Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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DEVICE FOR TRANSFERRING ENERGY BETWEEN TWO FLUIDS
This complete specification claims priority from the Indian patent application
Nos.
2704/MUM/2010, 2799/MUM/2010, 404/MUM/2011, and 1377/MUM/2011.
This patent application is a further improvement of the inventions disclosed
in the above
mentioned patent applications.
The subject matter disclosed and claimed herein constitutes a single invention
concept based
on all above patent applications and included in this complete specification.
The disclosures of all these patent applications are incorporated as
reference, for defining the
scope of the present invention.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a device for transferring energy between a
driving fluid and a
driven fluid with high efficiency and without contacting or mixing.
The device utilizes the energy of driving fluid to increase the pressure of
the driven fluid in order to
pump it. The driving fluid and driven fluid may be similar or dissimilar
fluids.
PRIOR ART
The available prior art devices for increasing the pressure of fluids, such as
- pumps or intensifiers, are
mostly powered by electric motors or fuel engines. The devices for pumping
fluids which work without
any fuel or electricity, such as- a hydraulic ram, use the energy of working
fluid to pump the same fluid
(generally water). However, these types of devices are unable to pump another
fluid.
The prior art devices cannot pump large quantity of fluid available at lower
heights by using the energy
of small quantity high pressure fluid, e. g. by using small quantity water
stored at heights in
lakes/dams, large quantity water cannot be pumped, e.g. from river to the
river bank with a high
efficiency.
In the prior art devices, the pistons of different diameters housed in
chambers/cylinders are connected
by connecting rods to transfer energy from one fluid to the other, in order to
increase the pressure.
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Similarly, in diaphragm pumps, the diaphragms are interconnected by connecting
rods passing through
both the pumping chambers and a sealing is provided to avoid leakage of fluid
from one of the
chamber to the other. Such sealing arrangements or the like, need frequent
maintenance and special
lubrication system, because of which, these devices are less efficient and
unsuitable for low, very low
pressures and are thus expensive. Moreover, in operation of prior art devices,
components like, piston,
reciprocating assembly housing, pumping chambers, linking rod for connecting
pistons or diaphragms,
always come in contact with the working fluids, which causes contamination or
mixing of fluids,
which is unacceptable, particularly in pharmaceutical/chemical industry.
In the prior art devices, working fluids are not acting along the piston axis,
causing loss of pressure or
energy. Further, inlet and outlet pipes for fluid flow connected to these
devices have abrupt openings
and contractions, which also cause a loss of pressure or energy. Fluid driven
hydraulic/pneumatic
pumps transfer the energy of one of the fluid (e.g. air) to another fluid.
However, none of the prior art
devices teach or suggest a friction-free movement of reciprocating means for
transferring energy of one
working fluid to another with high efficiency.
U. S. Patent No. 5,558,506, issued to John M. Simmons on sep. 24, 1996 shows a
pneumatically
shifted reciprocating pump, actuated by air pressure, including reciprocating
left and right bellows
attached to fluid pumping pistons located in pumping chambers connected
together by a connecting rod
passing through both pumping chambers which needs special lubrication
arrangement. This invention
suggests use of Teflon or other soft material. Sealing or precise arrangement
is needed for rod and its
housing to avoid leakage, since connecting rod passes through pumping chambers
at different pressure,
this special arrangement increases cost of device and needs frequent
maintenance. No means are
provided for preventing ballooning, tilt and wobbling of bellows at high
pressure. Bellows are
connected to piston of same surface area, so intensification is impossible.
The piston and connecting
rods slidably move in the housing, causing friction and wear and tear.
Therefore, there was a long-felt need for a device to overcome these problems.
As such, there is a need
of a highly energy efficient and inexpensive device for transferring energy
between the same or
different fluids, without contacting or mixing with each other. The above
problems and limitation of
the prior art devices are successfully overcome by the present invention.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based on utilizing the potential (pressure) energy of one of
the fluid to enable
the pumping of another fluid with high pressure, i.e. the novel device
utilizes the energy of the
primary or driving fluid to increase the pressure of the secondary or driven
fluid for pumping
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it with high efficiency, without contacting or mixing. However, these fluids
may also be the
same fluids.
A further object of the invention is to enable vertical and/or horizontal
delivery of a driven
fluid by optimally transferring the energy available in a driving fluid to the
driven fluid.
=
A still further object of the present invention is to use the available line
pressures as energy of
a driving fluid by transferring at least a portion of the energy available in
this driving fluid, to
pump the same or a different fluid, which would have otherwise remained
unutilized.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The device for transferring energy between a driving fluid and a driven fluid
without
contacting or mixing with each other, the device comprising: an elongate
central body with a
profiled cavity on either side having a respective fluid passage; a pair of
composite outer
bodies having a respective fluid IN/OUT passage for fluid communication with
IN line and
OUT line of one of the fluids via a flow diverter valve assembly; a pair of
assembly of
moveable chambers, each fixed on either side of said central body and disposed
inside
respective composite body; a plurality of guiding and connecting means passing
through a
respective inner annular end plate of said composite outer body for connecting
and
reciprocating said pair of assembly of moveable chambers in a friction
minimizing manner
and disposed on either side of said central body; in which said flow diverter
valve assembly
alternatively diverts the direction of reciprocating motion of said pair of
assembly of
moveable chambers by diverting the flow direction of one of said fluids by
means of
actuation or pulses received on reaching the respective end positions on
either side of said
central body; and flow directing valves for alternatively switching the flow
direction of the
other fluid from its IN line to respective moveable chamber and from
respective moveable
chamber to an OUT line via said fluid passages of said central body.
