Abstract:
A damper assembly for use in an industrial duct used for venting contaminated gasses having particulate matter suspended therein. The damper assembly removes precipitate from the duct that was deposited by the contaminated gas and particulate matter. The damper assembly includes an articulating member which is movable between an open position and a closed position along a first axial direction. Opposing blades are disposed on opposite sides of the articulating member. Each of the opposing blades define a distal edge and are pivotable about axes that are substantially parallel to one another. A link couples each blade to the articulating member such that the motion from the articulating member is transfer to the blades. Each link is coupled to the blade between the distal edge and the respective parallel axis.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The subject patent application claims priority to and all the benefits of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/626,772 which was filed on Oct. 3, 2011, the entire specification of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of the Disclosure 
     The present disclosure relates to a damper assembly. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a folding damper assembly for use in an industrial duct. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Many industrial applications make use of large ducts where gaseous fluid, such as air, is transferred between stages of an industrial process. Often, these applications cause particulate matter to become suspended in the gaseous fluid which is also transferred through the ducts. As the gaseous fluid passes through the ducts, precipitate is known to fall from the gaseous fluid and accumulate on the bottom walls of the duct. The art typically utilizes louver dampers to enable communication between ducts and allow the precipitate to fall out of the ducts. However, if the accumulated precipitate becomes too heavy, the louver dampers are not able to overcome loading due to the accumulated precipitate. Therefore, there remains a need in the art for an improved damper system to allow the accumulation of precipitate to be removed from the industrial ducts without the need to lift the heavy accumulation of precipitate on the bottom wall of the ducts. 
     SUMMARY 
     A damper assembly is used in an industrial duct for venting contaminated gasses having suspended particulate matter. The damper includes an articulating member that is moveable in a first axial direction. Opposing blades are disposed on opposite sides of the articulating member. The opposing blades are pivotable around substantially parallel axes oriented in a second axial direction. The opposing blades each define a distal edge and a proximal end. A ling is connected to each of the opposing blades between the parallel axes and the distal edge of the blades and the link transfers motion to the opposing blades from the articulating member. 
     The inventive position of the links and the pivot axes on the blades of the present damper eliminates the need to counteract the force associated with opening the damper when significant amounts of particulate matter or precipitate collects on top of the damper. Where prior art louver dampers and the like have been unable to overcome the weight of the precipitate, the present damper makes use of the weight to assist opening the damper to vent the precipitate to the remediation apparatus. Additionally, the location of the link on the blade also provides for enough force on the distal edge and proximal end of the blade to substantially seal the opening in the duct when desired. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Other advantages of the present disclosure will be readily appreciated, as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a portion of a filtration system utilizing a damper assembly of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional end view of the filtration system taken along  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a is a cross-sectional side view of the filtration system taken along  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a partially cross-sectioned side view illustrating a damper assembly in a closed position; 
         FIG. 5  is a partially cross-sectioned side view illustrating a damper assembly between an open position and a closed position; 
         FIG. 6  is a partially cross-sectioned side view illustrating a damper assembly in an open position; 
         FIG. 7  is a top plan view of a damper assembly in a closed position; and 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a damper assembly in a closed position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     With reference to the Figures, wherein like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, an inventive damper assembly is generally shown at  10 . The damper assembly  10  is may be installed in a remediation system  12 . The remediation system  12  typically comprises at least one industrial duct  14  for carrying gaseous fluid from an industrial process to a treatment process requiring filtration, remediation, chemical neutralization, or equivalent treatment to meet environmental regulations. However, it should be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that any gasses may be treated by the remediation system  12  without deviating from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     A neutralizing agent is introduced to the industrial process prior to the industrial duct shown in the Figures to neutralize the objectionable gasses. Neutralizing the objectionable gasses may include, but is not limited to, removing an odor from the gasses, counteracting a toxin within the gasses, elimination of acidic particulate matter such that the objectionable gasses are less harmful. The neutralizing agent may chemically react with the objectionable gasses and/or the neutralizing agent may mechanically bond with predetermined elements within the objectionable gasses. The neutralizing agent may include calcium based products such as calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide or other equivalent agents used to remediate industrial waste gasses. These calcium based products are commonly referred to in the industry as lime. However, it is to be appreciated that other neutralizing agents may also be utilized with the lime or in place of the lime without deviating from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-3 , an exemplary arrangement of industrial ducts  14  is shown. Each of the ducts  14  comprise a top wall  16  and a bottom wall  18  spaced from the top wall  16 . The ducts  14  further include side walls  20  spaced from one another and with the side walls  20  bounding the top and bottom walls  14 ,  16  for defining a cavity  22  within each of the ducts  14 . It should be appreciated that the ducts  14  may share walls with one another. In other words, the bottom wall  18  of one of the ducts  14  may also be the top wall  16  of an adjacent one of the ducts  14  or adjacent ducts  14  may be separated by common side walls  20 . The walls of the ducts  14  define apertures  24  for allowing adjacent ducts  14  to selectively communicate with one another. Typically, the top wall  14  and/or bottom wall  16  define the apertures  24 , as shown in the figures. However, the side walls  20  may also define apertures  24  without deviating from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     A plurality of gates  26  is typically utilized to cover each of the apertures  24  defined by the walls. The gates  26  are movable between a sealed position and an unsealed position for selectively allowing communication between the industrial ducts  14 . When the gates  26  are in the sealed position, each of the apertures  24  are covered by the gates  26 . When the gates  26  are in the unsealed position, the gates  26  expose at least a portion of each of the apertures  24  and allows fluid communication between adjacent ducts  14 . It is to be appreciated that the gates  26  may be individually controlled such that each of the gates  26  may be moved between the sealed and unsealed positions independently of the other gates  26 . Alternatively, the gates  26  may be configured to synchronously move between the sealed and unsealed positions such that each of the gates  26  move between the sealed and unsealed positions at the same time as the other gates  26 . It is to be appreciated that any number of gates  26  may be configured to synchronously move together. The operation of the gates  26  will be discussed in greater detail below. 
