Airtight type tobacco stem blanking airlock

Abstract

An airtight type tobacco stem blanking airlock comprises an airlock shell and a rotor, the upper end of the airlock shell is provided with a feeding port, the lower end of the airlock shell is provided with a discharging port, and the left end and the right end of the airlock shell are provided with side covers; the rotor is installed in the airlock shell and is hollow, grooves are formed in airlock blades of the rotor in the length direction, sealing strips and adjusting push plates are installed in the grooves, through holes are formed in the bottoms of the grooves, adjusting rods with push springs are installed in the through holes, and adjusting shaft sleeves used for pushing the adjusting rods are installed in the rotor. A push shaft is fixedly arranged in the adjusting shaft sleeve in a penetrating mode, rotating covers are fixedly connected to the two ends of the rotor respectively, the rotating covers at the two ends are correspondingly and fixedly connected with a first hollow main shaft and a second hollow main shaft, and the first main shaft and the second main shaft are rotationally connected with the side covers respectively. The end parts of the main shaft I and the main shaft II are correspondingly connected with an opposite vertex adjusting bolt and an opposite vertex sealing bolt; and a driving wheel is mounted on the main shaft II. The airlock is good in airtightness and convenient to maintain.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the technical field of tobacco processing equipment, specifically an airtight tobacco stem feeding airlock. Background Technology

[0002] Tobacco stems are the raw material for tobacco stem processing. Currently, traditional tobacco stem rehydration production lines mainly rely on multiple heating, humidification, and storage techniques. A typical process is "one humidification and one storage, two humidifications and two storages," meaning the tobacco stems undergo two humidification processes and two storages to allow surface moisture to naturally penetrate into the stem core, achieving rehydration. This pretreatment method results in poor humidification penetration, ineffective control of stem moisture content, a complex process, long processing cycle, numerous pieces of equipment, high energy consumption, large floor space requirements, and high equipment investment and maintenance costs. With technological advancements, international researchers have studied rapid rehydration techniques using a steam pressurized environment. Experimental results show that under pressure, moisture can effectively, quickly, and evenly penetrate the tobacco stems. The treated stems have a uniform moisture content both internally and externally, allowing for immediate pressing and cutting without storage. Furthermore, the tobacco stems can be pressed and cut at lower moisture content. The resulting tobacco stems produce tobacco stems with reduced CO delivery and improved smoke quality, increasing smoke concentration and reducing irritation.

[0003] To facilitate material loading and unloading while ensuring isolation between the equipment's internal and external air, and maintaining stable internal pressure and temperature, most existing technologies employ airlocks for gas-material separation. Published literature also reports on several airlock technologies, such as:

[0004] 1. Chinese Patent: Tobacco Drying Machine Feeding Airlock, Application No.: 202211441593.6, Application Date: 2022.11.17, Abstract: This invention discloses a feeding airlock for a tobacco drying machine, including an airlock cavity, a rotating shaft, rotating blades, a drive motor, and an active sealing mechanism. The upper end of the airlock cavity is configured as a feeding port, and the lower end as a feeding port; the rotating shaft extends laterally through the airlock cavity, and the rotating blades are arranged in a ring array on the rotating shaft and located within the airlock cavity. The drive motor is connected to one end of the rotating shaft to drive the rotating shaft and rotating blades to rotate. A flexible sealing layer is applied to the annular inner wall of the airlock cavity, and flexible contacts are provided at the ends of the rotating blades, with a fitting gap between the contacts of the rotating blades and the sealing layer. The active sealing mechanism is used to drive the sealing layer to approach the contacts of the rotating blades or to drive the contacts of the rotating blades to approach the sealing layer, thereby achieving a seal in the airlock cavity. This invention achieves temporary and partial sealing through external power, with low friction during rotation, which can extend the equipment life and provide better sealing effect.

[0005] 2. Chinese Patent: An Airlock Structure for a Drum-Type Drying Machine, Application No.: 201921821101.X, Application Date: 2019.10.28, Abstract: This utility model belongs to the technical field of cigarette processing equipment, specifically relating to an airlock structure for a drum-type drying machine, including a sealed cylindrical airlock cavity and a rotary airlock placed inside the airlock cavity. The feed channel and discharge channel are both connected to the inside of the airlock cavity. The rotary airlock includes a rotating shaft and multiple airlock blades evenly arranged on the rotating shaft. A rotary motor is fixedly installed on the outer wall of the airlock cavity. The output shaft of the rotary motor passes through the outer wall of the airlock cavity and is connected to the rotating shaft for transmission. The airlock blades divide the airlock cavity into multiple sealed cavities. U-shaped sealing rubber strips are fixedly installed on the edges of the airlock blades. The edges of the U-shaped sealing rubber strips are all in contact with the inner wall of the airlock cavity. U-shaped soft brushes are fixedly installed between the feed channel, the discharge channel and the airlock cavity. The U-shaped soft brushes are not in contact with the edges of the U-shaped sealing rubber strips. Its purpose is to solve the problem of wear on the inner wall of the airlock cavity and high tobacco breakage rate caused by the design defects of the existing airlock structure.

[0006] 3. Chinese Patent: A Material Discharge Airlock for a Tobacco Production Line, Application No.: 201720427500.2, Application Date: 2017.04.22, Abstract: A material discharge airlock for a tobacco production line includes a circular cavity with openings at the top and bottom. The top opening is a feed inlet, and the bottom opening is a discharge outlet. A rotating shaft is rotatably mounted inside the circular cavity, and a material-pushing plate is mounted on the rotating shaft. The material-pushing plate rotates along the inner wall of the circular cavity. The feed inlet has two sides... The wall is divided into a left inner wall and a right inner wall, which are non-parallel to the feeding plate. The spacing on one side of the feeding plate gradually transitions to the spacing on the other side. There are at least five sets of feeding plates, which are regularly arranged in a circle on the rotating shaft to achieve gas isolation between the feed inlet and the feed outlet. This technical solution uses the principle of scissors to cut the tobacco shreds on the outer side of the end of the metal feeding plate and the inner wall of the metal feed outlet, so as to prevent jamming and reduce friction. Increasing the number of feeding plates will prevent air from passing between the feed inlet and the feed outlet, thus increasing the airtightness.

[0007] Application research has revealed that existing airlock seals have short service life, poor sealing performance, and are inconvenient to adjust and maintain. Furthermore, when metal skeleton seals are damaged, they can easily scratch the airlock housing and rotor, resulting in high maintenance costs. Summary of the Invention

[0008] The purpose of this utility model is to address the problems existing in the prior art by providing an airtight tobacco stem discharge airlock. This airtight tobacco stem discharge airlock can adjust the tension between the sealing strip and the inner wall of the airlock housing according to the working conditions of the airlock. Under the premise of ensuring stable air pressure, it reduces the wear of the housing and the sealing strip, greatly extends the service life of the airlock, and is easy to maintain with low maintenance costs.

[0009] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by this utility model is as follows:

[0010] An airtight tobacco stem feeding airlock includes an airlock housing and a rotor. The upper end of the airlock housing is a feed inlet, and the lower end is a discharge outlet. Side covers are bolted to both ends of the airlock housing, and the airlock housing and side covers are connected by flanges. A copper gasket is installed between the airlock housing and the side covers. The side covers facilitate the installation of the rotor and the inspection and maintenance of the airlock housing. The rotor is installed inside the airlock housing and has airlock blades arranged in a circular array on the rotor. The rotor is a hollow rotor, and grooves are formed along the length of the airlock blades. Sealing strips for contact and sealing with the inner wall of the airlock housing are installed in the grooves. An adjusting push plate is connected to the bottom of the sealing strips. The sealing strips are made of high-strength PEEK material that is resistant to high temperature, wear, and corrosion. The 10 sets of airlock blades and the corresponding radial sealing strip supports can be adjusted radially by 7-10mm. The tension between the sealing strips and the inner wall of the airlock housing can be adjusted according to the working conditions of the airlock. Under the premise of ensuring stable air pressure, the wear between the housing and the sealing strips is reduced, and the service life of the airlock is greatly extended. The bottom of the groove has a through hole communicating with the hollow part of the rotor. An adjusting rod for pushing the adjusting push plate is installed in the through hole. A push spring is installed at the top of the adjusting rod. An adjusting bushing with a tapered surface for pushing the adjusting rod is installed inside the rotor. A push shaft is fixedly inserted through the adjusting bushing by a push block. A rotating cover is fixedly connected to each end of the rotor. The outer ring of the rotating cover is clearance-fitted with the inner wall of the airlock housing. A hollow main shaft one is fixedly connected to one of the rotating covers. Main shaft one is rotatably connected to the corresponding side cover via a bearing and bearing seat one. A hollow main shaft two is fixedly connected to the other rotating cover. Main shaft two is rotatably connected to the corresponding side cover via a bearing and bearing seat two. The two ends of the push shaft are located inside main shaft one and main shaft two, respectively. The ends of main shaft one and main shaft two are threadedly connected to opposing adjusting bolts and opposing sealing bolts for pushing the push shaft. A drive wheel for driving the rotor rotation is installed on main shaft two. The drive wheel is a drive sprocket or drive pulley, used to transmit power to main shaft two.

