Simple method for the controlled production of vortex ring bubbles of a gas in a liquid

Abstract

An apparatus and method is described that allows for the production of gas-filled vortex rings in a host liquid. The device consists of a source of gas under pressure that is used to supply an accumulator by means of a regulation valve. The accumulator has an outlet that feeds the gas in the accumulator to an electrically operated solenoid valve that is normally closed. The outlet of this valve leads to a nozzle that protrudes into a vessel containing the liquid in which it is desired to form the rings. Upon receiving an electrical pulse of known duration, the solenoid valve opens for that duration and allows a momentary pulse of gas to flow from the accumulator into the nozzle. If the pulse duration is correctly set, a vortex bubble forms at the exit of the nozzle which self-organizes into a defined ring once the gas flow ceases. As the ring advances upwards under the influence of buoyancy force, it pinches off from the gas in the nozzle that remains captive at the nozzle exit under the influence of capillary forces. The device is then ready for the production of another ring upon receipt of another electrical pulse. Different nozzle exit geometries that facilitate this process are described, as well as different configurations of the invention and different applications or implementations of the invention. The invention is unique in that it allows easy, direct and independent control of the parameters that determine ring formation. It can operate under a broad range of these parameters to produce a broad range of rings, either in isolation, or in multiple sequential arrays.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.