Abstract:
A system for producing a hybrid gas includes a pressure vessel containing in its interior a feedstock with at least one set of electrodes between which an electric arc is formed. The at least one set of electrodes is within the pressure vessel and submerged in the feedstock. A fluid system passes the feedstock through a plasma of the electric arc, thereby converting a portion of the feedstock into an arc-produced gas. The arc-produced gas is collected and mixed with at least one supplementary fluid to produce the hybrid gas.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 61/988,370 filed on May 5, 2014, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD 
       [0002]    This invention relates to the field of combustible fluids and more particularly to a system, method and apparatus for combining an arc-produced fluid with another fluid. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Systems are known for the production of a combustible fluid, herein called Magnegas. In general, such systems expose a feedstock to a submerged electric arc, typically under pressure, thereby producing a gas (Magnegas) which percolates and collects above the feedstock for collection. Examples of fully operational systems for the production of Magnegas can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 7,780,924 issued Aug. 24, 2010, U.S. Pat. No. 6,183,604 issued Feb. 6, 2001, U.S. Pat. No. 6,540,966 issued Apr. 1, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,972,118 issued Dec. 5, 2005, U.S. Pat. No. 6,673,322 issued Jan. 6, 2004, U.S. Pat. No. 6,663,752 issued Dec. 16, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,926,872 issued Aug. 8, 2005, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,236,150 issued Aug. 7, 2012, all of which are incorporated by reference. 
         [0004]    The unique properties of the resulting gas (Magnegas) are well known and have been used in many applications including welding, cutting, propulsion, co-combustion, etc. It has been shown that such gas (Magnegas) burns hotter and cleaner than competing gases having similar compositions but manufactured in other ways. 
         [0005]    For some applications, different burn characteristics are needed, or, in certain situations, the cost of producing the arc-produced fluid is cost prohibitive for certain applications. For example, using a gas produced by an arc submerged in vegetable oil provides for efficient and clean operation of a motor vehicle, but production of such gas is, at time, not economical due to the cost of making/acquiring the vegetable oil or due to the difficulty in collecting used vegetable oil. Yet, such gas is known to efficiently power a motor vehicle while greatly reducing emissions and pollutants. By creating a hybrid gas by mixing the arc-produced gas with, for example, propane or natural gas, this hybrid gas has similar efficiency and clean burning characteristics as the arc-produced gas while having a lower cost, closer to the cost of the propane or natural gas. 
         [0006]    What is needed is a composite fluid made by mixing an arc-produced gas with another fluid and a system and method for producing such. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    A system for producing a hybrid gas includes a pressure vessel containing in its interior a feedstock with at least one set of electrodes between which an electric arc is formed. The at least one set of electrodes is within the pressure vessel and submerged in the feedstock. A fluid system passes the feedstock through a plasma of the electric arc, thereby converting a portion of the feedstock into an arc-produced gas. The arc-produced gas is collected and mixed with at least one supplementary fluid to produce the hybrid gas. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]    The invention can be best understood by those having ordinary skill in the art by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: 
           [0009]      FIG. 1  illustrates a schematic view of an exemplary system for production of a hybrid fluid. 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  illustrates a schematic view of an exemplary controller of a system for production of the hybrid fluid. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0011]    Reference will now be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Throughout the following detailed description, the same reference numerals refer to the same elements in all figures. 
         [0012]    Throughout this description, the system  5  for production of a hybrid fluid  39  is described as a system for arc-producing of a gas that is then combined with a supplementary fluid. For simplification, the supplementary fluid is a single fluid such as liquid propane, liquid natural gas, hydrogen, acetylene, etc., but any supplementary fluid or combination of supplementary fluids is anticipated. For example, the other fluid is a flammable fluid. In another example, the other fluid is not a flammable fluid. 
         [0013]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , an exemplary system  5  for production of a hybrid fluid  39  is shown. The system  5  starts with exposing a feedstock  8  to a plasma  18  of an electric arc. The feedstock  8  is pumped through a valve  52  by a feed pump  50  and into the reactor  12 . The electrodes  14 / 16  and plasma  18  of the arc are submerged within the feedstock  22 . In some embodiments, the feedstock is circulated within the reactor  12  and re-injected into the plasma  18  of the electric arc between the two electrodes  14 / 16  as discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,780,924 issued Aug. 24, 2010, U.S. Pat. No. 6,183,604 issued Feb. 6, 2001, U.S. Pat. No. 6,540,966 issued Apr. 1, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,972,118 issued Dec. 6, 2005, U.S. Pat. No. 6,673,322 issued Jan. 6, 2004, U.S. Pat. No. 6,663,752 issued Dec. 16, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,926,872 issued Aug. 9, 2005, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,236,150 issued Aug. 7, 2012. The plasma  18  causes the feedstock  22  to react, creating an arc-produced gas of a composition that depends upon the composition of the feedstock  22  and the composition of the electrodes  14 / 16  used in the arc. 
