Porous Piston for Flowable Material Dispensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Trapped air in containers for flowable materials leads to inconsistent dispensing, leakage, and product quality issues due to pressure differentials and air mixing with the material during storage and use.
Innovation Solution
A container with a movable piston that is partially permeable to air and other contaminants, allowing for their removal while maintaining a seal for the material to be dispensed, using materials like silicones, epoxies, or polymeric materials with selected porosity to control permeability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a container is filled with flowable material and sealed with a piston, then the material can be stored and dispensed, but air becomes trapped between the piston and material causing inconsistent dispensing and leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The piston is made of a porous material that is impermeable to the flowable material but permeable to air and other gases. This allows the piston to block the flowable material while permitting trapped air to escape through the porous structure, eliminating air pockets that cause inconsistent dispensing and leakage.
Solution Approach 2:
The piston utilizes a composite structure combining materials with different permeability properties - impermeable to the specific flowable material being stored, but permeable to air and contaminants. This selective permeability resolves the contradiction by allowing air removal while maintaining material containment.
2Reliability
If air is removed completely from the container during filling, then dispensing consistency improves, but the filling process becomes more complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The porous piston is pre-installed in the container before filling. During the filling process, air automatically escapes through the porous piston without requiring additional vacuum equipment or complex air removal procedures. The preliminary placement of the porous piston enables passive air removal, simplifying the overall filling process while ensuring dispensing consistency.
3Reliability
If a non-permeable piston is used to seal the container, then material containment is improved, but trapped air cannot escape causing pressure differentials and leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The piston employs porous material with carefully controlled pore sizes that are small enough to block the flowable material molecules while large enough to allow air and gas molecules to pass through. This selective filtration based on molecular size resolves the contradiction by maintaining material containment while enabling pressure equalization through air permeation.
4Ease of manufacture
If air is allowed to remain in the container, then the filling process is simpler, but product quality deteriorates due to air mixing and voids
Solution Approach 1:
The porous piston automatically performs the air removal function during the normal filling process without requiring external intervention or additional equipment. As material is filled into the container, air is passively expelled through the porous piston, enabling the system to self-regulate and eliminate air pockets while maintaining simple filling procedures and high product quality.
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
Ensures consistent dispensing, prevents leakage, and maintains product quality by removing trapped air and contaminants, allowing for precise application and storage of flowable materials.
Implementation Method 1
the piston is at least partially transmissive of at least one medium such as air, water, contaminant or other component
Implementation Method 2
using materials like silicones, epoxies, or polymeric materials with selected porosity to control permeability
Data Source
AI summary
A package (10) for storing and dispensing a flowable material includes a container body (11) having an inlet end (20) and an outlet end (21). The container body (11) is configured to hold a quantity of the material and has a piston (30) receivable within the intlet end (20) and movable within the container body (11, 12). At least a portion of the piston (30) is selectively permeable to a selected medium.