Abstract:
A device for the enrichment of a liquid stream with a gas is provided including a flow mixer ( 14 ) with a venturi nozzle ( 36 ), having a rotationally symmetrical contraction ( 40 ) with a diameter D and being flown through axially by the liquid stream. The invention additionally includes a gas feed for the lateral feed of the gas into the contraction ( 40 ) of the venturi nozzle ( 36 ). The gas feed includes at least one gas channel ( 54, 54 ′) with a diameter d&lt;0.5D, ending laterally in the contraction ( 40 ) of the venturi nozzle ( 36 ) in a way, such that the elongated longitudinal axis ( 56, 56 ′) thereof is tangential to an imaginary cylinder surface ( 58 ), which is coaxial to the contraction ( 40 ) and has a diameter D′&gt;d.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention generally relates to a device for enriching a liquid stream with gas. In particular, it relates to a device for enriching a drinking water stream with carbon dioxide. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Devices for enriching drinking water with carbon dioxide (also designated by carbonation of drinking water) have been known for a long time. In most of these devices, carbonation of the drinking water occurs in a storage container. Recently, however, devices have also been developed for enriching tap water in the home or restaurants with carbon dioxide in a continuous process. In the continuous process without any storage container, carbonation takes place in a flow-through mixer which is directly connected to the drinking water pipe. As compared with standard devices with a storage container, carbonation of tap water in the continuous process without any storage container has the advantage of being essentially more compact, economical and further also hygienic. In direct comparison with carbonation devices with a storage container, the quality of the carbonation of tap water in the continuous process without any storage container however still leaves a great deal to be desired. A problem is also i.a. that the pressure in the drinking water pipe may be between 2 bars and 6 bars, and that the flow-through mixer has to be adapted consequently to very different water pressures. 
     A device for enriching drinking water with carbon dioxide in the continuous process is for example described in WO 2004/024306. The flow-through mixer has a nozzle annular gap for water and a central gas injection. The pressure in the flow-through mixer is maintained constant by means of an overflow valve in the tapping pipe and an additional pressure stabilizer in the flow-through mixer itself. Further, a flow rate valve is positioned in the gas feed pipe, which should maintain constant the amount of gas fed into the flow-through mixer per unit of time. Further, the control comprises a solenoid valve in the water connection, and a solenoid valve in the gas connection of the flow-through mixer. Both solenoid valves are closed, in the case when a pressure monitor in the tapping type detects a pressure increase above the working pressure. Here, this is a relatively costly control technique, the fine adjustment of which is also relatively complicated. Further, the flow-through mixer only operates relatively perfectly for pressures above 3.5 bars. 
     An industrial device for enriching drinks with carbon dioxide is for example described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,842,600. In this industrial device, the gas is fed into a Venturi nozzle in a water stream. In this Venturi nozzle, the water flows out of a central nozzle, which is surrounded by an annular gap, from which the gas flows into the Venturi nozzle. Subsequently, water and gas are mixed in a static mixer tube. The water pressure is maintained constant by means of a pressure controller and a pump, so that carbonation always takes place under optimum conditions. 
     In EP 0322925, a Venturi arrangement is described for dispersing gas in a liquid stream. In a Venturi nozzle, the gas is fed with a type of injection needle before constriction axially in the Venturi nozzle. In order to optimize the result of the gas dispersion, the flow velocity of the gas bubbles/liquid mixture in the convergent section of the Venturi nozzle increases to a velocity lying above sound velocity, so that subsequently in the divergent section of the Venturi nozzle, it is again lowered to a velocity lying below the sound velocity. This of course means that a predetermined admission pressure of the liquid stream must be strictly observed. 
     A Venturi nozzle for carbonation of drinking water is known from EP 1579906. The latter has an inlet section converging in the direction of flow and an outlet section diverging in the direction of flow, which are connected through a constriction which is formed as a cylindrical channel. A gas channel opens into the constriction of the Venturi nozzle, the longitudinal axis of the gas channel being perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cylindrical constriction. Four longitudinal ribs are positioned in the divergent outlet section of the Venturi nozzle, which should prevent degassing of the water. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY 
     The invention creates a relatively simple device, which allows better enrichment of a liquid stream with a gas. 
     The invention further creates a relatively simple device which allows perfect and regular enrichment of the liquid stream with a gas in a relatively large pressure range, without costly presetting devices being required for this purpose. 
     The invention also creates an improved tapping device for carbonated tap water. 