         [0014]    Any feedstock  22  is anticipated either in fluid form or fluid mixed with solids such as fine-grain metal dust as found in used motor oil, etc. The arc-produced gas  24  from this process is typically combustible and the composition of the gas  24  is dependent upon the fluid base of the feedstock  22  and the composition of the electrodes  14 / 16 . 
         [0015]    In examples in which the feedstock  22  is a petroleum-based liquid, the exposure of this petroleum-based feedstock  22  to the arc (as above) results in an arc-produced gas  24  that includes polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons which, in some embodiments, are quasi-nanoparticles that are not stable and, therefore, some of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons will form/join to become nanoparticles or a liquid. Therefore, some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as well as some carbon particles/nanoparticles are present in the resulting arc-produced gas  24 . In some embodiments, some of the carbon particles or nanoparticles are trapped or enclosed in poly cyclic bonds. Analysis of the arc-produced gas  24  typically includes polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons that range from C6 to C14. The presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as well as carbon particles or nanoparticles contributes to the unique burn properties of the resulting arc-produced gas  24 . This leads to higher burning temperatures of the arc-produced gas  24 . 
         [0016]    In another example, the feedstock  22  is used motor oil and at least one of the electrodes  14 / 16  is carbon. In this, the petroleum molecules separate within the plasma of the electric arc  18  into an arc-produced gas  24  that includes hydrogen (H 2 ) and aromatic hydrocarbons, which percolate to the surface of the petroleum liquid feedstock  22  for collection. In some embodiments, the arc-produced gas  24  made by this process includes suspended carbon particles since at least one of the electrodes of the arc  18  is made from carbon and serves as the source for the charged carbon particles or nanoparticles that travel with the manufactured hydrogen and aromatic hydrocarbon gas  24  and are collected along with, for example, the hydrogen and aromatic hydrocarbon molecules, thereby changing the burning properties of the resulting arc-produced gas  24 , leading to a hotter flame. In this example, if the feedstock  22  is used motor oil and the collected arc-produced gas  24  includes any or all of the following: hydrogen, ethylene, ethane, methane, acetylene, and other combustible gases to a lesser extent, plus suspended charged carbon particles or nanoparticles that travel with these gases. 
         [0017]    The arc-produced gas  24  is shown being collected in a tank  30  for later mixing with one or more fluids/gases  34 . 
         [0018]    In operation, the circulation valve  52  is set to open by the controller  40 , connecting the source of feedstock  8  to the pump  50  and the pump  50  is controlled to operate and fill the reactor  12  to a certain level with feedstock  22 . As the process continues, it is anticipated that the above is repeated as the feedstock  22  depletes, e.g., as the arc-produced gas  24  is produced. Note, at this time the exit valve  62  is closed so that no feedstock  22  exits the reactor  12 . 
         [0019]    Once sufficient feedstock  22  is within the reactor  12 , the valve  52  is controlled by the controller  40  to circulate and the feedstock  22  is pumped from the reactor  12  through a feed pipe/tube  56  and back out through an injection pipe  54  by the circulation pump  50 . This flow is directing the circulation of feedstock  22  directly into the plasma  18  of the arc between the electrodes  14 / 16 . In some embodiments, the flow of the feedstock  22  is directed through one or both of the electrodes  14 / 16  for a more complete exposure of the feedstock  22  to the plasma  18 . 
         [0020]    As the feedstock  22  is exposed to the plasma  18  of the arc, arc-produced gas  24  is made and percolates to the top of the reactor  12 , above the feedstock  22 . 
         [0021]    In some embodiments, when sufficient feedstock  22  has been exposed to the plasma  18  of the arc or the feedstock  22  is no longer useable (e.g. becomes too viscous), the exit valve  62  is opened and the exit pump  60  is operated to pump some or all of the processed feedstock  22  out of the reactor through an exit pipe/tube  64  and drain  70 . The above process is repeated to refill the reactor  12  with fresh feedstock  22 . 
