Gas-liquid separator

Abstract

The application discloses a gas-liquid separator, which comprises a shell extending along an axial length, a first mounting opening is arranged at the top of the shell, a feed pipe is arranged in the shell through the first mounting opening, the feed pipe has opposite top and bottom ends, the top end is an open end for forming an inlet, the bottom end is a closed end, and a first cyclone mechanism is arranged at the bottom end, the first cyclone mechanism is used for providing centrifugal force to the entering fluid, and the first cyclone mechanism comprises a plurality of cyclone arms with a predetermined radian, the cyclone arm is a hollow cavity structure, one end of the cyclone arm is connected with the feed pipe, and the other end is a rotating arm outlet, a liquid discharge opening for guiding the separated liquid is further arranged on the shell, and a gas discharge opening for guiding the separated gas is further arranged on the shell. The application is a gas-liquid separator with simple structure, large processing capacity, high separation efficiency, small pressure drop loss and long-term stable operation, and can adapt to gas-liquid two-phase separation under different working conditions.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of gas-liquid separation technology, and in particular to a gas-liquid separator. Background Technology

[0002] Gas-liquid separation technology is frequently used in industrial production for the purification of gas or liquid phases, and it is widely applied in fields such as chemical engineering, environmental protection, thermal systems, and oil and gas extraction. Based on the principles of gas-liquid separation, it can be broadly categorized into gravity separation, inertial separation, filtration separation, and centrifugal separation. Different application areas and operational requirements necessitate adjustments and optimizations to these separation methods to achieve efficient gas-liquid separation.

[0003] Taking heavy oil slurry bed hydrotreating as an example, the mixture at the reactor outlet needs to be separated into gas and liquid components by a separator. The liquid component is then further processed to extract the desired product, while the gas component is recovered and reused through subsequent processes. Therefore, improving the performance of the gas-liquid separator can not only accurately separate different hydrocarbon reaction products in the slurry bed hydrotreating process, further improving its heavy oil conversion rate, but also solve the problems of liquid carryover in circulating hydrogen and coking in the tail oil, ensuring the safe and stable long-term operation of the unit. However, although current technologies offer various gas-liquid separators, they still have some shortcomings.

[0004] For example, CN102671470B discloses a high-efficiency gas-liquid separator that restricts gas flow and achieves liquid filtration and separation by setting two layers of blade-type packing plates inside the shell. However, this separator has high requirements for the material of the packing under high temperature and high pressure operating conditions. In addition, during the gas-liquid separation process, in order to avoid wax blockage of the packing, it is necessary to perform backflushing and cleaning operations on the packing, which makes it impossible to maintain stable operation for a long period of feeding without interruption.

[0005] CN217567870U discloses a gas-liquid-solid separator for a slurry-bed Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reactor. This separator uses multiple sets of cyclone separators connected in parallel within the reactor's shell to separate liquid and solid particles entrained in high-temperature oil and gas, thus preventing oil and gas blockage and meeting high-capacity requirements. However, the multiple cyclone separators connected in parallel have multiple inlets and outlets, which often lead to uneven air distribution due to pressure differences, and reduced separation efficiency due to backmixing and cross-contamination at the discharge outlet.

[0006] CN116159372A discloses a three-in-one gas-liquid separator and its gas-liquid separation method, which integrates the first separation tank, the liquid storage tank, and the second separation tank into a single unit to achieve a compact overall structure. However, its internal structure is complex, with multiple outlets, and the metal wire mesh arranged between the separation tanks can easily lead to a large pressure drop loss within the separator, thereby increasing the energy consumption of the device.

[0007] CN110605190A discloses a cyclone gas-liquid separator that generates centrifugal force through a tangential inlet and has spiral guides arranged sequentially from top to bottom to achieve effective separation of small droplets in the gas and liquid, ensuring separation efficiency. However, the tangential inlet structure often occupies a large space and is prone to generating vortex core oscillations within the separation space, which is detrimental to gas-liquid separation.

[0008] CN110251998A discloses a split-flow filtration type gas-liquid-solid three-phase cyclone separator, which utilizes a cyclone cylinder to generate centrifugal force, and then separates the boundary oil and liquid through a separation baffle while maintaining a high-speed cyclone state of bubbles, thus completing oil filtration and ensuring bubble removal. However, its exhaust pipe is located at the top of the separator, close to the inlet, which can easily cause the inlet mixture to form a short-circuit flow and flow out of the exhaust port before it can be separated, reducing the separation efficiency.

[0009] Therefore, it is necessary to propose a gas-liquid separator to solve at least one of the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0010] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides a gas-liquid separator that is simple in structure, has a large processing capacity, high separation efficiency, low pressure drop loss, and can operate stably for a long time, thus adapting to gas-liquid two-phase separation under different operating conditions.

[0011] The specific technical solution of the embodiments of the present invention is as follows:

[0012] A gas-liquid separator includes: a housing extending longitudinally along an axial direction, with a first mounting port at the top of the housing; a feed pipe passing through the first mounting port within the housing, the feed pipe having opposing top and bottom ends, the top end being an open end for forming an inlet, and the bottom end being a closed end; a first swirling mechanism is provided near the bottom end; the first swirling mechanism is used to provide centrifugal force to the incoming fluid, the first swirling mechanism including: a plurality of swirling arms with predetermined curvature, the swirling arms being hollow cavity structures, one end connected to the feed pipe, and the other end being a swirling arm nozzle; the housing is also provided with a drain port for discharging the liquid after gas-liquid separation and an exhaust port for discharging the gas after gas-liquid separation.

[0013] In a preferred embodiment, the cross-section of the swirl arm nozzle is rectangular, and the extended surface of the outer contour of the swirl arm nozzle is tangent to the inner wall of the housing; the swirl arm has a downwardly inclined swirl arm tilt angle, which is between 15 degrees and 25 degrees.