Typically, the composite outer body comprises: a cylindrical outer body with
flanges
extending outwardly at each end and having fasteners, and at least partially
conical outer end
plate connected via said respective fluid passage at either outer end to said
IN line or OUT
line and having a flange at respective inner end, which is fastened on a
respective flange of
said cylindrical outer body for fixing a partition to form a respective
moveable chamber on
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either side of said central body; an inner annular end plate closing the
operative inner end of
the respective composite body and fixed with its inner circumference on the
outer surface of
said elongate central body, said inner annular plate having a plurality of
apertures for fixing a
plurality of bearing means for the passage of said guiding and connecting
means through the
same.
Typically, the respective composite outer body surrounds a cylindrical inner
body having
flanges extending outwardly at either end, and an outer pot-like rigid body
having a flat
closed outer end and an annular flange extending outwardly at inner end; a
respective inner
annular diaphragm being fixed at its outer circumference between an outer
flange of said
cylindrical shell and inner annular flange of said pot-like body by fasteners,
said inner
annular diaphragm being fixed at its inner circumference under a respective
annular plate on
said central elongate body by fasteners to form a respective inner moveable
chamber; a
circular diaphragm being fixed at its outer circumference as said partition
between an outer
flange of respective cylindrical body and said flange of respective partially
conical outer end
plate; said circular diaphragm being centrally supported and fixed under
fixing plates by
fasteners outside the base of said outer pot-like body to form a respective
outer moveable
chamber.
Typically, the moveable chambers being a pair of assembly of outer bellows and
inner
bellows, each of said bellows having a flat closed end and an open end, said
flat closed ends
abutting on either side of a flat circular partition; said pair of assembly of
bellows enclosed
within said composite outer body disposed on either sides and moveable in a
friction
minimizing manner; said open ends of outer bellows having an annular portion
extending
outwardly and fixed as said partition between said flange of respective
conical outer end plate
and outer flange of respective cylindrical outer body, to form a respective
outer chamber; said
inner bellows having a respective cylindrical open end extending parallel to
the axis of said
assembly and fastened on the external circumference of said central body by
fasteners to form
a respective inner chamber; said bellows being provided with disc-like
reinforcing means at
regular intervals, having anti friction means on outer circumference abutting
the inner
circumference of respective cylindrical inner body at one end and supporting
said bellows at
inner circumference; said guiding and connecting means being supported on said
flat circular
partition and passing through a plurality of apertures provided in said disc-
like reinforcing
means of inner bellows.
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Typically, a rigid inner cylindrical shell being disposed and moveable inside
respective outer
composite body, by abutting its extended base having anti friction sealing
means on its outer
circumference at one end and forming a respective outer moveable chamber with
said conical
outer end plate; the other annular end of said cylindrical shell being
supported and moveable
on said central body in a friction minimizing and sealing manner and forming a
respective
inner moveable chamber.
Typically, the device comprising: a central body with profiled inner cavities
on either side,
being connected by a respective fluid passage to an IN line 2 via driving
fluid IN line and an
OUT line; a respective cylindrical outer body disposed on either side of said
central body,
said cylindrical outer body having flanges at both ends and closed at outer
end by a respective
outer annular plate fitted with cylindrical bodies having a profiled conical
cavity, closed at
inner ends by a respective inner annular plate, said inner annular plate being
also fixed at its
inner circumference on said central body; a pair of composite inner bodies
disposed on either
side of said central body, each composite inner body respectively having an
inner pot-like
rigid body and an outer cylindrical shell, said pot-like body having a flanged
end open
towards said cylindrical shell and its base towards said central body; said
outer cylindrical
shell having flanges on either side, the inner flange abutting the flange of
said pot-like body
for fixing an outer annular diaphragm by fasteners to form a respective outer
moveable
chamber with a profiled conical cavity of respective cylindrical bodies, and
having an
outwardly extending outer flange; a pair of bracket like bellow supporting
cylinders, each
fixed on respective inner annular end plate by plurality of fasteners for
fixing and supporting
an inner circular diaphragm at its circumference, the middle portion of said
diaphragm being
supported and fixed by fasteners under fixing plates outside the base of said
pot-like rigid
body to form a respective inner moveable chamber; guiding and connecting means
passing
through said inner annular end plates and supported on bearing means for
imparting friction-
minimized reciprocating movement to said pair of assembly of moveable
chambers; wherein,
the driving fluid is directly supplied via a flow diverter valve assembly into
one of the inner
moveable chambers, in order to reciprocate the moveable assembly in one of the
longitudinal
direction of said assembly, said flow diverter valve assembly diverting said
flow to the other
inner moveable chamber on receiving actuation or pulses from the said pair of
assembly of
movable chambers on reaching a respective end position of said reciprocating
movement of
said assembly; a directing valve alternatively directing the flow direction of
the other fluid
from its IN line via driven fluid IN line to respective chamber and chamber to
an OUT line
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from said profiled outer conical cavity, in order to facilitate said
reciprocating movement of
said pair of assembly of chambers in a reversed direction.
Typically, the flow diverter valve assembly comprises: a pilot operated ball-
type 4-way large
orifice valve, and a pulse operated flow diverter assembly, wherein, the pilot
pressure is
controlled by said pulse operated flow diverter assembly by means of actuation
or pulses
received on reaching the respective end position of said reciprocating
movement of said pair
of assembly of moveable chambers.
Typically, the pilot operated ball type 4-way valve comprises: an IN port D;
an exhaust port;
an IN-OUT port A, B disposed on either side; pilot ports; said ball type 4-way
large orifice
having IN chambers; Exhaust chambers; a pair of ball assemblies, each ball
assembly having
a pair of balls, each pair of balls fixed on respective freely movable and
centrally guided rods
which are centrally supported by a respective spring, and passing through
either end of a
lever and fixed on a respective diaphragm at one of the ends which is fixed at
the other end of
said rods, sandwiching between two rigid fixing plates; ball seats; and said
lever being
pivoted about a pivot.
