Liquid Odorant Injection Manifold for Natural Gas Pipelines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for injecting liquid odorants into natural gas pipes are inefficient at varying gas flow rates, leading to defective odorization, particularly at low flow rates, and suffer from issues like odorant degradation, pressure regulation challenges, and discontinuous operation due to sealing defects.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a high-pressure pump to maintain pressure in a common injection manifold, which feeds multiple odorant injectors that atomize the odorant into the gas pipe, controlled by an electronic computer to adjust odorant quantity based on gas flow rate, ensuring continuous and efficient odorization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the system is dimensioned for maximum gas flow rate, then odorization effectiveness is improved at high flow rates, but odorization becomes defective when gas flow rate decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs a dynamic control mechanism where the injection frequency of odorant is adjusted based on the actual gas flow rate. The control unit receives signals from the flow rate sensor and modifies the injection parameters in real-time, allowing the system to adapt from high-flow to low-flow conditions while maintaining effective odorization.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates a feedback loop through the flow rate sensor and control unit that continuously monitors gas flow rate and adjusts odorant injection accordingly. This closed-loop control ensures the system responds to changing flow conditions and maintains optimal odorization performance across varying operational states.
2Ease of operation
If evaporation systems are used to odorize gas, then odorant can be injected, but the system requires complex pressure regulation and temperature control
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates the complex pressure regulation and temperature control mechanisms from the evaporation system. By using direct liquid injection driven by gas flow dynamics and a simple diaphragm pump, the system achieves odorant injection without requiring the sophisticated control infrastructure of evaporation systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The system utilizes pneumatic principles where the pressurized gas flow itself drives the odorant injection process. The gas pressure differential naturally propels the liquid odorant through the injection orifice, eliminating the need for separate pressure regulation systems required in evaporation methods.
3Ease of operation
If a diaphragm pump is used for odorant injection, then liquid odorant can be injected, but the pump loses priming when gas flow rate becomes very low
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs periodic injection action where the diaphragm pump operates intermittently based on gas flow rate conditions. At low flow rates, the injection frequency is reduced but maintained periodically, preventing complete loss of priming while adapting to reduced gas flow conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains the pump in a ready state with retained priming even during low-flow periods. By keeping the diaphragm pump primed and ready through periodic operation rather than allowing complete shutdown, the system ensures immediate readiness when gas flow increases again, maintaining continuous operational capability.
4Quantity of substance
If large quantity of odorant is injected at low gas flow rate, then odorant delivery is maintained, but evaporation of odorant becomes poor
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates localized conditions at the injection point where high-velocity gas flow provides intense shear forces and turbulence. This localized high-energy zone ensures rapid evaporation and mixing of the injected odorant, even when the overall gas flow rate is low, by concentrating the evaporation action at the injection site rather than requiring uniform conditions throughout the pipeline.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system achieves optimal odorant/gas mixing, maintains continuous operation, and is compact and reliable, capable of handling varying gas flow rates with accurate odorant delivery, independent of external flow rate measurement.
Implementation Method 1
The pressure in the common injection manifold is maintained at a high value by the high-pressure pump
Implementation Method 2
injecting the odorant into the gas pipe so as to cause it to be atomized in the gas pipe
Implementation Method 3
an electronic injection computer for controlling the injectors and the high-pressure pump
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a system and a method for injecting liquid odorant into a natural gas pipe, the system comprising: a tank containing the odorant in liquid form; a high-pressure pump connected to the tank; a common injection manifold fed with liquid odorant by the high-pressure pump; a plurality of odorant injectors fed with liquid odorant under pressure by the common injection manifold for the purpose of injecting the odorant into the gas pipe so as to cause it to be atomized in the gas pipe; and an electronic injection computer for controlling the injectors and the high-pressure pump.