Apparatus and Method For Conditioning a Fluid Sample
AssigneeProem Technology Company
InventorNathan E. Progar
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention as described herein provides a means to remove water vapor, entrained condensable liquids, and entrained condensable solids from an environmental fluid sample to prepare the vapor and/or condensate fractions of such fluid sample for chemical analyses. It substantially reduces equipment breakage risk from the fragile equipment required to be used in the current art, reduces differential pressure across the sample preparation system, avoids changes in chemical composition of the vapor and liquid samples while allowing direct analysis of the condensate stream or streams, allows for operation in a wider sample stream vacuum or pressure ranges, and reduces required maintenance downtime.
Claims33
An apparatus for conditioning a fluid sample, comprising:
- a fluid separator having an exterior housing that houses:
- a vapor inlet port;
- a first fluid path segment with a first and second end;
- a second fluid path segment with a first and second end;
- a third fluid path segment having a first and second end, and in fluid communication with a condensate collector chamber;
- a condensate sample outlet port;
- a fourth fluid path segment with a first and second end;
- a vapor sample outlet port;
- a plurality of cooling means;
- and
- a means to monitor and control a heat transfer system electrically and operably coupled to said fluid separator and including one or more temperature sensors.
A system for conditioning fluid samples for sampling and analysis comprising:
- one or more fluid separators:
- one or more cooling means in communication with said one or more fluid separators;
- a heat transfer system electrically and operably coupled to said one or more fluid separators and including one or more sensors;
- and
- a means for controlling said heat transfer system electrically and operatively coupled to said heat transfer system and said one or more fluid separators.
A method to condition a fluid sample for chemical analysis, comprising:
- inserting a fluid sample into a sample inlet port of a sample conditioner;
- routing a fluid sample through a sample path inside a sample conditioner housing;
- applying heat transfer to a sample conditioner housing to effect temperature change along said sample path;
- condensing condensable matter onto side walls of said sample path;
- separating condensable matter from said fluid sample stream;
- collecting condensable matter within said sample path;
- removing condensable matter from said sample path;
- isolating said fluid sample stream from said condensable matter;
- routing the fluid sample stream to a sample exit port;
- and
- routing the fluid sample from the sample conditioner for further processing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.