Abstract: The present invention is an improved thermal evaporation process capable of economically producing fresh water from a high saline water. The process employs the use of a multiphase pump with a compressor for injection of hot air into a brine stream. A series of mixers, separators and condensers separate the brine steam into a concentrated brine, a vapor brine and condensate. A portion of the concentrated brine is discharged and the remainder recycled to obtain conversion efficiencies approaching 80 percent.

Abstract: An ultrasonic measuring system is provided including a plurality of upstream and downstream ultrasonic transducers coupled to a multiflow pipeline and positioned along first and second cross sectional portions of the multiflow pipeline. A transducer control system is coupled to the upstream and downstream ultrasonic transducers for selective activation of the transducers. In one embodiment, the ultrasonic measuring system is utilized to determine a flow velocity of a selected fluid in a multiflow pipeline by generating and detecting velocimetric ultrasonic pulses in the selected fluid. In another embodiment, the ultrasonic measuring system is utilized to determine film heights of fluids flowing within the pipeline.

Abstract: A predetermined multiphase flow anomaly, for example, a plug, a slug, or a pseudo-slug, in a pipeline may be identified by identifying an analysis pipe section containing a multiphase fluid flow, measuring a first differential pressure at a first pair of pressure measuring points positioned along the analysis pipe section, measuring a second differential pressure at a second pair of pressure measuring points positioned along the analysis pipe section, identifying a primary drop in the first differential pressure and a secondary drop in the second differential pressure, measuring a time delay between initiation of the primary pressure drop and initiation of the secondary pressure drop, and determining as a function of the time delay whether the primary pressure drop corresponds to a predetermined multiphase flow anomaly moving through the pipe analysis section.