         [0022]    As the arc-produced gas (fluid)  24  is produced, it is stored in a tank  30  for later use/mixing. In some embodiments, the arc-produced gas  24  is compressed or processed as known in the industry to convert the arc-produced gas  24  into a liquid  24  (liquefaction). The arc-produced gas (or liquid)  24  is then mixed by a mixing valve system  36  with a supplementary fluid  34  (gas or liquid) from a second fluid storage tank  32  to produce the hybrid fluid (gas or liquid)  39 . Although a single secondary storage tank  32  is shown, it is fully anticipated that any number of secondary storage tanks  32  having the same supplementary gas (or liquid)  34  or having a multitude of different supplementary gases (or liquids)  34 . Any single or multiple supplementary gas or liquid  34  is anticipated such as Propane (liquid or gas), Propylene, Natural gas, methylacetylene (propyne) and propadiene, naptha, synthetic natural gas, liquid hydrogen, etc. 
         [0023]    It is anticipated that the hybrid fluid  39  comprise any proportion of arc-produced fluid  24  to supplementary fluid(s)  34  including, but not limited to, at least 10% of the arc-produced fluid  24 , approximately 10% of the arc-produced fluid, approximately 50% of the arc-produced fluid, etc. As a non-limiting example, one hybrid fluid  39  comprises 50% liquefied arc-produced fluid  24 , 25% of propane, and 25% of natural gas, by volume. The resulting hybrid gas  39  is, for example, stored in another tank  37  or used immediately. 
         [0024]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , a schematic view of an exemplary controller  40  of a system  5  for producing a hybrid fluid  39  is shown. This example computer system  40  represents a typical computer system  40  used to control various aspects of the system for producing the hybrid fluid  39 . The example computer system  40  is shown in its simplest form, having a single processor. Many different computer architectures are known that accomplish similar results in a similar fashion and the present invention is not limited in any way to any particular computer system. The present invention works well utilizing a single processor system, as shown in  FIG. 2 , a multiple processor system where multiple processors share resources such as memory and storage, a multiple server system where several independent servers operate in parallel (perhaps having shared access to the data or any combination). In any of these systems, a processor  170  executes or runs stored programs that are generally stored for execution within a memory  174 . The processor  170  is any processor or a group of processors, for example an Intel Pentium-4® CPU or the like. The memory  174  is connected to the processor by a memory bus  172  and is any memory  174  suitable for connection with the selected processor  170 , such as SRAM, DRAM, SDRAM, RDRAM, DDR, DDR-2, etc. Also connected to the processor  170  is a system bus  182  for connecting to peripheral subsystems such as a network interface  180 , persistent storage (e.g. a hard disk)  188 , removable storage (e.g. DVD, CD, flash drive)  190 , a graphics adapter  184  and a keyboard/mouse  192 . The graphics adapter  184  receives commands and display information from the system bus  182  and generates a display image that is displayed on the display  186 . 
         [0025]    In general, the persistent storage  188  is used to store programs, executable code and data such as user financial data in a persistent manner. The removable storage  190  is used to load/store programs, executable code, images and data onto the persistent storage  188 . These peripherals are examples of input/output devices  180 / 184 / 192 , persistent storage  188  and removable storage  190 . Other examples of persistent storage include core memory, FRAM, flash memory, etc. Other examples of removable media storage include CDRW, DVD, DVD writeable, Blu-ray, compact flash, other removable flash media, floppy disk, etc. In some embodiments, less devices or other devices are connected to the system through the system bus  182  or with other input-output connections/arrangements as known in the industry. Examples of these devices include printers; graphics tablets; joysticks; and communications adapters such as modems and Ethernet adapters. In such, any of the prior devices  184 / 188 / 190 / 180 / 192  are optionally present. 
         [0026]    Various components of the system for recovering precious metals  5  are controlled by the controller  40  such as the pumps  50 / 60 , the power supply  10 , the valves  52 / 62 , and the electrode moving mechanism(s)  17 . For example, the controller  40  instructs the valve  62  to open and the pump  60  to initiate exit flow. 
         [0027]    In systems  5  in which a wide-area connection or connection to other system is needed, the network interface  180  connects the computer-based system to the network  110  through a link  178  which is, preferably, a high speed link such as a cable broadband connection, a Digital Subscriber Loop (DSL) broadband connection, a T1 line, or a T3 line. 
         [0028]    Equivalent elements can be substituted for the ones set forth above such that they perform in substantially the same manner in substantially the same way for achieving substantially the same result. 
         [0029]    It is believed that the system and method as described and many of its attendant advantages will be understood by the foregoing description. It is also believed that it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the components thereof without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention or without sacrificing all of its material advantages. The form herein before described being merely exemplary and explanatory embodiment thereof. It is the intention of the following claims to encompass and include such changes.