Centrifugal separator and system

A centrifugal separator comprising:

• a. a housing;
• b. a rotor rotatably mounted in the housing;
• c. the rotor having a rotor chamber defined by a deeply dished drum and a lid closing the drum;
• d. input passage means into the chamber for a multiconstituent feed of solid, liquid and gaseous phases, the input passage means emptying into the chamber at a location proximate the radial perimeter thereof;
• e. means to define radial zones of mixture phase constituents stratified in accordance with their density in response to centrifugal force applied through the rotor and to the relative quantities of the constituents in the chamber, such means including:
• i. a pitot tube assembly for taking from the chamber a select one of the phase, the pitot tube assembly being mounted on the housing and having a pitot tube mouth in a selected radial zone for presentation to the selected one of the phases in the chamber and a first passage from the mouth to outside the separator for exiting the selected phase from the separator;
• ii. a second passage opening into the chamber at a radius less than the radius of the pitot tube mouth and exiting from the separator, the second passage being for exiting a second of the phases;
• iii. a third passage opening into the chamber at a radius greater than the radius of the pitot tube mouth and exiting from the separator, the third passage being for exiting a third of the phases;
• and
• iv. a fourth passage opening into the chamber at a radius greater than the radius of the third passage opening, the fourth passage exiting from the separator being for exiting a fourth and solid phase of the phases.

In a centrifugal separator for separating the constituents of a multiconstituent feed, an improvement which comprises:

• a. a housing;
• b. a rotor rotatable in the housing and having a rotor chamber;
• c. passage means for delivering multiconstituent feed to the rotor chamber;
• d. means to define radial zones of mixture constituents stratified in accordance with their density and in response to centrifugal force applied through the rotor, such means including exit passages from the rotor chamber for the individual constituents of the mixture;
• e. means to sense the flow rate from the chamber of a first constituent at a radial zone having a radius larger than the radial zone of a second of the constituents;
• f. accumulator means to accumulate first constituent exited from the rotor chamber;
• and
• g. means for introducing the first constituent from the accumulator means into the multiconstituent feed for recirculation when the output from the separator drops below a value adequate to maintain the second constituent in its radial zone, whereby the output of the first constituent controls the purity of the second constituent.

A centrifugal separator for separating a fluid mixture into constituent parts in accordance with different densities of the constituent mixtures comprising:

• a. a housing;
• b. a rotor rotatably mounted in the housing;
• c. the rotor defining a chamber for receiving the mixture;
• d. inlet passage means into the chamber to deliver the mixture to the chamber;
• e. first passage means from the chamber including a first output port from the chamber at a first radius for a first dense constituent of the constituents;
• f. second passage means from the chamber including a second output port from the chamber at a second radius smaller than the first radius for a second constituent of less density than the dense constituent;
• g. third passage means from the chamber including a third output port from the chamber having a radius less than the second radius for a third constituent of the mixture of density less than the first and second constituents;
• h. means for storing the first constituent externally of the chamber;
• i. means for withdrawing first constituent from the storage means at a rate corresponding to the expected rate of first constituent input to the chamber;
• and
• j. means for recirculating the stored constituent into the inlet passage when the level of the first constituent in the storage means reaches a predetermined low value, whereby the position of the second constituent in the chamber is maintained and the exit port for such constituent sees only such constituent.