Phillips. Pru) CO ee er Led SURGE DRUMS BULLETIN SD-11E-01 Engineering Dai Although this bulletin is concerned mainly with surge drum design, TABLE 1 applies to all vessels that involve the separa- tion of liquid from vapor, Horizontal separators require spe- cial consideration, For a vertical desuperheater it is recom ‘mended that the ratings in the 30 PSI (+17°F) column be re- duced by 20% Pern ‘The surge drum on a flooded evaporator performs various important functions. They are ‘(To separate the liquid out of the gas returning from the evaporator, allowing the gas to pass to the compressor through ‘the suction line, and returning the liquid to the evaporator for re-circulation, (2)To absorb such surges in the evaporator as may occur due to variation of load during operation. The coil circuits For Ammonia (R717) 3)To absorb the violent liquid surging that occurs when the suction line ofa flooded evaporator is opened quickly The immediate drop in pressure on the liquid lying in the evapora- tor that accurs when the suction line is opened ereates a tre- menclous amount of vapor. Practically the entire change of liq- uid leftin the evaporator at shut-down is suddenly thrown up into the surge drum, ‘The minimum cross sectional flow area of a surge drum needed to allow satisfactory liquid separation velocities is de~ pendent upon both the refrigeration load and the suction pres- sure. To attain the correct separation velocity for vertical surge ‘drums under various load and pressure conditions, the selec- tion can be made from TABLE “The surge drum volume in many flooded systems is gov- cerned principally by volume of liquid that may be in the coil at the moment of shut-down, Generally the following volumes of surge drums are recommended for vatious types of work: will carry am amount of liquid in them in somewhat inverse mpi od ah ys rel pear amucaron [MMVSURGIR SORTER load becomes heavier and duty i greater, more gas is formed ARCOURSURTS ERO a TABLE 1 MAXIMUM TONS IN VERTICAL SURGE DRUMS -- AMMONIASere ‘The separation space in a horizontal surge drum is de- creased as the liquid level rises. This factor requires careful consideration when designing the horizontal surge drum, ‘To insure liquid separation under all operating conditions, the flow area must be adequate when the liquid level is at its highest point in the drum, This condition will be just, after maximum volume of liquid has surged from the evapo- rator, When a horizontal drum is required on an installation A discussion of surge drums cannot be complete without ‘mention of proper sizing of the liquid leg. Liquid velocities must be slowed down enough that oil may be allowed to settle out im the space below the liquid coil inlet to the evaporator This helps ‘keep the evaporator oil free and insures good heat transfer. Oil ‘must be periodically drained, When an integral oil pot some- ‘what larger than the liquid drop leg is built as part of the liquid leg at the bottom, the liquid leg tons may be doubled. TABLE 3 gives a good selection of liquid leg sizes for various tonnages. whe no pres expen i cn aud eto TABLE 3 Fullinformatonwouldbe required suchasefigeran load, Liquio LEGS fhction pesre Spe of col se and length ot pipe oF MAXIMUM TONS ~- AMMONIA Cait, numberof outdets for the gas, and any other factors isn)] Tons | [ips n)| TONS 34 1 3 30 1 2 aaa |_45 00d operation ofa flooded sys ; temis the size of the gas return(s) from the evaporator back uate 2 a so to the surge drum, Since the gas return is also carrying q- az | 6 5 |_105 uid droplets entrained with the gas, the effect could be an increase in the pressure drop that penalizes the compressor. a au eI BO) TABLE? gives the recommended maximum tons that should 2a _|_18 8 | 330 be retumed through extacheavy pipe to 2" IPS, and stan- dard weight 2 12° IPS and up. When liguid level in the TABLE 4 indicates nominal ammonia suction line capacities drum is ator below the gas outlet ofthe evaporator, the gas at approximately I psi pressure drop per 100 of equivalent retum should be made at leat one pipe size larger. Tine, and is shown (or convenience TABLE 2 TABLE 4 GAS RETURNS SUCTION LINE FROM EVAPORATOR TO SURGE DRUM MAXIMUM TONS ~ AMMONIA MAXIMUM TONS -- AMMONIA TRON T sor vac [a psic|s psie | 20 rsic | 20 Psic as rate “oe |-2ee| re | sor | ir | sor |IPS_GAS| 10" VAC | 0 PSIG | 5 PSIG | 20 PSIG} 45 PSIG SIZE RETURN] “a2°F | 2eer | -i7er | 53°F | aor | a [ae « [a [| 1 | 20 sa |e [03 [12 | 22 | 208 | aa aa | 28 | 33 | as | oe | oe 1 [+26 [sea] 22 [40 | so | 75 1 | se | 66 | 77 | 14 | 14 via | 252 [ase[ aa [20 | 10 | 150 ad oe) aE 22) ae AZ 3.77 | 4.86 4 | 14.8 15, 24.6 17 22 2.5 34 45 2 7.10 | 9.30 | 124 | 222 28 42 2 44 5.2 64 8.2 10.7 242 14 | 14,60] 19.1 | 35.5 45 65 24a | 68 | 6 | 10 | 135 | 175 2 | 19 [zea0] a1 | se | 75 | 108 3 [ats [us | 7 | 2s | 30 a [ose | 48 [ee [te [180 | 00 saa | 172 | 218 | 26 | 34 | as s | «4 | es | 17 | 208 | 260 | 205 4 [24 [31 [36 | 48 [6s © [toa [134 [475 | 308 | 298 | 00 s | a | se | es | es | 115 a | 10 | 230 | sts | s4o | oes | 1040 ca | TTS 40 | 280 | 280 | 490 | 50 | 1100 | 1680 sae aa ane Paes Tae 12 | 400 | 535 | 700 | 1225 | 1580 | 2400 14 [565 | 730 | 260 | 1680 | at70 | 3200 Remit to: Pee PO Box 5998 ee cy ne Doe EROS ea CK Z oes eel LLL 200) cre} TA 7)