     For illustrative purposes only, the movement of the gaseous fluid through the ducts  14  will now be discussed in greater detail with reference to the exemplary arrangement of industrial ducts  14 . The term gaseous fluid may include the objectionable gasses produced by the industrial process, the neutralizing agent dispersed within the objectionable gasses, other particulate matter disposed within the objectionable gasses, by-product produced by exposing the objectionable gasses to the neutralizing agent, and any combination thereof. The exemplary arrangement includes a primary duct  28 , a remediation apparatus  30 , a secondary duct  32  and an exhaust duct  34 . The remediation apparatus  30  can take the form of a plurality of hoppers, filters, or combination of hoppers and filters. Each of the ducts  14  and the remediation apparatus  30  are selectively in communication with one another, either directly or indirectly. The gaseous fluid enters and flows into the primary duct  28  as illustrated by arrow A. A precipitate  36  falls from the gaseous fluid as the gaseous fluid flows through the primary duct  28  and collects on the bottom wall  18  of the primary duct  28 . The gates  26  disposed between the primary duct  28  and the remediation apparatus  30  move to the unsealed position, thereby causing the precipitate  36  to fall and the gaseous fluid to flow from the primary duct  28  into the remediation apparatus  30  as illustrated by arrow B. The remediation apparatus  30  is shown as a hopper for collecting the precipitate  36 ; however the remediation apparatus  30  is not so limited and may include filtration, or any other remediation function. The gaseous fluid moves through the remediation apparatus  30  and toward the top wall  16 , as illustrated by arrow C. The gates  26  disposed between the remediation apparatus  30  and the secondary duct  32  may open and allow the gaseous fluid to pass into the secondary duct  32 , as illustrated by arrow D. The gates  26  disposed between the secondary duct  32  and the exhaust duct  34  open and allow the gaseous fluid to pass into the exhaust duct  34 , as illustrated by arrow E. The gaseous fluid flows through the exhaust duct  34 , illustrated by arrow F, and toward an outlet manifold  38 , best shown in  FIG. 3 . The outlet manifold  38  enables the industrial ducts  14  to be coupled to additional operations to further process the gaseous fluid as needed. Additionally, the gaseous fluid flow directly between the primary duct  28  and the exhaust duct  34 . The gates  26  disposed between the primary duct  28  and the exhaust duct  34  move to the unsealed position and the gaseous fluid flow from the primary duct  28  to the exhaust duct  34  and toward the outlet manifold  38 , as illustrated by arrow G. 
     The gates  26  disposed between the remediation apparatus  30  and the secondary duct  32 , between the secondary duct  32  and the exhaust duct  34 , and between the primary duct  28  and the exhaust duct  34  are further defined as poppets  40 . Each of the poppets  40  includes a rod  42  and a plate  44  coupled to the rod  42 . Each plate  44  is configured to cover each of the apertures  24  defined by the walls  16 ,  18 ,  20  of the ducts  14 . In other words, the plate  44  defines a shape complementary to that of each of the apertures  24 . Typically, the apertures  24  are circular and the plate  44  therefore define a complementary circular shape. However, it is to be appreciated that the apertures  24  and each plate  44  may define any other shape without deviating from the scope of the present disclosure. Each of the poppets  40  typically move between the sealed and unsealed positions in a linear motion. Poppets  40  of this style are well known in the art, therefore it is believed that additional description is unnecessary. 
     As discussed above, the precipitate  36  accumulates on the bottom wall  18  as the gaseous fluid flows through the primary duct  28  at locations where the poppets  40  are closed. The weight of the precipitate  36  increases rapidly as the precipitate  36  accumulates on the bottom wall  18 , particularly where large volumes of precipitate or particulate matter are suspended in the industrial waste gasses. The damper assembly  10  of the present invention allows the majority of the precipitate  36  to be dumped and only lifts a small percentage of the precipitate  36  when opening, which differs from known dampers that lift at least half the precipitate. The damper assembly  10  is coupled to the bottom wall  18  of the primary duct  28 . 
