HK1150161B - Method and device for receiving and handing over fine-grain to coarse-grain solids from a container to a higher pressure system - Google Patents

Description

Method and device for feeding fine-to coarse-grained solid particles into a container and for transferring them to a system at a higher pressure

Technical Field

The invention relates to a device and a method for feeding fine-to coarse-grained solid particles into a container and transferring them into a system at a higher pressure by means of a closure mechanism, wherein the container is equipped with means for feeding solid particles and gas for increasing the pressure in the container and with means for pressure equalization during charging and discharging, wherein the container bottom is designed as a feed funnel to the closure mechanism.

Background

In many applications, it is necessary to supply fuel into the system, for example from the surroundings, which fuel is treated in a subsequent process with a pressure which is significantly higher than the ambient pressure.

Such situations arise, for example, when solid fuels are subjected to thermal conversion, for example, with different coals, peat, hydrogenation residues, offal, refuse, biomass, soot or the like and all mixtures of such substances. Such a conversion process may be, for example, a pressurized combustion, pressurized gasification, fluidized roasting process or a smoldering combustion process.

In such processes (for example in the case of pressure gasification of coal dust), pressures of up to 45bar are very normal, i.e. the material to be converted must be brought to this pressure before gasification, wherein higher pressures also result in higher capacity of the plant.

Higher capacity of the plant means that a greater quantity of fuel is to be transported, which in turn simultaneously treats more embers or residues. It is to be noted here that the upper limit of the geometric dimensions of such a sluice or sluice vessel is determined by the desired properties of the bulk material, the discharge mechanism, the connecting lines, the fittings or the terrain conditions in the field. This increase is achieved, for example, by increasing the number of containers and/or increasing the flow through the sluice.

There are a number of approaches to this problem and WO 2004/085578 a1 proposes a sluice vessel which incorporates a gas conveying element within a conical vessel section by which the vessel can be brought to a target pressure. The conical part of the high-pressure tank proposed in DE 4108048 also has similar elements in order to achieve a fluidized state of the solid particle charge in order to improve the pneumatic transport from the high-pressure tank. In WO 98/11378 it is proposed to feed gas through a porous element in the discharge cone of the silo in order to achieve a uniform flow of material. A similar process is described in US 4941779.

Devices for simplifying the discharge of powdery substances in containers are also known, for example, from DE 1130368A, DE 19521766A, GB 940506a or US 2245664A.

It is also known to discharge bulk material from a container by means of a screw conveyor or the like.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the invention is to provide a device for feeding solid particles which can be used under high pressure and which can fill the container appropriately in order to avoid compression of the bulk material during operation, ensure that even bulk materials which are not easily transported can be transported smoothly, can be flexibly applied to different bulk materials and to increase the flow of the material to the receiving container as much as possible.

With a device of the aforementioned type, this object is achieved according to the invention in that at least one vertically oriented central tube which is open at the top and at the bottom is arranged in the interior of the container at a distance above the closure element in the direction of gravity, and that gas introduction means for blowing gas into the container bottom and/or the central tube are provided for generating a flow of solid particles in the central tube.

It has been found that the provision of a central tube and a gas introduction device has a very good effect on the transfer of the effect from the sluice vessel to the pressure vessel arranged downstream. This also results in very short cycle times.

Further embodiments of the invention emerge from the dependent claims, wherein it can be provided that the central tube is of double-walled design and is blown by at least one gas supply line, wherein the tube wall is provided with gas outlet openings.

This design, in which gas can be introduced via the wall of the central tube and the wall of the container (in particular the bottom of the container), leads to a series of advantages both in the phase of loading the container with the material to be transferred or in the phase of transferring the material under high pressure.

An important embodiment of the invention is that the central tube is provided with inflow openings for the solid particles distributed over its length, so that the solid particles can flow into the interior of the central tube. Since the central tube is equipped with outwardly directed and/or inwardly directed gas outlet openings (which the invention likewise provides for), the solid particles can be brought to a specific flow behavior in the interior of the container, as the operator intends.