[0011] A further preferred embodiment: mechanical seals for connection with the side cover are correspondingly installed on the first and second spindles. The mechanical seals are commercially available.

[0012] A further preferred embodiment: bearing cover plates are respectively installed on bearing housing one and bearing housing two for limiting the bearing cover within them, and the bearing cover plates position and seal the bearing within the corresponding bearing housing one and bearing housing two.

[0013] A further preferred embodiment includes a bearing positioning ring installed inside the bearing housing to securely position the bearing within the bearing housing.

[0014] A further preferred embodiment: a copper gasket is installed between the bearing housing one and bearing housing two and the corresponding side cover.

[0015] A further preferred embodiment includes an elastic sealing gasket installed between the rotating cover and the side cover to seal the gap between the rotating cover and the inner wall of the airlock housing. The elastic sealing gasket is connected to an elastic sealing gasket pressure plate, and an elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt is installed on the side cover to push the elastic sealing gasket pressure plate. A pushing spring is provided on the elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt. The elastic sealing gasket is pressed and sealed by the elastic sealing gasket pressure plate, resulting in a large sealing area, good sealing performance, and convenient maintenance. Damage to the sealing element will not scratch the airlock housing and rotor, thus greatly reducing maintenance costs. Previously, a hole-sealing ring was used for sealing; when the sealing ring was damaged, its damaged metal skeleton would scratch the inner cavity of the airlock housing and the sealing strip, rotor, and other main components, resulting in high repair costs and significantly increasing maintenance expenses.

[0016] A further preferred embodiment includes an exhaust port on one side wall of the airlock housing for discharging gas between the two airlock blades. The space between the two rotating covers and the two airlock blades serves as a sealed material discharge bin.

[0017] This airtight tobacco stem discharge airlock has the following advantages:

[0018] 1. The airtight tobacco stem feeding airlock has a cleverly designed structure. The radial sealing strip support can be adjusted radially, allowing the tension between the sealing strip and the inner wall of the airlock housing to be adjusted according to the working conditions of the airlock. This reduces the wear between the housing and the sealing strip while ensuring stable air pressure, thus greatly extending the service life of the airlock.

[0019] 2. The sealing method between the rotor end face and the inner wall of the housing adopts a detachable sealing gasket to press the rotor cover for end face sealing. It has a large sealing area, good sealing performance, and is easy to maintain. When the seal is damaged, it will not scratch the main components such as the air lock housing and rotor, thus greatly reducing maintenance costs. This solves the problem of traditional air valves using orifice plug sealing rings. When the sealing ring is damaged, its damaged metal skeleton will scratch the inner cavity of the air lock housing and the main components such as the sealing strip and rotor, resulting in high repair costs and greatly increasing maintenance costs. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the airtight tobacco stem feeding airlock;

[0021] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the AA-direction cross-section;

[0022] The names corresponding to the serial numbers in the figure are:

[0023] 1. Side cover, 2. Copper gasket, 3. Bearing housing one, 4. Bearing positioning ring, 5. Bearing cover plate, 6. Rotary cover, 7. Push shaft, 8. Push block, 9. Airlock housing, 10. Sealing strip, 11. Adjusting bushing, 12. Feed inlet, 13. Adjusting push plate, 14. Adjusting rod, 15. Push spring, 16. Rotor, 17. Main shaft two, 18. Bearing housing two, 19. Drive wheel, 20. Top sealing bolt, 21. Mechanical seal, 22. Elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt, 23. Elastic sealing gasket pressure plate, 24. Elastic sealing gasket, 25. Airlock blade, 26. Discharge port, 27. Main shaft one, 28. Top adjusting bolt, 29. Exhaust port, 30. Sealed discharge bin. Detailed Implementation

[0024] To provide a more detailed description of this utility model, the following description is provided in conjunction with the embodiments and accompanying drawings. Example

