An oil separator for an air compressor

Abstract

This invention discloses an oil separator for an air compressor, belonging to the field of air compressor technology. It includes a main body, an inlet pipe, an outlet pipe, and a turbulence-inducing mechanism mounted on the main body. The inlet pipe extends tangentially into the interior of the main body, and the outlet pipe is located at the upper end of the main body. A vertical rotating shaft is supported inside the main body, and the turbulence-inducing mechanism is fixedly connected to the rotating shaft. A power generation mechanism is also connected to the upper part of the rotating shaft, which can axially output the mechanical energy generated by the impact of the high-temperature, high-pressure oil-gas mixture and convert it into electrical energy. This achieves oil-gas separation and recovery of liquid oil while also recovering mechanical kinetic energy, thus achieving efficient utilization of the energy generated during the separation of the high-temperature, high-pressure oil-gas mixture.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of air compressor technology, and more specifically, relates to an oil separator for air compressors. Background Technology

[0002] During the operation of an air compressor, the compressed gas carries oil and water, which are typically processed by an oil separator. Under centrifugal force, most of the oil in the oil-gas mixture is thrown onto the inner wall of the separator and flows down to the bottom under gravity. The remaining oil droplets condense into larger droplets during collisions and eventually sink to the bottom under gravity. When the oil-gas mixture enters the separator, some tiny oil droplets, due to their low inertia, are difficult to be effectively thrown to the tank wall and cannot condense into larger droplets, increasing the workload of the separator core. Furthermore, the oil-gas mixture discharged from the air compressor into the separator itself has a certain amount of intake kinetic energy. Only a portion of this energy is used during the oil separation process to increase the inertia of the oil droplets to aid in collisions and improve collection efficiency; the rest is lost. Therefore, an air compressor oil separator that can improve oil-gas separation efficiency and recover intake energy is needed. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an oil separator for an air compressor, which can meet the requirements of improving the oil-gas separation efficiency and recovering and utilizing the energy of the intake air.

[0004] The present invention discloses an oil separator for an air compressor, comprising a separator body, an inlet pipe, an outlet pipe, and a turbulence-dispersing mechanism disposed on the separator body. The inlet pipe extends tangentially into the separator body, and the outlet pipe is disposed at the upper end of the separator body. A vertical rotating shaft is supported inside the separator body, and the turbulence-dispersing mechanism is fixedly connected to the rotating shaft. A power generation mechanism is also connected to the upper part of the rotating shaft to convert the rotational kinetic energy of the turbulence-dispersing mechanism and the rotating shaft into electrical energy. An inclined groove is provided on one side of the bottom of the separator body, and an oil outlet is provided at the bottom of the inclined groove to facilitate the collection and diversion of the separated liquid oil. Controllable discharge is achieved through a valve to prevent impurity deposition and facilitate maintenance.

[0005] As a further improvement of the present invention, the power generation mechanism includes a stator and a rotor. The rotor is coaxially connected to the rotating shaft. The stator is fixed on the inner wall of the barrel body and cooperates with the rotor. When the rotor rotates with the rotating shaft, it cuts the magnetic field lines of the stator to generate electrical energy. Several turns of coil are wound on the stator for storing and transmitting electrical energy.

[0006] As a further improvement of the present invention, it also includes a separation filter element, which is installed inside the barrel body and positioned above the turbulence turbulence mechanism to further filter the oil droplets remaining in the gas. The separation filter element is a hollow annular filter element, and part of the filter element connects the inside of the barrel body and the gas outlet pipe. The power generation mechanism is installed in the hollow area of ​​the separation filter element.

