Pressure exchanger
AssigneeFlowserve Holdings, Inc.
InventorWilliam T. Andrews
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pressure vessel provided with a first port acting as a high pressure inlet of a first stream and a second port acting as a high pressure outlet. A rotatable valve element is located in the center of the machine. In operation, a fluid stream is introduced to the machine at high pressure where it then passes through the open ports of the valve element and into flow distributor causing upward displacement of a first duct piston, resulting in pressurization and flow of a second fluid. At the same time the second fluid is introduced to the machine at low pressure and flows into the pressure exchange duct, causing downward displacement of a second duct piston and resulting in flow of the first fluid below the duct piston, which then flows into the lower flow distributor, into the valve element, and then out of the pressure vessel.
Claims15
A pressure exchanger machine comprising:
- a housing defining a pressure vessel with first and second compartments and inlet and outlet flow connections;
- a plurality of exchange ducts statically mounted within said housing;
- a plurality of valves rotatably disposed within said housing and configured to establish selective fluid communication between said plurality of exchange ducts and at least one of said inlet and outlet flow connections such that during said fluid communication, high or low pressure flows pass through at least one of said first and second compartments and at least one of said plurality of exchange ducts,
- wherein a first valve of said plurality of valves is operable to direct flow to or from a first end of said exchange ducts and a second valve of said plurality of valves is operable to direct flow to or from a second end of said exchange ducts, wherein each of said first and second valves define an opening formed therein that alternatively connects to respective ends of said exchange ducts;
- and
- a first seal disposed between at least one valve of said plurality of valves and a face of said plurality of exchange ducts such that at least one sealing surface is formed between their respective adjacently-facing substantially planar surfaces.
A method of operating at least one planarly-sealed valve in a pressure exchanger machine, said method comprising:
- configuring said machine to include a plurality of rotatably disposed valves used to establish selective fluid communication between a plurality of exchange ducts to allow pressurized fluid to pass through first and second compartments and inlet and outlet flow connections within said machine,
- wherein a first valve of said plurality of valves is operable to direct flow to or from a first end of said exchange ducts and a second valve of said plurality of valves is operable to direct flow to or from a second end of said exchange ducts, wherein each of said first and second valves define an opening formed therein that alternatively connects to respective ends of said exchange ducts;
- forming a substantially planar first seal between at least one rotatably disposed valve of said plurality of rotatably disposed valves and at least one of said plurality of exchange ducts, said first and second compartments or a flow distributor;
- and
- rotating said at least one rotatably disposed valve in said pressure exchange device relative to said at least one of said plurality of exchange ducts and said first and second compartments so that said pressure exchange ducts and said first and second compartments facilitate pressure exchange between a high pressure fluid and a low pressure fluid resident in said machine while said at least one rotatably disposed valve maintains said substantially planar first seal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.