Patent Publication Number: US-2021164617-A1

Title: Liquid propane injection pump

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/439,695, filed Feb. 22, 2017. U.S. application Ser. No. 15/439,695 claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/298,830, filed on Feb. 23, 2016 and to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/361,179, filed on Jul. 12, 2016, each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. A claim of priority is made, to the extent appropriate, to each of the above-referenced applications. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present disclosure relates to systems for evacuating liquids from a storage tanks 
     BACKGROUND 
     During certain operations, propane storage tanks must be evacuated. Mechanically driven pumps are currently used for such operations. However, the pumps must typically be manually positioned between a delivery truck and the propane tank which is time consuming and cumbersome. The involvement of two operators is typically required to position the pump and connect the required hoses between the pump and the delivery truck and storage tank. As importantly, due to the bulk and weight of such pumps, their movement represents an occupational hazard for the operators. 
     SUMMARY 
     A liquid propane injection pump assembly is disclosed. In one example, the liquid propane injection pump assembly includes a connection tee having first, second, and third openings. A first inlet structure can be provided that is coupled to the connection tee first opening, wherein the first inlet structure includes a first coupling member and a nozzle. In one aspect, the nozzle extends from a first end to a second end and defines a first internal passageway and has an external surface that tapers in a direction from the first end towards the second end. A second inlet structure can also be provided that includes a second coupling member coupled to the connection tee second opening. An outlet structure can also be provided that is coupled to the connection tee third opening. The outlet structure can include a third coupling member and a barrel, wherein the barrel extends from a first end to a second end and defines a second internal passageway that includes a first tapered section proximate the barrel first end and a second tapered section proximate the barrel second end. In one example, the tapered nozzle second end extends a first distance into the first tapered section of the second internal passageway defined by the barrel. 
     In some examples, the barrel first tapered section is disposed at a first angle relative to a first longitudinal axis of the barrel that is greater than a second angle defined by the tapered external surface of the nozzle. 
     In some examples, the first angle is about 10 degrees and the second angle is about 5 degrees. 
     In some examples, the first distance is at least half of a first length of the barrel first tapered section. 
     In some examples, the first distance is between about 0.5 inch and 0.75 inch. 
     In some examples, the outlet structure is welded to the connection tee. 
     In some examples, the barrel first tapered section is a conically-shaped taper. 
     In some examples, the nozzle external tapered surface is a conically-shaped taper. 
     In some examples, the first inlet structure includes an adapter component that connects the nozzle to the first coupling member. 
     In some examples, the nozzle is welded to the adapter component. 
     In some examples, the outlet structure includes a connector piece connecting the third coupling member to the barrel. 
     In some examples, the third coupling member is threaded onto the connector piece and the barrel is welded to the connector piece. 
     In some examples, the first and second inlet structures are threaded onto the connection tee and the outlet structure is welded onto the connection tee. 
     In some examples, the barrel and the nozzle are formed from ASTM A106 black steel pipe. 
     In some examples, the connection tee is formed from ASTM A104 steel. 
     In some examples, the first, second, and third coupling members are ACME-type threaded couplings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments are described with reference to the following figures, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the various views unless otherwise specified. 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic view of a liquid propane injection pump connected to a delivery truck and a storage tank in arrangements according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 1A  is a schematic view of the liquid propane injection pump of  FIG. 1  shown as being connected to the storage tank with an intermediate valve located therebetween. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4  is a side view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional side view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is a top view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional top view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 8  is a first end view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 9  is a second end view of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional side view of a Tapered barrel of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional side view of a tapered nozzle of the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 12  shows a process for transferring liquid propane from a first propane storage to a second propane storage tank using the liquid propane injection pump shown in  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Various embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals represent like parts and assemblies throughout the several views. Reference to various embodiments does not limit the scope of the claims attached hereto. Additionally, any examples set forth in this specification are not intended to be limiting and merely set forth some of the many possible embodiments for the appended claims. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 8 , a liquid propane injection pump  100  is shown as being provided in a pumping system  1 . In the configuration shown, the liquid propane injection pump  100  is utilized to transfer propane from a first tank  20  (e.g. a stationary propane storage tank) to a second tank  12  (e.g. a transportable tank mounted on a vehicle) via a process  1000 . The liquid propane injection pump  100  has no moving parts and instead relies upon an internal high velocity nozzle  116  (shown at  FIGS. 3, 5, 7, 11 ) connected to a first inlet  102  in order to induce flow from a second inlet  104  to an outlet  106 . The first inlet  102  is connected to a hose  16  of a delivery truck  10  having a storage tank  12 . A pump  14  is shown as being in fluid communication with the hose  16  and the storage tank  12  and is configured to pump liquid propane from the storage tank  12  through the hose  16  to the first inlet  102  of the liquid propane injection pump  100 . The second inlet  104  is connected to a storage tank  20  via a hose  22 . In the example shown, the storage tank  20  is a propane storage tank  20 . The outlet  106  is in fluid communication with the truck storage tank  12  via the spray fill loading connection on the truck storage tank  12 . A vapor equalizing line  24  must be provided between the tank  20  and the truck storage tank  12 . 
