Liquid separator

Abstract

The invention relates to a liquid separator comprising: - a main pipe, the pipe axis of which is oriented horizontally, - a collecting trough, the trough wall of which is arranged sealingly at the underside of the main pipe and which is divided by means of a partition wall oriented transversely to the axial direction of the main pipe into two trough chambers, wherein the first trough chamber is connected to the interior of the main pipe by means of a through opening and the further second trough chamber has an outflow end with an outflow end input opening, wherein the partition wall extends sealingly at the underside of the main pipe over the width of the collecting trough and has a connecting opening which fluidically connects the first and second trough chambers to one another. The invention is characterized in that the second trough chamber has no direct connection to the interior of the main pipe and the outflow end input opening is located above the upper edge of the connecting opening.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a liquid separator, which includes

[0002] - The main pipe, whose axis is oriented horizontally.

[0003] - A collection trough, the walls of which are sealed beneath the main pipe, is divided into two chambers by a partition wall oriented transversely to the axial direction of the main pipe. The first chamber is connected to the interior of the main pipe via a through opening, and the second chamber has an outlet end with an inlet opening.

[0004] The partition wall extends in a sealed manner along the width of the collection tank on the lower side of the main pipe and has a connection opening that connects the first and second tank chambers to each other in a fluid-guiding manner. Background Technology

[0005] Such liquid separators are known from DD 150 783A.

[0006] In many technical fields, there are problems on the one hand, such as removing liquid entrained in airflow, and on the other hand, reducing the sound level generated in the system. The literature mentioned at the beginning of this paper, which discloses a silencing liquid separator as a combined device, mentions the output flow of a rotary compressor as a typical application area. This rotary compressor can be used, for example, as a compressed air generating device, where the oil used to lubricate the compressor must be separated from the generated compressed air. Other applications involve compressors in air conditioning equipment, where the compressed refrigerant must be removed from the oil used to lubricate the compressor. A completely different technical field (in which silencing liquid separators are desirable) is the exhaust systems of motor vehicles, particularly those used to exhaust exhaust gases from fuel cells. Here, the large amount of water produced by the chemical reactions in the fuel cell must be separated from the exhaust gases.

[0007] The literature of the same category mentioned at the beginning of this article discloses a horizontally oriented main pipe that serves as a housing for complex arrangements of various inner tubes and deflects the introduced airflow multiple times, guiding it through a porous material, particularly mineral wool. The mineral wool acts as a silencer by scattering and absorbing sound carried in the airflow at its fibers. It also acts as an oil filter by causing oil carried in the airflow to precipitate at its fibers and flow downwards under gravity. The oil drips through a through-hole in the pipe wall below the main pipe into a collection trough fixed to the main pipe. The bottom of the collection trough is provided with an outlet for the collected oil. In the disclosed embodiment, the outlet is in the form of a pipe fitting with an inlet opening penetrating the bottom of the collection trough. In known devices, two mineral wool pads are axially spaced apart from each other in the main pipe. A through-hole leading to the collection trough is arranged below each mineral wool pad, so that separated oil drips into the collection trough in two axially spaced regions. The two pads are to be passed sequentially along a clearly defined path. To prevent some airflow from "taking a shortcut" by entering the collection tank from the gas inlet side through the associated through-hole and further into the second gasket through the associated through-hole, the collection tank is divided into two chambers by a centrally located partition wall oriented transversely to the axial direction of the main pipe. However, to allow the two chambers to be emptied through a common outlet, a perforation is provided in the aforementioned partition wall adjacent to the bottom of the collection tank. The two chambers are fluidly connected through this perforation, allowing oil to flow from the chamber without an outlet into the chamber with an outlet.

[0008] A known drawback of the device is the significant pressure loss experienced by the airflow as it passes through. This pressure loss is primarily due to the frequent changes in airflow direction and guidance through the mineral wool pads. While these mineral wool pads can often be designed to be considerably smaller in size for their function as liquid filters, this significantly impacts the noise reduction capabilities, which are also attributable to these pads.

