1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to burner apparatus and, in particular, to heating and/or cooking appliances having one or more gaseous fuel burner apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
Granger et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,227 disclose burners having a metal foam burner element that holds liquid fuel by capillary action.
Goldstein et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,356,487, disclose a thermally amplified and stimulated emission radiator fiber matrix burner.
Cooper, in International Application Publication No. WO 84/01992 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,012, discloses a self-aerating radiant gas burner assembly comprising a mixing chamber closed except for an air inlet into which is directed a gas injector jet. The chamber is surmounted by a radiant burner element of ceramic foam.
Gordon et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,974, disclose a ceramic foam low emissions burner for natural gas-fired residential appliances.
Lannutti, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,782,629, discloses radiant burner surface and method of making same.
Kahlke et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,800,156, disclose a radiant burner with a gas-permeable burner plate.
Shizukuisha et al., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,030,206, 6,065,962, and 6,095,800, disclose a leak preventive structure for a case of a surface combustion burner.
Rattner et al., in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0054313, disclose a radiator element composed of a metal foam for use within a radiant burner.
Herbert, in European Patent Application Publication EP 0 194 157, discloses a gas burner for use in a self aerating gas fire having an apertured or self-porous, solid, or bonded fiber distribution plate and a plaque of open-pore ceramic foam for surface combustion of said mixture.
In accordance with one or more embodiments, the invention relates to a burner comprising means for mixing fuel and oxidizer and a plurality of exit ports positioned downstream of the means for mixing and constructed and arranged to effect a minimum flow velocity of the mixture of fuel and oxidizer.
In accordance with one or more embodiments, the invention relates to a method of fabricating a burner comprising a plurality of exit ports sized to effect a minimum flow velocity of a fuel/air mixture therethrough. The method comprises an act of installing a reticulated member in a cavity of the burner.
In accordance with one or more embodiments, the invention relates to a burner comprising a fuel/air mixture inlet, a burner body fluidly connected to the fuel/air mixture inlet and comprising a peripheral wall having a plurality of exit ports defining a fuel/air mixture flow path, and a porous member disposed in the fuel/air mixture flow path.
In the accompanying drawings, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in the various figures is represented by a like numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in every drawing.
In the drawings:
This invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways.
The invention is directed to burner assemblies or apparatus having high turndown ratios, low carbon monoxide (CO) emissions, and high efficiencies. The invention is further directed to compact, low profile burner apparatus providing high heating/firing rates (heat flux) and also having low firing rates thereby providing both accelerated heating and low maintainable heating. The invention provides burner assemblies having one or more components that facilitate fuel and oxidizer mixing as well as uniform distribution of the mixture to a plurality of burner ports. The burner apparatus can further comprise one or more components that prevent or at least inhibit flashback incidences while promoting reduced or no emissions of undesirable species during combustion use. The burner apparatus of the invention can be utilized in industrial, commercial, and even residential heating and/or cooking services.
The invention is further directed to naturally aspirated burner apparatus, free of any forced oxidizer assemblies.
In accordance with one or more embodiments, the burner apparatus of the invention can have a lower cross-sectional profile compared to conventional burner assemblies while providing an equivalent maximum firing rate. For example, a nominal 2-inch diameter burner apparatus of the invention can have a maximum firing rate of at least about 9,000 BTU/hr, and in some cases, at least about 12,700 BTU/hr while having a protrusion profile height of less than about 25.4 mm (about 1 inch), in some cases, less than about 19 mm (about 0.75 inch). The protrusion height is determined as a separation distance between a top surface of the burner assembly to an exposed surface upon which the burner is mounted. Thus in accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, a burner apparatus of the invention, utilized, for example, in cooking appliances, can be mounted on a cooktop surface at a depth that provides a distance from a cooktop top surface of the burner assembly to the mounting surface of less than about 25.4 mm.
