Cyclone separator device for liquids

Abstract

The present invention concerns a cyclone filter device for liquids comprising: a filtration chamber (5) extending longitudinally around a vertical axis X, and with respect to which a top (15) and a bottom (20) of said chamber (5) are defined, an inlet (25) to the filtration chamber (5) configured to feed a flow of liquid in swirling motion around the vertical axis X, and arranged at the top of the chamber (5), characterized by the fact that said device comprises : an outlet (30) from the filtration chamber (5), arranged at the top (15) of the chamber (5) and at the vertical axis X, a cone (40), with axis of symmetry coincident with the vertical axis X and arranged vertically below both the inlet (15) and the outlet (30), vertically spaced from both, with the vertex (41) pointing toward the outlet ( 30 ), a section of the chamber (53) vertically below the cone (40).

Description

[0001] Cyclone separator device for liquids

[0002] DESCRIPTION

[0003] The present invention relates to a cyclone separator device for liquids , meaning by this de finition a device configured to separate liquids , preferably water, containing solids , e . g . , sand, with a speci fic weight greater than that of the liquid, where the separation is done by centri fugation, implemented by generating a vortex of said liquid .

[0004] PRIOR ART

[0005] Cyclone separator devices such as the one shown in figure 1 are known in the industry .

[0006] Said device comprises a hollow cylinder intended to be arranged vertically so that it has a top and a bottom, where the cylinder has a tangential inlet " IN" and an axial outlet "OUT , " both proximal to the top .

[0007] The tangential arrangement of the inlet creates a vortex of water V in the cylinder that by gravity is descending toward the bottom .

[0008] In the descent , the vortex encounters an upward tapering cone 1 that crushes it toward the side walls of the cylinder .

[0009] Arriving at the bottom, the vortex encounters a baf fle 2 that repels it upward and into the center of the cylinder .

[0010] The upward flow meets the bottom of cone 1 , which is located at the top of the cylinder, particularly in the upper hal f , is hollow and is the access opening to the "out" outlet .

[0011] The sand is separated during the descent phase , where by centri fugation it is pushed toward the side walls of the cylinder and falls to the bottom .

[0012] The applicant found numerous problems with these separating devices , and primarily poor ef ficiency .

[0013] In fact , the current separation capacity is very low, both for large particles and, at the same speci fic weight , for small particles .

[0014] Figure 6 shows the simulation of a separation of quartz particles with a diameter of 100 pm and a speci fic weight of 2200 kg / m3 , in the known device of figure 1 .

[0015] As visible the particles tend to travel upward toward the outlet ; it also creates an area of accumulation at the top of the body that will be di f ficult to evacuate from the drain located at the bottom . It can be seen from the image how the lower di f fuser actually facilitates the path of particles toward the outlet instead of acting as an obstacle to them .

[0016] There was also a tendency for wear and subsequent breakthrough at the top of the cylinder where a particularly intense vortex of abrasive particles is created .

[0017] Figure 8 shows the separation of the same particles , but smaller in diameter, speci fically 50 pm . As will be noted, the situation is much worse than the previous one , having practically no degree of separation . The small diameter particles in fact tend to rise and be conveyed to the "OUT" output .

[0018] The purpose of the present invention is to solve all or part of problems of the known technique .

[0019] A preferred purpose of the present invention is to provide a better performing cyclone separator device than that of the known technique illustrated .

[0020] Another preferred purpose of the present invention is to provide a more ef ficient cyclone separator device for both large-diameter and smalldiameter particle separation .

[0021] A preferred purpose of the present invention is to provide a cyclone separator device that is easy to implement .

[0022] A preferred purpose of the present invention is to provide a cyclone separator device that is inexpensive to implement .

[0023] GENERAL INTRODUCTION

[0024] The indicated problems are solved by a liquid cyclone separator device as shown in the attached claims .

[0025] Advantageously, the part of the path in the chamber where the flow is maintained in vortex form is longer than in the known device in figure 1 . In the known device , in fact , the flow becomes chaotic j ust below the cone , which is at the beginning of the vortex, and the OUT outlet of the separated water is below the cone , so in a turbulent zone that promotes mixing .