[0009] A more effective sound attenuation principle than that through scattering and absorption is the destructive superposition of sound waves in a so-called Helmholtz resonator. This type of silencer, which does not function as a liquid separator, is known in DE 10 2014 115 898 B4. In this silencer, the main pipe through which the airflow passes is completely surrounded by an external annular chamber, the interior of which is connected to the interior of the main pipe via a so-called acoustic slit. Sound enters the annular resonator through the aforementioned acoustic slit, is reflected by the walls of the resonator, and, if the chamber dimensions are properly designed, destructively superimposes with itself, resulting in a significant reduction in the sound level at the end of the main pipe. To effectively suppress different frequency bands, the resonator is divided into different sub-chambers by multiple annular walls extending radially outward from the main pipe. These annular walls are loosely attached to the outer wall of the resonator; according to the teachings of the aforementioned literature, the remaining annular gaps are fully sealed during operation by locally oscillating air masses. Summary of the Invention

[0010] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to improve the type of silent liquid separator so as to produce a smaller pressure loss in the airflow with similar effectiveness.

[0011] This technical problem is thus solved by combining the liquid separator described at the beginning, namely, that the second chamber does not have a direct connection to the interior of the main pipe and the outflow inlet is located above the upper edge of the connection opening.

[0012] The present invention has preferred embodiments.

[0013] The basic idea of ​​this invention is to give the collection tank a dual function: on the one hand, it serves as a physical collection tank, and on the other hand, it functions as a resonant chamber for resonance-based silencing. Due to the specific effect of reducing sound levels through resonance-based silencing, silencing measures (in the sense of scattering and dissipation) can be eliminated as much as possible, although their auxiliary use is still possible. This reduces pressure loss in the airflow associated with such measures. Surprisingly, however, directly implementing this idea fails to achieve the desired effect. The inventors particularly recognize that the outlet for draining the liquid accumulated in the collection tank is the output point of sound intruding into the collection tank, thus interfering with sound reflections within the collection tank, which acts as a resonant chamber, and particularly providing a direct sound path into the system environment. Therefore, when directly implementing the basic idea of ​​this invention, the desired level of silencing is not achieved.

[0014] Therefore, a significant modification was made to the scheme of dividing the collection tank into two chambers, which, although known in principle in the prior art, was used there for entirely other reasons: one of the chambers, called the second chamber, neither functions as a resonant chamber nor is it used to directly receive the separated liquid from the main pipe. More precisely, the second chamber is a "dead" chamber, but it indirectly leads to a significant improvement in noise reduction. The working principle is as follows: liquid separated from the airflow in the main pipe, for example by means of the filter material used there, flows into the first chamber through a through opening. The liquid is distributed to the two chambers through the connecting opening in the partition wall. Here, as the accumulation increases, the liquid level gradually rises. In the case of a large accumulation of liquid, this rise can be rapid. This rise continues until the liquid level reaches the inlet opening at the outlet end. Further rise in the liquid level is resisted by draining the liquid through the outlet end. Due to the defined height relationship between the inlet opening at the outlet end and the connecting opening, the latter is completely filled with liquid at this point in time. Therefore, the two chambers are isolated from each other by air transmission at this point in time. This means that, for sound entering the first chamber through the through-opening, only the first chamber acts as a sound-absorbing resonant chamber. Since the connecting opening is filled with liquid in a way that air-transmitting sound cannot pass through, sound cannot enter the second chamber and propagate towards the outlet. More precisely, the first chamber acts as the sole resonant chamber, its (functional) resonant chamber bottom forming the surface of the accumulated liquid. Taking into account the liquid bottom of the resonant chamber (the location of which is determined by the liquid level generated once the liquid reaches the input end of the outlet), the resonant chamber can be precisely acoustically tuned to specifically reduce particularly interfering sound wave frequency bands. Here, no sound can enter the second chamber through the connecting opening. Because the second chamber itself does not have a through-opening leading to the main pipe, no sound can enter the second chamber along this path and exit from the system through the outlet. The second chamber thus acts as an acoustically isolating chamber, but the accumulated liquid can pass through this isolation chamber unimpeded to reach the outlet.

[0015] Those skilled in the art will understand that the above (and subsequent) description of the invention relates to a liquid separator oriented in an operating posture. Any other orientation is, of course, conceivable when the machine is not in operation. However, if a liquid separator can at least be brought into the orientation described herein and, in particular, can be operated in that orientation, then such a liquid separator is considered to be in accordance with the invention.