In accordance with further embodiments of the invention, the burner apparatus can have a high turndown ratio while, in some cases, also providing comparable or the same maximum firing rates relative to conventional burner apparatus. For example, a nominal 2-inch diameter burner apparatus of the invention can have a turndown ratio of at least about 15:1, in some cases, at least about 18.7:1, in still other cases, at least about 20:1, while providing a maximum firing rate of about 12,700 BTU/hr. Turndown ratio refers to the ratio of the maximum firing rate relative to the minimum firing rate that can be maintained by a burner apparatus. For example, the burner apparatus in accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention can operate at a maximum firing rate of about 12,700 BTU/hr to a minimum firing rate of about 640 BTU/hr corresponding to a turndown ratio of about 19.8:1. Thus, the burner apparatus of the invention can provide a high heating rate under a first operating condition and also provide a low heating rate under a second operating condition. The flexibility thereby provided by the burner apparatus of the invention reduces configuration complexity.
Fuel inlet section 102 comprises a fuel/oxidizer introduction component, exemplarily shown as a venturi assembly 106 disposed in a support or bracket 108. Venturi assembly 106 comprises a fuel inlet port 110, typically fluidly connected to a fuel source (not shown), and a fuel nozzle 112. Venturi assembly 106 further comprises a venturi body 114 disposed at a position downstream from fuel nozzle 112. Venturi body defines a venturi channel 116 which provides a conduit for passing a fuel and an oxidizer drawn therethrough. An exit end of channel 116 in venturi body 114 is fluidly connected to combustion section 104.
Combustion section 104 comprises a burner cavity 120 defined by a burner body. The burner body comprises a peripheral wall 122 and a burner mounting assembly 124. In accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, burner body can further comprise a burner cap 126. In accordance with some embodiments of the invention, burner cap 126 can be unitarily formed with peripheral wall 122 as exemplarily shown in
During operation of the burner apparatus, fuel is typically introduced from one or more fuel sources (not shown) through fuel inlet port 110 and injected into venturi body 114 through nozzle 112. A fuel stream is typically injected at a sufficient velocity to induce drawing an oxidizer into channel 116 to form a mixture of fuel and oxidizer. From the venturi body, the fuel/oxidizer mixture enters cavity 120. Cavity 120 typically serves to facilitate, at least partially, mixing of the fuel and oxidizer mixture. In some cases, cavity 120 can further facilitate distribution of the fuel/oxidizer mixture to at least one of the plurality of exit ports 128. For example, burner apparatus can be connected to a source of fuel, such as, but not limited to, natural gas and propane, and injected into channel through nozzle 112 thereby drawing air as an oxidizer to form a fuel/air mixture. The fuel/oxidizer mixture, e.g., natural gas/air mixture, enters cavity or chamber 120.
In accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, mixing of the fuel and oxidizer mixture is further promoted by establishing a flow path from the fuel and oxidizer sources to through one or more mixing elements. In accordance with further embodiments of the invention, the flow path of the mixed fuel/oxidizer mixture involves a plurality of fuel/oxidizer streams exiting the burner apparatus through a plurality of exit ports. The plurality of streams can be ignited with one or more ignition sources and combust to form a flame pattern. The flame pattern serves as a heating source when placed in thermal communication with one or more cooking utensils. Thus, in accordance with one or more embodiments, the invention provides a burner apparatus comprising one or more flow paths from one or more fuel sources and one or more oxidizer sources through one or more mixing elements that promote or at least facilitates mixing of the fuel and oxidizer prior to exit thereof through one or more exit ports.
Element 136 typically promotes or facilitates mixing of the fuel and oxidizer mixture flowing therethrough. Mixing can be performed by creating a plurality of random flow paths therein. For example, the random flow paths can be created by introducing or passing the mixture through an element comprised of a porous member. In some cases, efficient mixing of the fuel and oxidizer can be effected by providing a plurality of baffles or impingement surfaces that orderly or randomly distributes the overall mixture. Thus, for example, a plurality of baffles can be disposed in element 136 that separates a plurality of portions of the mixture and randomly combines such plurality of portions. Element 136 can also reduce variability of flow rate of the mixture through the plurality of exit ports.
In accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, element 136 can be shaped as an annular reticulated member as illustrated in
The plurality of exit ports defines passages through which the fuel/oxidizer mixture exits and forms a plurality of corresponding streams that, upon ignition, forms a flame pattern. In accordance with one or more aspects of the invention, the plurality of ports defines constrictions or restrictions that permit controlled release of the mixture from the burner assembly. In accordance further aspects of the invention, the peripheral wall on which the ports are disposed restrict the release of the mixture from the burner assembly. For example, with reference to
Each of the ports can be sized to provide a desired aperture area. The ports can be shaped to provide a desired flame arrangement, shape, and/or pattern upon combustion of the mixture stream exiting therefrom. The ports can be sized to provide a desired port loading and, in accordance with some aspects of the invention, provide restrictions that result in a desired maximum and/or minimum firing rate (heat flux) corresponding from a maximum and/or minimum flow velocity. For example, the burner apparatus of the invention can have a port loading that provides about 15,000 BTU/hr/in2 to about 60,000 BTU/hr/in2 during combustion of a fuel and oxidizer mixture such as natural gas and air. Table 2, below, provides a correlation between port loading and total port open area.
Each of the plurality of ports can be equally sized and uniformly distributed or have a uniform distribution layout. However, one or more aspects of the invention may be directed to a plurality of ports having a multiplicity of aperture areas, define at least two different areas, and, in accordance with further aspects, in a multiplicity of distribution arrangements. Other embodiments of the invention utilize ports that are not uniformly sized or have a multiplicity of shapes. One or more of the ports may be symmetrically-shaped with respect to one or more points or axes, while one or more other ports may be symmetrically-shaped with respect to one or more other points or axes.
As exemplarily shown in
The specific size and port loading of the ports may depend on one or more considerations including, but not limited to, the desired flame pattern, the desired maximum firing rate, the desired minimum firing rate, the pressure and flow rate of the mixture of fuel and oxidizer, the heat of combustion of the mixture, and the flashback properties of the mixture. In accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, the ports are sized to provide stable flame combustion. Stable flame combustion conditions are created by sizing and arranging the ports to provide an exit stream of fuel/oxidizer mixture with a maximum velocity that is less than a blow off velocity. Blow off velocity occurs when a fuel/oxidizer mixture has a stream velocity greater than a flame front velocity. Stable flame combustion conditions are also present when the fuel/oxidizer stream exiting the ports has a minimum flow velocity that avoids flashback. Flashback conditions typically exist when the flame front velocity is greater than the exiting stream velocity thereby allowing the flame to propagate to the source of the fuel, e.g. the venturi assembly.
For example, the burner apparatus exemplarily illustrated in the various figures can be operated in cook top service utilizing natural gas and air as the fuel and oxidizer, respectively. For natural gas pressure of about 4 to about 5 inches of water (gauge), the burner apparatus can have eighteen uniformly distributed ports about the perimeter of the combustion section having a nominal diameter of about 50.8 mm (about 2 inches) wherein the ports have an aperture width of about 3.96 mm (about 0.156 inch) and a height of about 4.3 mm (about 0.17 inch). The ports are further exemplarily illustrated as having a curvature at an upper edge, having a radius of about 1.98 mm (about 0.078 inch). The figures exemplarily show a porous or reticulated member suitable for cooking service in residential systems with a porosity in a range from about 10 ppi to about 60 ppi and having an outer diameter of about 50.8 mm (about 2 inches), a thickness of about 12.7 mm (about 0.5 inch), and a height of about 12.7 mm (about 0.5 inch).
