Patents by Inventor Mike Lam
Mike Lam has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 8685210Abstract: An inline bitumen froth steam heater system including steam injection and static mixing devices is provided. The system heats and de-aerates input bitumen froth without creating downstream processing problems with the bitumen froth such as emulsification or live steam entrainment. The system is a multistage unit that injects and thoroughly mixes steam with bitumen resulting in output bitumen material having temperature of about 190° F. The system conditions a superheated steam supply to obtain saturated steam at about 300° F. The saturated steam is contacted with bitumen froth flow and mixed in a static mixer stage. The static mixers provide surface area and rotating action that allows the injected steam to condense and transfer its heat to the bitumen froth. The mixing action and increase in temperature of the bitumen froth results in reduction in bitumen viscosity and allows the release of entrapped air from the bitumen froth.Type: GrantFiled: March 28, 2011Date of Patent: April 1, 2014Assignee: Suncor Energy Inc.Inventors: Les Gaston, Donald Norman Madge, William Lester Strand, Ian Noble, William Nicholas Garner, Mike Lam
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Publication number: 20110174592Abstract: An inline bitumen froth steam heater system including steam injection and static mixing devices is provided. The system heats and de-aerates input bitumen froth without creating downstream processing problems with the bitumen froth such as emulsification or live steam entrainment. The system is a multistage unit that injects and thoroughly mixes steam with bitumen resulting in output bitumen material having temperature of about 190 ° F. The system conditions a superheated steam supply to obtain saturated steam at about 300 ° F. The saturated steam is contacted with bitumen froth flow and mixed in a static mixer stage. The static mixers provide surface area and rotating action that allows the injected steam to condense and transfer its heat to the bitumen froth. The mixing action and increase in temperature of the bitumen froth results in reduction in bitumen viscosity and allows the release of entrapped air from the bitumen froth.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 28, 2011Publication date: July 21, 2011Applicant: SUNCOR ENERGY INC.Inventors: Les Gaston, Donald Norman Madge, William Lester Strand, Ian Noble, William Nicholas Garner, Mike Lam
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Patent number: 7914670Abstract: An inline bitumen froth steam heater system including steam injection and static mixing devices is provided. The system heats and de-aerates input bitumen froth without creating downstream processing problems with the bitumen froth such as emulsification or live steam entrainment. The system is a multistage unit that injects and thoroughly mixes steam with bitumen resulting in output bitumen material having temperature of about 190° F. The system conditions a superheated steam supply to obtain saturated steam at about 300° F. The saturated steam is contacted with bitumen froth flow and mixed in a static mixer stage. The static mixers provide surface area and rotating action that allows the injected steam to condense and transfer its heat to the bitumen froth. The mixing action and increase in temperature of the bitumen froth results in reduction in bitumen viscosity and allows the release of entrapped air from the bitumen froth.Type: GrantFiled: June 29, 2009Date of Patent: March 29, 2011Assignee: Suncor Energy Inc.Inventors: Les Gaston, Donald Norman Madge, William Lester Strand, Ian Noble, William Nicholas Garner, Mike Lam
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Publication number: 20100006474Abstract: An inline bitumen froth steam heater system including steam injection and static mixing devices is provided. The system heats and de-aerates input bitumen froth without creating downstream processing problems with the bitumen froth such as emulsification or live steam entrainment. The system is a multistage unit that injects and thoroughly mixes steam with bitumen resulting in output bitumen material having temperature of about 190° F. The system conditions a superheated steam supply to obtain saturated steam at about 300° F. The saturated steam is contacted with bitumen froth flow and mixed in a static mixer stage. The static mixers provide surface area and rotating action that allows the injected steam to condense and transfer its heat to the bitumen froth. The mixing action and increase in temperature of the bitumen froth results in reduction in bitumen viscosity and allows the release of entrapped air from the bitumen froth.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 29, 2009Publication date: January 14, 2010Applicant: Suncor Energy Inc.Inventors: Les Gaston, Donald Norman Madge, William Lester Strand, Ian Noble, William Nicholas Garner, Mike Lam
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Patent number: 7556715Abstract: An inline bitumen froth steam heater system is comprised of steam injection and static mixing devices. The steam heater system heats and de-aerates an input bitumen froth without creating downstream processing problems with the bitumen froth such as emulsification or live steam entrainment. The inline bitumen froth steam heater is a multistage unit that injects and thoroughly mixes the steam with bitumen resulting in an output bitumen material having a homogenous temperature of about 190° F. The heating system conditions a superheated steam supply to obtain saturated steam at about 300° F. The saturated steam is contacted with a bitumen froth flow and mixed in a static mixer stage. The static mixers provide a surface area and rotating action that allows the injected steam to condense and transfer its heat to the bitumen froth. The mixing action and the increase in temperature of the bitumen froth results in reduction in bitumen viscosity and also allows the release of entrapped air from the bitumen froth.Type: GrantFiled: April 16, 2004Date of Patent: July 7, 2009Assignee: Suncor Energy, Inc.Inventors: Les Gaston, Donald Norman Madge, William Lester Strand, Ian Noble, William Nicholas Garner, Mike Lam
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Publication number: 20050150816Abstract: An inline bitumen froth steam heater system is comprised of steam injection and static mixing devices. The steam heater system heats and de-aerates an input bitumen froth without creating downstream processing problems with the bitumen froth such as emulsification or live steam entrainment. The inline bitumen froth steam heater is a multistage unit that injects and thoroughly mixes the steam with bitumen resulting in an output bitumen material having a homogenous temperature of about 190° F. The heating system conditions a superheated steam supply to obtain saturated steam at about 300° F. The saturated steam is contacted with a bitumen froth flow and mixed in a static mixer stage. The static mixers provide a surface area and rotating action that allows the injected steam to condense and transfer its heat to the bitumen froth. The mixing action and the increase in temperature of the bitumen froth results in reduction in bitumen viscosity and also allows the release of entrapped air from the bitumen froth.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 16, 2004Publication date: July 14, 2005Inventors: Les Gaston, Donald Madge, William Strand, Ian Noble, William Garner, Mike Lam
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Patent number: D397778Type: GrantFiled: February 25, 1997Date of Patent: September 1, 1998Assignee: Green Tradings Ltd.Inventor: Mike Lam