Gas-liquid contactor with central supply conduit

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING CONTACT OF GAS AND LIQUID WHICH COMPRISES: (A) A HOLLOW, VERTICAL COLUMN; (B) A PLURALITY OF HORIZONTAL TRAYS MOUNTED WITHIN SAID COLUMN AT VERTICALLY SPACED LOCATIONS, EACH TRAY HAVING A PLURALITY OF OPENINGS IN VERTICALLY ADJACENT TRAYS; AND (C) A CORRESPONDING PLURALITY OF CONTACTING UNITS MOUNTED AT EACH SAID TRAY OPENING, EACH CONTACTING UNIT TO FORM A PART OF A CORRESPONDING PLURALITY OF VERTICAL SERIES OF CONTACTING UNITS, EACH UNIT INCLUDING: (1) A VERTICALLY ELONGATED TUBULAR CHAMBER BOUNDED BY A SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL CONFINING SIDEWALL OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME DIAMETER AS THAT OF SAID OTHER CHAMBERS AND OPEN AT THE TOP AND BOTTOM, EACH SAID CHAMBER BEING IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT WITH ANOTHER CHAMBER AND IN CLOSE PROXIMITY THERETO FOR THE DIRECT FLOW OF GAS FROM A LOWER CHAMBER INTO THE NEXT HIGHER CHAMBER WITHOUT CHANGE IN FLOW DIRECTION, AND HAVING A DOWNWARDLY CONVERGENT, FRUSTO-CONICAL PORTION AT THE BOTTOM THEREOF FORMING A GASENTRANCE OF REDUCED AREA; (2) MEANS FOR ADMITTING A GAS INTO A LOWER CHAMBER OF SAID SERIES FOR UPWARD FLOW THROUGH THE CHAMBERS OF THE SERIES; (3) LIQUID SUPPLY MEANS INCLUDING A TUBE SITUATED CENTRALLY WITHIN EACH SAID CHAMBER FOR FLOWING LIQUID DOWNWARDLY AND DISCHARGING IT FROM A LATERAL EXTENSION ON THE LOWER END OF SAID TUBE INTO AN ANNULAR TROUGH ADJOINING SAID CONFINING WALL IN A LIQUID SUPPLY ZONE AT A LOWER LEVEL OF THE RESPECTIVE CHAMBER FOR ENTRAINMENT BY SAID GAS AT SAID ZONE, SAID ANNULAR TROUGH PROVIDING A CENTRAL SPACE WITHIN SAID ZONE FOR THE FLOW OF GAS THERETHROUGH; (4) WHIRL MEANS WITHIN EACH SAID CHAMBER SITUATED ABOVE THE SAID LIQUID SUPPLY ZONE THEREOF FOR IMPARTING WHIRLING MOTION TO THE ASCENDING MIXTURE OF GAS AND ENTRAINED LIQUID AND HURLING LIQUID AGAINST SAID CONFINING WALL; AND (5) LIQUID DISCHARGE MEANS AT AN UPPER LEVEL OF EACH SAID CHAMBER FOR DISCHARGING THE LIQUID FROM SAID CONFINING WALL INCLUDING AN OPENING IN AN UPPER PART OF SAID CONFINING WALL WHICH IS IN FREE-FLOW COMMUNICATION WITH THE SPACE ABOVE SAID CONTACTING UNIT MOUNTING TRAY, SAID SPACE BEING COMMON TO THE SEVERAL UNITS MOUNTED ON SAID TRAY, AND AN ANNULAR COLLAR OF GREATER INTERNAL DIAMETER THAN THE TOP OF EACH CONTACTING CHAMBER ADJACENT SAID OPENING AND DEPENDING FROM THE TRAY NEXT ABOVE THE RESPECTIVE UNITS FOR GUIDING THE FLOW OF THE DISCHARGED LIQUID, SAID DISCHARGE MEANS BEING IN FLOW COMMUNICATION WITH THE UPPER END OF A CENTRAL LIQUID SUPPLY TUBE WHICH DISCHARGES LIQUID TO THE SUPPLY ZONE OF A LOWER CONTACTING UNIT, SAID UPPER END OF SAID CENTRAL LIQUID SUPPLY TUBE OF SAID LOWER CONTACTING UNIT EXTENDING UPWARD INTO SAID HIGHER UNIT AND INTO LIQUID-RECEIVING COMMUNICATION WITH SAID SPACE ABOVE SAID HIGHER CONTACTING UNIT MOUNTING TRAY THROUGH AN OPENING IN A LOWER PART OF THE CONFINING WALL OF SAID HIGHER UNIT TO RECEIVE LIQUID THAT ACCUMULATES ON SAID HIGHER TRAY.