US-12623178-B2 - Temperature-based monitor and control of a compressed-gas dryer

US12623178B2US 12623178 B2US12623178 B2US 12623178B2US-12623178-B2

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatuses are provided for determining a rotational status of a rotor of a compressed-gas dryer system. The compressed-gas dryer system a compressed gas inlet configured to receive a compressed gas to be dried from a compressed gas source; a regeneration gas inlet configured to receive a regeneration gas from a regeneration gas source; a pressure vessel defining a drying zone and a regeneration zone; a driver configured to drive rotation of a rotor provided in the pressure vessel in a predetermined rotational direction; at least a first temperature sensor configured to obtain first temperature data indicative of a first temperature at a first position within the pressure vessel; and a controller configured to receive the first temperature data and based thereon, determine a rotational status of the rotor.

Inventors

Frederico Jose DE LACQUET ROCHA E SILVA

Assignees

ATLAS COPCO AIRPOWER, NAAMLOZE VENNOOTSCHAP

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20230420

Claims (20)

1 . A compressed-gas dryer system comprising: a compressed gas inlet configured to receive a compressed gas to be dried from a compressed gas source; a regeneration gas inlet configured to receive a regeneration gas from a regeneration gas source; a pressure vessel defining a drying zone and a regeneration zone, the drying zone having an inlet through which the compressed gas to be dried is received into the drying zone and an outlet through which dried compressed gas exits the drying zone, and the regeneration zone having an inlet through which the regeneration gas is received into the regeneration zone and an outlet through which the regeneration gas exits the regeneration zone; a driver configured to drive rotation of a rotor provided in the pressure vessel in a predetermined rotational direction about an axis of rotation; a first temperature sensor configured to obtain first temperature data indicative of a first temperature at a first position within the pressure vessel; and a controller configured to receive the first temperature data, and based thereon, determine a rotational status of the rotor, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the first temperature data at the first position between 5° to 40° from a beginning at an origin 0° as a starting position within the regeneration zone.
2 . The dryer system according to claim 1 , further comprising a second temperature sensor configured to obtain second temperature data indicative of a second temperature at a second position within the pressure vessel.
3 . The dryer system according to claim 1 , wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged at the first position in the regeneration zone within the pressure vessel.
4 . The dryer system according to claim 2 , wherein the second temperature sensor is arranged at the second position in the regeneration zone within the pressure vessel.
5 . The dryer system according to claim 2 , wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the first temperature data at the first position within the regeneration zone, and wherein the second temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the second temperature data at the second position that is within the regeneration zone at a more latter portion in the regeneration zone than the first position in view of the rotation of the rotor about the axis of rotation.
6 . The dryer system according to claim 2 , the second temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the second temperature data at the second position between 50° to 90° from the beginning at the origin 0° as the starting position within the regeneration zone.
7 . The dryer system according to claim 2 , wherein the second temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the second temperature data at the second position between 85° to 90° from the beginning at the origin 0° as the starting position within the regeneration zone.
8 . The dryer system according to claim 2 , wherein the controller is configured to determine the rotational status of the rotor based only on the received first temperature data, or wherein the controller is configured to determine the rotational status of the rotor based only on a combination of the received first temperature data and the received second temperature data.
9 . The dryer system according to claim 1 , wherein the compressed gas source is a compressor, and the regeneration gas source is a portion of a stream of a compressed gas output by the compressor.
10 . The dryer system according to claim 1 , wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the first temperature data at the first position between 20° to 25° from the beginning at the origin 0° as the starting position within the regeneration zone.
