PROCESSING OF USED LUBRICATING OILS

TRAITEMENT DES HUILES LUBRIFIANTES EPUISEES

English Abstract

. ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A used lubricating oil treatment apparatus is provided in
which filters, heat exchange means, a vaporiser unit, pumps and
other necessary equipment are all contained in a wheeled cabinet.
The oil to be treated is pumped through a warming heat exchanger, a
first filter, a vaporiser unit, and further filters, after which
appropriate additives are mixed into the decontaminated oil in
a mixing tank. A vacuum is maintained on the vaporiser unit to
exhaust the vapours from it via the heat exchanger and a condensate
tank.

Claims

I CLAIM:
1. Apparatus for reclaiminq used lubricating oil on a
continuous flow basis, comprising an inlet line for oil to be
reclaimed, a first filter unit receiving oil from said inlet
line, inlet pump means for pumping oil through said inlet line
and said filter unit, a vaporizer unit receiving the oil after
passage through said filter unit and wherein the oil is heated
to drive off water and volatiles, further filter means including
a plurality of earth filters, circulating pump means for pumping
the oil from said vaporizer unit through said earth filters
in succession, and additive adding means for adding
additives to the oil after passage through said further
filter means.
2. Apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a
heat exchange unit arranged and constructed for warming the
incoming oil with vapour being exhausted from the vaporizer
unit.
3. Apparatus according to claim 2, comprising a vacuum
pump drawing vapour from the vaporizer unit through said
heat exchange unit, and a condensate tank upstream of the
vacuum pump.
4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first
filter unit is a 5 micron filter and said further filter
means include a 0.5 micron filter.
5. Apparatus according to claim 4, comprising gauge means
for indicating the pressure drops across the 5 micron and
0.5 micron filters.

6. Apparatus according to claim 2, comprising a pressure
relief valve in the oil line between said inlet pump means
and said heat exchange unit.
7. Apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a pressure
relief valve in the oil line between said circulating pump
means and said further filter means.
8. Apparatus according to claim 7, comprising a changeover
valve and bypass line whereby oil discharged by the circulating
pump means can be bypassed back to the source of oil to be
reclaimed without passing through said further filter means.
9. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said additive
adding means comprises a mixing tank in which oil leaving
said further filter means is collected and mixed with additives
before being passed out as finished oil for re-use.
10. Apparatus according to claim 9, comprising an output
pump and changeover valve operable either to recirculate oil
through the mixing tank or to discharge finished oil from
the mixing tank to a finished oil outlet.
11. Apparatus according to claim 9, or claim 10, wherein the
mixing tank has a heater.
12. Apparatus according to claim 1, all contained in a
wheeled cabinet.
13. Apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the cabinet
is provided with removable access panels and a push button
console. 7

Description

3~
.: i
This invention relates to the processing of used lubricating
oils for the purpose of reconditioning such oils for re-use.
~uge quantities of lubrica-ting oils are continually being
discarded after use, especially at automobile garages whlch have
to dispose of large amounts of used sump oil from motor vehicles.
Some of this oil is processed for re-use but for that purpose it
has to be collected and sealed in drums and returned to an oil
company where it is put through large-scale industrial oil-tre~tment
plant. This gives the individu~l automobile service station or
oil user very little incentive to save the oil. It is therefore
an object of the inver~+ion to make the processing of lubricating
oils for re-use a more widely practised activity.
According to the present invention, there is provided a
lubricating oil treatment apparatus, comprising pumps, filters,
heat exchange means and a vaporiser unit operating under vacu~n,
embodied in a self-contained movable module. By thus making it possible
i for individual service stations and oil users to possesstheir
¦ own units for treating the oil, the reconditioning of used oil~ , .,
~'1 becomes a considerably more attractive proposition.
One arrangement according to this invention will now be
described by way of example and wqth reference to the acccmpanying
,i
, drawings, in which:-
~' Figure 1 is a front pictorial external view of the apparatus to
be described,
, . . .
Figure 2 is a rear pictorial view with the covers removed, and
Figure 3 shows the flcw sheet of the apparatus.
,~' While the apparatus to be described is mainly intended for
!
~ 2/
l ,
i! .

treating used sun~ oil from mo-tor vehicles, it can also be employed
for industrial lubricating 3ils.
Referring to Figure 3, oil to be treated, e.g. from a drwm 10
containing contaminated oil, is pumped into the apparatus through an
inlet valve 11 via a 60 mesh Y-type strainer 12 by an oil input pump
13. The discharge of the pump passes through a relief valve 14
I into a heat exchanger 15 where it is warmed by heat exchange with
j vapour drawn from the top of a vaporiser unit to be subsequently
described. On leaving the heat exchanger 15, the oil passes through
a flow meter 16 and then -through a prel-iminary 5 micron filter 17
after which the warmed oil enters the vaporiser unit 18.
In the vaporiser unit 18, the oil is heated to a temperature
to dr;.ve off water and volatiles and this operation is assisted
¦ by a vacuum pump 19 which pulls a vacuum on both the vaporiser unit¦ 15 an~ an associated condensa~e tank 20. The vapours drawn off from
the vaporiser unit 18, after passing through the aforementioned
heat exchanger 15 to warm the incoming oil, enter the condensate
tank 20 where condensate settles out, and are then exhausted through
~~ the vacuum pump 19. m e condensate tank may be provided with a sight
level gauge to assiæt an operator in determining when, periodically,
,
the vacuum should be released and the condensate drain 22 opened.
Also, a level indicator may be fitted to trigger off an audible
alarm if this service attention is neglected and the condensate
~ level in the tank rises too high. The vaporiser unit 18 is equipped
!''~' 25 with an electric heater 24 having an associa-ted temperature control
and indicator instrument 23. m e vaporiser also has a sight level
gauge 21.
~i
.
.,

~ .,t3~ 6
After leaving the vapori.ser Ullit 18, the oil is punped by a
circulating pump 25 in succession thl70ugh two e~rth filters
' 26 and a final 0.5 micron filter 27 before discharging into a ta~
1 28. Between the circulating pump 25 and the first ~ilter 26 the oil
line includes a non-return valve 32, with a pressure relieP valve 33
immediately upstream o-L the valve 32. Immediately downstream of the
non-return valve 32, a changeover valve 29 enables the oil flow to be
directed, at start-up, into by-pass line 34 instead of through
the filters 26, 27. The oil bypass line 3A, and also the relief line
I 10 35 for the pressure relief valves 14 and 33, deliver back into
¦ the oil drum 10 fron which the oil to be processed is drawn.
The ta~ 28 i.s a mixing tank in which oil additives supplied
through a line 36 are mixed with the decontaminated oil from the filters.
A heater 37 heats the oil in the tank 28, and a float valve 38 supplies
a sig~al to stop the apparatus from delivering oil into the tank 28
when the level in the tank rises to a predetermined high level. An
output pump 39 pumps the finally treated oil from the mixing tank
~ 28 into a coilecting drum 40; a changeover valve 41 enables the output
of the pump 39 to be returned to the tank 28 for mixing instead of
being discharged through the output line 42.
Referring now to Figures 1 and 2, the apparatus is housed in a
`~ whééled cabinet 30 with a console display of indicator la~ps and gauge
readings. Instruments are provided to disp]ay the following:
oil reading measured at the flow meter 16; pressure differential across
~¦, 25 t~e filter 17; pressure differential across the filter 27; temperature
¦, of the oil in the vaporiser unit; vacuum gauge reading. Control of
'!, the apparatus is by means of a push button control panel 43. The
,.,
., .
l 4/
.',i
,1
.... .
, _ , .. .. ... .. . ~

~1~ 3i8!~
cabinet 30 forms a self-co~tained portahle module, and removable
panels 4~ give ready acc~ss to the various UllitS of the plant.
, . . .
. . ~ . . !
'"1 ,
,', ,~, , ~.
1',! ,
.''1''~, , .
1'.~1, ' .
1` !1
. j;
i~ 5/
. .
!
, .1 .