Manufacture of stable bimodal emulsions using dynamic mixing

US6903138B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Intevep, S.A. · VE

Inventors

• Gustavo A Nú{overscore (n)}ez · El Hatillo, VE
• Clara E. Mata · Lauderdale, US
• Carolina Blanco · La Lagunita, VE
• Manuel Chirinos · Caracas, VE
• Gerardo Sanchez · Los Teques, VE
• Tulio Rafael Colmenares · Houston, US
• Hercilio Rivas · Caracas, VE
• Felix Silva · Caracas, VE

Key dates

• Filing date: Jun 3, 2002
• Grant date: Jun 7, 2005
• Expiry date: Jun 3, 2022

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10S516/924
• WIPO field: Chemical engineering
• WIPO sector: Chemistry

Abstract

A process for preparing a bimodal emulsion of viscous hydrocarbon in water includes providing a stream of water at ambient temperature; providing a liquid additive that tends to gel when mixed with water at temperatures less than a gelling temperature TG; heating the stream to provide a heated stream at a temperature TC which is greater than ambient temperature and less than the gelling temperature TG; feeding the heated stream to a mixer having a mixer inlet so as to impart energy to the heated stream; adding the liquid additive to the heated stream downstream of the mixer inlet, whereby the liquid additive mixes with the stream and the energy inhibits gelling of the liquid additive to provide a substantially homogeneous solution of additive in water. The solution is then divided and used to make two different droplet sized emulsions which are mixed to form the bimodal emulsion.