[0026] According to the invention, the outlet of the separated liquid is kept in the highest and central part of the device , so it is not in a turbulent zone , but on the contrary in the calm zone in the center of the well- formed cyclone . In this manner the separation occurs below the outlet , and not above it as in the prior art .

[0027] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will best result from the following detailed description of its preferred forms of implementation, made with reference to the attached drawings and given for illustrative and non-limiting purposes . In such drawings :

[0029] - figure 1 schematically shows the operation of a cyclone separator device according to the prior art ; figure 2 schematically shows a cyclone separator device according to the present invention in sectioned perspective view; figures 3 and 4 show the cyclone separator device of figure 2 and the known cyclone separator device of figure 1 , respectively, in transparent frontal view for visual structural comparison between them; figures 5 and 6 show a computational fluid dynamics ( CFD) analysis performed on cyclone separator device of the figure 2 and known cyclone separator device of figure 1 , respectively, during separation of 100 pm diameter particles of quartz with speci fic weight of 2200 kg / m3 , where the amount of dirt input is 400 mg / 1 which simulates heavy duty operation when separating sand from well water .

[0030] - figures 7 and 8 are like 5 and 6 where the diameter of quartz particles in the test is 50 pm .

[0031] With reference to figures 2 and 3 , a cyclone separator device according to the present invention is shown, denoted as a whole by reference number 1 .

[0032] In the following we will use by convention reference positions relative to the earth ' s surface and the force of gravity, so for example we will mean by vertical direction : a direction parallel to the earth ' s force of gravity .

[0033] The cyclone separator device 1 comprises :

[0034] - a separating chamber 5 delimited by a radial wall 10 which is developed as a solid of revolution around a central axis X, the separating device is configured to be arranged in a working configuration in which the central axis is parallel to the vertical direction, and with respect to which a top 15 and a bottom 20 of said chamber 5 are defined, enclosed by a respective top wall 16 and bottom wall 21 . For the purpose of the orientation of the chamber 5 , the device 1 may include oriented installation means 12 , such as ground support foot means .

[0035] An inlet 25 to the separation chamber 5 configured to feed a flow of liquid in swirling motion about the central axis X . For example , said inlet includes a conduit 26 developed around an axis of symmetry Y, skewed with respect to the X axis , e . g . , oriented hori zontally . The inlet is arranged at the top of chamber 5 .

[0036] - An outlet 30 from the separation chamber 5 , arranged at the top 15 and at the central axis X . For example , exit 30 is defined by a conduit 31 developed around an axis of symmetry coincident with the axis X, where said conduit penetrates for a portion inside the separation chamber 5 , e . g . , extending vertically at or up to below inlet 25 .

[0037] - A cone 40 , with axis of symmetry coincident with the axis X and arranged below both inlet 25 and outlet 30 and spaced from both, with vertex 41 pointing toward outlet 30 . Cone 40 is spaced, from radial wall 10 with respect to which it is concentric . Substantially, a section 51 of chamber 5 is vertically interposed between the cone and the inlet and outlet .

[0038] - A section of chamber 53 arranged vertically below the base 42 of cone 40 . It is in this section that the separated particles accumulate .

[0039] It is observed that , with reference to the vertical direction X, the following sections of chamber 5 are recogni zable, in succession with each other and going from the top 15 to the bottom 20 :

[0040] - a section of swirling inlet 50 where the vortex is created; - a separation section 51 between cone 40 and inlet 25 and outlet 30 , in which the vortex continues downward and in the middle of which there is an upflow of the separated liquid to outlet 30 ;

[0041] - a section 52 of cone housing 40 in which the liquid vortex is pressed against the radial wall 10 , so as to promote the keeping of vorticity at the expense of turbulence . The cone also has the task of sending the separated liquid flow upward and centrally to the outlet 30 . Section 52 is therefore called the vortex maintaining section, said section includes a truncated cone 14 widening portion of the chamber ;

[0042] - a tract 53 , below cone 40 , in which the motion of the liquid i s slower than in the other tracts to promote the deposition of the separated particles . Tract 53 is therefore called the deposition tract .

