Pumping of liquid cryogen from a storage tank

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12405594-B2
Application number	US-202117465103-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 2, 2021
Priority date	Sep 2, 2021
Publication date	Sep 2, 2025
Grant date	Sep 2, 2025

Abstract

A liquid cryogen stored in a liquid cryogen space of a closed insulated cryogenic storage vessel is subcooled by allowing it to enter into a conduit disposed in the liquid cryogen space where it is expanded by a pressure reducer in the conduit, thereby producing a cooled biphasic mixture of the cryogen in liquid and vaporized forms. The cooled biphasic mixture has a temperature lower than that of the liquid cryogen in the liquid cryogen space. Heat is transferred across the conduit from the liquid cryogen in the liquid cryogen space to the cooled biphasic mixture.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A liquid cryogen storage apparatus having subcooling capability, comprising:
a closed insulated cryogenic storage vessel adapted and configured to store cryogenic liquids, the vessel comprising a liquid cryogen outlet disposed in a wall thereof and a vaporized liquid cryogen outlet disposed in a wall thereof, wherein when the vessel is partially filled with a liquid cryogen, an interior of the vessel is divided into a liquid cryogen space and an ullage above the liquid cryogen space; and
a hollow metal conduit at least partly disposed within the vessel that has an open first end disposed within the liquid cryogen space and a second end that is connected to or extends through the vaporized liquid cryogen outlet, wherein:
a pressure reducer is disposed either within the conduit or at the first end that is adapted and configured to flash the liquid cryogen entering into the conduit into a biphasic mixture of liquid cryogen and vaporized liquid cryogen;
when the vessel is partially filled with a liquid cryogen, an exterior surface of the conduit is in direct contact with the liquid cryogen; and
the conduit is adapted and configured to transfer heat to the biphasic mixture from the liquid cryogen in the liquid cryogen space and vaporize at least some of the liquid cryogen in the biphasic mixture,
wherein the pressure reducer is an automatically controlled flow rate control valve or pressure control valve and the apparatus further comprises a programmable logic controller or distributed control system coded with PID control logic that is adapted and configured to control operation of the pressure reducer,
a differential pressure sensor is adapted and configured to measure a differential pressure between a pressure in the conduit at a position adjacent to, and downstream of, the pressure reducer and a pressure in the conduit at a position within the vessel above a surface of the liquid cryogen or adjacent or at the second end, and the pressure reducer is controlled by the programmable logic controller or distributed control system based upon the measured differential pressure.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the pressure reducer is a fixed orifice or nozzle having a fixed open cross-sectional surface area.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the pressure reducer is a manually adjustable valve or reducer.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the pressure reducer is an automatically controlled flow rate control valve or pressure control valve and the apparatus further comprises a programmable logic controller or distributed control system coded with PID control logic that is adapted and configured to control operation of the pressure reducer.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising a phase separator disposed in the conduit above a surface of the liquid cryogen space upstream and a level sensor adapted and configured to measure a level of liquid cryogen in the phase separator, wherein the pressure reducer is controlled by the programmable logic controller or distributed control system based upon the measured liquid level.

6. A liquid cryogen storage apparatus having subcooling capability, comprising:
a closed insulated cryogenic storage vessel adapted and configured to store cryogenic liquids, the vessel comprising a liquid cryogen outlet disposed in a wall thereof and a vaporized liquid cryogen outlet disposed in a wall thereof, wherein when the vessel is partially filled with a liquid cryogen, an interior of the vessel is divided into a liquid cryogen space and an ullage above the liquid cryogen space; and
a hollow metal conduit at least partly disposed within the vessel that has an open first end disposed within the liquid cryogen space and a second end that is connected to or extends through the vaporized liquid cryogen outlet, wherein;
a pressure reducer is disposed either within the conduit or at the first end that is adapted and configured to flash the liquid cryogen entering into the conduit into a biphasic mixture of liquid cryogen and vaporized liquid cryogen,
when the vessel is partially filled with a liquid cryogen, an exterior surface of the conduit is in direct contact with the liquid cryogen; and
the conduit is adapted and configured to transfer heat to the biphasic mixture from the liquid cryogen in the liquid cryogen space and vaporize at least some of the liquid cryogen in the biphasic mixture,
wherein the pressure reducer is an automatically controlled flow rate control valve or pressure control valve and the apparatus further comprises a programmable logic controller or distributed control system coded with PID control logic that is adapted and configured to control operation of the pressure reducer,

a pressure sensor that is adapted and configured to measure a pressure of the vaporized liquid cryogen in the conduit between a position in between a location above a level of the liquid cryogen space within the vessel and a position at or adjacent to the second end, wherein the pressure reducer is controlled by the programmable logic controller or distributed control system based upon the measured pressure.

7. The apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising a temperature sensor adapted and configured to measure a temperature of the vaporized liquid cryogen within the conduit or exiting the conduit, wherein the pressure reducer is controlled by the programmable logic controller or distributed control system based upon the measured temperature.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said vessel adapted and configured to store liquid hydrogen.

9. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein a portion of the conduit between the first and second ends extends into a vacuum space between adjacent walls of the vessel and the pressure reducer is disposed in the portion of the conduit that extends into the annular vacuum space.

10. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein a portion of the conduit between the first and second ends extends out of the vessel and the pressure reducer is disposed in the portion of the conduit that extends out of the vessel.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a low pressure buffer container in downstream fluid communication with the conduit, the low pressure buffer container having a vaporized liquid cryogen inlet that is adapted and configured to receive the vaporized liquid cryogen from the second end and an end-use outlet and a feed line connected thereto that has a terminal end that is adapted and configured to be connected to an end-use.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising a pressure sensor that is adapted and configured to measure a pressure of the vaporized liquid cryogen at a location between a position in the conduit at a location within the vessel above a level of the liquid cryogen space and a position at or adjacent to the terminal end, wherein the pressure reducer is controlled by the programmable logic controller or distributed control system based upon the measured pressure.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising a temperature sensor that is adapted and configured to measure a temperature of the vaporized liquid cryogen at a location between a position in the conduit at a location within the vessel above a level of the liquid cryogen space and a position at or adjacent to the terminal end, wherein the pressure reducer is controlled by the programmable logic controller or distributed control system based upon the measured temperature.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a safety vent comprising a pressure relief valve disposed in a safety vent tube that is in fluid communication with a safety vent outlet disposed in a

Assignees

• Air Liquide

Inventors

• Light Joshua

Classifications

• Y02E60/34

  Hydrogen distribution · CPC title

• G05B2219/49215

  Regulate temperature of coolant · CPC title

• F25J3/02

  by rectification, i.e. by continuous interchange of heat and material between a vapour stream and a liquid stream (F25J3/08 takes precedence {; purification of hydrocarbons in general C07C7/00}) · CPC title

• F17C2223/0161

  cryogenic, e.g. LNG, GNL, PLNG · CPC title

• F17C2221/012

  Hydrogen · CPC title