Eyelet for Steam Humidification System

Abstract

The steam eyelet(s), mounted on steam dispersion tube(s), part of a steam dispersion system, has an interior cavity fed with steam, a through passage, a steam entry port and a steam exit port. The exit port is partly closed by a sloped throat which captures steam condensate and the steam entry port has a drain slot which drains condensate into the dispersion tube cavity. The eyelet's through passage progressively narrows at the exit with a shallow and then steep slope. A protruding lip reduces facial formation of condensate. A method reduces condensate spitting by accumulating condensate in the interior of the eyelet which, when it reaches a certain volume, drains the condensate bubble-droplet with an inboard interior eyelet surface disruption near the steam entry. Surface tension of the condensate bubble-droplet is used to drain the bubble-droplet at the disruption, causing an out-flow of the bubble-droplet in a direction contrary to steam flow.

1 . A steam eyelet mounted in a steam dispersion tube as part of a steam dispersion system, the steam dispersion tube having an interior cavity which is fed steam from a source of steam through the steam dispersion tube, the eyelet comprising:
 an eyelet body defining a through passage with a steam entry port at one end and a steam exit port at the other end wherein steam passes through the through passage from the interior of the steam dispersion tube and exits through the exit port;   the steam exit port being partly closed by a sloped throat in the through passage which captures condensate thereat;   the steam entry port having a drain slot in the through passage which drains condensate into the dispersion tube cavity.   
     
     
         2 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the cross-sectional area of the through passage narrows in the vicinity of the steam exit port. 
     
     
         3 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 2  wherein the cross-sectional area of the through passage progressively narrows in the vicinity of the steam exit port. 
     
     
         4 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 3  wherein the sloped throat has a shallow slope region and a steep slope region, the steep slope being adjacent the exit port and the shallow slope being inboard of the exit port. 
     
     
         5 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 1  wherein an outboard face of the exit port has a protruding lip. 
     
     
         6 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 1  wherein an outboard face of the exit port has a protruding lip and wherein the through passage's sloped throat has a shallow slope region and a steep slope region, the steep slope being adjacent the protruding lip of the exit port, the shallow slope of the through passage being inboard of the exit port. 
     
     
         7 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the entry port opening is double the area of the exit port opening. 
     
     
         8 . In a steam dispersion system having one or more steam dispersion tubes with interior passages coupled to a source of steam, one or more steam eyelets on the steam dispersion tubes providing steam through passages which are open inboard to the tube's interior passage, the eyelet comprising:
 an eyelet body having an interior cavity;   one end of the interior cavity having a partly closed steam exit port which exist port is outboard said steam dispersion tube;   the other end of the interior cavity having a steam entry port which entry port opens inboard to the tube's interior passage;   a sloped throat adjacent the partly closed exit port adapted to capture condensate thereat; and,   a drain slot adjacent the exit port adapted to drain condensate from the interior cavity and into the tube's interior passage.   
     
     
         9 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 8  wherein the partly closed steam exit port has a protruding lip which protrudes outboard of said steam dispersion tube. 
     
     
         10 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 8  wherein the eyelet is elongated with an imaginary axial centerline, wherein the sloped throat has a first and a second sloped surface, the first sloped surface being adjacent to the exit port and having an angular pitch greater than the second sloped surface angular pitch with respect to the axial centerline. 
     
     
         11 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 8  wherein the sloped throat has different sloped surfaces threat, leading to the exit port. 
     
     
         12 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 8  wherein the exit port is substantially one half the area of the entry port. 
     
     
         13 . A steam dispersion system adapted to the supplied with steam from a source of steam comprising:
 one or more steam dispersion tubes with interior passages coupled to the source of steam;   one or more steam eyelets on the steam dispersion tubes providing steam through passages which are open inboard to the tube's interior passage;   said one or more steam eyelets having an eyelet body with an interior cavity;   one end of the interior cavity having a partly closed steam exit port which exist port is outboard said steam dispersion tube;   the other end of the interior cavity having a steam entry port which entry port opens inboard to the tube's interior passage;   a sloped throat adjacent the partly closed exit port adapted to capture condensate thereat; and,   a drain slot adjacent the exit port adapted to drain condensate from the interior cavity and into the tube's interior passage.   
     
     
         14 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 13  wherein the partly closed steam exit port has a protruding lip which protrudes outboard of said steam dispersion tube. 
     
     
         15 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 13  wherein the eyelet is elongated with an imaginary axial centerline, wherein the sloped throat has a first and a second sloped surface, the first sloped surface being adjacent to the exit port and having an angular pitch greater than the second sloped surface angular pitch with respect to the axial centerline. 
     
     
         16 . A steam eyelet as claimed in  claim 13  wherein the sloped throat has different sloped surfaces threat, leading to the exit port. 
     
     
         17 . A method for reducing steam condensate spitting from eyelets on steam dispersion tubes in a steam dispersion system comprising:
 accumulating steam condensate in an interior of the eyelet; and   when the condensate reaches a certain volume in the eyelet, pulling the condensate bubble or droplet towards the steam entry port with an inboard interior eyelet surface disruption near the steam entry port of the eyelet.   
     
     
         18 . The method of reducing steam condensate spitting from eyelets as claimed in  claim 17  including draining the condensate bubble or droplet via the surface disruption and causing the condensate bubble or droplet to flow out of the interior of the eyelet in a direction contrary to the steam directional flow. 
     
     
         19 . The method of reducing steam condensate spitting from eyelets as claimed in  claim 18  including either one or the other or both (a) gripping the condensate bubble or droplet with the surface disruption, and (b) pulling the condensate bubble or droplet into the surface disruption. 
     
     
         20 . The method of reducing steam condensate spitting from eyelets as claimed in  claim 17  including reducing steam condensate formation on an outboard surface of the steam eyelet by accumulating the condensate on a protruding lip of the eyelet.