[0016] Preferably, the partition wall has a straight, horizontally extending lower edge spaced apart from the bottom of the collection tank. In particular, in a preferred embodiment with a flat bottom, a clearly defined gap can be formed across the entire width of the collection tank in this manner, serving as a connection opening. This ensures that liquid exchange between the tank chambers can be carried out as unobstructed as possible and that the upper edge of the connection opening is clearly defined. Of course, the connection opening can also be designed in different forms, such as a drilled hole. In this case, the upper edge of the connection opening coincides with its upper apex. The positioning of the outflow inlet opening relative to this definition, according to the invention, is determined by the height of its lower edge, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the illustrated function. The lower edge of the outflow inlet opening is preferably located a few millimeters above the upper edge of the connection opening.

[0017] A particularly advantageous aspect is that the main pipe is constructed in a multi-piece manner, with its pipe wall having windows in the area of ​​the collection tank, which are closed by inserts equipped with through openings and partition walls. This allows for the manufacture of mufflers with slightly different acoustic tuning based on the same main pipe and collection tank shapes. The acoustic tuning of the muffler resonator, of course, depends to a large extent on the volume of the resonant chamber and the shape and size of the through opening. Therefore, different inserts with partition walls of different positions and / or through openings of different shapes can be used to create resonators with different acoustic effects, where the same main pipe and the same collection tank can always be used. The windows of the main pipe only need to be closed with appropriately shaped inserts. This is particularly important in the automotive industry. Significant efforts have been made to standardize the technical elements; however, due to the different proportions of different models, completely different acoustic boundary conditions may be given. The acoustic tuning of the liquid separator according to the invention is greatly advantageous by simply changing the inserts. A particularly advantageous aspect is that the inserts are fixed to or can be fixed to the windows by means of simple snap-lock connections. Reversibility of the snap-lock connections is possible, but generally not required.

[0018] The main body can consist of an upper shell and a lower shell, which may be equipped with windows if necessary. The half-shells can be particularly uniform in shape, except for through openings and, if necessary, windows. This allows for the manufacture of two half-shells in the same mold, where through openings or windows can be easily introduced post-processed, for example, by punching. The half-shells of the main body can be made of metal or plastic, for example, by injection molding or deep drawing processes, or by other means.

[0019] As stated above, the core concern of this invention is to achieve particularly effective noise reduction through the application of the resonance principle. However, this does not preclude the use of additional noise reduction measures based on energy dissipation, especially when there is no significant pressure loss in the airflow. In one embodiment of the invention, for example, the through-opening can be filled with a porous, sound-absorbing filter that is permeable to both gas and liquid. Thus, noise reduction through absorption occurs as soon as sound enters the collection tank, which serves as a resonant chamber. However, filling the through-opening with such a material should not excessively impede the flow of liquid into the collection tank.

[0020] An improved version of the invention follows a similar idea, wherein the lower side of the main pipe, the tank wall, and / or the supporting wall within the collection tank are at least partially coated with a porous, sound-absorbing coating. In other words, the walls of the resonant chamber accessible to airborne sound are coated with a sound-absorbing material to maximize overall noise reduction.

[0021] To transport the liquid separated from the gas flow, the main pipe can be specified, as is known in principle in the prior art, to be filled with a porous, gas- and liquid-permeable material above the through opening. For example, mineral wool or glass wool, metal wire knitted fabric, or (metallic) foam can be used. This optimizes its characteristics as a liquid separator. Its (inevitable) additional function as a silencer is secondary, since silencing primarily occurs in the resonant chamber. This material filling of the main pipe can be accordingly designed to minimize the pressure loss experienced by the gas flow.

[0022] The collection trough can be uniformly formed from the material on the underside of the main pipe. Alternatively, the collection trough can also be fixed to the underside of the main pipe as a separate component. It is conceivable to permanently fix the trough component, particularly the material, to the main pipe, for example by bonding, brazing, or welding. However, it is also conceivable to use a shape-locking connection, such as a snap-lock connection, which can even be reversible. In any case, the advantage of designing the collection trough as a separate component is that different acoustic tunings of the entire system can be performed without altering the main pipe by appropriately selecting the trough component. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Further details and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.

[0024] in:

[0025] Figure 1 A schematic 3D diagram of the liquid separator according to the invention is shown;

[0026] Figure 2 The partially sectional view shows... Figure 1 Liquid separator; and

[0027] Figure 3 The tank area of ​​the liquid separator according to the invention is shown in an axial section.

