Dispensing System for Off-Gassing Liquids Without Check Valves
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional dispensing systems for off-gassing liquid products, such as peroxide and peracid chemistries, face safety concerns due to gas bubble formation in product lines, which can displace concentrated liquid products, requiring personal protective equipment and posing hazards.
Innovation Solution
A dispensing system without check valves or one-way valves in the product line, allowing displaced liquid to drain back into the container, and using displacement systems like bladders, v-traps, or canisters with floating balls to manage off-gassing, ensuring safe and controlled dispensing of diluted solutions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If check valves or one-way valves are used in the product line to maintain prime, then the product line remains filled with concentrated liquid product, but gas bubbles displace the concentrated product through the dispenser outlet, creating safety hazards
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes check valves and one-way valves from the product line, extracting the source of the displacement problem. Without these valves, gas bubbles cannot force concentrated product through the dispenser outlet, eliminating the safety hazard while maintaining system reliability through alternative design
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary chamber between the product line and dispenser that allows gas bubbles to be accommodated without displacing concentrated product. This intermediary space acts as a buffer, separating the harmful effect of gas formation from the concentrated product flow
2Quantity of substance
If concentrated cleaning product is stored for use, then sustainability benefits are achieved through reduced packaging and storage space, but peroxide and peracid chemistries decompose over time forming gas bubbles that cause product displacement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful effect of gas formation into a beneficial outcome by designing the system to accommodate and safely vent decomposition gases. The gas bubbles are channeled through a safe path that prevents concentrated product displacement, allowing concentrated product storage to maintain its sustainability benefits while eliminating the associated hazards
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates a cushioning chamber designed to accommodate gas bubbles before they can affect the concentrated product flow. This pre-designed space buffers against the harmful effects of decomposition, allowing concentrated product to be stored without risk of displacement from gas formation
3Ease of operation
If conventional dispensing systems are used with check valves, then concentrated product is contained in the product line between the valve and dispenser outlet, but this creates safety concerns requiring personal protective equipment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the check valve from the system, eliminating the mechanism that allows concentrated product to be trapped in the product line. This removal prevents user exposure to concentrated product while maintaining convenient dispensing operation through the redesigned flow path
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary chamber that acts as a safety buffer between the concentrated product source and the dispenser outlet. This intermediary space prevents concentrated product from reaching the user under normal operation, eliminating the need for personal protective equipment while maintaining ease of operation
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
Prevents the displacement of concentrated products, enhancing user safety by maintaining the liquid product within the container and ensuring the correct concentration of the dispensed solution, reducing the need for protective equipment and optimizing product usage.
Implementation Method 1
Peroxide and peracid chemistries decompose over time, resulting in gas formation (off-gassing)
Implementation Method 2
canisters with floating balls to manage off-gassing
Data Source
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AI summary
Methods, apparatuses, and systems for dispensing an off-gassing liquid product mixed with a diluting product are provided. A liquid product or product solution is moved through an unprimed product line and towards a dispenser. The liquid product is combined with the diluting product to create a solution. The solution is dispensed. The product line is cleared of unused liquid product to unprime the product line after the dispensement of the solution. The unused product may be directed back into a product container from which it was held.