[0007] As a further improvement of the present invention, the turbulence mechanism includes several baffles and scrapers connected to the lower ends of the baffles one by one. The baffles are uniformly fixedly connected to the rotating shaft to block and disturb the airflow, and promote the collision and coagulation of oil droplets. The shape of the baffles includes, but is not limited to, straight plates, arc plates or inclined plates, which are structures that can effectively block and disturb the airflow. The scraper corresponds to the shape of the side wall of the barrel body. The scraper is inclined and the inclination direction is along the rotation direction of the scraper. The scraper can continuously scrape the inner wall of the barrel body with the rotation of the rotating shaft to prevent the separated oil film from accumulating too thickly and to ensure that the oil droplets can quickly flow to the bottom of the barrel, thereby improving the stability of the oil-gas separation efficiency.

[0008] As a further improvement of the present invention, the path extension line of the oil-gas mixture discharged through the intake pipe intersects with the surface of any baffle plate and is located in the central area of ​​the baffle, ensuring that the intake kinetic energy is transferred to the baffle to the maximum extent, thereby improving the efficiency of the baffle rotation, ensuring that the power generation mechanism can obtain sufficient power, and impacting the central area helps to maintain the smooth operation of the rotating shaft, while reducing the vibration and noise of the turbulence mechanism.

[0009] As a further improvement of the present invention, a number of channels are provided on the surface of the baffle. The channels extend from the position near the rotating shaft to the edge of the baffle. When the baffle rotates, the captured oil droplets are thrown towards the inner wall of the barrel body by centrifugal force, which prevents the oil droplets from reforming into oil mist on the surface of the baffle and maintains the cleanliness and efficient turbulence capability of the baffle itself.

[0010] As a further improvement of the present invention, the cross-section of the channel is V-shaped, which facilitates the accumulation of oil droplets to the bottom of the channel to form large oil droplets. The depth of the channel gradually decreases from the pivot point towards the inner wall of the main body of the tank, with the deepest part of the channel near the pivot point, which is used to collect and accommodate more initial droplets. The channel gradually becomes shallower towards the outer edge, and the fixed centrifugal force acting on the gradually decreasing fluid cross-section will generate a greater acceleration, which allows the oil droplets to be discharged more quickly.

[0011] As a further improvement of the present invention, a protective mechanism is fixedly connected to the outside of the power generation mechanism. The protective mechanism encapsulates the power generation mechanism inside, isolating it from the high temperature and high oil and gas environment inside the oil separator, thus ensuring the long-term operational reliability, insulation performance and service life of the power generation mechanism.

[0012] As a further improvement of the present invention, the power generation mechanism is installed on the upper part of the inner top wall of the barrel body, the protective mechanism is set as a bowl-shaped sealed shell, the power generation mechanism also includes a stator mounting seat, the stator is fixed on the inner wall of the barrel body through the stator mounting seat, the open end of the protective mechanism is fixedly connected to the stator mounting seat, and the closed end faces the separation filter element below it.

[0013] As a further improvement of the present invention, the power generation mechanism is installed at the bottom of the inside of the barrel body. The protective mechanism is a cylindrical shell, the lower end of which covers the power generation mechanism and is fixedly connected to the bottom of the barrel body. The power generation mechanism also includes a stator mounting seat. The stator is fixed to the inner wall of the protective mechanism through the stator mounting seat, which isolates the power generation mechanism from the turbulence mechanism at its upper end and the inclined groove on the side, thereby increasing the structural stability.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: it is equipped with a turbulence turbulence mechanism and a power generation mechanism, which can convert the kinetic energy of the intake air carried by the oil-gas mixture when it enters the oil separator into electrical energy; through the multi-stage synergistic effect of tangential air intake, baffle turbulence, scraper wall cleaning and separation filter element, the tiny oil droplets are further separated, thereby improving the oil droplet capture efficiency. Equipped with scrapers and channels, the scrapers continuously scrape the barrel wall, ensuring that the separated oil is quickly collected and discharged. The bottom of the channel uses centrifugal force to actively throw off oil droplets attached to the baffles to remove the oil film on the baffle surface and prevent secondary atomization of the oil droplets. The air intake path is matched with the impact position of the baffles to ensure balanced force on the rotating shaft, smooth operation, and low vibration and noise. The cross-section of the channel is V-shaped, and the depth of the channel gradually decreases from the rotating shaft towards the inner wall of the barrel body, allowing the oil droplets to be discharged more quickly. A protective mechanism is provided to isolate the power generation mechanism from the oil-gas mixture, preventing corrosion of the power generation mechanism and increasing its service life. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the front sectional view of the present invention; Figure 3 For the present invention Figure 2 Enlarged view of region A in the middle; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the turbulence-disrupting mechanism and the separation filter element structure of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the baffle structure of the present invention; Figure 6 This is an exploded view of the power generation mechanism and the separation filter element structure of the present invention; Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the right-side cross-sectional structure of the baffle of the present invention; Figure 8This is a schematic diagram of the front cross-sectional structure of Embodiment 2 of the present invention; Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the front sectional view of Embodiment 3 of the present invention; Figure 10 For the present invention Figure 9 Enlarged view of region B in the middle; Figure 11 This is a frontal sectional view of Embodiment 4 of the present invention.

