APPARATUS FOR FLUID FLOW PRECISION PRESSURE-REDUCTION, AND ATTENUATION AND DIFFUSION OF JET-PRODUCED SOUND WITHOUT SUBSTANTIAL SOUND-REGENERATION IN JET-PORT ARRAYS, INCLUDING VALVES AND THE LIKE

• US 3,802,537 A
• Filed: 02/16/1972
• Issued: 04/09/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 02/16/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Pritchard H. White
• Original Assignee: Pritchard H. White
• Inventors: White, Pritchard H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilkinson, Richard B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gonzales, John F.
• Application Number:
  US05/226,871
• Time in Patent Office: 783 Days
• Field of Search: 181/37,36R,36A,36B,36C,36D,63,69,50,42,55,56 137/14,625,625.28,625.3 138/40,42,43 251/127,118
• US Class Current: 181/226
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 1/08 by reducing exhaust energy by throttling or whirling
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 1/165 for adjusting flow area
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86734 With metering feature

Abstract

This disclosure deals with the precision pressure reduction of a fluid stream while attenuating and diffusing jet-produced sound therein from a jet-port array as in valves and the like, but without substantial sound-regeneration during the same, through the use of enveloping apertured screens and the like positioned close to the vortex mixing region and adapted to produce a controlled gradual frictional reduction in pressure gradient while controlling the velocity of the streams exiting from the jet-port array.

Claims

1. Apparatus for the precision pressure-reduction of a fluid stream without substantial sound-regeneration during such reduction, said apparatus having, in combination, a longitudinally extending conduit provided with an inlet and having a plurality of jet ports extending through the thickness of a wall of the conduit and spaced therealong, at least several of said jet ports being open concurrently;

means for applying to the inlet a fluid stream under pressure so as to enable the successive exiting of successive portions of the stream at successive open jet ports as the stream passes along the conduit;

means enveloping the jet ports externally of the conduit for breaking up each portion of the fluid stream from each of the jet ports into a multiplicity of relatively small independent streams and for producing a controlled reduction in pressure by viscous friction, the last-mentioned means comprising apertured surface means immediately adjacent to the jet ports where mixing vortex turbulence would normally be produced by the stream portions exiting therefrom, and a plurality of additional apertured surface means closely surrounding the first-mentioned apertured surface means at successive positions transversely away from said conduit, each of said surface means extending longitudinally of said conduit and having a multiplicity of closely spaced apertures much smaller than the jet ports and thus frictionally resistive to the exiting stream portions, and said plurality of surface means being of progressively greater area transversely away from said conduit for maintaining the exiting stream portions at substantially constant velocity during passage through said apertured surface means and while being reduced in pressure, the outermost surface means having its multiplicity of apertures open to a medium of low velocity relative to the velocity of said stream.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 and in which valving means is disposed along said conduit to vary the number of jet ports that may be opened for exiting fluid stream portions.