Apparatus for mixing and pumping

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9833756-B2
Application number	US-201214348333-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 24, 2012
Priority date	Sep 30, 2011
Publication date	Dec 5, 2017
Grant date	Dec 5, 2017

Abstract

An apparatus for mixing and pumping, the apparatus comprising a housing with an inlet and an outlet for receiving and expelling liquid and a material. The apparatus has a shear rotor and a stator for mixing the liquid and material and an impeller for pumping the liquid and material from the inlet, via an annular clearance between the shear rotor and the stator and to the outlet. The apparatus has a return conduit configured to return to the inlet a part of the liquid and material pumped via the annular clearance and openings in the stator.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for mixing and pumping, the apparatus comprising:
a housing with an inlet and an outlet for receiving and expelling liquid and a material,
a shear rotor rotatably arranged in the housing about a central axis and connected to a drive unit,
a stator fixedly arranged in the housing and surrounding a periphery of the shear rotor such that an annular clearance is formed between the shear rotor and the stator, wherein the liquid and material pass the annular clearance and through openings in the stator when the drive unit is activated, thereby effecting mixing of the liquid and material,
an impeller rotatably arranged in the housing about the central axis and connected to the drive unit, such that the impeller pumps the liquid and material from the inlet, via the annular clearance, via the openings in the stator and to the outlet when the drive unit is activated,
a liquid conduit arranged to convey the liquid to the inlet,
a material conduit arranged to convey the material to the inlet,
a return conduit configured to return to the inlet a part of the liquid and material pumped via the annular clearance and the openings in the stator,
the return conduit being connected to the material conduit such that flow in the material conduit is facilitated by the part of the liquid and material returned through the return conduit, and
the material conduit being connected to the liquid conduit such that material from the material conduit is conveyed to the inlet via the liquid conduit.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the housing comprises a further outlet to which the return conduit is connected for receiving the part of the liquid and material to return to the inlet, while a remaining part of the liquid and material is conveyed via the outlet.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the return conduit is connected to the outlet of the housing and comprises:
a first branch that conveys the part of the liquid and material in a direction towards the inlet, and
a second branch that conveys a remaining part of the liquid and material in another direction.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the return conduit is configured to return to the inlet less than one third of the liquid and material pumped by the impeller.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the shear rotor and the impeller are arranged to rotate about a horizontal, geometrical axis.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5 , comprising a horizontally arranged drive axle that connects the shear rotor and the impeller to the drive unit.

7. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the material conduit comprises an outer conduit, an inner conduit and a chamber that is formed between the outer conduit and the inner conduit, the inner conduit being arranged to convey the material and the return conduit being connected to the chamber such that the chamber may receive the part of the liquid and material returned by the return conduit, the chamber comprising an opening that surrounds at least a part of an outlet of the inner conduit, such that the liquid and material returned by the return conduit pass through the opening and come into contact with and thereby transport material from the inner conduit.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the liquid conduit has a horizontal extension such that it conveys liquid in a horizontal direction towards the inlet of the housing, and
the material conduit has a vertical extension such it conveys material in a vertical direction towards the liquid conduit, and is, as seen in the vertical direction, connected to an upper side of the liquid conduit.

9. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the material conduit comprises a first manual valve and the liquid conduit comprises a second manual valve.

10. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is mounted on a frame that comprises a number of wheels for transporting the apparatus.

11. An apparatus according to claim 1 , comprising:
a hopper that is connected to the material conduit, and
a table arranged adjacent the hopper.

12. An apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the hopper and the table are supported by the frame.

13. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the return conduit is configured to return the part of the liquid and material to the inlet without passing the returned part of the liquid and material via any further pumping equipment.

14. An apparatus for mixing and pumping, the apparatus comprising:
a housing with an inlet for receiving a liquid and a material, and an outlet for expelling the liquid and the material, the housing possessing an interior;
a hopper configured to receive the material;
a material conduit possessing one open end connected to the hopper and an opposite open end connected to the inlet so that the material in the hopper enters the material conduit and is conveyed along the material conduit to the inlet;
a shear rotor rotatably arranged in the interior of the housing to rotate about a central axis and connected to a drive unit;
a stator fixedly arranged in the interior of the housing and surrounding a periphery of the shear rotor such that an annular clearance exists between the shear rotor and the stator;
the stator and the shear rotor being positioned within the housing relative to the inlet and the outlet such that the liquid and the material entering the housing by way of the inlet pass the annular clearance and also pass through openings in the stator when the drive unit is activated to thereby mix the liquid and material and produce mixed liquid and material;
an impeller rotatably arranged in the interior of the housing to rotate about the central axis and connected to the drive unit to pump the liquid and the material from the inlet to the outlet by way of the annular clearance and the openings in the stator when the drive unit is activated; and
a return conduit possessing one end which opens into the material conduit and an opposite end which opens into the interior of the housing so that a part of the mixed liquid and material is conveyed along the return conduit and introduced into the material conduit at a position between the hopper and the inlet so that the mixed liquid and material is conveyed along the material conduit to the inlet and facilitates flow in the material conduit.

15. An apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the hopper includes an interior possessing a tapering shape that narrows in size toward a bottom end of the hopper, the one open end of the material conduit being connected to the bottom end of the hopper.

16. An apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the outlet is one outlet and the housing comprises a further outlet different from and spaced from the one outlet, the opposite end of the return conduit being connected to the further outlet, the part of the mixed liquid and material that is conveyed through the further outlet and into the return conduit being a first part of the mixed liquid and material, the mixed liquid and material also including a second part that passes through the one outlet and is kept separate from the first part of the mixed liquid and material.

17. An apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the central axis about which the shear rotor and the impeller rotate is a horizontal axis.

Assignees

• Alfa Laval Corp Ab

Inventors

• Stöppler Andreas

Classifications

• B01F2003/105

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F15/0243

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F5/102

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F7/00708

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F15/0202

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic