A lubricating oil filling line top line device and top line method

Abstract

The present invention discloses a top-line device and a top-line method for a lubricating oil filling line, and relates to the technical field of lubricating oil filling lines. The device is used for top-line of a lubricating oil filling line, and the lubricating oil filling line includes a blending kettle, a manifold, a filter and a filling machine. A blending kettle discharge valve and a manifold inlet valve are provided between the blending kettle and the manifold, a three-way valve is provided between the manifold and the filter, a filling valve is provided at the inlet of the filling machine, and the top-line device also includes a first purge line, a second purge line, an air source, and an ultrasonic generator. The device of the present invention can discharge the residual lubricating oil in the filter, the manifold and the filling machine as much as possible through gas purge, and then use the lubricating oil to top-line. During the top-line process, the amount of top-line oil is reduced by injecting gas, and ultrasonic vibration is used to improve the cleaning ability of the top-line oil on the pipeline, which can solve the problem of a large amount of top-line oil in the existing lubricating oil filling line.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of lubricating oil filling lines, in particular to a lubricating oil filling line top-line device and a lubricating oil filling line top-line method. Background Art

[0002] During the lubricant filling process, the product specifications of different filling batches often change, and the formulas of the filled oils are different. In order to avoid the impact of residual oil in the filling equipment on the quality of the next batch of oil, it is necessary to perform top-line oiling when changing the filling oil. That is, use the subsequent filling oil to eject the previous batch of filling oil in the filling machine, filter and pipeline. During the ejection process, the subsequent filling oil is mixed with the previous batch of oil, which is the top-line oil. Since the top-line oil is a mixture of two oils, it is difficult to sell it directly as a product and usually needs to be handled separately.

[0003] At present, the top-line oil is usually processed by callback, that is, the top-line oil is used as base oil or semi-finished oil and mixed into other lubricant products in a certain proportion. However, due to the price difference between base oil or semi-finished oil and finished oil, this is equivalent to using high-value finished oil as low-value oil, which will cause great economic losses. Therefore, in the production of lubricants, the top-line amount should be reduced as much as possible under the premise of ensuring quality, so as to reduce the losses caused by top-line oil.

[0004] The reasons why more top-line oil is produced during the topping process are: the pipeline and filter capacity between the blending kettle and the filling machine are large, and more new oil is needed to fill them, otherwise the residual oil cannot be fully cleaned; there are differences in the composition of the new oil and the residual oil, which affects their miscibility, and more new oil is needed to flush the pipelines and residual oil attached to the inner walls of the containers; there are many dead corners in the pipelines, containers, and valves, which are difficult to be flushed directly, and the continuous mixing into the new oil during the topping process leads to an increase in the amount of unqualified oil discharged during the topping process.

[0005] In order to save costs, some manufacturers use air sweeping instead of finished oil top line to blow the residual oil in the pipeline and filling machine back to the original product tank. However, since the air contains a certain proportion of oxygen, this solution is only applicable to oxidation-resistant lubricating products and cannot be applied to lubricating oil sweeping containing easily oxidized components or additives. Otherwise, the first product filled may be unqualified.

[0006] Ultrasonic cleaning is a widely used cleaning technology. It uses the ultrasonic waves generated when they propagate in liquids and has been used to clean glassware, optical lenses, agricultural products, circuit boards and other objects. In the petrochemical industry, ultrasonic cleaning is also used to remove dirt from the inner wall of pipelines. Therefore, in theory, ultrasonic waves can be used to remove residual oil attached to the inner wall of pipelines and containers. However, existing ultrasonic pipeline cleaning is mostly used for maintenance operations. Due to the limitation of ultrasonic propagation distance, the inner wall of the pipeline is generally ultrasonically cleaned by a snake-like robot after the pipeline is disassembled. There has been no public report on its application in lubricating oil top line. Summary of the invention

[0007] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a top-line device for a lubricating oil filling line to solve the problem of large top-line oil volume when the lubricating oil is switched to production.

[0008] The present invention also aims to provide a method for top-loading a lubricating oil filling line, using the above-mentioned top-loading device to perform top-loading treatment on the lubricating oil filling line to reduce the amount of top-loading oil.

