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Patent Searching and Data


Title:
RESERVOIR CONTAMINANT REGULATION SYSTEM
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2017/184657
Kind Code:
A1
Abstract:
A reservoir contaminant regulation system is described. The system includes a reservoir, a tank, a set of tubing, a pressure regulator, and a vent. The reservoir is configured to hold various volumes of a working fluid. The pressurized tank is in communication with the reservoir and is configured to selectively release a quantity of gas through the tubing and into the reservoir. The pressure regulator is in communication with the tubing and is configured to adjust the pressure level of the gas leaving the pressurized tank. The vent is in communication with the tubing as well and is configured to selectively release a quantity of gas from the reservoir into the ambient air as the pressure level in the reservoir increases. The presence of the gas within the reservoir prevents the accumulation of water vapor within the reservoir and prevent contamination.

Inventors:
NAGLER SAMANTHA (US)
Application Number:
PCT/US2017/028213
Publication Date:
October 26, 2017
Filing Date:
April 18, 2017
Export Citation:
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Assignee:
NAGLER SAMANTHA (US)
International Classes:
B63J2/14; A62C99/00; B64D37/32; B64D37/34; F15B1/00; F15B1/027; F15B1/08
Foreign References:
US7878214B12011-02-01
GB2471868A2011-01-19
US2889955A1959-06-09
US5816283A1998-10-06
US5836348A1998-11-17
Other References:
"Relief Valves and Relief Systems", PETROWIKI BY SPE INTERNATIONAL, 3 April 2016 (2016-04-03), Retrieved from the Internet [retrieved on 20170612]
Attorney, Agent or Firm:
WILLIAMS, Jeffrey, O. (US)
Download PDF:
Claims:
Claims

1 . A reservoir contaminant regulation system, comprising:

a reservoir configured to hold various volumes of a working fluid;

a pressurized tank in communication with the reservoir and configured to selectively release a quantity of gas, the tank and the reservoir communicating via one or more tubes such that gas from the pressurized tank can pass through the one or more tubes and enter the reservoir;

a pressure regulator in communication with the one or more tubes and configured to adjust the pressure level of the gas leaving the pressurized tank; and

a vent in communication with the one or more tubes and configured to selectively release the gas from the reservoir into the ambient air;

wherein the presence of the gas within the reservoir prevents the accumulation of water vapor within the reservoir.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the presence of the gas within the reservoir prevents the introduction of ambient air into the reservoir.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the working fluid is at least one of a fuel and an oil.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the volume of working fluid within the reservoir fluctuates.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pressure regulator is configured to automatically pass the gas through the tubing as the volume of working fluid decreases within the reservoir.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pressure regulator is configured to prevent the passage of the gas back to the tank as the volume of working fluid increases within the reservoir.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pressure regulator is configured to step down the pressure of the gas from the pressurized tank as the gas passes through the one or more tubes. 8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the vent is configured to open and release the gas at a predefined pressure.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the vent is configured to open and release a prescribed volume of the gas within the reservoir to maintain a predetermined pressure level in the reservoir.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the vent is configured to open and release a specific volume of the gas within the reservoir when the pressure level in the reservoir reaches a predetermined pressure level.

1 1 . The system of claim 10, wherein a resultant pressure level is below the predetermined pressure level.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the vent is configured to automatically open and close with the changes in pressure within the reservoir.

13. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:

a filter configured to remove moisture from the reservoir. 14. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:

a safety vent configured to have a higher operative pressure value than the vent.

Description:
RESERVOIR CONTAMINANT REGULATION SYSTEM

Technical Field

The present application relates generally to a system designed to protect the internal workings of a fluid reservoir, and in particular to a system that regulates the amount of water buildup within the reservoir as the fluid level fluctuates.

Description of the Prior Art

External reservoirs used to hold fluids of various types are common in industry. In particular, reservoirs used to hold oil based fluids are a common example. Contaminants can form within the reservoir and cause damage, such as rust for example. Excessive moisture can affect any number of pumps, delivery systems, and cylinders within the reservoir system. It is important to be able to negate the effects of moisture in the reservoir.

One common method taken to eliminate moisture is to use an external filter that attaches to the fluid reservoir through a hole in the top. The filter is designed to absorb condensation from within the reservoir. The filter is housed usually within a small transparent apparatus. This apparatus is usually filled with desiccant beads to act as the filter. The desiccant beads absorb moisture and as a result, change color. When they have attained a particular color, this indicates to an operator that they need to change the filter/beads. A problem with the use of the external filter is that it requires a relatively constant monitoring by an operator. The desiccant beads often are needing frequent replacing. Additionally, the use of the external filter is designed to remove contaminants (i.e. water) that are already present within the reservoir system. However, they fail to prevent water from forming or entering the reservoir. Although great strides have been made with respect to the method of extracting contaminants, such as water, from a reservoir, considerable shortcomings remain. A new reservoir contaminant regulation system is required that ideally prevents the introduction of moisture inside the reservoir as opposed to merely trying to extract it. Brief Description of the Drawings

The novel features believed characteristic of the application are set forth in the description. However, the application itself, as well as a preferred mode of use, and further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 is an exemplary schematic of a reservoir contaminant regulation system according to an embodiment of the present application.

