Patent ID: 8074900

Claim:
A fuel oil atomizer, comprising: an elongated outer member having a first end, a second end, and a central opening, the first end of the outer member having a means for communicating with an atomizing fluid supply; an elongated inner member having a first end, a second end, and central opening, the first end of the inner member having a means for communicating with a fuel supply and the central opening of the inner member being a fuel supply conduit, the inner member being coaxially received within the central opening of the outer member defining therebetween a generally annular atomizing fluid supply conduit; and an atomizing head, the fuel supply conduit and atomizing fluid supply conduit communicating with the atomizing head, the atomizing head including: an inner nozzle having an atomizing fluid chamber and a fuel chamber, the atomizing fluid supply conduit communicating with the atomizing fluid chamber and the fuel supply conduit communicating with the fuel chamber, the atomizing fluid chamber being circumambient to the fuel chamber and the fuel chamber having a portion that extends axially from the atomizing fluid chamber towards a discharge end of the inner nozzle; an outer nozzle having an open first end and a second end, the discharge end of the inner nozzle being received by the outer nozzle at the first end of the outer nozzle, a mixing chamber being defined in the space between the discharge end of the inner nozzle and the second end of the outer nozzle, an atomized fuel discharge conduit extending from the mixing chamber through the outer nozzle; and an atomizing fluid discharge conduit extending from the atomizing fluid chamber to the discharge end of the inner nozzle, the atomizing fluid discharge conduit allowing the atomizing fluid chamber to communicate with the mixing chamber.