Chicago Bridge & Iron Company

James A Nail

Gerald E Engdahl

Vincent F Allo

Matloob Husain

A method and apparatus for cooling an aqueous liquid at ground level, by a refrigeration system which rejects heat, to produce an aqueous ice slurry of ice crystals in the aqueous liquid; and (A) feeding some of the aqueous ice slurry from ground level to a heat exchanger in a mine chamber substantially below ground level to cool air or water in the mine chamber by heat exchange with the slurry thereby producing warm aqueous liquid from the slurry; withdrawing the warm aqueous liquid from the mine chamber, returning it to ground level and then cooling the aqueous liquid by the refrigeration system to again convert it to an aqueous ice slurry; and recycling the slurry to the mine chamber; and (B) feeding some of the aqueous ice slurry produced at ground level to an ice washer and washing the ice; melting the washed ice to produce potable water at ground level; and feeding the potable water to hydraulic powered machinery in the mine chamber and using the hydrostatic energy of the water to power the machinery.

Integrated mine cooling and water conditioning system

Freeze concentrating an aqueous liquid mixture by feeding an aqueous liquid mixture to a freeze exchanger for indirect cooling by heat exchange to a cold fluid to form ice crystals in the liquid mixture; feeding the liquid mixture containing ice crystals from the freeze exchanger to the lower internal space of a vessel containing said aqueous liquid mixture whereby the ice floats to the top interior of the vessel; removing ice from the top interior of the vessel, washing the ice with water and heating the washed ice to produce potable water; removing aqueous liquid mixture from the vessel and recycling it to the freeze exchanger; and repeating the method in a continuous operation.

Freeze concentration apparatus and method

A falling film freeze exchanger having a plurality of spaced apart vertical freeze tubes secured in, and penetrating, an upper and a lower tube sheet; a shell around the tube sheets and connected thereto; a header surrounding and joined to the upper part of the shell and extending above the top tube sheet and laterally outwardly from the shell; means to deliver a liquid process feed stream into the header; and a layer of insulation surrounding that part of the shell surrounded by the header.

Falling film freeze exchanger

A falling film freeze exchanger having a plurality of spaced apart vertical freeze tubes secured in, and penetrating, an upper and a lower tube sheet; a cover above the upper tube sheet; a shell around the tube sheets and connected thereto, with said cover supported by the shell; the upper ends of the freeze tubes desirably extending above the upper tube sheet and, optionally, the lower ends of the freeze tubes not being enclosed by the shell; a conduit to deliver a liquid feed stream into a feed box between the upper tube sheet and the cover; a conduit to deliver a cooling fluid around the tubes inside of the shell between the upper and lower tube sheets; and, a conduit to remove cooling fluid therefrom. A falling film freeze exchanger comprising a vessel having a top, bottom and side wall enclosing a liquid feed box in the bottom portion, and a cooling fluid space in the top portion separated by a tube sheet; a plurality of freeze tubes, supported by the tube sheet, extending downwardly in the feed box and out through holes larger than the freeze tubes in the vessel bottom; a conduit to deliver a liquid feed stream into the feed box; a conduit to deliver a cooling fluid into the cooling fluid space; and, a conduit to remove cooling fluid therefrom.

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Carol Stream, IL, United States of America

James A Nail