Method and apparatus for releasing gas
AssigneeThe New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Reasearch Limited
InventorsHamish John Alexander Elmslie, Benjamin Martin King
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus for releasing a gas into a liquid housed in a container has a gas assembly including a source of compressed gas; a float in fluid communication with the source of compressed gas; and a gas release member in fluid communication with the source of compressed gas and the float. The gas release member is adapted to release gas into the liquid. The float has variable buoyancy that causes the float and the gas release member to ascend and descend depending on the buoyancy of the float, the buoyancy of the float being reduced as the gas is released into the liquid.
Claims20
An apparatus for releasing a gas into a liquid housed in a container, the apparatus comprising:
- a. a gas assembly including a source of compressed gas;
- b. a float in fluid communication with the source of compressed gas;
- and
- c. a gas release membrane in fluid communication with the source of compressed gas and the float, the gas release membrane being adapted to release gas into the liquid;
- wherein the float has variable buoyancy that causes the float and the gas release membrane to ascend and descend depending on the buoyancy of the float, the buoyancy of the float being reduced as the gas is released into the liquid.
A method of releasing a gas into a liquid comprising:
- a. providing a container containing a liquid;
- b. providing a source of gas, a float in fluid communication with the source of gas, and a gas release membrane in fluid communication with the source of gas and the float;
- c. placing the float and the gas release membrane in the liquid in the container;
- d. delivering gas into the gas release membrane and the float thereby increasing the buoyancy of the float, releasing the gas from the source of gas through the gas release membrane into the liquid thereby reducing the buoyancy of the float;
- and
- e. allowing the float to ascend and descend within the liquid in the container depending on the relative buoyancy of the float.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.