U.S. patent number 10,385,364 [Application Number 15/607,628] was granted by the patent office on 2019-08-20 for cellulose liquefaction module.
The grantee listed for this patent is Mark K Gaalswyk. Invention is credited to Mark K Gaalswyk.
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United States Patent |
10,385,364 |
Gaalswyk |
August 20, 2019 |
Cellulose liquefaction module
Abstract
A method of producing cellulose liquefaction and a cellulose
liquefaction module that mixes and circulates cellulose material as
a solid, and provides evaporative cooling in the module. The module
includes a container having a vertically disposed tube that houses
an auger conveyor that mixes and circulates solid cellulose
material. Steam ports and activation agent injection ports are
disposed within the tube to liquify the cellulose material. A
forced air blower pushes air through the liquified cellulose
material to provide evaporative cooling before discharge from the
container.
Inventors: |
Gaalswyk; Mark K (Lake Crystal,
MN) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Gaalswyk; Mark K |
Lake Crystal |
MN |
US |
|
|
Family
ID: |
67620762 |
Appl.
No.: |
15/607,628 |
Filed: |
May 29, 2017 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
|
|
62357498 |
Jul 1, 2016 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H05B
6/64 (20130101); H02K 9/06 (20130101); B01J
8/008 (20130101); C12Y 302/01004 (20130101); H05B
6/802 (20130101); F26B 23/10 (20130101); C12P
7/10 (20130101); B01J 2219/00731 (20130101); C12P
19/02 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B01J
8/00 (20060101); H02K 9/06 (20060101); H05B
6/64 (20060101); F26B 23/10 (20060101); C12P
7/10 (20060101) |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Prakash; Gautam
Parent Case Text
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent
Application Ser. No. 62/357,498, filed Jul. 1, 2016, entitled
Cellulosic Liquefaction Module, which is incorporated herein by
reference in its entirety.
Claims
I claim:
1. A cellulose liquefaction module, comprising: a container having
a top, and a cone-shaped bottom; a vertically disposed tube with an
interior, a bottom intake and a top outlet; an auger disposed in
the vertical tube interior; the tube being disposed within the
container; horizontal stabilizer supports disposed to interconnect
the container and the tube; a series of steam ports disposed within
the tube interior on a first side of the tube and on the horizontal
supports; activation agent injection ports disposed within the tube
interior on a second side of the tube and on the horizontal
supports; a spreader plate disposed in the communication with the
top outlet of the tube; a paddle agitator disposed adjacent the
bottom intake of the tube; a downwardly directed forced air blower
disposed at the top of the container and having an air intake
purification chamber; a liquid circulation loop interconnecting the
container bottom and the container top; a first microwave chamber
disposed in communication with the tube interior; a second
microwave chamber disposed in communication with the liquid
circulation loop; and a heat exchanger located in the liquid
circulation loop.
2. A method of liquifying cellulose material comprising the steps
of: mixing and circulating solid cellulose material in the module
of claim 1, applying heat and adding activation agents to reduce
the cellulose material to a liquid in the module; and providing
evaporative cooling of the liquefied cellulose material in the
module.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the solid cellulose material is
mixed and circulated by the conveyor as it moves the cellulose
material from the intake at the tube to the outlet of the tube.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the solid cellulose material is
mixed and circulated by being spread at the top of the module by
the spreader plate, and by moving by gravity to the bottom of the
container.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein evaporative cooling of the
cellulose material occurs when air is blown downwardly through the
cellulose material spread by the spreader plate at the top of the
module.
6. The method of the claim 5, wherein the evaporative cooling is
supplemented by passage of the cellulose material through the heat
exchanger.
7. The method of claim 3, wherein heat is applied by steam from the
steam ports, and activation agents are added from the activation
agent injection ports.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the cellulose material and added
activation agents are exposed to microwave energy in the microwave
chamber to improve the effect of the activation agents.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to material processing equipment,
and more particularly to a cellulose liquefaction module.
