Non-condensing gas discharge device of condenser

• US 20050072185A1
• Filed: 09/30/2004
• Published: 04/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Uda, Makoto, Taniguchi, Hiroyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,131,290 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 62/475
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 5/0093 Removing and treatment of non condensable gases
• CPC Class Codes: F01K 23/065 the combustion taking place in an internal combustion piston engine, e.g. a diesel engine
• CPC Class Codes: F01K 9/00 Plants characterised by condensers arranged or modified to co-operate with the engines by condensers structurally combined with engines F01K11/00; steam condensers per se F28BF01K23/04 takes precedence

Abstract

Gaseous-phase portion of a condenser contains vapor and a non-condensing gas, such as air, that impedes condensation of the vapor, and a non-condensing gas discharge device of the condenser is arranged to discharge only the non-condensing gas from the condenser. The non-condensing gas discharge device includes a valve device, in the form of an air vent, for separating the non-condensing gas from the vapor and selectively discharging only the non-condensing gas from the condenser.

Claims

1. A non-condensing gas discharge device of a condenser, which comprises:

a gaseous-phase portion containing a condensable gaseous-phase working medium and a non-condensing gas;

a liquid-phase portion containing a liquid-phase working medium;

cooling means for cooling the working medium to convert the gaseous-phase working medium back to the liquid phase; and

a valve device, provided in correspondence with a part of said gaseous-phase portion near a liquid level of the liquid-phase working medium along a boundary between said gaseous-phase portion and said liquid-phase portion, for separating the non-condensing gas from the gaseous-phase working medium and thereby selectively discharging only the non-condensing gas.

2. A non-condensing gas discharge device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said valve device is brought to an opened position at a temperature lower than a boiling temperature of the liquid-phase working medium, so as to selectively discharge the non-condensing gas of a temperature lower than the boiling temperature.

3. A non-condensing gas discharge device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said condenser includes a plurality of condensing pipes and an intermediate chamber communicating with said plurality of condensing pipes, and said valve device is provided in correspondence with said intermediate chamber.

4. A non-condensing gas discharge device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said condenser includes a plurality of condensing pipes, and a plurality of said valve devices are provided in corresponding relation to said plurality of condensing pipes.

5. A non-condensing gas discharge device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said liquid-phase working medium is water, said gaseous-phase working medium is vapor, and said non-condensing gas is air.

6. A non-condensing gas discharge device as claimed in claim 5 wherein said valve device has an outlet for discharging the water, and the liquid level of the water lies below said outlet.

7. A non-condensing gas discharge device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said valve device is an air vent.