Drill cuttings treatment systems
First Claim
1. A system, comprising:
- a thermal reactor that is adapted to remove liquid from drill cuttings material by heating said drill cuttings material to at least a first temperature, wherein said first temperature is sufficiently high enough to vaporize said liquid;
a feeder system that is adapted to controllably feed a flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor; and
a control system that is adapted to control said flow of said drill cuttings material from said feeder system to said thermal reactor so as to maintain a temperature in said thermal reactor at or above said first temperature, wherein said control system is further adapted to increase said flow of said drill cuttings material from said feeder system to said thermal reactor when said temperature in said thermal reactor decreases.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Generally, the present disclosure is related to systems and methods for separating hydrocarbons and/or other liquids from drill cuttings material. One illustrative embodiment disclosed herein is directed to a system that includes, among other things, a thermal reactor that is adapted to remove liquid from drill cuttings material by heating the drill cuttings material to at least a first temperature that is sufficiently high enough to vaporize the liquid. The illustrative system also includes a feeder system that is adapted to controllably feed a flow of the drill cuttings material to the thermal reactor, and a control system that is adapted to control the flow of the drill cuttings material from the feeder system so as to maintain a temperature in the thermal reactor at or above the first temperature.
389 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A system, comprising:
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a thermal reactor that is adapted to remove liquid from drill cuttings material by heating said drill cuttings material to at least a first temperature, wherein said first temperature is sufficiently high enough to vaporize said liquid; a feeder system that is adapted to controllably feed a flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor; and a control system that is adapted to control said flow of said drill cuttings material from said feeder system to said thermal reactor so as to maintain a temperature in said thermal reactor at or above said first temperature, wherein said control system is further adapted to increase said flow of said drill cuttings material from said feeder system to said thermal reactor when said temperature in said thermal reactor decreases.
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2. A thermal treatment system, comprising:
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a thermal reactor that is adapted to remove liquid from drill cuttings material; a feeder system that is adapted to controllably feed a flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor; and a control system that is adapted to control said feeder system so as to increase said flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor when a temperature in said thermal reactor decreases. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A thermal treatment system, comprising:
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a thermal reactor comprising a plurality of rotatable friction elements, wherein said thermal reactor is adapted to remove liquid from drill cuttings material; an engine that is adapted to controllably rotate said plurality of rotatable friction elements, wherein said plurality of rotatable friction elements are adapted to generate heat during said controllable rotation; a feeder system comprising a metering screw apparatus and a container positioned above said metering screw apparatus, wherein said container is adapted to receive said drill cuttings material and said feeder system is adapted to controllably feed a flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor; and a control system that is adapted to control said feeder system so as to increase said flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor when a temperature in said thermal reactor decreases, and to decrease said flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor when said temperature in said thermal reactor increases. - View Dependent Claims (22)
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23. A system, comprising:
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a thermal reactor that is adapted to remove liquid from drill cuttings material by heating said drill cuttings material to at least a first temperature, wherein said first temperature is sufficiently high enough to vaporize said liquid; a feeder system that is adapted to controllably feed a flow of said drill cuttings material to said thermal reactor; and a control system that is adapted to control said flow of said drill cuttings material from said feeder system to said thermal reactor so as to maintain a temperature in said thermal reactor at or above said first temperature, wherein said control system is adapted to decrease said flow of said drill cuttings material from said feeder system to said thermal reactor when said temperature in said thermal reactor increases.
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Specification