[0009] The technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows:

[0010] A lubricating oil filling line top-up device is used for top-up of the lubricating oil filling line. The lubricating oil filling line includes a blending kettle, a manifold, a filter and a filling machine. A blending kettle discharge valve and a manifold inlet valve are arranged between the blending kettle and the manifold. A three-way valve is arranged between the manifold and the filter. A filling valve is arranged at the inlet of the filling machine. The top-up device also includes:

[0011] a first purge line, wherein the outlet of the first purge line is located between the filter and the filling valve, and a first regulating valve is provided on the first purge line;

[0012] A second purge line, wherein the outlet of the second purge line is located between the discharging valve of the blending kettle and the inlet valve of the manifold, and a second regulating valve is provided on the second purge line;

[0013] A gas source, the gas source is used to provide a purge gas to the first purge line and the second purge line;

[0014] An ultrasonic generating device, the ultrasonic generating device comprises an ultrasonic generator and a plurality of ultrasonic vibration plates, the ultrasonic vibration plates are in direct contact with at least one of the pipeline, manifold or filter of the lubricating oil filling line.

[0015] Preferably, the gas supply pressure of the gas source is not less than 0.2 MPa.

[0016] Preferably, the purge gas is nitrogen or carbon dioxide.

[0017] Preferably, a first outlet valve is provided at the outlet of the first purge line. When the first outlet valve is opened, the gas blown out of the first purge line flows to the filter and the filling machine at the same time; a second outlet valve is provided at the outlet of the second purge line.

[0018] Preferably, two ultrasonic vibration plates are provided, and they are in direct contact with the manifold and the filter respectively.

[0019] Preferably, the ultrasonic vibration plate includes a first vibration plate, a second vibration plate, and a third vibration plate. The first vibration plate is installed on the pipe between the blending kettle and the manifold, the second vibration plate is installed on the pipe between the manifold and the filter, and the third vibration plate is installed on the pipe between the filter and the filling machine.

[0020] Preferably, the first vibration plate, the second vibration plate and the third vibration plate have different operating frequencies.

[0021] Preferably, the first vibration plate, the second vibration plate and the third vibration plate are in a ring shape or an arc shape and are closely attached to the outer wall of the pipe.

[0022] Preferably, the operating frequencies of the first vibration plate, the second vibration plate, and the third vibration plate differ by at least 400 Hz.

[0023] The present invention also provides a lubricating oil filling line top line method, comprising the following steps:

[0024] S1: Close the discharging valve and the first outlet valve of the blending kettle, open the second regulating valve and the second outlet valve, switch the three-way valve to the connecting manifold and the vent, inject purge gas from the second purge line, and purge the area between the discharging valve and the manifold of the blending kettle;

[0025] S2: Close the second regulating valve and the second outlet valve, open the first regulating valve and the first outlet valve, switch the three-way valve to connect the vent and the filter, inject purge gas from the first purge line, and purge the filter and the filling machine;

[0026] S3: Close the first regulating valve and the first outlet valve, open the blending kettle discharge valve, use the lubricating oil top line in the blending kettle, and after the lubricating oil flows out of the three-way valve vent, switch the three-way valve to the connecting manifold and filter, open the second regulating valve and the second outlet valve, inject purge gas from the second purge line, and keep the purge gas flow rate not exceeding the lubricating oil flow rate at the blending kettle discharge valve, and turn on the ultrasonic generator at the same time until the top line ends.

[0027] In summary, due to the adoption of the above technical solution, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0028] The first purge line and the second purge line are provided. After the last batch of lubricating oil is filled, the residual lubricating oil in the filter, manifold and filling machine can be discharged as much as possible through the second purge line. Then the first purge line is used to back-blow the filter and manifold, and the second purge line is used to purge the pipeline after the discharge valve of the blending kettle. The residual oil in the filter, manifold, filling machine and pipeline can be fully blown out to reduce the amount of oil on the top line.

[0029] When using the top line of lubricating oil in the blending kettle, injecting a certain proportion of gas through the second purge line can reduce the amount of top line oil required to fill the pipeline. At the same time, due to the unstable flow state of the gas-liquid mixture, the flushing ability of the pipeline and the inner wall of the container is enhanced, making it easier to flush the residual oil, thereby reducing the amount of top line oil;

[0030] During the top-line process, an ultrasonic generator is used to make the pipeline vibrate at high frequency. Due to the large differences in the acoustic properties of pipelines, containers and lubricating oil, ultrasonic waves are easily reflected and refracted at the solid-liquid interface. When ultrasonic waves are reflected and refracted on the inner wall of metal pipes and containers, the sound pressure on the inner wall will increase slightly relative to the liquid interior, and cavitation is more likely to occur near the inner wall, which can actually cause violent mechanical vibrations at the contact surface between the oil product and the pipeline and container, thereby promoting the previous batch of residual oil to separate from the inner wall of the pipeline and container and dissolve into the top-line oil, so as to improve the top-line effect;

[0031] A first purge line is set between the filter and the filling machine, which can solve the problem of large pressure drop after the purge gas flows through the filter, affecting the purge effect on the filling machine. At the same time, the filter can be back-blown to clean the filter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] Figure 1 This is a flow chart of the top line device of the lubricating oil filling line according to Example 1 of the present invention.

