Vane Inlet Device With Converging Arrays And Damping Beam
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vane inlet devices in vessels face challenges in withstanding high vibratory forces and effectively regulating fluid stream flow due to their design limitations, leading to increased fabrication costs and inefficiencies in fluid phase separation.
Innovation Solution
A vane inlet device with a passageway bounded by top and bottom plates, featuring first and second arrays of vanes that progressively converge, and a beam extending between them to reduce flexure and enhance rigidity, allowing for better fluid stream redistribution and separation, while also serving to dampen vibrations and improve structural integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the components of the vane inlet device are formed from thicker gauge materials to withstand high vibratory forces, then the resistance to vibratory forces increases, but the fabrication cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet device is divided into multiple vanes that partition the fluid stream into smaller segments. This segmentation allows the use of thinner gauge materials for each individual vane while collectively providing sufficient structural strength to withstand vibratory forces, thereby reducing fabrication costs compared to using thick gauge materials for the entire structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a longitudinal dimension to the vane structure, creating a three-dimensional configuration where vanes extend from the top plate to the bottom plate. This dimensional addition allows the structure to distribute and resist vibratory forces more effectively through spatial distribution, enabling the use of thinner materials while maintaining overall strength.
2Ease of operation
If conventional vane inlet devices are used, then the structure is simple, but the ability to regulate the respective amounts of fluid stream discharged out the sides is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The vanes are configured with specific curvature radii and spacing arrangements that allow dynamic regulation of fluid flow distribution. By adjusting the geometric parameters of the vanes (curvature, spacing, orientation), the device can dynamically regulate the respective amounts of fluid stream discharged from different sides, providing operational flexibility without requiring complex mechanical control systems.
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 solution effectively increases the resistance to vibratory forces, enhances the ability to regulate fluid stream flow, and improves the separation of liquid and gas phases, reducing the opportunity for re-entrainment and increasing the durability of the device.
Implementation Method 1
A beam extends from the top plate to the bottom plate between the first and second arrays of vanes to reduce flexure of the top and bottom plates
Implementation Method 2
The beam also serves to separate the first and second portions of the fluid stream as they flow through the passageway
Implementation Method 3
The vanes partition the feed stream into smaller segments and redirect them out the sides of the vane inlet device for outward flow across the internal area of the vessel
Implementation Method 4
These inlet devices are also used to facilitate the removal of a liquid phase from a gas phase in the fluid stream so that a lower liquid load is presented to a mist eliminator or other internal that may be positioned downstream from the inlet device
Data Source
AI summary
A vane inlet device is provided in a vessel to receive and redistribute a fluid stream entering the vessel and to facilitate separation of liquid from the fluid stream. The vane inlet device includes a passageway bounded by a top plate and a bottom plate spaced from the top plate. First and second arrays of vanes extend between the top and bottom plates and are positioned to receive respective portions of the fluid stream flowing from an inlet end of the passageway toward an opposite end and redirecting it out opposite sides of the passageway. A spacing between the first array of vanes and the second array of vanes progressively decreases in a direction from the inlet end of the passageway toward the opposite end. A beam extends from the top plate to the bottom plate between the first and second arrays of vanes to reduce flexure of the top and bottom plates and to separate the respective portions of the fluid stream.