Ambient Pressure Abrasive Cleaning Nozzle
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable blast cleaning machines require pressurized storage hoppers for abrasive media, leading to complex pressure regulation, frequent hose wear, and safety concerns due to high-pressure airstreams.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus using an unpressurized abrasive media storage vessel with a venturi system to entrain abrasive media into a low-pressure gas stream, which is then mixed with a higher-pressure gas stream within the outlet nozzle, eliminating the need for pressurized storage and reducing hose wear.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a pressurized storage hopper is used to deliver abrasive media into a high pressure airstream, then the abrasive can be effectively delivered, but the device complexity increases due to pressure regulation equipment and the reliability decreases due to hose wear and safety concerns
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the pressurization function from the storage hopper system. Instead of pressurizing the entire storage hopper, only the outlet region is pressurized through a nozzle that creates a localized high-pressure zone. This allows abrasive delivery without requiring complex pressure regulation equipment throughout the storage system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a nozzle as an intermediary component between the ambient pressure storage hopper and the high-pressure airstream. The nozzle acts as a mediator that converts ambient pressure abrasive flow into a pressurized stream, eliminating the need for direct pressurization of the storage hopper and its associated complex regulation equipment.
2Productivity
If a pressurized storage hopper is used to deliver abrasive media, then the abrasive can be delivered into the airstream, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to difficult refilling and inspection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the pressurization requirement from the storage hopper, allowing it to operate at ambient pressure. This extraction of the pressurization function enables operators to easily refill and inspect the hopper without dealing with pressure containment issues, while still achieving effective abrasive delivery through the localized pressurization at the nozzle.
3Productivity
If a high pressure airstream is used to carry abrasive through the blast hose, then the abrasive can be delivered to the nozzle, but the reliability decreases due to rapid hose wear and safety concerns
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the high-pressure zone from the blast hose and confines it to the nozzle outlet region. The blast hose only needs to handle ambient pressure abrasive flow, which dramatically reduces wear and eliminates safety concerns associated with high-pressure hoses, while the nozzle provides the necessary pressurization for effective abrasive delivery.
Solution Approach 2:
The nozzle serves as an intermediary that transforms ambient pressure abrasive flow into a high-pressure jet only at the point of application. This mediator allows the blast hose to remain at ambient pressure (improving reliability) while still achieving high-pressure abrasive delivery at the work surface.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution allows for efficient abrasive cleaning without pressurized storage, simplifying refilling and inspection, reducing hose wear, and enhancing operator safety by using a venturi-induced suction method for abrasive delivery.
Implementation Method 1
an abrasive media from a storage vessel is entrained into a fast flowing gaseous stream
Implementation Method 2
the mixture of gas and abrasive media from the first flow passage is entrained into the main gas stream from the second flow passage
Implementation Method 3
the mixture of gas and abrasive media from the first flow passage is entrained into the main gas stream from the second flow passage in or downstream of the outlet nozzle
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for abrasive cleaning includes an abrasive media storage vessel for storing a supply of abrasive media at ambient pressure. The storage vessel has an outlet for supplying abrasive media into a first gas stream at a first gas pressure in a first flow passage, the first flow passage supplying a mixture of gas and abrasive media to an outlet nozzle. A main gas stream communicates with the outlet nozzle via a second flow passage at a second gas pressure, the second gas pressure being higher than the first gas pressure. The mixture of gas and abrasive media from the first flow passage is entrained into the main gas stream from the second flow passage in or downstream of the outlet nozzle.