[0014] In a preferred embodiment, the number of swirl arms is 3 to 5, and the plurality of swirl arms are evenly distributed circumferentially along the same horizontal plane of the feed pipe.

[0015] In a preferred embodiment, the housing includes a separation tank and a sealing cover disposed between the separation tank and the feed pipe. The sealing cover has an upper end and a lower end opposite to each other. The upper end is sealed and fixed to the separation tank, and the lower end is located below the first vortex mechanism and is an open end.

[0016] In a preferred embodiment, the feed pipe, the sealing hood, and the separation tank are concentrically arranged, and the cross-sectional area S of the sealing hood is related to the cross-sectional area S1 of the feed pipe, the cross-sectional area S2 of the separation tank, and the outlet cross-sectional area S3 of the rotary arm spray outlet as follows:

[0017] S1 = (0.2 - 0.4)S;

[0018] S2 = (1.1 - 1.6)S;

[0019] S3 = (0.4 - 0.6)S.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment, at least one annular baffle is provided at the lower end of the shroud. The outer periphery of the annular baffle is sealed and fixed to the inner surface of the separation tank. The cross-section of the annular baffle gradually decreases from top to bottom. A pre-separation zone is formed between the first swirling mechanism and the lower end of the shroud. A main separation zone is formed between the lower end of the shroud and the annular baffle. A liquid collection zone is formed in the separation tank below the annular baffle, and the drain port is located in the liquid collection zone. An exhaust zone is formed between the separation tank and the shroud, and the exhaust port is located in the exhaust zone.

[0021] In a preferred embodiment, the bottom of the separation tank is provided with a second mounting port, through which an exhaust pipe is provided. A pre-separation zone is formed between the first vortex mechanism and the lower end of the sealing cover. A main separation zone is formed between the lower end of the sealing cover and the exhaust pipe. An exhaust zone is formed inside the exhaust pipe, and the end of the exhaust pipe is an exhaust port. A liquid collection zone is formed between the exhaust pipe and the separation tank, and the drain port is located in the liquid collection zone.

[0022] In a preferred embodiment, the exhaust pipe is concentrically arranged with the feed pipe, the sealing hood, and the separation tank, and the relationship between the cross-sectional area S of the sealing hood and the cross-sectional area S4 of the exhaust pipe is as follows:

[0023] S4 = (0.1 - 0.35)S.

[0024] In a preferred embodiment, a second mounting port is provided at the bottom of the housing, through which an exhaust pipe is provided. A second swirling mechanism is also provided between the feed pipe and the exhaust pipe. The swirling direction of the second swirling mechanism is consistent with the swirling direction of the first swirling mechanism. A primary separation zone is formed between the first swirling mechanism and the second swirling mechanism. A secondary separation zone is formed between the second swirling mechanism and the exhaust pipe. An exhaust zone is formed inside the exhaust pipe, and the end of the exhaust pipe is an exhaust port. A liquid collection zone is formed between the exhaust pipe and the housing, and the liquid outlet is located in the liquid collection zone.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment, the second swirling mechanism is umbrella-shaped, with its outer contour gradually increasing from top to bottom. The second swirling mechanism includes: an umbrella cap, a support ring plate, and a plurality of swirling blades disposed between the umbrella cap and the support ring plate; a liquid guiding zone is formed between the swirling blades and the support ring plate.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment, the tilt angle of the second swirl mechanism is between 25 and 35 degrees, and the tilt angle of the swirl blades is between 50 and 60 degrees.

[0027] In a preferred embodiment, the number of swirl blades is 20 to 30.

[0028] In a preferred embodiment, the exhaust pipe has opposite top and bottom ends, and a separation mechanism is provided near the top of the exhaust pipe. A primary separation zone is formed between the first swirling mechanism and the second swirling mechanism; a secondary separation zone is formed between the second swirling mechanism and the top of the exhaust pipe; and a tertiary separation zone is formed at the separation mechanism.

[0029] In a preferred embodiment, the separation mechanism includes: a cylindrical body with a liquid guiding hole, and a downwardly inclined liquid collecting baffle on the outer wall of the body below the liquid guiding hole.

[0030] In a preferred embodiment, the angle of the liquid collecting baffle is between 55 degrees and 65 degrees.

[0031] In a preferred embodiment, the liquid collecting baffle is concentrically arranged with the housing, and the relationship between the cross-sectional area S of the housing and the maximum cross-sectional area S5 of the liquid collecting baffle is as follows:

[0032] S5 = (0.75 - 0.85)S.

[0033] The technical solution of the present invention has the following significant beneficial effects:

[0034] 1. The gas-liquid separator designed in this invention has no dense and complex internal components such as packing mesh, which avoids problems such as wax blockage during the separation process and can ensure stable operation of the feed inlet for a long period of time without interruption.

[0035] 2. This invention uses a set of large-arc swirling heads and symmetrically distributed swirling umbrella structures to replace multiple sets of conventional parallel cyclone separators. It has only one feed pipe, one drain pipe and one exhaust pipe, which solves the problem of uneven air distribution in parallel cyclone devices and the problem of reduced separation efficiency caused by back mixing of air at the discharge port.

[0036] 3. The gas-liquid separator designed in this invention has swirling heads, swirling umbrellas and separation cylinders that are uniformly distributed in a circumferential array and coupled sequentially. It adopts an axial flow inlet design, which greatly eliminates the vortex core oscillation phenomenon that is detrimental to gas-liquid separation in conventional tangential inlet separators.

[0037] 4. The gas-liquid separator designed in this invention has a simple overall structure. The gas and liquid two-phase flow enters from the top of the separator and completes multiple enhanced separations in a "gas-liquid co-flow" manner. Finally, the separated gas and liquid phases are discharged in the same direction from the bottom gas phase outlet and liquid phase outlet, respectively. This not only eliminates the short-circuit flow phenomenon present in conventional exhaust-type separators and further improves the separation performance, but also avoids the excessive pressure loss that may occur due to collision and turbulence of the gas and liquid two phases.

