The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 10, 1998
Filed:
Sep. 18, 1996
William A Little, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Igor Sapozhnikov, San Jose, CA (US);
MMR Technologies, Inc., Mountain View, CA (US);
Abstract
A method and device is disclosed for removing residual oil and other contaminants from the refrigerant stream flowing to low-temperature stages of a cryogenic refrigerator. A stream of vapor and liquid refrigerant is injected into a cyclone chamber �32! through the inlet tube �34!. While the liquid drains down a conical section �36! and out through a liquid line �38!, the vapor phase moves up into a packing of metal platelets �42! which is, in a particular embodiment, cooled by a returning stream of cold vapor passing through a tube �48! wrapped around the column. A portion of the vapor condenses on the platelets and is maintained in equilibrium with the vapor. Since high-molecular-weight contaminants are more soluble in the liquid phase, they are carried down the column with the drops of condensate and are swept out with the liquid fraction through the liquid line �38!. Consequently, the vapor sent out a vapor line �46! and into the low-temperature stages of the refrigeration system is cleansed of all oil residues and contaminants. A low-temperature refrigeration system with such a device can be operated continuously for many months with no signs of clogging. Moreover, the fractionating column is inexpensive, contains no moving parts, and does not add significant volume to the system.