Typically, the pulse operated diverter assembly comprises: a pair of 3-way
valves; a 4-port
floating piston valve; and a pair of non-return valves, said 3-way valves
being disposed on
either of said 4-port floating piston valve, wherein each of said 3-way valves
having an
intermediate chamber connected to an IN port of said 4-way floating piston
valve via an OUT
port, a respective outer chamber axially disposed on either side of said
intermediate chamber
and connected via an exhaust port to a common exhaust port, a respective inner
chamber
axially connected to each other and to a common IN line via an IN port; and an
axially
moveable plunger with a profiled portion having a plunger tail, a middle body
supported at
one end by a spring fixed on it by a fixing disc and having a flange at its
other end, and
sealing means surrounding said profiled portion, further wherein said 4-port
floating piston
valve comprises a flat floating piston having axial cylindrical projections
with sealing means,
said piston reciprocating within a 4-port cylindrical chamber having two axial
IN ports and
two radial OUT ports; said IN ports alternatively connecting a common IN line
via said
respective 3-way valve to a pilot port of said pilot operated ball type 4-way
valve via one of
said OUT ports by positioning of said floating piston on either side of said 4-
port cylindrical
chamber at respective ends thereof.
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Typically, the non-return valves comprises: three chambers formed by two
partitions, a pilot
port, an IN port and an OUT port, a poppet valve having a stem with a poppet
fixed at one
end and a diaphragm attached in the middle and fixed at the other end, both
fixed by
fasteners, said diaphragm biased by means of a spring for directing fluid flow
in one direction
to connect said pilot port to said IN port.
Typically, the flow diverter valve assembly comprises: a pilot operated ball-
type 4-way
valve, and a pulse operated flow diverter assembly having a pair of 3-way
valves and a 5-port
floating piston valve; said 3-way valves being disposed on two opposite sides
of said 5-port
floating piston valve, which comprises a floating piston with a
circumferential groove in the
middle, reciprocating within a 5-port cylindrical chamber having two axial IN
ports and two
radial OUT ports and an exhaust port and said exhaust port alternatively in
fluid
communication with one of the OUT port.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 shows schematic view of a first embodiment of the present invention in
which, the
device for transferring energy, from large quantity fluid at low pressure
(e.g. rain water
collected on top of buildings) to low quantity fluid to increase its pressure
(e.g. to pump tap
water to a reservoir located above the terrace [top] from base reservoir)
includes moveable
chambers partitioned by means of a plurality of pairs of diaphragms.
Fig. 2 shows schematic vievv of the second embodiment of the present invention
in which the
device for transferring energy from low quantity fluid at high pressure (e.g.
water in dams) to
large quantity fluid to increase its pressure (e.g. to pump river water to
river bank) includes
moveable chambers partitioned by means of a plurality of pairs of diaphragms.
Fig. 3 shows schematic view of the third embodiment of the present invention
in which the
device for transferring energy includes moveable chambers formed by means of a
plurality of
pairs of bellows.
Fig. 3a shows an assembly of respective pair of bellows fixed on either side
of disc 63a, 63b
as shown in Fig. 3.
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Fig. 3b shows a detailed view of the reinforcing discs provided on the pair of
bellows and disc
63a, 63b shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3c shows a further detailed view of the anti-friction means 58 shown in
Fig. 3 and 3b.
Fig. 4 shows schematic view of the fourth embodiment of the present invention
in which the
device for transferring energy includes pairs of moveable chambers formed by
means of
respective rigid cylinders.
Fig. 5 shows schematic view of the fifth embodiment of present invention, in
which the device
for transferring energy includes a centrally disposed body directly in fluid
communication
with driving fluid through fluid passages provided on it and having a reversed
position of
diaphragm and pot-like chamber assembly with respect to that shown in Fig. 1.
Fig.6 shows schematic detailed view of fluid diverter valve assembly shown in
Figures 1 to
5, which includes: a pair of 3-way valves, a 4-port floating piston valve, a
pair of pilot
operated non-return/check valves and one ball type 4-way large orifice valve,
all shown in
their operative configurations.
Fig. 6a shows schematic detailed view of fluid diverter valve assembly 15, in
which the
floating piston valve is a 5-port valve, which includes a circumferentially
centrally grooved
piston and an additional exhaust port connected to the groove on it.
Fig. 7 shows schematic view of the non-return/check valves shown in Fig. 6.
Fig. 7a shows schematic view of the ball type 4-way large orifice valve for
diverting fluid
flow by pulse operated diverter valve assembly shown in Fig. 6.
DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 shows schematic view of a first embodiment of the present invention in
which, the
device can transfer energy from a large quantity fluid present at low pressure
(e.g. rain water
collected on top of buildings) to low quantity fluid to increase its pressure
(e.g. to pump tap
water to a reservoir above top of buildings from base reservoir), i.e. a
driven fluid without
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contacting or mixing with each other. The device includes: an elongate central
body 44 with
profiled cavities, here the central body 44 has respective conical cavities
37, 38 with a fluid
passage 46, 45 on either side for fluid communication via pipes 11, 12 with
IN/OUT lines 1,
13 of a secondary or driven fluid via a flow directing or switching valve 80,
81, 82, 83, to be
explained later. The central body 44 is fixed in its position, and a pair of
composite outer
bodies is fixed on either side thereof. Each composite outer body includes a
cylindrical body
40a, 40b with flanges on both ends extending outwardly, and a plurality of
holes for fixing
fasteners 62a, 62b. A partially conical outer end plate 60a, 60b is also
provided for forming a
respective outer chamber. The outer pointed end of the end plates 60a, 60b has
an IN/OUT
passage 35, 36 for fluid communication with a primary or driving fluid via
connection line 7,
5, to flow diverter valve assembly 15 and the respective fluid IN line 2 or
fluid OUT line 14.
