Gas separation: processes – Liquid contacting – Gaseous fluid mixture discharged against or beneath surface...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-16
2001-05-29
Smith, Duane S. (Department: 1724)
Gas separation: processes
Liquid contacting
Gaseous fluid mixture discharged against or beneath surface...
C055SDIG003, C096S343000, C096S352000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06238463
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns a method and a device for cleaning exhaust air from kitchen equipment, such as steamers, grilling equipment, baking ovens and the like. The term “cleaning” is also understood to refer to removing vapor from the exhaust air.
In operation of kitchen equipment, in particular steamers, hot air equipment, grilling equipment and baking ovens, exhaust air is generated, which can be a great burden on the ambient room air. The exhaust air contains hot water steam, smoke, fats, oils, noxious odors and other chemicals and compounds formed in burning fat.
To remove the exhaust air, for example by venting it to the outside, extremely expensive exhaust air installations and shafts are necessary and are also required by law, depending on the intended application of the kitchen equipment, which causes considerable extra costs for such kitchen equipment. In addition, it is known that removing the exhaust air to the outside causes a considerable odor burden in the immediate vicinity, which is why the use of such kitchen equipment is limited.
If no exhaust air system is provided, the room air may be greatly impaired by the exhaust air, so that certain cooking processes, such as smoking chickens in a hot air smoker, cannot be carried out reasonably at all.
Measures have already been proposed, but they have proven to be inadequate or uneconomical. For example, in one known method, the exhaust air is passed through a water mist. One disadvantage of this is the extremely high water consumption combined with the additional disadvantage that odors and smoke cannot be captured adequately. To improve this, activated carbon filters are also used, but they are very expensive and must be disposed of regularly as special waste.
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to create a method and a device for cleaning the exhaust air from kitchen equipment such as steamers, grilling equipment, baking ovens and the like, so that the exhaust air can be cleaned easily, effectively and inexpensively.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, the method is characterized in that the exhaust air is subjected to a pressure increase and then is introduced into a fluid bath. As a result, the exhaust air is cooled suddenly, vaporous components condense suddenly out of the exhaust air and oil and the oil and fat components of the exhaust air are collected. At the same time, the odoriferous substances are also collected in a fluid bath and at least some of the smoke particles are also bound. With the help of this simple measure, it is possible to effectively clean exhaust air from kitchen equipment.
Due to the fact that the exhaust air is introduced into the fluid bath through a filter, in particular a sintered metal filter, this advantageously achieves the result that the implosion noises produced by sudden condensation of the steam can be suppressed to a great extent. In addition, the filter also produces an initial cleaning effect.
Fresh fluid is advantageously supplied to the fluid bath either continuously or discontinuously and fluid is also removed from the bath. This prevents soiling of the fluid bath and permits long term operation of the kitchen equipment. In a first alternative, fresh fluid is supplied continuously to the fluid bath, thus permitting fluid exchange by a simple method.
As an alternative, the supply of fresh fluid may also be discontinuous. For example, the fluid supply may be made a function of the pressure increase, i.e., the fluid exchange in the fluid bath is increased when the supply of exhaust air increases. The term “discontinuous” is thus understood to refer not only to an interruption in time but also to a supply of different fluids.
It is also advantageous that the amount of thermal energy introduced into the fluid bath is at least partially dissipated again. This prevents the fluid bath itself from heating up too much, while in turn producing a fluid vaporization process.
Another advantage is that the cleaned exhaust air is discharged freely through an exhaust air discharge device by a simple method. The purified exhaust air is thus returned to the ambient air.
The present invention also concerns a device for cleaning exhaust air from kitchen equipment such as steamers, grilling equipment, baking ovens and the like. It has an exhaust air line for removing the exhaust air from the kitchen equipment, a pressure increasing device for increasing the pressure in the exhaust air, a fluid bath and an inlet line for introducing the exhaust air into the fluid bath.
This advantageously yields a simple and effective cleaning of the exhaust air from kitchen equipment, and only a few elements are needed to effectively perform this cleaning.
With the help of the pressure boosting device, it is possible to overcome the higher pressure created due to the liquid column of the fluid bath, whereby, depending on the embodiment, it is also possible to use the pressure boosting device as a device for venting the exhaust air out of the respective kitchen equipment, if said equipment does not have its own exhaust air venting device, dehumidifier device or the like.
At the outlet of the inlet line is a filter, in particular a sintered metal filter, so the noise generated when the exhaust air enters the fluid bath is greatly reduced. In addition, the filter precleans the air.
The fluid bath is preferably arranged in a container, in particular a closed container that has an overflow to form a fluid level. The amount of fluid in the container is limited with the help of the fluid level, and if there is too much fluid, it flows over the overflow.
The inlet line advantageously opens near the bottom of the container, so that exhaust air discharged there flows essentially through the entire height of the fluid bath.
In addition, the device according to the present invention advantageously has a heat dissipating device for dissipating heat introduced into the fluid bath by the exhaust air. This prevents the fluid bath from heating up too much and beginning to evaporate after a certain extent of exhaust air cleaning.
The heat dissipating device is preferably designed as a heat exchanger tube or so-called heat pipes. This not only permits effective dissipation of heat but also allows the use of standardized and thus inexpensive components.
Another advantage is that the pressure boosting device may be a compressor, such as a radial compressor, which also makes it possible to achieve a pressure increase in the exhaust air in a simple manner. With the help of this compressor, the exhaust air may also be actively exhausted from the kitchen equipment even in the case when the kitchen device does not have its own exhaust mechanism. In addition, a fresh air inlet device may also be provided with the pressure boosting device in the event that not enough exhaust air is available and the exhaust air is then mixed with fresh air and introduced into the fluid bath. This should prevent too much exhaust air from being vented from the kitchen equipment. Thus, the excellent cooking results achieved with this kitchen equipment is retained through the present invention.
According to the present invention, water is provided as the effective fluid means. It is especially advantageous to add a cleaning agent that produces little or no foam to the water, so that the capture of smoke particles in particular from the exhaust air can be greatly improved.
Due to the simple design of the device according to the present invention, it can be mounted directly on the kitchen equipment, utilizing the utility connections provided for the latter. This has several advantages. First, the design size is small accordingly and the line lengths are also reduced to a minimum. Additional exhaust air chutes from the kitchen space to the outside are thus superfluous due to the purified air.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2405494 (1946-08-01), Dupuy
patent: 4182617 (1980-01-01), Al-Saidi
patent: 5141538 (1992-08-01), Derington et al.
patent: 5358540 (1994-10-01), Tsan-Yun et al.
patent: 43381
Eloma GmbH Grosskichentechnik
Gardner Carton & Douglas
Smith Duane S.
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