Mulling device and method for treating bulk material released from portable containers

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11192074-B2
Application number	US-201616063931-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 15, 2016
Priority date	Mar 15, 2016
Publication date	Dec 7, 2021
Grant date	Dec 7, 2021

Abstract

In accordance with presently disclosed embodiments, systems and methods for efficiently managing bulk material are provided. The disclosure is directed to systems and methods for efficiently combining additives into bulk material being transferred about a job site. The systems may include a support structure used to receive one or more portable containers of bulk material, and a mulling device disposed beneath the support structure to provide bulk material treatment capabilities. Specifically, the mulling device may facilitate mixing of coatings or other additives with bulk material that is released from the portable containers, as well as transfer of the mixture to an outlet location.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system, comprising:
a support structure for holding at least one portable container of bulk material at an elevated position; and
a mulling device disposed beneath the support structure, wherein the mulling device comprises:
a housing having at least a plurality of side walls, a bottom, and a cavity formed therein;
an opening in the housing for receiving bulk material from the at least one portable container disposed on the support structure into the mulling device;
at least one inlet in the housing for introducing one or more additives into the bulk material within the mulling device, wherein the at least one inlet is located beneath the support structure; and
at least one mulling screw disposed in the cavity of the housing, wherein the at least one mulling screw mixes the one or more additives with the bulk material while transferring the bulk material longitudinally through the cavity;

a liquid additive pump, wherein the liquid additive pump has a pump outlet, wherein the liquid additive pump pumps one or more additives from the pump outlet through the at least one inlet into the cavity of the mulling device; and
an outlet disposed at a longitudinal end of the housing where the bulk material combined with the one or more additives is discharged from the mulling device.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the support structure and the mulling device are integrated into a trailer unit.

3. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a blender disposed adjacent to the mulling device, wherein the blender comprises a mixing compartment for mixing additional liquid additives into the bulk material to generate a treatment fluid.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the support structure and the mulling device are positioned proximate the blender such that the mulling device outputs the bulk material combined with the one or more additives from the outlet directly into the mixing compartment of the blender.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the support structure comprises a positioning system for receiving and holding the at least one portable container at a specific location on the support structure.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the support structure comprises a flow regulation mechanism for controlling an amount of bulk material released from the at least one portable container.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one mulling screw is oriented horizontally.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the mulling device comprises at least one other inlet in the housing, wherein the at least one other inlet is separate from the at least one inlet in the housing and separate from the opening in the housing, wherein the at least one inlet and the at least one other inlet are disposed at different longitudinal positions along the mulling device for introducing different additives.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one mulling screw has different patterns of threads or grooves at different longitudinal positions along the mulling device.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one mulling screw comprises two mulling screws with interlocking threads or grooves formed thereon.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the mulling device comprises a shrouded section at an outlet end thereof, wherein the shrouded section comprises one of the plurality of side walls of the housing at the outlet end of the mulling device, wherein a dimension of the one of the plurality of side walls is elongated in a direction parallel to an axis of the at least one mulling screw, and wherein the at least one mulling screw extends entirely through the one of the plurality of side walls.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the opening is in an upper surface of the housing and wherein the at least one inlet is in one of the plurality of side walls of the housing.

13. A method, comprising:
feeding bulk material from one or more portable containers directly into a mulling device disposed beneath a support structure, the one or more portable containers being held on the support structure, wherein the mulling device comprises a housing having at least a plurality of side walls, a bottom, a cavity formed therein, and an opening in the housing for receiving the bulk material into the mulling device;
pumping one or more additives via a liquid additive pump into the cavity of the mulling device, wherein the liquid additive pump has a pump outlet, wherein the one or more additives are pumped from the pump outlet through at least one inlet in the housing to the cavity;
introducing the one or more additives into the bulk material within the mulling device via the at least one inlet in the housing, wherein the at least one inlet is disposed beneath the support structure;
combining the one or more additives with the bulk material via at least one mulling screw of the mulling device, wherein the at least one mulling screw is disposed in the cavity of the housing; and
transferring the bulk material combined with the one or more additives to an outlet of the mulling device disposed at a longitudinal end of the housing via the at least one mulling screw.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising outputting the bulk material combined with the one or more additives directly from the outlet of the mulling device into a hopper of a blender.

15. The method of claim 13 , further comprising outputting the bulk material combined with the one or more additives directly from the outlet of the mulling device into a mixing compartment of a blender.

16. The method of claim 13 , further comprising combining the one or more additives with the bulk material via the mulling device to generate a treatment fluid, and outputting the treatment fluid from the outlet of the mulling device directly to a pump.

17. The method of claim 13 , wherein the one or more additives comprise at least one additive selected from the group consisting of: a coating substance, a wetting substance, a gelling agent, a diverter, a friction reducer, and a surfactant.

18. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
introducing a first additive into the bulk material via the at least one inlet in the housing;
combining the first additive with the bulk material at a first longitudinal location of the mulling device via the at least one mulling screw;
introducing a second additive into the bulk material via at least one other inlet in the housing, wherein the at least one other inlet is separate from the at least one inlet in the housing and separate from the opening in the housing, and wherein the at least one inlet and the at least one other inlet are disposed at different longitudinal positions along the mulling device; and
combining the second additive with the bulk material at a second longitudinal location of the mulling device via the at least one mulling screw.

19. The method of claim 13 , further comprising feeding the bulk material from the one or more portable containers into the mulling device via gravity.

20. The method of claim 13 , wherein the one or more additives comprise a resin.

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• Hunter Timothy Holiman
• Lewis Bryan John
• Surjaatmadja Jim Basuki

Classifications

• B01F23/60 Primary

  Mixing solids with solids · CPC title

• B01F35/2111

  Flow rate · CPC title

• B01F23/64 Primary

  using rotatable mixing elements at the lower end of discharge hoppers · CPC title

• B01F23/69

  Mixing systems, i.e. flow charts or diagrams; Arrangements, e.g. comprising controlling means · CPC title

• B01F2101/49

  Mixing drilled material or ingredients for well-drilling, earth-drilling or deep-drilling compositions with liquids to obtain slurries · CPC title