The operators of said flow diverter valve assembly 15 are linked to pair of
assembly of
movable chambers by means of mechanical or electrical actuations so as to
divert the driving
fluid flow from one of the outer chambers to other. The inner end of the end
plates 60a, 60b
also has a flange with corresponding holes for fixing it on an outer flange of
respective
cylindrical outer body 40a, 40b by fasteners 62a, 62b. A respective circular
diaphragm 9a, 9b
is fixed between the respective outer flange of cylindrical body 40a, 40b and
the respective
flange of the end plates 60a, 60b. A respective fixing plate 20a, 20b keeps
the diaphragms 9a,
9b fixed outside the extended base of the respective outer pot-like body 41,
42 by means of
fasteners 21a, 21b. Therefore, an outer chamber is formed for containing said
primary or
driving fluid volume within the respective composite outer body disposed on
either side of
said central body 44. A respective inner annular plate 47, 48 is fixed on said
central body 44,
and an inner flange of the respective cylindrical outer body 40a, 40b is
fastened by fasteners
43a, 43b. A plurality of guiding and connecting rods 25, 26, duly supported on
respective
bearing means 17 fixed in apertures is provided in the respective inner end
plates 47, 48 to
connect and reciprocate said pair of assembly of inner and outer moveable
chambers within a
respective cylindrical outer body 40a, 40b.
Another pair of composite inner bodies disposed on either side of said central
body 44 each
includes a respective pot-like rigid body 41, 42 having a closed end and a
flange on one side
and one cylindrical inner body 41a, 42a having outwardly extending flanges on
both ends. A
respective inner annular diaphragm 10a, 10b is fastened with its peripheral
end by fasteners
22a, 22b between the respective outer pot-like body 41, 42 and inner
cylindrical body 41a,
42a. The other inner circumferential end of the respective diaphragm is fixed
on the annular
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face of said central body 44 by fasteners 23a, 23b pressed under the annular
plate 24a, 24b.
Therefore, a respective inner chamber is formed in conjunction with each
conical cavity 37, 38
of central body 44 for containing a secondary or driven fluid volume. The
respective
combined volume of the moveable outer chambers and the moveable inner chambers
is always
constant. However, individual volumes of outer chambers can vary amongst
themselves as per
the reciprocating movement of the pair of assembly of moveable chambers.
Similarly, the
individual volumes of inner chambers can vary amongst themselves as per the
reciprocating
movement of the pair of assembly of moveable chambers.
Fig. 2 shows schematic view of the second embodiment of the present invention
in which the
device for transferring energy from low quantity fluid at high pressure (e.g.
water in dams) to
large quantity fluid to increase its pressure (e.g. to pump river water to
river bank) includes
moveable chambers partitioned by means of a plurality of pairs of diaphragms.
This device
also includes a plurality of pairs of moveable chambers partitioned by means
of a plurality of
pairs of diaphragms as shown in Figure 1. However, this embodiment differs
from that shown
in Fig. 1 only in that, that the driving fluid volume is now contained in the
moveable inner
chambers and the driven fluid volume is contained in the moveable outer
chambers.
Accordingly, driving fluid IN line 1 and OUT line 13 are respectively in fluid
communication
with fluid pipes 11, 12 disposed on central body 44 via flow diverter valve
assembly 16 and
the driven fluid IN line 2 via control valve 51 and fluid OUT line 14 are
respectively
connected to the flow directing valves 76, 77, 78, 79 via pipes 5, 7 for
changing the flow
direction on reaching the respective end positions of the reciprocating
movement of said pair
assembly of moveable chambers. All other constructional details are the same
as in Fig.
already discussed above.
Fig. 3 shows schematic view of a third embodiment of the present invention, in
which device
for transferring energy includes: a composite outer body similar to that shown
in Fig. 1 or 2,
with the only difference that conical outer plate is conical in shape and not
partially conical.
The assembly of moveable chambers disposed on either side of central body 44
includes a pair
of bellows, i.e. a respective outer bellow 52a, 52b and an inner bellow 54a,
54b. Each of the
bellow has a flat closed end and a flanged open end. The flat closed ends of
outer bellows abut
the respective two sides of flat circular partition 63a, 63b. The open end of
outer bellows 52a,
52b have a flanged open end 68a, 68b extending outwardly, which is fixed as
partition
between the flanges of said conical outer end plates 60a, 60b and the outer
flange of respective
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cylindrical outer body 40a, 40b for forming a respective outer chamber on
either side of said
central body 44. The open ends of the inner bellows 54a, 54b have a
cylindrical end 70a, 70b
extending parallel to the axis of assembly, which is fixed on the external
circumference of said
central body 44 in a sealing manner by fasteners 21g, 21h for forming a
respective inner
chamber. All these bellows are provided with disc-like reinforcing means 56,
57 supporting
their outer surface at regular intervals. Anti-friction means 58, such as
roller bearings (refer
Fig. 3b, 3c) are also provided on the outer circumference of these reinforcing
means, which
abut the inner circumference of respective cylindrical outer body 40a, 40b in
order to
minimize friction during movement of assembly of moveable chamber. At their
inner
circumferences, these disc-like reinforcing means 56, 57 also support the
respective bellows,
in order to prevent any uncontrolled bulging due to fluid contained inside.
The reinforcing
means 57 provided on the inner bellows also have apertures for passage of a
plurality of
connecting rods 25, 26. The operators of said flow diverter valve assembly 15
are linked to the
pair of assembly of movable chambers by means of mechanical or electrical
actuations, so as
to divert the flow of the respective driving fluid and driven fluid from one
direction to the
other, in order to obtain a reciprocating movement of the pair of assembly of
moveable
chambers about said central body 44.
Fig. 3a shows an enlarged view of an assembly of respective pair of bellows
52a, 54a; 52b,
54b fixed on either side of flat circular partition 63a, 63b shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3b shows a detailed view of the reinforcing discs 56 with apertures
provided on the pair
of outer bellows 52a, 52b shown in Fig. 3. It also shows a detailed view of
the reinforcing
discs 57 with apertures provided on the pair of inner bellows 54a, 54b shown
in Fig. 3. The
figure also shows the roller bearings 58 fixed on the circumference of these
reinforcing discs
for support and friction minimized movement of each assembly of moveable
chambers inside
the respective cylindrical body 40a, 40b. It should be noted that these
aperture profiles are
merely for representation purposes and may include various other profiles
within the scope of
this invention.
Fig. 3c shows a further detailed view of the roller bearings 58 shown in Fig.
3 and 3b. Here,
the bearings 58 are fixed on the outer circumference of the reinforcing discs
for making a
rolling contact with the inner circumference of the respective cylindrical
outer body 40a, 40b
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for a friction minimized reciprocating movement of the pair of assembly of
moveable
chambers.
Fig. 4 shows schematic view of a fourth embodiment of the present invention,
in which an
inner cylindrical shell 41c, 41d is disposed inside the respective outer
cylindrical body 40a,
40b, each of which is disposed on either side of the central body 44. The
extended circular
base of the respective inner cylindrical shell 41c, 41d has anti friction
sealing means 31 on its
outer circumference, which abuts the inner circumferential surface of the
respective
cylindrical outer body 40a, 40b in a sealing manner. Therefore, the respective
outer chambers
= are formed between said extended circular base and the conical outer end
plate 60a, 60b. The
other annular end of the inner cylindrical shell 41c, 41d also has anti
friction sealing means
32, which is also supported and moveable on said central body 44 in a sealing
manner.
Therefore, each of the inner cylindrical shell 41c, 41d forms a respective
inner moveable
chamber in conjunction with the respective conical cavity 37, 38 disposed on
either side of
the central body 44.
Fig. 5 shows schematic view of a fifth embodiment of the present invention, in
which the
driving fluid is supplied to the inner moveable chambers directly via fluid
passages 45a, 45b
provided on the central body 44c in order to connect to the respective
profiled cavities on
either sides of the central body 44c. In this embodiment, the device has a
reversed
construction of the moveable chambers assembly, i.e. the inner moveable
chamber is filled
with the driving fluid and outer chamber is filled with the driven fluid. The
inner circular
diaphragm 10c, 10d form the inner chambers and the outer annular diaphragms
9c, 9d form
the outer chambers. The orientation of the inner pot-like body 42d, 42f is
also reversed. Here,
each of the cylindrical outer body 40c, 40d enclosing the respective pair of
moveable
chambers is composed of a cylindrical outer body 40c, 40d which is closed at
outer ends by
outer annular plates 44d, 44e fitted with a cylindrical bodies 44a, 44b having
respective
inwardly extended conical cavity 35e, 36e to form an outer chamber with the
respective inner
pot-like body 42d, 42f in conjunction with the outer annular diaphragms 9c,
9d. Each
cylindrical outer body 40c, 40d is closed at the inner end by an inner annular
plate 48a, 48b
fixed with its inner circumference on said central body 44c. A respective
inner composite
cylindrical body is disposed inside each cylindrical outer body 40c, 40d for
forming a
respective moveable chamber on either side of said central body 44c. In
contrast to
arrangement shown in Figure 1, here each of the inner pot-like body 42d, 42f
is open
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outwardly to form the respective outer moveable chamber in conjunction with
outer annular
diaphragms 9c, 9d. The respective outer cylindrical shell 42c, 42e has a
corresponding
smaller flange near the inner pot-like body 42d, 42f for fixing the annular
outer diaphragm
9c, 9d and a respective outwardly extending larger flange 35c, 35d at its end
away from the
inner pot-like body 42d, 42f. A plurality of connecting rods 25c, 26c are
fixed on the
outwardly extending larger flanges 35c, 35d of the outer cylindrical shell
42c, 42e. A
respective bellow supporting cylinder 41e, 41f is fixed on the inner annular
plates 48a, 48b
for fixing the inner circular diaphragm 10c, 10d on its circumference and also
for preventing
any uncontrolled bulging due to high fluid pressure inside the respective
inner moveable
chambers. Similar to Figure 1, the middle portion of this inner circular
diaphragm 10c, 10d is
supported and fixed outside the base of said inner pot-like body 42d, 42f by
means of
fasteners 21c, 21d and fixing plates 20c, 20d.
Fig. 6 shows a typical fluid diverter valve assembly 15, 16. It consists of a
pair of 3-way
valves 25a, 25b disposed on either side of a 4-port floating piston valve 27a;
a pair of non-
return/check valves 43c, 43d connected to OUT ports 9e, 9f of said floating
piston valve 27a;
and a ball type 4-way large orifice valve 27b. Each of said 3-way valves 25a,
25b comprises
an OUT port 19a, 19b, an IN port 36a, 36b and an exhaust port 20e, 20f
connected to a
common exhaust port 24. Said OUT ports 19a, 19b are connected to respective IN
ports 33a,
33b of said 4-port floating piston valve 27a, and said IN ports 36a, 36b of
said 3-way valves
25a, 25b are connected to a common IN line 23. Two inner chambers 35a, 35b are
disposed
axially on inner sides of an intermediate chamber 18a, 18b. Therefore, the
inner chambers
35a, 35b are connected to each other and to a common IN line 23. Similarly,
two outer
chambers 27c, 27d are disposed on outer sides of the intermediate chambers
18a, 18b
connected via connection pipes 20g, 20h. A respective axially moveable plunger
having a
plunger tail (operator) 21e, 21f, a middle body supported at one end by a
spring 15a, 15b by
discs 14a, 14b fixed on it and a respective flange 12a, 12b supported at its
other end by
profiled portion 37a, 37b, and sealing means surrounding flange 12a, 12b. Said
4-port
floating piston valve 27a comprises, a floating piston 28 with axial
cylindrical projections
having sealing means, said floating piston 28 reciprocates within a
cylindrical chamber 28c
having two IN ports 33a, 33b, two OUT ports 9e, 10f.
Fig. 6a shows a typical fluid diverter valve assembly 15, which is similar in
construction to
the valve shown in Figure 6 except that here, the floating piston valve 27ai
has a piston 28a
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having a centrally disposed cylindrical groove on its external circumference,
which is
connected to an additional exhaust port 24e provided on said floating piston
valve 27a1. In
this embodiment, two non-return/check valves 43c, 43d used in Figure 1 are
omitted; thereby
a simplified flow diverter assembly is obtained.
Fig. 7 shows a typical non-return/check valve 43c, 43d shown in Fig. 6. Each
of the non-
return valves 43c, 43d comprises three chambers formed by two partitions, a
pilot port 45c, an
IN port 47c and an OUT port 46c, a poppet valve with a stem 49c having a
poppet 48c fixed at
one end by fasteners and a diaphragm 44f attached in the middle and fixed at
the other end by
fasteners, said diaphragm 44f is biased by means of a spring 49d to direct
fluid flow in one
direction, i.e. connecting said IN port 47c to said OUT port 46c.
Fig. 7a shows schematic view of the ball type 4-way large orifice valve 27b
for diverting
driving fluid flow from one direction to the other by means of a pulse
operated diverter valve
assembly shown in Fig. 6 and 6a. Said ball type 4-way 27b comprises: an IN
port D; an
exhaust port C; two oppositely disposed IN-OUT ports A, B; pilot ports 56a,
56b in fluid
communication with pilot chambers 55a,55b; said 4-way valve 27b having IN
chambers 58a,
58c; Exhaust chambers 58b, 58d; a pair of ball assembly each assembly having
two balls 66a,
66b; 66c, 66d fixed on the respective freely movable centrally guided rods
54c, 54d, which
are supported on a diaphragm 57a, 57b at one of the ends by a spring 49d; said
diaphragms
57a, 57b being fixed at the upper end of said rods 54c, 54d and sandwiched
between two
rigid plates 65; ball seats 67a, 67b; 67c, 67d ; a lever 61 pivoted about a
pivot 61b and said
rod 54c, 54d passes through the apertures 62c,62d at the ends of lever 61, and
also supported
and biased by stopper 65a,65b and spring 64a,64b.
Following tables illustrate different numerals used in this invention and
names of respective
part for convenience.
Ref. No. Name of the Part Ref. Name of the Part
No.
1 Fluid IN line 2 Fluid IN line
5, 7 Connection pipe 9a, 9b Circular diaphragm
9c, 9d Outer annular diaphragm 19e, 9f OUT
ports of floating piston valve
27a
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10a, 10b Inner annular diaphragm 10c, Inner circular diaphragm
10d
11 Pipe connecting fluid passage 45 - 12 Pipe connecting fluid
passage 46 to
to flow directing valves flow directing valves
12a, 12b Flange of plunger of 3-way valve - 13, 13c Fluid OUT line
14a, 14b Disc for fixing plunger spring 14, 14c Fluid OUT line
15, 16 Flow diverter valve assembly - 17, 18 Bearing means
15a, 15b Spring for 3-way valve plunger 18a, Intermediate chamber of
3-way
18b valve
19a, 19b OUT port of 3-way valve 20a, Fixing plate
20b
20c, 20d Diaphragm fixing plate 20e, Exhaust port of 3-way valve
20f
20g, 20h Connection pipe of 3-way valve 21a, Fasteners
21b
21c, 21d Fasteners - 21e, Plunger tail of 3-way valve
21f
Ref. No. Name of the Part Ref. Name of the Part
No.