While the application is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the application to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the application as described herein.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment Illustrative embodiments of the preferred embodiment are described below. In the interest of clarity, not all features of an actual implementation are described in this specification. It will of course be appreciated that in the development of any such actual embodiment, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developer's specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which will vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure.

In the specification, reference may be made to the spatial relationships between various components and to the spatial orientation of various aspects of components as the devices are depicted in the attached drawings. However, as will be recognized by those skilled in the art after a complete reading of the present application, the devices, members, apparatuses, etc. described herein may be positioned in any desired orientation. Thus, the use of terms to describe a spatial relationship between various components or to describe the spatial orientation of aspects of such components should be understood to describe a relative relationship between the components or a spatial orientation of aspects of such components, respectively, as the device described herein may be oriented in any desired direction.

The system and method in accordance with the present application overcomes one or more of the above-discussed problems commonly associated with conventional reservoir systems and filtering methods. Specifically, the reservoir contaminant regulation system of the present application is configured to act as a total preventative system configured to prevent the introduction of moisture within the reservoir. The system is configured to retrofit onto existing reservoirs to allow for ease of conversion. They system is also configured to utilize a gaseous blanket that is selectively inserted into and removed from within the reservoir as the fluid level changes. They system is designed to be operable without the frequent supervision of an operator thereby decreasing manpower costs. These and other unique features of the device are discussed below and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

The system and method will be understood as to its operation, from the accompanying drawings, taken in conjunction with the accompanying description. It should be understood that various components, parts, and features of the device may be combined together and/or interchanged with one another, all of which are within the scope of the present application, even though not all variations and particular embodiments are shown in the drawings. It should also be understood that the mixing and matching of features, elements, and/or functions is expressly contemplated herein so that one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate from this disclosure that the features, elements, and/or functions of one embodiment may be incorporated into another embodiment as appropriate, unless otherwise described.

The system and method of the present application includes a system designed to remove contaminants, and in particular, moisture from the interior of an enclosed reservoir. The system includes a pressurized tank of gas having a pressure regulator in association with the tank. The gas is in communication with the reservoir via one or more tubes. The tubes enter the reservoir through an aperture along an upper surface of the reservoir. The system further includes a secondary pressure regulator assembly that is configured to step down the pressure of the gas from the relatively high pressures in the tank to a minimal pressure within the reservoir. A vent is also associated with the passage between the tank and the reservoir to selectively permit the automatic release of gas from the reservoir as the fluid level in the reservoir rises.

Referring now to Figure 1 in the drawings, a reservoir contaminant regulation system 101 is illustrated. System 101 includes reservoir 103, tank 105, tubing 107, pressure regulator 109, and vent 1 1 1 . Reservoir 103 is configured to hold various volumes of a working fluid. Pressurized tank 105 is in communication with reservoir 103 and is configured to selectively release a quantity of gas through tubing 107 and into reservoir 103. Pressure regulator 109 is in communication with tubing 107 and is configured to adjust the pressure level of the gas leaving the pressurized tank 105. Vent 1 1 1 is in communication with tubing 107 as well and is configured to selectively release a quantity of gas from the reservoir into the ambient air as the pressure level in the reservoir increases. The presence of the gas within reservoir 103 prevents the accumulation of water vapor within the reservoir and prevent contamination. System 101 is configured to act as a total preventative system configured to prevent the introduction of moisture within the reservoir. Additionally, system 101 is configured to regulate the amount of gas within reservoir 103 so as to adjust to fluid level fluctuations.

Reservoir 103 holds a level of working fluids. Examples of working fluid that may be in reservoir 103 are fuel and oil. Others are possible. The interior volume of reservoir 103 is split between a fluid volume and a non-fluid volume. The working fluid is designed to be removed and replaced as necessary (representative ports not illustrated). Thus, the amount of fluids within reservoir 103 may change over time thereby resulting in a rise and drop in the level of fluids and an associated increase and decrease of non-fluid volume. For example, when the working fluid is used, the fluid level in reservoir 103 decreases, thereby increasing the non-fluid volume of empty space. When the working fluid is replenished, the non-fluid volume of empty space decreases.

