Mechanical signal processing accumulator attenuation device and method

A method of attenuating oscillating pressures in a liquid tank when measuring pressure within the tank, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing a device secured to the tank, said device comprising a thermal housing having a sidewall and a bottom wall, at least one of a container or inverted tube placed concentrically within said thermal housing and spaced from said thermal housing by an annular space;
• providing a liquid pathway from said tank into said device;
• providing a sensing port communicating with said device, said sensing port having a first end communicating with a sensing chamber within said device, and said sensing port having an opposite end that communicates with a pressure transducer that measures pressure from said sensing port;
• receiving liquid from said tank into said device;
• and
• maintaining equilibrium within said device by a liquid gas interface that prevents liquid from entering said sensing port.

A device especially adapted for attenuating and filtering selected oscillating pressure frequencies generated from a pressurized liquid tank to which the device is connected, said device comprising:

• an inverted tube having a sidewall, a top wall, and an open bottom, open space within said inverted tube defining a sensing chamber;
• a thermal housing surrounding said inertia-tube, said housing have a sidewall and a bottom wall each spaced from said inverted tube, the gap between said container and said inverted tube defining an annular space;
• a sensing port formed on said container, said sensing port having a first end communicating with said sensing chamber and a second end communicating with a sense line;
• a vent port formed on said sidewall of the inertia-tube, said container thereby providing a passageway between said sensing chamber and said annular space;
• wherein liquid from the tank fills said annular space and an amount of area within said sensing chamber, and further wherein purge gas introduced into said sensing chamber such that in equilibrium, the liquid within said sensing chamber resides below a level of the vent port, and when said device is out of balance by excess liquid in the sensing chamber, said device returns to equilibrium by displacing liquid back into the tank.

In combination, a liquid cryogenic tank and a device especially adapted to attenuating and filtering selected pressure frequencies device, said combination comprising:

• said pressurized tank containing an amount of a cryogenic liquid therein;
• said device connected to said tank, whereby a liquid passageway is formed between said tank and said device thereby allowing liquid from said tank to flow into said device, said device including a thermal housing, and a container disposed in said thermal housing in a concentric relationship whereby an annular gap extends between said housing and said container, and an inertia-tube extending into said container and communicating with said sensing chamber, said inertia-tube defining the liquid passageway between the tank and the device, a sensing port formed through the container, the sensing port having a first end communicating with the sensing chamber within the device and a second end communicating with a sense line connected to the sensing port;
• and
• a vent formed in said container for venting purge gas introduced into said container.

In combination, a liquid cryogenic tank and a device especially adapted to attenuating and filtering selected pressure frequencies, said combination comprising:

• said pressurized tank containing an amount of a cryogenic liquid therein;
• said device connected to said tank, whereby a liquid passageway is formed between said tank and said device thereby allowing liquid from said tank to flow into said device, said device including a thermal housing, and an inverted tube disposed in said thermal housing in concentric relationship whereby an annular gap extends between said housing and communicating with said sensing chamber, said inverted tube defining the liquid passageway between the tank and the device, a sensing port formed through the inverted tube, the sensing port having a first end communicating with the sensing chamber within the device and a second end communicating with a sense line connected to the sensing port;
• and
• a vent formed in said inverted tube for venting purge gas introduced into said container.