Multi-stage deoiler with porous media

• US 5,716,423 A
• Filed: 12/21/1995
• Issued: 02/10/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: United Technologies Corporation (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Original Assignee: United Technologies Corporation (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Inventors: Giersdorf, Rodney L., Krul, Allan D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Woo, Jay H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SCWARTZ, IURIE
• Application Number:
  US08/576,664
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• Field of Search: 55/323, 55/345, 55/437, 55/485, 55/487, 60/39.08, 60/39.02
• US Class Current: 55/485
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 45/14 generated by rotating vanes, discs, drums or brushes
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 46/26 rotatable
• CPC Class Codes: F01M 13/04 having means for purifying air before leaving crankcase, e.g. removing oil
• CPC Class Codes: F01M 2013/0422 Separating oil and gas with a centrifuge device
• CPC Class Codes: F01M 2013/0438 with a filter

Abstract

An inducer with reduced number of blades and varying density porous media disks are arranged in a deoiler mounted on a rotating shaft for total free separation of the oil from and air/oil mixture. The porous media disks are arranged with the lower density grade coming into contact with the air/oil mixture and proceeds toward the higher density grade. The arrangement of the stages of separation, the specially designed oil discharge holes and the flow geometry maximizes oil separation and removal and reduces pressure losses to control the pressure drop of the deoiler.

Claims

1. A deoiler system for removing the components of air and oil from an air/oil mixture including a rotatable inducer for removing a portion of the oil from said air/oil mixture in combination with a rotatable porous media means for removing the remaining portion of the oil from said air/oil mixture and means for imparting rotary motion to said rotatable inducer and said rotatable porous media means.

2. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rotatable porous media means includes a toroidal shaped disk.

3. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 2 including a hollow shaft and a housing supporting said porous media disk, said rotatable inducer being mounted on said shaft and said porous media disk being mounted downstream on said shaft relative to the flow on said air/oil mixture.

4. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 3 wherein said porous media means includes a plurality of porous media disks and each of said disks having different densities and being sequentially disposed in a progressively increasing density arrangement with the highest density being located furthest downstream from said rotatable inducer and an opening in said hollow shaft for flowing said air from said separated air/oil mixture through said hollow shaft.

5. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 4 wherein said housing is sized to accommodate varying number of porous media disks.

6. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 5 wherein said porous media disks are made from a metallic mesh material.

7. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 6 wherein said inducer consists essentially of three equally spaced cambered inducer blades.

8. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 7 including an annular shroud having an inwardly angular depending member having an upwardly sloping surface for defining an inlet to said cambered inducer blades, a slot formed adjacent said housing and the end of said sloping surface remote from said inlet for discharging oil separated by said inducer.

9. A deoiler system as claimed in claim 6 including discharge oil holes in said housing adjacent the outer periphery of said porous media disks.

10. A deoiler apparatus for removing oil from an air oil mixture for the lubrication system of a gas turbine engine including a gear box having a rotatable hollow shaft, a breather valve in fluid communication with said hollow shaft, a deoiler housing defining an annular cavity concentrically mounted on said shaft and rotatable therewith, at least one porous media disk mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith being disposed in said cavity, an inducer having equally spaced cambered inducer blades mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith for imparting centrifugal motion to said air/oil mixture for removing a portion of oil therefrom, an opening is said housing in fluid communication with the air/oil mixture discharged from said inducer for admitting the air/oil mixture into said porous media disks for centrifuging the remaining oil from said air/oil mixture, and openings in said inducer and said housing for discharging said separated oil into said gear box and in said shaft for flowing the residue air to said breather valve.

11. A deoiler apparatus as claimed in claim 10 including other porous media disks having varying densities rotatably mounted on said shaft and being arranged sequentially relative to the density so that the higher density is further downstream from said inducer.

12. A deoiler apparatus as claimed in claim 11 wherein said porous media disk and said other porous media disks are toroidal shaped.

13. A deoiler apparatus as claimed in claim 12 wherein said porous media disk and said other porous media disks are made from metallic wire mesh.

14. A deoiler apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein said housing is sized to accommodate varying numbers of porous media disks.

15. A deoiler apparatus as claimed in claim 14 including an annular shroud having an inwardly angular depending member having an upwardly sloping surface for defining an inlet to said cambered inducer blades, one of said openings being a slot formed adjacent said housing and the end of said sloping surface remote from said inlet for discharging oil separated by said inducer.

16. A deoiler apparatus as claimed in claim 15 wherein said openings include discharge oil holes in said housing adjacent the outer periphery of said porous media disks.