Fuel tank partition and method of use
Embodiments of the present disclosure may include a partition for a fuel tank. The partition may include a sheet of material extending laterally within an interior mid-region of the fuel tank. The sheet may have a length and a width that are at least substantially equal to a length and a width of the mid-region of the fuel tank, and the sheet may be shaped to conform to an interior perimeter of the mid-region of the fuel tank. The partition may also be configured to substantially divide the fuel tank into an upper interior region located above the partition and a lower interior region located below the partition.
1. A partition for use within an enclosed fuel tank, comprising:
a flexible sheet of woven, at least semi-permeable material extending laterally within an interior mid-region of the fuel tank, wherein the sheet is characterized by a non-straight, undulated body with a length and a width that are at least substantially equal to a length and a width of the mid-region of the fuel tank and the sheet is shaped to conform to an interior perimeter of the mid-region of the fuel tank, and wherein the partition is configured to substantially divide the fuel tank into an upper interior region located above the partition and a lower interior region located below the partition,
wherein the material is at least permeable to a vapor fluid stored in the fuel tank.
2. The partition of claim 1 , wherein the fuel tank is configured to hold the vapor fluid in the upper region and a liquid fluid in the lower region.
3. The partition of claim 2 , wherein the vapor fluid and the liquid fluid are the same fluid.
4. The partition of claim 1 , wherein the fuel tank is configured to hold cryogenic fluid.
5. The partition of claim 1 , wherein the material is pliable at a temperature of between approximately −180° F. and −420° F.
6. An enclosed fuel tank for storing fluid, comprising:
a vessel for containing a quantity of a fluid;
a partition within the enclosed fuel tank formed of a flexible sheet of woven, at least semi-permeable material extending horizontally across an interior mid-region of the vessel and having a length and a width that are at least substantially equal to a length and a width of the mid-region of the vessel, and wherein the partition is characterized by a non-straight, undulated body and shaped to conform to an interior perimeter of the mid-region of the vessel so that the partition substantially divides the vessel into an upper region located above the partition and a lower region located below the partition,
wherein the material is at least permeable to a vapor portion of the fluid stored in the vessel;
a first fill line fluidly communicating between the upper region and a region exterior to the vessel; and
a second fill line fluidly communicating between the lower region and the region exterior to the vessel.
7. The fuel tank of claim 6 , wherein the upper region is configured to contain the vapor portion of the fluid and the lower region is configured to contain a liquid portion of the fluid.
8. The fuel tank of claim 6 , wherein the fluid includes natural gas.
9. The fuel tank of claim 6 , wherein the material is permeable to a liquid portion of the fluid within the fuel tank.
10. The fuel tank of claim 6 , further comprising:
a substantially enclosed, hollow ullage region located in the upper region; and
an ullage orifice communicating an inner area of the ullage region with the upper region.
11. The fuel tank of claim 6 , wherein the first fill line is configured to deliver a first liquid portion of the fluid to the upper region and the second fill line is configured to deliver a second liquid portion of the fluid to the lower region.
12. The fuel tank of claim 11 , wherein the fuel tank is configured such that when a pressure within the fuel tank is above a pre-determined threshold, the first fill line delivers the first liquid portion of the fluid to the upper region and the second fill line does not deliver the second liquid portion of the fluid to the lower region, and when the pressure within the fuel tank is below the pre-determined threshold, the second fill line delivers the second liquid portion of the fluid to the lower region and the first fill line does not deliver the first liquid portion of the fluid to the upper region.
13. The fuel tank of claim 11 , further including a controller, wherein the first fill line is fluidly connected to the second fill line and the controller automatically configures the first fill line to deliver the first liquid portion of the fluid to the upper region when the pressure is above a pre-determined threshold and automatically configures the second fill line to deliver the second liquid portion of the fluid to the lower region when the pressure is below the pre-determined threshold.
14. The fuel tank of claim 6 , wherein the first fill line includes at least one spray head.
15. The fuel tank of claim 6 , further comprising an outer vessel surrounding the vessel.
16. The fuel tank of claim 6 , further comprising a sensor operably coupled to the fuel tank and configured to detect a parameter of the fuel tank.
17. The fuel tank of claim 16 , wherein the parameter is pressure.
18. The fuel tank of claim 6 , wherein the fuel tank is configured to receive unsaturated liquid natural gas when the fuel tank contains saturated liquid natural gas at a pressure above approximately 80 psig.
19. A fluid dispensing method, comprising:
dispensing a first portion of a fluid to an upper region of an enclosed tank located above a flexible sheet of woven, at least semi-permeable partition extending laterally within an interior mid-region of the tank through a top fill line configured to dispense the fluid to the upper region when a pressure within the tank is above a pre-determined threshold, wherein the partition is characterized by a non-straight, undulated body; and
dispensing a second portion of the fluid to a bottom region of the tank located below the woven, at least semi-permeable partition through a bottom fill line fluidly connected to the top fill line and configured to dispense the fluid to the lower region when the pressure is below a pre-determined threshold,
wherein the partition is at least permeable to a vapor portion of the fluid stored in the tank.
20. The fluid dispensing method of claim 19 , wherein the tank includes a vessel for containing the fluid and the partition has a length and a width that are substantially equal to a length and a width of the mid-region of the vessel and the partition is shaped to conform to an interior perimeter of the mid-region of the vessel so that the partition substantially divides the vessel into the upper region located above the partition and the lower region located below the partition.