11 . A compressed-gas dryer system comprising: a compressed gas inlet configured to receive a compressed gas to be dried from a compressed gas source; a regeneration gas inlet configured to receive a regeneration gas from a regeneration gas source; a pressure vessel defining a drying zone and a regeneration zone, the drying zone having an inlet through which the compressed gas to be dried is received into the drying zone and an outlet through which dried compressed gas exits the drying zone, and the regeneration zone having an inlet through which the regeneration gas is received into the regeneration zone and an outlet through which the regeneration gas exits the regeneration zone; a driver configured to drive rotation of a rotor provided in the pressure vessel in a predetermined rotational direction about an axis of rotation; a first temperature sensor configured to obtain first temperature data indicative of a first temperature at a first position within the pressure vessel; a controller configured to receive the first temperature data, and based thereon, determine a rotational status of the rotor; and a second temperature sensor configured to obtain second temperature data indicative of a second temperature at a second position within the pressure vessel, wherein the first temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the first temperature data at the first position in the drying zone within the pressure vessel, and the second temperature sensor is arranged to obtain the second temperature data at the second position in the drying zone within the pressure vessel.
12 . The dryer system according to claim 11 , wherein the controller is configured to determine whether the rotor is stopped based on the received first temperature data, or wherein the controller is configured to determine whether the rotor is stopped based on the received first temperature data and second temperature data.
13 . A temperature-based method for determining a rotational status of a rotor of a compressed-gas dryer system, the compressed-gas system including a compressed-gas source that provides a compressed gas to be dried, a regeneration gas source that provides a regeneration gas, and a pressure vessel defining a drying zone and a regeneration zone, the drying zone having an inlet through which the compressed gas to be dried is received into the drying zone and an outlet through which dried compressed gas exits the drying zone, and the regeneration zone having an inlet through which the regeneration gas is received into the regeneration zone and an outlet through which the regeneration gas exits the regeneration zone, and a driver configured to drive rotation of a rotor provided in the pressure vessel in a predetermined rotational direction about an axis of rotation, the method comprising: receiving first temperature data of a first signal obtained by a first temperature sensor, the first temperature data being indicative of a first temperature at a first position within the pressure vessel; and determining, by a controller, the rotational status of the rotor based on the first temperature data obtained from the first temperature sensor, wherein receiving the first temperature data includes receiving the first temperature data from the first temperature sensor that is indicative of the first temperature at the first position between 5° to 40° from a beginning at an origin 0° as a starting position within the regeneration zone.
14 . The method according to claim 13 , further comprising receiving second temperature data of a second signal obtained by a second temperature sensor, the second temperature data being indicative of a second temperature at a second position within the pressure vessel; and determining, by the controller, the rotational status of the rotor based on the first temperature data obtained from the first temperature sensor and the second temperature data obtained from the second temperatures sensor.
15 . The method according to claim 14 , further comprising providing the first temperature sensor at the first position at the outlet side of the regeneration zone within the pressure vessel, and/or providing the second temperature sensor at the second position at the outlet side of the regeneration zone within the pressure vessel.
16 . The method according to claim 14 , wherein receiving the first temperature data includes receiving the first temperature data from the first temperature sensor that is indicative of the first temperature at the first position within the regeneration zone, and wherein receiving the second temperature data includes receiving the second temperature data from the second temperature sensor that is indicative of the second temperature at the second position that is within the regeneration zone at a more latter portion in the regeneration zone than the first position in view of the rotation of the rotor about the axis of rotation.
17 . The method according to claim 14 , wherein receiving the second temperature data includes receiving the second temperature data from the second temperature sensor that is indicative of the second temperature at the second position between 50° to 90° from the beginning at the origin 0° as the starting position within the regeneration zone.
18 . The method according to claim 14 , further comprising wherein receiving the second temperature data includes receiving the second temperature data from the second temperature sensor that is indicative of the second temperature at the second position between 85° to 90° from a beginning at an origin 0° as a starting position within the regeneration zone.
19 . The method according to claim 13 , wherein receiving the first temperature data includes receiving the first temperature data from the first temperature sensor that is indicative of the first temperature at the first position between 20° to 25° from the beginning at the origin 0° as the starting position within the regeneration zone.
20 . A hardware storage device having stored thereon computer executable instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of a computing system, configure the computing system to perform the method of claim 13 .

