Apparatus and method for dislodging and extracting solid materials from tubes

Abstract

The invention provides an apparatus and method for efficiently dislodging and extracting a portion of solid materials from one or a plurality of reactor tubes of shell-and-tube reactors without damage to at least a portion of the solid materials which would make the solid materials unsuitable for reuse. The apparatus has at least one rod, a rotator assembly for rotating the rod, and a transmission assembly for applying an axial force to insert the rod into a corresponding reactor tube and dislodging solid materials therein. The rod is also in fluid communication with an aspirator for extraction of the dislodged solid materials. The method comprises the following steps of: inserting one or a plurality of rods into corresponding reactor tubes, dislodging at least a portion of the solid materials, while minimizing damage to the solid materials or the tubes by rotating and applying the axial force to the rods as the rods contact with the solid materials. The dislodged solid materials are then extracted from the reactor tubes.

Description

Apparatus and method for loosening and extracting solid material from pipes technical field The present invention relates to methods for effectively dislodging and extracting at least a portion of solid material from one or more reactor tubes of a shell and tube reactor while minimizing damage to said solid material and Methods and apparatus for leaving at least a portion of solid material structurally suitable for reuse. The invention also relates to a method of monitoring and communicating the status of said pipe during removal and replacement of said solid material. Background technique There are situations where, for various reasons, solid material needs to be removed from the tubular part without damage to the tubular part or the solid material being possible. For example, shell and tube heat exchangers are used as reactor vessels for conducting chemical reaction processes. Such reactors, when operated on an industrial scale, typically have a very large number (eg ...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

The method is carried out using equipment techniques similar to those described above using only vacuum, so no method or equipment is disclosed or suggested for loosening dense solid material without damaging the reactor tubes or the solid material itself

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