Vernay Laboratories, Inc.

Centek Industries, Inc.

John R Ford

Ernie Beckwith, Sr

Ken Harstel

Sam V Shelton

A marine wet exhaust system ( ) which injects water into the exhaust flow for cooling and attenuating noise includes a particulate capture and containment system ( ) for removing particulates and fluid contaminants from the exhaust gas and the waste cooling water of the discharge. With a first embodiment, this is accomplished by separating the waste cooling water and entrained particulates from the exhaust gas in a muffler/separator ( ); accumulating the waste cooling water and entrained particulates in a reservoir ( ); and separating the entrained particulates from the waste cooling water in a filter ( ). The system further includes a reservoir discharge pump assembly ( ), a reservoir drain line ( ) and a bleed line ( ) to maintain water levels in the reservoir and the filter. With a second embodiment, a condensate trap ( ) separates particulates and condensates from the de-watered exhaust gas and returns them to the reservoir ( ).

Marine wet exhaust system

The invention relates to a marine wet exhaust system and a method for treating the exhaust from a marine engine. The system comprises a first conduit for receiving an exhaust flow including gaseous, liquid and particulate solid components, a separator for separating the liquid and particulate components from gaseous component, and a second conduit for expelling the gaseous component. A third conduit is provided for receiving from the separator the liquid and particulate solid components, which then pass to a filter for separating the particulate solid component from the liquid component, and the liquid component is discharged via a fourth conduit.

A wet marine exhaust muffler includes a metallic housing and a polymeric jacket substantially encapsulating the metallic housing. The metallic housing defines one or more chambers in the interior of the housing. An inlet pipe and an outlet pipe each extend through openings in the polymeric jacket and communicate with at least one chamber in the interior of the housing. The metallic housing is preferably formed from stainless steel and the polymeric jacket is preferably formed from a thermoplastic material having a thickness of approximately 0.001 inch to 0.1 inch, and more preferably of approximately 0.005 inch to 0.060 inch. According to one preferred method for inhibiting the explosion of a wet marine exhaust muffler, the muffler housing (but not the inlet and outlet pipes) is at least partially surrounded by a heat shrinkable thermoplastic tubing and the heat shrinkable thermoplastic tubing is heated by conventional means to shrink the heat shrinkable thermoplastic tubing over the muffler housing to form the thermoplastic jacket. It is one object of the invention to provide a wet marine exhaust muffler, and a method for manufacturing such a muffler, effective to prevent or minimize explosion damage without substantially increasing the manufacturing cost or compromising other desirable muffler characteristics.

Wet marine exhaust muffler

A combined wet marine exhaust muffler and water separator comprises a housing having a tangential inlet for inducing the exhaust flow to rotate about a lengthwise axis of the housing, a first outlet positioned along the axis for conducting dried exhaust gas from the housing, and a second outlet positioned near a bottom end of the housing and spaced from the tangential inlet and the first outlet for draining water from the housing.

Combination wet marine exhaust muffler and water separator

An exhaust muffler for a marine engine comprises a first vertically oriented tubular member having a lower end sealingly extended through the bottom of a main body chamber and an upper end extending upwardly through the top of the chamber. A second tubular member surrounds and is spaced from the first tubular member for forming a passage therebetween, and has its upper end sealingly extended through the top of the chamber and its lower end extending to a point below two chamber inlets, yet spaced from the bottom of the chamber. A cap seals the upper end of the second tubular member to invert upwardly flowing exhaust gases and cooling fluid within the passage between the first and second tubular members downwardly into the first tubular member for discharge from the muffler.

Inverted flow marine engine exhaust muffler

An early warning system detects the failure of a marine cooling system by monitoring a resistance ground signal generated by a sensing element inserted into the cooling system. An alarm is given upon the detection of an increased resistance value of the resistance ground signal due to cessation or a severe reduction of water flow through the cooling system and hence contacting the sensing element. The sensing element is preferably inserted into the exhaust system portion of a marine engine cooling system and a detection circuit is connected to the sensing element. An alarm signal is generated by the detection circuit if insufficient water flow is present to maintain a low resistance value for the resistance ground signal generated by the sensing element. Such low resistance signal is maintained either by the electrical conduction of the water or the cooling effects of the water on the sensing element.

Early warning of marine cooling system failure

An early warning system detects the failure of a marine cooling system by monitoring the presence of water within the cooling system so that an alarm is given upon cessation or a severe reduction of water flow therethrough. A water sensing element is inserted within the cooling system preferably within an exhaust system of a marine engine cooled by the cooling system and a detection circuit is connected to the water sensing element. An alarm signal is generated by the detection circuit if insufficient water flow is sensed by the water sensing element. The circuit preferably comprises a darlington amplifier having a power input terminal, a power output terminal and a control terminal. A resistor and a capacitor are connected in parallel between the power input terminal and the control terminal of the darlington amplifier, the water sensing element is connected to the control terminal and an audible or visual or combined audible and visual alarm device is connected to the power output terminal.

A reactive type marine muffler which combines principles of both baffled construction and expansion chamber attenuation with a liquid flow path to provide improved sound attenuation over a broad spectrum of octave bands and a substantially lower dB(A). The baffles are preferably dome-shaped with their apices directed counter to the flow through the muffler and the expansion chambers are interconnected by a connecting tube mounted in a median baffle and projecting into adjoining expansion chambers.

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Xenia, OH, United States of America

John R Ford