Fluid-fluid contact method and apparatus
AssigneeMass Transfer Limited
InventorsStephen Robert Mercer Ellis, Ronald Priestley, Kevin Joseph McKeown
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Abstract
This disclosure relates to packing elements for fluid-fluid contact apparatus of the packed tower type, and also to a method of contacting a fluid with another fluid in such an apparatus. The packing elements comprise open-ended tubular members of any desired cross-sectional configuration having a maximum transverse dimension or diameter greater than its width in the axial direction, and having one or more protuberances or ribs extending inwardly from the inside wall of the member.
Claims24
A method of contacting a fluid with another fluid which comprises bringing the fluids together in a fluid-fluid contact apparatus comprising a bed packed with a plurality of packing elements and introducing fluids to the bed for contact therein;
- the improvement comprising providing a plurality of open-ended tubular members having a diameter to width ratio greater than 1.5:1 and having one or more protuberances extending inwardly from the inside wall of the member, and randomly dumping the packing members into the bed to substantially achieve a generally favorable alignment therein of a large percentage of said members which resembles the alignment in a stacked bed, such alignment being attributable to said ratio and protuberances of the packing members.
Fluid-fluid contact apparatus comprising a packed bed and means for introducing fluids to said bed for contact therein in which at least a part of the bed is a dumped bed formed of packing members each of a given overall length and including an open-ended tubular portion of given width having a diameter to width ratio greater than 1.5:1 one or more protuberances extending inwardly from the inside wall of said tubular portion, the ratio of the diameter of said tubular portion to the overall length of each of said packing members being greater than 1.5:1, and wherein said ratios and protuberances tend to facilitate a generally horzontal orientation of a greater percentage of members when dumped into said bed than is the case with conventional dumped packing members.
A packing element of a given overall length comprising an open-ended tubular member of given width and having a diameter to width ratio greater than unity, a plurality of ribs or protrusions extending inwardly from the inside wall of said member, the ratio of the diameter of said tubular member to the overall length of said packing element being from 1.5:1 to 10:1, said packing element further including elongated members extending from at least one end of the tubular member and inclined towards the longitudinal axis of the tubular member, and wherein said ratios tend to facilitate a generally horizontal orientation of said member and said protrusions tend to prevent nesting of said member with others of said member when a plurality of said members are randomly dumped into a bed.
Fluid-fluid contact apparatus comprising a packed bed and means for introducing fluids to said bed for contact therein in which at least a part of the bed is a dumped bed formed of packing members each of a given overall length and including an open-ended tubular portion of given width having a diameter to width ratio greater than 1.5:1. the ratio of the diameter of said tubular portion to the overall length of each of said packing members being greater than 1.5:1, means for preventing nesting and facilitating, in cooperation with said diameter to length ratio, a generally horizontal orientation of a greater percentage of said packing members when dumped into said bed than is the case with conventional dumped packing members, and wherein said preventing and facilitating means include at least one protuberance extending inwardly from the inside wall of said tubular portion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.