Fluid recirculation system for use in vapor phase particle production system

• US 9,719,727 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2014
• Issued: 08/01/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Umicore AG & Company KG (Umicore S.A.)
• Original Assignee: SDC Materials,Inc.
• Inventors: Layman, Frederick P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mayekar, Kishor
• Application Number:
  US14/542,377
• Publication Number:
  US 20150196884A1
• Time in Patent Office: 991 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2/18 Liquid substances or solutions comprising solids or dissolved gases
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 19/0013 Controlling the temperature of the process
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 19/088 giving rise to electric discharges for heating purposes H05B7/00; for the production of ozone C01B13/11, H01T19/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2/16 by suspending the powder material in a gas, e.g. in fluidised beds or as a falling curtain
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0805 giving rise to electric discharges
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0879 Solid
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0894 Processes carried out in the presence of a plasma
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 25/00 Catalysts of the Raney type
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 25/02 Raney nickel
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 35/56 Foraminous structures having flow-through passages or channels, e.g. grids or three-dimensional monoliths
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 37/0018 Addition of a binding agent or of material, later completely removed among others as result of heat treatment, leaching or washing,(e.g. forming of pores; protective layer, desintegrating by heat)
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 37/0027 Powdering
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 37/06 Washing B01J37/0009, B01J37/0018 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 37/349 making use of flames, plasmas or lasers
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 2202/13 Use of plasma
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 2203/13 pressure
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 2999/00 Aspects linked to processes or compositions used in powder metallurgy
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 9/12 starting from gaseous material
• CPC Class Codes: F28C 3/16 the particulate material forming a bed, e.g. fluidised, on vibratory sieves
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/00 Heat-exchange apparatus with the intermediate heat-transfer medium in closed tubes passing into or through the conduit walls ; Heat-exchange apparatus employing intermediate heat-transfer medium or bodies F28D17/00, F28D19/00, F28D20/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 7/024 : the conduits of only one medium being helically coiled tubes, the coils having a cylindrical configuration
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 7/08 : the conduits being otherwise bent, e.g. in a serpentine or zig-zag F28D7/10 takes precedenceF28D7/0016 and F28D7/0033 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 27/00 : Control arrangements or safety devices specially adapted for heat-exchange or heat-transfer apparatus control arrangements in general G05
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 623/92 : Method or apparatus for preparing or treating prosthetic
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 623/923 : Bone
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/0391 : Affecting flow by the addition of material or energy
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/2076 : Utilizing diverse fluids
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/15 : Combined or convertible surface bonding means and/or assembly means

Abstract

A method of and system for recirculating a fluid in a particle production system. A reactor produces a reactive particle-gas mixture. A quench chamber mixes a conditioning fluid with the reactive particle-gas mixture, producing a cooled particle-gas mixture that comprises a plurality of precursor material particles and an output fluid. A filter element filters the output fluid, producing a filtered output. A temperature control module controls the temperature of the filtered output, producing a temperature-controlled, filtered output. A content ratio control module modulates the content of the temperature-controlled, filtered output, thereby producing a content-controlled, temperature-controlled, filtered output. A channeling element supplies the content-controlled, temperature-controlled, filtered output to the quench chamber, wherein the content-controlled, filtered output is provided to the quench chamber as the conditioning fluid to be used in cooling the reactive particle-gas mixture.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

plasma vaporizing a precursor material using a first gas, thereby producing a vaporized particle-gas mixture;

quenching the vaporized particle-gas mixture using a conditioning fluid comprising a second gas, thereby producing a cooled particle-gas mixture comprising a plurality of particles comprising the precursor material;

removing the plurality of particles from the cooled particle-gas mixture, thereby producing a filtered output comprising the first gas and the second gas;

adjusting an amount of the filtered output, thereby producing a content-controlled, filtered output;

supplying the content-controlled, filtered output as the conditioning fluid for quenching the vaporized particle-gas mixture.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising reducing pressure of the filtered output by venting a portion of the filtered output if the pressure exceeds a predetermined threshold.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the amount of the filtered output comprises venting a portion of the filtered output.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtered output has a temperature, and the method further comprises controlling the temperature of the filtered output.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the amount of the filtered output comprises adjusting an amount of the second gas in the filtered output.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein adjusting the amount of the second gas in the filtered output comprises adding additional second gas to the filtered output.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the amount of the filtered output comprises adjusting an amount of the first gas in the filtered output.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein adjusting the amount of first gas in the filtered output comprises adding additional first gas to the filtered output.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising temporarily storing the filtered output before adjusting the amount of the filtered output.