Water cannon apparatus and method for cleaning a tube bundle heat exchanger, boiler, condenser, or the like
AssigneeAnco Engineers, Inc.
InventorsTerry D. Scharton, George B. Taylor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A water cannon, having an air gun disposed within its breach, for explosively discharging a quantity of water from the muzzle, which may include a constricted directional nozzle, to dislodge sludge from the tube sheet of a heat exchanger, and a method of cleaning the tube sheet of a heat exchanger are disclosed.
Claims22
A method of dislodging sludge from the tube sheet of a heat exchanger using a water cannon which provides exit velocities for water through its nozzle in the range of 10 to 1000 feet per second and mass flow rates of water in the range of 100 to 30,000 gallons per minute, comprising:
- a. inserting said nozzle of said water cannon into the heat exchanger at an opening in the heat exchanger shell located above the tube sheet;
- b. charging said water cannon with pressurized gas confined in an air gun having a pressurized gas valve, a gas storage plenum, at least one gas port, and a firing mechanism;
- c. charging said water cannon with water;
- d. firing said air gun by discharging pressurized gas through said at least one gas port, thereby explosively discharging water from the nozzle of the water cannon such that the water is traveling at exit velocities in the range of 10 to 1000 feet per second and is being discharged through the nozzle at mass flow rates in the range of 100 to 30,000 gallons per minute, and is being directed at the tube sheet;
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- e. continuously recharging said air gun and recharging said water cannon with water and providing automatic repetitive firing blasts of said water cannon with each firing blast having a duration in the range of 0.001 to 1 second and with repetition intervals in the range of 0.1 to 100 seconds;
- f. whereby the firing blasts of water from the water cannon serve to cause sludge resting on or above the tube sheet area to be moved to a location from which it can be removed from the heat exchanger.
A method of dislodging sludge from the tube support plates of a heat exchanger using a water cannon which provides exit velocities for water through its nozzle in the range of 10 to 1000 feet per second and mass flow rates of water in the range of 100 to 30,000 gallons per minute, comprising:
- a. inserting said nozzle of said water cannon into the heat exchanger at an opening in the heat exchanger shell and directing the nozzle toward the tube support plate to be cleaned;
- b. filling the heat exchanger with water to a level above the tube support plate to be cleaned;
- c. charging said water cannon with pressurized gas confined in an air gun having a pressurized gas valve, a gas storage plenum, at least one gas port, and a firing mechanism;
- d. charging said water cannon with water;
- e. firing said air gun by discharging pressurized gas through said at least one gas port, thereby explosively discharging water from the nozzle of the water cannon such that the water is traveling at exit velocities in the range of 10 to 1000 feet per second and is being discharged through the nozzle at mass flow rates in the range of 100 to 30,000 gallons per minute, and is being directed at the tube support plate to be cleaned;
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- f. continuously recharging said air gun and recharging said water cannon with water and providing automatic repetitive firing blasts of said water cannon with each firing blast having a duration in the range of 0.001 to 1 second and with repetition intervals in the range of 0.1 to 100 seconds;
- g. whereby the firing blasts of water from the water cannon serve to cause sludge resting on or above the tube support plate to be cleaned to be moved to a location from which it can be removed from the heat exchanger.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.