21g, 21h Fasteners 21j, Fasteners
21k
22a, 22b Fasteners 23 Common IN line
23a, 23b Fasteners 24 Exhaust port of 3-way valve
24a, 24b Annular plate of central body 44 - 24c, Fasteners
24d
24e Exhaust port of valve 27a1 - 25, 26 Guiding and connecting means
25a, 25b 3-way valve 25c, Guiding and connecting rod
26c
27a 4-port floating piston valve 27b 4-way large orifice valve
27ai 5-port floating piston valve 27c, Outer chamber of 3-way valve
27d
28 Flat floating piston for valve 27a 28a Grooved floating piston for
valve 27
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28c 4-port Cylindrical chamber 28d 5-port Cylindrical chamber
31, 32 anti friction means on 41c, 41d 33a, IN port of floating
piston valve 27a
33b
35, 36 IN/OUT passage at conical end 35a, Inner chambers of 3-way
valve
plate 35b
35c, 35d Outer cylindrical shell 35e, Conical cavity
36e
36a, 36b IN port of 3-way valve 37a, -Profiled
portion of 3-way valve -
37b plunger
37, 38 Profiled cavity on first and 37c, Profiled inner cavity on
body 44c
second side of central body 44 37d
38a,38b Sealing means on plunger flange 40a,
Cylindrical outer body
40b
41, 42 Outer pot-like rigid body 40c, Cylindrical outer body
40d (5th embodiment)
41c, 41d Rigid inner cylindrical shell 41a, Cylindrical inner body
42a
42d, 42f Inner pot-like rigid body 41e, Bellow supporting cylinder
41f
44 Elongate central body 43a, Fasteners
43b
44a,44b Cylindrical body 43c, Non-return/check valve
43d
44f Diaphragm of poppet valve 44c Central body (5t1 embodiment)
45, 46 Fluid passage on central body 44 44d,
Outer annular plate
44e
46c OUT port of non-return valve 45a, Fluid passages on central
body 44c
45b
47c IN port of non-return valve 45c Pilot port of non-return valve
48c Poppet 47, 48 Inner annular end plate
49c Stem of poppet valve 48a, Inner annular plate
48b
49f Spring of poppet valve 49d Spring of 4-way valve 27b
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50 Control valve 50c Driven fluid IN line in body 44c
51 Control valve 51c Driving fluid IN line in body 44c
52a, 52b Outer bellow 54a, Inner bellow
54b
55a, 55b Pilot chambers of 4-way valve 54c, Centrally guided rods
27b 54d
56 Reinforcing means on outer 56a, Pilot port of 4-way valve
27b
bellows 56b
57 Reinforcing means on inner 57a, Diaphragm of ball assembly
bellows 57b
58 Roller bearing on discs 56, 57 58a, IN chambers of 4-way valve
27b
58c
581), 58d Exhaust chambers of valve 27b 58e, Fasteners
58f
60a, 60b Conical outer end plate 61 Lever of valve 27b
61a Pivot of valve 27b - 62a, Fasteners
62b
63a, 63b Flat circular partition 62c, Apertures in lever 61
62d
63c, 63d Disc-like reinforcing means 64a, Spring for ball valve 27b
64b
65 Diaphragm fixing plates 65a,65b stopper
67 Aperture in reinforcing means 66a, Balls of first ball assembly
66b
67a, 67b Ball seat of first ball assembly 66c, Balls of second ball
assembly
66d
67c, 67d Ball seat of second ball assembly 68a, Flanged open end of
outer bellows
68b
76, 77 Flow directing valve 70a, Cylindrical open end of inner
70b bellows
80,80c Flow directing valve 78, 79 Flow directing valve
82,82c - Flow directing valve 81,81c Flow directing valve
83,83c Flow directing valve 88a, First, Second pair of bellows
88b assembly
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The working of the invention will now be described with reference to the
constructional
features shown in the drawings as described above.
In Figure 1, the outer moveable chambers formed between the respective conical
outer end
plates 60a, 60b and circular diaphragms 9a, 9b disposed on either side of the
elongate central
body 44 are in fluid communication with fluid IN line 2 via control valve 51
and OUT line 14
of the primary or driving fluid via flow diverter valve assembly 15 through
the respective
fluid IN/OUT passages 35, 36. The total volume of these outer moveable
chambers is
constant, thus a change (increase or decrease) in the volume of driving fluid
present in one of
the outer moveable chamber causes a corresponding decrease or increase in the
volume of the
other outer moveable chamber. Similarly, the inner moveable chambers formed
between the
respective conical cavities 38, 37 on the central body 44 and the respective
outer pot-like
body 41, 42 by means of inner annular diaphragms 10a, 10b disposed on either
side of said
central body 44 are in fluid communication with IN lines 1 of the secondary or
driven fluid
via fluid directing valves 80, 82 through the respective fluid passages 45, 46
and control
valve 50 and is also in fluid communication with OUT line 13 via flow
directing valves 81,
83. The total volume of these inner moveable chambers is also constant, so a
change
(decrease or increase) in the volume of driven fluid present in one of the
inner moveable
chamber causes a corresponding increase or decrease in the volume of the other
inner
moveable chamber. Therefore, an increase or decrease in the volume of a
respective outer
moveable chamber on one of the side causes a corresponding decrease or
increase in the
volume of the inner moveable chamber in that side and vice versa.
When, the primary or driving fluid enters through fluid IN/OUT passage 35 into
the first
outer moveable chamber, it initiates a rightward movement of this moveable
chamber since,
the conical outer end plate 60a and the central body 44 are fixed. The only
way, by which this
driving fluid entering the outer moveable chamber can be accommodated, is by
increasing its
volume, i.e. by the displacement of circular diaphragm 9a by moving the inner
composite
cylinder assembly towards right. By this rightward movement of the first outer
moveable
chamber, the volume of driven fluid (required to be continuously pumped with
high
efficiency by utilizing the energy of said driving fluid present in the outer
moveable chamber)
is continuously reduced in the first inner moveable chamber. This drives out
the driven fluid
from said first inner chamber through pipe 12, which is connected to a flow
directing valve
assembly comprising of four flow directing valves 80, 81, 82, 83 herein
described and
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arrangement is such that when the four way valve 15 attains a second position,
the fluid
communications through passages 35, 36, 45, 46 changes input to output and
output to input
of fluids respectively. In fact, when the driving fluid is moving the first
moveable chamber
from left to right, said flow directing valve assembly causes the entry of the
driven fluid into
the second inner moveable chamber through the other IN/OUT passage 46, which
further aids
the movement of the pair of assembly of moveable chambers towards right, as
shown in
Figure 1. All the while, the driving fluid is entering the first outer
moveable chamber on the
left; the driving fluid is flowing out from the second outer moveable chamber
disposed on the
right side of the central body 44 and flows out via flow diverter valve
assembly 15 via fluid
OUT line 14. The suction effect of the driving fluid flowing out of this
second outer
moveable chamber also enhances this rightward movement of the pair of assembly
of
moveable chambers. Simultaneously, the driven fluid is flowing out of said
first inner
moveable chamber, the flow directing valve 82 causes entry of the driven fluid
into said
second inner moveable chamber. Further, mechanical actuators or electrical
sensors are
disposed at predefined positions on said assembly of moveable chambers, which
actuate the
flow diverter valve assembly 15 (to be described subsequently in details), by
which the
movement of the pair of assembly of moveable chambers is reversed after
reaching a
respective end position, then causes the driving fluid inflow from fluid
passage 36 provided
on the right side of the central body 44 and the reversed operation continues
to pump driven
fluid present in said second inner moveable chamber. In this manner, the
driven fluid is
continuously pumped by the inflow of driving fluid via fluid IN line 2 and its
energy is
continuously transferred to the driven fluid flowing in via its fluid IN line
1.
