Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
MOBILE DISTRIBUTION STATION HAVING ADJUSTABLE
FEED NETWORK
BACKGROUND
Hydraulic fracturing (also known as fracking) is a well-stimulation process
that
utilizes pressurized liquids to fracture rock formations. Pumps and other
equipment
used for hydraulic fracturing typically operate at the surface of the well
site. The
equipment may operate until refueling is needed, at which time the equipment
may be
shut-down for refueling. Shut-downs are costly and reduce efficiency. More
preferably, to avoid shut-downs fuel is replenished in a hot-refueling
operation while
the equipment continues to run. This permits fracking operations to proceed
continuously. However, hot-refueling can be difficult to reliably sustain for
the
duration of the fracking operation.
SUMMARY
A distribution station according to an example of the present disclosure
includes a mobile trailer, first and second manifolds on the mobile trailer,
first and
second pumps on the mobile trailer, and an adjustable feed network connecting
the
first and second pumps with the first and second manifolds. The adjustable
feed
network is switchable between first and second configurations. In the first
configuration the first pump is fluidly connected with the first manifold and
fluidly
disconnected from the second manifold, and concurrently the second pump is
fluidly
connected to the second manifold and is fluidly disconnected from the first
manifold.
In the second configuration the first pump is fluidly connected with the
second
manifold and fluidly disconnected from the first manifold, and the second pump
is
fluidly disconnected from the first and second manifolds. A plurality of reels
on the
mobile trailer are individually connected with the first or second manifold. A
plurality
of hoses are connected with a different one of the reels. A plurality of
valves on the
mobile trailer are situated between the first or second manifold and a
respective
different one of the reels. A plurality of fluid level sensors are fluid level
sensor
connectable to an end of a different one of the hoses. A controller is
configured to
individually open and close the valves responsive to the fluid level sensors.
A distribution station according to an example of the present disclosure
includes a mobile trailer, first and second manifolds on the mobile trailer,
first and
second pumps on the mobile trailer, and a network of fluid lines and valves
connecting
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the first and second pumps with the first and second manifolds. The valves are
adjustable to change fluid flow paths through the network such that each of
the first
and second pumps can be fluidly connected with each of the first and second
manifolds. A plurality of reels on the mobile trailer are individually
connected with
the first or second manifold. A plurality of hoses are connected with a
different one of
the reels. A plurality of valves on the mobile trailer are situated between
the first or
second manifold and a respective different one of the reels. A plurality of
fluid level
sensors are connectable to an end of a different one of the hoses. A
controller is
configured to individually open and close the valves responsive to the fluid
level
sensors.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The various features and advantages of the present disclosure will become
apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description.
The
drawings that accompany the detailed description can be briefly described as
follows.
Figure 1 illustrates an example mobile distribution station.
Figure 2 illustrates an internal layout of a mobile distribution station.
Figure 3 illustrates an isolated view of hose reels on a support rack used in
a
mobile distribution station.
Figure 4 illustrates an example of a connection between a manifold, a control
valve, and a reel.
Figure 5 illustrates an example of an adjustable feed network of a mobile
distribution station.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Figure 1 illustrates a mobile distribution station 20 and Figure 2 illustrates
an
internal layout of the station 20. As will be described, the station 20 may
serve in a
"hot-refueling" capacity to distribute fuel to multiple pieces of equipment
while the
equipment is running, such as fracking equipment at a well site. As will be
appreciated,
the station 20 is not limited to applications for fracking or for delivering
fuel. The
examples herein may be presented with respect to fuel delivery, but the
station 20 may
be used in mobile delivery of other fluids, in other gas/petroleum recovery
operations,
or in other operations where mobile refueling or fluid delivery will be of
benefit.
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In this example, the station 20 includes a mobile trailer 22. Generally, the
mobile trailer 22 is elongated and has first and second opposed trailer side
walls W1
and W2 that join first and second opposed trailer end walls El and E2. Most
typically,
the trailer 22 will also have a closed top (not shown). The mobile trailer 22
may have
wheels that permit the mobile trailer 22 to be moved by a vehicle from site to
site to
service different hot-refueling operations. In this example, the mobile
trailer 22 has
two compartments. A first compartment 24 includes the physical components for
distributing fuel, such as diesel fuel, and a second compartment 26 serves as
an isolated
control room for managing and monitoring fuel distribution. The compartments
24/26
are separated by an inside wall 28a that has an inside door 28b.
The first compartment 24 includes one or more pumps 30. Fuel may be
provided to the one or more pumps 30 from an external fuel source, such as a
tanker
truck on the site. On the trailer 22, the one or more pumps 30 are fluidly
connected via
a fuel line 32 with one or more high precision registers 34 for metering fuel.
The fuel
line 32 may include, but is not limited to, hard piping. In this example, the
fuel line 32
includes a filtration and air eliminator system 36a and one or more sensors
36b.
Although optional, the system 36a is beneficial in many implementations, to
remove
foreign particles and air from the fuel prior to delivery to the equipment.
The one or
more sensors 36h may include a temperature sensor, a pressure sensor, or a
combination thereof, which assist in fuel distribution management.
The fuel line 32 is connected with one or more manifolds 38. In the
illustrated
example, the station 20 includes two manifolds 38, represented at 38a and 38b,
that
arranged on opposed sides of the compartment 24. As an example, the manifolds
38
are elongated tubes that are generally larger in diameter than the fuel line
32 and that
have at least one inlet and multiple outlets. Each hose 40 is wound, at least
initially, on
a reel 42 that is rotatable to extend or retract the hose 40 externally
through one or
more windows of the trailer 22. Each reel 42 may have an associated motor to
mechanically extend and retract the hose 40.
As shown in an isolated view in Figure 3, the reels 42 are mounted on a
support
rack 42a. In this example, the support rack 42a is configured with upper and
lower
rows of reels 42. Each row has five reels 42 such that each support rack 42a
provides
ten reels 42 and thus ten hoses 40. There are two support racks 42a (Figure 2)
arranged
on opposed sides of the first compartment 24, with an aisle (A) that runs
between the
support racks 42a from an outside door E to the inside door 28b. The station
20
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, .
therefore provides twenty hoses 40 in the illustrated arrangement, with ten
hoses 40
provided on each side of the station 20. As will be appreciated, fewer or
additional
reels and hoses may be used in alternative examples.
As shown in a representative example in Figure 4, each hose 40 is connected
to a respective one of the reels 42 and a respective one of a plurality of
control valves
44. For example, a secondary fuel line 46 leads from the manifold 38 to the
reel 42.
The control valve 44 is in the secondary fuel line 46. The control valve 44 is
moveable
between open and closed positions to selectively permit fuel flow from the
manifold
38 to the reel 42 and the hose 40. For example, the control valve 44 is a
powered valve,
such as a solenoid valve.
In the illustrated example, the first compartment 24 also includes a sensor
support rack 48. The sensor support rack 48 holds integrated fuel cap sensors
50 (when
not in use), or at least portions thereof. When in use, each integrated fuel
cap sensor
50 is temporarily affixed to a piece of equipment (i.e., the fuel tank of the
equipment)
that is subject to the hot-refueling operation. Each hose 40 may include a
connector
end 40a and each integrated fuel cap sensor 50 may have a corresponding mating
connector to facilitate rapid connection and disconnection of the hose 40 with
the
integrated fuel cap sensor 50. For example, the connector end 40a and mating
connector on the integrated fuel cap sensor 50 form a hydraulic quick-connect.
At least the control valves 44, pump or pumps 30, sensor or sensors 36b, and
register 34 are in communication with a controller 52 located in the second
compartment 26. As an example, the controller 52 includes software, hardware,
or both
that is configured to carry out any of the functions described herein. In one
further
example, the controller 52 includes a programmable logic controller with a
touch-
screen for user input and display of status data. For example, the screen may
simultaneously show multiple fluid levels of the equipment that is being
serviced.