[0038] Specific embodiments of the invention are disclosed in detail with reference to the following description and accompanying drawings, indicating how the principles of the invention can be employed. It should be understood that the embodiments of the invention are not therefore limited in scope. Within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, embodiments of the invention include many changes, modifications, and equivalents. Features described and / or shown for one embodiment may be used in the same or similar manner in one or more other embodiments, combined with features in other embodiments, or substituted for features in other embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0039] The accompanying drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention in any way. Furthermore, the shapes and proportions of the components in the drawings are merely illustrative to aid in understanding the invention and do not specifically limit the shapes and proportions of the components. Those skilled in the art, guided by the teachings of this invention, can select various possible shapes and proportions to implement the invention according to specific circumstances.

[0040] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a closed-enclosure multi-swirling-arm gas-liquid separator provided in the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0041] Figure 2AThis is a front view of a primary vortex head (vortex head) provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 2B This is a top view of the first-stage vortex head (vortex head) provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 3A This is a schematic diagram showing the positions of the internal gas and liquid phases provided in the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 3B for Figure 3A A magnified view of a portion of point A in the middle;

[0045] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a co-current multi-swirl arm gas-liquid separator provided in the second embodiment of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a co-current cyclone enhanced gas-liquid separator provided in the third embodiment of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 6A This is a front view of the secondary vortex umbrella provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0048] Figure 6B This is a bottom view of the secondary vortex umbrella provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0049] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of a co-current multi-cyclone coupled gas-liquid separator provided in the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0050] Figure 8 This is a half-sectional schematic diagram of the three-stage separation cylinder provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0051] Reference numerals in the figures of this application:

[0052] 1. Feed pipe;

[0053] 2. First-stage cyclone head;

[0054] 201. Swirl arm;

[0055] 202. Rotary arm nozzle;

[0056] 203. Swivel arm plug;

[0057] 3. Enclosed enclosure;

[0058] 4. Separation tank;

[0059] 5. Exhaust pipe;

[0060] 6. Annular baffle;

[0061] 7. Drainage pipe;

[0062] 8. Secondary vortex umbrella;

[0063] 801. Umbrella hat;

[0064] 802. Swirl blades;

[0065] 803. Support ring plate;

[0066] 804, Liquid Conducting Area;

[0067] 9. Three-stage separation cylinder;

[0068] 901. Liquid guiding hole;

[0069] 902. Liquid collecting baffle;

[0070] 10. Entrance;

[0071] 11. Pre-separation zone;

[0072] 12. Primary separation zone (main separation zone);

[0073] 13. Gas gathering area;

[0074] 14. Exhaust port;

[0075] 15. Liquid collection area;

[0076] 16. Drainage port;

[0077] 17. Secondary separation zone;

[0078] 18. Three-stage separation zone;

[0079] 19. Liquid phase flow;

[0080] 20. Gas phase flow. Detailed Implementation

[0081] The technical solution of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are only used to illustrate the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. After reading the present invention, any modifications of the present invention in various equivalent forms by those skilled in the art fall within the scope defined by the appended claims.

[0082] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "set on" another element, it can be directly on the other element or there may be an intervening element. When an element is referred to as being "connected to" another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or there may be an intervening element. The terms "vertical," "horizontal," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent the only possible implementation.

[0083] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. The term "and / or" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0084] This invention provides a gas-liquid separator that is simple in structure, has a large processing capacity, high separation efficiency, low pressure drop loss, and can operate stably for a long time, so as to adapt to the separation of gas and liquid phases under different working conditions.

[0085] Please refer to the following for comprehensive information. Figures 1 to 8 This application specification provides a gas-liquid separator, which may include: a shell, a feed pipe 1, a first cyclone mechanism, a drain port 16, an exhaust port 14, etc. Furthermore, the gas-liquid separator may also include: a second cyclone mechanism, a separation mechanism, etc.

[0086] Taking a co-current multi-cyclone coupled gas-liquid separator provided in the embodiments of this application as an example, its working principle is explained. The co-current multi-cyclone coupled gas-liquid separator may include: a feed pipe 1, a first cyclone mechanism (e.g., a first-stage cyclone head 2), a second cyclone mechanism (e.g., a second-stage cyclone umbrella 8), a separation mechanism (e.g., a third-stage separation cylinder 9), an exhaust pipe 5, a drain pipe 7, and a shell.

[0087] The feed pipe 1 has an inlet 10 at its top for introducing the gas-liquid mixture, and a first-stage cyclone head 2 at its bottom. The gas-liquid mixture enters the feed pipe 1 through the inlet 10, reaches the bottom of the feed pipe 1, and then enters the first-stage cyclone head 2. This generates a strong centrifugal force, thus achieving primary gas-liquid separation in the primary separation zone 12 below the first-stage cyclone head 2. The primary separation zone 12 is located between the first-stage cyclone head 2 and the secondary cyclone umbrella 8. The central gas flow carrying part of the liquid phase after passing through the first-stage cyclone head 2 enters the secondary separation zone under the action of the secondary cyclone umbrella 8. The separation zone 17 then completes the two-stage gas-liquid separation. The upper and lower ends of the two-stage separation zone 17 are connected to the two-stage swirl umbrella 8 and the three-stage separation cylinder 9, respectively. Therefore, the central airflow enhanced by the two-stage separation re-enters the three-stage separation zone 18 of the three-stage separation cylinder 9 to achieve efficient three-stage gas-liquid separation. Finally, the gas phase that has undergone three swirl coupling separations enters the gas collection zone 13 and is discharged through the exhaust pipe 5, while the liquid phase in the three separation processes gathers along the inner wall of the sealed cover 3 and forms a liquid flow that enters the liquid collection zone 15 at the bottom of the separator and is discharged through the drain pipe 7.