     A device according to the invention for enriching a liquid stream with gas, comprises in a generally known manner, a flow-through mixer with a Venturi nozzle, which has the rotationally symmetric constriction with a diameter D and through which flows a liquid stream axially, as well as a gas feed for laterally feeding the gas into the constriction of the Venturi nozzle. According to the invention, this gas feed comprises at least one gas channel, with a diameter d&lt;0.5 D, preferably: 0.25 d&lt;d&lt;0.5 D, which opens into the constriction of the Venturi nozzle laterally so that its extended longitudinal axis is tangential to an imaginary cylinder surface, which is coaxial with the constriction and has a diameter D′&gt;d, preferably D′=D−d. With such a tangential gas feed into the constriction of the Venturi, a perfect and very regular enrichment of the liquid stream with gas was attained in tests. As a very significant advantage of the device according to the invention, it was also found that the flow-through mixer with its Venturi nozzle can be mounted both horizontally and vertically. 
     The constriction of the Venturi nozzle is advantageously formed by a cylindrical channel with a diameter D, its length preferably corresponding approximately to its diameter D. 
     The Venturi nozzle further advantageously has an inlet section converting in the direction of flow and an outlet section diverging in the direction of flow, which are connected through the constriction. The converging inlet section preferably has an opening angle, which is essentially more acute than the opening angle of the diverging outlet section. Preferably, the opening angle of the inlet section is approximately 2.5 to 3 times smaller than the opening angle of the outlet section. 
     In a preferred embodiment, a vortex device is positioned directly in front of the converging inlet section of the Venturi nozzle. This vortex device has the purpose of vortexing and channeling the water in front of the Venturi nozzle, which has a very positive influence on the carbonation result. 
     A particularly simple vortexing device comprises a body with an inlet cone converging in the direction of flow. In the body the inlet cone opens into an axial bore and an oblique bore. Other forms of the vortexing device are however not excluded. 
     The diverging outlet section of the Venturi nozzle advantageously opens into a cylindrical expansion chamber, the length of which corresponds to 1.5 to 2.5 times its diameter. This diameter of the expansion chamber is preferably about 8 to 12 times larger than the diameter D of the constriction. The expansion chamber is advantageously delimited axially by a baffle plate with through-holes. 
     In tests, it was noticed that for a relatively low admission pressure of the liquid stream, perfect enrichment is at best obtained with two or several gas channels. If the admission pressure of the liquid stream is relatively low, the gas feed should consequently comprise n gas channels (n&gt;1) each with a diameter d&lt;0.5 D, each of these gas channels opening into the constriction of the Venturi nozzle laterally so that its extended longitudinal axis is tangential to an imaginary cylinder surface, which is coaxial with the constriction, and has a diameter D′&gt;d. All these n gas channels should feed in the gas preferably in the same direction, i.e. either clockwise or counter-clockwise into the constriction. Additionally, the extended longitudinal axes of the n gas channels (n&gt;1) should preferably have tangency points (i.e. contacts points with the imaginary cylinder surface) angularly separated by 360°/n. For two gas channels, the tangency points lie separated by consequently 360°/2=180°, for three gas channels, 360°/3=120° and for four gas channels, 360°/4=90°. The openings of the gas channels into the constriction may also be here offset in the axial direction of the constriction. 
     The gas feed preferably comprises a gas pressure control valve for controlling the gas pressure as a function of the pressure in the liquid stream. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the gas feed comprises two gas channels, which open into the constriction, and a valve control which depending on the pressure in the liquid stream applies gas to either one or two gas channels. Such a valve control is advantageously formed so that up to a predetermined pressure P 0  in the liquid stream, gas is applied to two gas channels, starting from this pressure P 0 , the gas is however only applied to one gas channel. In tests, it was namely noticed that for a relatively low admission pressure of the liquid stream, perfect enrichment is at best obtained with two gas channels; starting from a determined admission pressure of the liquid stream, perfect enrichment is at best obtained however with only one channel. 
     Although this valve control obtains particularly good results in the interaction with the tangential feed of the gas, described earlier, into the constriction of the Venturi nozzle, it is also possible to obtain with such a valve control, a result of the gas enrichment, which is less dependent on pressure than with other Venturi nozzles, which do not have the features of the gas feed described earlier. The present invention consequently also relates to a device for enriching a liquid stream with a gas, comprising a flow-through mixer with a Venturi nozzle through which flows the liquid stream, and a gas feed for feeding the gas via several lateral gas openings of the Venturi nozzle into the liquid stream, wherein this gas feed comprises a valve control, which starting from a determined pressure in the liquid stream, reduces the number of gas openings through which the gas flows into the Venturi nozzle; Here, provision is advantageously made for a gas pressure control valve in the gas feed in order to control the gas pressure as a function of the pressure in the liquid stream. The valve control advantageously comprises at least one solenoid valve and a pressure switch which controls the solenoid valve. 