A further advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the pipe sections or annular chambers are formed in a double-walled central tube by means of separating walls, wherein each annular chamber is provided with at least one gas inlet line, wherein a solids feed opening into the interior of the central tube is provided between the annular chambers, and the annular chambers can have the same diameter or different diameters. Since the individual annular chambers are provided with separate gas introduction devices, the inflow of the solid particles from the outside to the inside through the respective solid particle feed openings can be improved by the end faces of the higher annular chamber.

It is therefore also possible to provide stepped annular chambers with a diameter which decreases from top to bottom in the direction of gravity, or to provide annular chambers with a smaller or larger diameter alternately, or to form the annular chambers themselves in a funnel-like manner (for example with their smaller diameter in the direction of gravity below).

The invention also provides for a multiplicity of distributions of gas outlet openings, for example in the vessel wall, the center tube wall, the connection fitting provided for the lock, or the like, wherein in particular it is also provided that the outlet openings are provided with corresponding gas flow guiding elements in order to generate a predefined gas flow (for example a tangential gas flow).

It can also be provided that a protective cap/deflector is arranged above the central tube in order to deflect the upward flow of solid particles when the gas fills the vessel and to prevent the central tube from being filled with solid particles during the charging process.

The object of the invention is achieved by a method of the type mentioned at the outset in that at least one vertically oriented central tube is arranged in the interior of the vessel at a distance above the closure element in the direction of gravity, the solid particles are initially introduced into an annular space of the receiving vessel at ambient pressure, which is formed between the inner wall of the vessel and the outer wall of the central tube, and gas is supplied, if necessary, into the region of the closure element during the introduction, wherein the pressure equalization in the vessel is achieved by the supply/discharge regulation of the gas, and the vessel is subsequently brought to a higher system pressure by the supply of the gas, i.e. the system pressure acting on the closure element, wherein the gas is supplied in such a way that an upward flow of solid particles is formed in the central tube.

Further embodiments of the invention emerge from the further subclaims relating to the invention.

Drawings

The invention is explained in detail below by way of example with the aid of the figures. Wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of a sluice container according to the invention;

fig. 2 shows in a similar manner a principle sectional view of a sluice container according to the invention with a central tube;

FIG. 3 shows a slightly enlarged detail view of a cross section of the center tube; and

fig. 4 shows an enlarged schematic detail section of the gas introduction device in the connecting tube towards the locking mechanism.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 depicts, substantially schematically, an apparatus indicated as a whole by 1. The device 1 is here essentially formed by a sluice container 1 ', in which a pipe, hereinafter referred to as central pipe 2, is arranged inside the sluice container 1'. This container 1' is provided with a charge 3 of solid particles, wherein fig. 1 shows the flow path by means of arrows, as it is formed when the container is filled by blowing in compressed air (i.e. in the case of the formation of an underpressure).

Fig. 1 and 2 show the flow of solid particles with solid arrows and the flow of gas with dashed lines. Also marked on the right side of the graph is an arrow pointing downwards, which indicates the direction of gravity "g".

In the embodiment of fig. 1, a gas introduction device 7 is provided in the bottom of the vessel, indicated at 19, and a gas introduction device 16 is provided in the transition region of the vessel bottom to the discharge connection 9, which discharge connection 9 leads into a closure 18, wherein an additional gas introduction device 17 is provided on the discharge connection 9, wherein a gas flow can be generated by means of the gas introduction device, which gas flow, for example during the filling of the vessel, can generate a flow of solid particles which is deflected towards the central tube 2, which flow of solid particles is directed upwards in the central tube 2, as indicated by the arrows in fig. 1. In order to prevent solid particles from flowing into the central tube from above during the filling process, a deflecting or protective hood, which is indicated at 20 in fig. 1 and is shown schematically there, can be arranged above the central tube. The gas introduction in the pipe connection 9 is described in detail in fig. 4.