The various components, elements, and/or subsystems of the present inventive burner apparatus can be comprised of or fabricated from any suitable material that provides any desired physical property or desired performance. For example, any of the components of the burner apparatus can be comprised of a metal such as aluminum, steel of any suitable grade, iron such as cast or forged iron, a ceramic, or even a polymeric material or combinations, alloys, or mixtures thereof.
For example, mixing element 136 may comprise a ceramic composition, a metal, or even a metal-ceramic composite. In accordance with one or more preferred embodiments, porous member 136 can comprise steel having sufficient modulus during its service lifetime when exposed to thermal conditions associated with combustion of the plurality of proximally disposed flames emitting from the burner apparatus. In some cases, the material of construction of the element 136 has rigidity, stiffness, and/or creep resistance during operating life to serve as a structural member of the burner apparatus. For example, member or element 136 can comprise brass or stainless steel such as, but not limited to grade 316 stainless steel. However, during combustion processes, flames are not in the structure of element 136. Rather, combustion of the mixture of fuel and oxidizer occurs outside of element 136 and typically, at at least a distance defined by the thickness of a wall enclosing element 136.
The function and advantages of these and other embodiments of the invention can be further understood from the examples below, which illustrate the benefits and/or advantages of the one or more systems and techniques of the invention but do not exemplify the full scope of the invention.
In this example, a burner apparatus as substantially shown in
Natural gas and air was used as the fuel and oxidizer. The burner had a heating rate of about 11,900 BTU/hr, determined based on the pressure, flow rate, and heating value of the natural gas. The elapsed time to raise the temperature by about 69.4° C. (about 125° F.), from about room temperature (about 25° C.), of about 3.32 kg (about 7.3 pounds) of water, in an about 25.4 cm (about 10 inch) diameter pot, utilizing the burner of the invention was about 11.1 minutes, labeled on
For comparative purposes, other commercially available burner systems were evaluated. Table 3 lists the time required to heat the same amount of water the same temperature difference in the same pot compared to the burner of the invention. These results are also graphically presented in
The DACOR™ burner system is available from Dacor, Inc., Diamond Bar, Calif. The THERMADOR™ and GAGGENAU™ systems are available from BSH Home Appliances Corporation, Huntington Beach, Calif. The WOLF™ system is available from the Wolf Appliance Company, LLC, Madison, Wis.
The data presented in Table 3 and
This example evaluates the performance during low heating rates during simmering of vegetable oil of the burner systems evaluated in Example 1. Table 4 and
The burner apparatus as substantially described in Example 1 was operated a maximum firing rate and at a minimum firing rate. The maximum firing rate was determined, based on the flow rate, pressure, and heating value of the natural gas fuel, to be about 12,700 BTU/hr. The lowest heating rate of the burner apparatus was determined to be about 680 BTU/hr. This example shows that the burner apparatus of the invention had a turndown ratio of about 18.7:1.
In this example a commercially available burner (identified as DACOR™, unmodified), nominally rated at about 8,500 BTU/hr was evaluated and further modified.
The DACOR™ burner, available from Dacor, Inc., Diamond Bar, Calif., was first modified (labeled as DACOR™, modified) to increase the firing capacity, by enlarging the natural gas/air inlet section, to a nominal rating of about 12,500 BTU/hr.
The modified DACOR™ burner was further modified (labeled as DACOR™ with Foam) to utilize an annular metal foam having a porosity of about 20 ppi. The FeCrAlY metal foam, provided by Porvair Fuel Cell Technology, Hendersonville, N.C., had an outer diameter of about 5.87 cm (about 2 5/16 inches) and a thickness of about 4.76 mm (about 3/16 inch).
Table 5 below lists the performance of the unmodified burner compared to the modified burners. For comparison, the performance data of the Foam burner (F), evaluated in Examples 1-3, are also presented in Table 5.
Natural gas was used as the fuel and air as the oxidizer source.
