Onsite Technology LLC

Enterprise Products Company

Robin M Pate

James O Nye

David R Keck

John Monnig

Jack Blonquist

Gerardo Gamboa

An apparatus for separating vaporous mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and emulsifier derived from the remediation of wellbore fluid, such as a mud containing solid particulate material in which the vaporous mixture is quenched with a hydrocarbon stream which is at a temperature above the boiling point of water and below the boiling point of the hydrocarbons in the vaporous stream. Most of the hydrocarbons in the vaporous stream and substantially all of the emulsifier are condensed into the hydrocarbon quench to form an oil stream. The water is recovered from the hydrocarbon quench as a vaporous stream and quenched with water. The quenched water and any residual heavier hydrocarbons are separated by phase separation.

Separation of hydrocarbons/water/emulsifier mixtures

An apparatus is provided which is a trailer mounted rotating drum having an auger feed, an air tight seal, chain, and spiral and lateral flights within the drum which is heated externally, through which contaminated soil, such as drilling cuttings, is heated and processed to remove and reclaim the contaminants. The decontaminated soil exits through a dual trap door arrangement with the entry and exit door being 180 .degree. apart. A water quench line extends into the drum for dust suppression. The contaminant is typically diesel oil which has been added to drilling muds. The soil which exits the unit is essentially contaminant free, and the diesel oil which has been vaporized during the heating process is condensed and collected.

Apparatus for recovering hydrocarbons from solids

A process for separating vaporous mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and emulsifier derived from the remediation of wellbore fluid, such as a mud containing solid particulate material in which the vaporous mixture is quenched with a hydrocarbon stream which is at a temperature above the boiling point of water and below the boiling point of the hydrocarbons in the vaporous stream. Most of the hydrocarbons in the vaporous stream and substantially all of the emulsifier are condensed into the hydrocarbon quench to form an oil stream. The water is recovered from the hydrocarbon quench as a vaporous stream and quenched with water. The quenched water and any residual heavier hydrocarbons are separated by phase separation.

Separation of hydrocarbons water/emulsifier mixtures

Improved operation of an LPG fractionating facility having a deethanizer, depropanizer and debutanizer is obtained by operating the deethanizer at a lower pressure than conventional, (e.g., less than 500 psig), thereby reducing the temperature of the deethanizer bottoms such that the debutanizer operated at greater than conventional pressure (e.g., over 100 psig) produces a mixed butane overhead at a higher temperature than the deethanizer bottoms whereby the mixed butane overhead is condensed and cooled by indirect contact with the deethanizer bottoms thereby heating the bottoms and supplying a substantial portion of the energy required for the fractionation in the deethanizer. The energy reduction for the three column system through the improved heat recovery system is 10% to 50% depending upon the feed composition.

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Houston, TX, United States of America

Robin M Pate