| 主权项 |
1. A Fluid feed and discharge apparatus for feeding a process fluid to and from a relatively high pressure process including a process infeed and a process out-feed such that, respectively, unprocessed process fluid is fed into and processed process fluid is fed from the high pressure process, the apparatus comprising:
at least one fluid feed pump for feeding unprocessed process fluid into the high pressure process; at least one fluid discharge pump for discharging the processed process fluid fed from the high pressure process; a fluid pressure buffer system including at least one buffer fluid pump that is in fluid communication with the fluid feed and fluid discharge pumps;wherein:
the fluid feed and fluid discharge pumps each comprise a free piston reciprocally mounted within a cylinder dividing the cylinder into process fluid and buffer fluid sections, the process fluid sections of the cylinders each having a valve controlled inlet and outlet and the buffer fluid sections of the cylinders being in fluid communication by means of the fluid pressure buffer system; the fluid feed pump is connected, at its inlet, to a supply of unprocessed process fluid under relatively low pressure and, at its outlet, to a process in-feed by means of which unprocessed process fluid is fed to the process under process pressure; the fluid discharge pump is connected, at its inlet, to a process out-feed by means of which processed process fluid is fed to the fluid discharge pump under process pressure and, at its outlet, to a processed fluid discharge facility under relatively low pressure; the fluid feed and fluid discharge pumps each include valve means configured alternately to open and close the process fluid sections of the cylinders to relatively high process pressure and relatively low fluid in-feed and discharge pressure in alternating high- and low-pressure cycles in which:
in the low-pressure cycle, the fluid feed pump inlet and outlet are open and closed respectively to connect the process fluid section of the fluid feed pump to the supply of unprocessed process fluid under relatively low pressure and the fluid discharge pump inlet and outlet are closed and open respectively to connect the process fluid section of the fluid discharge pump to the discharge facility under relatively low pressure; andin the high-pressure cycle, the fluid feed pump inlet and outlet are closed and open respectively to connect the process fluid section of the fluid feed pump to the process by way of the process in-feed and the fluid discharge pump inlet and outlet are open and closed respectively to connect the process fluid section of the fluid discharge pump to the process by way of the process out-feed; and the buffer fluid pump is repeatedly operable:
in the low-pressure cycle, to reciprocate the pistons in the fluid feed pump and fluid discharge pump under the relatively low supply pressure of unprocessed process fluid filling the process fluid section of the fluid feed pump and to discharge the processed process fluid from the process fluid section of the fluid discharge pump to the discharge facility; and
in the high-pressure cycle, to reciprocate the pistons in the fluid feed pump and fluid discharge pump under the relatively high process pressure of processed process fluid filling the process fluid section of the fluid discharge pump and to feed the unprocessed process fluid in the process fluid section of the fluid feed pump by way of the process in-feed to the process under process pressure. |