[0043] Preferably, cone 40 is hollow, with a blind cavity facing toward bottom 20 . In particular, the cone has an opening 43 on its base facing the deposit tract 53 , so as to intercept and retain in said tract any rising particles . Its ef fect is to shelter the upper sections from the turbulence of the deposit tract 53 , which could throw separated particles back up again .

[0044] In use , liquid is fed into inlet section 50 in swirling motion due to the skewed arrangement between the axis Y of inlet duct 16 and the central axis X of chamber 5 .

[0045] The vortex descends by gravity down the separation section 51 , where it still has suf ficient velocity to substantially adhere to radial wall 10 . When it begins to lose strength, the vortex encounters the cone 40 in the holding section 52 , and is forced to stay close to radial wall 10 .

[0046] Below the cone , in the deposition section 53 , the liquid is very slow, and the particles settle to the bottom 20 without being able to rise because of the obstacle of fered by cone 40 and its downward- facing cavity .

[0047] As mentioned, the cone , in holding zone 52 , sends the liquid that is in a zone in the center of the vortex upward and toward the exit . Such liquid is separate liquid, since by the action of centri fugal force the particles are at the radial periphery of the vortex .

[0048] Wall 10 comprises two cylindrical portions 11 and 12 j oined together by a truncated-cone portion 14 . These portions are coaxial with each other along the vertical axis X . With reference to the direction of the vertical axis X, the truncated cone portion 14 is arranged at cone 40 and is oriented so as to create a widening of the chamber going from the top 15 toward the bottom 20 .

[0049] This advantageously creates an area of radial widening of chamber 5 at cone 40 , and thus the holding chamber, which promotes vortex slowing and particle deposition . Preferably, with reference to the vertical direction, the apex 41 of the cone is arranged above the truncated portion of the cone 40 , so as to promote the upward relaunching of the liquid in the center of the vortex .

[0050] Preferably the liquid used is water, however, the separation of other fluids is not excluded . Figure 5 shows a separation test done by simulation in which water with 100 pm diameter quartz particles with a speci fic weight of 2200 kg / m3 was fed into the cyclone separator device 1 , where the amount of dirt fed is 400 mg / 1 which simulates heavy duty operation when separating sand from well water .

[0051] For comparison, figure 6 shows the same test done on the known device in Figure 1 .

[0052] As will be noted in the cyclone 1 separator device , the particles take full advantage of the centri fugal force imparted by the new path, and the degree of separation is very high . The known device , on the other hand, has a much lower degree of separation . As visible in figure 6 the particles tend to travel upward toward the outlet ; it also creates an area of accumulation at the top of the body that will be di f ficult to evacuate from the drain located at the bottom . It can be seen from figure 6 how the lower di f fuser actually facilitates the path of particles toward the outlet instead of acting as an obstacle to them .

[0053] Figures 7 and 8 show the same analysis with particles of 50 pm diameter, where it can be seen from the comparison that while for the known device the separation capacity is zero , device 1 is still capable of separation . Following this simulation, a real test was performed on the cyclone separator device 1 . The test was performed using water with suspended solids totaling

[0054] 2280 mg / 1 as the test liquid, equally distributed between sand of certi fied grain si ze 0- 600 gm and clay . A discharge 60 of the separated particles arranged on bottom 20 was provided, set for a discharge duration of 15 seconds activated every 10 minutes of operation, for a total discharge of 25 liters .

[0055] With these parameters , two samples were taken from the discharge and then the weight of suspended solids separated using two filter meshes , first 80 gm and then 53 gm to understand the actual separation ef ficiency of the smaller particles . The table below shows the values for each case study .

[0056] As can be seen from the measured values , a total of 607g of suspended solids were discharged, and it was veri fied that the cyclone separator device according to the present invention can separate even smaller particles . It should be noted that the range 80-53 gm is very narrow, so having 5g of material per discharge is a very good result .

