Deep Fryer Burner Flow Balancing for Stable Combustion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Commercial deep fryers face challenges in maintaining high primary aeration and balanced gas/air flow due to space constraints, leading to inconsistent temperature profiles and poor combustion efficiency in gas-fired burners with angled inlets and small heat exchange tubes.
Innovation Solution
A gas burner design featuring a venturi inlet, a balancing plate with a reduced cross-section, and secondary plenum chambers to stabilize the fuel/air mixture flow, along with a flame cap that divides the discharge area into quadrants for enhanced secondary air distribution, ensuring consistent combustion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the burner inlet is positioned at an angle to the outlet (up to 90°) to fit space constraints, then the burner can be installed in compact deep fryers, but maintaining high primary aeration and balanced flow becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The burner flow path is segmented into multiple sections: a first section from the angled inlet to the balancing plate, and a second section from the balancing plate to the outlet. The balancing plate divides the flow into multiple paths, allowing each segment to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall flow balance despite the angled configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the burner have different cross-sectional areas tailored to their specific functions. The balancing plate region has a reduced cross-section to increase velocity and improve mixing, while the outlet section has a larger cross-section to distribute flow evenly. This local optimization allows the burner to maintain reliable combustion despite the space-constraining angled inlet.
2Productivity
If the burner has high primary aeration with little internal restriction to maintain rapid heat release, then short flame and high heat transfer efficiency are achieved, but flow balancing becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The balancing plate acts as an intermediary element that introduces controlled restrictions at strategic locations. Rather than having no restrictions (which would make balancing difficult), the plate provides localized flow control that actively balances the gas/air mixture distribution, enabling both high heat release rate and flow balance.
Solution Approach 2:
The balancing plate changes the flow parameters (velocity, pressure distribution) at critical locations. By reducing the cross-sectional area at the plate location, the velocity increases and promotes mixing, while the overall geometry is designed to distribute flow evenly to the outlet, achieving both high productivity and balanced flow.
3Reliability
If the burner outlet has a relatively large cross-section to maintain consistent temperature profile, then good secondary air distribution is achieved, but the burner occupies more space
Solution Approach 1:
The balancing plate introduces a dimensional change in the flow path by reducing the cross-sectional area at a specific location. This creates a velocity increase that enhances mixing in the third dimension, allowing the outlet to maintain a larger effective area for consistent temperature distribution without proportionally increasing the overall burner footprint.
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 burner achieves balanced flow and stable combustion, maintaining consistent temperature profiles and improving combustion efficiency by mixing and stabilizing the fuel/air mixture through varying cross-sectional areas and secondary air distribution.
Implementation Method 1
the burner includes a venturi inlet for receiving fuel and combustion air
Implementation Method 2
The burner main chamber located downstream of the venturi inlet has an expanding cross-section that causes a reduction in velocity of the fuel/air mixture
Implementation Method 3
A balancing plate is disposed in a flow path of the fuel and combustion air and is located intermediate the inlet and the outlet of the burner. The balancing plate defines a region of reduced cross-section in the flow path
Implementation Method 4
The spacing between these quadrants is designed to allow secondary air to reach the inner portion of the flame in order to maintain clean combustion throughout the range of burner operation
Data Source
AI summary
A deep fryer apparatus including a gas burner for heating cooking oil. The burner includes a venturi inlet for receiving fuel and combustion air that communicates with a main chamber having an expanding cross-section. A balancing plate is disposed in a flow path of the fuel air mixture that is located intermediate the inlet and the outlet. The balancing plate defines a region of reduced cross-section in the flow path. A flame cap located at the outlet defines at least one secondary chamber between itself and the balancing plate that defines a flow path cross-section that is larger than the cross-section of the flow path at the balancing plate. The balancing plate is preferably tapered to compensate for variations in the length of the flow path due to an angled orientation between the burner inlet and the outlet.