Refrigerant distributor

A refrigerant distributor, comprising:

• a source of a refrigerant to be supplied to the refrigerant distributor, and wherein the source of the refrigerant, which may be in a liquid and/or gaseous phase, includes an immiscible contaminant;
• a tank having a main body defined by a sidewall, and which further has opposite first and second ends, and wherein the tank additionally defines an internal cavity for receiving the source of the refrigerant which is in both a liquid and gaseous phase, and wherein the main body is also defined by a horizontal axis and a vertical axis;
• an indexing plate attached to the main body of the tank, and which is mounted within the internal cavity thereof, and which is further oriented in a predetermined spaced, substantially parallel relationship relative to the horizontal axis of the tank;
• a multiplicity of refrigerant distributor conduits, each of which has a first end which is affixed to the indexing plate, and are further located within the internal cavity of the tank, and an opposite, second end, which is located outside of the tank, and wherein the first end of each of the refrigerant distributor conduits is oriented in substantially parallel relation relative to the vertical axis of the tank, and is also oriented in predetermined spaced relation one relative to the other refrigerant distributor conduits, and and wherein a plurality of apertures are formed in each of the first ends of the respective refrigerant distributor conduits, and wherein each of the respective apertures of the individual refrigerant distributor conduits has a predetermined cross-sectional dimension which diminishes relative to an adjacent aperture as the cross sectional dimension is measured in a direction extending from the first end to the second end of the respective refrigerant distributor conduit;
• a contaminant collection container coupled in fluid flowing relation relative to the tank and which is further vertically oriented relative thereto, and wherein the contaminant collection container has a first, open end, which is located within the internal cavity of the tank, and is further inwardly spaced from the sidewall of the tank, and an opposite second end, which is located outside of the tank, and wherein a releasable drain plug is affixed to the second end of the contaminant collection container;
• and
• an inlet conduit for delivering the source of the refrigerant to the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the inlet conduit has a first intake end which is coupled in fluid receiving relation relative to the source of the refrigerant during a refrigeration cycle, and a second intake end which is coupled with the source of the refrigerant during a defrosting cycle, and wherein the inlet conduit has an opposite, second, exhaust end which is defined by a pair of exhaust apertures, and wherein the pair of exhaust apertures includes an upper exhaust aperture, and a lower exhaust aperture, and wherein the lower exhaust aperture is oriented in fluid delivering relation relative to the first, open end of the contaminant collection container, and wherein any the immiscible contaminant included with the source of refrigerant in a liquid phase moves, under the influence of gravity, from the inlet conduit, and is received within the contaminant collection container, and wherein the source of the refrigerant in either one or more of the liquid and gaseous phases passes, at least in part, through the upper and lower exhaust apertures, and into the internal cavity defined by the tank.

A refrigerant distributor, comprising:

• a source of a fluid refrigerant having both a liquid and a gaseous portion, and which further includes an immiscible contaminant which is admixed with the fluid refrigerant, and wherein the source of the fluid refrigerant is supplied to and utilized by a cooling device in a closed loop arrangement with the refrigerant distributor;
• a tank coupled in fluid receiving relation relative to the source of the refrigerant having the immiscible contaminant, and which further has a sidewall which defines an internal cavity for receiving the fluid refrigerant having the immiscible contaminant;
• an inlet conduit for delivering the source of the fluid refrigerant to the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the inlet conduit has a first, intake end having a first inlet for receiving the fluid refrigerant during a refrigeration cycle from the cooling device, and a second inlet for receiving the fluid refrigerant during a hot-gas defrost cycle of the cooling device, and a second, exhaust end which has first and second exhaust apertures, and wherein the second exhaust end of the inlet conduit is located within the internal cavity of the tank;
• a contaminant collection container coupled to the tank, and which is further disposed in both fluid receiving relation relative to the second exhaust end of the inlet conduit, and in fluid delivering relation relative to the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the first exhaust aperture, as defined by the second, exhaust end of the inlet conduit, is disposed in fluid delivering relation relative to the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the first exhaust aperture delivers the gaseous portion of the refrigerant into the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the second exhaust aperture of the inlet conduit delivers the liquid portion of the refrigerant, and which has the immiscible contaminant, into the contaminant collection container, and wherein the contaminant collection container has a main body having opposite first and second ends, and wherein the main body of the contaminant collection container extends through the sidewall which defines the tank, and is further substantially vertically oriented relative to the tank, and wherein the first end of the contaminant collection container is disposed in fluid receiving relation relative to the second exhaust aperture, and which is defined by the second, exhaust end of the inlet conduit such that the liquid portion of the source of refrigerant flows into the contaminant collection container under the influence of gravity, and towards the second end of the contaminant collection container, and wherein the liquid portion of the refrigerant which fills the contaminant collection container, separates from the immiscible contaminant, under the influence of gravity, and wherein the separated immiscible contaminant moves under the influence of gravity towards the second end of the contaminant collection container, while the liquid refrigerant, which is now substantially devoid of the immiscible contaminant collects, and rises in the contaminant collection container, and wherein the liquid portion of the refrigerant, which is now substantially devoid of contaminant, subsequently overflows into the tank from the first end of the contaminant collection collector, and wherein the contaminant collection container is located, in part, within the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the second end of the contaminant collection container is positioned outside of the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein the immiscible contaminant is periodically removed from the contaminant collection container through the second end thereof;
• and
• a plurality of refrigerant distributor conduits coupled in fluid receiving relation relative to the internal cavity of the tank, and wherein each of the refrigerant distributor conduits has a first, intake end which is located within the internal cavity of the tank, and a second exhaust end which is located outside of the tank, and which are further coupled in fluid delivering relation relative to the cooling device, and wherein the first intake ends of the respective refrigerant distributor conduits are located elevationally above the respective second exhaust ends, and wherein a plurality of apertures is formed in each of the intake ends of the respective refrigerant distributor conduits, and wherein each of the respective apertures of the individual refrigerant distributor conduits has a predetermined cross-sectional dimension which diminishes relative to an adjacent aperture when this cross sectional dimension is measured in a direction extending from the first intake end to the second exhaust end thereof of each of the respective refrigerant distributor conduits, and wherein the apertures having the predetermined cross sectional dimension selectively meter predetermined amounts of both the gaseous and liquid portions of the refrigerant, and which is substantially devoid of the contaminant, from the tank and supply the refrigerant to the cooling device.