# US 2019/0170441 A1 · Pressure-Regulated Melting of Solids with Warm Fluids > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2019/0170441 A1 - Document ID: US20190170441A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 15/831,887 - Filed: 2017-12-05 - Published: 2019-06-06 - Earliest claimed: 2017-12-05 - Inventors: Larry Baxter; Kyler Stitt; Christopher Hoeger; Aaron Sayre; Jacom Chamberlain; David Frankman; Nathan Davis - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190170441A1 ## CPC - F27D 3/0025: {Charging or loading melting furnaces with material in the solid state} - F27D 3/08: Screw feeders; Screw dischargers - F27D 3/14: Charging or discharging liquid or molten material - F27D 7/06: Forming or maintaining special atmospheres or vacuum within heating chambers (supplying steam, vapour, gases or liquids F27D7/02) - F17C 2221/03: Mixtures - F17C 2223/0138: solid - F17C 2223/035: High pressure (>10 bar) - F17C 2225/0146: Two-phase - F17C 2225/035: High pressure, i.e. between 10 and 80 bars - F27D 2007/063: {Special atmospheres, e.g. high pressure atmospheres} - F27D: DETAILS OR ACCESSORIES OF FURNACES, KILNS, OVENS OR RETORTS, IN SO FAR AS THEY ARE OF KINDS OCCURRING IN MORE THAN ONE KIND OF FURNACE - F17C: VESSELS FOR CONTAINING OR STORING COMPRESSED, LIQUEFIED OR SOLIDIFIED GASES; FIXED-CAPACITY GAS-HOLDERS; FILLING VESSELS WITH, OR DISCHARGING FROM VESSELS, COMPRESSED, LIQUEFIED, OR SOLIDIFIED GASES (storing fluids in natural or artificial cavities or chambers in the earth B65G5/00; construction or assembling of bulk storage containers employing civil-engineering techniques E04H7/00; variable-capacity gas-holders F17B; liquefaction or refrigeration machines, plants, or systems F25) ## Abstract Devices, systems, and methods for pressure-regulated melting are disclosed. A vessel includes a solids inlet, a fluids outlet, a cavity, and a warm fluids inlet. Solids enter the vessel through the solids inlet. The cavity has an internal pressure. Warm fluids enter the vessel through the warm fluids inlet. The warm liquid being directed into the vessel provides an inlet pressure that produces a backpressure in the solids inlet. A feed rate of the warm liquid is matched to a feed rate of the solids such that the solids are melted directly to a product liquid at the internal pressure. The product liquid is passed out of the vessel through a restriction that maintains the internal pressure in the cavity. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A vessel comprising: a solids inlet, the solids inlet directing solids into the vessel; a cavity, the cavity having an internal pressure; a warm fluids inlet, the warm fluids inlet directing a warm liquid into the vessel, wherein an inlet pressure provided by the warm liquid being directed into the vessel produces a backpressure in the solids inlet, and wherein a feed rate of the warm liquid is matched to a feed rate of the solids such that the solids are melted directly to a product liquid at the internal pressure; and a fluids outlet, the fluids outlet directing the product liquid out of the vessel and the fluids outlet comprising a restriction that maintains the internal pressure of the cavity. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The vessel of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the solids are a same compound as the warm liquid. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The vessel of claim 2, wherein the solids inlet comprises a screw press. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The vessel of claim 2, wherein the fluids outlet comprises a heat exchanger, wherein the heat exchanger further heats the product liquid, producing a heated product liquid. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The vessel of claim 4, wherein the fluids outlet further comprises a gas/liquid separator, the gas/liquid separator receiving the heated product liquid from the heat exchanger, the heated product liquid becoming a final product liquid and a product gas, and separating the product gas from the final product liquid. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The vessel of claim 5, wherein the gas/liquid separator comprises a pump, the pump pumping a portion of the final product liquid from the gas/liquid separator to the vessel, the portion of the final product liquid being the warm liquid. ### Claim 7 (depends on 2) The vessel of claim 2, wherein the restriction comprises one or more valves. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The vessel of claim 1, wherein the solids comprise water, hydrocarbons, ammonia, solid acid gases, or a combination thereof, and wherein solid acid gases comprise solid forms of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur trioxide, hydrogen sulfide, or a combination thereof. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The vessel of claim 1, wherein the warm liquid comprises water, hydrocarbons, liquid ammonia, liquid acid gases, cryogenic liquids, or a combination thereof, and wherein liquid acid gases comprise liquid forms of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur trioxide, hydrogen sulfide, or a combination thereof. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The vessel of claim 1, wherein the vessel further comprises an internal heating element. ### Claim 11 A method for melting solids comprising: passing solids through a solids inlet into a vessel, wherein the vessel comprises the solids inlet, a warm fluids inlet, a cavity, and a fluid outlet, and wherein the cavity has an internal pressure; passing a warm liquid through the warm fluids inlet at an inlet pressure; inducing a backpressure on the solids in the solids inlet by the inlet pressure provided by passing the warm liquid through the warm fluids inlet; matching a feed rate of the warm liquid to a feed rate of the solids such that the solids are melted directly to a product liquid at the internal pressure; restricting the fluid outlet such that the internal pressure is maintained in the cavity; and bleeding the product liquid out the fluid outlet past the restriction. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein at least a portion of the solids are a same compound as the warm liquid. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein the solids inlet comprises a screw press. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising heating the product liquid through a heat exchanger, producing a heated product liquid. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, further comprising passing the heated product liquid into a gas/liquid separator, resulting in a product gas and a final product liquid, and separating the product gas from the final product liquid. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, further comprising pumping a portion of the final product liquid from the gas/liquid separator to the vessel, the portion of the final product liquid being the warm liquid. ### Claim 17 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein the restriction comprises one or more valves. ### Claim 18 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein the solids comprise water, hydrocarbons, ammonia, solid acid gases, or a combination thereof, and wherein solid acid gases comprise solid forms of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur trioxide, hydrogen sulfide, or a combination thereof. ### Claim 19 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein the warm liquid comprises water, hydrocarbons, liquid ammonia, liquid acid gases, cryogenic liquids, or a combination thereof, and wherein liquid acid gases comprise liquid forms of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur trioxide, hydrogen sulfide, or a combination thereof. ### Claim 20 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, further comprising heating an inside of the vessel with an internal heating element.