[0033] Figure 2 This is the structural diagram of the second purge line.

[0034] Figure 3 This is a flow chart of the top line device of the lubricating oil filling line according to Example 2 of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 4 This is a structural diagram of the ultrasonic vibration plate.

[0036] Figure 5 This is the opening variation diagram of the first regulating valve.

[0037] Markings in the figure: 100, blending kettle; 200, manifold; 300, filter; 400, filling machine; 500, first purge line; 600, second purge line; 700, ultrasonic generator; 101, blending kettle discharge valve; 102, blending kettle vent valve; 201, manifold inlet valve; 401, filling valve; 501, first regulating valve; 502, first outlet valve; 601, second regulating valve; 602, second outlet valve; 701, ultrasonic generator; 702, ultrasonic vibration plate; 702a, first vibration plate; 702b, second vibration plate; 702c, third vibration plate. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0039] Example 1

[0040] like Figure 1 As shown, this embodiment provides a top-line device for a lubricating oil filling line, which is used for top-line of a lubricating oil filling line. The applicable lubricating oil filling line includes a blending kettle 100, a manifold 200, a filter 300 and a filling machine 400, wherein a blending kettle discharge valve 101 and a manifold inlet valve 201 are provided between the blending kettle 100 and the manifold 200, a three-way valve 202 is provided between the manifold 200 and the filter 300, and a filling valve 401 is provided at the inlet of the filling machine 400. The top-line device also includes a first purge line 500, a second purge line 600, an air source and an ultrasonic generator 700, wherein:

[0041] The outlet of the first purge line 500 is located between the filter 300 and the filling valve 401, and a first regulating valve 501 is provided on the first purge line 500; the outlet of the second purge line 600 is located between the discharging valve 101 of the blending kettle and the inlet valve 201 of the manifold, and a second regulating valve 601 is provided on the second purge line 600; the gas source is used to provide purge gas to the first purge line 500 and the second purge line 600; the main reason for setting up two purge lines is that due to the resistance of the pipeline and the container, the second purge line The gas blown out of 600 will produce a large pressure drop after passing through the manifold 200 and the three-way valve 202, making it difficult to purge the filter 300 clean. Moreover, a significant pressure drop will be further generated after passing through the filter 300, making it difficult to complete the purge of the filling machine 400, leaving more residual oil in the filter 300 and the filling machine 400. More new oil is needed to push out the residual oil, which is not conducive to reducing the amount of oil on the top line. Setting two purge lines can reduce the pressure requirement of the purge gas, and the purge difficulty is lower than that of one purge line.

[0042] The ultrasonic generating device 700 includes an ultrasonic generator 701 and a plurality of ultrasonic vibration plates 702. In the present embodiment, two ultrasonic vibration plates 702 are provided, which are in direct contact with the manifold 200 and the filter 300 respectively. When the top-line oil fills the manifold 200 and the filter 300, ultrasonic waves are used to directly clean the manifold 200 and the filter 300, so that the residual oil attached to the inner wall of the container is quickly separated from the inner wall and dissolved in the top-line oil, so as to shorten the top-line time.

[0043] The working frequency of the ultrasonic generating device 700 is adjusted between 20kHz and 100kHz. After testing, it is found that the cleaning effect is gradually improved when the working frequency is increased from 20kHz to 25kHz. Under the condition that the amount of top line oil remains unchanged, the qualified rate of the first batch of filled products is increased from 95% (20kHz) to 97.5% (25kHz). When the working frequency is increased from 30kHz to 40kHz, the qualified rate of the first batch of filled products does not increase significantly. Therefore, in this embodiment, the working frequency of the ultrasonic vibration plate 702 on the manifold 200 and the filter 300 is preferably 25kHz~30kHz.

[0044] The gas supply pressure of the gas source is adjusted between 0.2MPa and 1.5MPa. The purge gas provided by the gas source is nitrogen. In addition, gases such as carbon dioxide that are not easy to react with lubricating oil can also be used. During the purge process, the pressure of the gas source should be kept higher than the pressure at the outlet of the blending kettle 100 to prevent the lubricating oil from flowing back.

