Supercritical Process Chamber Buffer Design for Leakage Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional supercritical dry chambers experience fluid leakage and pressure drops due to surface grinding between contact surfaces, leading to contamination and increased maintenance costs, as the entire chambers need to be replaced when surface roughness exceeds allowable limits.
Innovation Solution
A supercritical process chamber design featuring a detachable buffer chamber that prevents direct contact between the lower and upper chambers, allowing for individual exchange of inner vessel and inner cover components without replacing the entire chamber, thus maintaining the main body structure and reducing maintenance costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stress or pressure
If the lower and upper chambers are directly coupled by the connector to maintain supercritical pressure, then the supercritical state can be maintained, but surface grinding occurs at the contact portion causing fluid leakage and pressure drop
Solution Approach 1:
The chamber is divided into three separate components: lower chamber, buffer chamber, and upper chamber. The buffer chamber acts as an intermediate segment that prevents direct contact between the lower and upper chambers, eliminating surface grinding while maintaining structural integrity for pressure containment.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer chamber serves as an intermediary component between the lower and upper chambers. It transmits the connector's pressing force to maintain supercritical pressure without creating direct contact surfaces that would undergo grinding, thus preventing fluid leakage.
2Strength
If the lower and upper chambers are directly coupled to maintain structural integrity, then the chamber can withstand supercritical conditions, but the entire chamber must be replaced when surface roughness exceeds limits
Solution Approach 1:
The chamber system is segmented into replaceable buffer chamber and permanent lower/upper chambers. When surface roughness limits are exceeded, only the buffer chamber needs replacement, not the entire chamber assembly, significantly reducing maintenance costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer chamber is designed as a consumable component with limited service life due to surface roughness degradation. It is replaced periodically while the expensive lower and upper chambers are retained, optimizing the economic balance between maintenance frequency and component cost.
3Stress or pressure
If hydraulic power is applied to pressurize the chambers for supercritical state, then the supercritical process can be performed, but metal contaminants are generated from friction between contact surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The buffer chamber acts as a mediator that transmits hydraulic pressure from the connector to the chamber system without creating direct metal-to-metal contact surfaces. This eliminates the friction that generates metal contaminants while maintaining the necessary supercritical pressure.
Solution Approach 2:
The harmful friction interface is extracted from the pressure transmission path by introducing the buffer chamber. The hydraulic connection and mechanical pressure transmission are separated, eliminating contaminant generation while preserving pressure application functionality.
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 surface grinding and contamination, reduces maintenance costs by enabling local exchange of damaged components, and maintains the supercritical state without fluid leakage, thereby enhancing the reliability and efficiency of the supercritical process.
Implementation Method 1
the dry process for evaporating the process liquid off from the pattern has been widely performed to the pattern by using a supercritical fluid having both liquid and gas characteristics
Implementation Method 2
the supercritical fluid has high diffusivity just like a gas and simultaneously can function as a solvent without substantial influences of the surface tension
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are a supercritical process chamber and an apparatus having the same. The process chamber includes a body frame having a protrusion protruding in an upward vertical direction from a first surface of the body frame and a recess defined by the protrusion and the first surface of the body frame; a cover frame; a buffer chamber arranged between the body frame and the cover frame; and a connector. The buffer chamber includes an inner vessel detachably coupled to the body frame providing a chamber space in the recess and an inner cover detachably coupled to the cover frame. The inner cover is in contact with a first surface of the inner vessel enclosing the chamber space from surroundings. The connector couples the body frame and the cover frame having the buffer chamber arranged therebetween such that the enclosed chamber space is transformed into a process space in which the supercritical process is performed.