VACUUM CREATING SYSTEMS based on vacuum hydrocirculating units

Purpose Vacuum hydrocirculating units (VHC units) are intended for exhaust of gases, vapors and gasvapor-fluid mixtures for vacuum creation in devices of various purposes (distillation and stripping columns, desorbers, evaporators, deaerators, condensers, reactors, dryers, desalters, systems of oil products refining and other technological vessels). The VHC units are an alternative to traditional systems of vacuum creation such as vacuum pumps, steam ejectors and have sufficiently better performance as regards operation stability and operating costs under certain conditions. Field of application of vacuum units

Vacuum distillation columns of refineries. Vacuum distillation of products in chemical and petrochemical industry. Vacuum stripping columns, units of solvent cleaning of lube products. Vacuum columns for drying of diesel fractions. Vacuum creation in steam-turbine condensers. Vacuum creation in deaerators, desorbers, evaporators, dryers, desalters and other process equipment. Exhauster systems of high-altitude benches. Vacuum teeming in metal manufacture.

Single-stage scheme of VHC unit

1 vacuum creating device 2 - separator 3 cooler 4 - pump

I - gas-vapor mixture from vacuumized vessel II exhaust line for compressed gas III line of motive fluid excess withdrawal IV fresh motive fluid makeup line

Principle of operation The pumpage from process apparatus, e.g. distillation column, is directed to the inlet of vacuum creating device 1. In vacuum creating device 1 there occurs the compression of vapor-gas at the caused by motive fluid energy delivered to device 1 by the pump 4. One of process flows can be used as an motive fluid, there is allowed to mix it with vapors pumped by the vacuum creating unit. The diesel fraction or vacuum gas oil is used in petroleum refinery as motive fluid. The cyclohexanol-cyclohexanone mixture is the motive fluid in caprolactam production. The process of vapors condensation on the jet of motive fluid occurs simultaneously with gasvapor compression. Herewith the vapor condensation and gas cooling in the vacuum creating device occurs on isobar and their compression up to discharge pressure - on isotherm, what makes the device energy-efficient as compared with other vacuum pumps, particularly by pumping of gas-vapor mixtures with large vapor percentage. The gas-vapor mixture generated goes from vacuum creating device 1 to the separator 2, where the separation of gas and fluid occurs. The gas compressed up to required pressure is directed for further recycling, for example, incineration. After the removal of heat excess in the cooler 3, the motive fluid is delivered to the vacuum creating device 1 by the pump 4. The makeup is carried out for refreshing of motive operating fluid, if necessary. The balance excess of motive fluid is let out of the system. Main advantages of VHC units The advantages of vacuum creating systems on basis of vacuum hydrocirculating unit as compared with steam jet ejectors:

increased environmental safety of the whole unit thanks to significantly decreased discharge of heat energy, polluted waste water and steam condensate requiring appropriate treatment; savings on reduction of costs for energy consumption (water steam and cooling water); decreasing of losses of valuable products with water steam condensate; stabilization of vacuum in process equipment on designed and reduction of process loss connected with deterioration in operation of steam jet ejector systems by contamination of interstage condensers and by variation in parameters of steam and cooling water; silent operation; suction pressure for VHC unit depends only slightly on cooling water temperature, which provides an important advantage, especially under hot climatic conditions;

mechanical vacuum pumps:

low sensitivity to the presence of condensate vapors and solid particles in exhaust gas;

ability to pump explosive and highly deleterious gases; high level of fire and explosion safety owing to absence of movable mechanical parts in the jet device; high reliability, ease of operation and external location of unit;

liquid ring vacuum pumps:

possibility to obtain a deeper vacuum; high reliability, ease of operation; higher volume capacity of exhaust gas.

The VHC unit can operate in compressor mode - compressing various gases and gas-vapor mixtures including polluted and explosive ones by small design debugging.