US2529536A - Fluid evaporating device - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 14, 1950 J. BJORKSTEN 2,529,536

FLUID EVAPORATING DEVICE Filed 001;. 26, 1945 Patented Nov. 14, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to appliances for causing evaporation of liquids in the atmosphere, and, more specifically, to deodorizing appliances.

Heretofore such appliances have consisted in the main of a container from which a liquid is brought to evaporate by the capillary action of awick partially immersed in the liquid and partially exposed to the air, so as to promote continuous evaporation. The disadvantage of such apparatus of prior art is applied, for example, to perfume dispensers ordeodorizers, is that the perfume constituents will evaporate more slowly than the solvent in which they are being carried. Therefore, over a period of about ten days, or somewhat more or less, dependent on temperature and ventilation conditions, the concentration of slowly evaporating aromatic material in the wick will have mounted to such a point that no more capillary action takes place, and as a consequence the flow through the wick stagnates and the device ceases to function.

The present invention has for its object a convenient way of eliminating this difficulty and of providing a dispenser which can be used almost indefinitely without necessity for changing the wick.

Further objects of the invention will become apparent as the following detailed description proceeds:

The single drawing represents the side view, parts of outer cover being broken away, in the outer hull i is encased a jar 2 which holds the evaporating liquid 9. Immersed in this liquid is a wick assembly which in this case is a wick size spirally wound around a supporting cylinder 4. The upper portion of this wick assembly is protected by a cover I perforated by slots 8 through which air or a gas can circulate for example by diffusion.

Referring to the drawing, a side view with part of the external wall broken away to show the internal parts, an embodiment of my invention consists of a protective metal hull l which holds a glass container 2 filled with the aromatic solution to be evaporated. These two jars are covered by a plate 3 which supports a wick assembly, on each side. The wick assemblies are similar on the upside and the downside of the plate 3 and consist of a hollow perforated metal cylinder 4, around which is wound a wick 5 of heavy fibrous and porous material. The wick is continuous and is winding around the perforated cylinders, both above and below the plate 3 and goes from one of the perforated cylinders to the other through an aperture in the said plate 6.

The upper and lower parts of the wick are thus in capillary connection or junction with each other. If they are not entirely similar, they have at least such similar dimensions and evaporating characteristics, that they can perform each others function, if their position is reversed. The upper wick is protected by a metal cover lw-hich has a number of slots 8 permitting free circulation of air around and about the upper wick. This cover, however, is not necessary and can be omitted.

An aromatic solution 9 is contained in the glass container 2. r

The apparatus functions as follows: Air current, or, in the absence of air current, an air diffusion takes place through the apertures 8 of the cover 7. This air current, or diffusion, causes evaporation of the aromatic compound from the adjacent portion of the wick 5. This causes a deficiency of the aromatic liquid in theupper portion of the wick 5 and by capillary action, the wick draws the liquid in which its lower part is immersed 9 up to the upper part, where it again evaporates, etcetera. The liquid in the container 9 may be replenished at intervals and continues to evaporate through the wick.

However, the aromatic materials by their very nature contain several difierent portions or fractions, some of which evaporate more readily and others of which are very slow to evaporate. It is not possible to produce the desired odor value by a product which does not contain any such more slowly evaporating portions.

After a period of about a week to ten days, these slowly evaporating portions of the arcmatic compound will gradually accumulate in the upper part of the wick 5, and they will then interfere with the action of the wick so as to greatly retard further evaporation, thus reducing the efficiency of the device.

Heretofore, it has been necessary at this point to replace the wick, or else to wash the wick very thoroughly in a solvent. This operation is not only tedious, but it is also very unpleasant, since the aromatic compounds used by their very nature will adhere most tenaciously to the hand of the person handling the wick, whether for replacement or for washing, so that this person will smell of odorizer for the rest of the day, even in spite of thorough washing of the hands.

In the device of the present invention, this is unnecessary, because the upper part of the wick assembly is identical with the lower part. According to this invention, when the clogging of the upper part of the wick has taken place, it

is not necessary to wash or to renew the wick, but the plate 3 is simply lifted up and turned upside down. The plate 3 is identical on both sides, and the part of the wick which has heretofore been exposed to air and is clogged by the slow evaporation fraction of the aromatic now becomes immersed in the aromatic solvent 9 which, over a period of several days, will fully dissolve and remove the heavy portions of the aromatic compound while the portion of the wick which formerly was on the downside is well cleaned, having been immersed in liquid for about a week, and will now function with impedance.

Thus, by making the plate reversible and the wick assemblies similar on the upper and lower sides, I have eliminated the loss of time required in cleaning the wick at frequent intervals, and I have also eliminated the unpleasant task 'of handling the wick at such intervals. The word wick I employ in a broad sense, to signify any article capable of drawing up liquid by capillary action and allowing it to evaporate, whether this material be fibrous, or unglazed clay, fritted glass, cloth, felt, paper, asbestos, or any other capillary material.

Obviously, the invention is not restricted to the particular mechanical details or the particular embodiment described above by way of illustration and not of limitation. The invention generally embraces the concept of using a wick assembly, in which the parts exposed to air and to the liquid, respectively, are so similar that a reversal in position of the wick parts on each side of the supporting member will result in satisfactory performance and will obviate the necessity for cleaning the wick.

The invention is not to be circumvented by any insignificant or minor differences between the wicks or the wick-holding assemblies on the upper and lower side of the carrier plate.

Having thus disclosed my invention, I claim:

1. A liquid evaporating device comprising, in combination, a liquid-holding member, a reversible wick-supporting member, extending transversely of the liquid holding member; wick means extending transversely of the wick-supporting member and having substantially similar wick portions on each side of said wick-supporting member long enough to be immersed in the liquid, said wick portions being connected with each other and said wick-supporting member being readily detachable relative to the liquid holding member.

2. A liquid evaporating device comprising, in combination, a liquid holding member, a reversible wick-supporting member extending transversel of the liquid holding member, wick means extending transversely of the wick-supporting member and having substantially similar wick portions on each side of said wick-supporting member, long enough to be immersed in the liquid, said wick portions being connected with each other, the liquid holder being surrounded by a casing, the wick-supporting member being a plate-like member resting on the surrounding casing.

3. A liquid evaporating device comprising, in combination, a liquid holding member, a reversible wick-supporting member extending transversely of the liquid holding member; wick means extending transversely of the wick-supporting member and having substantially similar wick portions on each side of said wick-supporting member, long enough to be immersed in the liquid, said wick portions being connected with each other, the wick-supporting member being readily reversible relative to the liquid holding member.

J OHAN BJORKSTEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 472,133 Merrill Apr. 5, 1892 1,016,648 Snell Feb. 6, 1912 1,155,701 Bliss Oct. 5, 1915 1,974,414 Dupuy Sept. 25, 1934

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