Process for increasing the quantity of powder dispensed in a powder coating system, as well as powder coating system

• US 5,018,910 A
• Filed: 02/26/1990
• Issued: 05/28/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/1986
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Elpatronic AG
• Original Assignee: Prazisions-Werkzeuge AG
• Inventors: Weiss, Hardy P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Focarino, Margaret A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kannofsky, James M.
• Application Number:
  US07/484,489
• Time in Patent Office: 456 Days
• Field of Search: 406/153, 406/144, 406/194, 406/195, 406/142, 406/146, 406/86, 406/92, 406/138, 406/145, 406/62, 406/108, 406/197, 406/12, 406/122, 406/14, 406/19, 406/30, 406/124, 406/91, 118/308, 118/312, 118/317, 118/622, 239/405, 239/104, 134/166 C, 134/169 C, 366/165
• US Class Current: 406/144
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 5/12 specially adapted for coating the interior of hollow bodies
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 5/1683 specially adapted for particulate materials

Abstract

In a powder coating system wherein the powder is introduced via a feed conduit from the feed point to a mixing chamber, a pressure gradient oriented against the chamber is produced along the feed conduit by acceleration of a gas jet in the mixing chamber, and pressure recovery is obtained by retarding the powder-gas stream, in order to feed the powder-gas stream through a conveying line to a coating unit. For increasing the quantity of powder dispensed per unit time to the powder coating system, the pressure drop in the powder-gas stream along the conveying line is at least in part compensated for by raising the pressure at the feed point.

Claims

1. A process for selectively setting the quantity of powder continuously dispensed per unit of time out of an outlet of a powder coating system, comprising:

feeding the powder out of a powder container to a mixing chamber by generating a pressure drop from said powder container to said mixing chamber by means of a gas jet injected into said mixing chamber;

propelling said powder fed to said mixing chamber out of said chamber into a conveying line to said outlet by said jet of gas;

enlarging a diameter of said conveying line downstream and adjacent said mixing chamber to recover static pressure by retarding said powder and said gas;

propelling said powder and said gas along said conveying line and out of said outlet predominately by a pressure difference of said static pressure recovered and a static pressure of a surrounding of said outlet; and

settling the quantity of powder dispensed per unit of time out of said outlet of the powder coating system by setting the static pressure within said powder container independently from generation of said gas jet injected into said mixing chamber so as to settle said pressure difference by said pressure recovery and said static pressure selectively settled.

2. Process according to claim 1, further comprising constantly decelerating the powder-gas stream in the mixing chamber and mixing the powder in the region of highest gas flow velocity with the gas.

3. Process according to claim 2, wherein a powder stream is fed from the powder container via a feed conduit into the mixing chamber at least in one component perpendicularly to the axis of the gas jet, and further characterized in that the powder stream is fed to the mixing chamber eccentrically with respect to the axis in order to generate a self-cleaning rotational flow of the powder-air stream with respect to the conveying line.

4. Process according to claim 1, wherein a powder stream is fed from the powder container via a feed conduit into the mixing chamber at least in one component perpendicularly to the axis of the gas jet, and wherein the powder stream is fed to the mixing chamber eccentrically with respect to the axis in order to generate a self-cleaning rotational flow of the powder-air stream with respect to the conveying line.

5. Process according to claim 1, wherein the powder is fluidized upstream of the mixing chamber.

6. Process according to claim 1, wherein the gas jet is steadily accelerated by means of a nozzle operating with a sub-critical pressure ratio.

7. Process according to claim 1, wherein the gas jet is allowed to decelerate in the mixing chamber at least almost to the free jet condition.

8. Process according to claim 1, wherein said step of settling includes providing a pressurized gas to said powder container and setting and maintaining an excess static pressure of said gas in said powder container with a pressure regulating device for regulating the pressure of said gas within said powder container.

9. Process according to claim 8, including fluidizing powder in said powder container with said pressurized gas.

10. Powder coating system comprising a powder tank, a mixing chamber, a conduit communicating from said powder tank with said mixing chamber, a coating unit, a conveying gas nozzle terminating in the mixing chamber, in order to produce a vacuum with respect to the powder tank by gas jet acceleration in the mixing chamber, said mixing chamber being linked by a steadily widened line section arranged coaxially with respect to the axis of said gas nozzle to a conveying line for gas-powder mixture leading from said line section to the coating unit and means for controlling settlement of the amount of powder ejected per time unit from said coating unit by respective settling the static pressure within said tank independently from generation of said gas jet into said mixing chamber, said powder being conveyed along said conveying line due to combined action of said gas jet and of said static pressure.

11. Powder coating system according to claim 10, wherein the conduit terminates in the mixing chamber with an axial direction being at least in one component perpendicular to the axial direction of the nozzle, and wherein the conduit terminates eccentrically with respect to the nozzle axis.

12. Powder coating system according to claim 10, wherein a fluidizing plate is provided in the zone where the conduit leaves the powder tank, and a feed line for a fluidizing gas such as air is provided as well.

13. Power coating system according to claim 10, wherein said means for controlling includes a pressure source for providing a fluidizing gas to said tank.

14. Powder coating system according to claim 13, wherein said means for controlling further comprises a pressure regulating device provided at the powder tank.

15. Powder coating system according to claim 14, wherein said pressure regulating device is connected with a filter for filtering out suspended powder.

16. Powder coating system according to claim 10, wherein a powder charging conduit is provided at the powder tank, with pressure decoupling means for feeding the powder from a pressure level on the inlet side of the powder charging conduit to a pressure level on the powder tank side thereof.

17. Powder coating system according to claim 16, wherein said pressure decoupling means is a cellular wheel sluice.