Patent ID: 8025806

Claim:
A method for intercepting solid particles within a stream of fluids flowing from a wellhead, through an interconnecting wellhead line and to a flowline, comprising the steps of: disposing an elongated container in a conduit between and in fluid communication with the interconnecting wellhead line and the flowline, said elongated container having a cross-sectional area greater than the cross-sectional area of the conduit near the inlet to the elongated container, said elongated container having an outer surface comprising an upper portion above a horizontal axis of a cross-section of the elongated container and a lower portion below the horizontal axis of the elongated container, said elongated container further including a plurality of access ports located in the upper portion of the container, said access ports having a predetermined size that prevents substantial human entry into each of the access ports; passing the stream of fluids flowing from the wellhead and interconnecting wellhead line through said conduit and into the elongated container, wherein the container allows substantially unidirectional and unobstructed fluid flow between the inlet and the outlet; wherein the velocity of the fluid flowing in the elongated container is reduced when the fluid enters the elongated container and the decreasing velocity of the fluid flowing in the elongated container allows solid particles in the fluid to settle into the lower portion of the container, thereby intercepting and preventing a portion of said solid particles from entering said flowline.