Inline Liquid Removal Device Quiet Zone Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conduit systems used for conveying liquids often suffer from contamination due to gas bubbles and dirt particles, leading to clogging, noise issues, and reduced functionality over time, particularly in closed circuits used for heating purposes.
Innovation Solution
A removal device with a main channel, housing, supply channels, and a quiet zone that allows dirt particles or gas bubbles to settle or rise, utilizing a combination of local widening and narrowing parts, energy absorption elements, and a return channel to efficiently separate contaminants from the main flow, with a method that branches off a small portion of the main flow to create a quiet zone with reduced velocity for effective settling or rising of contaminants.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a removal device is installed to separate gas bubbles and dirt particles from liquid, then the liquid purity is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device divides the flow into multiple channels: a main channel for high-velocity flow and at least one supply channel for low-velocity quiet zones. This segmentation allows different regions to perform different functions (transport vs. separation) simultaneously, achieving effective contaminant removal without requiring a completely separate processing line, thus managing complexity while improving purity.
Solution Approach 2:
The removal device is integrated into the existing conduit system with the return channel merging back into the main channel. The supply channels branch from and return to the main channel, creating a combined flow path that performs separation inline. This merging approach allows the device to function as part of the existing system rather than a standalone unit, reducing overall system complexity.
2Reliability
If a quiet zone is created to allow settling and rising of contaminants, then the removal efficiency is improved, but the device volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The quiet zones are created within the existing conduit volume by branching off supply channels from the main channel. The housing defines an inner space that contains the quiet zones, which are essentially nested within the overall device structure. The supply channels extend from the main channel into the housing, creating compact quiet zones that utilize the available space efficiently rather than requiring separate external settling chambers.
Solution Approach 2:
The device creates quiet zones by utilizing the vertical dimension for contaminant separation (dirt particles settling at lower end, gas bubbles rising to upper end) while maintaining a compact horizontal footprint. The main channel and supply channels are arranged to create three-dimensional flow paths that achieve effective separation within a limited volume by exploiting gravitational separation in the vertical direction.
3Ease of operation
If a local widening part is provided to guide outer part of main flow into supply channel, then the flow distribution is improved, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of redesigning the entire conduit cross-section, the invention introduces a local widening part at specific locations where supply channels branch from the main channel. This localized modification creates the necessary flow distribution only where needed, allowing the rest of the conduit to maintain its original simple geometry. The local widening is constructed to guide the outer part of the main flow into the supply channel without requiring complex overall restructuring.
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 effectively removes a significant portion of gas bubbles and dirt particles from the liquid, preventing clogging and noise issues, while maintaining the flow velocity in the main channel, thus enhancing the functionality and longevity of the conduit system.
Implementation Method 1
a quiet zone in the inner space in which in use the liquid has a substantially smaller velocity than in the main channel, the quiet zone being configured to allow dirt particles or a relatively heavy liquid to settle at a lower end of the housing
Implementation Method 2
the quiet zone being configured to allow dirt particles or a relatively heavy liquid to settle at a lower end of the housing and/or gas bubbles or a relatively light liquid to rise to an upper end of the housing
Data Source
AI summary
A removal device for removing gas bubbles and/or dirt particles from a liquid in a liquid conduit system or for removing a second liquid from a first liquid in the conduit system includes a main channel for a main flow, a housing which defines an inner space, at least one supply channel extending from the main channel to the inner space, at least one return channel extending from the inner space back to the main channel, directly or indirectly via a return chamber, at least one quiet zone in the inner space in which in use the liquid has a substantially smaller velocity than in the main channel. The quiet zone is configured to allow dirt particles or a relatively heavy liquid to settle at a lower end of the housing and/or gas bubbles or a relatively light liquid to rise to an upper end of the housing.