Threaded Shaft Fluid Mixer for Viscous Homogeneity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mixing technologies for viscous fluids in containers, such as drum barrels, often result in incomplete mixing due to limited impeller size and increased air entrainment, leading to suboptimal yields and higher costs, especially when mixing high viscosity materials where the impeller cannot effectively reach the bottom surface for thorough blending.
Innovation Solution
A tubular housing with a threaded shaft assembly that circulates non-homogeneous fluid through its exterior surface, using a variable RPM air-driven motor to enhance homogeneity without requiring higher power or labor, and allowing for insertion through standard bung openings, creating an upward axial flow to mix materials from the bottom to the top of the container.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional impellers are used for mixing viscous fluids in containers, then mixing action is provided, but mixing completeness deteriorates due to limited impeller size and inability to reach bottom surface
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from radial mixing (conventional impeller rotation in a plane) to axial circulation (fluid movement from bottom to top along the container axis). The circulation device creates vertical flow paths that enable thorough mixing of viscous fluids by transporting material from the bottom surface upward, overcoming the limitation of conventional impellers that operate primarily in the radial plane and cannot effectively reach or mix material at the bottom of deep containers.
2Productivity
If higher power mixing machinery is used to improve mixing of viscous materials, then mixing effectiveness improves, but energy consumption and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The circulation device utilizes dynamic flow patterns where fluid is continuously circulated from the bottom to the top of the container and back down the exterior surfaces. This dynamic circulation creates effective mixing through repeated passage of material through different flow zones, achieving thorough homogenization without requiring high-power motors. The system adapts to viscous fluid characteristics by maintaining continuous circulation rather than relying on high-intensity localized mixing.
3Productivity
If conventional mixing methods are used, then mixing action is achieved, but air entrainment increases leading to suboptimal yields
Solution Approach 1:
The circulation device design separates the mixing function from air entrainment by creating a closed circulation path. Fluid is drawn from the bottom through the housing and discharged along the exterior surfaces in a controlled manner, preventing air from being drawn into the mixing zone. This extraction of the harmful air entrainment effect while maintaining the useful mixing action results in improved yield and reduced contamination of the mixed material.
4Ease of operation
If mixing is performed at remote locations without large machinery, then on-site mixing is achieved, but mixing quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the need for large, complex high-power mixing machinery with a simpler circulation-based system that can be deployed at remote locations. The circulation device uses a compact pump and housing assembly that fits through standard container openings, substituting the mechanical advantage of large impellers with a circulation approach that achieves thorough mixing through repeated fluid passage and axial flow patterns, maintaining mixing quality while enabling portable operation.
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus that mixes non-homogenous fluid. A threaded shaft within a housing circulates fluid within a container to effect mixing. In one embodiment, when placed in a container of fluid, the housing the fluid is recirculated through opposing ends of the housing. In an embodiment of a related method for mixing, a pump housing containing a screw journaled for rotation receives fluid within a container and conveys the fluid therethrough to circulate a fluid portion in the container along an exterior surface of the housing for mixing with another fluid portion to improve fluid homogeneity. After mixing, the portion of the fluid which first circulates through the housing may recirculate through the housing with said another portion of the fluid. The fluid may be continuously mixed and recirculated through the housing.