[0057] GENERAL MEANING OF TERMS

[0058] In understanding the purpose of the present invention, the term " comprising" and its derivatives , as used herein, are intended as open-ended terms speci fying the presence of the declared characteristics, elements, components, groups, integers and / or phases, but not excluding the presence of other undeclared characteristics, elements, components, groups, integers and / or phases. The above also applies to words with similar meanings such as the terms "including", "having" and their derivatives. In addition, the terms "part", "section", "portion", "member" or "element" when used in the singular may have the dual meaning of a single part or a plurality of parts. As used herein to describe the form(s) of implementation mentioned above, the following directional terms "forward", "backward", "above", "below", "vertical", "horizontal", "underneath" and "transverse", as well as any other similar directional terms refer to the form of implementation described in the operative position. Finally, grade terms such as "substantially", "about" and "approximately" as used herein mean a reasonable amount of deviation of the modified term such that the end result is not significantly changed.

[0059] While only selected implementation forms have been chosen to illustrate the present invention, from this description it will be clear to those expert in the field that various modifications and variations may be made without departing from the purpose of the invention as defined in the attached claims. For example, the size, shape, position or orientation of the various components may be modified as needed and / or desired. Components shown directly connected or in contact with each other may have intermediate structures interposed between them . The functions of one element can be performed by two and vice versa . The structures and functions of one form of implementation can be adopted in another one . It is not necessary that all advantages are present in a particular form of implementation at the same time . Each characteristic that is original compared to the prior art , alone or in combination with other characteristics , should also be considered a separate description of further inventions by the applicant , including structural and / or functional concepts incorporated by those characteristics . Therefore , the previous descriptions of implementation forms according to the present invention are provided for illustrative purposes only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the attached claims and their equivalents .

Claims

CLAIMS1. Cyclone separator device for liquids comprising : a separation chamber (5) extending longitudinally around a vertical axis X, and with respect to which a top (15) and a bottom (20) of said chamber (5) are defined,- an inlet (25) to the separation chamber (5) configured to feed a flow of liquid in swirling motion around the vertical axis X, and arranged at the top of the chamber (5) ,- an outlet (30) from the separation chamber (5) , arranged at the top (15) of the chamber (5) and at the vertical axis X,- a cone (40) , with axis of symmetry coincident with the vertical axis X and arranged vertically below both the inlet (15) and the outlet (30) , vertically spaced from both, with the vertex (41) pointing toward the outlet ( 30 ) ,- a section of the chamber (53) vertically below the cone (40) , characterized by the fact that: the wall (10) comprises two cylindrical portions (11, 12) joined together by a truncated cone portion (14) , where with reference to the direction of the vertical axis X, the truncated cone portion is arranged at the cone (40) and creates a radial widening zone of the chamber (5) going from the top (15) to the bottom (20) ,- with reference to the direction of the vertical axis X, the vertex (41) of the cone is arranged above the truncated cone portion (40) .

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that, with reference to the direction of the vertical axis X, there are the following sections of the chamber (5) , in succession with each other going from the top (15) to the bottom (20) :- a vortex inlet section (50) in which the vortex is created and in which both the inlet (15) and the outlet (30) are present;- a separation section (51) either between the cone (40) and the inlet (25) or between the cone (40) and the outlet (30) , in which the vortex continues downward and in the middle of which there is an upward flow of the separated liquid to the outlet (30) ;- a section (52) of cone housing (40) ,- a section (53) , below cone 40.

3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by the fact that said inlet (25) includes a duct (26) developed around an axis of symmetry Y, skewed from the axis X.

4. Device according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that said outlet (30) is defined by a conduit (31) developed around an axis of symmetry coincident with the vertical axis X, wherein said conduit penetrates for a portion inside theseparation chamber (5) , extending vertically at or up to below the inlet (25) .

5. Device according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that the cone (40) is spaced and concentric with respect to a radial wall (10) delimiting the chamber (5) .

6. Device according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that the cone (40) is hollow, with a blind cavity facing toward the bottom(20) .

7. Device according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that the chamber (5) is radially delimited by a wall that develops as a solid of revolution around the vertical axis X.

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