Parallel Membrane Dehydration System with Spare Unit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Dehydration systems using water separation membranes face downtime and reduced availability due to the need for frequent replacement of membranes, which is inconvenient and inefficient, especially when dealing with azeotropic mixtures like ethanol and water.
Innovation Solution
A dehydrating system with at least two operational water separation membrane units and a spare unit, where monitoring devices like densitometers and thermometers ensure continuous operation by switching in a spare unit when degradation is detected, allowing for membrane replacement without stopping the plant.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single water separation membrane unit is used for dehydration, then the device complexity is low, but the plant availability decreases due to downtime during membrane replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The dehydration system is divided into multiple independent membrane units (at least two operational units plus spare units) that can operate independently. This segmentation allows one unit to be replaced or maintained while others continue operating, thereby maintaining plant availability without requiring complete system shutdown.
Solution Approach 2:
Different membrane units are assigned different functional states (operational, standby, or replacement) based on local conditions. The system dynamically adjusts which units are active versus which are being replaced, allowing localized maintenance without affecting overall system availability.
2Reliability
If multiple water separation membrane units are arranged in parallel to maintain continuous operation, then the plant availability is improved, but the device complexity and initial investment increase
Solution Approach 1:
Spare membrane units are pre-positioned in the system in a ready-to-use state. When a operational unit requires replacement, the pre-positioned spare can be quickly activated without requiring time-consuming setup or preparation, thus maintaining high plant availability while keeping the system configuration manageable.
3Manufacturing precision
If membrane units are replaced frequently to maintain dehydration performance, then the product quality is maintained, but the loss of time due to replacement operations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains continuous dehydration operation by having multiple membrane units that can be switched between operational and replacement states. While one unit is being replaced, others continue performing the useful action of dehydration, eliminating downtime and maintaining continuous product quality.
Solution Approach 2:
Spare membrane units serve as copies or duplicates of operational units. When a operational unit degrades, an identical spare unit can be quickly substituted without requiring complex adjustments or reconfiguration, maintaining product quality while minimizing replacement time.
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
This configuration maintains plant availability by enabling membrane replacement during operation, reducing downtime and extending the service life of membrane units, thus improving the overall efficiency and reliability of the dehydration process.
Implementation Method 1
pervaporation (PV) using a water separation membrane unit comprising a water separation membrane
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
A dehydrating system is designed to maintain the availability of a plant having the dehydrating system using a water separation membrane by allowing a water separation membrane unit to be replaced while the plant is in operation. The dehydrating system comprises at least two water separation membrane units (1 to 4) in use arranged parallel to the direction of flow of a fluid to be processed, is configured so that at least one spare water separation membrane unit (5) can be installed parallel to the direction of flow of the fluid to be processed with respect to the at least two water separation membrane units, having monitoring devices for the product fluid to be taken out, and maintains the properties of the product fluid by operating the spare water separation membrane unit depending on the properties of the product fluid monitored by the monitoring devices.