[0025] An airtight tobacco stem feeding airlock includes an airlock housing 9 and a rotor 16. The upper end of the airlock housing 9 is configured as an inlet 12, and the lower end is configured as an outlet 26. Side covers 1 are bolted to the left and right ends of the airlock housing 9, respectively. The airlock housing 9 and the side covers 1 are connected by a flange, and a copper gasket 2 is installed between the airlock housing 9 and the side covers 1. The rotor 16 is installed inside the airlock housing 9. Airlock blades 25 are arranged in a circular array on the rotor 16. The rotor 16 is a hollow rotor. Grooves are formed along the length of the airlock blades 25 of the rotor 16. A sealing strip 10 for contacting and sealing with the inner wall of the airlock housing 9 is installed in the groove. An adjusting push plate 13 is connected to the bottom of the sealing strip 10. A through hole communicating with the hollow part of the rotor 16 is provided at the bottom of the groove. An adjusting rod 14 for pushing the adjusting push plate 13 is installed in the through hole. A push rod 14 is installed at the top of the adjusting rod 14. Spring 15, rotor 16 is equipped with an adjusting bushing 11 with a tapered surface for pushing the adjusting rod 14. The adjusting bushing 11 is fixedly connected to a push shaft 7 through a push block 8. A rotating cover 6 is fixedly connected to each end of rotor 16. The outer ring of the rotating cover 6 is clearance-fitted with the inner wall of the air lock housing 9. A hollow main shaft 1 27 is fixedly connected to one end of the rotating cover 6. The main shaft 1 27 is rotatably connected to the corresponding side cover 1 through a bearing and a bearing seat 1 3. A hollow main shaft 2 17 is fixedly connected to the other end of the rotating cover 6. The main shaft 2 17 is rotatably connected to the corresponding side cover 1 through a bearing and a bearing seat 2 18. The two ends of the push shaft 7 are located in the main shaft 1 27 and the main shaft 2 17, respectively. The ends of the main shaft 1 27 and the main shaft 2 17 are threadedly connected to the corresponding top adjusting bolts 28 and top sealing bolts 20 for pushing the push shaft 7. A drive wheel 19 for driving rotor 16 to rotate is installed on the main shaft 2 17. The drive wheel 19 is a drive sprocket or drive belt pulley, used to transmit power to the main shaft 17.

[0026] Mechanical seals 21 for connecting to the side cover 1 are respectively installed on the first spindle 27 and the second spindle 17.

[0027] The bearing housing 1 3 and bearing housing 2 18 are respectively equipped with bearing cover plates 5 for limiting the bearing cover within them.

[0028] The bearing housing 3 is equipped with a bearing positioning ring 4.

[0029] A copper pad 2 is installed between the bearing housing 1, bearing housing 2, and the corresponding side cover 1.

[0030] An elastic sealing gasket 24 is installed between the rotating cover 6 and the side cover 1 to seal the gap between the rotating cover 6 and the inner wall of the airlock housing 9. The elastic sealing gasket 24 is connected to an elastic sealing gasket pressure plate 23. An elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt 22 for pushing the elastic sealing gasket pressure plate 23 is installed on the side cover 1. A pushing spring is provided on the elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt 22.

[0031] The airlock housing 9 has an exhaust port 29 on one side wall for discharging gas between the two airlock blades 25. The space between the two rotating covers 6 and the two airlock blades 25 is a sealed material discharge bin 30.

[0032] To facilitate processing, the rotating cover 6, rotor 16, main shaft one 27, and main shaft two 17 are machined separately and then assembled and welded together. This airtight tobacco stem feeding airlock is installed at the inlet and outlet ends of the tobacco stem processing line, with the exhaust port 29 connected to the exhaust pipe. According to the working conditions of the airlock, by twisting the adjusting bolt 28 at the end of the main shaft 1 27 and the sealing bolt 20 at the end of the main shaft 2 17, the push shaft 7 is pushed to the left or right. Under the action of the push block 8, the adjusting sleeve 11 is also moved to the left or right. After reaching the appropriate position, the nuts on the adjusting bolt 28 and the sealing bolt 20 are locked. When the adjusting sleeve 11 moves to the left, its conical surface reduces the thrust on the adjusting rod 14, thereby reducing the pressure of the sealing strip 10 on the inner wall of the airlock housing 9. When the adjusting sleeve 11 moves to the right, its conical surface increases the thrust on the adjusting rod 14, thereby increasing the pressure of the sealing strip 10 on the inner wall of the airlock housing 9. When the rotor 16 rotates, due to the action of the push spring 15 at the top of the adjusting rod 14, the sealing strip 10 and the inner wall of the airlock housing 9 are in elastic contact and sealed. By twisting the elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt 22, the elastic sealing gasket pressure plate 23 can drive the elastic sealing gasket 24 to press the rotating cover 6, thus achieving end face sealing. When the seal is worn, the seal can be adjusted from the outside without disassembly for adjustment or replacement. During operation, the drive wheel 19 uses a drive sprocket, which is connected to the power unit to transmit power to the main shaft 17, thereby driving the rotor 16 to rotate. When the sealed material drop chamber 30 between the two airlock blades 25 on the rotor 16 rotates to the bottom of the feed inlet 12, the material falls into the sealed material drop chamber 30. When the sealed material drop chamber 30 rotates to the bottom, the material inside falls out from the discharge port 26. When it continues to rotate to the exhaust port 29, the pressure inside is released. When it rotates back to the bottom of the feed inlet 12, the material drops again. Each sealed material drop chamber 30 drops material in the same way as described above.

[0033] The above description is not intended to limit the present utility model, nor is the present utility model limited to the above examples. Any changes, modifications, additions or substitutions made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present utility model should be protected by the present utility model.

Claims

1. Airtight tobacco stem blanking air lock, comprising an air lock housing (9) and a rotor (16), the upper end of the air lock housing (9) is provided as a feeding port (12), the lower end is provided as a discharging port (26), and the left and right ends of the air lock housing (9) are respectively provided with side covers (1); the rotor (16) is installed in the air lock housing (9), and the rotor (16) is provided with air lock blades (25) in annular array, characterized in that: The rotor (16) is a hollow rotor, the gas lock blade (25) is provided with a groove along the length direction, the groove is provided with a sealing strip (10) and an adjusting push plate (13), the bottom of the groove is provided with a through hole, the through hole is provided with an adjusting rod (14) with a push spring (15), the rotor (16) is provided with an adjusting shaft sleeve (11) for pushing the adjusting rod (14), the adjusting shaft sleeve (11) is provided with a push shaft (7) fixed through a push block (8), the both ends of the rotor (16) are fixedly connected with a rotor cover (6), the both ends of the rotor cover (6) are fixedly connected with a hollow main shaft one (27) and a main shaft two (17), the main shaft one (27) is rotatably connected with the corresponding side cover (1) through a bearing and a bearing seat one (3), the main shaft two (17) is rotatably connected with the corresponding side cover (1) through a bearing and a bearing seat two (18), the both ends of the push shaft (7) are located in the main shaft one (27) and the main shaft two (17), the end portions of the main shaft one (27) and the main shaft two (17) are correspondingly screw-connected with a counter-thrust adjusting bolt (28) and a counter-thrust sealing bolt (20) for pushing the push shaft (7), the main shaft two (17) is provided with a driving wheel (19). ​ 2. The air-tight tobacco stem dicing airlock of claim 1, wherein: The main shaft one (27) and the main shaft two (17) are correspondingly provided with a mechanical seal (21) for connecting with the side cover (1).

3. The air-tight tobacco stem dicing airlock of claim 1, wherein: The bearing cover plate (5) for limiting the bearing cover in the bearing seat one (3) and the bearing seat two (18) is installed.

4. The air-tight tobacco stem dicing airlock of claim 1 or 3, wherein: The bearing seat one (3) is provided with a bearing positioning ring (4).

5. The air-tight tobacco stem dicing airlock of claim 1 or 3, wherein: The copper pad (2) is installed between the bearing seat one (3) and the bearing seat two (18) and the corresponding side cover (1).

6. The air-tight tobacco stem dicing airlock of claim 1, wherein: The elastic sealing gasket (24) for sealing the gap between the rotor cover (6) and the inner wall of the gas lock shell (9) is installed between the rotor cover (6) and the side cover (1), the elastic sealing gasket (24) is connected with an elastic sealing gasket pressing plate (23), the side cover (1) is provided with an elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt (22) for pushing the elastic sealing gasket pressing plate (23), and the elastic sealing gasket adjusting bolt (22) is provided with a pushing spring.

7. The air-tight tobacco stem dicing airlock of claim 1, wherein: The side wall of the gas lock shell (9) is provided with an exhaust port (29) for exhausting the gas between the two gas lock blades (25).

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