Abstract: A pipe pig for refinery heater tubes is disclosed. The pipe pig has arcuate cleaning elements which form an expandable circumference. Each of the arcuate cleaning elements has a scraping edge. A spring element biases the arcuate cleaning elements radially outward. The pipe pig may have structural components made from titanium alloys and arcuate cleaning elements made from carbon-carbon composites. A method for cleaning coking out of refinery heater tubes using the pipe pig is also disclosed.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
July 31, 2009
Date of Patent:
April 21, 2015
Assignee:
On Stream Technologies Inc.
Inventors:
Jantje Been, Baotong Lu, David Crick, Guenther Metzker
Abstract: A method of cleaning tubing in an operating heater, in which the tubing has an inlet and an outlet. While the heater is in operation, a hollow, metallic and/or tubular mesh pig is run through the tubing from the inlet to the outlet. Cleaning should be done before contaminant has hardened. An improved pipe pig, preferably hollow, metallic and/or made from tubular mesh, has scraping edges made from longitudinal edges of a wire. The tubular mesh may be a knit, weave or may be knotted. The pig is preferably radially expandable up to twice its fully compressed radius, and may have an expander to force it radially outward. The pipe pig is preferably made of a resilient wire having a polygonal cross-section.
Abstract: A method of cleaning tubing in an operating heater, in which the tubing has an inlet and an outlet. While the heater is in operation, a pig is run through the tubing from the inlet to the outlet and then returned to the inlet along return tubing, in parallel connection to the heater tubing. A combined pig launcher and receiver mounted parallel to the tubing, and controlled with three way full port valves, is used to launch pigs into the tubing and remove them from the tubing. A boost pump is used to force pigs back from outlet to inlet.