Static Mixer Turbulence Rings for Homogeneous Gas-Liquid Mixing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing installations for producing carbonated drinks face challenges in achieving homogeneous mixtures and stable gas saturation, often resulting in bubbling issues, foaming, and inefficiencies when handling beverages with sweeteners or fruit pulp, along with cavitation phenomena and suboptimal operation.
Innovation Solution
The installation incorporates a static mixer with turbulence rings and a dynamic saturation loop, featuring a 3-way or 4-way valve for pressure control, a saturator with non-return gas injection, and a dynamic capacity for volume adaptation, ensuring constant pressure and intense stirring to prevent cavitation and improve homogeneity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If vigorous stirring is used to mix components with different viscosities, then mixture homogeneity is improved, but cavitation phenomena occur in the pump and foaming appears on packaging
Solution Approach 1:
A static mixer with turbulence rings is introduced as an intermediary device between the pump and the product outlet. This mixer creates controlled turbulence and eddy currents that enhance mixing efficiency without requiring high-speed rotation that would cause cavitation. The mixer acts as a mediator that achieves homogeneity through its specific geometric structure rather than through aggressive mechanical stirring.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces dynamic mechanical stirring (rotating impellers) with a static mixing system that uses fixed turbulence rings and geometric structures to create mixing effects. This substitution eliminates the need for high-speed rotation that causes cavitation, while still achieving thorough mixing through controlled turbulence and flow pattern disruption.
2Stress or pressure
If the loop pump operates at high flow rate to ensure constant pressure, then pressure stability is improved, but cavitation phenomena appear at the pump level
Solution Approach 1:
The static mixer with turbulence rings is positioned upstream in the circulation loop to pre-establish homogeneous mixing and stable flow patterns before the fluid reaches the pump. This preliminary mixing action ensures that the pump receives already-homogenized fluid, reducing the risk of cavitation while maintaining the required flow rate for pressure stability.
3Stability of the object's composition
If a buffer capacity is inserted to stabilize the mixture, then product homogeneity is improved, but the device complexity and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the buffer capacity component from the system by implementing a dynamic saturation loop with a circulation pump that maintains continuous flow and mixing. This removal simplifies the device structure, reduces maintenance requirements, and eliminates the dead volume associated with buffer tanks while still achieving product homogeneity through the circulation and static mixing mechanisms.
4Stability of the object's composition
If the circulation flow rate is increased to improve mixing, then mixture homogeneity is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs a dynamic saturation loop where the circulation pump operates at a moderate flow rate, and mixing is enhanced by the dynamic interaction of fluid with the static turbulence rings. The loop design allows for continuous circulation that maintains homogeneity over time without requiring excessively high instantaneous flow rates, thereby balancing mixing effectiveness with energy efficiency.
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 solution achieves stable gas saturation, prevents bubbling and foaming, maintains product homogeneity, and allows for efficient production of drinks with sweeteners and fruit pulp, reducing maintenance costs and enabling in-line cleaning.
Implementation Method 1
The turbulence rings are made to obtain in each ring a fluid speed variation cycle with the most regular acceleration and reduction possible
Implementation Method 2
a saturator to inject the gas into the liquid
Implementation Method 3
an inlet connection, a loop pump which receives, upstream, constituents to be mixed and delivers on a rising branch of the loop, the pump ensuring a minimum, substantially constant, flow greater than the maximum flow of the withdrawal machine
Implementation Method 4
a loop pump which receives, upstream, constituents to be mixed and delivers on a rising branch of the loop
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
The installation for producing a homogenous gaseous mixture such as soft drinks from liquid and gas constituents for directly supplying to a withdrawing machine without inserting a buffer, comprises a dynamic saturation and mixing loop (5) with a circulating product (1). The loop comprises an inlet connection, a loop pump (PB) that derives, in upstream, constituents to be mixed and flowed on a rising branch of the loop, a saturator (CAH) for injecting gas in the liquid, a gas mass flowmeter, and a static mixer (MEV) with two turbulence rings for homogenizing the mixture. The installation for producing a homogenous gaseous mixture such as soft drinks from liquid and gas constituents for directly supplying to a withdrawing machine without inserting a buffer, comprises a dynamic saturation and mixing loop (5) with a circulating product (1). The loop comprises an inlet connection, a loop pump (PB) that derives, in upstream, constituents to be mixed and flowed on a rising branch of the loop, a saturator (CAH) for injecting gas in the liquid, a gas mass flowmeter, a static mixer (MEV) with two turbulence rings for homogenizing the mixture and driving back to outlet pressure of the loop, an outlet connection for removing the mixture by the withdrawing machine, a valve between the inlet and the outlet, and a liquid flowmeter on the inlet or outlet connection. The pump ensures a minimum constant flow at the upper part of the withdrawing machine. The static mixer comprises a body and a movable core. An inner wall of the mixer body is equipped with two channels and sills. A wall of the core comprises two flanges in the form of movable valves and two channels in addition to the body. Each assembly of the channel body or core comprises a valve and a sill reducing the passage section of the turbulence ring. The shape of the grooves is such that to create a minimum pressure drop with rapid rotation of the fluid in all positions of the core creating a lower cavitation outlet sill. The turbulence ring is produced to obtain a cycle of variation in speed of the fluid with regular acceleration and reduction. The inlet in the conical sill is radially connected from the outside to the inside to reach the turbulence ring. The mixer further includes an adjustment such as a screw or a pneumatic actuator with a rolling membrane to allow manual or automatic adjustment of core position relative to the body. A three-way valve with two inputs and one output is arranged in the installation, where one of the input is connected to the loop in upstream of the output connection and the other to the inlet connection of the loop, and the output of the three-way valve is connected to the loop in a direction of the loop pump. A four-way valve with two inlets respectively aligned with two outputs is arranged in the installation, where the inputs are connected in upstream of the output connection of the loop and the one output is connected to the inlet connection of the loop. The four-way valve is connected to the loop in a direction of the loop pump, where the other output is connected to the supply line of the withdrawing machine. The three-way of for-way valves are provided for assuring: a blend of recycled product in the loop and the raw product; a constant pressure in the output; and a non-return function to prevent the direct passage of the inlet towards the outlet in some phases of operation, and are equipped with a manual or pneumatic control according to the loop type and an actuator with a piston and a rolling membrane. The active section of the membrane is equal to the active section of the valve for assuring a constant pressure on the liquid outlet of the loop. The saturator comprises a transverse horizontal body with a gas injection device at its upper part, a non-return device with a membrane for regular injection of gas and mounted in the circulation zone from top to bottom, a mixer stage with a pre-adjustment device for incorporating the liquid gas, and an upstream outlet cone for reducing the flow speed without cavitation. The liquid flow is partially or totally oriented from top to bottom. The saturator is disposed in upstream of the aspiration of the pump and assembled by a rectilinear pipe section, and further comprises a cylindrical casing of larger diameter according to piping of the loop and a venturi nozzle disposed in the casing. The annular section between an outer cylindrical wall of the venturi nozzle and inner surface of the casing is constant.