[0088] In this process, the gas-liquid two-phase flow enters through the top inlet 10 of the separator and undergoes triple-enhanced separation in a "co-current gas-liquid flow" manner. Finally, both the gas and liquid phases are discharged in the same direction through the bottom exhaust port 14 and the liquid outlet 16 of the separator, respectively. Through coupling enhancement, the first-stage cyclone head 2, the second-stage cyclone umbrella 8, and the third-stage separation cylinder 9, which have good separation effects, are organically combined into one unit in sequence, thereby realizing the separation of the gas and liquid phases. This ensures the high efficiency of gas-liquid separation and avoids the excessive pressure loss that may occur due to gas-liquid two-phase turbulence.

[0089] Among them, the closed cover 3 is a uniformly symmetrical cylindrical shape, the first-stage swirling head 2 has multiple swirling arms 201 evenly distributed around the circumference, the second-stage swirling umbrella 8 also has several swirling umbrella blades evenly distributed around the circumference, and the third-stage separation cylinder 9 is also a centrally built-in cylindrical shape, and several sets of liquid guiding holes 901 evenly distributed around the circumference are opened on the side wall of the third-stage separation zone 18. At the same time, the swirling directions of the first-stage swirling head 2, the second-stage swirling umbrella 8 and the third-stage separation cylinder 9 are consistent, so as to further reduce the pressure drop loss during the separation process.

[0090] The primary cyclone head 2 is located at the top of the separator and is connected to the feed pipe 1. It is the main structure that transforms the gas-liquid two-phase flow from a vertical direction to a cyclone direction. Its main structure includes a cyclone arm plug 203 and a cluster of cyclone arms 201. The cyclone arm plug 203 is located at the bottom end of the feed pipe 1, making the bottom end of the feed pipe 1 a closed end, thereby blocking the continued flow of the gas-liquid mixture in the vertical direction. The gas-liquid mixture can only flow out from the cyclone arm nozzle 202 of the primary cyclone head 2. As the first separation mechanism for realizing the separation of gas and liquid two phases, the primary cyclone head 2 has a secondary cyclone umbrella 8 below it. Therefore, the structure of the primary cyclone head 2 is extremely important. The main body of the primary cyclone head 2 is a streamlined structure with a large arc, which generates strong vortices to achieve gas-liquid separation. Moreover, the outlet is inclined downward and tangent to the inner wall of the sealed cover 3, which facilitates the collection of the separated liquid flow at the inner wall of the sealed cover 3 to form a liquid flow.

[0091] The secondary swirl umbrella 8 serves as a second separation mechanism for gas-liquid two-phase separation, situated between the primary swirl head 2 and the tertiary separation cylinder 9. It plays a crucial role in enhancing separation, acting as a bridge between the two stages. Its main body is umbrella-shaped, gradually expanding from top to bottom. The top is a cap 801, primarily used to guide the airflow and fix the blades; the bottom is a supporting ring plate 803, responsible for fixing the blades and guiding the liquid flow; and in the middle is a ring of trapezoidal swirl blades 802 fixed at a certain angle. These blades are fixed by the cap 801 and the supporting ring plate 803 and are evenly distributed along the inner wall of the enclosed shroud 3, thus making the airflow a rotating flow, further improving separation efficiency and controlling pressure drop.

[0092] The three-stage separation cylinder 9, serving as the gas-liquid two-phase separation mechanism, is located at the lower part of the vortex umbrella. To further and efficiently separate the central airflow obtained from the secondary separation zone 17, several sets of circular liquid guiding holes 901 are opened in the upper tertiary separation zone 18 of the separation cylinder. These sets of liquid guiding holes 901 are also distributed on the separation cylinder in a circumferential array. Between the tertiary separation zone 18 and the liquid collection zone 15, an inclined liquid collection baffle 902 is added. The liquid collection baffle 902 is placed in annular inclination, fixed internally to the exhaust pipe 5, and has a gap between its exterior and the sealing cover 3 to facilitate the collection of liquid flow and its smooth entry into the liquid collection zone 15. The three-stage separation cylinder 9 is located at the lower part of the entire separator and is connected to the exhaust pipe 5. It needs to guide the gas phase after multiple coupling separations out of the separator. Therefore, its main body is a small-diameter cylinder, built into the bottom center of the entire separator. It can not only smoothly guide the gas phase flow 20 located at the center, but also act as a stabilizing vortex bar, thereby achieving efficient and low-resistance gas-liquid separation.

[0093] The gas-liquid separator provided in this application embodiment can ensure the following technical effects:

[0094] 1. The gas-liquid separator designed in this invention has no dense and complex internal components such as packing mesh, which avoids problems such as wax blockage during the separation process and can ensure stable operation of the feed inlet for a long period of time without interruption.

[0095] 2. This invention uses a set of large-arc swirling heads and symmetrically distributed swirling umbrella structures to replace multiple sets of conventional parallel cyclone separators. It has only one feed pipe 1, drain pipe 7 and exhaust pipe 5, which solves the problem of uneven air distribution in parallel cyclone devices and air back-mixing at the discharge port, which leads to a decrease in separation efficiency.

[0096] 3. The gas-liquid separator designed in this invention has swirling heads, swirling umbrellas and separation cylinders that are uniformly distributed in a circumferential array and coupled sequentially. It adopts an axial flow inlet design, which greatly eliminates the vortex core oscillation phenomenon that is detrimental to gas-liquid separation in conventional tangential inlet separators.

