Gas-Liquid Separation Device

Abstract

To prevent reduction of the amount of oil to be supplied from a gas liquid separation device to a lubrication portion of an internal combustion engine.SOLUTION: A gas liquid separation device 10 separates blow-by gas from oil L introduced from a crank case of an internal combustion engine. The gas liquid separation device 10 includes: an oil tank 12 storing the oil L to be supplied to a lubrication portion of the internal combustion engine; and a cylindrical gas liquid separator 11 accommodated in the oil tank 12. The oil tank 12 includes a discharge port 12h for discharging blow-by gas to the outside. The gas liquid separator 11 includes an extension part 25 extending from an end having a shorter distance to the discharge port 12h out of ends in the axial direction L1 toward the outer side of the gas liquid separator 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gas-liquid separation device. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes an oil tank that stores oil. The oil stored in the oil tank is supplied to lubrication parts of an internal combustion engine. Oil is introduced into the oil tank from the crankcase of the internal combustion engine. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 05-306611 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The oil introduced from the crankcase to the oil tank may contain blow-by gas. To address this issue, it has been considered to use a gas-liquid separator that houses a gas-liquid separator inside the oil tank. The gas-liquid separator separates the blow-by gas from the oil introduced from the crankcase of the internal combustion engine. The blow-by gas separated from the oil by the gas-liquid separator is discharged to the outside of the oil tank, for example, through an outlet located in the oil tank.

[0005] When centrifugal force acts on the gas-liquid separator, such as when the vehicle is running, the oil level may tilt relative to the oil level when the vehicle is stopped. When the oil level tilts, a flow of oil toward the drain outlet occurs inside the oil tank. When oil leaks out of the oil tank through the drain outlet, the amount of oil supplied to the lubrication parts of the internal combustion engine is reduced by the amount of the leaked oil. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The gas-liquid separation device that solves the above problem is a gas-liquid separation device that separates blow-by gas from oil introduced from the crankcase of an internal combustion engine, and comprises an oil tank that stores oil to be supplied to lubricated parts of the internal combustion engine, and a cylindrical gas-liquid separator housed in the oil tank, wherein the oil tank has an outlet for discharging blow-by gas to the outside, and the gas-liquid separator has an extension portion that extends outward from the gas-liquid separator from one of the axial ends of the gas-liquid separator that is closer to the outlet.

[0007] According to the above-mentioned configuration, the extension portion can block the flow of oil toward the discharge port, thereby preventing the oil from leaking out of the oil tank from the discharge port, and therefore the amount of oil supplied from the gas-liquid separator to the lubricated parts of the internal combustion engine is less likely to decrease. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a gas-liquid separation device. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, one embodiment of a gas-liquid separation device mounted on an internal combustion engine that is a drive source of a vehicle will be described with reference to FIGS. <Basic configuration of gas-liquid separator> As shown in Fig. 1, the gas-liquid separation device 10 includes a gas-liquid separator 11 and an oil tank 12. Oil L discharged from the gas-liquid separation device 10 is supplied to lubrication parts of an internal combustion engine. The vertical direction in Fig. 1 is the direction of gravity.

[0010] The oil L containing the blow-by gas is sucked from the crankcase of the internal combustion engine by the scavenging pump P1. The oil L sucked by the scavenging pump P1 is introduced into the gas-liquid separator 11 through the oil introduction pipe 31. The gas-liquid separator 11 separates the blow-by gas from the oil L introduced from the crankcase of the internal combustion engine. The oil tank 12 stores the oil L to be supplied to the lubrication parts of the internal combustion engine. The oil tank 12 stores the oil L from which the blow-by gas has been separated by the gas-liquid separator 11. The oil L stored in the oil tank 12 is discharged from the oil tank 12 to the discharge flow path 32. The oil L discharged to the discharge flow path 32 is pumped to the lubrication parts of the internal combustion engine by the feed pump P2. Note that the following description of the positions of the configuration of the gas-liquid separator 10 is a description of the positions when the vehicle is stopped on a horizontal surface, unless otherwise specified.

[0011] <Oil tank configuration> The oil tank 12 accommodates the gas-liquid separator 11. The oil tank 12 may have a first tank portion 13 and a second tank portion 14. The first tank portion 13 is rectangular box-shaped. The first tank portion 13 has a first wall 13a having a rectangular plate shape, a second wall 13b having a rectangular cylinder shape, and a third wall 13c having a rectangular plate shape. The second wall 13b connects an edge of the first wall 13a to an edge of the third wall 13c. The oil introduction pipe 31 penetrates the second wall 13b and extends between the outside and the inside of the first tank portion 13. The third wall 13c is located lower than the first wall 13a in the direction of gravity. A through hole 13h penetrating the third wall 13c is located at the center of the third wall 13c. The direction in which the axis of the first tank portion 13 extends is called the axial direction L1.