Description of the Related Art
One of the key problems when converting cellulose material into bio
fuels, such as ethanol or butanol, is that the cellulose material
is initially in the material form of a solid, and solids cannot be
pumped through pumps, tanks and piping designed for only liquid
materials.
The traditional way of converting the cellulose material to a
pumpable sugar water solution, and ultimately into a bio fuel that
can be pumped, is to add water to the solid material. This
material, in a slurry form, can then be pumped into liquid tanks.
The slurry material is also mixed with an enzyme which causes
further breakdown of the solid material into an even greater
liquidized material.
The combination of the addition of excess water to the solids to
make them pumpable, and liquefaction activity of the enzymes on the
material, results in a solution that contains excess water, and the
concentration of biofuels is too low to allow the economical
separation of the biofuels from the water.
The method by which this water is removed is to then apply more
energy later on in the process to boil off the excess water. The
introduction of additional energy to remove the excess water often
consumes so much energy that the process itself consumes more
energy than is created from the biofuels produced.
A second problem involves the need for cooling a solid or heavy
slurry quickly. Once the solids have been heated up sufficiently to
open up the cells for better activation of enzymes, kill the
undesirable bacteria, and break down the material to a liquid, the
material then needs to be cooled down significantly. This has often
been done by pumping the now liquid slurry through a cooling heat
exchanger. This process takes considerable energy, and water used
to aid in cooling is consumed and vaporized. Typically cooling of
only 5000 gallons from about 200 degrees down to about 60 degrees,
has taken several hours.
Those concerned with these and other problems recognize the need
for an improved cellulose liquefaction module.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention discloses a method of producing cellulose
liquefaction and a cellulose liquefaction module that mixes and
circulates cellulose material as a solid, and provides evaporative
cooling in the module. The module includes a container having a
vertically disposed tube that houses an auger conveyor that mixes
and circulates solid cellulose material. Steam ports and activation
agent injection ports are disposed within the tube to liquify the
cellulose material. A forced air blower pushes air through the
liquified cellulose material to provide evaporative cooling before
discharge from the container.
Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the present
invention will become apparent from the following detailed
description of the invention when considered in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other attributes of the invention will become more clear
upon a thorough study of the following description of the best mode
for carrying out the invention, particularly when reviewed in
conjunction with the drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the cellulose liquefaction
module of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
As can be seen by reference to FIG. 1, the cellulose liquefaction
module that forms a basis of the present invention is designated
generally by the reference number 10. The module 10 includes a
container or a tank 20 with a cone bottom 22, and having a
centrally located vertical tube 30 with a conveyor or auger 40
disposed within the tube 30. The tube 30 has a bottom intake 32 and
a top outlet 34. The tube 30 also carries a series of steam ports
42, and activation agent or enzyme injection ports 44. Horizontal
supports 46 stabilize the tube 30 and may include additional steam
ports (not shown) and enzyme injection ports (not shown). It is to
be understood that additional required heating and cooling needed
in the tank 20 could be supplied by jacketing the tube 30 with an
auxiliary heat exchanger. A microwave chamber 48 is disposed in the
communication with the interior of the tube 30.
A spreader plate 50 is located in communication with the top outlet
34 of the tube 30, and a reverse pitch paddle agitator 52 is
located adjacent the bottom intake 32 of the tube 30. The top of
the tank 20 carries internal spray nozzles 54, a solids charging
port 56, a gear box and motor auger drive 58, and a forced air
blower 60 disposed in communication with the interior of the tank
20, and having an intake air purification chamber 62. The bottom of
the tank 20 carries a solid discharge port 64 and a liquids
discharge port 66. A liquid circulation loop 70 interconnects the
liquids discharge port 66 and the top of the tank 20 and includes a
pump 72, a microwave chamber 74 in communication with a microwave
generator 76, and a heat exchanger 78. A finished liquid discharge
port 80 discharges to a fermentation tank (not shown).