[0097] 4. The gas-liquid separator designed in this invention has a simple overall structure. The gas and liquid two-phase flow enters from the top of the separator and completes multiple enhanced separations in a "gas-liquid co-flow" manner. Finally, the separated gas and liquid phases are discharged in the same direction from the bottom gas phase outlet and liquid phase outlet, respectively. This not only eliminates the short-circuit flow phenomenon present in conventional exhaust-type separators and further improves the separation performance, but also avoids the excessive pressure loss that may occur due to collision and turbulence of the gas and liquid two phases.

[0098] The present application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0099] Please see Figure 1In a first embodiment, a closed-enclosure co-current multi-swirl arm gas-liquid separator is provided. This separator may include: a housing extending longitudinally along the axial direction, with a first mounting port at the top; a feed pipe 1 passing through the first mounting port within the housing, the feed pipe 1 having opposing top and bottom ends, the top end being an open end forming an inlet 10, and the bottom end being a closed end; a first swirling mechanism is provided near the bottom end; the first swirling mechanism provides centrifugal force to the incoming fluid, and includes: a plurality of swirling arms 201 with predetermined curvature, each swirling arm 201 being a hollow cavity structure, one end connected to the feed pipe 1, and the other end being a swirling arm nozzle 202; the housing is also provided with a drain port 16 for discharging the separated liquid and an exhaust port 14 for discharging the separated gas.

[0100] The housing can vary depending on its internal structure and composition. In this embodiment, the housing may include a separation tank 4 and a sealing cover 3 disposed between the separation tank 4 and the feed pipe 1. The sealing cover 3 has an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of which is sealed and fixed to the separation tank 4, and the lower end is located below the first vortex mechanism and is an open end.

[0101] Furthermore, at least one annular baffle 6 is provided at the lower end of the sealed cover 3. The outer periphery of the annular baffle 6 is sealed and fixed to the inner surface of the separation tank 4. The cross-section of the annular baffle 6 gradually decreases from top to bottom. A pre-separation zone 11 is formed between the first swirling mechanism and the lower end of the sealed cover 3. A main separation zone 12 is formed between the lower end of the sealed cover 3 and the annular baffle 6. A liquid collection zone 15 is formed in the separation tank 4 below the annular baffle 6. The drain port 16 is located in the liquid collection zone 15. An exhaust zone is formed between the separation tank 4 and the sealed cover 3. The exhaust port 14 is located in the exhaust zone.

[0102] See appendix Figure 1 The enclosed multi-swirling gas-liquid separator may include: a feed pipe 1, a primary swirling head 2, an enclosed cover 3, a separation tank 4, an exhaust pipe 5, an inclined annular baffle 6, and a drain pipe 7.

[0103] The feed pipe 1 is located at the upper center of the separator. An inlet 10 for introducing the gas-liquid mixture is located at the top, and a first-stage cyclone head 2 is located at the bottom. The gas-liquid mixture enters the separator from the inlet 10 at the top center and then flows along the feed pipe 1 to the first-stage cyclone head 2 at the bottom. Due to the obstruction of the cyclone arm plug 203, the flow direction of the mixture in the feed pipe 1 changes, and it flows out from the cyclone arm nozzle 202 along several large-arc cyclone arms 201. During this process, the cluster of large-arc cyclone arms 201 generates a strong centrifugal force, causing the gas and liquid phases entering the pre-separation zone 11 to undergo initial centrifugal separation, resulting in a swirling distribution with the gas phase in the middle and the liquid phase on the side walls. Because the first-stage cyclone head 2 is surrounded by an annular sealing cover 3, the gas and liquid phases in the pre-separation zone 11 can only continue to move downwards, thus eliminating the short-circuit flow phenomenon present in conventional top-venting separators. The sealed hood 3 has a circular structure and is concentrically distributed with the feed pipe 1, the separator 4, and the exhaust pipe 5. The sealed hood 3 is closed at the top and open at the bottom. Therefore, when this part of the airflow reaches the bottom opening of the sealed hood 3, it will be further separated in the main separation zone 12. Since the exhaust pipe 5 is located at the top of the entire separator and biased to one side (for example, to the right as shown in the figure), the gas phase in the main separation zone 12 will continuously move upward over the sealed hood 3 and enter the gas collection zone 13, and finally be discharged from the exhaust port 14 through the exhaust pipe 5. The liquid phase in the main separation zone 12 will continuously gather and form a liquid flow on the inner wall of the sealed hood 3, and finally continue to flow downward under the action of gravity. It will be collected by the multi-layer inclined annular baffle 6 and enter the liquid collection zone 15 at the bottom of the separator, and be discharged from the liquid outlet 16 through the drain pipe 7.

[0104] Please refer to the following: Figure 2A and Figure 2B This invention provides a schematic diagram of the primary cyclone head 2, which plays an important role in the gas-liquid two-phase separation. The primary cyclone head 2 serves as a cyclone generator and is connected to the feed pipe 1 (for example, it can be located near the bottom of the feed pipe 1). Specifically, the primary cyclone head 2 may include a circular, closed blind plate structure cyclone arm plug 203, several sets of downwardly inclined, large-arc streamlined cyclone arms 201, and a corresponding number of cyclone arm nozzles 202. The cyclone arm nozzles 202 are tangential to the inner wall of the sealed cover 3, facilitating the collection of separated droplets at the inner wall of the sealed cover 3 to form a liquid flow.

[0105] Specifically, in order to ensure that the mixed flow at the outlet of the swirl arm 201 maintains a large centrifugal force, it is preferable that there are 3 to 5 large-arc swirl arms 201, which are evenly distributed circumferentially on the same horizontal plane of the feed pipe 1; the cross-section of the swirl arm nozzle 202 is rectangular, and the downward tilt angle θ of the swirl arm 201 is 15 to 25 degrees.

[0106] The feed pipe 1, the sealing cover 3, and the separation tank 4 are arranged concentrically. Specifically, the cross-sectional dimensions of the components of this gas-liquid separator have the following corresponding relationship:

[0107] S=(πD 2 ) / 4

[0108] S1 = (0.2 - 0.4)S;

[0109] S2 = (1.1 - 1.6)S;

[0110] S3 = (0.4 - 0.6)S.

