초록 ▼

A portable system for air separation or air dehydration, or both, is carried on a truck or equivalent vehicle. The air separation system includes, at a minimum, a feed compressor and a gas separation membrane. The air dehydration system includes a feed compressor and an air dehydration membrane. The

A portable system for air separation or air dehydration, or both, is carried on a truck or equivalent vehicle. The air separation system includes, at a minimum, a feed compressor and a gas separation membrane. The air dehydration system includes a feed compressor and an air dehydration membrane. The feed compressor receives power from the engine of the vehicle, only when the vehicle is not moving under its own power. Heat from the vehicle engine may also be used to heat the compressed air stream to prevent the formation of water. The system can also be used to perform air dehydration and air separation simultaneously. The system is substantially self-contained, and can be easily driven from one location to another, simply by driving the vehicle to another location. The invention is especially useful in providing air separation or air dehydration services, or both, for relatively brief periods, at multiple locations.

대표청구항 ▼

What is claimed is: 1. A method of non-cryogenically separating air into components at a plurality of locations, comprising: a) providing a vehicle which holds a compressor and a gas separation membrane, the vehicle having an engine, the gas separation membrane being connected to receive compressed

What is claimed is: 1. A method of non-cryogenically separating air into components at a plurality of locations, comprising: a) providing a vehicle which holds a compressor and a gas separation membrane, the vehicle having an engine, the gas separation membrane being connected to receive compressed air from the compressor, the compressor being connected to receive power from the engine only when the vehicle is stationary, b) driving the vehicle to a first location, stopping the vehicle, connecting the engine to the compressor, and withdrawing oxygen-enriched and nitrogen-enriched gas streams from the gas separation membrane, c) disconnecting the engine from the compressor, and d) driving the vehicle to a second location, stopping the vehicle, connecting the engine to the compressor, and withdrawing oxygen-enriched and nitrogen-enriched gas streams from the gas separation membrane. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising repeating steps (c) and (d) a plurality of times. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle is selected to have a booster compressor connected to an output of the gas separation membrane, and wherein the connecting and disconnecting steps include connecting and disconnecting the engine to and from the booster compressor. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of removing liquid water from the compressed air before passing the compressed air to the gas separation membrane. 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of passing compressed air from the compressor through an air dehydration membrane before passing compressed air to the gas separation membrane. 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising diverting some of the compressed air from the compressor, and passing said diverted compressed air through an air dehydration membrane to produce a stream of dry air, wherein the dry air and the oxygen-enriched and nitrogen-enriched gas streams are produced simultaneously. 7. A method of producing dry air at a plurality of locations, comprising: a) providing a vehicle which holds a compressor and an air dehydration membrane, the vehicle having an engine, the air dehydration membrane being connected to receive compressed air from the compressor, the compressor being connected to receive power from the engine only when the vehicle is stationary, b) driving the vehicle to a first location, stopping the vehicle, connecting the engine to the compressor, and withdrawing dry air from the air dehydration membrane, c) disconnecting the engine from the compressor, and d) driving the vehicle to a second location, stopping the vehicle, connecting the engine to the compressor, and withdrawing dry air from the air dehydration membrane. 8. The method of claim 7, further comprising repeating steps (c) and (d) a plurality of times. 9. The method of claim 7, wherein the vehicle is selected to have a booster compressor connected to an output of the air dehydration membrane, and wherein the connecting and disconnecting steps include connecting and disconnecting the engine to and from the booster compressor. 10. The method of claim 7, further comprising removing liquid water from compressed air produced by the compressor. 11. A portable gas separation system, comprising: a) a vehicle having an engine, b) the vehicle comprising means for supporting a compressor and a gas separation membrane, the compressor being connectable to the engine only when the engine is not moving the vehicle, wherein the gas separation membrane provides oxygen-enriched and nitrogen-enriched gas streams when the vehicle is stationary and the engine is operating the compressor, further comprising an air dehydration membrane connected to receive compressed air from the compressor, wherein the air dehydration membrane and the gas separation membrane operate in parallel to produce separate streams of dry air and oxygen-enriched and nitrogen-enriched gas.