Turbo Compressor Gear Cover Reducing Oil Mist
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional turbo compressors face the issue of lubrication oil being discharged from the housing due to the demister's inability to catch excessive oil mist, leading to potential oil loss.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a gear cover surrounding the gear to extend the distance between the lubrication oil accumulation and the demister, and a demister cover that drips caught oil downward, reducing the amount of oil reaching the demister while maintaining airflow performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the demister is provided to catch oil mist from the housing, then oil discharge is prevented, but the demister cannot catch lubrication oil completely when too much oil passes through, leading to oil discharge
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the oil mist separation function into two segments: the demister that catches oil mist through intake ports, and the gear cover that catches lubrication oil splashed by gear rotations through its surrounding structure. This segmentation allows each component to handle specific types of oil, preventing the demister from being overwhelmed by excessive oil flow.
Solution Approach 2:
The gear cover acts as an intermediary component between the gear and the demister. It intercepts lubrication oil splashed by the gear before the oil can reach the demister, thereby reducing the oil load on the demister and ensuring the demister can effectively handle oil mist without being overloaded.
2Quantity of substance
If the distance between lubrication oil accumulation and demister is increased, then oil reaching the demister is reduced, but the housing structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The gear cover serves multiple functions: it surrounds and protects the gear, collects lubrication oil splashed by the gear, and directs the collected oil downward away from the demister. By combining these functions into a single component, the invention reduces oil reaching the demister without significantly increasing structural complexity.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the gear cover extends further downward on one side, then spatter restriction is improved, but the gear cover weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gear cover is designed with an asymmetric structure where the lower end edge extends further downward on the side opposite to the gear rotation direction. This asymmetric extension strategically targets the predominant spatter direction, effectively restricting lubrication oil spatter while minimizing the additional weight by only extending in the necessary direction rather than uniformly increasing coverage.
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
This configuration effectively reduces the amount of lubrication oil reaching the demister, preventing oil discharge and ensuring efficient operation without degrading the demister's inhale performance.
Implementation Method 1
a gear cover (11) for catching the lubrication oil splashed by the rotations of the gear (5) and then drip the caught lubrication oil downward
Implementation Method 2
The demister is provided with intakes (7) communicating with an outside of the housing (17). The demister (9) catches oil mist of the lubrication oil splashed by rotations of the large-diameter gear
Implementation Method 3
the intakes of the demister are connected with a lower-pressure space than an inside of the housing via a pressure equalizing pipe, and thereby pressure rise in the housing is restricted
Data Source
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AI summary
A turbo compressor includes a housing in which lubrication oil is accumulated, a gear that is housed in the housing and to which the lubrication oil is supplied, a demister that is disposed above the gear and on which an intake is provided to catch oil mist of the lubrication oil in the housing, a gear cover that is provided surrounding the gear to catch lubrication oil splashed by the gear and then drip the caught lubrication oil downward, and a demister cover that is disposed near the demister to drip the lubrication oil caught by the demister downward. Here, a narrow gap is formed between the demister cover and an inner wall surface of the housing. According to the turbo compressor, an amount of lubrication oil flowing through the demister can be reduced by the gear cover and the demister cover.