Concentric tube membrane electrolytic cell with an internal recycle device
AssigneeThe Dow Chemical Company
InventorMarius W. Sorenson
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Abstract
The invention is a vertically disposed electrolytic cell comprising: a hollow, cylindrically shaped recycle tube; a hydraulically permeable, hollow, cylindrically shaped cathode concentric with and surrounding said recycle tube to define a first annular space therebetween; a hydraulically permeable, hollow, cylindrically shaped anode concentric with and surrounding said cathode to define a second annular space therebetween; and a hollow, cylindrically shaped, ion permeable membrane positioned in said second annular space concentric with said cathode and said anode, said membrane dividing the second annular space into an anode compartment containing the anode and a cathode compartment containing the cathode. The invention includes a method for operating the apparatus.
Claims21
A vertically disposed electrolytic cell comprising:
- a hollow, cylindrically shaped recycle tube;
- a hydraulically permeable, hollow, cylindrically shaped cathode concentric with and surrounding said recycle tube to define a first annular space therebetween;
- a hydraulically permeable, hollow, cylindrically shaped anode concentric with and surrounding said cathode to define a second annular space therebetween;
- and
- a hollow, cylindrically shaped, ion permeable membrane positioned in said second annular space concentric with said cathode and said anode, said membrane dividing the second annular space into an anode compartment containing the anode and a cathode compartment containing the cathode,
- wherein the anode is selected from the group consisting of expanded metal, perforated plate, punched plate, unflattened diamond shaped expanded metal, and woven metallic wire.
A method for operating an electrochemical cell of the type having a hollow, cylindrically shaped reyccle tube;
- a hydraulically permeable, hollow, cylindrically shaped cathode concentric with and surrounding said recycle tube to define a first annular space therebetween;
- a hydraulically permeable, hollow, cylindrically shaped anode concentric with and surrounding said cathode to define a second annular space therebetween;
- and a hollow, cylindrically shaped, ion permeable membrane positioned in said second annular space concentric with said cathode and said anode, said membrane dividing the second annular space into an anode compartment containing the anode and a cathode compartment containing the cathode,
- said method comprising:
- (a) flowing a catholyte from a lower portion of the first annular space, upward toward an upper portion of the first annular space, at least a portion of said flow passing adjacent to the cathode at a rate sufficient to sweep away at least a portion of any gas, formed during electrolytic operation of the cell;
- (b) flowing the catholyte and gas upward and into a catholyte separation compartment;
- (c) separating the gas from the catholyte;
- and
- (d) recycling at least a portion of the catholyte through the hollow internal portion of the recycle tube to a lower portion of the first annular space, where the above-described flow pattern is repeated,
- wherein a major portion of upward catholyte flow is through the interior portion of the cathode.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.