[0012] The oil tank 12 is a dry sump type oil tank. The oil tank 12 has an exhaust port 12h for discharging blow-by gas to the outside. The exhaust port 12h is a circular hole penetrating the first wall 13a of the first tank portion 13. The exhaust port 12h is located in the center of the first wall 13a.

[0013] A cylindrical exhaust pipe 15 is connected to the first wall 13a. The exhaust pipe 15 communicates with the inside of the first tank portion 13 through the exhaust port 12h. The blow-by gas is exhausted from the inside of the oil tank 12 to the exhaust pipe 15 through the exhaust port 12h. The blow-by gas is introduced into the intake passage of the internal combustion engine via the exhaust pipe 15.

[0014] The second tank portion 14 is cylindrical with a bottom. The second tank portion 14 has a cylindrical tube portion 14a and a circular plate-shaped bottom portion 14b. The axis of the tube portion 14a extends in the axial direction L1. The axis of the first tank portion 13 may be located on an extension of the axis of the tube portion 14a.

[0015] One end of the cylindrical portion 14a is referred to as the first end 14c, and the other end is referred to as the second end 14d. The bottom portion 14b is located so as to close the second end 14d with respect to the cylindrical portion 14a. The radial dimension of the cylindrical portion 14a increases from the second end 14d toward the first end 14c. The second tank portion 14 is located lower in the direction of gravity than the first tank portion 13. The first end 14c of the cylindrical portion 14a is connected to the third wall 13c of the first tank portion 13. The interior of the second tank portion 14 is in communication with the interior of the first tank portion 13 via the through hole 13h of the third wall 13c.

[0016] Of the oil tank 12, the bottom 14b of the second tank portion 14 is located at the lowest position in the direction of gravity. The oil L stored in the oil tank 12 fills the entire interior of the second tank portion 14. The oil L fills the lower portion of the interior of the first tank portion 13 in the direction of gravity. The other parts of the first tank portion 13 are not filled with the oil L. The liquid level of the oil L is located inside the first tank portion 13.

[0017] At least one of the cylindrical portion 14a and the bottom portion 14b is in communication with a discharge flow passage 32. The oil L in the second tank portion 14 is introduced into the discharge flow passage 32. <Gas-liquid separator configuration> The gas-liquid separator 11 is cylindrical. The axis of the gas-liquid separator 11 is referred to as a separator axis L2. The separator axis L2 extends in an axial direction L1. The separator axis L2 may coincide with the axis of the first tank portion 13. In other words, the axial direction L1 corresponds to the axial direction of the gas-liquid separator 11.

[0018] One end of the gas-liquid separator 11 is referred to as a first opening end 11a, and the other end is referred to as a second opening end 11b. The second opening end 11b is located lower than the first opening end 11a in the direction of gravity. The radial dimension of the gas-liquid separator 11 increases from the second opening end 11b to the first opening end 11a.

[0019] The first opening end 11a is closer to the discharge port 12h than the second opening end 11b. That is, the first opening end 11a corresponds to the end of the gas-liquid separator 11 in the axial direction L1 that is closer to the discharge port 12h.

[0020] The discharge port 12h is located on an extension of the separator axis L2. Specifically, the center of the discharge port 12h is located on an extension of the separator axis L2. The inner diameter of the gas-liquid separator 11 at the first opening end 11a is larger than the diameter of the discharge port 12h.

[0021] The gas-liquid separator 11 has an oil introduction hole 11h. The oil introduction hole 11h penetrates between the outer surface 11c and the inner surface 11d of the gas-liquid separator 11. The outer surface 11c of the gas-liquid separator 11 faces the inner surface of the second wall 13b of the oil tank 12. An end of an oil introduction pipe 31 is connected to the gas-liquid separator 11. The oil introduction pipe 31 communicates with the inside of the gas-liquid separator 11 via the oil introduction hole 11h.

[0022] 1 and 2, the gas-liquid separator 11 is supported in the first tank portion 13 by a support plate 33. The support plate 33 extends between the outer surface 11c of the gas-liquid separator 11 and the inner surface of the second wall 13b. Four support plates 33 are arranged inside the first tank portion 13.