     As discussed in more detail later, the liquid propane injection pump  100  includes a tapered nozzle that directs fluid pumped by the pump  14  into a tapered barrel that is in fluid communication with the second inlet. The liquid flowing from the tapered nozzle into the tapered barrel from the tapered nozzle creates a low pressure region in the tapered barrel, and thus the second inlet  104 . This low pressure region causes propane, for example liquid propane, from the storage tank  20  to be induced into the second inlet  104  to drain the tank  20 . The fluids from the inlets  102  and  104  combine within the tapered barrel and exit through the outlet  106  and discharge into the truck storage tank  12 . In the embodiment shown at  FIG. 1 , the injection pump  100  is directly connected to a fitting on the tank  12  (i.e. not connected to an intermediate hose). Optionally, and as shown at  FIG. 1A , the liquid propane injection pump  100  can be selectively isolated from the tank  12  via an isolation valve  19  and/or can be connected to the tank via a hose  18 . As can be appreciated, the on-board pump  14  of the delivery truck  10  can be used in combination with the disclosed liquid propane injection pump  100  to drain the storage tank  20  without requiring the use of a separate pump that must be off loaded from the truck  10  to a location between the tanks  20 ,  12 . This operation can be completed by a single operator. 
       FIG. 2  shows a perspective view of the liquid propane injection pump  100 .  FIGS. 4 and 6  respectively show side and bottom views of the liquid propane injection pump  100  while  FIGS. 8 and 9  show end views of the liquid propane injection pump  100 . From these views, it can be seen that the first inlet  102  is provided with a coupling  110 , the second inlet  104  is provided with a coupling  112 , and the outlet  106  is provided with a coupling  114 . In one example, the couplings  110 ,  112 ,  114  can be quick-connect type couplings. The couplings  110 ,  112 , and  114  allow for the liquid propane injection pump to be respectively coupled to the hoses  16 ,  22 , and  18 . In the embodiment shown, the coupling  110  is provided with threaded ends to facilitate connection to a an adapter fitting  122  which is in turn provided with a threaded connection that facilitates connection to a first opening in a connection tee  120  of the liquid propane injection pump  100 . Similarly, the coupling  112  is provided with a threaded connection to facilitate connection to a second opening of the connection tee  120 . The coupling  114  is also provided with a threaded end to facilitate connection to a connector  124  of the liquid propane injection pump  100 . As shown, the connector  124  provides for a connection point between a barrel  118  and the coupling  114 . The barrel  118  is shown as being connected to a third opening of the connection tee  120 . The barrel  118  is shown as being welded to the connection tee  120  third opening, with weld w 1 , and to the connector  124 , with weld w 2 . In an alternative design, the individual components are welded together without the use of any threaded connections. 
       FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of the liquid propane injection pump  100  showing the aforementioned couplings  110 ,  112 ,  114 , barrel  118 , connector  124 , and adapter  122 . A tapered nozzle  116  is also shown. The tapered nozzle  116  is connected to the adapter  122  with a welded connection and extends through the connection tee  120  first opening. The tapered nozzle  116  can be welded or threaded to the adapter  122 . In the embodiment shown, a welded connection is provided. It is noted that threads are not shown on every component in  FIG. 3 , although they can be seen in other views. 
       FIG. 10  shows a cross-sectional view of the tapered barrel  118 . As shown, the tapered barrel  118  extends between a first end  118   a  and a second end  118   b  between which an internal passageway  118   c  is defined along a longitudinal axis X. The tapered barrel has an overall length L 118  and an outside diameter D 118 . In the example shown, the length  118   d  is 6.5 inch while the diameter D 118  is about 1.3 inch. The internal passageway  118   c  includes a first tapered section  118   d , a central cylindrical section  118   e , and a second tapered section  118   f . The first tapered section  118   d  is shown as being provided at an angle A 118   d  with respect to the longitudinal axis X over a length L 118   d . In the example shown, angle A 118   d  is 10 degrees while length L 118   d  is 1 inch. The central cylindrical section  118   e  extends between the first and second tapered portions  118   d ,  118   f  over a length L 118   e . In the example shown, length L 118   e  is 3.5 inch. The second tapered section  118   f  is shown as being provided at an angle A 118   f  with respect to the longitudinal axis X over a length L 118   f . It is noted that the tapered sections  118   d  and  118   f  are provided as straight or conical (i.e. frustoconical) tapers. Such a configuration enables the internal passageway  118   c  to be more easily machined in a straightforward fashion, in comparison to curved tapers. 
     In the example shown, angle A 118   f  is about 7 degrees while length L 118   f  is 2 inch. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that angle A 118   d  is greater than angle A 118   f  while length L 118   d  is less than length L 118   f . The internal passageway  118   c  has an opening internal diameter D 118   d  at the first tapered section at end  118   a  which reduces to an internal diameter D 118   e  at the central cylindrical section  118   e  and then increases to an outlet internal diameter D 118   f  at the second end  118   b . In the example shown, the diameter D 118   d  is about 1 inch, the diameter D 118   e  is about 0.625 inch, and the diameter D 118   f  is about 1.1 inch. While the above described dimensions and angles relate to a preferred embodiment, other values may also be utilized. 
