Piggable Pump Bypass for Fluid Line Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pump systems face challenges in cleaning and fluid changeovers due to the presence of pumps along fluid lines, which limits the accessibility of cleaning pigs and results in significant fluid waste, as pumps are typically installed at the ends of fluid lines to allow for cleaning.
Innovation Solution
A pump assembly with a piggable bypass that allows the pump to be isolated from the primary fluid line, enabling independent cleaning of both the pump and the fluid line, and permitting a pig to pass through the system for thorough cleaning, while maintaining fluid flow through the pump in a pumping state.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a pump is installed along a fluid line to drive fluid at desired flow rate, then fluid handling capability is improved, but cleaning accessibility deteriorates because the pump blocks the path for cleaning pigs
Solution Approach 1:
The fluid line is segmented into two separate paths: a primary fluid line for pump operation and a bypass line for cleaning operations. This segmentation allows the pump to be positioned along the fluid line for optimal fluid handling while the bypass provides unobstructed access for cleaning pigs, resolving the conflict between productivity and cleaning accessibility.
2Ease of operation
If pumps are installed at ends of fluid lines to enable cleaning, then cleaning accessibility is improved, but fluid handling efficiency deteriorates due to increased fluid waste during changeovers
Solution Approach 1:
A bypass line acts as an intermediary pathway that allows cleaning pigs to access the fluid line without requiring the pump to be positioned at the ends. This intermediary structure enables efficient cleaning while the pump can be optimally positioned along the fluid line, reducing fluid waste during changeovers by allowing complete fluid line flushing without discarding usable fluid.
3Productivity
If a pump is positioned along a fluid line, then fluid handling capability is improved, but complete cleaning of the fluid line becomes impossible without special cleaning procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into a primary fluid line for pump operation and a separate bypass line for cleaning operations. This segmentation ensures that the pump can be positioned along the fluid line for optimal fluid handling while the bypass provides a dedicated cleaning pathway that guarantees complete cleaning of the entire fluid line, including areas near the pump.
Solution Approach 2:
The bypass line serves as an intermediary cleaning pathway that enables complete cleaning of the fluid line without requiring the pump to be removed or repositioned. The bypass allows cleaning pigs to traverse the entire fluid line, ensuring thorough cleaning while maintaining the pump's optimal positioning for fluid handling operations.
Data Source
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AI summary
A pump assembly for serial connection along a primary fluid line includes a pump and a pump bypass. The pump has an inlet side and an outlet side, and is configured to receive a first fluid from the inlet side, and expel the first fluid from the outlet side. The pump bypass is actuatable between first and second valve states. The first valve state fluidly connects the pump in series along the primary fluid line, and connects an input side of the primary fluid line to an output side of the primary fluid line only via the pump. The second valve state fluidly isolates the pump from the primary fluid line, and fluidly connects the input and output sides of the primary fluid line via a continuously piggable path.