     The present invention further relates to a tapping device for carbonated tapped water, comprising one of the predefined devices, wherein the pipe conveying the liquid stream is a drinking water pipe, which is connected to an inlet connection of the flow-through mixer, a tap unit is connected to an outlet connection of the flow-through mixer, and the gas feed comprises a carbon dioxide cylinder. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       Further features and advantages of the invention may be taken from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, which is made with reference to the appended figures. 
         FIG. 1  shows a principle diagram of a first embodiment of a device according to the invention; 
         FIG. 2  shows a longitudinal section through a flow-through mixer of a device according to the invention; 
         FIG. 3  shows a highly enlarged cross-section along the section line  3 - 3 ′ through the flow-through mixer of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  shows a cross-section along the section line  4 - 4 ′ through the flow-through mixer of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 5  shows a longitudinal section through the inlet region of a flow-through mixer of a device according to the invention, wherein a deflecting body is positioned in this inlet region; 
         FIG. 6  shows a highly enlarged longitudinal section through the deflecting body of  FIG. 5 ; and 
         FIG. 7  shows a principle diagram of a further embodiment of a device according to the invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     For the purpose of illustrating the invention, the figures show a tapping device (for carbonated tap water), comprising a device according to the invention for enriching a liquid stream (here a drinking water stream) with a gas (here carbon dioxide). 
     A drinking water pipe which is connected to an inlet connection  12  of a flow-through mixer  14  is designated by reference no.  10 . In the flow-through mixer  14 , a drinking water stream from the drinking water pipe  10  is enriched with carbon dioxide gas. The gas feed for the flow-through mixer  14  comprises a carbon dioxide cylinder  16 , in which carbon dioxide is stored under pressure. A tap unit  18  is connected to an outlet connection  20  of the flow-through mixer  14 . The user via this tap unit  18  may directly tap drinking water enriched with carbon dioxide from the water pipe. 
     Reference no.  22  designates a gas pressure control valve through which the carbon dioxide cylinder  16  is connected to the flow-through mixer  14 . This valve  22  controls the gas pressure as a function of the water pressure, i.e. it maintains the pressure difference between the gas and the water, which are both fed into the flow-through mixer  14 , at a predetermined set value. For this, the water pressure in the drinking water pipe  10  is for example applied to an adjustment member  23  of the gas pressure control valve  22 . If the difference between the gas and water pressure exceeds the predetermined set value, the gas pressure control valve  22  then closes. If the difference between the gas and water pressure drops below the predetermined set value, the gas pressure control valve  22  then opens correspondingly. A constant set value for the pressure difference may for example be preset via a spring means. By selecting the preliminary tension of the spring means  24 , it is possible to adjust the predetermined set value for the pressure difference; whereby depending on the arrangement of the spring means  24 , the gas pressure may be higher or lower than the water pressure. However, it is also possible to use a pressure controller with a fixed pressure difference set value with or without a spring means  24 . A suitable valve unit  25  for adjusting the gas pressure as a function of the water pressure is for example marketed by the ROTAREX group under the designation of B0821. Further, an overflow valve  26  on the low pressure side is integrated into this ROTAREX valve unit  25 , which protects the user against a too high gas pressure behind the gas pressure control valve  22 . A safety device on the high pressure side, such as for example a bursting disk, is most often integrated into a cylinder valve (not shown) of the carbon dioxide cylinder  16 . 
     The flow-through mixer  14  comprises two gas connections  28 ,  28 ′. Each of these gas connections is connected via a check valve  30 ,  30 ′ and a solenoid valve  32 ,  32 ′ to a low pressure connection of the gas pressure control valve  22 . The check valves  30 ,  30 ′ should here prevent water from entering the gas feed, in the case when the gas pressure in the gas feed falls below the water pressure in the flow-through mixer  14 . The solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ which are closed in the absence of current, are part of a valve control of the gas feed, which will be described later on. 
       FIG. 2  shows an enlarged longitudinal section through the flow-through mixer  14 . It comprises on the water admission side, a Venturi nozzle  36  with a convergent inlet section  38 , a constriction  40  and a diverging outlet section  42 . The converging inlet section  38  has an opening angle which is essentially more acute than the opening angle of the diverging outlet section  42 . The constriction  40  is a cylindrical channel, the length of which is approximately slightly greater than its diameter. 
