Device and method for bringing a gas stream and a liquid stream into contact, and use of the device
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for bringing a gas and a liquid into contact, such as heat exchange or filtration, face inefficiencies in energy usage and require large, cumbersome equipment due to high pressure drops and low energy efficiency, particularly in solutions involving direct injection or vertical tower configurations.
Innovation Solution
A device with a vertical enclosure and rotating drum or curved plates that create turbulence in the gas and liquid flows, allowing for efficient contact and mixing while reducing pressure drop and equipment size, using adjustable flow rates and inclined inlet ducts for optimized gas and liquid circulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If gas stream is injected directly through a volume of liquid below the surface, then heat exchange efficiency is improved, but pressure drop increases significantly requiring high-power fans or compressors
Solution Approach 1:
The device segments the gas-liquid contact process into multiple stages using baffle plates that create successive compartments. The gas stream passes through alternating liquid-filled and gas-filled compartments, achieving progressive heat exchange and mixing without requiring single-stage high-pressure injection through the entire liquid volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces a horizontal dimension to the gas-liquid contact process by using baffle plates that create lateral flow paths. Instead of vertical injection through liquid depth, the gas flows horizontally through alternating compartments, reducing the pressure drop while maintaining contact efficiency.
2Stress or pressure
If gas stream passes through fine droplet curtain or permeable exchange surface, then pressure drop is reduced, but heat exchange efficiency and contact surface area decrease requiring larger equipment
Solution Approach 1:
The contact process is divided into multiple sequential stages across alternating compartments. Each compartment provides a portion of the total heat exchange, accumulating efficiency across stages rather than requiring a single large surface area, thus reducing overall equipment size while maintaining effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The device merges direct contact heat exchange with turbulent mixing in the same compact structure. The baffle plates create both liquid distribution and turbulence generation in alternating compartments, combining multiple functions that would otherwise require separate large-scale equipment.
3Volume of stationary object
If vertical tower configuration with counter-current flow is used, then equipment size is reduced, but pressure drop increases and heat exchange efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of counter-current flow, the invention uses co-current flow where both gas and liquid move in the same direction through alternating compartments. This inversion of the flow pattern reduces pressure drop and improves heat exchange efficiency while maintaining compact equipment size.
Solution Approach 2:
The device introduces dynamic turbulence through the baffle plate configuration and flow pattern, creating localized mixing zones that enhance heat exchange efficiency without requiring the static large contact surfaces of traditional counter-current towers.
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 device enhances the efficiency of gas-liquid contact, reduces the need for high-power fans or compressors, and minimizes equipment size by creating turbulence and increasing contact duration, thus improving energy efficiency and operational costs.
Implementation Method 1
A device with a vertical enclosure and rotating drum or curved plates that create turbulence in the gas and liquid flows
Implementation Method 2
reducing pressure drop and equipment size
Data Source
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AI summary
The device (1) for bringing a gas and a liquid into contact comprises a chamber (E), first means (5) for introducing into said chamber and circulating therein a gas stream (G), second means (6) for introducing into said chamber and circulating therein a liquid stream (L) that circulates inside the chamber (E) in the same direction as the gas stream (G), and means (4A) for mixing the gas stream (G) and the liquid stream (L). These mixing means (4A) are positioned inside the chamber (E) in the path of the gas stream and liquid stream and are capable of locally deflecting upward, and/or of locally causing to rise, at least one portion of the gas stream and liquid stream, so as to locally create turbulences in the gas stream and in the liquid stream.