The cellulose liquefaction module 10 of the present invention
allows the cellulose material to be mixed and circulated as a solid
initially without any added water, and then later the cellulose
material is mixed and circulated as a liquid.
Cellulose material is first reduced in size, generally to a
consistency of thick and lumpy mashed potatoes, and then introduced
into the tank 20 through the solids charging port 56.
The tank 20 has a cone bottom 22 and a vertical auger 40 with a
surrounding tube 30 that allows the cellulose material to be
handled initially as a solid with little to no addition of any
water. The solids are carried up through the center tube 30 via the
center vertical auger 40. The larger diameter bottom section of the
auger 40 fully agitates the material in the bottom of the tank 20
and forces the material up through the tube 30.
Thus, even while the material is still in a solid state, steam can
be applied to break open the cellulose material, and enzymes can be
mixed thoroughly into the cellulose solid material as it passes up
via the action of the center screw auger 40 carrying the material
up the center mixing tube 30. This can allow for a significantly
lower enzyme requirement due to complete mixing. Once the material
reaches the top of the tube 30, a spreader plate 50 acts to spread
the material out over the entire top area of the tank 20, and the
material falls back down by gravity.
On one side of the mixing tube 30, steam can be applied from ports
42, and then on the other side enzymes or other activation related
agents can be added from ports 44. The enzymes are thus thoroughly
mixed into the material causing the material to begin to convert
into the form of a slurry. Also, the enzymes can be added from
other points in the container 20.
The vertical auger 40 carries the solid material up through the
vertical tube 30 and past the steam injection nozzles 42. Once the
materials, solid or liquid, have been heated up to the desired
temperature to kill the bacteria and break open the material for
maximum activation agent results, the heating portion is turned off
and the enzymes can be thoroughly mixed into the material. Once the
cellulose material has approached the desired degree of liquidity,
the paddle agitator mixes the material which can be recirculated
through the circulation loop 70.
To facilitate rapid cooling, the cellulose liquefaction module 10
utilizes a forced air blower 60 to provide evaporative cooling to
complete this cooling affect. Evaporative cooling has been found to
be about 9 times faster than the traditional heat exchanger method.
To make this fast acting evaporative cooling action possible,
incoming cool air is passed through an air purifier mechanism 62 to
remove all bacteria from the cool air. This air is then passed
through the fine cellulose material that has been spread across the
top of the tank via the tank top mounted spreader 50 located at the
top of the tank 20. The air passing through the finely spread
particles cools the material quickly.
The end effect is a much faster cool down time, with considerable
savings in energy, less consumption of water for cooling, and less
capital cost since fewer tanks are needed to hold the material for
the duration of the cooling process.
When the material is cooled to the desired temperature, the liquid
cellulose material is discharged to the fermentation tanks through
the finished liquid discharge port 80. Remaining solids are
discharged through the solids discharge port 64 to a waste
conveyer.
The system allows for an optional external heat exchanger 78. The
external heat exchanger 78 can be used to heat or cool the
liquefied material circulated through the loop 70. The center core
tube 30 around the internal vertical auger 40 can also be used as a
microwave chamber 48 to allow microwaves to be beamed through the
material greatly improving the effectiveness of the enzymes, and
oftentimes dramatically increasing the yield of bio fuel.
Alternatively, the microwave chamber 74 can be placed externally
and the material pumped through the chamber 74 with microwaves
beamed through the material to allow improved enzyme activity.
This overall cellulose liquefaction module process is ideal for
materials such as sugar beets and other materials that already
contain such a high water content. When these cellulose materials
are broken down by the enzymes, the resulting end mixture of
material has a high ratio of end product to water, since the
present invention allows the conversion to occur with little to no
additional water required.
Although only an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been
described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily
appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially
departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this
invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be
included within the scope of this invention as defined in the
following claims.
* * * * *