[0023] An inner pipe 21 extending in an axial direction L1 is located inside the gas-liquid separator 11. The inner pipe 21 is cylindrical. The axis of the inner pipe 21 may coincide with the separator axis L2. One end of the inner pipe 21 is exposed to the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11 from a first opening end 11a of the gas-liquid separator 11. The other end of the inner pipe 21 is exposed to the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11 from a second opening end 11b of the gas-liquid separator 11. The outer peripheral surface of the inner pipe 21 is separated from the inner surface 11d of the gas-liquid separator 11. As a result, the inner space of the gas-liquid separator 11 is defined by the inner surface 11d of the gas-liquid separator 11 and the outer peripheral surface of the inner pipe 21.

[0024] The inner pipe 21 has four first support parts 22. The inner pipe 21 is supported in the gas-liquid separator 11 by the first support parts 22. The first support parts 22 are axially shaped and protrude from the outer circumferential surface of the inner pipe 21. The first support parts 22 extend from between both ends of the inner pipe 21. If the end of the first support part 22 connected to the inner pipe 21 is taken as the base end, the tip of the first support part 22 is fixed to the inner surface 11d of the gas-liquid separator 11. In the circumferential direction of the inner pipe 21, the first support parts 22 are spaced apart from each other.

[0025] The inner pipe 21 is supported on the support plates 33 by the second support parts 23. The second support parts 23 are plate-shaped extending from the outer circumferential surface of the inner pipe 21. The second support parts 23 are annular when viewed from the axial direction L1. The second support parts 23 extend from the end of the inner pipe 21 exposed to the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11 from the second opening end 11b. The outer circumferential edge of the second support parts 23 is fixed to the four support plates 33. As a result, the inner pipe 21 is supported on the first tank section 13 via the support plates 33.

[0026] In the axial direction L1, the second support portion 23 is spaced apart from the second opening end 11b of the gas-liquid separator 11. As a result, an oil discharge portion 11j, which is a space partitioned by the second opening end 11b and the second support portion 23, is located below the gas-liquid separator 11 in the axial direction L1. The internal space of the gas-liquid separator 11 communicates with the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11 via the oil discharge portion 11j.

[0027] The gas-liquid separator 11 includes an extension portion 25. The extension portion 25 is connected to an end portion of the outer surface 11c of the gas-liquid separator 11 on the discharge port 12h side. The extension portion 25 extends from the outer surface 11c of the gas-liquid separator 11 toward the inner surface of the second wall 13b. The extension portion 25 is plate-shaped and extends perpendicular to the axial direction L1. The extension portion 25 is annular when viewed from the axial direction L1. The extension portion 25 extends from the first opening end 11a of the gas-liquid separator 11 toward the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11. The outer peripheral edge of the extension portion 25 is separated from the inner surface of the first tank portion 13. The outer peripheral edge of the extension portion 25 may be fixed to a support plate 33.

[0028] <Oil and blow-by gas flow> Next, the flows of the oil L and the blow-by gas in the gas-liquid separation device 10 will be described.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 1, oil L is introduced into the gas-liquid separator 11 from the crankcase of the internal combustion engine via the oil introduction pipe 31. This oil L contains blow-by gas. When the oil L is introduced into the gas-liquid separator 11, the oil L flows through the gas-liquid separator 11 from the oil introduction hole 11h. The flow of the oil L at this time is indicated by the two-dot chain arrow in FIG. 1. The oil L flows spirally inside the gas-liquid separator 11 from the first opening end 11a toward the second opening end 11b. The oil L flows around the internal pipe 21.

[0030] While the oil L flows inside the gas-liquid separator 11, centrifugal force acts on the oil L. This centrifugal force separates blow-by gas from the oil L. The blow-by gas separated from the oil L by the gas-liquid separator 11 is discharged from the first opening end 11a of the gas-liquid separator 11 to the outside. This blow-by gas is introduced into the intake passage of the internal combustion engine via the discharge pipe 15. The flow of the blow-by gas in the discharge pipe 15 is indicated by dashed arrows in FIG. 1.

[0031] When the oil L flowing inside the gas-liquid separator 11 reaches the second opening end 11b, the oil L flows out into the inside of the first tank portion 13 through the oil discharge portion 11j. The oil L from which the blow-by gas has been separated by the gas-liquid separator 11 is stored inside the oil tank 12. If blow-by gas remains in the oil L stored inside the oil tank 12, the blow-by gas is introduced from the oil tank 12 into the inside of the internal pipe 21. The blow-by gas introduced into the inside of the internal pipe 21 flows inside the internal pipe 21 and is then introduced into the discharge pipe 15. The oil L stored inside the oil tank 12 is supplied from the oil tank 12 through the discharge passage 32 to the lubrication parts of the internal combustion engine.

