RU2763237C2 - Sludge removal unit for heating circuit of hot water supply - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: water supply systems.

SUBSTANCE: present invention relates to a sludge removal unit for the heating circuit of the hot water supply of a building, as well as to the method for operating of the sludge removal unit. The sludge removal unit is made with the possibility of connecting it to two end elements (6, 8) of heating circuit (2) of the hot water supply, it contains a means of ensuring the circulation of purifying water between two specified end elements (6, 8), which allows changing the direction of circulation in heating circuit (2) to the opposite, contains system (40, 50) for injecting air into the purifying water and contains two control systems (14, 16), each of which is located respectively on one of end elements (6, 8) of heating circuit (2). Each control system (14, 16) is equipped with pressure gauge (26) that displays the pressure at each end element (6, 8) of heating circuit (2), and contains non-return valve (22) that ensures the passage of the fluid to specified end element (6, 8).

EFFECT: obtaining a sludge removal unit for the heating circuit of the hot water supply.

13 cl, 4 dwg

Description

FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY

The present invention relates to a sludge removal plant for a building's hot water heating circuit, as well as to a method for operating the sludge removal plant.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The hot water heating circuits of any building in which it is customary to regulate the temperature in the rooms is usually a closed water supply circuit containing a boiler, a circulation pump and radiators, which, located in different parts of the building, receive a hot water flow distributed by the boiler to distribute heat . Various means of regulation allow you to change the water supply to each radiator in accordance with the required level of heating in each part of the building.

With the passage of time, sedimentary deposits are formed in the heating circuit, in particular in various radiators, consisting of scale, residual products of metal oxidation and various types of sludge deposits. These deposits impede water circulation and heat transfer in different directions, which leads to a decrease in heating efficiency and an increase in energy costs. In addition, these deposits can adversely affect the service life of plant components.

Therefore, it is necessary to periodically clean the heating circuit from sediment.

A plant of a known type for cleaning heating circuits, shown in particular in EP-A1-1099488, published on May 16, 2001, comprises a tank on a platform for a sediment remover, a pump for supplying water containing this agent, and two three-way valves with general management.

When the cleaning system is connected to a heating circuit, the pump supplies the cleaning water containing the sludge remover throughout the entire circuit. Two three-way valves with common control allow you to easily change the direction of circulation of the purification water with a single command, which allows you to influence the sediment located in certain areas of the circuit with maximum efficiency to dissolve and remove it.

The aforementioned purifier may also comprise a sludge tank, through which a stream of purifying water is then passed in order to allow it to settle within the sludge and to be able to collect (for example, by means of magnets) the metal particles circulating in this fluid.

Next, a circular supply of wash water is performed to eliminate traces of sediment products. An installation of this type, equipped with two three-way valves, allows, after a single branch in the heating circuit, to realize two directions of circulation of the fluid, as well as flushing, both without disconnecting and reconnecting the nozzles, which is inconvenient from the point of view of time costs and the risk of smudges and pollution in the work area.

In another known method for cleaning a heating circuit, proposed in particular in FR-A1-2752614, a cleaning plant is used, comprising a pump that pumps cleaning water in two directions, and an air injection system that continuously or intermittently adds the air pressure into the fluid. Air bubbles moving in the heating circuit create mechanical restrictions that contribute to the exfoliation of sedimentary accumulations and the formation of their suspension in this circuit.

With this known method, it is possible to control the flow of fluid in the heating circuit by means of said devices, in particular by adjusting the speed of the pump.

However, there is no indication of the pressure supplied to the heating circuit, which can lead to problems, in particular with regard to the pressure of the injected air and in the case of more or less serious destruction of the circuit elements, in particular when separating large sediment accumulations from the mass and the formation of serious obstacles to the passage of the fluid.

In addition, it is conceivable that the destruction in one direction of the purification water circulation is stronger than in the other direction, which would lead to an increase in pressure. Meanwhile, too high pressure in the heating circuit can lead to cracks or breaks, in particular at soldered or pipe joints, which causes incidents such as flooding.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The aim of the present invention is, in particular, to eliminate the disadvantages of the prior art.

