Centrifuge with impellers and beach feed

• US 7,018,326 B2
• Filed: 04/05/2003
• Issued: 03/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Varco I/P Incorporated (NOV, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Varco I/P Incorporated (NOV, Inc.)
• Inventors: Seyffert, Kenneth Wayne, Koch, Richard James, Mitra, Subrata, Baker, Hubert Frank, Wright, John Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): Cooley, Charles E.
• Application Number:
  US10/407,819
• Publication Number:
  US 20030228966A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,088 Days
• Field of Search: 494 52- 54, 494/56, 494/84, 210/377, 210/380.1, 210/380.3
• US Class Current: 494/53
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 1/20 discharging solid particles from the bowl by a conveying screw coaxial with the bowl axis and rotating relatively to the bowl
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 1/2008 with an abrasion-resistant conveyor or drum
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 11/06 Arrangement of distributors or collectors in centrifuges
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 2001/2033 with feed accelerator inside the conveying screw
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 2001/2041 with baffles, plates, vanes or discs attached to the conveying screw
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 2001/2058 with ribbon-type screw conveyor

Abstract

A centrifuge for separating feed material into component parts, in one aspect primarily solid and primarily liquid parts, the centrifuge, in certain aspects, including a conveyor rotatably mounted in a rotatable housing, the conveyor having an interior and at least one impeller, the rotatable housing having a separating region with a pool area and a beach area with feed material passable through the interior of the conveyor, the feed material directed radially by the impeller(s) and spread by the impeller(s), in certain aspects along the conveyor or part thereof, onto part of the pool area, and/or in certain aspects onto the beach area.

Claims

1. A centrifuge for separating feed material into solid and fluid parts, the centrifuge comprising

a rotatable housing,

a conveyor rotatably mounted in a rotatable housing, the conveyor having a longitudinal axis and an interior and at least one impeller, said at least one impeller having an impeller length, the conveyor having conveyor openings therethrough through which material is passable,

the rotatable housing having a separating region comprising a pool area and a beach area exterior to the conveyor and between the conveyor and the rotatable housing so that rotational speed is impartable to said feed material by said at least one impeller prior to treatment in said separating region, and so that said at least one impeller spreads feed material onto said beach area, the beach area having a beach length, the conveyor having a plurality of the conveyor openings adjacent the beach area,

the at least one impeller spreading feed material onto the beach area adjacent the length of the at least one impeller, and

wherein the at least one impeller is a plurality of interconnected impellers comprising accelerator apparatus, the accelerator apparatus removably disposed within the conveyor,

a central nose apparatus having an end plate and a central nose member projecting from the end plate,

the central nose member positioned within the plurality of interconnected impellers, and

the end plate secured to the plurality of interconnected impellers.

2. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the impellers are a plurality of spaced-apart impellers.

3. The centrifuge of claim 2 wherein each impeller has a central end connected to the central nose member mounted in the conveyor.

4. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the impellers are of curved cross section.

5. The centrifuge of claim 1 further comprising mounting apparatus within the conveyor, and the accelerator apparatus and central nose apparatus mounted within the mounting apparatus.

6. The centrifuge of claim 5 wherein the mounting apparatus has a plurality of spaced-apart lobes defining therebetween a plurality of flow channels through which is flowable material flowing from the plurality of interconnected impellers.

7. The centrifuge of claim 6 wherein the lobes of the mounting apparatus include at least a portion of sacrificial mass for wearing away by the material.

8. The centrifuge of claim 6 wherein each impeller is of curved cross-section and a portion of each impeller extends between two of the spaced-apart lobes of the mounting apparatus.

9. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the impellers are of generally uniform thickness throughout.

10. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the impeller length is at least fifty percent of the beach length.

11. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the impeller length is at least seventy-five percent of the beach length.

12. The centrifuge of claim 1 further comprising helical screw apparatus on the conveyor with multiple openings through which material is flowable, the helical screw apparatus for moving material toward an end of the rotatable housing.

13. The centrifuge of claim 12 wherein each impeller traverses a plurality of openings of the multiple openings of the helical screw apparatus.

14. The centrifuge of claim 1 further comprising head apparatus with a plurality of spaced-apart spokes, the rotatable housing secured to the head apparatus with bolts passing through the plurality of spaced-apart spokes into portions of the rotatable housing.

15. The centrifuge of claim 1 further comprising first motor apparatus interconnected with the rotatable housing for rotating the rotatable housing, second motor apparatus interconnected with the conveyor for rotating the conveyor, and an integral centrifuge housing for both supporting the motor apparatuses and for accessibly enclosing the rotating housing.

16. The centrifuge of claim 15 wherein the integral centrifuge housing includes an integral base support.

17. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the feed material has an axial velocity in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the conveyor and the impellers direct the material radially imparting radial speed to said material.

18. The centrifuge of claim 1 wherein the impellers are configured and positioned to also spread material onto a portion of the pool area adjacent a portion of the impellers.

19. A centrifuge for separating material into solid and fluid parts, the centrifuge comprising

a rotatable housing,

a conveyor rotatably mounted in a rotatable housing, the conveyor having a longitudinal axis and an interior and at least one impeller, said at least one impeller having an impeller length, the conveyor having conveyor openings therethrough through which material is passable,

the rotatable housing having a separating region comprising a pool area and a beach area exterior to the conveyor and between the conveyor and the rotatable housing so that rotational speed is impartable to said material by said at least one impeller prior to treatment in said separating region, and so that said at least one impeller spreads material onto said beach area, the beach area having a beach length, the conveyor having a plurality of the conveyor openings adjacent the beach area,

the at least one impeller spreading material onto the beach area adjacent the length of the at least one impeller,

head apparatus with a plurality of spaced-apart spokes, and

the rotatable housing secured to the head apparatus with bolts passing through the plurality of spaced-apart spokes into portions of the rotatable housing.