The firing rates were calculated based on the pressure (corrected to standard temperature and pressure), flow rate and heating value (measured by calorimeter) of the natural gas fuel.
The Time-to- 125 F. Temperature Rise evaluation was performed by measuring the elapsed time to heat about 3.32 kg of water in an about 25.4 cm diameter stainless steel pot.
The carbon monoxide emissions from each of the burners were measured according to ANSI Z21.1 with a model VIA-510 non-dispersive infrared analyzer, from Horiba Instruments, Inc., Irvine, Calif. Carbon monoxide concentration measurements were corrected to be on a dry, air-free basis, i.e., no excess air according to the formula,
COcorrected=COmeasured(21-O2reference)/(21-O2measured), where O2reference is 0.
The simmering temperature was determined by heating vegetable oil until a steady state temperature (after about four to five hours) was obtained at the lowest stable firing condition, i.e., the lowest fuel/air velocity with all ports having a flame that was self re-lighting, if extinguished, and without any flashback.
Efficiency was determined by comparing the theoretical amount of heat required to raise the temperature of the water against the measured heating value of the actual amount of fuel utilized to achieve the same temperature change (about 125° F.).
The turndown ratio was determined as the ratio of the maximum firing rate relative to the minimum sustainable firing rate.
The data shows that a burner assembly comprising a reticulated member in accordance with the invention has improved efficiency with respect to time to heating and also provides greater flexibility by having high turndown ratios. In particular, the burner apparatus of the invention provides the flexibility to operate at lower simmering conditions (at a temperature of about 199° F.) compared to conventional burners (at about 322° F.).
The benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119 to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/559,830, entitled COOKTOP BURNER WITH IMPROVED GAS DELIVERY, filed on Apr. 6, 2004, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, is claimed.
Having now described some embodiments of the invention, it should be apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art that the foregoing is merely illustrative and not limiting. Indeed, numerous modifications and further aspects of the illustrative embodiments described herein are within the scope of one of ordinarily skilled in the art and are contemplated as falling within the scope of the invention. Thus, it is to be appreciated that various alterations, modifications, and improvements can readily occur to those skilled in the art and that such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be part of the disclosure and within the scope of the invention. For example, optional additional features may also be utilized in the burner apparatus including, but not limited to, alignment facets that provide positive coherence during installation and/or assembly of the components of the burner apparatus. Although the examples presented herein involve specific combinations of method acts or elements, it should be understood that those acts and elements may be combined in other ways.
Further, acts, elements, and features discussed only in connection with one embodiment are not intended to be excluded from a similar role in other embodiments. For example, the present invention is also directed to modifying or retrofitting existing burner assemblies to incorporate one or more features of the burner apparatus of the invention.
Moreover, it should also be appreciated that the invention is directed to each feature, system, subsystem, or technique described herein and any combination of two or more features, systems, subsystems, or techniques described herein and any combination of two or more features, systems, subsystems, and/or methods, if such features, systems, subsystems, and techniques are not mutually inconsistent, is considered to be within the scope of the invention as embodied in the claims. Those ordinarily skilled in the art should appreciate that the parameters and configurations described herein are exemplary and that actual parameters and/or configurations will depend on the specific application in which the systems and techniques of the invention are used. Those ordinarily skilled in the art should also recognize or be able to ascertain, using no more than routine experimentation, equivalents to the specific embodiments of the invention. It is therefore to be understood that the embodiments described herein are presented by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereto; the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.
As used herein, the term “plurality” refers to two or more items or components. The terms “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,” “containing,” and “involving,” whether in the written description or the claims, are open-ended terms, i.e., to mean “including but not limited to.” Use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” and the like to modify an element does not connote any priority, precedence, or order of an element over another or a temporal order in which acts are performed, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for the use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the elements.
This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119 to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/559,830, entitled COOKTOP BURNER WITH IMPROVED GAS DELIVERY, filed on Apr. 6, 2004, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60559830 | Apr 2004 | US |