Apparatus and method for determining the water content of a water-containing mixture
First Claim
1. Apparatus for determining the proportion of water within a mixture containing water and ethanol, comprising:
- a housing containing a bed of an ionizable, water-soluble salt, said salt being relatively insoluble in ethanol, relative to its solubility in water, and said housing having inlet and outlet ports to permit said mixture to flow through said salt;
a spring-biased piston located within said housing and disposed to bear against said bed of salt, so as to keep said salt tightly compacted;
means coupled to said outlet port for measuring the electrical conductivity of said mixture after it has flowed through said bed of salt; and
means for relating the measured conductivity to the proportion of water in the mixture.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus for determining the proportion of water within a mixture of water and a water-miscible solvent includes means for increasing the electrical conductivity of the mixture in proportion to the amount of water contained therein. In a particular embodiment this is done by passing a component stream of the sample through a replenishable bed of a salt, which salt is easily soluble in water but is relatively insoluble in the solvent. The dissolving of the salt introduces an appreciable number of conductive ions into the mixture, thereby enhancing its overall conductivity. A conventional detecting scheme measures the enhanced conductivity of the mixture, and means is provided for correlating this conductivity measurement to the proportion of water within the mixture.
7 Citations
6 Claims
-
1. Apparatus for determining the proportion of water within a mixture containing water and ethanol, comprising:
-
a housing containing a bed of an ionizable, water-soluble salt, said salt being relatively insoluble in ethanol, relative to its solubility in water, and said housing having inlet and outlet ports to permit said mixture to flow through said salt; a spring-biased piston located within said housing and disposed to bear against said bed of salt, so as to keep said salt tightly compacted; means coupled to said outlet port for measuring the electrical conductivity of said mixture after it has flowed through said bed of salt; and means for relating the measured conductivity to the proportion of water in the mixture. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
-
-
6. Apparatus for determining the proportion of water within a mixture containing water, ethanol, and benzene, comprising:
-
means for increasing the electrical conductivity of the mixture by introducing sodium-EDTA salt into the mixture, thereby increasing the ion population of the water; means for measuring the increased electrical conductivity of the mixture; and means for relating the measured conductivity to the proportion of water in the mixture.
-
Specification