[0016] Explanation of the labels in the diagram: 1. Barrel body; 2. Inlet pipe; 3. Outlet pipe; 4. Baffle; 41. Channel; 411. Scraper; 42. Shaft; 5. Generating mechanism; 6. Stator; 61. Rotor; 62. Coil; 63. Stator mounting base; 64. Input shaft; 65. Separating filter element; 7. Protective mechanism; 8. Inclined groove; 9. Transmission mechanism; 10. Outer magnetic rotor; 101. Inner magnetic rotor; 102. Detailed Implementation

[0017] Specific Implementation Example 1: Please refer to... Figure 1-7 This invention relates to an oil separator for an air compressor, comprising a barrel body 1, an air inlet pipe 2 welded to the upper side wall of the barrel body 1, the inner end of which is tangent to the inner wall of the barrel body 1, so that a strong rotating airflow is generated when the oil-gas mixture enters, an air outlet pipe 3 is provided on the top side of the barrel body 1 for discharging the separated clean air, a rotating shaft 5 is provided inside the barrel body 1, the rotating shaft 5 is rotatably supported on the inner center line of the barrel body 1, a turbulence 4 is fixedly connected to the rotating shaft 5, a power generation mechanism 6 is installed on the upper part of the rotating shaft 5, and an inclined groove 9 is provided on the bottom side of the barrel body 1, the bottom of the inclined groove 9 is provided with an oil outlet connected to the outside, the separated liquid oil collects here under the action of gravity and can be discharged periodically.

[0018] In a further embodiment, such as Figures 4-5 As shown, the turbulence mechanism 4 includes several baffles 41 and scrapers 42. The diameter of the baffles 41 is smaller than the inner diameter of the barrel body 1 to ensure that they can rotate freely without affecting the downward flow of oil on the wall. There are three baffles 41, and the three baffles 41 are uniformly fixedly connected to the rotating shaft 5 along the circumference. The scrapers 42 are connected to the lower edge of each baffle 41 in a corresponding manner. The scrapers 42 maintain a small gap with the barrel wall, and the scrapers 42 are inclined relative to the radial direction. The inclination direction is along the direction in which the scrapers 42 rotate with the rotating shaft 5. The path extension line of the oil-gas mixture discharged through the air inlet pipe 2 intersects the plate surface of any baffle 41, and the intersection point is located in the central area of ​​the baffle 41 to ensure maximum impact force and torque balance.

[0019] In a further embodiment, such as Figures 5-6As shown, a number of channels 411 are provided on the surface of the baffle 41. The channels 411 extend radially from the position near the rotating shaft 5 to the outer edge of the baffle 41. The cross-section of the channel 411 is V-shaped, and its depth gradually becomes shallower from the rotating shaft 5 towards the inner wall of the barrel body 1. When the baffle 41 rotates, the channels 411 can use centrifugal force to quickly throw out the small oil droplets that hit the plate surface and adhere to it, and guide them to the barrel wall.

