Process for the uniform distribution of a two phase mixture
AssigneeUnion Carbide Corporation
InventorLawrence M. Litz
Life of this patent
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Abstract
In a process for the uniform distribution of a two phase gas/liquid or liquid/liquid mixture comprising delivering a first stream of said mixture to a point, and dividing the first stream at the point into at least two streams, the improvement comprising creating a turbulent environment in the first stream just prior to the point at which the first stream is divided into at least two streams.
Claims5
In a process for the uniform distribution of a two phase gas/liquid or liquid/liquid mixture comprising delivering a first stream of said mixture to a point, and dividing the first stream at the point into at least two streams, the improvement comprising creating a turbulent environment in the first stream just prior to the point at which the first stream is divided into at least two streams.
In a process for the in-situ mining of a metal from an underground ore body containing an insoluble metal compound by introducing a two phase mixture of an oxygen containing gas and a barren lixiviant via a distribution network of conduits down into individual injection wells connected to the ore body, said network comprising a series of conduits, each of which divides at one point into at least two conduits;
- oxidizing the insoluble metal compound to provide a metal compound soluble in the lixiviant;
- dissolving the soluble metal compound in the lixiviant to provide a pregnant lixiviant;
- removing the pregnant lixiviant via production wells through the network to a point where the metal is separated from the lixiviant;
- and reintroducing the barren lixiviant into the network,
- the improvement comprising
- (a) creating a turbulent environment in each conduit just prior to the point at which the conduit is divided into at least two conduits;
- and
- (b) transporting the gas/lixiviant mixture down the injection well via a downcomer pipe at a liquid flow velocity of at least about one foot per second.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.