The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 16, 1998
Filed:
Dec. 10, 1996
Hideyuki Honda, Kanagawa, JP;
Yasuharu Kishida, Kanagawa, JP;
Nippon Sanso Corporation, Tokyo, JP;
Abstract
The present invention relates to an air liquefaction separation apparatus whose power cost is reduced. A low-pressure column of a double rectification column has a cleaning section at a lower position, and a liquid oxygen is partly withdrawn from the space above the cleaning section so as to supply it to a main condenser-evaporator. The liquid oxygen supplied to the main condenser-evaporator is subjected to heat exchange with a nitrogen gas separated at the head of a high-pressure column to be gasified into an oxygen gas. This oxygen gas is introduced to the space under the cleaning section. Hydrocarbons contained in the oxygen gas ascending through the cleaning section are removed by the rest of the liquid oxygen descending through the cleaning section to provide a clean oxygen gas. The liquid oxygen passed through the cleaning section is withdrawn from the low-pressure column. Thus, since the hydrocarbons are prevented from being concentrated highly to or over critical levels in the liquid oxygen in the main condenser-evaporator, submergence in the main condenser-evaporator can be reduced to minimize the influence of the depth of the liquid, thus improving heat exchange efficiency to lower the pressure of the nitrogen gas, as well as, to reduce operating cost by reducing power of the compressor for compressing the feed air.