When in operation, the integrated fuel cap sensors 50 are mounted on
respective fuel tanks of the pieces of equipment that are subject to the hot-
refueling
operation. The hoses 40 are connected to the respective integrated fuel cap
sensors 50.
Each integrated fuel cap sensor 50 generates signals that are indicative of
the fuel level
in the fuel tank of the piece of equipment on which the integrated fuel cap
sensor 50 is
mounted. The signals are communicated to the controller 52.
The controller 52 interprets the signals and determines the fuel level for
each
fuel tank of each piece of equipment. In response to a fuel level that falls
below a lower
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threshold, the controller 52 opens the control valve 44 associated with the
hose 40 to
that fuel tank and activates the pump or pumps 30. The pump or pumps 30
provide fuel
flow into the manifolds 38 and through the open control valve 44 and reel 42
such that
fuel is provided through the respective hose 40 and integrated fuel cap sensor
50 into
the fuel tank. The lower threshold may correspond to an empty fuel level of
the fuel
tank, but more typically the lower threshold will be a level above the empty
level to
reduce the potential that the equipment completely runs out of fuel and shuts
down.
The controller 52 also determines when the fuel level in the fuel tank reaches
an upper threshold. The upper threshold may correspond to a full fuel level of
the fuel
tank, but more typically the upper threshold will be a level below the full
level to
reduce the potential for overflow. In response to reaching the upper
threshold, the
controller 52 closes the respective control valve 44 and ceases the pump or
pumps 30.
If other control valves 44 are open or are to be opened, the pump or pumps 30
may
remain on. The controller 52 can also be programmed with an electronic stop
failsafe
measure to prevent over-filling. As an example, once an upper threshold is
reached on
a first tank and the control valve 44 is closed, but the pump 30 is otherwise
to remain
on to fill other tanks, if the fuel level continues to rise in the first tank,
the controller
52 shuts the pump 30 off.
Multiple control valves 44 may be open at one time, to provide fuel to
multiple
fuel tanks at one time. Alternatively, if there is demand for fuel from two or
more fuel
tanks, the controller 52 may sequentially open the control valves 44 such that
the tanks
are refueled sequentially. For instance, upon completion of refueling of one
fuel tank,
the controller 52 closes the control valve 44 of the hose 40 associated with
that tank
and then opens the next control valve 44 to begin refueling the next fuel
tank.
Sequential refueling may facilitate maintaining internal pressure in the
manifold and
fuel line 32 above a desired or preset pressure threshold to more rapidly
deliver fuel.
Similarly, the controller 52 may limit the number of control valves 44 that
are open at
any one instance in order to maintain the internal pressure in the manifold
and fuel line
32 above a desired or preset threshold. The controller 52 may perform the
functions
above while in an automated operating mode. Additionally, the controller 52
may have
a manual mode in which a user can control at least some functions through the
PLC,
such as starting and stopped the pump 30 and opening and closing control
valves 44.
For example, manual mode may be used at the beginning of a job when initially
filling
tanks to levels at which the fuel cap sensors 50 can detect fuel and/or during
a job if a
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fuel cap sensor 50 becomes inoperable. Of course, operating in manual mode may
deactivate some automated functions, such as filling at the low threshold or
stopping
at the high threshold.
In addition to the use of the sensor signals to determine fuel level, or even
as
an alternative to use of the sensor signals, the refueling may be time-based.
For
instance, the fuel consumption of a given piece of equipment may be known such
that
the fuel tank reaches the lower threshold at known time intervals. The
controller 52 is
operable to refuel the fuel tank at the time intervals rather than on the
basis of the
sensor signals, although sensor signals may also be used to verify fuel level.
The controller 52 also tracks the amount of fuel provided to the fuel tanks.