     With reference to  FIGS. 4-8 , the damper assembly  10  of the present disclosure includes a frame  46 . The frame  46  comprises a peripheral member  48  and a bifurcating member  50  coupled to and extending within the peripheral member  48 . The peripheral member  48  is coupled to duct within the aperture  24  defined therein. The peripheral member  48  defines an opening  52  with the opening  52  having a periphery  54 . The opening  52  may define any shape, such as, but not limited to, a circle, square, rectangular, diamond, or any other appropriate shape. 
     An articulating member  56  is slidably disposed through the bifurcating member  50  and is movable in a first axial direction between an open position and a closed position. The articulating member  56  typically comprises a shaft  58  and a collar  60  disposed over the shaft  58 . The collar  60  may be fixedly attached to the shaft  58  such that the shaft  58  and the collar  60  move together between the open and closed positions. Alternatively, the collar  60  may be slidably disposed over the shaft  58  such that the collar  60  moves along the shaft  58  between the open and closed positions while the shaft  58  remains stationary. 
     A first blade  62  and a second blade  64  spaced from the first blade  62  are configured to cooperatively cover the opening  52  defined by the frame  46 . The first blade  62  is pivotably coupled to the peripheral member  48  of the frame  46  at a first pivot  66 . An axle is coupled to the first blade  62  and defines a first pivot axis PA 1  along the first pivot  66 . Similarly, the second blade  64  is pivotably coupled to the peripheral member  48  of the frame  46  at a second pivot  70  with another axle coupled to the second blade  64  and defining a second pivot axis PA 2  along the second pivot  70 . The second pivot axis PA 2  is spaced from and substantially parallel to the first pivot axis PA 1 . Each axle may be defined as a unitary axle disposed along each of the pivots such that the axle spans the entire distance between the peripheral member  48 , along the pivot axis. Alternatively, each axle may comprise a pair of axles disposed along each of the pivots, such that each of the axles extends only partially between the peripheral member  48  and along each of the pivot axes PA 1 , PA 2 , as best shown in  FIG. 8 . In one embodiment, one axle may be the unitary axle and the other axle may be the pair of axles. 
     Each of the first and second blades  62 ,  64  include a distal edge  72  and a proximal end  74 . The distal edge  72  of each of the blades  62 ,  64  defines a shape substantially complementary to a portion of the opening  52  defined by the peripheral member  48 . For example, if the opening  52  defines a circular configuration, the distal edge  72  of each of the first and second blades  62 ,  64  may define an arcuate configuration, such as a semicircle. The distal edge  72  of each of the blades  62 ,  64  is configured to engage the periphery  54  of the peripheral member  48  and cover the opening  52  defined by the frame  46 . The proximal end  74  of each of the blades  62 ,  64  is configured to abut and seal against the bifurcating member  50 . More specifically, each of the blades  62 ,  64  further includes a top surface  76  and a bottom surface  78  spaced from the top surface  76 . As best seen in  FIG. 8 , reinforcing ribs  79  are disposed upon the bottom surface  78  of the blades  62 ,  64 . The top surface  76  abuts the peripheral member  48  adjacent the distal edge  72  and the bottom surface  78  abuts the bifurcating member  50  adjacent the proximal end  74  when the blades  62 ,  64  are covering the opening  52 . 
     A link  80 , having a first end  82  and a second end  84  spaced from the first end  82 , is disposed between each of the blades  62 ,  64  and the articulating member  56  for movably coupling each of the blades  62 ,  64  to the articulating member  56 . Each link  80  transfers motion from the articulating member  56  to the first and second blades  62 ,  64  respectively to move the articulating member  56  between the open and closed positions. The first end  82  of each link  80  is coupled articulating member  56 . Typically, the first end  82  of the link  80  is coupled to the collar  60  of the articulating member  56 . The second end  84  of the link  80  is coupled to the first blade  62  or the second blade  64 . The second end  84  of the link  80  is coupled to the blade between the pivot axis and the distal end of each of the blades  62 ,  64  respectively. The link  80  transfers the linear motion of the articulating member  56  to each blade thereby causing each blade to rotate about the respective rotational axis, in opposite directions from one another. For example, the first blade  62  rotates in a clockwise direction as the articulating member  56  move toward the closed position while the second blade  64  rotates in a counter-clockwise direction. Said differently, the movement of one of the blades  62 ,  64  mirrors the movement of the other of the blades  62 ,  64 . When the articulating member  56  is located in the closed position, the blades  62 ,  64  cover the opening  52  and when the articulating member  56  moves toward the open position, the blades  62 ,  64  at least partially expose the opening  52 . 
     The present disclosure has been described herein in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation. Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present disclosure are possible in light of the above teachings. The disclosure may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described within the scope of the appended claims