[0028] The same reference numerals in the accompanying drawings refer to the same or similar elements. Detailed Implementation

[0029] Figure 1 A perspective view of the liquid separator 10 according to the invention is shown in the schematic diagram. Figure 2 The same liquid separator 10 is shown in the perspective view, but cut along a vertical plane along the axial direction. Figure 3 The tank area and the lower main pipe area of ​​the liquid separator 10 according to the invention are shown in operation as specified. The accompanying drawings will now be described in conjunction with the drawings, unless otherwise specified in detail in a particular drawing.

[0030] The liquid separator 10 according to the invention includes a main pipe 100 and a collection tank 200 as its main components. In the illustrated embodiment, the main pipe is composed of two substantially identical half-shells 110, 120. Assembled along a horizontal cross-section, the upper half-shell 110 and the lower half-shell 120 form the main pipe 100 in the operating position with its longitudinal axis horizontally oriented.

[0031] A collection trough 200 is formed on the underside of the lower half-shell 120. In the illustrated embodiment, the collection trough 200 is substantially square in shape, having two vertical end walls 201 oriented transversely to the axial direction of the main pipe 100, two vertical side walls 202 oriented parallel to the axial direction of the main pipe 100, and a bottom 203. The lower half-shell 120 of the main pipe 100 has a window 121 opposite to the bottom 203, which is closed by a clip-in insert 300. The insert 300 thus forms part of the inner surface of the main pipe 100 on one hand and a cover for the collection trough 200 on the other. The insert 300 has a vertical partition wall 310 oriented transversely to the axial direction of the main pipe 100 on its underside, which extends into the collection trough 200 and divides the collection trough into two longitudinal sections, which may be referred to as a first chamber 210 and a second chamber 220. The partition wall 310 does not extend completely to the bottom 203 of the collection trough 200. Therefore, a connection is created between the two chambers 210 and 220 below the lower edge of the partition wall 310.

[0032] On one side of the partition wall 310, i.e., in the region of the first chamber 210, the insert 300 has a plurality of slit-like through openings 320, which form a connection between the interior of the main pipe 100 and the first chamber 210. On the other side of the partition wall 310, i.e., in the region of the second chamber 220, there are no such through openings to the interior of the main pipe 110.

[0033] An outlet end 230 is provided in the end wall 201 of the second chamber 220. In the illustrated embodiment, the outlet end is constructed as a simple, horizontal through-hole in the end wall 201. The inlet and outlet openings of this outlet end 230 are therefore at the same height in the illustrated embodiment. However, embodiments with a tubular structure for the outlet end are also conceivable, in which the outlet opening of the tube can easily be lower than its inlet opening. The particular significance of the relative positioning of the inlet opening of the outlet end 230 with respect to the lower edge of the partition wall 310 should be further elaborated below. Figure 3 To explain in more detail.

[0034] Above the collection tank 200, the main pipe 100 has a support for the first filter body 500, which is achieved by steps in the pipe wall. The support is only located on the surface of the pipe. Figure 3 As shown in the diagram. The filter element 500 is essentially used to separate liquid from the liquid-loaded gas flow 400 of the through-flow main pipe 100 (see...). Figure 3 ).

[0035] exist Figure 3 The operation of the liquid separator 10 according to the invention is illustrated. A liquid-laden gas flow 400 passes through a main pipe 100. This could, for example, involve water-laden exhaust gas from a fuel cell. Above a collection tank 200, the gas flow 400 passes through a filter body 500, which is formed, for example, of mineral wool, woven metal fabric, metal foam, or other porous materials particularly suitable for the respective application. The liquid carried by the gas flow 400 is separated at the filter body 500. The gas flow 400 thus exits the filter body 500 in the form of cleaned-up liquid. The separated liquid accumulates at the bottom of the main pipe 100 and drips through the through opening 320 into the collection tank 200, particularly into the first chamber 210 of the collection tank. Thus, a liquid lake 600 is formed at the bottom of the collection tank 200, extending towards the second chamber 220 below the lower edge of the partition wall 310. The liquid level in the liquid lake 600 continues to rise until it reaches the inlet opening of the outlet 230 and the liquid flows out of the collection tank 200 through the outlet 230.