[0045] A first outlet valve 502 is provided at the outlet of the first purge line 500. When the first outlet valve 502 is opened, the gas blown out of the first purge line 500 flows to the filter 300 and the filling machine 400 at the same time, blowing the filling machine 400 forward and blowing the filter 300 backward. A second outlet valve 602 is provided at the outlet of the second purge line 600. When the second outlet valve 602 is opened, the gas blown out of the second purge line 600 flows in the direction of the manifold 200. In order to prevent the purge gas from flowing back toward the blending kettle 100, the outlet of the second purge line 600 is set in an L shape, and the direction is the same as the flow direction of the liquid in the pipeline, such as Figure 2 shown.

[0046] Example 2

[0047] This embodiment is improved on the basis of embodiment 1. Specifically, Figure 3As shown, the ultrasonic vibration plate 702 includes a first vibration plate 702a, a second vibration plate 702b, and a third vibration plate 702c. The first vibration plate 702a is installed on the pipeline between the blending kettle 100 and the manifold 200, the second vibration plate 702b is installed on the pipeline between the manifold 200 and the filter 300, and the third vibration plate 702c is installed on the pipeline between the filter 300 and the filling machine 400. The first vibration plate 702a, the second vibration plate 702b, and the third vibration plate 702c are annular or arc-shaped and are closely attached to the outer wall of the pipeline, as shown in FIG. Figure 4 shown.

[0048] To avoid co-frequency interference, the first vibration plate 702a, the second vibration plate 702b, and the third vibration plate 702c operate at different frequencies between 25kHz and 30kHz. The operating frequencies of the first vibration plate 702a, the second vibration plate 702b, and the third vibration plate 702c should differ by at least 400Hz. More preferably, the operating frequencies of different vibration plates differ by more than 1kHz.

[0049] When installing the ultrasonic vibration plate 702, there is no need to consider the energy loss of the ultrasonic vibration plate 702 when it is directly exposed to the air. This is because the ultrasonic vibration plate 702 is in direct contact with the outer wall of the pipe, and the metal pipe has a significantly stronger ability to conduct ultrasonic waves than the air, so that most of the ultrasonic energy can be transmitted through the pipe, and the proportion of energy loss caused by propagation through the air is very small; similarly, it is not necessary to set up a soundproof cover or a sound wave reflecting device on the outside of the pipe to reduce the loss of ultrasonic waves propagating through the air.

[0050] The above-mentioned setting is mainly for ultrasonic cleaning of residual lubricating oil attached to the inner wall of the pipeline. In other embodiments, the scheme of this embodiment can also be combined with embodiment 1 to ultrasonically clean the manifold 200, the filter 300 and each pipeline, so as to further improve the top-line effect and reduce the top-line oil amount as much as possible within the scope of controlling product quality.

[0051] The present invention also provides a method for top-loading a lubricating oil filling line, which uses the device in Example 1 or 2 to perform top-loading operation, and the method comprises the following steps:

[0052] S1: Close the discharging valve 101 and the first outlet valve 502 of the blending kettle, open the second regulating valve 601 and the second outlet valve 602, switch the three-way valve 202 to the connecting manifold 200 and the vent, inject the purge gas from the second purge line 600, purge the area between the discharging valve 101 and the manifold 200 of the blending kettle, and discharge the residual oil between the discharging valve 101 and the manifold 200;

[0053] S2: close the second regulating valve 601 and the second outlet valve 602, open the first regulating valve 501 and the first outlet valve 502, switch the three-way valve 202 to connect the vent and the filter 300, inject the purge gas from the first purge line 500, purge the filter 300 and the filling machine 400, at this time the filter 300 is in a back-blowing state, the impurities remaining in the filter will be blown off the filter material, and some impurities will be discharged from the vent of the three-way valve 202 along with the air flow and liquid flow;

[0054] S3: Close the first regulating valve 501 and the first outlet valve 502, open the blending kettle discharge valve 101, use the lubricating oil top line in the blending kettle 100, and after the lubricating oil flows out of the vent port of the three-way valve 202, switch the three-way valve 202 to the connecting manifold 200 and the filter 300, open the second regulating valve 601 and the second outlet valve 602, inject purge gas from the second purge line 600, and keep the purge gas flow rate not exceeding the lubricating oil flow rate at the blending kettle discharge valve 101, and turn on the ultrasonic generator 700 at the same time. When the oil discharged from the filling machine 400 meets the new lubricating oil index, stop injecting the purge gas, and turn off the ultrasonic generator 700. When there is no more gas discharged from the filling machine 400, the top line ends.

