Patent Publication Number: US-2019166912-A1

Title: Liquid storage method and storage device

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Technical Field 
     The invention relates to the field of usage of porous materials, in particular to a method for storing liquids capable of being atomized with porous materials and devices for storing liquids capable of being atomized using the method. 
     Description of Related Art 
     At present, liquid storage materials are usually containers including cups and bottles. Such liquid containers, in particular cup type containers, need to be particularly carefully handled to prevent stored liquids from spilling over during transport because they have a relatively large opening at the top. In particular, liquids such as tobacco tar, essential oils and perfumes will cause a lot of troubles when spilling over. 
     At present, some liquids capable of being atomized, for example, the tobacco tar, essential oils and perfumes, are usually used in an atomizing way. In particular, the tobacco tar is a main raw material of an electronic cigarette, and a liquid storage unit/cabin in the electronic cigarette is comprised of a housing (made of metals, plastics or glass), a gas flow channel (made of metals, plastics or glass) and a silicon rubber part to form an assembly with a certain space for storing a liquid capable of being atomized. Such liquid storage unit/cabin is not completely sealed, and the stored liquid capable of being atomized, namely the tobacco tar, is flowing, so the storage time is limited. In addition, after the liquid capable of being atomized, namely the tobacco tar, in the liquid storage unit/cabin is completely atomized, it is inconvenient to fill tobacco tar into the liquid storage unit/cabin. In a word, existing devices such as the liquid storage unit/cabin that liquefies a liquid capable of being atomized need to be assembled and experience a long production cycle, and the liquid storage unit/cabin filled in with liquids have a high risk of leaking liquids during long-term storage, transport and use. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention provides a method for storing liquids capable of being atomized, in particular tobacco tar, using micro-porous materials, and liquid storage devices using the method, so as to overcome defects of the prior art where devices of existing electronic cigarettes, for example liquid storage units/cabins (atomizers, oil cups) that contain liquids capable of being atomized such as tobacco tar store liquids capable of being atomized such as the tobacco tar. 
     The technical solution of the invention is as follows: A liquid storage method storing liquids with porous materials includes the following steps: 
     Step A, soaking a porous material in a set shape in a liquid to be stored; 
     Step B, absorbing the liquid to be stored by the porous material in a set shape that is soaked in the liquid to be stored; 
     Step C, taking out the porous material in a set shape. 
     According to the invention, the method storing liquids with porous materials has the following advantages: 
     Assembling is avoided; automated operation and short delivery are guaranteed; the porosity of a porous material of the same volume can be adjusted according to demands on liquid stock. After being absorbed, liquids do not spill over, and the devices do not feel wet when touched with hands and have an obvious anti-leak effect. The devices can be molded in diversified shapes, and are low in cost. The materials are environmentally-friendly and degradable. When storing a liquid of the same volume, the porous materials are small in size, light in weight and capable of saving transport expenses. Different types of liquids vary with molecule diameters and degree of freedom of movement, so porous materials of different apertures have different capacities of adsorbing different liquids. Materials with two or more layers of different porosities can be made of porous material powder of different grain sizes, and layers of different porosities store different liquids. 
     Further, according to the liquid storage method, the liquid to be stored is tobacco tar. The porous material in a set shape may be selected from porous ceramic materials or porous metallic materials. The porous ceramic materials include porous silicon carbide ceramics and porous aluminum oxide ceramics; and the porous metallic materials include porous stainless steel materials, porous copper materials and porous nickel materials. The porous ceramic materials or porous metallic materials have a porosity of 5-100 μm. Different liquids are absorbed and stored with porous materials of different porosities according to the diameters of liquid molecules. The porous material in a set shape is a porous material in a set shape and with two or more layers of different porosities, made of powder of different grain sizes, and layers of different porosities store different liquids. 
     The invention also provides a liquid storage device, including a porous material in a set shape, wherein a liquid to be stored is absorbed in pores in an aperture of 5-100 μm of the porous material in set shape. 
     The invention provides a device for storing liquids with porous materials, in particular a device for storing liquids capable of being atomized and with an atomization temperature of 99° C.-300° C., for example, the tobacco tar. 
