Texaco Inc.

Other

Texaco Development Corporation

George N Richter

Charles P Marion

William B Crouch

Edward T Child

Albert Brent

Blake Reynolds

Lawrence E Estabrook

William L Slater

John D Winter

Byron Von Klock

Donald Duane Brooker

Michael Edward Fahrion

John Saunders Stevenson

Clyde E Potter

Robert M Suggitt

Motasimur R Khan

Warren G Schlinger

Christine C Albert

Roger M Dille

William N Gilmer

Jerrold S Kassman

Roy D Roberts

Harold A Rhodes

David Charles Crikelair

Lisa Marie Kocsis

Harry Clarence Wiese

Rinaldo Ibbarola Salvaleon

James F Elliott

Jean-Georges P Rohner

A corrosion sensor for sensing corrosion in a pipeline. The sensor includes a housing and a device for joining the housing to a wall of an enclosure that receives a fluid. The sensor also includes a rupture member which extends across a portion of the housing to define a sealed chamber in the housing. The rupture member, upon rupture, provides an opening to the sealed chamber. The rupture member is formed of a material and thickness such that the rupture member will fail from corrosion before the enclosure wall will fail from corrosion. The rupture member is arranged such that fluid received in the enclosure can contact the rupture member. The sensor also includes a sensory device which is connected to the housing at the sealed chamber to signal a rupture condition of the rupture member when the sealed chamber opens.

Corrosion monitoring system

The high intracellular water content contained within the cell walls of the bacterial cells of a dewatered biosludge is reduced by removing the intracellular water in a denaturing operation. This operation comprises heating the biosludge at a temperature sufficient to weaken the bacterial cell walls. The weakened cell walls are then exposed to a reduced pressure sufficient to form vapor within the cell and to thus rupture the weakened cell walls and thereby release the intracellular water in the form of a hot aqueous vapor and/or released intracellular water. The water-reduced concentrated biosludge can then serve as a fuel source in a partial oxidation reaction for the production of synthesis gas.

Gasification of biosludge

A corrosion sensor ( ) for sensing corrosion includes a housing ( ) and a device ( ) for jointing the housing ( ) to a wall of a pipeline ( ) that receives a fluid ( ). The sensor ( ) also includes a rupture member ( ) which extends across a portion of the housing ( ) to define a seal chamber ( ) in the housing ( ). The rupture member ( ), upon rupture, provides an opening to the sealed chamber ( ). The rupture member ( ) is formed of a material and thickness such that the rupture member ( ) will fail from corrosion before the enclosure wall will fail from corrosion. The sensor also includes a sensory device ( ) which is connected to the housing ( ) at the sealed chamber ( ) to signal a rupture condition.

A pumpable slurry of shredded scrap solid carbonaceous plastic-containing material that contains associated inorganic matter in admixture with a comminuted aluminosilicate-containing material having noncombustible constituents is reacted by partial oxidation to produce synthesis gas, reducing gas, or fuel gas. The noncombustible constituents in the aluminosilicate-containing material captures the inorganic matter in the scrap solid carbonaceous plastic-containing material while in the reducing atmosphere of the gasifier to produce nontoxic, nonleachable slag. The slurrying medium is water, liquid hydrocarbonaceous fuel, or mixtures thereof. Scrap plastics may be disposed of by the subject process without polluting the nation's environment.

Environmentally acceptable process for disposing of scrap plastic

A method is disclosed for recovering condensed solidified volatile metals from the slag that exits the reactor section of a partial oxidation reactor. In a partial oxidation reactor, condensed solidified volatile metals become adsorbed to the surface of the slag particles and other particulate matter associated with the gasification reaction, such as ash and soot. These particulate materials can be removed and recovered. Finely divided slag particles can be separated and contacted with a mineral acid to dissolve the adsorbed condensed volatile metals. An acid liquor results which contains dissolved volatile metal salts of the acid. The acid liquor containing the dissolved volatile metal acid salts is then electrolyzed to reduce the dissolved volatile metal acid salts to the corresponding elemental metal for recovery.

Method of removing volatile metals from slag using an acid wash

Asbestos-containing hazardous waste materials are known causes of cancer and other serious diseases. By the subject process, asbestos-containing wastes are rendered harmless by altering the physical form of the fibers, by (i) melting the asbestos, and by (ii) incorporating the molten asbestos into the slag phase produced by the partial oxidation of ash-containing liquid hydrocarbonaceous fuel and/or solid carbonaceous fuel. Further, gaseous mixtures comprising H.sub.2 +CO e.g. synthesis gas, reducing gas, or fuel gas, are simultaneously produced.

Environmentally safe method for disposing of asbestos containing

This process relates to the upgrading of at least one stream of condensate water by removing water soluble gaseous impurities from the group consisting of HCN, COS, HCOOH, and mixtures thereof as produced in a process for the production of synthesis gas by the partial oxidation of solid carbonaceous fuel and/or liquid hydrocarbonaceous fuel. In the process, at least one internally produced condensate stream of water containing the aforesaid water soluble gaseous impurities is mixed with and vaporized into a stream of synthesis gas. The vaporized mixture is then introduced into at least one bed of catalyst where the gaseous impurities are removed by hydrolysis. The upgraded water stream is then recycled in the process for use in cooling and/or scrubbing the hot raw effluent gas stream from a partial oxidation gas generator. The condensate water streams are obtained by (i) cooling a portion of the cooled and scrubbed effluent stream of synthesis gas to below the dew point temperature; and/or (ii) cooling and flashing a portion of the quench water used to quench cool and clean the hot raw effluent stream of synthesis gas thereby producing a gaseous mixture comprising H.sub.2 O, HCN, COS, HCOOH, and mixtures thereof and cooling said gaseous mixture to condense out and separate condensed water containing said water soluble gaseous impurities.