To this end, the present invention proposes a sludge removal plant, made with the possibility of its connection to the two end elements of the hot water heating circuit, containing a means for circulating cleaning water between these end points, allowing the direction of circulation in the heating circuit to be reversed, containing an injection system air into the purification water, and containing two control systems, each of which is located respectively on one of the end elements of the heating circuit, each control system is equipped with a pressure gauge showing the pressure at each of the end elements of the heating circuit, and contains a non-return valve that ensures the passage of fluid medium to the specified end element. The advantage of this sludge removal plant is that the pressure gauges make it possible to continuously monitor the pressure supplied to the heating circuit during circulation in one direction or the other, which makes it possible to regulate this pressure, in particular by adjusting the pressure supplied by the circulation pump or injection system air to avoid incidents due to overpressure.

In particular, during quick changes in the direction of circulation of the cleaning water with air injection, without additional manipulations or loss of time, there is always a manometer permanently installed on the upstream side of the flow, showing the exact pressure in the heating circuit, which makes it possible to promptly intervene in case of excessive pressure growth in order to avoid incidents.

In addition to this, a non-return valve in each control system allows, without operator intervention - in particular when changing the direction of flow in the heating circuit - to inject air without the risk of backflow of fluid in the circulating supply of purification water or in other sources of heating supply - such as heating circuit boiler.

The sludge removal plant according to the invention additionally has one or more of the following characteristics, which can be combined with each other.

Preferably, each control system includes an air injection valve for injecting air at each end of the heating circuit.

In addition, pressure gauges may include means for automatically detecting a pressure threshold.

Preferably, each control system includes, for each end element of the heating circuit, a blocking valve to allow fluid flow to that end element.

In this case, each control system preferably includes a blocking valve connected in parallel with each check valve.

In addition, each control system may include a check valve for simultaneously energizing the block valve and the check valve.

Preferably, each system contains a safety valve for each end element of the heating circuit.

According to one embodiment, the plant comprises an air compressor configured to alternately inject air into one and the other of the two end elements of the heating circuit, between the non-return valve and the end element connected to the control system.

According to another implementation variant, the installation comprises an air compressor integrated in the purification water circulation pump.

In an alternative embodiment, the installation may comprise an inverted unit connected on one side to two control systems, and on the other side to an outlet channel delivering water under pressure to the heating circuit, and with a return channel receiving water from said heating circuit, containing means, allowing to change the flow direction of the outlet channel and the return channel.

In this case, the inverted block preferably comprises four reversing valves, each of which is located between the pipeline on one side and the outlet or return channel on the other side.

In particular, the sludge removal plant may include a pump supplying pressurized cleaning water to the outlet and receiving this water through a return channel.

Also provided is a method for operating a sludge removal plant, including any of the preceding features, which reverses the flow direction of the cleaning water in the heating circuit.

Preferably, with each change in the direction of circulation of the purification water, air is injected in an intermittent manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The characteristics of the invention are set forth in detail in the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the drawings are for the sole purpose of illustrating the text and are thus not intended to limit the scope of the patent protection of the invention in any way.

On these drawings:

- in Fig. 1 shows a sludge removal plant according to the invention connected to a heating circuit comprising a closed circulation circuit and an external air compressor;

- in Fig. 2 shows a sludge removal plant according to the first embodiment, comprising a closed circulation circuit and an air compressor integrated in the circulation pump;

- in Fig. 3 shows a sludge removal plant according to the second embodiment, comprising an open circulation circuit; and

- in Fig. 4 shows a third embodiment of a sludge removal plant comprising an open circulation circuit and an inverted external connection unit.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In FIG. 1 shows a heating circuit 2 for a building for descaling, comprising radiators in series between an upstream connecting end 6 receiving hot water from a boiler and a downstream outlet connecting end 8, these ends representing the outlet and heating circuit inlet.

In the following examples, for the sake of simplicity, only the radiators 4 of the heating circuit 2 for sludge cleaning are shown, which circuit may include, among other things, a boiler or other equipment connected to the end elements 6 upstream and to the end elements 8 downstream .

The sludge removal plant comprises a pressure pump 10 connected to a closed circuit containing a first pipeline 12, a first control system 14, a heating circuit 2, connected in series with each other, with an inlet through an upstream end element 6 and an outlet through an upstream end element 8 , a second control system 16 and finally a second pipeline 18 connected to the pump.

