Dryer for compressed gas, compressor installation provided with such a dryer and method for drying gas

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11173448-B2
Application number	US-201916663463-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 25, 2019
Priority date	Dec 16, 2014
Publication date	Nov 16, 2021
Grant date	Nov 16, 2021

Abstract

A dryer for a compressed gas provided with a vessel with a drying agent and a drying zone-and a regeneration zone; at least one intermediate zone that, viewed in the direction of rotation of the drum, is situated between the regeneration zone and the drying zone and which is provided with a separate inlet and an outlet that is shared with or connected to the outlet of the regeneration zone; a tap-off pipe that branches off from the outlet of the drying zone and connects to the aforementioned separate inlet of the intermediate zone; one or more blowers in the tap-off pipe for effectuating an intermediate flow from the drying zone, where the dryer is configured such that the entire flow of gas to be dried supplied to the dryer is first guided through the regeneration zone.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A dryer for a compressed gas supplied, comprising:
a vessel with a drying zone and a regeneration zone therein;
an inlet for the regeneration zone that is also an inlet for a supply of gas to be dried and an outlet for the regeneration zone;
an inlet for the drying zone and an outlet for the drying zone that is also the outlet of the dryer from where dried compressed gas is able to be tapped off for a downstream consumer network;
a rotatable drum in the vessel with a regenerable drying agent therein;
drive means for rotating the rotatable drum such that the drying agent is moved successively through the drying zone and the regeneration zone;
a connecting pipe that connects the aforementioned outlet of the regeneration zone to the aforementioned inlet of the drying zone;
a cooler and a condensate separator incorporated in the connecting pipe;
at least one intermediate zone that, viewed in a direction of rotation of the drum, is situated between the regeneration zone and the drying zone and which is provided with a separate inlet and an outlet that is shared with or connected to the outlet of the regeneration zone;
a tap-off pipe that branches off from the outlet of the drying zone and connects to the aforementioned separate inlet of the intermediate zone;
means for effectuating an intermediate flow from the drying zone, through the tap-off pipe, to the intermediate zone,
wherein the dryer is configured such that the entire flow of gas to be dried supplied to the dryer is first guided through the regeneration zone before flowing through the drying zone,
wherein the aforementioned means are only formed by one or more blowers in the aforementioned tap-off pipe,
wherein the dryer is provided with a control system and one or more sensors,
wherein the aforementioned one or more blowers is provided with a controllable drive, said controllable drive being connected to said control system to which said one or more sensors are connected to determine pressure difference between the outlet of the drying zone and the inlet of the regeneration zone, and
wherein the aforementioned control system is provided with an algorithm that changes a speed of the drive means on the basis of the pressure difference and wherein said at least one intermediate zone includes one or more of the following intermediate zones:
an intermediate cooling zone at the end of the regeneration zone with an intermediate gas flow that is tapped off from the outlet of the drying zone and is guided by means of the one or more blowers, without heating, to the inlet of the intermediate cooling zone concerned;
an intermediate regeneration zone at the end of the regeneration zone with an intermediate gas flow that is tapped off from the outlet of the drying zone and is guided by means of the one or more blowers, after having been heated, to the inlet of the intermediate regeneration zone concerned;
an intermediate cooling zone at the start of the regeneration zone with an intermediate gas flow that is tapped off from the outlet of the drying zone and is guided by means of the one or more blowers, without heating, to the inlet of the intermediate cooling zone concerned; or
an intermediate regeneration zone at the start of the regeneration zone with an intermediate gas flow that is tapped off from the outlet of the drying zone and is guided by means of the one or more blowers, after having been heated, to the inlet of the intermediate regeneration zone concerned.

2. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein, viewed in the direction of rotation of the drum, the at least one intermediate zone is at the start of the drying zone, in other words at the side of the drying zone along which the drying agent leaves the regeneration zone during the rotation of the drum, in order to go into the drying zone.

3. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein, viewed in the direction of rotation of the drum, the at least one intermediate zone is at the end of the drying zone.

4. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein means are provided to enable the heating of the tapped-off intermediate flow to at least one intermediate zone, said means comprising a heating element in the tap-off pipe concerned to the inlet of the intermediate zone concerned.

5. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein when there is both an intermediate cooling zone and an intermediate regeneration zone at the start or at the end of the regeneration zone, and the intermediate cooling zone borders the drying zone.

6. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein there is only one blower for all intermediate zones.

7. The dryer according to claim 6 , wherein there are means for the distribution of the gas flow from the blower over a number of intermediate zones.

8. The dryer according to claim 7 , wherein the means for the distribution of the gas flow are formed by one or more constrictions, adjustable or controllable, in the tap-off pipes to the intermediate zones.

9. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein the dryer is provided with a restriction that prevents gas from being able to flow from the drying zone to the regeneration zone via the connecting pipe.

10. The dryer according to claim 4 , wherein the aforementioned heating element is made to be adjustable.

11. The dryer according to claim 10 , wherein the aforementioned heating element is provided with a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature in the heating element.

12. The dryer according to claim 11 , wherein the aforementioned temperature sensor is connected to a control unit.

13. The dryer according to claim 12 , wherein the control unit is formed by the control system.

14. The dryer according to claim 1 , wherein this dryer does not comprise a venturi ejector.

15. A compressor installation provided with a compressor with an inlet for gas to be compressed and a pressure pipe for compressed gas, wherein the compressor installation comprises a dryer according to claim 1 for drying the entire flow of compressed gas supplied by the compressor that is guided through the dryer for the supply of dried gas to a consumer network via a tap-off point at the outlet of the drying zone, whereby to this end the pressure pipe connects to the inlet of the regeneration zone of the dryer.

16. The compressor installation according to claim 15 , wherein the aforementioned compressor for the supply of gas to be dried is provided with a controllable drive and that the compressor installation for both controllable drives, respectively of the blower and of the compressor, comprises a shared control system.

17. The compressor installation according to claim 16 , wherein the aforementioned control system of the drive of the blower is provided with an algorithm that stops the blower when the compressor stops.

18. The compressor installation according to claim 15 , wherein a tap-off pipe is not connected to the aforementioned pressure pipe.

19. A method for drying compressed gas, comprising the steps of:
driving an entire hot compressed gas flow originating from a compressor through a regeneration zone of a dryer that is provided with a vessel with a drying zone therein, in addition to the aforementioned regeneration zone, and a rotatable drum in the vessel with a regenerable drying agent therein;
rotating the aforementioned drum such that the drying agent is moved successively through the drying zone and the regeneration zone;
cooling the aforementioned gas flow, after passing through the aforementioned regeneration zone and separating a condensate from this

Assignees

• Atlas Copco Airpower Nv

Inventors

• Van Minnebruggen Ewan
• Vertriest Danny
• Ceyssens Tim
• Hellemans Geert

Classifications

• F24F3/153

  with subsequent heating, i.e. with the air, given the required humidity in the central station, passing a heating element to achieve the required temperature · CPC title

• F24F3/1423

  with a moving bed of solid desiccants, e.g. a rotary wheel supporting solid desiccants · CPC title

• F04C23/003

  having complementary function · CPC title

• F04C18/0215

  where only one member is moving · CPC title

• F04B39/16

  Filtration; Moisture separation · CPC title