Process for upgrading water used in cooling and cleaning of raw

A method is provided for turning down from design conditions or below the output of raw product gas from a free-flow partial oxidation gas generator, or when operating below design conditions the output of raw product gas from the gas generator may be turned up while maintaining substantially constant the efficiency of the gas generation, or conversion of the fuel to gas, and the quality of the gas produced. The flow rates of the feedstreams to the burner are adjusted down or up a predetermined amount for each of the feedstreams to the burner to obtain a specified output of raw product gas while maintaining substantially constant in the reaction zone the levels of O/C atomic ratio and the H.sub.2 O/fuel weight ratio. Further, a pressure adjustment in the system is made which produces a corresponding adjustment to the pressure in the gas generator. The adjusted pressure is a direct function of the adjusted flow rate for the adjusted fuel or oxidant feedstream.

Process for operating a gas generator

A control system for a partial oxidation process for continuously producing synthesis gas, fuel gas or reducing gas in which process one fuel is replaced by a different fuel without shutting down or depressurizing the gas generator. This multifuel process is not tied to one particular fuel and reacts slurries of solid carbonaceous fuel and/or liquid or gaseous hydrocarbonaceous fuels. Problems of fuel availability are reduced due to the wide selection of fuels that are suitable for the subject process. A two-section burner having a high turndown feature is employed that comprises a central conduit; a central bunch of tubes positioned in said central conduit; an outer conduit coaxial with said central conduit and forming an annular passage therewith; and an annular bunch of tubes positioned in said annular passage. The downstream ends of said central and/or annular bunches of tubes are respectively retracted upstream from the burner face a distance of about 0 to 12 i.e. 3 to 10 times the minimum diameter of the central exit orifice and the minimum width of the annular exit orifice. A control system is provided for switching the type of reactant fuel streams flowing through either one or both sections of the burner. The flow rates of the oxidant, fuel, and temperature moderator streams may also be varied in either one or both sections of the burner, thereby effecting a rapid turndown or turnup of the burner and a change in the production of the effluent gas.

Partial oxidation system

A partial oxidation control system for continuously producing synthesis gas, fuel gas or reducing gas in which one process fuel is replaced by a different fuel without shutting down or depressurizing the gas generator. Suitable burners for introducing the feedstreams into the gas generator comprise a central conduit means radially spaced from a concentric coaxial outer conduit having a downstream exit nozzle, and providing a coaxial annular passage means therebetween. The central conduit means may be retracted upstream from the burner face a distance of about 0 to 12 and preferably 3 to 10 times the minimum diameter of the central exit orifice. A premix zone is preferably provided comprising one or more, say 2 to 5 coaxial chambers in series where substantial mixing of the reactant streams and optionally volatilization of the slurry medium takes place. A control system is provided for switching the type of reactant fuel stream flowing through either the central conduit means or the annular passage means of the burner and adjusting the flow rates of the reactant stream of free-oxygen containing gas with or without mixture with a temperature moderator and if necessary to introduce supplemental H.sub.2 O into the reaction zone to maintain the temperature and weight ratio H.sub.2 O/fuel in the reaction zone at design conditions for the partial oxidation reaction without stopping production of the product gas.

A continuous process for preventing the build-up of metals from the hydrocarbonaceous fuel feed in a partial oxidation system in which about 80-100 wt. % of the carbon-soot produced is recycled to the gas generator. By the subject process a significantly large portion of the metals and metal compounds i.e. ash in the soot-water feed stream to the decanter become concentrated in the grey water that separates out in the decanter in the carbon recovery section. The concentration of ash suspended in the grey water may be then easily reduced in a solids-liquid separator with or without the addition of a flocculant and prior to recycling a portion of the grey water to the gas quench tank and/or gas scrubber. Further, the ash suspended in the carbon-soot-liquid hydrocarbonaceous fuel stream from the bottom of the liquid organic extractant still may be optionally reduced in another solids-liquid separator prior to recycling a portion of said stream to the gas generator as part of the hydrocarbonaceous reactant fuel feed.

Partial oxidation process

In a high pressure process for the production of synthesis gas from ash-containing fuels where the ash is collected in water in a settling zone below the gasification chamber, bridging by the slag in the narrower sections of the settling zone is avoided by passing a gas upwardly through the settling zone water.

Production of synthesis gas

A burner and partial oxidation process for producing synthesis gas, fuel gas or reducing gas from slurries of solid carbonaceous fuel and/or liquid or gaseous hydrocarbon fuel. The burner has a high turndown feature and comprises a central conduit; a central bunch of parallel tubes that extend longitudinally through said central conduit; an outer conduit coaxial with said central conduit and forming an annular passage therewith; and an annular bunch of parallel tubes that extend longitudinally through said annular passage; and wherein the downstream ends of said central and annular bunches of parallel tubes are respectively retracted upstream from the burner face a distance of about 0 to 12 i.e. 3 to 10 times the minimum diameter of the central exit orifice and the minimum width of the annular exit orifice. Three ranges of flow through the burner may be obtained by using one or both bunches of tubes and their surrounding conduits. Throughput levels may be rapidly changed--up and down--without sacrificing stable operation. A control system is presented for varying the flow rates of the oxidant and fuel streams and/or for switching the reactant streams through one or both sections of the subject burner, thereby effecting a rapid turndown of the burner and in the production of the effluent gas.

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San Marino, CA, United States of America

George N Richter