For
instance, the register 34 precisely measures the amount of fuel provided from
the pump
or pumps 30. As an example, the register 34 is an electronic register and has
a
resolution of about 0.1 gallons. The register 34 communicates measurement data
to the
controller 52. The controller 52 can thus determine the total amount of fuel
used to
very precise levels. The controller 52 may also be configured to provide
outputs of the
total amount of fuel consumed. For instance, a user may program the controller
52 to
provide outputs at desired intervals, such as by worker shifts or daily,
weekly, or
monthly periods. The outputs may also be used to generate invoices for the
amount of
fuel used. As an example, the controller 52 may provide a daily output of fuel
use and
trigger the generation of an invoice that corresponds to the daily fuel use,
thereby
enabling almost instantaneous invoicing.
In a further example, the integrated fuel cap sensors 50 are each hard-wired
to
the controller 52. The term "hard-wired" or variations thereof refers to a
wired
connection between two components that serves for electronic communication
there
between, which here is a sensor and a controller. The hard-wiring may
facilitate
providing more reliable signals from the integrated fuel cap sensors 50. For
instance,
the many pieces of equipment, vehicles, workers, etc. at a site may
communicate using
wireless devices. The wireless signals may interfere with each other and,
therefore,
degrade communication reliability. Hard-wiring the integrated fuel cap sensors
50 to
the controller 52 facilitates reduction in interference and thus enhances
reliability.
In some instances, it may be desirable to concurrently deliver two different
fluids using the station 20. For example, the station 20 can be configured to
deliver
different types of fuels, such as but not limited to clear and dyed diesel
fuels. In this
regard, the station 20 can include two pumps 30 and two registers 34. Each
pump 30
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is fluidly connected with a corresponding one of the registers 34, i.e., a
pump/register
set. The pump/register sets can be connected in parallel to concurrently
deliver
different fuels to the respective manifolds 38a/38b.
With a purely parallel arrangement of pump/register sets, the pump/register
sets
and manifolds are fluidly isolated from each other. Therefore, there is no
chance that
the fuels will be mixed. However, there is also no ability to use the pump or
register
of one pump/register set with the other pump/register set. Thus, in the event
that a
pump or register malfunctions, becomes inoperable, or is shut down for some
reason,
the ability to deliver the corresponding fuel is lost.
Figure 5 illustrates an adjustable feed network 60 ("network 60) that can be
used in the station 20 to provide flexibility among use of the pumps 30 and
registers
34. In this example, there are two pumps 30 (first pump 30a and second pump
30b)
and two registers (first register 34a and second register 34b) that are
connected by the
network 60. The network 60 generally includes lines (e.g., pipes) and valves
that
interconnect the pumps 30, registers 34, and manifolds 38. In this example,
the network
60 includes first and second lines 32a/32b that connect the first and second
pumps
30a/30b to, respectively, the first and second manifolds 38a/38b. The network
60
further includes crossover lines 32c/32d/32e that connect the first and second
lines
32a/32b, and a series of valves 60a/60b/60c/60d/60e for changing fluid flow
paths
through the network 60.
The valves 60a/60b/60c/60d/60e can be manual valves, such as but not limited
to ball valves, powered valves, such as but not limited to solenoid valves, or
a
combination of manual and powered valves. The powered valves may be in
communication with the controller 52. In implementations in which the
adjustability
of the network 60 is mainly as a failsafe, the valves 60a/60b/60c/60d/60e may
not be
used often and manual valves may be sufficient. In other implementations where
the
adjustability is more often utilized, powered valves may be used for
convenience
and/or to permit automated operation.
In the illustrated example, the valve 60a is located at the intersection of
lines
32c and 32a. The valve 60b is located in line 32b, on the pump side of the
intersection
of lines 32b and 32c. The valve 60c is located in line 32d, and the valve 60d
is located
in line 32e. The valve 60e is located in line 32a, to the manifold side of the
intersection
of lines 32a and 32e.
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The valve 60a can be a 2-way valve. For instance, the 2-way valve has three
positions. In Position 1 the valve 60a blocks flow from the first pump 30a in
line 32a
to the line 32c and permits flow from the first pump 30a to continue down the
line 32a.
