Device for separating a gas-liquid mixture

A device for separating a gas-liquid mixture, in which the liquid content is in the form of small particles, in ventilation of the crankcase of an internal combustion engine, by separating and coagulating the liquid particles on an impingement surface, which the liquid mixture strikes approximately at a right angle after being accelerated in at least one acceleration opening provided for this purpose, wherein

• a number and/or cross section of at least one acceleration opening (5, 6;
• 15, 16) is/are varied as a function of the volume of the mixture between a small total cross section at a low volume flow and a large total cross section at a high volume flow,
• at least one sealing element (4, 14) that is shifted as a function of volume flow controls the extent to which the flow can pass through the at least one acceleration opening (5, 6;
• 15, 16) of the device,
• the at least one acceleration opening (15, 16) passes radially through a cylindrical housing wall (13) that is closable axially on at least one end and is controllable by a sealing element (14) that is displaceable along the axis of the cylindrical housing wall (13), whereby controllability of just a portion of these openings may be sufficient in the case when there are multiple acceleration openings (15, 16),
• comprising the features
• a radially peripheral slotted opening representing a radial acceleration opening (16) is provided on an axial end of the cylindrical housing wall (13) on an outgoing flow end,
• a valve (7) consists of a spring-loaded disk-shaped plate (14′) that can close the axial end face of the cylindrical housing wall (13), whereby the spring force acts in the direction of a closing of the valve (7), which counteracts a vacuum prevailing outside of the cylindrical wall (13), acting on the disk-shaped plate (14′) in the direction of opening of this valve (7), whereby the degree of opening of this valve (7), the axial slot height, depends on the size of the vacuum,
• wherein at least one acceleration opening (16) is situated in a housing wall area which is covered on one side of this opening by a flexible diaphragm (14′″) designed in the form of a plate, its outside wall forming an annular gap with an axial gap height between a maximum value and a minimum value down to 0 as a function of the volume flow, whereby this annular gap leads radially outward from a housing wall area covered by the diaphragm (14′″).