U.S. patent application number 14/680404 was filed with the patent office on 2016-10-13 for fuel supply system for a gasification system.
The applicant listed for this patent is General Electric Company. Invention is credited to Pravin Sadashiv Naphade, Judith Pauline Oppenheim, Wade Albert Taber.
Application Number | 20160298041 14/680404 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 57111650 |
Filed Date | 2016-10-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160298041 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Naphade; Pravin Sadashiv ;
et al. |
October 13, 2016 |
FUEL SUPPLY SYSTEM FOR A GASIFICATION SYSTEM
Abstract
A fuel supply system for a gasification system is provided. The
fuel supply system includes a gasifier. The fuel supply system also
includes and a feed line for routing a substance and a conveyance
fluid toward the gasifier. The fuel supply system further includes
a separation device located upstream of the gasifier and configured
to receive the substance and the conveyance fluid from the feed
line, the separation device separating the substance and the
conveyance fluid, wherein only the substance is routed to the
gasifier.
Inventors: |
Naphade; Pravin Sadashiv;
(Bangalore, IN) ; Oppenheim; Judith Pauline;
(Houston, TX) ; Taber; Wade Albert; (Houston,
TX) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
General Electric Company |
Schenectady |
NY |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
57111650 |
Appl. No.: |
14/680404 |
Filed: |
April 7, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C10J 2300/1693 20130101;
C10J 2300/093 20130101; C10J 3/30 20130101; C10J 2200/15
20130101 |
International
Class: |
C10J 3/30 20060101
C10J003/30 |
Claims
1. A fuel supply system for a gasification system comprising: a
gasifier; a feed line for routing a substance and a conveyance
fluid toward the gasifier; and a separation device located upstream
of the gasifier and configured to receive the substance and the
conveyance fluid from the feed line, the separation device
separating the substance and the conveyance fluid, wherein only the
substance is routed to the gasifier.
2. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the separation device
is located immediately upstream of the gasifier.
3. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the separation device
comprises a cyclone separator.
4. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the separation device
comprises an impingement plate.
5. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the separation device
comprises a filtering separator.
6. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the separation device
comprises an expander separator.
7. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the substance
comprises a solid substance.
8. The fuel supply system of claim 7, wherein the substance
comprises coal.
9. The fuel supply system of claim 1, wherein the conveyance fluid
comprises a gas.
10. The fuel supply system of claim 9, wherein the conveyance fluid
comprises nitrogen.
11. The fuel supply system of claim 9, wherein the conveyance fluid
comprises carbon dioxide.
12. The fuel supply system of claim 1, further comprising an outlet
line operatively coupled to the separation device, the outlet line
configured to route the conveyance fluid from the separation
device.
13. The fuel supply system of claim 12, wherein the outlet line
routes the conveyance fluid and a portion of the substance to a
container for separation.
14. The fuel supply system of claim 1, further comprising: a
substance storage structure containing a substance supply; and a
pump operatively coupled to the substance storage structure and
configured to pump the substance into the feed line.
15. The fuel supply system of claim 14, further comprising a pump
manifold containing the conveyance fluid for mixing with the
substance.
16. The fuel supply system of claim 12, wherein the conveyance gas
routed through the outlet line undergoes expansion for power
generation.
17. A fuel supply system for a gasification system comprising: a
gasifier; a storage structure containing a carbonaceous fuel in a
solid state; a pump operatively coupled to the storage structure
and configured to pump the carbonaceous fuel; a pump manifold
containing a conveyance gas for mixing with the carbonaceous fuel;
a feed line for routing a mixture of the carbonaceous fuel and the
conveyance gas toward the gasifier; and a cyclone separator located
immediately upstream of the gasifier and coupled to the gasifier
with a feed injector, the cyclone separator configured to receive
the carbonaceous fuel and the conveyance gas from the feed line,
the cyclone separator separating the carbonaceous fuel and the
conveyance gas, wherein only the carbonaceous fuel is routed to the
gasifier.
18. The fuel supply system of claim 17, wherein the conveyance gas
comprises nitrogen.
19. The fuel supply system of claim 16, wherein the conveyance gas
comprises carbon dioxide.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to gasification
systems and, more particularly, to a supply system for such
gasification systems.
