Praxair Technology, Inc.

Magnetic Solutions (holdings) Limited

Tel Magnetic Solutions Limited

Richard John Jibb

Henry Edward Howard

John Henri Royal

Michael James Lockett

John Fredric Billingham

Maulik R Shelat

Vijayaraghavan Srinivasan Chakravarthy

Robert Leroy Baker

Wevone C Hobbs

Peter Ferris

Kevin McMahon

Noel O'Shaughnessy

Edward Duffy

Jeffrey Charles Goodband

Dante Patrick Bonaquist

Minish Mahendra Shah

Neil Mark Prosser

David R Parsnick

Norman Henry White

Kirk Frederick Larson

Bryce Mark Rampersad

Todd Alan Skare

Timothy Mark Aaron

Steve Allan Schweichler

Susan Renee Kelley

Michael T Marshall

Robert W Fix

Lyda Zambrano

David Ross Parsnick

Wevone Hobbs

Steven Allan Schweichler

Michael J Lockhett

Kevin Mcmahon

Noel O'SHAUGHNESSY

An arrangement of insulation within a container to prevent heat leakage from the ambient to an apparatus located within the container that operates at a cryogenic temperature. The arrangement of insulation includes bulk insulation filling the container and an insulation layer that is located within the container, between the apparatus and the container. The insulation layer as opposed to the bulk insulation has a lower thermal conductivity. An exterior region of the apparatus is situated closer to an opposite container wall region of the container than remaining exterior regions of the apparatus. The insulation layer is sized to only insulate the exterior region of the apparatus from heat leakage from the opposite container wall region. The insulation layer can be formed of an aerogel.

Insulation arrangement

A compressed air stream is cooled to a temperature suitable for its rectification within a lower pressure heat exchanger and a boosted pressure air stream is liquefied or converted to a dense phase fluid within a higher pressure heat exchanger in order to vaporize pumped liquid products. Thermal balancing within the plant is effectuated with the use of waste nitrogen streams that are introduced into the higher and lower pressure heat exchangers. The heat exchangers are configured such that the flow area for the subsidiary waste nitrogen stream within the higher pressure heat exchanger is less than that would otherwise be required so that the subsidiary waste nitrogen streams were subjected to equal pressure drops in the higher and lower pressure heat exchangers. This allows the higher pressure heat exchanger be fabricated with a reduced height and therefore a decrease in fabrication costs.

Air separation method and apparatus

Separation method and apparatus for separating a gaseous mixture, for example, air, in a cryogenic rectification plant in which a compressed stream is divided into subsidiary streams that are extracted from a main heat exchanger of the plant at higher and lower temperatures. The two streams are then combined and expanded in a turboexpander to generate refrigeration for the plant. The flow rates of the two streams are adjusted to control inlet temperature of a turboexpander supplying plant refrigeration and to minimize potential deviation of the turboexpander exhaust from a saturated vapor state. Control of the expansion ratio can advantageously be applied to allow variable liquid production from the rectification plant.

Separation method and apparatus

A method and apparatus for producing an oxygen product in which air is separated in an installation including air separation units having higher and lower pressure columns. A pumped liquid stream generated within the installation, that can be a pumped liquid oxygen stream, is warmed within a main heat exchanger through indirect heat exchange with a compressed air stream to produce a liquid air stream. An impure oxygen stream is rectified within an auxiliary column to produce an oxygen containing stream that is introduced into the lower pressure column of each of the air separation units and intermediate liquid streams, composed of the liquid air stream or another air-like stream, reflux the lower pressure columns and the auxiliary column and optionally the higher pressure column of each of the air separation units.

Oxygen production method and apparatus

The present invention relates to an air separation apparatus and method in which a pumped liquid oxygen stream is heated within a heat exchanger through indirect heat exchange with compressed air to produce an oxygen product. The liquid oxygen stream is pressurized in a range above about 55 bar(a) and no greater than about 150 bar(a) and is a supercritical fluid after having been heated within the heat exchanger. The air is compressed to an air pressure that is a function of the oxygen pressure that will result in a minimum power being expended in the compression of the air. The heat exchanger can be a brazed fin heat exchanger fabricated from aluminum in which the fins located in heat exchange passages have an undulating configuration to increase the flow path length and induce flow separation and thereby increase the heat transfer coefficient within the heat exchanger.

