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US 4,790,666 AGranted
Low-shear, cyclonic mixing apparatus and method of using
AssigneeEcolab Inc.
InventorDale L. Koziol
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A low-shear mixing apparatus comprising a cyclone separator and a cyclone mixer wherein underflow from the cyclone separator passes into the cyclone mixer and is combined therein with a downwardly spiraling vortex of a second component.
Claims17
A low-shear mixing apparatus, comprising:
- (a) a cyclone separator having (i) a top defining an overflow outlet port, (ii) an imperforate bottom defining an underflow outlet port, (iii) a sidewall defining an inner conical cavity, and (iv) a tangential inlet port;
- elements (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) defining a means for separating a feed stream introduced into the inner conical cavity through the tangential inlet port into an underflow portion which passes out of the cyclone separator through the underflow outlet port and an overflow portion which passes out of the cyclone separator through the overflow outlet port;
- and
- (b) a cyclone mixer comprising a funnel shaped vessel having (I) a top defining an underflow inlet orifice in communication with the underflow outlet port of the cyclone separator, (II) a bottom defining an outlet orifice, (III) a sidewall defining an inner conical chamber, and (IV) a tangential inlet orifice;
- elements (I), (II), (III) and (IV) defining a means for combining and mixing, under low-shear conditions, a mixing feed stream vortically introduced into the inner conical chamber through the tangential inlet orifice and the underflow portion from the cyclone separator vortically introduced into the cyclone mixer through the underflow inlet orifice;
- the mixing feed stream and underflow portion mixing together as they vortically travel together in the cyclone mixer.
3 more elements
A method of mixing two components comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a cyclone separator having (i) a top defining an overflow outlet port, (ii) an imperforate bottom defining an underflow outlet port, (iii) a sidewall defining an inner conical cavity, and (iv) a tangential inlet port;
- (b) introducing a first feed stream into the cyclone separator through the inlet port;
- (c) separating the first feed stream into a vortically rotating overflow portion and a vortically rotating underflow portion in the cyclone separator;
- (d) tangentially introducing a second feed stream into a funnel shaped vessel so as to develop a spiralling vortex of the second feed stream;
- (e) combining the vortically rotating underflow portion of the first feed steam and the spiralling vortex of second feed stream in the funnel shaped vessel such that the underflow portion of the first feed stream and the second feed stream combine to form a substantially homogeneous mixture as they vortically travel together in the vessel.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.