By means of 14 and 15, equalization gas lines are shown, through which, for example, gas located inside the container can flow out during the filling process, so that the pressure in the container can be kept constant during this filling process.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in fig. 2, the central tube 2 is simplified as a double-walled tube with a tube consisting of individual tube sections, wherein the individual tube sections, respectively designated 8, are arranged at a distance from one another, so that an inflow opening 5 for the solid particles and the correspondingly conducted conveying gas is created when emptying the container. This emptying situation is illustrated in fig. 2, wherein the flow of solid particles is here marked by small solid arrows, while the gas flow is indicated by means of dashed arrows.

The pipe section 8 with the inner pipe wall 11 has gas discharge openings, indicated with 12, in its outer pipe wall 10.

In the exemplary embodiment of fig. 2, the gas introduction device 7 is arranged not only in the funnel region of the container 1', but also in the cylindrical edge region. The gas introduction means are indicated with 6 in fig. 6. The annular space of the central tube 2 between the inner tube wall 10 and the outer tube wall 11 can be supplied with gas via the supply line 4, it being possible for a common gas supply (fig. 2) to be provided, or for each tube section to be supplied with separate gas supplies (fig. 3).

The device according to the invention or the method according to the invention operates as follows:

first, the solid particles are introduced into the container 1' by means of the solid particle feed device 13 in such a way that no solid particles are introduced into the central tube above the closure element 18 relative to the funnel-shaped container bottom, wherein a portion of the solid particles is deposited above the closure element. This situation is shown in fig. 1.

When the container is filled, gas is simultaneously introduced in an individually controlled manner via the pipe section 8 of the central tube 2 and via the gas introduction means 6, 7 and the gas introduction means 16, 17 arranged on the container wall and/or the container bottom to form an ascending flow of solid particles in the interior of the central tube as shown in fig. 1, wherein it is also noted that the gas blown in by the gas introduction means 17 also blows off or blows loose solid particles that have accumulated directly in front of the closure mechanism 18. In this case, it is advantageous to operate the main gas supply via this gas supply line 17 in the outlet opening. Thus, a forced circulation of the solid particles inside the vessel is achieved, avoiding the solidification of the solid particles during static charging.

Fig. 4 shows that the gas feed 17 can be designed such that a swirl generating element, indicated here by 20, generates a swirling fluid in the outlet opening of the connection piece 9, indicated by 17', which swirling fluid can entrain solid particles and also swirl them. As shown in fig. 4, the gas introduction device 17/17' can be designed, for example, as a circumferential annular gap or can be provided with further outlet openings on the circumference. A particular advantage of this configuration is that the gas flow is generated by means of recirculated dust-containing gas.

When the vessel is emptied, gas may be introduced to reduce wall friction in or around the emptying tube and on the vessel wall, thereby loosening solid particles locally deposited on these walls. The introduced gas accelerates the solid particles in the process to the subsequent plant components. By feeding gas, the vessel space freed by emptying the solid particles is refilled. Excess gas can be introduced here, which is important to avoid a negative pressure difference at the outlet opening 9.

For example, if the discharge velocity of the solid particles is higher than the velocity of refilling the empty space with gas, the negative pressure difference described above may be generated, thus causing an upward flow (opposite to arrow "g") of gas in the discharge opening, i.e. opposite to the downward movement of the solid particles, which may significantly hinder the discharge of the solid particles. The discharge rate of the solid particles is thus increased according to the invention by introducing an excess of gas.

Since the individual pipe sections can be provided with separate gas introduction devices, it is also possible to supply the individual pipe sections 8 with gas independently and thus to control the solids flow in a targeted manner. The staged introduction of air thus makes it possible to achieve the best possible gas distribution in the solids charge, so that even solids that are not easily transported can be brought into a good fluidized state during discharge.

It is of course also possible to vary the described embodiments of the invention in a number of ways without departing from the basic idea thereof. The invention is therefore not limited to a central tube, but the cross-sectional shape of the central tube may also differ from the shape of the tube, a plurality of such central tubes may be provided side by side in parallel, and so on.

