Hall Labs LLC

Sustainable Energy Solutions, Inc.

Newvistas Capital, LLC

Christopher Hoeger

Larry L Baxter

Kyler Stitt

Eric Mansfield

Nathan Davis

Aaron Sayre

Stephanie Burt

Skyler Chamberlain

Andrew Baxter

David Frankman

Jacom Chamberlain

Paul Terrien

Pascal Tessier

Dave Frankman

Devices, systems, and methods for separating solids from liquids are disclosed. A vessel includes an inlet, a carrier liquid outlet, a product outlet, a purifying section, and a heater. The inlet directs a slurry into the purifying section. The slurry comprises particles of a solid and a carrier liquid. The purifying section preferentially drives the particles of the solid towards a heating zone of the purifying section versus the carrier liquid. This displaces a first portion of the carrier liquid away from the heating zone of the purifying section. The heater heats the slurry. The carrier liquid outlet drives a majority of the carrier liquid out of the vessel. The product outlet is adjacent to the heating zone of the purifying section.

Vessel and method for solid-liquid separation

Methods and systems for separating a desublimatable compound from hydrocarbons is disclosed. A feed fluid stream, consisting of a hydrocarbon and a desublimatable compound, is passed into an upper chamber of a vessel. The feed fluid stream is cooled in the upper chamber, thereby desublimating a portion of the desublimatable compound out of the feed liquid stream to form a product gas stream and a desublimatable compound snow which is collected in the lower chamber of the vessel. A lower portion of the desublimatable compound snow is melted to form a liquid desublimatable compound stream such that an upper portion of the solid desublimatable compound snow remains as an insulative barrier between the upper chamber and the liquid desublimatable compound stream. The liquid desublimatable compound stream is removed at a rate that matches a production rate of the solid desublimatable compound snow, thereby maintaining the insulative barrier.

Methods and systems for separating compounds

A process for removing a foulant from a gas stream is disclosed. The gas stream, containing a foulant, is cooled across a first heat exchanger and a second heat exchanger, producing a solid foulant entrained in cryogenic liquid as a foulant slurry, and a foulant-depleted gas stream. The foulant-depleted gas stream is passed through a cryogenic turbine and a first separation vessel, producing a light gas stream and further solid foulant. The solid foulants are recovered by a combination of pressurization, melting, and distillation to produce a liquid foulant product. Heat is recovered from the various streams in the various heat exchangers and the melter.

Method for removing a foulant from a gas stream without external refrigeration

A process for removing a foulant from a gas stream. The gas stream is cooled in a series of heat exchangers, causing a portion of the foulant to desublimate and become entrained in a cryogenic liquid. This foulant slurry stream is pressurized, cooled, and separated into a pressurized foulant solid stream and the cryogenic liquid stream. The pressurized foulant solid stream is melted to produce a liquid foulant stream. Heat exchange processes, both internal and external, are provided that close the heat balance of the process. In this manner, the foulant is removed from the gas stream.

Method for removing a foulant from a gas stream with minimal external refrigeration

In a first aspect, the disclosure provides a method for removing a component from a gas stream. A carrier gas stream is cooled by direct contact with a dehydrating solution stream. The dehydrating solution stream removes a portion of water present in the carrier gas stream and produces a dry gas stream and a wet solution stream. A portion of the component is removed from the dry gas stream by direct contact with a cold contact liquid stream. A depleted gas stream and a slurry stream are produced. Removing the portion of the component may include desublimating, freezing, condensing, depositing, or a combination thereof of the portion of the component out of the dry gas stream as a solid product. The slurry stream may include the solid product and a contact liquid. The solid product is separated from the contact liquid, producing a substantially pure solid product stream and the cold contact liquid stream.

Component removal from a gas stream

A process to prevent fouling using a desublimating heat exchanger is disclosed. An outlet stream from the desublimating heat exchanger may be split into a plurality of parallel streams. The parallel streams may be sent through a plurality of discrete unit operations, and the unit operations may change the temperature of at least one of the parallel streams. Parallel streams of differing temperature may emerge from the unit operations. The parallel streams which are of a similar temperature may be mixed to form a warm stream and a cool stream. The warm stream and the cool stream may be sent to a mixing chamber. A mixed stream of substantially uniform temperature may emerge from the mixing chamber, and the mixed stream may be recycled back to the desublimating heat exchanger. The mixing chamber may be separate from the desublimating heat exchanger, or the parallel streams of differing temperature may be mixed in the desublimating heat exchanger.

System with a direct contact desublimating heat exchanger and temperature regulation

A device and process for removing vapors from a gas is disclosed. A tower is provided. Sub-cooled pellets are distributed by the solids distributor across a horizontal cross-section of the tower. A process gas, comprising a product vapor, passes through the gas inlet. The product vapor and the sub-cooled pellets comprise the same material. The product vapor and the sub-cooled pellets agglomerate as the product vapor desublimates onto the sub-cooled pellets, forming product pellets and a vapor-depleted gas. A crushing device, a screening device, and a solids heat exchanger are provided. A portion of the product pellets are recycled as sub-cooled pellets to the solids distributor by crushing and screening the portion of the product pellets to the size distribution of the sub-cooled pellets and cooling the portion of the product pellets to produce the sub-cooled pellets.