Air separation apparatus and method

A multistage compressor installation in which compression stages utilizing centrifugal compressors are independently driven by drivers that can be electric motors configured to be controlled by a speed controller. Intercoolers are located between stages to remove the heat of compression and the stages are connected such that outlets are located opposite to inlets of the compressors and conduits connecting the intercoolers to the stages are in an in-line relationship to inhibit the formation of pressure drops between stages. The conduits connecting the stages incorporate tapered transition sections configured such that flow velocity gradually decreases towards the intercooler and gradually increases from the intercooler to the next succeeding compression stage to further inhibit pressure drops.

Multistage compressor installation

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for producing a pressurized product stream product by cryogenic rectification. A main heat exchanger, used in the cryogenic rectification, warms a pumped product stream composed of oxygen-rich or nitrogen-rich liquid and thereby produces the pressurized product stream. Layers of the main heat exchanger are designed such that a reduction in the heat transfer area provided within the main heat exchanger for warming the pumped product stream occurs at a location at which the temperature of the pumped product stream exceeds either the critical or a dew point temperature of such stream. The reduction in heat transfer area leaves regions of the layers able to heat or cool another stream that is used in connection with the cryogenic rectification. Such other stream can be a refrigerant stream that allows the introduction of additional refrigeration to increase production of liquid products.

Method and apparatus for pressurized product production

A plate-fin heat exchanger having a plurality of layers for indirectly exchanging heat between two or more fluids. The heat exchanger is provided with two sections and inlets and outlets to the sections to cause streams of the fluids to flow within the two sections parallel to the length of the heat exchanger between central locations and the ends of the heat exchanger. In such manner, the cross-sectional flow area of such a heat exchanger is greater than the heat exchanger in which the flow is from one end to the other end of the heat exchanger. This increase in cross-sectional flow area reduces the pressure drop within the heat exchanger.

Plate-fin heat exchanger

Method and apparatus of separating an oxygen and nitrogen containing feed stream, for example, air, in higher and lower pressure columns. A crude liquid oxygen stream condenses nitrogen vapor in the higher pressure column for reflux purposes and results in the partial vaporization of the crude liquid oxygen stream to produce vapor and liquid fractions thereof. The liquid fraction condenses a lower pressure part of the feed stream and results in the liquid fraction being at least partially vaporized. Both the vapor fraction of the crude liquid oxygen stream and the liquid fraction after having been at least partially vaporized are introduced into the lower pressure column. Boil-up is produced within a bottom region of the lower pressure column by partially vaporizing an oxygen-rich liquid column bottoms against condensing a higher pressure part of the feed stream and then utilizing vapor or residual liquid as an oxygen product.

Method and apparatus for separating air

A heat exchange system and processes for a magnetic annealing tool is provided. The system includes a process chamber housing workpieces to be processed; an element chamber partly surrounding the periphery of the process chamber, at least one means for drawing a vacuum in fluid communication with the process chamber and separately with the element chamber in order to apply a vacuum to either or both of the process and element chamber so as to promote radiation heating of the workpieces; at least one supply of fluid in communication with the process chamber and separately with the element chamber to supply a cooling gas so as to promote conductive cooling of the workpieces; a cooling chamber disposed to surround the element chamber; and means for generating a magnetic field disposed on the outer periphery of the cooling chamber.

Magnetic annealing tool heat exchange system and processes

Method of assembling a vacuum insulated piping run for conducting a cryogenic fluid in which piping sections are produced in a first location and then assembled in a second location into a piping run. Each of the piping sections incorporates an outer cylindrical casing and an inner pipe for transport of the cryogenic fluid to form an inner annular region for containing insulation that can be radiation shield insulation and aerogel blankets. The piping sections are joined by welding the ends of the inner pipes together and then joining the outer cylindrical casing by a shell-like section. Points of connections are tested by vacuum testing techniques as each of the connections is made. Thereafter, the annular region is purged with a condensable gas such as carbon dioxide and subjected to a subatmospheric pressure.

Vacuum insulated piping assembly method

A plate-fin heat exchanger having alternating layers for exchanging heat between fluids to be warmed against fluids to be cooled. One or both of the layers is subdivided into flow passages to allow for the flow of two or more fluids flowing through one of the layers to engage in indirect heat transfer with one or more fluids flowing through another adjacent layer. The flow through the heat exchanger is parallel to the width of the heat exchanger. The first and second layers provide a greater cross-sectional flow area for each of the fluids than otherwise would have been provided had the fluids flow been parallel to the length of the heat exchanger with layers thereof dedicated to the flow of each of the fluids.

Plate-fin heat exchanger having application to air separation

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Amherst, NY, United States of America

Richard John Jibb