Diverging Sidewall Canister for Consistent Dispersant Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Erodible materials delivered from canisters often experience variable concentration due to factors like the Coanda effect and caking, leading to inconsistent dispersant delivery rates in systems like water treatment, which can be harmful and costly to manage.
Innovation Solution
A dispensing system with a diverging sidewall design that allows caked dispersant to fall into the water path, ensuring full contact and maintaining consistent delivery rates by preventing bridging and minimizing adhesion forces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If water flows through the bottom portion of the canister to deliver dispersant, then dispersant delivery is achieved, but caking and bridging occur that reduce water contact and delivery rate consistency
Solution Approach 1:
The canister is inverted with the open end facing downward, allowing caked dispersant material to fall away from the sidewall and into the water path. This inversion reverses the typical orientation, enabling gravity to pull the caked material into contact with the flowing water rather than allowing it to adhere to the sidewall and block delivery.
Solution Approach 2:
The diverging sidewall extends beyond what is minimally necessary, creating a pronounced flare that ensures complete detachment of caked material from the sidewall. This excessive geometric action guarantees that all caked material falls into the water path, providing more than sufficient contact area for consistent delivery.
2Ease of manufacture
If the canister has a straight sidewall design, then manufacturing is simple, but caked dispersant adheres to the sidewall forming bridges that block water contact
Solution Approach 1:
The canister employs a diverging (flared) sidewall geometry that curves outward from the closed end to the open end. This curved, expanding profile prevents caked dispersant from adhering to the sidewall by eliminating vertical surfaces where adhesion could occur, causing material to fall freely into the water path instead of forming bridges.
3Reliability
If the dispersant concentration is monitored continuously to detect caking problems, then delivery consistency can be maintained, but system complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The canister design is self-regulating through its diverging geometry, which automatically prevents caking-related delivery inconsistencies without requiring external monitoring or control systems. The geometric design itself provides the solution, eliminating the need for complex sensors, controllers, or feedback mechanisms to maintain reliable dispersant delivery.
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 system ensures consistent dispersant delivery by maximizing water contact with the dispersant, preventing caking-related disruptions and maintaining the desired concentration in the fluid, thus ensuring safety and efficiency in water treatment systems.
Implementation Method 1
the diverging sidewall configuration promotes the falling of the caked material into the water path at the bottom of the canister
Implementation Method 2
the water flowing through the dispersant in the bottom of the canister erodes away the lower portion of the caked water dispenser
Data Source
AI summary
A dispensing system for delivery of a dispersant from a canister containing an erodible but cakeable water dispersant wherein the cakeable water dispersant in a one piece caked condition falls to a bottom of a divergent walled canister so the water flowing through a bottom portion of the canister continues to maintain erodible contact with the dispersant as the water disperant is consumed.