Water vapor can form within the non-fluid volume space if ambient air is not removed. The presence of the ambient air can lead to contaminants within the working fluid and overall corrosion of the reservoir system. System 101 keeps out contaminants by creating a blanket of gas within the non-fluid volume space of reservoir 103 that prevents the introduction of ambient air. The ambient air has moisture and other particulates. In this way, system 101 prevents moisture introduction as opposed to merely treating for it.

System 101 is designed to locate tubing 107 between reservoir 103 and tank 105. Tank 105 is configured to contain an amount of gas under pressurized conditions. The gas is stored in tank 105 is at a particular pressure level. A pressure gauge 1 13 is located on tank 105 to help monitor the amount of gas within tank 105. The types of gases used may be of various type. For example, ideal gases would be any inert gas. Naturally, the availability and cost of the respective inert gases would bear influence on the eventual gas selected. A gas that could potentially be most viable would be Nitrogen. It is desired that the gas chosen be extremely nonreactive, meaning it doesn't normally form chemical bonds with other elements. Gas is automatically sent through tubing 107 and passed gauge 1 13. Gauge 1 13 indicates the amount of remaining gas in tank 105. After passing gauge 1 13, the gas passes through regulator 109. Regulator 109 is used to decrease the pressure of the gas prior to entrance into reservoir 103. Regulator 109 can be easily thought of as an assembly wherein one or more regulators are utilized depending on the amount of pressure drop to be experienced. Regulator 109 acts as a gate whereby the gas between it and within tank 105 are of an equal and elevated pressure while the gas between it and within reservoir 103 are on an equal and much lower pressure level. Regulator 109 regulates the pressure level and quantity of gas passing from tank 105 to reservoir 103. Once passed regulator 109, the gas passes through tubing 107 and is introduced with the internal volume (non-fluid volume) of reservoir 103. As noted previously, as working fluid is removed from reservoir 103, gas passes through tubing 107 and regulator 109 into reservoir 103. As the fluid level remains constant, the introduction of gas is minimized and/or ceased. However, as the fluid level rises, the pressure of the gas increases within the non-fluid volume of reservoir 103. To avoid the formation of backpressure within the fluid lines of the working fluid into and out of reservoir 103, the volume of gas within reservoir 103 must be able to escape in proportion to the level changes in the working fluid.

Vent 1 1 1 is located between regulator 109 and reservoir 103 where the pressure level of the gas within tubing 107 is at the same level as the gas within reservoir 103. Vent 1 1 1 is operably coupled to tubing 107. Vent 1 1 1 is configured to automatically open at a particular pressure level (max permitted level). The particular operative pressure level may be predetermined and pre-set. Additionally, the operation of vent 1 1 1 may be mechanically controlled or even electronically controlled. In operation, when the pressure in reservoir 103 rises to at least the predetermined operative pressure level of vent 1 1 1 , vent 1 1 1 is configured to open and vent an amount of gas into the ambient air. Vent 1 1 1 may be configured to release only a set amount of gas so as to maintain a resultant pressure level no higher (and possibly no less) than the predetermined operative pressure level. In other embodiments, vent 1 1 1 may be configured to release a prescribed volume of gas irrespective of the resultant pressure level. It should be understood that system 101 can easily be configured to capture and/or reuse the gas vented through vent 1 1 1 in an effort to eliminate discarding the gas. Of note is that most legacy reservoirs include filter 1 15 and vent 1 17. System 101 does not need filter 1 15 and vent 1 17 but may be configured to operate with them in place on reservoir 103. In this way, system 103 may easily be retrofitted onto existing reservoir systems without the need for extensive repairs or modifications. When combined, vent 1 1 1 is configured to be set at a lower pressure level release setting than existing vents 1 17. As such, vent 1 1 1 would typically vent first without need for vent 1 17. Vent 1 17 would then act as a safety vent in case vent 1 1 1 failed. Filter 1 15 is configured to absorb moisture from the non-fluid volume of the reservoir. When the gas fills the non-fluid volume, filter 1 15 is passive. Therefore, filter 1 15 may also act as a safety filter in the event that the gas blanket operation of system 101 fails. Particular advantages of system 101 include at least the following: (1 ) System 101 can be installed on any fluid reservoir requiring protection from humidity, water condensation, and other contaminants that might occur from water damage, for example, rust; (2) The use of nitrogen gas as an inert gas for protection against contamination is ideal, but dry air or other inert gases are also suitable as well; (3) system 101 automatically delivers, vents, and regulates the amount of gas in the reservoir; and (4) maintenance and costs are reduced while providing a fully preventative contamination system.

It is evident by the foregoing description that the subject application has other significant benefits and advantages. The present assembly and method is amenable to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof. The particular embodiments disclosed above are illustrative only, as the system and method may be modified and practiced in different but equivalent manners apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachings herein. It is therefore evident any alterations, modifications, and all such variations are considered within the scope and spirit of the application. It is apparent that a system and method with significant advantages has been described and illustrated.