Hail tower for gas-vapor separations

A process for forming a solid product or products is disclosed. The process is provided with n desublimating exchangers. An exchanger Ebeing associated with a first exchanger and an exchanger En being associated with an nth exchanger, n representing the number of exchangers. The n exchangers comprise at least one direct-contact exchanger comprising a contact fluid. A process fluid is passed through the n exchangers in order from Ethrough En. The process fluid comprises a product component or components. The solid product or products form from the product component or components in the plurality of exchangers by desublimation. The solid product or products are separated from the process fluid. In this manner, a solid product or products is formed.

Method for separating components using solids producing multi-stage direct and indirect-contact exchange

A method for removing carbon dioxide from a carrier liquid using a heat exchanger. A carrier liquid, containing carbon dioxide, is heated through the heat exchanger, causing the carbon dioxide to vaporize. The carrier liquid and the carbon dioxide gas pass to a liquid removal vessel. The carrier liquid is removed and the carbon dioxide gas is compressed. The compressed carbon dioxide gas is provided to the heat exchanger, cooling the carbon dioxide gas opposite the carrier liquid, producing a carbon dioxide liquid.

Method for removal of carbon dioxide from a carrier liquid

A process for separating a mixture of components is disclosed. A liquid mixture is provided to a separation vessel substantially near a temperature at which a product component freezes. The liquid mixture comprises the product component and a carrier component. The product component and the carrier component are essentially immiscible substantially near the temperature. The liquid mixture is separated into two or more phases, the two or more phases comprising a product component-rich liquid phase and a product component-depleted liquid phase. In this manner, a mixture of components is separated.

Process for component separation utilizing miscibility depression near a freezing point

A method for semi-continuous operation of a heat exchange process that alternates between two heat exchangers is disclosed. The method comprises, first, providing a contact liquid to a first heat exchanger while the second heat exchanger is on standby. The contact liquid contains a dissolved gas, an entrained gas, or residual small particles that foul the first heat exchanger by condensing or depositing as a foulant onto the first heat exchanger, restricting free flow of the contact liquid. Second, detecting a pressure drop across the first heat exchanger. Third, switching flows of the coolant from the first to the second heat exchanger. Fourth, removing the foulant from the now standby first heat exchanger by providing heat to the heat exchanger, passing a non-reactive gas through the heat exchanger, or a combination thereof. In this manner, the heat exchange process operates semi-continuously.

Method for semi-continuous heat exchange operations by alternating between heat exchangers

Condensable vapors such as carbon dioxide are separated from light gases in a process stream. The systems and methods employ a circulating fluidized particle bed cooled by an out-bed heat exchanger to desublimate the solid form of condensable vapors from the process stream. Gas and solids may be sorted in a separator, and the solids may then be subcooled in a heat exchanger. The condensable vapors may be condensed on the bed particles or in the heat exchanger while the light gases from the process stream, which are not condensed, form a separated light-gas stream.

Circulating fluidized bed connected to a desublimating heat exchanger

A method for separating components from a fluid is disclosed. A cooling element is provided and is disposed in contact with a distal side of one or more thermally-conductive surfaces. One or more resistive heating elements are provided and are disposed in contact with or embedded in a proximal side of the one or more thermally-conductive surfaces. A fluid comprising one or more secondary components is provided. The fluid is passed across the one or more thermally conductive surfaces, the one or more secondary components freezing, crystallizing, desublimating, depositing, condensing, or combinations thereof, out of the fluid. The one or more resistive heating elements engage such that the one or more solid secondary components detach and pass out the solids outlet. The one or more resistive heating elements disengage, restarting production of the one or more solid secondary components.

Separation of components from a fluid by solids production

A method for removal of a foulant from a carrier gas is disclosed. A solids conveyance device that spans a vessel and a solids coolant system are provided. A cold solid foulant is provided to the solid inlet of the vessel. The carrier gas containing the foulant is provided to the carrier gas inlet of the vessel. The foulant condenses or desublimates onto the recycled solid foulant, forming a foulant-depleted carrier gas and a solid foulant product. The solids conveyance device passes the solid foulant product out of the vessel. The foulant-depleted carrier gas leaves the vessel. The solid foulant product is split into a final solid foulant product and a recycled solid foulant. The recycled solid foulant is cooled through the coolant system to produce the cold solid foulant. In this manner, the foulant is removed from the carrier gas.

Method for removal of a foulant from a carrier gas in a single vessel using recycled cold solids

An air-sparged hydrocyclone for separating a vapor from a carrier gas is disclosed. The cyclone comprises a porous sparger covered by an outer gas plenum. A cryogenic liquid is injected to a tangential feed inlet at a velocity that induces a tangential flow and a cyclone vortex in the air-sparged hydrocyclone. The carrier gas is injected into the cyclone through the porous sparger. The vapor dissolves, condenses, desublimates, or a combination thereof, forming a vapor-depleted carrier gas and a vapor-enriched cryogenic liquid. The vapor-depleted carrier gas is drawn through a vortex finder and the vapor-enriched cryogenic liquid is drawn through an apex nozzle outlet. In this manner, the vapor is removed from the carrier gas.

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Provo, UT, United States of America

Christopher Hoeger