Free float steam trap

Abstract: A free float steam trap comprises a trap casing having an inlet port (11;51) and an outlet port (12;52) and a valve chest (16;56) formed therein, a valve seat member (17;57) attached to the lower portion of the valve chest (16;56) and having a valve orifice (25;65) opened through which the valve chest (16;56) communicates with the outlet port (12;52), a float valve (30;70) arranged in a free state in the valve chest (16;56), rising and descending in accordance with the water level in the valve chest (16;56) to directly open and close the valve orifice (25;65) and a means for dispersing and passing condensate flow downward, provided at a fluid inlet (19;59) through which the inlet port communicates with valve chest (16;56).

Description: The present invention relates to a free float steam trap comprising a trap casing having an inlet port, an outlet port and a valve chest formed therein, a valve seat member attached to a lower portion of the valve chest and having a valve orifice through which the valve chest communicates with the outlet port, a float arranged in a free state in the valve chest, rising and descending in accordance with the water level therein to directly open and close the valve orifice, and a cylindrical dispersing screen for dispersing and passing condensate flow to the valve chest. In a known free float steam trap of the above-mentioned type as described in FR-A-1543041, the dispersing screen, being designed to act solely as a filter, is arranged horizontally above the outlet port, thus passing condensate flow, which has a rather high velocity, directly onto the float. Therefore, the float is significantly vibrated due to the action of the condensate flow. Furthermore, the condensate flow can cause turbulences in the fluid in the vicinity of the valve orifice. As a result, the contact between the float and the valve orifice is deteriorated, so that leakage of fluid, specifically steam, in the valve chest occurs. A steam trap disclosed in US-A-4 623 091 is provided with a strainer arranged near the inlet and a valve orifice located at an opposite part of the valve body. Due to this arrangement, a resulting force is imposed on the float by the falling condensate. As a result, the float may forcibly close the valve orifice when condensate should be discharged. DE-A-35 34 932 discloses a steam trap having a filter screen formed by a mesh behind the fluid inlet. Since the fluid inlet and the outlet port are arranged at opposite sides of the central axis of the valve chest, the inflowing pressurized gas entering the valve chest through the mesh exerts as to press the float to the valve orifice, resulting in a decreasing discharge flow rate. In addition, the float is liable to be vibrated due to the fluid being dispensed directly onto the surface of the float. US-A-3 785 555 discloses a steam trap comprising a dispersing screen formed by an assembly of ring-shaped discs and washers held together by bolts. However, the screen is not designed as to avoid that the float unwantedly closes the pilot valve port due to the action of inflowing fluid. Apart from that, the falling fluid may cause turbulence in the vicinity of the valve port. Therefrom arises such a problem that steam is liable to be involved in the fluid passing out through the valve orifice. As shown in GB-A-2 000 274, a float cover has a plurality of apertures adjacent the inlet. Fluid entering the steam trap will flow downward, passing condensate through apertures. However, mainly resulting from steam included in the inflowing fluid, the float will be forced to move against the valve port. As a result, the discharge rate of condensate is unduly reduced. Accordingly, a technical object of the present invention resides in that the float is hardly affected by flowing condensate in a free float steam trap. An object of the present invention is to weaken the impact force of condensate falling on a valve chest which is exerted on a float, whereby the vibration of the float is supressed so that a sealing property between the float and a valve seat (valve orifice) is improved and the leakage of steam is prevented. Another object of the present invention is to restrict the turbulent state of fluid present in the vicinity of the valve orifice so that the involving of steam in the outflow fluid can be prevented. In order to achieve these objects, a combination of the characteristics disclosed in the Patent Claim is suggested. The invention is mainly based on the thinking that the impact force of the condensate imposed on the float should be dispersed, so that the vibration of the float is controlled. This is attained according to the present invention in that the cylindrical dispersing screen is vertically arranged substantially above the valve orifice in a fluid inlet through which the inlet port communicates via the dispersing screen with the valve chest, said dispersing screen having an upper end, a middle section and a lower end, the middle section including an inlet opening and porous sidewalls located below the inlet opening, and the lower end being closed by an end member. Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 is an end view of a free float steam trap showing an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a composite view of an end view taken along a line B-B in Fig. 1 and a sectional view substantially taken along a line C-C in Fig. 1. The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments shown in the drawings. As illustrated in Fig. 1, a cover 14 is fixed to a main body 10 having an inlet port 11 and an outlet port 12 at upper portions thereof through a gasket 13 by means of bolts 15 so that a trap casing is formed. A valve chest 16 is formed in an interior portion of the trap casing. A fluid inlet 19 through which the inlet port 11 communicates with the valve chest 16 is located in a space above a valve seat member 17 mentioned below. A cylindrical dispersing screen 18 is so arranged in the fluid inlet 19 as to direct its axis toward a vertical direction. The lower end portion of the dispersing screen 18 is closed by an end member 33. This lower end portion is engaged on a protruding portion 34 in the valve chest. A dispersing screen holder 21 is so threaded on the main body 10 from above as to secure the entire body of the dispersing screen 18. This dispersing screen 18 is divided into an inlet port side and a valve chest side by a partition wall 22. At the inlet port side is opened an opening portion 23. On a lower side face of the valve chest 16 is attached the valve seat member 17 from the inside of the valve chest 16 by means of a threaded member. In the valve seat member 17, a valve orifice 25 is formed so that valve chest 16 communicates with the outlet port 12 through an outlet passage 24. The valve orifice 25 is so designed as to make its axis greater as it goes to the outflow direction of condensate. Therefore, the passing resistance of fluid is adapted to decrease. On the lower portion of the outlet