Cooktop Burner Spreader Ridge for Flame Lift and Flashback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Burner assemblies experience issues with flame lift and flashback due to excessive velocity of the air and gaseous fuel mixture, leading to inefficient combustion and audible noise.
Innovation Solution
A burner assembly design featuring a spreader with a downward ridge to reduce the velocity of the air and gaseous fuel mixture before combustion, and a perforated sheet to prevent flashback by quenching the flame if it attempts to propagate upstream.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the velocity of the air and gaseous fuel mixture is increased to improve combustion efficiency, then the combustion rate increases, but the flame lifts from the burner assembly
Solution Approach 1:
The spreader acts as an intermediary component between the gas outlet and the combustion zone. It receives the high-velocity air-fuel mixture and redistributes it through its geometry (flat bottom surface and downward-extending ridge) to reduce velocity while maintaining combustion efficiency, preventing flame lift in the process
Solution Approach 2:
The spreader changes the velocity parameter of the air-fuel mixture by using its geometric features. The flat bottom surface and downward-extending ridge create flow resistance and redirect the mixture, transforming the high-velocity stream into a lower-velocity flow that maintains proper flame attachment
2Power
If the velocity of the air and gaseous fuel mixture is increased to improve heat output, then the energy delivery increases, but flashback occurs into the burner assembly
Solution Approach 1:
The spreader serves as a protective intermediary barrier between the combustion zone and the burner assembly. By reducing mixture velocity and altering flow patterns through its geometric features, it prevents the high-velocity flow from carrying flame back into the burner assembly, eliminating the harmful flashback effect while preserving heat output
3Device complexity
If a single spreader configuration is used for all gaseous fuels, then the device complexity is reduced, but the adaptability to different fuel types is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The spreader is designed with universal geometric features (flat bottom surface and downward-extending ridge) that effectively manage air-fuel mixture flow for multiple types of gaseous fuels. This single configuration performs the multi-function of velocity reduction and flow distribution across different fuel types, eliminating the need for fuel-specific spreader variations
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 design effectively reduces flame lift and flashback, ensuring stable combustion and minimizing noise, while being adaptable to various types of gaseous fuels without the need for multiple spreader configurations.
Implementation Method 1
the ridge reduces a velocity of the mixture of air and gaseous fuel before the mixture of air and gaseous fuel reaches the plurality of apertures
Implementation Method 2
the perforated sheet quenches the flame
Implementation Method 3
The mixture of air and gaseous fuel flows through the perforated sheet (that is, through a plurality of apertures through the perforated sheet)
Implementation Method 4
the mixture of air and gaseous fuel is converted into a flame at gas outlets
Data Source
AI summary
A burner assembly for a cooktop comprises a spreader comprising (i) a central portion through which an axis extends, the central portion with a bottom surface, (ii) a plurality of apertures through the spreader, the plurality of apertures disposed further away from the axis than the central portion, and (iii) a ridge projecting from the bottom surface, the ridge disposed further from the axis than the central portion but closer to the axis than the plurality of apertures.