Patent EP0385773A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0385773A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
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Pressure Pack Dispenser
Assignee: Rocep Lusol Holdings Ltd
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Filing: 1990-03-01
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2010-03-01
Abstract
Abstract Systems for storing and dispensing gases. The gas storage systems are two-phase gas/solid or gas/liquid, or three-phase gas/liquid/solid, functioning by reversible sorption. In gas storage systems having a solid phase, use is made of a polymeric material, preferably a hydrogel, having microvoids functioning as interstitial stores for gas. Reversible gas sorption in the microporous polymer is improved by treatment with a swelling promoter. The stored gas may be a propellant, and reversible sorption propellant storage may be used in all types of pressure pack dispenser. Cryogenic techniques facilitate preparation of propellant systems with standardised parameters. The invention enables use of safe and environmentally benign gases as propellants.
Inventors
- 👤 Bernard Derek Frutin
- 👤 Peter Graham Perkins
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-08 09:20
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65D; B65D83/00; B65D83/14; B65D83/60; B65D83/673; F; F17; F17C; F17C11/00
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 28
Claim 1
Independent Claim
73 words
A gas storage and dispensing system for the substantially reversible storage of a gas, said gas storage and dispensing system comprising a polymeric material having molecular microvoids occupiable by the gas to cause the polymeric material to form a two-phase gas/solid reversible sorption gas storage system which will tend to sorb increasing quantities of gas in increasing ambient gas pressure, and tend to desorb previously sorbed gas with decreases in ambient gas pressure.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
73 words
A gas storage and dispensing system for the substantially reversible storage of a gas, said gas storage and dispensing system comprising a polymeric material having molecular microvoids occupiable by the gas to cause the polymeric material to form a two-phase gas/solid reversible sorption gas storage system which will tend to sorb increasing quantities of gas in increasing ambient gas pressure, and tend to desorb previously sorbed gas with decreases in ambient gas pressure.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
100 words
A gas storage and dispensing system for the substantially reversible storage of a gas, said gas storage and dispensing system comprising a polymeric material having molecular microvoids occupied by a liquid which is a solvent of the gas but which is insoluble of the polymeric material, such occupation of the microvoids by the liquid with the gas dissolved therein causing the polymeric material to form a three-phase gas/liquid/solid reversible sorption gas storage system which will tend to sorb increasing quantities of gas in increasing ambient gas pressure, and tend to desorb previously sorbed gas with decreases in ambient gas pressure.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
100 words
A gas storage and dispensing system for the substantially reversible storage of a gas, said gas storage and dispensing system comprising a polymeric material having molecular microvoids occupied by a liquid which is a solvent of the gas but which is insoluble of the polymeric material, such occupation of the microvoids by the liquid with the gas dissolved therein causing the polymeric material to form a three-phase gas/liquid/solid reversible sorption gas storage system which will tend to sorb increasing quantities of gas in increasing ambient gas pressure, and tend to desorb previously sorbed gas with decreases in ambient gas pressure.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
22 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 2 wherein the liquid solvent of the gas comprises a polar solvent.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
48 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in any preceding Claim wherein the polymeric material is a cross-linked polymer which tends to swell without substantial dissolution when in contact with a liquid which is or would be a solvent of a chemically equivalent or similar linear polymer.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
31 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 4 wherein the polymeric material is treated with a swelling promoter to enhance the gas sorption capacity of the polymeric material.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
46 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in any of the preceding Claims, wherein said polymeric material is a hydrogel which comprises polymerised moieties derived from (i) at least one polymerisable unsaturated cyclic ether or thioether, and (ii) at least one hydrophilic homopolymer or copolymer.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
77 words
A gas storage and dispensing system for the substantially reversible storage of gas, said gas storage and dispensing system comprising a liquid solvent for the gas, the gas being substantially soluble in said liquid solvent to cause the liquid solvent to form a two-phase gas/liquid reversible sorption gas storage system which will tend to sorb increasing quantities of gas in increasing ambient gas pressure, and tend to desorb previously sorbed gas with decreases in ambient gas pressure.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
77 words
A gas storage and dispensing system for the substantially reversible storage of gas, said gas storage and dispensing system comprising a liquid solvent for the gas, the gas being substantially soluble in said liquid solvent to cause the liquid solvent to form a two-phase gas/liquid reversible sorption gas storage system which will tend to sorb increasing quantities of gas in increasing ambient gas pressure, and tend to desorb previously sorbed gas with decreases in ambient gas pressure.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
22 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 7 wherein said liquid solvent is admixed with a gas sorption promoter.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
20 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 7 or Claim 8 wherein the liquid solvent is acetone.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
61 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in any preceding Claim wherein said gas is an elemental gas or a molecular gas or a gaseous compound or any mixture of these, and said gas is substantially gaseous when desorbed such that the potential energy of the desorbed gas can be thermodynamically converted to useful mechanical work as a propellant gas.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
18 words
A gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 10 wherein said propellant gas comprises carbon dioxide.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
78 words
A pressure pack dispenser for dispensing a product therefrom by means of the pressure of a propellant gas within the dispenser, said pressure pack dispenser comprising a pressurisable container having a valve for releasing the product from the container, said container enclosing a gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 10 or Claim 11, said gas storage and dispensing system providing a source of pressurised propellant gas for dispensing the product from the pressure pack dispenser.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
34 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 12 wherein said dispenser is a non-barrier dispenser in which the propellant gas is permitted to come into direct contact with the product to be dispensed.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
68 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 12 wherein said dispenser is a barrier dispenser in which a substantially gas-impermeable barrier is located between the product to be dispensed and the gas storage and dispensing system, the barrier being such as to transmit the pressure of the propellant gas to the product while substantially preventing direct contact between the product and the gas storage and dispensing system.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
34 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 14 wherein the barrier comprises a flexible bag enclosing the product to be dispensed and sealed to the pressurisable container at or adjacent to the valve.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
111 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 14 wherein said barrier comprises a piston or piston-form arrangement slidingly sealed to an internal surface of the pressurisable container with the product contained between one side of the piston or piston-form arrangement and the valve, the gas storage and dispensing system being housed between the other side of the piston or piston-form arrangement and the non-valve end of the pressurisable container such that the pressure of the propellant gas will tend, in use of the dispenser, to drive the piston or piston-form arrangement towards the valve end of the pressurisable container so as to tend to discharge the product through the valve.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
36 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 16 wherein said piston or piston-form arrangement is a composite piston incorporating a deformable sealant material disposed to limit penetration of the propellant gas into the dispensible product.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
83 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 12 wherein said dispenser comprises a semi-permeable barrier enclosing the gas storage and dispensing system, the semi-permeable barrier being permeable to propellant gas but substantially impermeable to the non-gaseous component or components of the gas storage and dispensing system whereby the semi-permeable barrier passes the propellant gas to pressurise the product by direct contact while maintaining the non-gaseous component or components of the gas storage and dispensing system out of direct contact with the product.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
36 words
A pressure pack dispenser as claimed in Claim 18 wherein said semi-permeable barrier is in the form of a bag or envelope sealed in liquid-tight manner around the components of the gas storage and dispensing system.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
126 words
A pressurising procedure for pressurising a pressure pack dispenser, said dispenser being as claimed in Claim 16 or Claim 17, said pressurising procedure comprising the steps of inserting a substantially predetermined quantity of the non-gaseous component or components of the gas storage and dispensing system into the pressurisable container on the side of the piston or piston-form arrangement not occupied in use by the product to be dispensed, subsequently or substantially simultaneously adding a substantially predetermined amount of a substantially non-gaseous form of the propellant gas to the same part of the pressurisable container as is occupied by said non-gaseous component or components, and sealing the part of the pressurisable container occupied by the gaseous and non-gaseous components of the propellant gas storage and dispensing system.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
35 words
A pressurising procedure as claimed in Claim 20 wherein the substantially non-gaseous form of the propellant gas comprises the propellant gas cryogenically cooled to a temperature at which the propellant gas is liquefied or solidified.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
28 words
A pressurising procedure as claimed in Claim 21 and wherein the propellant gas is carbon dioxide, said substantially non-gaseous form of the propellant gas being solid carbon dioxide.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
151 words
A pressurising procedure for pressurising a pressure pack dispenser, said dispenser being as claimed in Claim 16 or Claim 17 and wherein the gas storage and dispensing system as claimed in Claim 10 or Claim 11 is also as claimed in any of Claims 7 to 9, said pressurising procedure comprising the steps of cryogenically chilling the liquid solvent without freezing the solvent, admixing the propellant gas with the pre-chilled liquid solvent to form a propellant/solvent system containing a predetermined proportion of sorbed propellant gas, inserting a substantially predetermined quantity of said propellant/solvent system into the pressurisable container on the side of the piston or piston-form arrangement not occupied in use by the product to be dispensed, said insertion being carried out prior to any substantial increase in the temperature of said propellant/solvent system, and sealing the part of the pressurisable container occupied by the propellant gas storage and dispensing system.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
51 words
A pressurising procedure as claimed in Claim 23 wherein the propellant gas is admixed with the pre-chilled liquid solvent by bubbling the propellant in gaseous form through the pre-chilled liquid solvent while the solvent is maintained at a predetermined temperature resulting in the solvent sorbing the predetermined proportion of propellant gas.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
48 words
A pressurising procedure as claimed in Claim 23 wherein the propellant gas is admixed with the pre-chilled liquid solvent by first cryogenically freezing the propellant gas to a non-gaseous form and mixing a predetermined quantity of the frozen propellant with a predetermined quantity of the pre-chilled liquid solvent.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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