passage 24, a plug 26 is threaded, from the outside of the main body, to a portion with which the condensate flow flowing out of the valve orifice 25 collides. The plug 26, especially a plane portion with which the condensate flow collides is made of a material harder than that of the main body 10 so that it can bear the corrosive action of the condensate flow which flows and collides therewith at high speed out of the valve orifice 25. The plane portion 27 is so arranged that the condensate flow flowing out of the valve orifice 25 advances on a substantially central portion of the outlet passage 24 after it collides with the plane portion 27. In other words, the plane portion 27 is so arranged that angles α, β respectively formed by the central axis 39 of the valve orifice 25, and the substantially central axis 40 of the outlet passage 24 extending to the thicker portion of wall thickness at an upper portion of the main body 10, relative to the plane portion 27 are equal to each other. In the valve chest 16 is accommodated a hollow and spherical float 30 made of thin stainless steel plate in a free state. The float 30 floats on the condensate staying in the valve chest 16, rises and descends due to buoyancy in accordance with a liquid level. On the bottom face of the valve chest 16, two float seats 31, 32 are so formed as to be substantially parallel with the central axis of the valve orifice 25. They serve to support and guide the float 30 to the valve orifice 25 when closing the valve orifice. Consequently, when the float 30 descends as the condensate in the valve chest 16 decreases to close the valve orifice 25, the float 30 abuts on the three points 31', 32', 17' of the float seats 31, 32 and the tip end of the valve seat member 17 (See Fig. 2), so that a complete sealed state is realized. The condensate flowing out of the inlet port 11 enters the inside space of the dispersing screen 18 from the opening portion 23 of the dispersing screen 18 and descends. The condensate passing through many pores of the valve chest side, is dispersed and falls in the valve chest 16, while foreign materials such as dirt are removed therein. In the case where the dispersing screen 18 is cleaned, the cleaning can be readily done through removing the dispersing screen holder 21. Reference numeral 36 designates a bimetal strip and is formed in a substantial U-shape in section. This bimetal strip is affixed to the main body 10 through machine screws 37. At the low temperature, the bimetal strip 36 causes the float 30 to be separated from the valve seat member 17 to open the valve orifice 25. At the high temperature, the bimetal strip 36 is caused to be retracted to a state as shown in Fig. 2, so that it is disengaged from the float 30. The above-mentioned free float steam trap according to the present invention operates as follows. The condensate entering from the inlet port 11 connected to a portion in which the condensate is produced, such as a steam employing equipment flows into the dispersing screen 18 from the opening portion 23 and falls in the dispersing screen 18. Since the end member 33 is attached to the lower end portion of the dispersing screen 18, the condensate does not flow into the space of the valve chest 16 which is just under the dispersing screen 18. The condensate is rectified and dispersed through the function of the mesh of the dispersing screen 18 and flows into the valve chest 16 from the lower side face of the dispersing screen 18 as indicated by arrows in Fig. 2. As a result, the impact force of the condensate imposed on the float 30 is weakened, so that the vibration of the float 30 is restricted. Further, since the condensate does not flow to a portion close to the valve orifice in a concentrated manner, the occurrence of the turbulent flow of the fluid in the vicinity of the valve orifice is restricted. Therefore, steam is hard to be involved in the outflow fluid. Furthermore, since the dispersed and falling condensate strikes the surface of the float 30 which is closer to the valve orifice 25 than a perpendicular passing through the center of the float 30, as shown by an arrow in Fig. 1, it does not press the float 30 to the valve orifice 25. Accordingly, the interference of the valve owning operation of the float 30 can be avoided, as a result of which, the condensate can be smoothly discharged. Generally, in the free float stream trap, the opening degree of the valve orifice 25 is adjusted depending on the rise and descent of the float 30, in accordance with the water level of the condensate staying in the valve chest 16, namely, the inflow rate of condensate, so that a continuous discharging operation of condensate is effected. In the free float steam trap according to the present invention, when the water level descends in accordance with the discharge of condensate and the float 30 descends and the valve orifice 25 is closed to stop the outflow of the condensate, the valve orifice 25 can be completely closed, because the two lines of float seats 31, 32 are formed in parallel with the central axis 39 of the valve orifice 25. When the float 30 rises due to buoyancy to open the valve orifice 25, the condensate flow flowing at high speed out of the valve orifice 25 with the plane portion 27 of the plug 26. Then, the direction of the flow is so changed as to extend along the substantially central axis 40 of the outlet passage 24. The flow moves upward in the passage 24 and toward the outlet port 12. The high speed condensate flow, after passing through such an outflow path, collides with the thicker portion of a wall thickness in the outlet passage 24, so that the influence of the corrosive action of condensate affected on the life of the steam trap can be suppressed.

Claims: A free float steam trap comprising: a trap casing (10) having an inlet port (11), an outlet port (12) and a valve chest (16) formed therein; a valve seat member (17) attached to a lower portion of the valve chest (16) and having a valve orifice (25) through which the valve chest (16) communicates with the outlet port (12); a float (30) arranged in a free state in the valve chest (16), rising and descending in accordance with the water level in the valve chest (16) to directly open and close the valve orifice (25); and a cylindrical dispersing screen (18) for dispersing and passing condensate flow to the valve chest (16), characterized in that the cylindrical dispersing screen (18) is vertically arranged substantially above the valve orifice (25) in a fluid inlet (19) through which the inlet port (11) communicates via the dispersing screen (18) with the valve chest (16), said dispersing screen (18) having an upper end, a middle section and a lower end, the middle section including an inlet opening (23) and porous sidewalls located below the inlet opening (23), and the lower end being closed by an end member (33).

Inventors: OIKE TADASHI, OIKE, TADASHI
Applicants: TLV CO LTD, TLV CO. LTD.
Application year: 1991
Main classification: F16T1
IPC codes: F16T1