Patent ID: 11970917
Assignee: ELAVO ENERGY SOLUTIONS LTD.
Field: Chemical engineering (Chemistry)
Classification: CPC E  B | IPC B  E

Claim 15:
16. A system for removing drilling fluid from wet drill cuttings, comprising:
an internal combustion engine having at least one of an air inlet, a fuel inlet and an exhaust outlet, wherein the internal combustion engine is configured to combust an air-fuel mixture comprising air and a hydrocarbon-based fuel, thereby producing a combustion exhaust at a first temperature;
a processor having a processing chamber, the processing chamber having a cuttings inlet through which the wet drill cuttings are received into the processing chamber, an evaporated fluids outlet, a dry drilling solids outlet and at least one combustion exhaust inlet configured to receive the combustion exhaust, directly or indirectly, from the exhaust outlet, a fixed stage comprising a fixed bed in fluid communication with the at least one combustion exhaust inlet and configured to receive the combustion exhaust therefrom, an agitator stage upstream of and in fluid communication with the fixed bed and configured to receive the combustion exhaust therefrom, the agitator stage operatively connected to the cuttings inlet and having a mixing device configured to agitate the wet drill cuttings received therefrom;
wherein the processor is configured to:
provide the combustion exhaust to the processing chamber to contact and directly heat the wet drill cuttings by convection so that at least some fluid is evaporated therefrom and at least some dry solid drill cuttings remain, the evaporated fluid comprises drilling fluid and water,
provide the evaporated fluid to the evaporated fluids outlet for recovery therefrom, and
provide dry solid drill cuttings to the dry solids outlet for recovery therefrom; and

at least one condensing device having a condenser inlet in fluid communication with the evaporated fluids outlet, a condensed drilling fluids outlet, a non-condensable inert gas outlet and a water outlet;
wherein the at least one condensing device is configured to:
condense at least a portion of the evaporated fluid, received directly or indirectly from the evaporated fluids outlet, to produce condensed drilling fluid, water and non-condensable inert gas,
provide the condensed drilling fluid to the condensed drilling fluids outlet for recovery therefrom,
provide the non-condensable inert gas to the non-condensable inert gas outlet for recovery therefrom, and
provide the water to the water outlet for recovery therefrom; and

wherein in providing the combustion exhaust to the processing chamber to contact and directly heat the wet drill cuttings by convection comprises providing the combustion exhaust to the agitator stage via the fixed bed and agitating the wet drill cuttings by the mixing device; and
wherein the internal combustion engine, the processor and the at least one condensing device operate at a pressure above atmospheric pressure.