     Further, in the liquid storage device, the liquid storage device is a storage device for storing tobacco tar in an atomizer of an electronic cigarette. The porous material in a set shape is a columnar porous material, and the columnar porous material includes at least two layers with pores of different apertures. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an outline drawing of a tobacco tar storage device in embodiment 1 of the invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an outline drawing of a liquid storage device in embodiment 2 of the invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Embodiment 1 
     This embodiment provides a liquid storage device for storing tobacco tar in an electronic cigarette. As shown in  FIG. 1 , in this embodiment, the liquid storage device  100  is of an entirely columnar shape, molded by a porous material. The porous material may be selected from ceramic materials such as silicon carbide and aluminum oxide, and porous metallic materials such as stainless steel, copper and nickel. The porosity of the porous material is 5-100 μm. The tobacco tar is stored in pores of the porous material. The tobacco tar enters the pores of the porous material in the capillary principle and siphon principle. In practice, the liquid stock can be adjusted by adjusting the porosities of the porous materials. Generally, the porosity can be 40%, and can be selected within a range of 20%-70% according to demands. 
     In this embodiment, it is very easy to place the liquid storage device for storing the tobacco tar. The liquid storage device for storing the tobacco tar is directly soaked in the tobacco tar. When the porous material in the liquid storage device for storing the tobacco tar is going to be saturated with the atomized liquid, the molded porous material can be taken out. 
     This embodiment discloses a liquid storage device for storing tobacco tar in an electronic cigarette, which realizes storage of the tobacco tar according to features of porous materials. In fact, those porous materials can be made into different shapes upon demands, for example, rectangular, square and spherical three-dimensional shapes for choices upon demands. Of course, the liquid storage device is not limited to store tobacco tar in the electronic cigarette, and can also be used to store other liquids. The liquid storage device can be used to store liquids capable of being atomized, for example essential oils and perfumes, and of course can also be used to store other liquids. 
     In this embodiment, after the liquid storage device for storing tobacco tar stores the tobacco tar, the porous material can be directly heated to atomize the tobacco tar for smoking. Of course, the porous material can also be a porous material resistant to a relatively high temperature, for example a porous metal or alloy or porous ceramics. In use, the liquid storage device can replace original tobacco tar cups made of glass or rubber materials in the electronic cigarettes, is soaked in the tobacco tar and then assembled in the electronic cigarettes after fully absorbing tobacco tar. After a person smokes the cigarette and the tobacco tar is atomized, the storage liquid device can be soaked in the tobacco tar again for repeated use. 
     Embodiment 2 
     This embodiment provides a liquid storage device for storing different liquids at the same time. As shown in  FIG. 2 , in this embodiment, the liquid storage device  200  is comprised of three layers upon demands; different layers have different porosities; the pores of different layers are increasingly increased or reduced in aperture, and are used to store different liquids. As shown in  FIG. 2 , the liquid storage device in this embodiment is comprised of three layers, respectively an inner liquid storage core  201  that is located in the center and has a aperture of 5-50 μm, a middle liquid storage layer  202  that is located outside the liquid storage core, has an aperture of 30-70 μm and is used to store liquids with a relatively small molecular groups, and an outer liquid storage layer  203  that is located on the outer layer, has an aperture of 50-100 μm and is used to store liquids with a relatively large molecular groups. It is well known that different liquid molecules have different chemical bonds and different molecular group sizes. To use such multi-layer liquid storage device to store different liquids, the device is firstly soaked in a liquid with a relatively large molecular group, and the pores of the outer liquid storage layer  203  with an aperture of 50-100 μm will be filled in and then saturated with the liquid with a relatively large molecular group, while the liquid with a relatively large molecular group cannot enter the middle liquid storage layer  202  and the inner liquid storage core  201  because of their aperture is smaller. Then, the device is soaked in a liquid with a relatively small molecular group, and the liquid with a relatively small molecular group enter the middle liquid storage layer  202 . The liquid with a relatively small molecular group cannot enter the outer liquid storage layer because the outer liquid storage layer  203  is already saturated, and can also not enter the inner liquid storage core  201  because the inner liquid storage core has a smaller aperture. The device is taken out after the middle liquid storage layer  202  is saturated and then is finally soaked in a liquid with a least molecular group. In this way, the liquid with a least molecular group can enter the inner storage core  201  only because other two liquid storage layers are already saturated. During practice, an isolating membrane can be disposed between every two layers, and an isolating membrane can be arranged at an outer wall of the outer liquid storage layer. Those isolating membranes can be hydrophobic and air-permeable membranes.