The pump 10 is designed to control the circulation of cleaning or washing water in two directions in a closed circuit.

The pump 10 may further comprise a sludge disposal tank 38 with an automatic connection to a closed circuit return pipe connected to this pump in order to collect the sludge coming from the heating circuit 2 during the cleaning process.

In an alternative embodiment, the sludge tank 38 may be located outside the pump 10, with the valves automatically changing the flow direction at the connection points to this pump according to the direction of circulation in order to systematically connect this pump to the pipeline of the reverse direction of the circuit.

Each control system 14, 16 contains at the inlet from the first pipeline 12 or the second pipeline 18 a check valve 20, then a three-position connecting element 30, which supplies flow to the non-return valve 22, allowing only the flow coming from the check valve and blocking the other direction, in parallel with blocking valve 24.

The non-return valve 22 and the blocking valve 24 are further connected to a second three-way connection element 32, supplying flow to the upstream end element 6, or downstream end element 8, respectively, of the heating circuit 2.

Each control system 14, 16 is additionally equipped with a pressure gauge 26 and a safety valve 28. Each pair, consisting of a pressure gauge 26 containing in the example shown an indicator scale, and a safety valve 28 calibrated to 3 bar, is connected in series, respectively, between every second three-position connecting element 32 and connecting end element 6 or, if applicable, 8 of heating circuit 2.

The two safety valves 28 of the two control systems 14, 16 provide, by means of their calibration pressure, a protection adapted to the mechanical resistance of the heating circuit 2 for the release of an overpressure fluid through a low pressure outlet line 34, which is advantageously connected to a waste pipe 64.

With regard to pressure gauges 26, it is to be understood in the context of this document that throughout the description of this application, "pressure gauges" are understood in the general sense of devices capable of measuring pressure mechanically or electrically, such as simple pressure gauges, pressure transmitters, pressure transmitters, pressure transducers; some of these devices convert the measured pressure into an analog or digital output signal. In the latter case, it can be provided that the respective measuring device is further configured to send a closing command to the stop valve 20 on the assumption that the pressure measured by this device will exceed three bar.

The pressure gauge, usually mounted on the heating circuit boiler to measure the pressure in this circuit under normal operating conditions, does not replace two special pressure gauges 26, each of which is located in the control system 14, 16.

The pump 10 also includes a connection element 36 to the outlet conduit 34 to enable, if appropriate, to drain the cleaning or flushing water after it has been used within the circuit.

The air compressor 40 supplies air to the air injection valve 42 installed in each control system 14, 16 between the non-return valve 22 and the second three-way connector 32 for injecting pressurized air into the purification water from the rising side according to the direction of circulation in the heating circuit 2 in order to accompany given water within this circuit.

The following describes the operation of the sludge removal plant with the two shut-off valves 20 open.

To ensure the circulation of purification water in the outgoing direction from the first pipeline 12, the blocking valve 24 of the first control system 14 is closed and the blocking valve of the second control system 16 is opened.

The operation of the pump 10, which feeds the first pipeline 12, leads to the circulation of the fluid in series through the non-return valve 22 of the first control system 14, then through the heating circuit 2 and then through the blocking valve 24 of the second control system 16. The non-return valve 22 of the second control system 16 in this case involved - i.e. closed for this direction of circulation. The fluid then flows through the second conduit 18 to the pump 10 passing through the sludge tank 38 .

At the same time, during this circulation, the air compressed by the compressor 40 is injected into the inlet of the heating circuit 2 by opening the air injection valve 42 of the first control system 14 in an intermittent mode as necessary in order to initiate shock mechanical effects that contribute to the peeling and circulation of the sediment.

After a period of, for example, 5 minutes, the circulation of the purification water in this direction is reversed. To do this, the blocking valve 24 of the second control system 16 is closed, the blocking valve of the first control system 14 is opened, and the pump 10 is controlled to transfer the water flow in the direction opposite to the previous one - i.e., through the second pipeline 18. Air is injected by opening the air injection valve 42 second control system 16.

In this case, it is possible to change the direction of circulation of the purification water to the reverse many times, replacing this water as necessary until the outlet water becomes sufficiently clean, thereby demonstrating the correct functioning of the heating circuit.

