Exxonmobil Research and Engineering Company

Tiax LLC

Thomas M Rudy

Amar S Wanni

Marciano M Calanog

Louis A Curcio

Glen Barry Brons

Leo D Brown

Charles E Benson

Thomas Bruno

Tomas R Melli

Raymond J Kennedy

San Chhotray

Himanshu M Joshi

Claude A Lafleur

Clifford Hay

Dennis L Juedes

Chih Pong Sin

Douglas F Slingerland

Malcolm D Keen

Tom Bruno

James P Norton

Roberto S Tomotaki

Roberto C Tomotaki

Roberto Carlos Tomotaki

San Chottray

Raymond John Kennedy

Himanshu Joshi

Leo Dale Brown

A fired heater unit is disclosed having at least one radiant heating section with each of the at least one radiant heating section having a heating element located therein. The unit includes a convection section operatively connected to the at least one radiant heating section, wherein the convection section having at least one vertically oriented convection tube. Each of the at least one convection tube being operatively connected to the at least one radiant heating section. Each of the at least one convection tube includes an inner tube having process fluid flowing therethrough, wherein the process fluid being heated by the at least one radiant heating section, and an outer tube extending along a predetermined portion of the inner tube, wherein the outer tube is spaced from the inner tube to form a flow path therebetween.

Advanced fired heater unit for use in refinery and petro-chemical applications

An insert is provided in a flow path adjacent to the input and/or output port of a plate heat exchanger to shield heat transfer elements adjacent to the port from high velocity flow. By deflecting and redirecting the high velocity flow from the port, vibration induced stress to the heat transfer elements can be minimized. The insert is provided with a converging nozzle that directs the flow into a narrowed body. The outlet of the insert can be formed as an open end of the body or as a contoured opening in the side wall of the body. Flow can also be more uniformly distributed to the flow channels defined between the heat transfer elements.

Plate heat exchanger port insert and method for alleviating vibrations in a heat exchanger

A strainer device for a fluid flow circuit removes debris and solid particles from the fluid flow to prevent plugging and reduce fouling of the system. The assembly includes a chamber that can be hydrocyclonic, a collection area, a screen assembly and a distributor that allows selective connection to a flushing fluid. The fluid flows through the chamber past the strainer device, with large particles collecting in the collection area under the influence of gravity and smaller solid particles being collected in the screen assembly. Particles can be flushed from the system by selectively activating the distributor to back flush the screen assembly and sweep the collection area free of solid particles without disassembling the system.

Back flushable strainer device

A tube support device is used with tube bundle devices such as heat exchangers or, condensers with in-line tube arrangements (rectangular tube configuration) to mitigate the possibility of tube damage from flow-induced vibration in the tube bundle. The tube support comprises an elongated member or strip which is intended to be inserted in a tube lane between the tubes of the tube bundle. Raised-tube-engaging zones which include transverse, arcuate tube-receiving saddles are disposed along the length of the strip at successive longitudinal locations corresponding to the tube positions in the bundle. These tube-engaging zones extend laterally out, away from the medial plane of the strip, so that the saddles receive and closely hold the tubes on opposite sides of the tube lane. The support device may be made of two strips joined back-to-back with the tube-engaging zones extending out from one face of each strip or, alternatively, by a single strip with longitudinal slits which enable the tube-engaging zones to extend out on alternate faces of the strip at each tube location.

Anti-vibration tube support

The present invention is a method to identify a refinery solid foulant of unknown composition including the following steps: obtaining a solid foulant sample, removing trapped feed from the sample with a solvent to obtain an insoluble sample, scanning the insoluble sample with a scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive x-rays, performing a thermal gravimetric analysis including an ash test on the insoluble sample to determine the presence of polymer, coke and inorganic elements, performing an elemental analysis on the insoluble sample for the elements carbon, hydrogen, sulfur, nitrogen, halogens, and metals, performing an optical microscopy on the insoluble sample to determine the presence of wax, asphaltenes, anisotropic coke and isotropic coke, and identifying the solid foulant.

Method for refinery foulant deposit characterization

A tube support device for a tube bundle having a plurality of elongated tubes with a U-shaped bend portion is disclosed. The tube support device includes an elongated longitudinally extending strip having a pair of opposing faces. A plurality of tube engaging members extend from the pair of opposing faces. The tube support device includes an engagement assembly formed on one end of the tube support device. The engagement assembly is adapted to engage the anchor assembly positioned within the tube bundle, whereby the tube support device can be rotated into the desired orientation between the tubes to prevent vibration damage.