[0111] In the above formula, D is the inner diameter of the enclosed cover 3, in meters (m); S is the cross-sectional area of ​​the enclosed cover 3, in square meters (m²). 2 S1 is the cross-sectional area of ​​feed pipe 1, in meters. 2 S2 is the cross-sectional area of ​​separation tank 4, in meters. 2 S3 is the outlet cross-sectional area of ​​the first-stage vortex head 2, in meters. 2 .

[0112] By rationally setting and matching the structure and size of the feed pipe 1, the sealing cover 3 and the separation tank 4, an ideal effect can be achieved, with high separation efficiency, low pressure drop loss and long-term stable operation.

[0113] Please refer to the following: Figure 3A and Figure 3B The diagram shows the flow direction of the liquid phase flow 19 and the gas phase flow 20 in the enclosed multi-swirling arm gas-liquid separator in the first embodiment. After being separated by the first-stage swirling head 2, the gas-liquid mixture will exhibit a "liquid outside, gas inside" distribution pattern in the pre-separator zone and will continuously spiral downwards. When it reaches the bottom of the enclosed hood 3, in the main separation zone 12, the airflow located at the center needs to continuously move towards the gas collection zone 13 in the low-pressure zone. During this process, the central airflow needs to cross the bottom of the enclosed hood 3, which will inevitably collide with the liquid flow at the side wall, resulting in turbulence, thereby disrupting the flow field and increasing the energy consumption of the equipment.

[0114] Based on the first implementation, a downward exhaust design is proposed, such as... Figure 4 The image shows a co-current multi-swirl gas-liquid separator provided in the second embodiment. Compared with the first embodiment, this embodiment mainly improves the exhaust port 14. Specifically, the bottom of the separation tank 4 is provided with a second mounting port, through which an exhaust pipe 5 is installed.

[0115] For details, see Figure 4The position of the exhaust pipe 5 is changed from the top right of the separator to the center of the bottom of the separator. Similarly, the position of the gas collecting zone 13 is changed from the upper outer ring of the separator to the lower center of the separator. To avoid turbulence caused by collision between liquid and airflow in the separation zone, the position of the drain pipe 7 is changed from the center of the bottom of the separator to a position slightly to one side (e.g., slightly to the right as shown in the figure). Likewise, the position of the liquid collecting zone 15 is changed from the bottom center of the separator to the bottom outer ring. At the same time, to avoid affecting the exhaust pipe 5 at the bottom center of the separator in this embodiment, the inclined annular baffle 6 of the first embodiment is removed.

[0116] In the second embodiment, the gas-liquid mixture separated by the first-stage cyclone head 2 still exhibits a "liquid outside, gas inside" distribution pattern within the pre-separator zone, continuously spiraling downwards. However, upon reaching the bottom of the enclosure 3, in the main separation zone 12, the airflow at the center continuously moves towards the gas collection zone 13 in the low-pressure zone and is smoothly discharged through the exhaust pipe 5 from the bottom exhaust port 14. The liquid phase located on the sidewall continues to flow down the sidewall and smoothly enters the liquid collection zone 15 of the bottom outer ring of the separator under gravity, and is discharged through the drain pipe 7 from the drain port 16. Thus, the gas and liquid phases no longer collide and interfere with each other, significantly reducing the pressure drop loss in the first embodiment and improving economic efficiency.

[0117] Specifically, a pre-separation zone 11 is formed between the first swirling mechanism and the lower end of the sealing cover 3; a main separation zone 12 is formed between the lower end of the sealing cover 3 and the exhaust pipe 5; an exhaust zone is formed inside the exhaust pipe 5, and the end of the exhaust pipe 5 is an exhaust port 14; a liquid collection zone 15 is formed between the exhaust pipe 5 and the separation tank 4, and the liquid outlet 16 is located in the liquid collection zone 15.

[0118] The exhaust pipe 5 is concentrically arranged with the feed pipe 1, the sealing cover 3, and the separation tank 4. In the second embodiment, the cross-sectional parameters of the components of the gas-liquid separator have the following corresponding relationship:

[0119] S4 = (0.1 - 0.35)S

[0120] In the above formula, S4 is the cross-sectional area of ​​exhaust pipe 5, in meters. 2 S is the cross-sectional area of ​​the enclosed cover 3, in meters. 2 .

[0121] In this embodiment, by further optimizing the position of the exhaust pipe 5 and the relative positional relationship between the exhaust pipe 5 and the feed pipe 1, the sealing cover 3, and the separation tank 4, the internal flow cross-sectional area of ​​the exhaust pipe 5 and the internal flow cross-sectional area of ​​the sealing cover 3 can be further reduced, thereby reducing pressure drop loss.

[0122] In the second embodiment, by moving the exhaust port 14 from the top to the bottom of the separator, the turbulent collisions between the liquid and airflow in the separation zone, which occurred in the first embodiment, are eliminated, reducing the pressure drop loss of the separator. However, the settling effect of the gas collecting zone 13 on the liquid droplets is weakened, which may reduce the separation effect. To solve this problem, a swirling umbrella design is added to the second embodiment, as shown in the attached figure. Figure 5 The image shows a co-current cyclone enhanced gas-liquid separator provided in the third embodiment. Compared with the second embodiment, this embodiment mainly improves the separation zone, specifically in the following aspects:

[0123] Please see Figure 5 In the third embodiment, a secondary swirl umbrella 8 is added between the primary swirl head 2 and the exhaust pipe 5. This merges the pre-separation zone 11 and the main separation zone 12 of the second embodiment, or alternatively, eliminates the pre-separation zone 11 and replaces the main separation zone 12 with the primary separation zone 12 of the third embodiment. A secondary separation zone 17 is added between the secondary swirl umbrella 8 and the exhaust pipe 5. The gas collection zone 13 of the first embodiment becomes a dead zone and is therefore removed. Furthermore, to increase space utilization, the separation tank 4 of the first embodiment is merged with the sealing cover 3, forming the simplified shell, i.e., the sealing cover 3, in the third embodiment.