[0036] As in Figure 3 As can be seen, the inlet opening of the outlet 230 is positioned above the lower edge of the partition wall 310 at the distance indicated by the two arrows. Therefore, when the liquid level of the liquid lake 600 reaches the inlet opening of the outlet 230, the partition wall is submerged in the liquid lake 600, thus airtightly separating the first chamber 210 from the second chamber 220. Consequently, air entering the first chamber 210 through the through opening 320 cannot enter the second chamber 220 and reach the direct path to the outlet 230. More precisely, as in... Figure 3 As symbolically shown, airborne sound is reflected at the limiting interface of the first chamber 210 and overlaps with its own reflection. In a specific design of the chamber size, this results in the disappearance of sound waves in a particular predetermined frequency band. The first chamber 210 thus serves as the resonant chamber of a Helmholtz resonator. It should be noted that the bottom of this resonant chamber is formed by the surface of the liquid lake 600. Provided that the outlet 230 is constructed to be sufficiently large, the height of the liquid lake is very well defined by the lower edge of the inlet opening of the outlet 230, and thus the size design of the resonant chamber can be very well taken into account.

[0037] Of course, the embodiments discussed in the detailed description and shown in the accompanying drawings are merely illustrative examples of the invention. Those skilled in the art will find a wide range of possible variations based on the information provided in this disclosure. In particular, those skilled in the art can match the choice of materials used almost arbitrarily to their respective individual circumstances. Thus, the liquid separator 10 of the invention, which is supplied with, for example, hot exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine, is often made of metal, while the liquid separator of the invention, supplied with, for example, cooler exhaust gas in the context of a fuel cell, can easily be made of plastic.

[0038] List of reference numerals

[0039] 10 Liquid Separator

[0040] 100 supervisors

[0041] The upper half of the shell of 110 100

[0042] 120 100 lower half shell

[0043] Windows in 121 and 120

[0044] 200 collection slots

[0045] 201 200 end wall

[0046] 202 200 sidewall

[0047] 203 200 bottom

[0048] 210 First Slot Chamber

[0049] 220 Second Slot Chamber

[0050] 230 outflow end

[0051] 300 Plugins

[0052] 310 partition wall

[0053] 320 through opening

[0054] 400 airflow

[0055] 500 filter elements

[0056] 600 Liquid Lake

Claims

1. A liquid separator (10), the liquid separator comprising: - Main tube (100), the tube axis of the main tube is oriented horizontally, - A collection trough (200), the walls (201, 202) of which are sealedly arranged on the underside of the main pipe (100), and the collection trough is divided into two chambers (210, 220) by means of a partition wall (310) oriented transversely to the axial direction of the main pipe (100), wherein the first chamber (210) is connected to the interior of the main pipe (100) through a through opening (320), and the other second chamber (220) has an outlet end (230) with an outlet inlet opening. The partition wall (310) extends sealingly over the width of the collection tank (200) on the lower side of the main pipe (100) and has a connection opening that guides the liquid between the first tank chamber (210) and the second tank chamber (220). Its features are, The second chamber (220) does not have a direct connection to the interior of the main pipe (100) and the outflow inlet is located above the upper edge of the connection opening.

2. The liquid separator (10) according to claim 1, Its features are, The partition wall (310) has a straight, horizontally extending lower edge that is spaced apart from the bottom (203) of the collection trough (200).

3. The liquid separator (10) according to claim 2, Its features are, The main pipe (100) is constructed in a multi-piece manner in that the pipe wall of the main pipe has a window (121) in the area of ​​the collection tank (200), the window being closed by a plug (300) equipped with the through opening (320) and the partition wall (310).

4. The liquid separator (10) according to claim 3, Its features are, The plug-in (300) is fixed in the window (121) by means of a locking mechanism.

5. The liquid separator (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Its features are, The main body (100) is composed of an upper shell (110) and a lower shell (120).

6. The liquid separator (10) according to claim 3 or 4, Its features are, The main unit (100) consists of an upper shell (110) and a lower shell (120), the lower shell being equipped with the window (121).

7. The liquid separator (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Its features are, The through opening (320) is filled with a porous, sound-absorbing material that is permeable to gas and liquid.

8. The liquid separator (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Its features are, The lower side of the main pipe (100), the inner side of the tank wall (201, 202) and / or the partition wall (310) within the collection tank (200) are at least partially provided with a porous, sound-absorbing coating.

9. The liquid separator (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Its features are, The main tube is filled above the through opening with a porous filter (500) that allows gas and liquid to pass through.

10. The liquid separator (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Its features are, The material of the collection trough (200) is uniformly formed on the lower side of the main pipe (100).

11. The liquid separator (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Its features are, The collection trough (200) is fixed as a separate component to the underside of the main pipe (100).

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