     The diverging outlet section  42  of the Venturi nozzle  36  opens into a cylindrical expansion chamber or mixing chamber  44 , the length L of which corresponds to approximately 1.5 times its diameter. The diameter of the expansion chamber  44  is in this case about 10 times greater than the diameter of the constriction  40 . This expansion chamber is delimited axially by a baffle plate insert  48 , with several (for example three) baffle plates  46   1 ,  46   2 ,  46   3 , positioned behind each other, which still further improves the mixing of the carbon dioxide with the tap water. Via the baffle plate insert  46 , the carbonated drinking water flows out of the expansion chamber  44  into an outlet cone  50  of the flow-through mixer  14 . The tapered end  52  of this outlet cone  50  is connected via a connecting channel (not shown in the section of  FIG. 2 ) with the outlet connection  20  of the flow-through mixer  14 , which on its side is connected with the tap unit  18  (see  FIG. 1 ). 
     In  FIG. 4 , a top view over the first baffle plate  46   1  of the baffle plate insert  46  is shown. Three through-holes  48   1  for the drinking water are distinguished. The second baffle plate  46   2  also has several through-holes  48   2  for the drinking water, which are drawn in  FIG. 4  with a dashed line in order to illustrate that these through-holes  48   2  are positioned axially offset relatively to the through-holes  48   1  of the first baffle plate  46   1 . Also the third baffle plate  46   3  has several through-holes for the drinking water, which are again positioned axially offset relatively to the through-holes  48   2  of the second baffle plate  46   2 . By means of these successive changes in direction and constrictions of the water/gas stream, the mixing of carbon dioxide with tap water is improved significantly. 
       FIG. 3  shows a highly enlarged cross-section through the constriction  40  of the Venturi nozzle  36  at the level of the gas feed. Two gas channels  54 ,  54 ′ are distinguished which, offset and from opposite directions, open into the constriction  40 . If D is the diameter of the constriction  40  and d is the diameter of a gas channel  54 ,  54 ′, then d&lt;0.5 D, i.e. the diameter of a gas channel  54 ,  54 ′ should be smaller than half the diameter of the constriction  40 . The extended longitudinal axis  56 ,  56 ′ of each of the two gas channels  54 ,  54 ′ is here tangential to an imaginary cylinder surface  58  with a diameter D′, which is coaxial with the cylindrical constriction  40 , and the diameter of which is such that D′&gt;d. In the preferred embodiment D′=D−d. The tangency points (i.e. the contact points of the extended longitudinal axis  56 ,  56 ′ with the imaginary cylinder surface  58 ) lie at 180° from each other. The arrows  59 ,  59 ′ in  FIG. 3  give the direction with which the gas flows out of the gas channels  54 ,  54 ′ into the constriction  40 . It is considered here that both gas channels  54 ,  54 ′ introduce the gas in the same direction (here clockwise) into the constriction  40 . 
     In  FIG. 5 , a vortex device  100  is shown, which is positioned directly in front of the converging inlet section  38  of the Venturi nozzle  36 . The purpose of this vortex device  100  is to deflect and vortex the water in front of the Venturi nozzle  36 , which has a very positive influence on the carbonation result. 
       FIG. 6  shows a preferred, because extremely simple, embodiment of such a vortex device  100 . It comprises a normally cylindrical body  102  with an inlet cone  104  converging in the direction of the flow, with an opening angle  105  of about 90°. In the body  102 , the inlet cone  104  opens into an axial bore  106  and an oblique bore  108 . An angle  109  of about 30° is advantageously defined between the axial bore  106  and the oblique bore  108 . The diameters of the axial bore  106  and of the oblique bore  108  are advantageously about 3 to 5 times smaller than the inlet diameter  110  of the inlet cone  104 . In  FIG. 6  they have for example approximately the same diameter as the constriction  40  of the Venturi nozzle  36 . 
     With reference to  FIG. 1 , a first embodiment of the valve control of the gas feed will now be described in more detail. Both solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ closed in the absence of current, are controlled by a pressure switch  60 , which applies water pressure in the drinking water pipe  10 . If the water pressure in the drinking water pipe  10  is smaller than a predetermined pressure P 0 , then both solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ are provided with current and are opened. If the water pressure is greater than the pressure P 0 , only the solenoid valve  32 ′ is provided with current and is opened. In other words, if the water pressure is smaller than P 0 , the gas flows via both gas channels  54 ,  54 ′ into the constriction  40  of the Venturi nozzle  36 ; if however the water pressure is greater than P 0 , the gas only flows via one of the two gas channels  54 ,  54 ′ in the constriction  40  of the Venturi nozzle  36 . The pressure switch  60  may naturally also be replaced with a pressure sensor, which is connected to an electronic circuit device, which then controls the solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′. 