In Position 2 the valve 60a permits flow from the first pump 30a in line 32a
to the line
32c and blocks flow from the first pump 30a from continuing down the line 32a.
In a
third, Neutral Position the valve 60a permits flow from line 32c into line 32a
toward
the first register but blocks flow to the first pump 30a. The remaining valves
60b/60c/60d/60e can be open/close valves, such as ball valves. The first and
second
registers 34a/34b can also serve as check valves in that they permit flow in
only one
direction (represented by dashed arrows depicted inside the registers
34a/34b).
The network 60, via the valves and lines, is adjustable or switchable between
at least first and second configurations. Each different configuration
represents a
different fluid flow path through the network 60. Figure 5 shows one example
arrangement of the valves and lines. As will be appreciated given this
disclosure, there
may be other arrangements that achieve the same function as the disclosed
configurations. A summary of configurations of the valves 60a/60b/60c/60d/60e
is
shown below in Table 1 and discussed further below.
Table 1: Adjustable Feed Network Configurations
Valve Position
Configuration Description
60a 60b 60c 60d 60e
Concurrent flow
1 Pump 30a - Register 34a - Manifold 38a pos.1 open
.. closed .. closed .. open
Pump 30b- Register 34b- Manifold 38b
2A Pump 30a - Register 34a - Manifold 38b pos.1 closed
closed open closed
2B Pump 30a - Register 34b - Manifold 38b pos.2 closed
closed closed closed
3 Pump 30b - Register 34a - Manifold 38a neutral open
closed closed open
In Configuration 1 the first and second pumps 30a/30b can concurrently
provide fluids to, respectively, the first and second registers 34a/34b and
the first and
second manifolds 38a/38b. That is, there is a first fluid connection via pump
30a/register 34a/manifold 38a and a second, isolated fluid connection via pump
30b/register 34b/manifold 38b. Thus, in the first configuration, the first
pump 30a is
fluidly connected with the first register 34a and the first manifold 38a and
fluidly
disconnected from the second register 34b and the second manifold 38b.
Concurrently,
the second pump 30b is fluidly connected to the second register 34b and the
second
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manifold 38b and is fluidly disconnected from the first register 34a and the
first
manifold 38a. As will be appreciated, one variation of such an arrangement may
exclude the registers 34a/34b (and thus also either line 32d/valve 60c or line
32e/valve
60d).
In a second configuration the first pump 30a is fluidly connected with either
the first register 34a (Configuration 2A) or the second register 34b
(Configuration 2B)
and with the second manifold, and is fluidly disconnected from the first
manifold 38a.
The second pump 30b is fluidly disconnected from both the first and second
manifolds
38a/38b.
In Configuration 3 the second pump 30b is fluidly connected with the first
register 34a and the first manifold 38a, and fluidly disconnected from the
second
register 34b and the second manifold 38b. The first pump 30a is fluidly
disconnected
from the first and second manifolds 38a/38b and the first and second registers
34a/34b.
The example configuration permits flexibility in operating the station 20. If
one
of the pumps 30a/30b becomes inoperable, at least temporarily the other of the
pumps
30a/30b can be used to deliver fluid to each manifold 38a/38b. If one of the
registers
34a/34b stops working, at least temporarily the other of the registers 34a/34b
can be
used. The network 60 therefore enables the station 20 to continue to operate
if a pump
or register fails.
Although a combination of features is shown in the illustrated examples, not
all of them need to be combined to realize the benefits of various embodiments
of this
disclosure. In other words, a system designed according to an embodiment of
this
disclosure will not necessarily include all of the features shown in any one
of the
Figures or all of the portions schematically shown in the Figures. Moreover,
selected
features of one example embodiment may be combined with selected features of
other
example embodiments.
The preceding description is exemplary rather than limiting in nature.
Variations and modifications to the disclosed examples may become apparent to
those
skilled in the art that do not necessarily depart from this disclosure. The
scope of legal
protection given to this disclosure can only be determined by studying the
following
claims.
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