[0055] In step S3, the gas flow rate of the gas source can be continuously adjusted so that the gas flow rate blown out of the second purge line 600 fluctuates, so as to further increase the Reynolds number of the fluid in the pipeline and improve the flushing effect on the inner wall of the pipeline, rather than always maintaining the same flow rate until the top line ends. For example, the opening of the second regulating valve 601 can be changed between 20% and 100% in a sine function or a cosine function, such as Figure 5 As shown, at this time, an electric regulating valve needs to be used as the second regulating valve 601 so that the opening degree can be automatically adjusted according to the set program.

[0056] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A lubricating oil filling line top-up device, used for top-up of lubricating oil filling line, characterized in that: The lubricating oil filling line comprises a blending kettle (100), a manifold (200), a filter (300) and a filling machine (400); a blending kettle discharge valve (101) and a manifold inlet valve (201) are provided between the blending kettle (100) and the manifold (200); a three-way valve (202) is provided between the manifold (200) and the filter (300); a filling valve (401) is provided at the inlet of the filling machine (400); and the top line device further comprises: a first purge line (500), wherein an outlet of the first purge line (500) is located between the filter (300) and the filling valve (401), and a first regulating valve (501) is provided on the first purge line (500); a second purge line (600), wherein the outlet of the second purge line (600) is located between the blending kettle discharge valve (101) and the manifold inlet valve (201), and a second regulating valve (601) is provided on the second purge line (600); A gas source, the gas source being used to provide a purge gas to the first purge line (500) and the second purge line (600); An ultrasonic generating device (700), the ultrasonic generating device (700) comprising an ultrasonic generator (701) and a plurality of ultrasonic vibration plates (702), the ultrasonic vibration plates (702) being in direct contact with at least one of a pipeline, a manifold (200) or a filter (300) of a lubricating oil filling line; a first outlet valve (502) is provided at the outlet of the first purge line (500); when the first outlet valve (502) is opened, gas blown out of the first purge line (500) is directed to the filter (300) and the filling machine (400) at the same time; and a second outlet valve (602) is provided at the outlet of the second purge line (600); The ultrasonic vibration plate (702) comprises a first vibration plate (702a), a second vibration plate (702b), and a third vibration plate (702c); the first vibration plate (702a) is installed on a pipe between a blending kettle (100) and a manifold (200); the second vibration plate (702b) is installed on a pipe between a manifold (200) and a filter (300); and the third vibration plate (702c) is installed on a pipe between a filter (300) and a filling machine (400); the first vibration plate (702a), the second vibration plate (702b), and the third vibration plate (702c) have different operating frequencies; the first vibration plate (702a), the second vibration plate (702b), and the third vibration plate (702c) are in a ring or arc shape and are closely attached to the outer wall of the pipe.

2. A lubricating oil filling line top line device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The gas supply pressure of the gas source is not less than 0.2 MPa.

3. A lubricating oil filling line top line device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The purge gas is nitrogen or carbon dioxide.

4. A lubricating oil filling line top line device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The operating frequencies of the first vibration plate (702a), the second vibration plate (702b), and the third vibration plate (702c) differ by at least 400 Hz.

5. The method of the lubricating oil filling line top line device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The steps include: S1: close the discharging valve (101) and the first outlet valve (502) of the blending kettle, open the second regulating valve (601) and the second outlet valve (602), switch the three-way valve (202) to the connecting manifold (200) and the vent, inject purge gas from the second purge line (600), and purge the area between the discharging valve (101) and the manifold (200); S2: the second regulating valve (601) and the second outlet valve (602) are closed, the first regulating valve (501) and the first outlet valve (502) are opened, the three-way valve (202) is switched to connect the vent and the filter (300), and the purge gas is injected from the first purge line (500) to purge the filter (300) and the filling machine (400); S3: Close the first regulating valve (501) and the first outlet valve (502), open the blending kettle discharge valve (101), use the lubricating oil top line in the blending kettle (100), wait for the lubricating oil to flow out of the vent of the three-way valve (202), switch the three-way valve (202) to the connecting manifold (200) and the filter (300), open the second regulating valve (601) and the second outlet valve (602), inject purge gas from the second purge line (600), and keep the purge gas flow rate not exceeding the lubricating oil flow rate at the blending kettle discharge valve (101), and at the same time turn on the ultrasonic generator (700) until the top line ends.

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