List of reference numerals

1 Gate container

2 center tube

3 charging of solid particles

4 gas introduction pipe

5 side solid particle inflow hole

6 gas introducing device

7 gas introducing device

8 pipe section/annular cavity

9 pipe joint

10 outer pipe wall

11 inner pipe wall

12 gas discharge hole

13 solid particle input device

14 balance pipeline

15 balance pipeline

16 gas introducing device

17 gas introducing device

18 latching mechanism

19 container bottom

20 vortex generating element

Claims (12)

1. An apparatus (1) for feeding fine-to coarse-grained solid particles into a container and for transferring them to a higher-pressure system via a closure mechanism, wherein the container is equipped with means for feeding solid particles and gas for increasing the pressure in the container and with means for pressure equalization during charging and discharging, wherein the container bottom is designed as a feed funnel to the closure mechanism, characterized in that at least one vertically oriented central tube (2) which is open at the top and bottom is arranged at a distance above the closure mechanism (18) in the direction of gravity (g) inside the container (1'), and that gas introduction means are provided for blowing gas into the container bottom (19) and the central tube (2) in order to generate a flow of solid particles in the central tube, wherein the central tube (2) is designed as a double-walled and is blown by at least one gas introduction pipe (4), the pipe wall of the central pipe (2) is provided with a gas discharge hole (12).

2. The device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the central tube (2) is provided with outwardly directed and/or inwardly directed gas discharge openings.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the central tube (2) is provided with inflow openings (5) for solid particles distributed over its length.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the central tube (2) is provided with inflow openings (5) for solid particles distributed over its length.

5. The apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, characterized in that, in addition to the funnel-shaped vessel bottom (19), other parts of the vessel and/or the discharge pipe connection (9) are provided with gas introduction means (6, 16, 17).

6. The apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that a plurality of pipe sections or annular chambers are formed in a double-walled central pipe (2) by means of partitions, wherein each annular chamber is provided with at least one gas inlet line (4), wherein solid particle feed openings into the interior of the central pipe are provided between the annular chambers, and wherein the annular chambers can have the same or different diameters.

7. The device as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the wall of each annular chamber is provided with gas outlet openings (12) in the region of the housing and/or in the region of the end side.

8. A method for feeding fine-to coarse-grained solid particles into a container and for transferring them to a higher-pressure system, wherein the container is provided with means for feeding solid particles and gas for increasing the pressure in the container and with means for pressure equalization during charging and discharging, characterized in that at least one vertically oriented central tube which is open at the top and at the bottom is arranged in the interior of the container at a distance above a closure member in the direction of gravity, the solid particles are initially charged into the annular space of a receiving container which is at ambient pressure and is formed between the inner wall of the container and the outer wall of the central tube, and gas is supplied to the region of the closure member during charging, wherein the pressure equalization in the container is achieved by gas feed/discharge regulation and the container is subsequently brought to a higher system pressure by the feed gas, i.e. the system pressure acting below the closure element, wherein the gas is supplied in such a way that an upward flow of solid particles is formed in the central tube.

9. Method according to claim 8, characterized in that the solid particles are blown off and/or transported in the direction of the discharge pipe connection (9) by gas introduction through the gas introduction holes in the vessel wall and/or the double-walled central tube and/or the vessel bottom when handing over the solid particles to the higher-pressure system.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8 or 9, characterized in that nitrogen, carbon dioxide, recirculated flue gas, air, synthesis gas or mixtures thereof are used as the transport-pressure equalization-blowing gas, wherein these gases are also dust-laden.

11. Method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that a flow of solid particles is formed in the vessel by means of a gas flow guide in the region of the gas outlet openings, which flow facilitates the transfer of the solid particles.

12. Method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the quantity of gas supplied is adjusted such that the pressure change during the extrusion follows a specific time dependence which is in the extreme case that the supplied substance flow is kept constant and the supplied working volume flow is kept constant with respect to the current operating parameters in the sluice vessel.