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US 4,597,916 AGranted
Method of and apparatus for intermediate lamella vapor liquid contact
AssigneeGlitsch, Inc.
InventorGilbert Chen
Life of this patent
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AssigneeGlitsch, Inc.
InventorGilbert Chen
Estimating the term…
Process tower vapor-liquid contact method and apparatus comprising stacks of corrugated contact plates having perforated lamella disposed therebetween. The corrugated plates are disposed in face-to-face contact with respective corrugations inclined to the horizontal and separated one from the other by a perforated sheet. The assembly affords optimal pressure drop characteristics, surficial area, vapor passage area, and vapor-liquid distribution characteristics with maximum efficiency. The sandwiched plate separating adjacent corrugated contact plates greatly increases the mass and heat transfer between the liquid and vapor phases passing thereacross by effectively segregating opposed corrugated channels and establishing a plurality of vapor-liquid contact areas positioned for engaging both vapor and liquid flow in opposed directions through the oppositely inclined corrugations of adjacent plates. In this manner the notional plane is defined between stacks of inclined corrugated contact plates and provided in a configuration providing multiple mass and heat transfer points between adjacent corrugations and the flows directed therethrough wherein the vapor-liquid contact is maximized with a minimum of pressure drop.
An improved tower packing of the type comprising a plurality of corrugated metal sheets in face-to-face contact with opposed corrugations inclined oppositely one to the other for receiving a descending liquid flow concomitantly with an ascending vapor flow to bring about vapor-liquid contact therebetween for mass and/or heat transfer, said corrugated sheets being formed with a plurality of orifices for affecting the flow of vapor and liquid therealong and within the corrugations of adjacent sheets, wherein the improvement comprises a planar unexpanded metal sheet of material disposed along the notional plane between said corrugated sheets, said planar unexpanded metal sheet including a plurality of apertures formed therein for affecting the flow of vapor and liquid therealong and within the corrugations of said adjacent sheets, a portion of said apertures being a plurality of relatively small spaced apart slits formed through solid surfaces of each sheet and another portion of said apertures being relatively large orifices spaced apart by said solid surfaces for enabling vapor and liquid to flow to opposite sides of said sheets, said slits being uniformly distributed, elongated, and their longitudinal axes extending transversely to the corrugations, the total area of all of said slits being smaller than the total area of said solid surfaces, each of said spaced apart slits being formed in said metal sheet with relatively small tab regions comprising twisted land areas bent outwardly therefrom.
An improved method of improving vapor liquid contact within a process tower of the type comprising the steps of providing a generally vertical tower having means for ingressing the flow of vapor at the lower region thereof and means for ingressing a stream of liquid at the upper region thereof and a series of layers of grid sections comprising generally vertical oriented corrugated sheets of unexpanded material with the corrugations of adjacent sheets being inclined one to the other between said liquid and vapor ingressing means for receiving the descending flow of liquid and the ascending flow of vapor concomitantly therethrough for the thorough mass and/or heat transfer therebetween, said improvement comprising the steps of providing said corrugated sheets with a plurality of parallel, elongate, spaced apart slits formed through solid surfaces of each sheet with the total area of all of said slits being smaller than the total area of said solid surfaces, providing said slitted sheets with a plurality of relatively larger apertures spaced apart by said solid surfaces for effecting the flow of vapor and liquid therealong and within the corrugations of said adjacent sheets for enhancing the vapor liquid interaction, and the further step of orienting the longitudinal axes of said elongate slits in said sheets to extend generally transversely to said vapor liquid flow and said corrugations for imparting turbulence thereto along with a transverse spreading to the liquid flowing down and through said sheets, and the further step of inserting a perforated planar sheet along the notional plane between said corrugated sheets, said perforated sheet including a plurality of relatively larger orifices spaced apart by solid surfaces for effecting the flow of vapor and liquid therealong and within the corrugations and elongate slits of said adjacent sheets for enhancing the vapor liquid interaction flowing therethrough and substantially segregating the vapor and liquid flow of respective corrugated channels one from the other.
A tower packing comprising a plurality of sheets of unexpanded material, a plurality of corrugations formed on each sheet, said sheets being disposed in face-to-face contact with the corrugations of each sheet extending at an angle to the corrugations of its adjacent sheets to define flow paths for a descending liquid and an ascending vapor, a planar sheet of unexpanded material disposed along the notional plane between said corrugated sheets, a plurality of relatively large orifices formed through and spaced apart by solid surfaces of each planar sheet for permitting passage of said liquid and vapor therethrough to distribute the liquid over said sheets and equalize the pressure of said vapor, and a plurality of relatively small elongated slits formed through the solid surfaces of each of said planar sheets, the slits in each sheet being spaced longitudinally from each other in parallel rows with the longitudinal axes of said slits extending transversely across said corrugations, the total area of all of said slits being smaller than the total area of said solid surfaces, a portion of each sheet adjacent each slit being displaced from the plane of said sheet, to enhance vapor-liquid contact along said sheets.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.