The closed sludge removal circuit allows you to repeat the supply of cleaning water for a certain number of circulations and thus limit its consumption.

The pressure gauges 26 make it possible to continuously monitor the pressure increase in the heating circuit 2 in order to reduce or turn off the pressure generated by the pump 10 as necessary. would result in rapid failure of piping or radiator outlets under pressurized conditions. The above means provide protection.

In addition, pressure gauges 26 may include an electrical threshold detector that sends a signal (eg, audible or visual) to indicate overpressure.

The two pressure gauges 26 make it possible to control the maximum pressure on both sides of the heating circuit 2 during the sludge removal operations in order to avoid any malfunctions. In particular, it is possible to automatically stop the increase in pressure in the case of a pressure gauge with an electrical threshold detector. In this way, in particular, circuits containing pipes made of plastic material, such as cross-linked high-density polyethylene of the brand "PER", which have a reduced flow resistance with increasing pressure, are protected.

In addition, the pressure difference between the inlet and outlet of the heating circuit 2, indicated by the difference in the readings of the two pressure gauges 26, can serve as a means of measuring the resistance to circulation of the flow in this circuit and, as a result, an indicator of the degree of contamination of the circuit.

On the contrary, if the pressure observed on the pressure gauge 26 is clearly insufficient, for example, equal to 0.5 bar, additional air is injected through the corresponding valve 42, i.e. control system valve 14 or 16, which is an inlet for cleaning water supplied through pipeline 12 or 18, to provide the necessary mechanical restrictions and maintain the rate of sediment removal.

The pressure gauge 26 located on the downstream side of the heating circuit 2 makes it possible, in particular, to detect a leak or a break in the heating circuit as a sign of a sudden and strong decrease in pressure.

The non-return valve 22 of each control system 14, 16 makes it possible to automatically avoid the rise of fluids from the pump 10 in the direction of the inlet pipeline during the pressure build-up in the circuit - in particular during air injection. In this case, it is possible to change the direction of circulation from the pump 10 by means of a valve of another control system 14, 16, operating in this case automatically without manual intervention, to protect the other water inlet. In FIG. 2 shows a variant of a similar sludge removal plant, different from that shown in FIG. 1 of the plant in that it contains neither an external air compressor nor an air injection valve 42 in each of the control systems 14, 16.

The pump 10 in this case has an integrated air compressor 50 which injects air in continuous or intermittent mode into the pipeline 12, 18, which is the starting point of the cleaning air. Thus, the pump 10 automatically controls the air injection side after sending the cleaning air through the lines 12, 18 without interfering with the operation of this air transfer circuit.

In FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the sludge removal plant shown in FIG. 1 comprising an external water supply 62 directly connected to a first conduit 12, with a second conduit 18 connected to a waste pipe 64 via a sludge tank 38.

The circulation of water emanating from the external water supply 62 is carried out using the pressure of this water supply network as the injection force. Water after a single passage through the heating circuit 2 is drained into the sewer 64, after collecting the sediment.

The direction of circulation of the purification water in the heating circuit 2 is reversed in this case by manually inverting the splitters to the external source 62 of the water supply and to the waste pipe 64.

In the installation shown in Fig. 3, the air compressor 40 can be replaced by a traditional commercially available device combining a water injection pump and an air compressor.

It is clear from the foregoing that the invention of combining two control systems 14 and 16 with an air compressor 40 and distributing cold rinse water 62 is a very preferred replacement for prior art pump and integral compressor arrangements.

In FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment of the sludge removal plant shown in FIG. 1 comprising an inverting block 60 connected to a pressurized water outlet 72 and a pressurized water return 74 of a pump 10. Each conduit 12, 18 is connected simultaneously to an outlet 72 and a return 74, in each case via a reversible valve 70. Each reversing valve 70 is configured to be controlled manually and automatically.

Thus, when the two outlet oppositely directed reversing valves 70 are opened and the other two valves are closed, the pump outlet 72 is connected to the first conduit 12 or to the second conduit 18, and at the same time another conduit is connected to the pump return conduit 74.