       FIG. 11  shows a cross-sectional view of the tapered nozzle  116 . As shown, the tapered nozzle  116  extends between a first end  116   a  and a second end  116   b  over a length L 116 . The tapered nozzle  116  also defines an internal passageway  116   c  having a constant internal diameter D 116   c  extending along the longitudinal axis X. In the example shown, length L 116  is 2.75 inch and the diameter D 116   c  is about 0.3 inch. The tapered nozzle  116  also defines a shoulder section  116   d , which is received into adapter  122 , a central section  116   e , and a tapered section  116   f . The shoulder section  116   d  has a length L 116   d  and a diameter D 116   d . The central section  116   e  has a length L 116   e  and a diameter D 116   e . The tapered portion  116   f  extends over a length L 116   f  and initially has a diameter D 116   e  and tapers to a diameter D 116   f  with an angle A 116   f . In the example shown, L 116   d  is about 0.25 inch, L 116   e  is about 1.25 inch, and L 116   f  is about 1.25 inch while D 116   d  is about 0.44 inch, D 116   e  is about 0.545 inch, and D 116   f  is about 0.22 inch. Angle A 116   f  is shown as being 5 degrees. Thus, the angle A 116   f  is less than then angle A 118   d . While the above described dimensions and angles relate to a preferred embodiment, other values may also be utilized. 
       FIGS. 5 and 7  show cross-sectional views of the liquid propane injection pump  100  showing the relationship between the nozzle  116  and the barrel  118 . Many variables exist for maximizing the performance of the liquid propane injection pump  100 . For example: the angle and shape of the tapered nozzle, the internal diameter of the tapered nozzle, the degree to which the nozzle extends into the tapered barrel, the angle of the inlet and outlet tapers of the tapered barrel, the maximum and minimum taper diameters of the barrel inlet and outlet, the length of the barrel tapers, the length of the straight section between the barrel tapers, and the straight section internal diameter are all factors that affect performance. In a preferred embodiment, the nozzle second end  116   b  extends past the barrel first end  118   a  and into the barrel internal passageway  118   c . As shown, the nozzle second end  116   b  extends past the barrel first end  118   a  at a length L 1 . In a preferred embodiment, the length L 1  is between about 0.5 inch and 0.75 inch, and more preferably about 0.56 inch, which is greater than half the length of the first tapered section  118   d . As the tapered nozzle  116  extends into the barrel internal passageway  118   c , the tapered nozzle  116  necessarily extends entirely across the third opening of the connection tee  120 . As can also be seen at  FIG. 5 , the internal passageways  116   c ,  118   b  of the nozzle  116  and barrel  118  are coaxially aligned, as are the internal passageways defined by the coupling  110 , adapter  122 , connection tee  120 , and coupling  114 .  FIGS. 5 and 7  also show that that the tapered nozzle  116  can be welded to the adapter  122  with a weld W 3  and that the adapter  122  can be formed from a first threaded component  122   a  and a second threaded component  122   b . The second component  122   b  can be provided as a threaded bushing which is then machined with a central bore for accepting the end of the nozzle  116 .  FIGS. 5 and 7  also show that the connection tee  120  is initially provided with a threaded connection at the third opening that is machined out to a larger diameter such that the barrel  118  can be inserted into the connection tee  120  and then welded to the connection tee  120  with weld w 1 . Optionally, connection tee  120  is provided with two threaded openings for the first and second openings and a socket connection for the third opening such that a machining step is not required. Similarly, the connector  124  can be provided with one threaded end and one socket end. 
     In one example, the couplings  110 ,  112 , and  114  are brass fittings in which couplings  110 ,  112  are configured as ACME-type male fittings and coupling  114  is configured as an ACME-type female fitting. In one example, the connector  124 , connection tee  120 , and adapter  122  are formed from steel, such as ASTM A105 black steel. In one example, the barrel  118  and nozzle  116  are formed from steel pipe, such as ASTM A106 black steel pipe. 
     Once the aforementioned individual components are threaded together to form an assembly a leak-proof, high pressure assembly results. Examples of the finished assembly have been leak tested with pressurized air up to 250 psi and have also been hydrostatically tested to 350 psi. Additionally, the invention has been certified as being ETL listed to conform to standard “UL 119”. The finished assembly can be provided with a surface coating, such as a powder coated painted surface PS to improve durability, corrosion resistance, and aesthetics. Tests of the invention have shown that, when the pump  14  delivers about 25 gallons per minute (gpm) to the liquid propane injection pump  100  that about 12 to 15 gallons of propane (gpm) will be drawn out of the tank  20  and into the second opening  104 , which is a significant improvement over prior art designs. Additionally, as the liquid propane injection pump is formed as an assembly from standard pipe and fitting components (and standard materials) with limited required machining, the disclosed invention is far more economical than other complex designs which require either heavy machining and/or casting. 
     The various embodiments described above are provided by way of illustration only and should not be construed to limit the claims attached hereto. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize various modifications and changes that may be made without following the example embodiments and applications illustrated and described herein, and without departing from the true spirit and scope of the disclosure.