[0002] A gasification process involves the partial combustion of
substance (e.g., carbonaceous fuel, such as biomass or coal) inside
of a gasification reactor to generate "producer gas." This gas may
then be used in a variety of applications. The carbonaceous fuel
used for generation of the producer gas is routed to the
gasification reactor from a supply. The fuel is typically in a
solid state and therefore requires a medium to facilitate the flow
of the fuel along a supply line to the gasification reactor. The
gas used to facilitate the flow may be referred to as a conveyance
gas (e.g., N2 and/or CO2).
[0003] Although beneficial for routing the solid fuel to the
gasification system, it is not advantageous to route the conveyance
gas to the gasification reactor. Doing so increases the required
volume of the gasification reactor to accommodate the additional
volume of gas being routed therein. Alternatively, if the same size
reactor is employed, the conveyance gas reduces the overall
residence time of the reacting gas and fuel particles. Inclusion of
the conveyance gas also increases the required size of equipment
located downstream of the gasification reactor. Additionally for
certain downstream chemical applications, the inert conveyance gas,
such as N2, acts as an impurity and is desirably separated from the
producer gas, but is not cost effective and will affect overall
plant thermal efficiency.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0004] According to one aspect of the invention, a fuel supply
system for a gasification system is provided. The fuel supply
system includes a gasifier. The fuel supply system also includes
and a feed line for routing a substance and a conveyance fluid
toward the gasifier. The supply system further includes a
separation device located upstream of the gasifier and configured
to receive the substance and the conveyance fluid from the feed
line, the separation device separating the substance and the
conveyance fluid, wherein only the substance is routed to the
gasifier.
[0005] According to another aspect of the invention, a fuel supply
system for a gasification system is provided. The fuel supply
system includes a gasifier. The fuel supply system also includes a
storage structure containing carbonaceous fuel in a solid state.
The fuel supply system further includes a pump operatively coupled
to the storage structure and configured to pump the carbonaceous
fuel. The fuel supply system yet further includes a pump manifold
containing a conveyance gas for mixing with the carbonaceous fuel.
The fuel supply system also includes a feed line for routing a
mixture of the carbonaceous fuel and the conveyance gas toward the
gasifier. The fuel supply system further includes a cyclone
separator located immediately upstream of the gasifier and coupled
to the gasifier with a feed injector, the cyclone separator
configured to receive the carbonaceous fuel and the conveyance gas
from the feed line, the cyclone separator separating the
carbonaceous fuel and the conveyance gas, wherein only the
carbonaceous fuel is routed to the gasifier.
[0006] These and other advantages and features will become more
apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with
the drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The subject matter, which is regarded as the invention, is
particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at
the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other
features, and advantages of the invention are apparent from the
following detailed description taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings in which:
[0008] The FIGURE is a schematic illustration of a fuel supply
system for a gasification system.
[0009] The detailed description explains embodiments of the
invention, together with advantages and features, by way of example
with reference to the drawings.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0010] Referring to the Figure, a gasification system 10 is
partially illustrated. A gasification system is configured to
thermally convert a carbonaceous fuel into a more useful gaseous
form of fuel (i.e., a fuel form that can be economically utilized
with high energy recovery levels), referred to herein as "producer
gas." The gasification system 10 includes a gasifier 12, within
which the thermal conversion of the carbonaceous fuel is carried
out.
[0011] A supply system 14 is illustrated and is configured to store
and route a substance to the gasifier 12 for reaction therein. The
type of substance that is routed to the gasifier 12 by the supply
system 14 may vary depending upon the particular application of
use. For example, the fuel substance is a carbonaceous fuel, such
as coal in some embodiments, and will be referred to herein as
such, however, it is to be appreciated that other carbonaceous
fuels, such as biomass may be employed with the embodiments of the
supply system 14 described herein. Irrespective of the particular
type of substance that is provided for gasification, the substance
is typically in a solid state, such as in a particulate form (e.g.,
powder).
[0012] A substance storage structure 16 is provided to store the
substance (e.g., carbonaceous fuel) in a ready state for routing to
the gasifier 12. The substance storage structure 16 may be a fully
or partially enclosed container configured to store the substance.
A pump 18 is operatively coupled to the storage structure 16 and
initiates routing of the substance from the substance storage
structure 16 toward the gasifier 12.