     Reference number  62  indicates a switch, which allows the current supply of both solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ to be interrupted. In order to be able to tap carbonated water out of the tap unit  18 , the switch  62  must be closed. Otherwise, both solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ are without current, i.e. closed, independently of the switching state of the pressure switch  60 , so that no gas is mixed in the water stream. This switch  62  consequently allows both tapping of “still water” and “soda water” out of the tap unit  18 . 
     For completeness, it will still be mentioned that in the device of  FIG. 1  on the side of the water connection for example the following components may further be provided: a cooling unit  80 ; a fine filter  82  (for example an active coal filter with exchangeable cartridges); a water pressure reducer  84 ; a backflow preventer  86  and a coarse particle filter  88 . The cooling unit  80  allows cooling of the water to a temperature of 4 to 8° C. before carbonation, which increases the efficiency of the carbonation. The water pressure reducer  84  is for example to be actuated when the water pipe pressure may exceed 6 bars. 
     The tap unit  18 , only shown schematically, advantageously has a solenoid valve, a conical vortex nozzle and jet regulator. The water flowing out of the solenoid valve or the water/gas mixture is introduced here eccentrically into the conical vortex nozzle, before it leaves the tap unit  18  via the jet regulator. A suitable jet regulator is sold for example by NEOPERL under the trademark name of Perlator®. 
     APPLICATION EXAMPLE 1 
     A flow-through mixer  14 , which was applied in a tap device for carbonated tap water and ensured here excellent carbonation at a water pressure comprised 2.5 bars and 6.0 bars and a water flow rate of about 120 L/h, had the following dimensions: 
     Opening angle  39  of the inlet section  38 : 22° 
     Opening angle  43  of the outlet section  42 : 60° 
     Diameter of the constriction  40  D=2.0 mm 
     Length of the constriction  40 : 2.0 mm 
     Diameter of a gas channel  54 ,  54 ′: D=0.8 mm 
     Diameter of the imaginary cylinder surface  58 : D′=1.2 mm 
     Diameter of the expansion chamber  44 : 20 mm 
     Length of the expansion chamber  44 : 42 mm. 
     The test device comprised, as shown in  FIG. 1 , a gas pressure control valve  22  loaded with the water pressure and two solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ on the gas side, which are controlled via a pressure switch  60 . The gas pressure control valve  22  was adjusted so that at the output of the gas pressure regulator  22 , the gas pressure corresponded to approximately the water pressure. The pressure switch  60  was adjusted so that up to a water pressure of 3.5 bars, both solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ opened, starting from 3.5 bars, however only one of the two solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ opened, so that starting from 3.5 bars, the gas only flowed in from one side into the constriction  40  of the Venturi nozzle  36 . The maximum water pressure was limited by the water pressure reducer  84  to 6 bars. 
     The embodiment of  FIG. 7  differs from the embodiment according to  FIG. 1  mainly in that a pump  90  is provided in the drinking water pipe  10 . This pump  90  by cooperating with the water pressure reducer  84 , allows adjustment of a relatively constant water pressure from about 4 to 5 bars. The flow-through mixer  14  is thereby laid out for this relatively small pressure range and it is possible to do without both pressure-dependent controlled solenoid valves  32 ,  32 ′ from  FIG. 1 . A bypass pipe  92  towards the flow-through mixer  14  with a separate tapping valve  94  allows the tapping of still water after the cooling device  80 . A check valve  96  at the inlet connection of the flow mixture  14  prevents the possibility of gas over-flowing into the drinking water pipe  10  and the bypass pipe  92 , if the check valve  94  is opened. The embodiment of  FIG. 7  also allows operation of the device with a drinking water container  98  as an alternative to a connection to the drinking water mains network. 
     APPLICATION EXAMPLE 2 
     The flow-through mixer  14  described earlier was applied in a test device, which corresponded to the circuit diagram of  FIG. 7 , wherein this test device also comprised a cooling device  80 . A pump  90  and a water pressure regulator  84  was laid out and adjusted so that a water pressure of about 4.5 bars prevailed on the inlet connection  12  of the flow-through mixer. The water temperature was adjusted to 6° C. The gas pressure control valve  25  was adjusted so that about 6.8-7.0 g of carbon dioxide were injected per liter of water. The maximum tap output was 2 liters per minute. 
     Excellent carbonation results were obtained both in the case of a horizontal and of a vertical installation of the flow-through mixer  14 .