[0020] In a further embodiment, such as Figures 2-3 and Figure 7 As shown, it also includes a separation filter element 7, which is installed inside the barrel body 1 and positioned above the turbulence turbulence mechanism 4 to further filter the oil droplets remaining in the gas. The separation filter element 7 is a hollow annular filter element, and the filter element part connects the inside of the barrel body 1 and the gas outlet pipe 3. The power generation mechanism 6 is installed in the hollow area of ​​the separation filter element 7.

[0021] In a further embodiment, such as Figure 5 As shown, the power generation mechanism 6 includes a stator 61, a rotor 62, a coil 63, and a stator mounting base 64. The rotor 62 is coaxially connected to the upper end of the rotating shaft 5. The stator 61 is fixedly mounted on the inner wall of the hollow area of ​​the separator filter element 7 through a stator mounting base 64. The stator mounting base 64 is a round flange. The stator 61 and the rotor 62 are fitted together with a clearance. Several turns of coil 63 are wound on the stator 61 to store and transmit electrical energy.

[0022] In a further embodiment, such as Figure 2 and Figure 7 As shown, a protective mechanism 8 is provided outside the power generation mechanism 6. The protective mechanism 8 is a bowl-shaped sealed shell. Its open end is connected to the stator mounting base 64 by bolts, so that the power generation mechanism 6 is away from the air intake and oil mist. The protective mechanism 8 encapsulates the entire power generation mechanism 6 inside, isolating it from the oil and gas environment below, ensuring its long-term stable operation and preventing oil vapor from entering.

[0023] During operation, a high-temperature, high-pressure oil-gas mixture is injected at high speed into the barrel body 1 through a tangential inlet pipe 2. Initial oil-gas separation is achieved through droplet collision and condensation, with the mixture flowing down the inner wall of the barrel body 1. As the oil-gas mixture enters the barrel body 1, it impacts the baffle 41 of the turbulence-inducing mechanism 4. This impact creates strong turbulence, causing tiny oil droplets to collide and condense into larger droplets under intense disturbance. Furthermore, as the oil-gas mixture is tangentially injected into the barrel body through the inlet pipe, the flow cross-section suddenly expands, causing gas expansion and a sharp increase in velocity, forming a high-speed rotating airflow. This rotating airflow then impacts the baffle 41, generating a tangential impact force on it. This creates an effect similar to the impact of high-speed expanding airflow on the guide vanes in a steam turbine, efficiently converting the fluid kinetic energy carried by the oil-gas mixture into the mechanical rotational kinetic energy of the rotating shaft 5, driving the rotating shaft 5 to rotate at high speed. The scraper 42 fixed on the rotating shaft 5 rotates accordingly, and its inclined blade continuously scrapes the barrel wall, causing the oil film adhering to the wall surface to accelerate and drip down. Under the action of centrifugal force, the grooves 411 on the surface of the baffle 41 throw the oil droplets on the surface of the baffle 41 towards the barrel wall, resulting in secondary separation of oil and gas. After secondary separation, the gas mixed with some small oil droplets rises and passes through the separation filter element 7 for final fine separation. Finally, the clean air is discharged from the outlet pipe 3. While separating oil and gas, power generation is achieved. The rotation of the rotating shaft 5 drives the rotor 62 of the power generation mechanism 6 to rotate. The rotor 62 moves relative to the fixed stator 61, cutting the magnetic field lines generated by the magnetic field of the stator 61, thereby generating an induced current in the coil 63, realizing the energy recovery of kinetic energy in the oil-gas mixture. Compared with the dissipation of kinetic energy of the intake air in the traditional oil separator in the form of eddy currents and friction, this invention achieves energy capture and recovery through the turbulence mechanism 4 and the power generation mechanism 6. In a screw air compressor, the high-temperature, high-pressure oil-gas mixture is discharged from the main unit and enters the oil-gas separator tangentially or by impact. With the help of centrifugal force and gravity, larger oil droplets settle to the bottom. The oil-gas separator has a built-in structure similar to a small steam turbine. The baffle 41, which is equivalent to a blade, is used to impact the high-temperature, high-pressure oil-gas mixture to be separated, and the resulting rotational kinetic energy is discharged axially. This recovers the kinetic energy of the high-temperature, high-pressure oil-gas mixture without affecting the oil-gas separation and outputs it.