The pump 10 is further connected to an inlet supplied from an external water supply 62 and to an outlet leading to a low pressure outlet pipe 34 connected to a waste pipe 64. In one embodiment, the sludge tank 38 may be installed, in one of pipelines 12 or 18.

The inverting unit 60 allows the pump outlet 72 and return 74 connections to be reversed in direction by opening the two oppositely directed outlet reversing valves 70 and closing the other two valves and reversing the directions by reversing this operation in a quick manner by means of a simple commands for manual or automatic control without opening the connecting elements.

Thus, according to the command from the inverting unit 60, the water coming from the external water supply 62, further compressed under pressure in the pump 10, is circulated in one direction or the other. The water entering the return channel 74 can be used by the pump 10 in a new cycle to be delivered to the outlet channel 72. After a certain number of cycles, the water is drained into the sewer 64, having previously collected the sediment.

In one embodiment, the block 60 may be incorporated into the pump 10. Of course, if the pressure in the external water circuit 62 is sufficient, the pressure pump 10 can be dispensed with.

The air compressor 40 drives each air injection valve 42 via the automatic air injection valve 76, which allows automatic intermittent air supply according to a predetermined program.

For all variants of the cleaning scheme using the pressure of the fluid emanating from the pump 10 or from the external water supply network 62, the pressure gauges 26 provide protection in a simple and effective way.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the preferred embodiments described above.

On the contrary, it covers all possible implementations, provided that the latter do not go beyond the scope of the appended claims and defining the scope of patent protection of this invention.

Claims (13)

1. Installation for the removal of sediment, made with the possibility of its connection to two end elements (6, 8) of the heating circuit (2) of hot water, containing a means for ensuring the circulation of cleaning water between the two said end elements (6, 8), allowing you to change the direction of circulation in the heating circuit (2) to the reverse, containing a system (40, 50) for injecting air into the purification water and containing two control systems (14, 16), each of which is located respectively on one of the end elements (6, 8) of the heating circuit ( 2), characterized in that each control system (14, 16) is equipped with a pressure gauge (26) that displays the pressure at each end element (6, 8) of the heating circuit (2), and contains a non-return valve (22) that ensures the passage of fluid environment to the specified end element (6, 8). 2. A sludge removal plant according to claim 1, characterized in that each control system (14, 16) contains an air injection valve (42) for injecting air at the level of each end element (6, 8) of the heating circuit (2). 3. A sludge removal plant according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the pressure gauges (26) comprise means for automatically detecting a pressure threshold. 4. Installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 1-3, characterized in that each control system (14, 16) contains a blocking valve (24) located in parallel with each non-return valve (22). 5. Sludge removal plant according to claim 4, characterized in that each control system (14, 16) includes a check valve (20) for simultaneously supplying flow to the block valve (24) and non-return valve (22). 6. Installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 1-5, characterized in that each control system (14, 16) contains a safety valve (28) for each end element (6, 8) of the heating circuit (2). 7. Installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 1-6, characterized in that it contains an air compressor (40) configured to inject air alternately into one or the other of the two end elements (6, 8) of the heating circuit (2) between the non-return valve (22) and the end element ( 6, 8) connected to the control system (14, 16). 8. Installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 1-6, characterized in that it contains an air compressor (50) built into the pump (10) for circulating the cleaning water. 9. Installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 1-8, characterized in that it contains an inverse block (60) connected on the one hand to two control systems (14, 16), and on the other hand with an outlet channel (72) delivering pressurized water to the heating circuit (2 ), and with a return channel (74) receiving water from the specified heating circuit (2), containing means that allow you to change the flow direction of the outlet channel (72) and the return channel (74). 10. Installation for removing sediment according to claim 9, characterized in that the inverting block (60) contains four reversing valves (70), each of which is located between the pipeline (12, 18) on one side and the outlet channel (72) or return channel (74) on the other side. 11. Installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 9, 10, characterized in that it contains a pump (10) that supplies cleaning water under pressure to the outlet channel (72) and receives this water through the return channel (74). 12. The method of operation of the installation for removing sediment according to any one of paragraphs. 1-11, characterized in that the direction of circulation of the purification water changes in the heating circuit (2). 13. The method of operation of the installation for removing sediment according to claim 12, characterized in that with each change in the direction of circulation of the purification water, air is injected in an intermittent mode.

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