Multi-phase pump with cooled liquid reservoir

Abstract

Overheating of a process liquid retained in a reservoir of a multiphase pump during extended gas slugs is avoided by circulating a cooling liquid in thermal contact with a process liquid through an external cooling apparatus, which can include a heat exchanger. In some embodiments, process liquid from the reservoir is circulated through the cooling loop, while in other embodiments a separate cooling liquid is circulated between a reservoir heat exchanger and the external cooling apparatus. The liquid in the cooling loop can be circulated by a separate cooling pump, or process liquid can be circulated through the cooling loop due to a pressure differential between an inlet and an outlet of the cooling loop within the multiphase pump. The multiphase pump can be a twin screw pump, and the reservoir can be formed between outer and inner casings of the multiphase pump.

Claims

1. A multiphase pump configured to pump a process fluid having liquid and gas components from an inlet to an outlet, the process fluid having an inlet pressure at the inlet and having an outlet pressure at the outlet, the multiphase pump comprising: a liquid reservoir configured to retain process liquid extracted from the process fluid as it flows through the multiphase pump, and to communicate the retained process liquid to a suction chamber of the multiphase pump during gas slugs, said suction chamber being a region within the multiphase pump where a pressure of the process fluid is substantially equal to the inlet pressure, the liquid reservoir being configured to retain said process liquid during said gas slugs, thereby ensuring that a gas seal is maintained within the pump; and a cooling loop in thermal communication with the process liquid in the liquid reservoir and configured to remove heat from the process liquid in the liquid reservoir by extracting a cooling liquid directly from within the liquid reservoir into the cooling loop and circulating the cooling liquid from the liquid reservoir to a cooling apparatus that is exterior to the liquid reservoir, and from the cooling apparatus back to the multiphase pump, the cooling loop being configured to circulate the cooling liquid during and throughout said gas slugs.

2. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the cooling liquid circulated through the cooling loop is process liquid extracted directly from the liquid reservoir.

3. The multiphase pump of claim 2, wherein a liquid outlet of the cooling loop is located in a region of the multiphase pump that is at a pressure lower than a pressure of the process liquid retained in the liquid reservoir, so that a pressure difference between the cooling loop outlet and a cooling loop inlet causes the process liquid to flow through the cooling loop.

4. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the cooling loop includes a heat exchanger contained within the reservoir and configured to exchange heat between the process liquid retained in the liquid reservoir and the cooling liquid circulated through the cooling loop.

5. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the cooling loop further includes a cooling pump configured to circulate the cooling liquid through the cooling loop.

6. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the cooling loop further includes a cooling liquid pressure control valve.

7. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the cooling apparatus is a heat exchanger.

8. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the multiphase pump is a twin screw pump.

9. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the liquid reservoir is a chamber formed between an outer casing of the multiphase pump and an inner casing of the multiphase pump.

10. The multiphase pump of claim 1, wherein the liquid reservoir is configured to retain liquid from the process fluid by functioning as a liquid trap that captures process liquid from the process fluid as the process fluid flows through the multiphase pump.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is an illustration of an embodiment in which process liquid is circulated from the pump reservoir through the cooling loop by a separate cooling pump;

(2) FIG. 2 is an illustration of an embodiment similar to FIG. 1, except that circulation of the process liquid through the cooling loop is induced by a pressure difference within the multiphase pump between an inlet and an outlet of the cooling loop; and

(3) FIG. 3 is an illustration of an embodiment in which a separate cooling liquid is circulated through a heat exchanger within the reservoir.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(4) With reference to FIG. 1, the present invention is a multiphase pump 100 that is configured to pump a process fluid having liquid and gas components from an inlet 118 to an outlet 116. The multiphase pump 100 includes a reservoir 102 of liquid which is cooled by a heat exchanger 104 or other cooling mechanism, so that very long gas slugs can be tolerated without overheating of the liquid in the reservoir 102 and without an unacceptable rise in the temperature of the discharge stream 116.

(5) In the embodiment of FIG. 1, a reservoir 102 formed between the outer 112 and inner 114 casings of the multiphase pump 100 functions as a liquid trap that collects process liquid. To ensure that the trapped liquid is available inside the bores of the pump 100 where the compression takes place, calibrated orifices are provided that communicate liquid from the reservoir 102, which is at a higher discharge pressure, to the suction area of the inner casing 114 of the pump 100.

(6) To avoid overheating of the liquid in the reservoir 102, in the embodiment of FIG. 1 some of the liquid is extracted from the reservoir 102 and passed through a cooling loop 106 that includes a heat exchanger 104. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the liquid is circulated through the cooling loop 106 by a separate cooling pump 108 that is downstream of the heat exchanger 104. In similar embodiments, the cooling pump is upstream of the heat exchanger 104. The embodiment of FIG. 1 further includes a pressure regulating control valve 110 that regulates the pressure and flow of the liquid through the cooling loop 106.

(7) FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment similar to FIG. 1, but in which the liquid from the reservoir 102 is caused to flow through the cooling loop 106 without the need of a separate cooling pump 108. Instead, the outlet 200 of the cooling loop 106 is placed within a suction chamber 202 of the multiphase pump 100, so that the suction created by the multiphase pump 100 causes the liquid to be drawn from the reservoir 102, which is at the higher discharge pressure, through the cooling loop 106 to the suction chamber 202, which is at the lower inlet pressure.

(8) With reference to FIG. 3, in other embodiments the process liquid in the reservoir 102 is cooled by circulating a separate cooling fluid 300 through a heat exchanger 302 that is in thermal communication with the reservoir.

(9) Note that, by cooling the liquid inside of the reservoir 102, the present invention avoids any need for an additional separator outside of the pump 100, and thereby ensures a more efficient extraction of heat than if the cooled liquid was removed downstream of the pump 100 and re-injected upstream of the pump 100.

(10) The foregoing description of the embodiments of the invention has been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. Each and every page of this submission, and all contents thereon, however characterized, identified, or numbered, is considered a substantive part of this application for all purposes, irrespective of form or placement within the application.

(11) This specification is not intended to be exhaustive. Although the present application is shown in a limited number of forms, the scope of the invention is not limited to just these forms, but is amenable to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof. One or ordinary skill in the art should appreciate after learning the teachings related to the claimed subject matter contained in the foregoing description that many modifications and variations are possible in light of this disclosure. Accordingly, the claimed subject matter includes any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof, unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. In particular, the limitations presented in dependent claims below can be combined with their corresponding independent claims in any number and in any order without departing from the scope of this disclosure, unless the dependent claims are logically incompatible with each other.