[0024] Specific Implementation Example 2: Please refer to Figure 8The difference between this embodiment and embodiment one is that the power generation mechanism 6 is connected to the lower end of the rotating shaft 5, the separator filter element 7 is a solid cylindrical filter element, the filter element part is connected to the inside of the barrel body 1 and the air outlet pipe 3, and the protective mechanism 8 is a cylindrical shell, the lower end of which covers the power generation mechanism 6 and is fixedly connected to the bottom of the barrel body 1. The stator 61 is fixed to the inner wall of the protective mechanism 8 through the stator mounting seat 64 to isolate the power generation mechanism 6 from the turbulence mechanism 4 and the inclined groove 9. When the inner wall of the barrel body 1 is subjected to turbulence, it vibrates. The power generation mechanism 6 is not directly connected to the barrel body 1 and is located in the lower section of the barrel body 1, so that the power generation mechanism 6 enhances its resistance to the vibration of the barrel body 1, thereby improving the stability of the oil separator barrel structure.

[0025] Specific Implementation Example 3: Please refer to Figures 9-10 The difference between this embodiment and Embodiment 1 is that the power generation mechanism 6 is fixedly installed on the top wall of the barrel body 1 by an external bracket. The power generation mechanism 6 has an input shaft 65 inside, and the rotor 62 is coaxially connected to the input shaft 65. The stator 61 is fixedly connected to the external bracket by a stator mounting seat 64. It also includes a transmission mechanism 10, which is a magnetic coupler, including an outer magnetic rotor 101 and an inner magnetic rotor 102. The outer magnetic rotor 101 is fixedly installed on the top of the rotating shaft 5, and the inner magnetic rotor 102 is fixedly installed on the tail end of the input shaft 65 of the power generation mechanism 6. The top wall of the barrel body 1 is located between the outer magnetic rotor 101 and the inner magnetic rotor 102, and is designed as a non-planar top wall that matches the transmission of the outer magnetic rotor 101 and the inner magnetic rotor 102. This allows the mechanical energy of the rotating shaft 5 to be transmitted to the power generation mechanism 6 to complete energy storage without opening holes in the barrel body 1, ensuring the sealing of the upper end of the barrel body 1, reducing gas leakage and improving collection efficiency.

[0026] When the oil-gas mixture drives the turbulence mechanism 4 to rotate, the turbulence mechanism 4 collects oil droplets while driving the rotating shaft 5 to rotate. The rotating shaft 5 drives the outer magnetic rotor 101 at its top to rotate, and drives the inner magnetic rotor 102 to rotate synchronously through magnetic coupling, thereby driving the rotor 62 of the power generation mechanism 6 to rotate, and then cutting the magnetic field lines of the stator 61 to generate electricity, thus completing the conversion of the kinetic energy of the oil-gas mixture by the power generation mechanism 6.

[0027] Specific Implementation Example 4: Please refer to Figure 11 The difference between this embodiment and Embodiment 1 is that the power generation mechanism 6 is fixedly installed below the bottom of the barrel body 1 by an external bracket, the rotating shaft 5 extends downward to the outside of the barrel body 1 and is rotatably connected to the bottom wall of the external bracket, the rotor 62 and the lower end of the rotating shaft 5 are coaxially connected, and the stator 61 is fixedly connected to the external bracket by a stator mounting seat 64. The power generation mechanism 6 is exposed outside the barrel body 1, which does not occupy the internal space of the barrel, improves the oil-gas separation efficiency, prevents interference with the separation of the oil-gas mixture, and facilitates the maintenance of the power generation mechanism 6.