[0013] A pump manifold 20 is operatively coupled to the pump 18 and
may be configured to be operatively coupled to one or more other
pumps and substance storage structures. The pump manifold 20
contains a conveyance fluid therein. The conveyance fluid is a
medium employed to facilitate routing of the substance to the
gasifier 12. This is beneficial due to the inertia of the solid
state of the substance. While it is contemplated that the
conveyance fluid is a liquid or two phase (i.e., liquid-gas) fluid,
the conveyance fluid is typically a gas, such as nitrogen or carbon
dioxide gas. The conveyance fluid may be stored in the pump
manifold 20 at various pressures that may vary depending upon the
particular application. In one example, the conveyance fluid is
stored in the pump manifold 20 at a pressure of about 1000 psi. The
substance and the conveyance fluid are mixed in the pump manifold
20 and routed along a feed line 22 toward the gasifier 12.
[0014] Upstream of the gasifier 12 is a separation device 24 that
is configured to receive the mixture of the substance and the
conveyance fluid from the feed line 22. The term "separation
device" is used to generically define any assembly, device or
system that separates a solid from a gas. In an exemplary
embodiment, the separation device 24 is a cyclone separator that
imparts a swirling of the mixture of substance and the conveyance
fluid. The swirling is done a speed sufficient to force the solid
particles (i.e., coal substance) toward and into contact with an
inner wall 26 of the cyclone separator to cause the solid particles
to fall toward a feed injector 28 of the gasifier 12 that
facilitates a continuous flow of the solid particles into the
gasifier 12. In the illustrated embodiment, the separation device
24 is located immediately upstream of the gasifier 12. Regardless
of the precise positioning of the separation device 24, the
gasifier 12 and the separation device 24 are operatively coupled in
a manner that allows only the separated substance to enter the
gasifier. In this manner, the gasifier remains free of the
conveyance fluid that beneficially facilitates routing of the
substance along the feed line 22, while avoiding the undesirable
effects of routing the conveyance fluid into the gasifier 12.
[0015] The cyclone separator described above as the separation
device 24 is merely one example of a solid-gas separation device.
Various alternative separation devices may be employed as the
separation device 24. For example, a settling chamber, a baffle
chamber, a louver, an impingement plate separator, a gravity spray
wet scrubber, centrifugal separator, a packed scrubber, a jet
scrubber, an expander separator (e.g., Venturi tube), a filtering
separator, and an electrostatic precipitator are all separation
devices that may be employed to facilitate the desired level of
solid-gas separation of the substance and the conveyance gas. The
preceding list of separation devices is merely illustrative and it
is not intended to be limiting, as other separation devices may be
suitable for effective separation. It is to be appreciated that
more than one separation device 24 may be employed to separate the
substance and the conveyance gas. In the case of a plurality of
separation devices, the devices may be arranged parallel to each
other, in series with each other, or as an arrangement combining
parallel and series.
[0016] As described above, the separation device 24 routes the
solid coal substance to the gasifier 12 and retains the conveyance
fluid. The conveyance fluid is then routed out of the separation
device 24 via an outlet line 30 that is operatively coupled to the
separation device 24. The outlet line 30 routes the conveyance
fluid to a desired location. In an exemplary embodiment, the
separated conveyance fluid is recycled back to the pump manifold 20
for further routing of substance. Additionally, the outlet line 30
routes a mixture of the substance and the conveyance fluid that has
not been fully separated to a container or the like for further
separation. Additionally, the high pressure conveyance gas from
outlet line 30 may be utilized for power generation through its
expansion, thus increasing the overall thermal efficiency of the
system.
[0017] Advantageously, the separation device 24 separates the
conveyance fluid from the solid substance just prior to feeding the
solid substance to the gasifier 12. Avoiding the presence of the
conveyance gas in the gasifier 12 increases the overall residence
time and therefore thermal conversion of the substance to producer
gas. Additionally, the size of the gasifier 12, as well as all
downstream equipment, does not need to be increased to accommodate
the conveyance fluid.
[0018] While the invention has been described in detail in
connection with only a limited number of embodiments, it should be
readily understood that the invention is not limited to such
disclosed embodiments. Rather, the invention can be modified to
incorporate any number of variations, alterations, substitutions or
equivalent arrangements not heretofore described, but which are
commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention.
Additionally, while various embodiments of the invention have been
described, it is to be understood that aspects of the invention may
include only some of the described embodiments. Accordingly, the
invention is not to be seen as limited by the foregoing
description, but is only limited by the scope of the appended
claims.
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