Dual function mercury trap/particulate filter beds
AssigneeMobil Oil Corporation
InventorsCostandi A. Audhe, Gray W. Kirker
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and guardbed useful for the removal of residual amounts of mercury and entrained particulate matter from a gas such as a natural gas stream are disclosed. The guardbed contains at least two different particle size porous substrates impregnated with mercury amalgamable materials. In one embodiment, the porous substrates are arranged so that the larger substrates are disposed in the entrance region of the guardbed. In operation, a gas stream is passed over and through the porous substrates so that entrained particulate matter is trapped within the guardbed while mercury present in the gas stream is removed by amalgamation.
Claims17
A process for the simultaneous removal of mercury and entrained particulate matter from a gas, comprising:
- providing a guardbed comprising a container having an entrance region and an exit region, a first porous substrate impregnated with a mercury amalgamable material disposed in the area of said entrance region, a second porous substrate having a particle size less than that of said first porous substrate and impregnated with a mercury amalgamable material, and
- contacting said gas with said guardbed at a pressure and temperature sufficient to reduce the level of mercury and entrained particulate matter from said gas.
A method for simultaneously removing contaminants from a natural gas stream comprising:
- contact a mercury and contaminant particulate containing natural gas stream with at least two porous substrates arranged in series in a single contaminant vessel, each said substrate being a mercury amalgamable particulate, the particulate size of the first substrate being greater than the particulate size of the second substrate, under temperature and pressure conditions whereby said mercury amalgamates with said porous substrates and said contaminant particulate is lodged in said substrates continuously in the absence of unacceptable pressure loss in said stream as it passes through said contaminant vessel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.