Compression of indifferent gases with vapor control
View Patent ↗A method and apparatus for compressing gaseous hydrogen or other gases utilize a liquid compressor to achieve high pressure while controlling vapor content. Gaseous hydrogen from a source at an inlet pressure is compressed in a liquid compression chamber using a liquid, preferably water or a water-based liquid, to a predetermined pressure at which vapor in the compressed gas is below the required concentration level for applications. The compressed gas flows into a high-pressure gas chamber, where it is isolated from the compression liquid once the predetermined pressure is reached, ensuring the vapor content remains below a specified threshold. The compressed gas is then transferred to a storage tank at a lower storage pressure. Embodiments include cooling the high-pressure chamber, adding freezing-point-lowering additives to the liquid. The invention enhances compression efficiency, reduces costs, and meets stringent purity requirements for applications such as fuel cells.
1 . A method for compressing an indifferent gas while controlling the concentration of vapor in the compressed gas, the method comprising:
a. providing a source of said gas;
b. delivering said gas from said source into a first chamber until said gas in said first chamber reaches a first predetermined pressure, wherein said first predetermined pressure is less than or equal to the pressure of the gas source;
c. introducing a compression liquid into said first chamber to compress said gas, thereby increasing its pressure;
d. permitting said gas, during compression, to flow from said first chamber to a second chamber through a first means of fluid interconnection that permits said gas to flow into but prevents said compression liquid from entering said second chamber, such that pressures in both chambers substantially equalize and rise concurrently until a second predetermined pressure is achieved in said second chamber, wherein said second pressure is selected such that the vapor concentration in said gas inside said second chamber is at or below a predefined concentration level;
e. closing said first means of fluid interconnection when the pressure in said second chamber reaches said second predetermined pressure level, thereby isolating said gas in said second chamber from said gas and said compression liquid in said first chamber;
f. transferring said isolated gas from said second chamber to a storage tank through a second means of fluid interconnection, wherein said gas in said storage tank is at or below a third predetermined pressure level that is less than said second predetermined pressure level, and wherein the vapor concentration in said gas inside said storage tank is at or below said predefined concentration level.
2 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said first means for fluidly interconnecting said first chamber and said second chamber remains closed during the transfer of said gas from said second chamber to said storage tank.
3 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said indifferent gas is from a group consisting of hydrogen, nitrogen, helium, argon, carbon dioxide, air, and mixtures thereof that exhibits minimal chemical reactivity with the compression liquid and the compression containment system under standard conditions.