Anti-vibration tube support for tube bundles having U-shaped bends

A support device for a bundle of elongated members and a locking assembly for securing the same within the bundle are disclosed. The support device includes an elongated support adapted to be located between adjacent spaced rows of elongated members, wherein the elongated support having a first side and a second side, wherein the first side being arranged to be positioned adjacent one row of the spaced rows of elongated members and the second side being arranged to be positioned adjacent another row of the spaced rows of elongated members. The support device includes a plurality of support members spaced along the elongated support, wherein each support member have a first supporting assembly located on the first side for supporting one of the elongated members in the one row and a second supporting assembly located on the second side for supporting one of the elongated members in the other row. At least one locking assembly is provided for locking the support device between the adjacent rows of elongated members, wherein each of the at least one locking assembly being located on at least one of the first side and the second side between adjacent supporting assemblies.

Anti-vibration tube support with locking assembly

A support device for supporting a plurality of elongated members. The support device having a longitudinally extensive strip having a plurality of sets of transverse corrugations located at successive longitudinal locations along the strip. Each set of transverse corrugations forming a plurality of elongated member engaging zones extending laterally outwards from both faces of the strip to engage the elongated members in the tube bundle on opposite sides of a tube lane. The support device is useful to support elongated members in a bundle and to mitigate the possibility of damage from flow-induced vibration in elongated members.

A tube support device for a plurality of elongated members is disclosed. The support device includes an elongated longitudinally extending strip having a pair of opposing faces. The strip includes a plurality of engaging members extending from the pair of opposing faces. The support device is sized such that the support device is located between adjacent rows of elongated members. The plurality of engaging members arranged such that a portion of the plurality of engaging members extend from one face of the opposing faces and are arranged to contact the elongated members positioned adjacent one face and another portion of the plurality of engaging members extend from another face of the opposing faces and are arranged to contact the elongated members positioned adjacent the other face. The plurality of engaging members are located adjacent one end of the strip and extend along only a portion of the length of the strip. The remaining portion of the strip contains no engaging members.

A tube bundle device useful in heat exchangers, condensers and other devices which has a number of tube support cages placed at extended locations along the length of the tubes. After the initial construction of the bundle in which the tubes are inserted into the support cages the tube bundle is stiffened by inserting sets of tube stakes between the tube support cages, preferably at the midpoint of the tube span between the cages. The tubes are supported by rods or bars in each tube lane at the tube support cage locations and the rods in each cage are rotated axially with respect to the rods in the next adjacent cage; in a similar manner, the stakes in each set are rotated axially with respect to the stakes in the next axially adjacent set.

Reduced vibration tube bundle device

A method of reducing vibration in a tube bundle includes inserting at least one elongated longitudinally extending support strip within at least one tube lane, wherein each elongated longitudinally extending support strip having a pair of opposing faces and a plurality of successive transverse tube support rows located at successive longitudinal locations along the strip, wherein each tube support row having a plurality of raised, tube-engaging zones, wherein the plurality of raised, tube-engaging zones extend laterally outwards to engage with tubes in the tube bundle on opposite sides of a tube lane, and orienting the at least one elongated longitudinally extending support strip such that each tube adjacent the tube lane contacts at least one of the transverse tube support rows.

A tube bundle device such as a heat exchanger or condenser which has parallel tubes in a triangular configuration in which tubes are adjacent and spaced from six surrounding tubes. The tubes in the tube bundle have wire spacer/support elements comprising helically wound material which surrounds at least a portion of the length of each of the tubes; each tube with a spacer/support coil being in contact only with tubes which do not have a spacer/support coil and each tube without a spacer/support coil is in contact only with tubes which have a spacer/support coil.

Support system for tube bundle devices

A tube support device comprises an elongated strip inserted in a tube lane between the tubes of the tube bundle. Raised-tube-engaging zones are disposed in transverse rows across the strip at successive longitudinal locations along its length; these tube-engaging zones extend laterally outwards from both faces of the strip to engage with tubes on opposite sides of the tube lane. The tube-engaging zones may be arranged so that they extend from the two faces of the strip in an alternate manner, with the tube-engaging zones in each row alternately extending from one face and then from the other along the row.

A self-cleaning strainer which may be installed upstream of a heat exchanger to prevent debris greater than a critical size from reaching the heat exchanger. The strainer is preferably mounted just upstream of a heat exchanger in order to minimize the possibility of debris reaching the heat exchanger. The strainer comprises a screen element which can be advanced across the flow path of the fluid between two rollers. The screen element is placed so that the fluid must flow across the screen element face to continue through the process pipe; the screen may be perpendicular or parallel to the fluid flow axis of the strainer body or at an intermediate angle to it. Flow blocking members are used so as to direct the flow to pass through the screen element.

Growing community of inventors

Warrenton, VA, United States of America

Thomas M Rudy