Method for foaming adhesive and related system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12145111-B2
Application number	US-202016733632-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 3, 2020
Priority date	Jul 28, 2017
Publication date	Nov 19, 2024
Grant date	Nov 19, 2024

Abstract

The present invention relates to methods and systems for producing a foamed adhesive. A method for foaming an adhesive includes feeding an adhesive from a supply storage tank to a pump, conveying the adhesive outputted by the pump through an adhesive flow meter, injecting an air into the adhesive once the adhesive travels through the adhesive flow meter, feeding a mixture of the adhesive and air to a static mixer, mixing the mixture homogeneously with the static mixer such that the adhesive is foamed, and transporting the foamed adhesive to a product storage tank.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for foaming an adhesive, the method comprising:
pumping, using a pump, the adhesive from a supply storage tank through a first conduit;
dampening, using a pulsation dampener downstream of the pump, pulsations and pressure fluctuations of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit;
measuring, using an adhesive flow meter downstream of the pulsation dampener, a flow rate and/or mass of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit;
regulating, using a flow control valve downstream of the adhesive flow meter, and based on the measured flow rate and/or mass of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit, the flow of adhesive to a junction that connects the first conduit to a gas supply line;
supplying gas to the gas supply line that terminates at the junction;
controlling, using a gas flow controller along the gas supply line, and based on the measured flow rate and/or mass of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit, gas flow volume injected into the adhesive at the junction to form a mixture of the adhesive and the gas;
supplying the mixture of the adhesive and the gas to a non-helical, static mixer downstream from the junction, the non-helical, static mixer being distinct from the first conduit;
mixing the mixture, in the non-helical, static mixer, to form a foamed adhesive having bubbles sized between 1 micron and 500 microns; and
supplying, via a second conduit downstream and distinct from the non-helical, static mixer, the foamed adhesive to a product reserve tank.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the non-helical, static mixer is at least one of a corrugated plate type static mixer, a x-grid type static mixer, or an oblique angle type static mixer.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the pump is a positive displacement pump.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the pump is operated via compressed air or electricity.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the gas is injected into the adhesive at a pressure between 5 psi and 10,000 psi.

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein the gas is injected into the adhesive at a pressure between 50 psi and 1,000 psi.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the gas is injected into the adhesive via an air injection port.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the bubbles are sized between 15 microns and 150 microns.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the gas is air.

10. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising measuring, using a first pressure transducer between the pulsation dampener and the adhesive flow meter, a pressure of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit.

11. The method according to claim 10 , further comprising measuring, using a second pressure transducer between the non-helical, static mixer and the product reserve tank, a pressure of the foamed adhesive flowing through the second conduit.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the gas flow rate injected into the adhesive is between 0% and 150% of the flow rate of the adhesive.

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the adhesive is pumped thought the first conduit at a flow rate between 50 liters/hour and 2500 liters/hour.

14. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the adhesive is pumped thought the first conduit at a pressure between 0 psi and 10,000 psi.

15. A foaming adhesive system for mixing an adhesive and gas to produce foamed adhesive, the foaming adhesive system comprising:
a supply storage tank containing adhesive;
a pump connected to the supply storage tank via a first conduit and configured to pump the adhesive from the supply storage tank to the first conduit;
a pulsation dampener downstream of the pump, the pulsation dampener configured to dampen pulsations and pressure fluctuations of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit;
an adhesive flow meter downstream of the pulsation dampener, the adhesive flow meter configured to measure a flow rate and/or mass of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit;
a flow control valve downstream of the adhesive flow meter, the flow control valve configured to regulate the flow of adhesive to a junction that connects the first conduit to a gas supply line based on the measured flow rate and/or mass of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit;
a gas supply storage containing the gas;
the gas supply line fluidly connected to the gas supply storage and terminating at the junction,
a gas flow controller along the gas supply line, the gas flow controller configured to control gas flow volume injected into the adhesive at the junction to form a mixture of the adhesive and the gas based on the measured flow rate and/or mass of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit;
a non-helical, static mixer downstream from the junction, the non-helical, static mixer configured to receive the mixture of the adhesive and the gas and homogeneously mix the mixture of the adhesive and the gas to produce a foamed adhesive having bubbles sized between 1 micron and 500 microns; and
a product reserve tank configured to receive the foamed adhesive from the non-helical, static mixture.

16. The foaming adhesive system according to claim 15 , wherein the static mixer is at least one of a corrugated plate type static mixer, a x-grid type static mixer, or an oblique angle type static mixer.

17. The foaming adhesive system according to claim 15 , wherein the pump is a positive displacement pump.

18. The foaming adhesive system according to claim 15 , further comprising a first pressure transducer between the pulsation dampener and the adhesive flow meter, the first pressure transducer being configured to measure a pressure of the adhesive flowing in the first conduit.

19. The foaming adhesive system according to claim 18 , further comprising a second pressure transducer between the non-helical, static mixer and the product reserve tank, the second pressure transducer being configured to measure a pressure of the foamed adhesive.

20. The foaming adhesive system according to claim 15 , wherein the gas is air.

21. The foaming adhesive system according to claim 15 , wherein the gas flow controller is configured to control the gas flow rate injected into the adhesive to be between 0% and 150% of the flow rate of the adhesive.

Assignees

• Henkel Ag & Co Kgaa

Inventors

• Grossman Matthew
• Patterson Nicholas
• Sandilla Robert

Classifications

• B01F35/7176

  using pumps · CPC title

• B01F25/4523

  the components being pressed through sieves, screens or meshes which obstruct the whole diameter of the tube · CPC title

• B01F25/422

  between stacked plates, e.g. grooved or perforated plates · CPC title

• B01F23/2368

  Mixing receptacles, e.g. tanks, vessels or reactors, being completely closed, e.g. hermetically closed · CPC title

• B01F23/2319

  Methods of introducing gases into liquid media · CPC title