Claims

1. An oil separator for an air compressor, characterized in that: It includes a barrel body (1), an air inlet pipe (2), an air outlet pipe (3) and a turbulence mechanism (4) provided on the barrel body (1). The air inlet pipe (2) is connected to the inside of the barrel body (1) along the tangential direction of the barrel body (1). The air outlet pipe (3) is provided at the upper end of the barrel body (1). A vertical rotating shaft (5) is supported inside the barrel body (1). The turbulence mechanism (4) and the rotating shaft (5) are fixedly connected. A power generation mechanism (6) is also connected to the rotating shaft (5) to convert the rotational kinetic energy of the turbulence mechanism (4) and the rotating shaft (5) into electrical energy. An oil outlet connected to the outside is also provided on one side of the bottom of the barrel body (1).

2. The oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 1, characterized in that: The power generation mechanism (6) includes a stator (61) and a rotor (62). The rotor (62) is coaxially connected to the shaft (5). The stator (61) is fixed on the inner wall of the barrel body (1) and cooperates with the rotor (62). Several turns of coil (63) are wound on the stator (61).

3. The oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a separation filter element (7), which is installed inside the barrel body (1) and positioned above the turbulence mechanism (4).

4. The oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 1, characterized in that: The turbulence mechanism (4) includes several baffles (41) and scrapers (42) connected to the lower end of the baffles (41) in a corresponding manner. Several baffles (41) are evenly fixed on the rotating shaft (5). The shape of the scraper (42) corresponds to the side wall of the barrel body (1). The scraper (42) is inclined and the inclination direction is along the rotation direction of the scraper (42).

5. An oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 4, characterized in that: The path of the oil-gas mixture discharged through the intake pipe (2) intersects the surface of any baffle (41) and is located in the central area of ​​the baffle (41).

6. An oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 4, characterized in that: Several channels (411) are provided on the surface of the baffle (41). The channels (411) extend from the position near the rotating shaft (5) to the edge of the baffle (41) to throw the captured oil droplets toward the inner wall of the barrel body (1) by means of centrifugal force when the baffle (41) rotates.

7. An oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 6, characterized in that: The cross-section of the channel (411) is V-shaped, and the depth of the channel (411) gradually becomes shallower from the pivot (5) towards the inner wall of the barrel body (1).

8. An oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 2, characterized in that: The power generation mechanism (6) is externally fixedly connected to a protective mechanism (8), which encapsulates the power generation mechanism (6) inside.

9. An oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 8, characterized in that: The power generation mechanism (6) is installed on the upper part of the inner top wall of the barrel body (1). The separation filter element (7) is a hollow annular filter element. The filter element part is connected to the inside of the barrel body (1) and the air outlet pipe (3). The power generation mechanism (6) is installed in the hollow area of ​​the separation filter element (7). The protective mechanism (8) is a bowl-shaped sealed shell. The power generation mechanism (6) also includes a stator mounting seat (64). The stator (61) is fixed on the inner wall of the barrel body (1) through the stator mounting seat (64). The open end of the protective mechanism (8) is fixedly connected to the stator mounting seat (64), and the closed end faces the separation filter element (7) below it.

10. An oil separator for an air compressor according to claim 8, characterized in that: The power generation mechanism (6) is installed at the bottom inside the barrel body (1). The protective mechanism (8) is a cylindrical shell, the lower end of which covers the power generation mechanism (6) and is fixedly connected to the bottom of the barrel body (1). The power generation mechanism (6) also includes a stator mounting seat (64). The stator (61) is fixed to the inner wall of the protective mechanism (8) through the stator mounting seat (64).

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