The operation is similar for all the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 5,
except in Figure 2
and 4, in which the driving fluid is filled in the inner moveable chambers and
the driven fluid
is filled in the outer moveable chambers, rest of the fluid energy transfer
operation is the
same.
Now, Figure 6 showing the flow diverter valve assembly 15 will be discussed
for explaining
its operation. In its normal position, the plunger tails 21e, 21f are
extending out of the 3-way
valves 25a, 25b by the respective preloaded spring 15a, 15b. On reaching a
respective end
position of the respective assembly of moveable chambers, a momentary
actuation or pulse is
given to the plunger tail of one of the 3-way valves 25a, e.g. plunger tail
21e here. By this
actuation, this plunger moves towards right and plunger flange 12a momentarily
blocks the
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fluid communication between the common IN line 23 and the intermediate chamber
18a of
this 3-way valve 25a and a fluid communication is established between the IN
port 33a of the
4-port floating piston valve 27a and exhaust port 24 via connection pipe 20g.
This causes an
imbalance of fluid pressures acting on two IN ports 33a, 33b of the floating
piston valve 27a,
and thus, brings the flat floating piston 28 to its left most position, to
block the fluid
communication of this common IN line 23 with pilot port 56a of said 4-way ball
type large
orifice valve 27b. Immediately afterwards, because of the biasing force of
spring 15a and due
to the reversed movement of respective assembly of moveable chambers, said
plunger comes
back to the normal resting position and even though the fluid IN line pressure
is again acting
on both sides of the floating piston 28, the effective piston area on the left
side (IN port 33a)
being smaller than that on the right side (IN port 33b), the piston remains in
its left most
position, still blocking the fluid flow via left side OUT port 9e and allowing
the fluid flow
only via right side OUT port 9f. This is reversed when the other plunger tail
is actuated on
reaching the other respective end position.
Accordingly, driving fluid entering via IN line 23 is forwarded via OUT port
19b of 3-way
valve 25b and via IN port 33b of 4-port floating piston valve 27a and further
via OUT port 9f
to the ball type 4-way ball type large orifice valve 27b and also to one of
the non-return valve
43c. This driving fluid reaching the pilot port 56b of said ball assembly
disposed on the right
side of said 4-way ball type large orifice valve 27b pushes the diaphragm 57b
down, thereby
closing the fluid communication of the IN line port D with IN-OUT port A and
opens its fluid
communication with the IN-OUT port B. Simultaneously, removal of pressure at
pilot port
56a causes closing of the fluid communication of the IN line port D with the
port A and
opens the fluid communication of said port A with the exhaust port C, upward
movement of
one of the ball assembly due to IN line pressure also assists the downward
movement of the
other ball assembly by means of lever 61. Here, it is pertinent to mention
that ports A and B
are respectively connected to one of the fluid IN/OUT passages 35 and 36 on
the conical
outer end plates 60a, 60b are disposed either side of said central body 44.
IN line fluid pressure is also acting on non-return valves 43c, 43d. However,
as shown in
Figure 7 and discussed above, the effective area of diaphragm 44f of the
poppet valve 48c
exposed to this pressure is more than the pressure working on poppet valve 48c
on the other
non-return valve 43d. Therefore, fluid entering through pilot port 45c of non-
return valve 43c
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opens the fluid communication between the IN port 47c and OUT port 46c with
exhaust or
atmospheric pressure.
Further, a 5-port floating piston valve 27ai is shown in Figure 6a. This valve
has a 5-port
cylindrical chamber and its piston 28a has a central circumferential groove
and an exhaust
port 24e, which is in fluid communication with one of the OUT ports 9e, 9f.
This
construction simplifies the diverter assembly by omitting two non-return/check
valves 43c,
43d.
The flow diverter valve assembly operates in a reversed manner and the plunger
of the other
3-way valve 25b is actuated, when said assembly of moveable chambers reaches
the other
end position of movement. In this manner, the driving fluid energy is
continuously
transferred for pumping the driven fluid.
The present invention device is having resemblance between it and electric
transformer.
In step up transformer high current, low voltage is converted into low
current, high
voltage and in step down transformer low current, high voltage is converted
into high
current, low voltage. While the present invention transfers energy of less
quantity
(volume), high pressure secondary fluid to large quantity (volume) primary
fluid for
increasing its pressure which is less than applied pressure, also transfers
energy of large
quantity, low pressure primary fluid to less quantity secondary fluid for
increasing its
pressure which is greater than applied pressure. In pumping, pressure of fluid
pumped
depends on volume and density ratios of respective fluids in outer and inner
respective
chamber.
EXEMPLARY USE OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the product, it will be
appreciated
that further alterations can be done and that many modifications can be done
in the preferred
embodiments without departing from the principles of the present invention.
These and other changes in the preferred product in accordance with the
present invention
will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein,
whereby it is to be
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distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be
interpreted merely as
illustrative of the present invention and not as a limitation thereof.
TECHNICAL ADVANTAGES & ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE
The potential (pressure) energy of one of the fluid can be utilized for
pumping the same or
different fluid with high pressure by increasing the pressure of the secondary
or driven fluid
with high efficiency, without contacting or mixing of the two fluids. A
vertical and horizontal
delivery of a driven fluid by means of the energy available in a driving fluid
can be achieved
with optimum energy utilization. The available line pressures energy of one
fluid can be used
to pump the same or a different fluid, which energy would have otherwise
remained
unutilized.
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