[0032] <effect> Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. Under circumstances where centrifugal force acts on the gas-liquid separation device 10, such as while the vehicle is running, the liquid level of the oil L may tilt relative to the liquid level of the oil L when the vehicle is stopped. In particular, when the vehicle turns or the vehicle speed is rapidly accelerated or decelerated, the liquid level of the oil L may tilt significantly inside the oil tank 12. When the liquid level of the oil L tilts, a flow of the oil L toward the discharge port 12h occurs inside the oil tank 12. Due to this flow, the oil L may leak from the oil tank 12 to the discharge pipe 15 via the discharge port 12h.

[0033] In this embodiment, the gas-liquid separator 11 has an extension portion 25 that extends from the first open end 11a toward the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11. Therefore, when the liquid level of the oil L is inclined with respect to the liquid level of the oil L when the vehicle is stopped, the flow of the oil L toward the discharge port 12h inside the oil tank 12 can be blocked by the extension portion 25. This makes it possible to suppress the oil L from leaking into the discharge pipe 15 via the discharge port 12h.

[0034] <Effects> According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. (1) The extension portion 25 can block the flow of the oil L toward the discharge port 12h. This can prevent the oil L from leaking from the discharge port 12h to the outside of the oil tank 12. This makes it difficult for the amount of oil L supplied from the gas-liquid separation device 10 to the lubrication parts of the internal combustion engine to decrease.

[0035] (2) If the oil L leaks from the oil tank 12 to the exhaust pipe 15, there is a risk that the oil L will be introduced into the intake passage of the internal combustion engine via the exhaust pipe 15. If this oil L reaches the combustion chamber from the intake passage of the internal combustion engine, there is a risk that white smoke will be generated due to the combustion of the oil L. According to the above embodiment, since the leakage of the oil L from the oil tank 12 to the exhaust pipe 15 can be suppressed, the generation of the above-mentioned white smoke caused by the leakage of the oil L can be suppressed.

[0036] <Example of change> The above embodiment can be modified as follows: The above embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that no technical contradiction occurs.

[0037] The extending portion 25 does not have to be perpendicular to the axial direction L1. The extending portion 25 in this modification is inclined with respect to the extending portion 25 in the above embodiment. The extending portion 25 is not limited to being annular when viewed from the axial direction L1. For example, the extending portion 25 may be divided into a plurality of portions in the circumferential direction of the gas-liquid separator 11. The divided portions of the extending portion 25 may be spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the gas-liquid separator 11.

[0038] The shape of the extending portion 25 is not limited to a plate shape. In short, the extending portion 25 may have any shape as long as it extends from the first opening end 11a toward the outside of the gas-liquid separator 11. The extension portion 25 may be in contact with the inner surface of the first tank portion 13 .

[0039] The extension portion 25 may be disposed closer to the third wall 13c than the end portion on the discharge port 12h side of the outer surface 11c of the gas-liquid separator 11. That is, in the present disclosure, the end portion of the gas-liquid separator 11 refers not only to the end portion in the strict sense, but also to the portion from which the extension portion 25 extends and which can reduce the inclination of the liquid level of the oil L and reduce the outflow of the oil L from the discharge port 12h. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] L…Oil L1…Axis direction 10... Gas-liquid separation device 11... Gas-liquid separator 12. Oil tank 12h…Discharge port 25...Extending part

Claims

[Claim 1] A gas-liquid separation device for separating blow-by gas from oil introduced from a crankcase of an internal combustion engine, comprising: an oil tank that stores oil to be supplied to lubrication parts of the internal combustion engine; a cylindrical gas-liquid separator accommodated in the oil tank; a cylindrical inner tube located inside the gas-liquid separator; The oil tank has an exhaust port for exhausting blow-by gas to the outside, the gas-liquid separator has an extension portion extending outward from a first opening end, which is a shorter distance from the discharge port, among the ends in the axial direction of the gas-liquid separator, A gas-liquid separation device, wherein one end of the internal tube is exposed to the outside of the gas-liquid separator from the first opening end of the gas-liquid separator, and the other end of the internal tube is exposed to the outside of the gas-liquid separator from a second opening end opposite the first opening end of the gas-liquid separator.

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