Description

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to methods, systems, and apparatuses for monitoring and controlling a compressed-gas dryer, and particularly for monitoring, controlling, and optimizing the efficiency of a rotary drum dryer of a compressed-gas system based particularly on temperature information within the compressed-gas system. BACKGROUND Dry compressed air is used in a wide range of applications including, but not limited to, food processing, chemical and pharmaceutical operations, pneumatic tools, HVAC and HVAC control systems, abrasive blasting, injection molding, airbrushing, and manufacturing, for example, the manufacture of electronic componentry. In the food industry, dry air is used to dehydrate grains, dairy products, vegetables and cereals. In the electronics industry, dry compressed air is used, for example, to remove demineralized water and cleaning solvents from silicon devices and circuit boards. Atmospheric air contains water vapor, and this water vapor must be taken into consideration when producing compressed air. For example, a compressor with a working pressure of 7 bar and a capacity of 200 liters/second that compresses air at 20° C. with a relative humidity of 80% will release 10 liters/hour of water into the compressed air line. Water and moisture in a compressed air system can cause erosion, corrosion, and biological effects which can result in product spoilage, equipment malfunction and system failure. For example, in a compressed air line, water is fluidized to an aerosol mist by the turbulent air flow and the droplets are propelled at high velocities until they impact on obstructions in their path, such as piping elbows, valve discs, orifice plates, or air motor blades. The resulting repeated impacts produce pitting. Further, the produced pits caused by the high-velocity water aerosol mist provide havens for salt ions and acids, which further corrode the surface by chemical action. The weakened surface is then prone to stress corrosion by mechanical vibration and flexing. Erosion can be controlled by eliminating liquid aerosols and particles in air and removing water vapor, which can condense and form liquid droplets, from compressed air systems. Thus, in installations where compressed air lines are exposed to low temperatures and are prone to condensation, it is important that the air be dried to a dew point below the lowest possible temperature. In addition to erosion, moisture in compressed air systems can cause corrosion and destructive biological effects. Water and oil vapors can be removed by adsorption processes. Liquid aerosols may be removed from the air stream by such means as coalescing filters. Wet corrosion in compressed air systems is particularly aggressive because of the absorption of corrosive agents from the air. Although pure liquid water is not itself corrosive, very corrosive solutions are formed when water is combined with salt particles or acidic gases. It is known that corrosion can be controlled by drying the air to its lowest possible dew point. Further, moisture in compressed air systems is harmful because moist air permits the growth of bacteria, fungus and mold, which produce acidic waste that also fosters corrosion of compressed air systems. Microorganisms may also accumulate in instrumentation tubing and air motor bearings, resulting in malfunction, excessive wear rates, and seizure. Thus, it is advantageous for controlling harmful biological effects, to dry the air to a dew point which reduces the relative humidity to below 10%. Additionally, moisture in compressed air can cause product contamination by both direct and indirect means. Both water droplets and water vapor can be absorbed by the product in direct contact processes, such as, by way of example, in chemical mixing, and paint spraying applications. The absorption of water can adversely affect the chemical and physical properties of the product. In applications of dry compressed air, such as in manufacturing, a −40° F. to −100° F. dew point air is often used and therefore, it is advantageous to utilize a drying process in which the air is dried to its lowest possible dew point. For example, compressed air used in analytical instrumentation must be extremely pure and contain minimal levels of water vapor. Infrared analyzers and gas chromatographs used to analyze air for environmental chamber and physiological respiration testing typically require stable quality air and dew point levels below −60° F. Such high purity air, called “zero air,” is also beneficial in prolonging the life of sensitive components, in preventing contamination of the test samples and in preventing undesirable side reactions during analyses. The degree of dryness required is generally determined by an analysis of each individual compressed air system and the air-drying system should be designed to reduce the water vapor content to the lowest dew point level. There are known compressed gas dryer sys