GEL HYDRATION UNIT
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A fracking fluid hydration unit is provided that has a plurality of hydration tank sections wherein shear is added to the hydrated fluid flow via a recirculation hydrated fluid jetting system.
-
Citations
20 Claims
-
1. (canceled)
-
2. A method for rapid hydration of a hydratable polymer into a hydrated fluid comprising:
-
providing a hydratable polymer; providing water; pumping the mixture of the hydratable polymer and water into a tank to create a mixture; allowing the mixture of hydratable polymer and water to become a hydrated fluid in the tank; pumping a portion of the hydrated fluid, as recirculated hydrated fluid, from a recirculation location in the tank and into a jetting system; jetting, using the jetting system, the recirculated hydrated fluid back into the hydrated fluid in a manner that creates sufficient shear between the hydrated fluid and the jetted recirculated hydrated fluid so as to increase the hydration rate of the hydration fluid; and extracting the hydrated fluid from an output location in the tank. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
-
-
12. A hydration unit comprising:
-
a tank adapted to contain hydrated fluid, the tank having a fluid inlet area and a fluid output area such that the hydrated fluid moves generally from the fluid inlet area to the fluid output area; a hydrated fluid return pipe adapted to carry hydrated fluid, as recirculated hydrated fluid from a recirculation location; a mixing pump adapted to draw recirculated hydrated fluid from the hydrated fluid return pipe and provide the recirculated hydrated fluid to a mixing pump output; a jetting system adapted to receive the recirculated hydrated fluid pumped from the mixing pump;
the jetting system comprising;a jet tube manifold having at least one manifold output; and a first jet tube removably attached to a first one of the manifold outputs, the first jet tube extending into the tank and adapted to be at least partially submerged in hydrated fluid when present in the tank, the first jet tube comprising a first configuration of jet outlets adapted to jet hydrated fluid in a plurality of directions within the tank in order impart shear on both the recirculated hydration fluid and the hydration fluid when present in the first tank section; and the tank fluid output area is connected to a tank hydration fluid output adapted to selectively allow hydrated fluid to exit the tank. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
-
20. A fluid hydration device comprising:
-
an input section adapted to receive a fluid; a hydratable polymer input section wherein a hydratable polymer is combined with the fluid to create a mixture; a first pump adapted to pump the mixture into a first tank section of a hydration tank as a hydrated fluid at a first selected flow rate, the hydration tank being divided into a plurality of tank sections comprising the first tank section, the plurality of tank sections being adjacent to each other and establishing a hydrated fluid flow path from the first tank section to a last tank section of the plurality of tank sections; a hydrated fluid recirculation route adapted to extract hydrated fluid from one of the of tank sections and to pump the extracted hydrated fluid through a jetting system at a recirculation flow rate, the jetting system comprising; a jet manifold adapted to provide the extracted hydrated fluid to a jet manifold outlet; and a jet pipe connected to one of the plurality of jet manifold outlets so as to extend into one of the plurality of tank sections, the jet pipe being adapted to receive the extracted hydrated fluid from the jet manifold and output a plurality of extracted hydrated fluid jets into the respective tank section; and a hydrated fluid tank outlet adapted to allow a flow of hydrated fluid to exit the hydration tank at a selected exit flow rate.
-
Specification