[0124] In the third embodiment, the gas-liquid mixture separated by the primary cyclone head 2 exhibits a "liquid outside, gas inside" distribution pattern within the primary separator zone and continuously spirals downwards. Upon reaching the secondary cyclone umbrella 8, the airflow at the center undergoes further separation within the secondary separation zone 17 due to the enhanced centrifugal force of the secondary cyclone umbrella 8. The central airflow, after enhanced separation, continuously moves towards the low-pressure gas collection zone 13 and is smoothly discharged through the exhaust pipe 5 from the bottom exhaust port 14. The liquid flow at the sidewall merges with the enhanced liquid flow and, under gravity, enters the liquid collection zone 15 on the outer ring at the bottom of the separator, and is discharged through the drain pipe 7 from the drain port 16. This not only prevents the gas and liquid phases from colliding and interfering with each other, greatly reducing pressure drop loss, but also enhances the gas-liquid separation efficiency.

[0125] Please refer to the following: Figure 6A and Figure 6BThe diagram below illustrates the structure of the secondary swirl umbrella 8 provided in the third embodiment. As a key component for enhanced gas-liquid two-phase separation, the secondary swirl umbrella 8 is umbrella-shaped, gradually expanding from top to bottom. It includes an umbrella cap 801, a support ring plate 803, and multiple swirl blades 802. A liquid guiding zone 804 is formed between the multiple swirl blades 802 and the support ring plate 803, facilitating the smooth flow of liquid at the sidewalls and the separated liquid down the sidewalls. The umbrella cap 801 is located at the top, primarily guiding the airflow and fixing the blades. The support ring plate 803 is located at the bottom, responsible for fixing the blades and guiding the liquid flow. A ring of trapezoidal swirl blades 802, fixed at a certain angle, is placed in the middle. These blades are fixed by the umbrella cap 801 and the support ring plate 803 and are evenly distributed along the inner wall of the enclosed cover 3, thus making the airflow a rotating flow, further improving separation efficiency and controlling pressure drop.

[0126] Specifically, in order to maximize the centrifugal effect of the swirl umbrella while preventing the droplets from being severely sheared and broken at a large tangential velocity, the number of swirl blades 802 is preferably 20 to 30, and they are evenly distributed circumferentially on the same horizontal plane of the enclosure 3; the tilt angle α of the swirl umbrella is 25 to 35 degrees, and the tilt angle β of the swirl blades 802 is 50 to 60 degrees.

[0127] Please see Figure 7 This application also provides a fourth embodiment, which, compared with the third embodiment, mainly improves the gas collection zone 13. Specifically, a separation mechanism is provided near the top of the exhaust pipe 5, forming a primary separation zone 12 between the first swirling mechanism and the second swirling mechanism; a secondary separation zone 17 between the second swirling mechanism and the top of the exhaust pipe 5; and a tertiary separation zone 18 at the separation mechanism.

[0128] Please see Figure 7 A separation mechanism is added between the secondary swirl umbrella 8 and the exhaust pipe 5. This separation mechanism may include a cylindrical body with liquid guiding holes 901 and a downwardly inclined liquid collecting baffle 902 on the outer wall below the liquid guiding holes 901. This separation mechanism can be in the form of a three-stage separation cylinder 9. Specifically, in the second embodiment, several sets of circular liquid guiding holes 901 can be opened above the exhaust pipe 5, thus defining the area with these holes as the three-stage separation zone 18. To facilitate the smooth collection of the liquid flow after separation in the three-stage separation zone 18, an inclined liquid collecting baffle 902 is added between the three-stage separation zone 18 and the liquid collecting zone 15. The liquid collecting baffle 902 is placed in an inclined ring shape, fixed internally to the exhaust pipe 5, and has a gap between its exterior and the sealing cover 3.

[0129] like Figure 8As shown, a half-sectional schematic diagram of the three-stage separation cylinder 9 in the fourth embodiment is provided. The three-stage separation cylinder 9 can serve as the third separation mechanism for gas-liquid two-phase separation in the fourth embodiment. It consists of a secondary vortex umbrella 8 at the top and an exhaust pipe 5 at the bottom. Its main body is a small-diameter cylinder, built into the central area of ​​the entire separator. It includes several sets of circular liquid guiding holes 901 evenly distributed around the circumference, a downwardly inclined liquid collecting baffle 902, and a three-stage separation zone 18 formed inside the liquid guiding holes 901. The liquid collecting baffle 902 is annular and fixed to the exhaust pipe 5 inside. A gap is left between the baffle and the sealing cover 3 to facilitate the collection of liquid flow and smooth entry into the liquid collecting zone 15.

[0130] See Figure 7 and Figure 8 In the fourth embodiment, after enhanced separation by the secondary swirl umbrella 8, the central airflow continuously moves towards the gas collection zone 13 in the low-pressure zone and first enters the tertiary separation zone 18. Since the central airflow still maintains a certain swirling state at this time, the small amount of droplets carried in it will agglomerate into larger droplets or even liquid flows under the collision of the side walls, and be discharged through the liquid guide hole 901 at the side wall, and gather in the liquid collection baffle 902. Since the liquid collection baffle 902 is inclined downward, the liquid flow continuously gathers and smoothly reaches the liquid collection zone 15 under the action of gravity, and is discharged from the liquid outlet 16 through the liquid outlet pipe 7. The central airflow after the three-stage separation contains almost no droplets and continues to be discharged from the bottom exhaust outlet 14 through the exhaust pipe 5, thereby achieving efficient separation between the gas and liquid phases.

