phase;
- separating the oil phase from the water phase;
- and
- repeating the pumping and generating steps prior to performing the separating step.
A method for degumming and/or refining crude oil containing impurities, comprising the steps of:
- providing a flow-through, hydrodynamic cavitation device having a flow path there through;
- mixing the crude oil with a degumming agent to form mixed fluid having an oil phase and a water phase, wherein the degumming agent comprises water, steam, phosphoric acid, citric acid, oxalic acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, aspartic amino acid, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, alkali, salts, chelating agents, crown ethers, soluble or immobilized lipases, enzymes, or maleic anhydride;
- pumping the mixed fluid into the flow path of the cavitation device at a pre-determined pump pressure;
- generating cavitational features in the mixed fluid such that the impurities are transferred from the oil phase to the water phase;
- separating the oil phase from the water phase using sedimentation, centrifugation, filtration, distillation, extraction or washing;
- and
- repeating the pumping and generating steps prior to performing the separating step.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.