[0131] Specifically, in the fourth embodiment, the liquid collecting baffle 902 and the housing (i.e. Figure 7 The enclosed cover 3) is concentrically arranged, and the cross-sectional parameters of each component of the gas-liquid separator have the following corresponding relationship (specifically, the cross-sectional area S of the shell and the maximum cross-sectional area S5 of the liquid collecting baffle 902):

[0132] S5 = (0.75 - 0.85)S.

[0133] In the above formula, S5 is the maximum cross-sectional area of ​​the liquid collecting baffle 902, in meters. 2 S is the cross-sectional area of ​​the enclosed cover 3, in meters. 2 .

[0134] Meanwhile, in order to facilitate the collection of droplets into a liquid flow at the liquid collecting baffle 902, and also to isolate the liquid collecting area 15 below, the preferred inclination angle of the liquid collecting baffle 902 is... The temperature is 55 to 65 degrees Celsius.

[0135] It should be noted that in the description of this application, the terms "first," "second," etc., are used only for descriptive purposes and to distinguish similar objects; there is no order between them, nor should they be construed as indicating or implying relative importance. Furthermore, in the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, "multiple" means two or more.

[0136] The various embodiments described in this specification are presented in a progressive manner. The same or similar parts between the embodiments can be referred to each other. Each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments.

[0137] The above are merely a few embodiments of the present invention. Although the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are as described above, the content is only for the purpose of facilitating understanding of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art to which this invention pertains may make any modifications and changes in the form and details of the embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope disclosed in the present invention. However, the patent protection scope of the present invention shall still be determined by the scope defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A gas-liquid separator, characterized in that, The gas-liquid separator includes: A housing extending longitudinally along the axial direction, wherein a first mounting opening is provided at the top of the housing; A feed pipe is inserted into the housing through the first mounting port. The feed pipe has a top end and a bottom end. The top end is an open end for forming an inlet, and the bottom end is a closed end. A first swirling mechanism is provided near the bottom end. The first swirling mechanism is used to provide centrifugal force to the incoming fluid. The first swirling mechanism includes: a plurality of swirling arms with a predetermined arc. The swirling arms are hollow cavity structures, one end of which is connected to the feed pipe, and the other end is a swirling arm nozzle. The housing is also provided with a drain port for discharging the liquid after gas-liquid separation and an exhaust port for discharging the gas after gas-liquid separation. The housing includes a separation tank and a closed cover disposed between the separation tank and the feed pipe. The closed cover is a uniformly symmetrical cylindrical shape. The closed cover has an upper end and a lower end opposite to each other. The upper end is sealed and fixed on the separation tank, and the lower end is located below the first cyclone mechanism. The lower end is an open end. The bottom of the housing is provided with a second mounting port, through which an exhaust pipe is provided, and a second vortex mechanism is also provided between the feed pipe and the exhaust pipe; An exhaust zone is formed inside the exhaust pipe, and the end of the exhaust pipe is an exhaust port; a liquid collection zone is formed between the exhaust pipe and the shell, and the liquid outlet is located in the liquid collection zone; the exhaust pipe has opposite top and bottom ends, and a separation mechanism is provided near the top of the exhaust pipe, forming a primary separation zone between the first swirling mechanism and the second swirling mechanism; a secondary separation zone is formed between the second swirling mechanism and the top of the exhaust pipe; a tertiary separation zone is formed at the separation mechanism; the separation mechanism includes a tertiary separation cylinder, which includes a cylindrical body with a liquid guiding hole, and a downwardly inclined liquid collection baffle is provided on the outer wall of the body below the liquid guiding hole, the inside of the liquid collection baffle is fixed to the exhaust pipe, and a gap is left between the outside and the sealing cover; the swirling directions of the first swirling mechanism, the second swirling mechanism, and the tertiary separation cylinder are consistent.

2. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The cross-section of the swirl arm nozzle is rectangular, and the extended surface of the outer contour of the swirl arm nozzle is tangent to the inner wall of the housing; the swirl arm has a downward tilt angle, which is between 15 degrees and 25 degrees.

3. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The number of swirl arms is 3 to 5, and the multiple swirl arms are evenly distributed circumferentially along the same horizontal plane of the feed pipe.

4. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The feed pipe, the sealing hood, and the separation tank are arranged concentrically. The cross-sectional area S of the sealing hood is related to the cross-sectional area S1 of the feed pipe, the cross-sectional area S2 of the separation tank, and the outlet cross-sectional area S3 of the rotary arm spray outlet as follows: S1 = (0.2 - 0.4)S; S2 = (1.1 - 1.6)S; S3 = (0.4 - 0.6)S.

5. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The exhaust pipe is concentrically arranged with the feed pipe, the sealing hood, and the separation tank. The relationship between the cross-sectional area S of the sealing hood and the cross-sectional area S4 of the exhaust pipe is as follows: S4 = (0.1 - 0.35)S.

6. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The second swirling mechanism is umbrella-shaped, with its outer contour size gradually increasing from top to bottom. The second swirling mechanism includes: an umbrella cap, a support ring plate, and multiple swirling blades disposed between the umbrella cap and the support ring plate; a liquid guiding zone is formed between the swirling blades and the support ring plate.

7. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The tilt angle of the second swirl mechanism is between 25 and 35 degrees, and the tilt angle of the swirl blades is between 50 and 60 degrees.

8. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The number of swirl blades is 20 to 30.

9. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The angle of the liquid collecting baffle is between 55 degrees and 65 degrees.

10. The gas-liquid separator as described in claim 9, characterized in that, The liquid collecting baffle is concentrically arranged with the shell, and the relationship between the cross-sectional area S of the shell and the maximum cross-sectional area S5 of the liquid collecting baffle is as follows: S5 = (0.75 - 0.85)S.

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