Homogenizing apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR HOMOGENIZING FLUIDS CONTAINING PARTICLES COMPRISING A HOLLOW CASING HAVING AN ANNULAR WALL CLOSED AT ITS ENDS TO DEFINE A CHAMBER, A SHAFT ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID CASING AT ONE END OF SAID CHAMBER AND HAVING ONE END THEREOF EXTENDING INTO SAID CHAMBER COAXIALLY OF SAID ANNULAR WALL, FLUID AGITATING MEANS SECURED TO SAID SHAFT INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS OF SAID CHAMBER, PUMPING MEANS SECURED TO SAID SHAFT INTERMEDIATE SAID AGITATING MEANS AND SAID ONE END OF SAID CHAMBER, A STATIONARY, ANNULAR ELEMENT DISPOSED CLOSELY ABOUT SAID AGITATING MEANS AND HAVING ONE END SECURED TO THE END OF THE CHAMBER OPPOSITE SAID ONE END, AND HAVING ITS OTHER END SLIGHTLY SPACED FROM SAID PUMPING MEANS, A ROTATABLE ANNULAR ELEMENT DISPOSED CLOSELY ABOUT SAID STATIONARY ELEMENT AND HAVING ONE OF ITS ENDS SECURED TO SAID PUMPING MEANS AND THE OTHER OF ITS ENDS SPACED SLIGHTLY FROM SAID OPPOSITE CHAMBER END, SAID ROTATABLE ELEMENT AND SAID ANNULAR WALL DEFINING AN ANNULAR SPACE THEREBETWEEN, SPRING MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID SHAFT AND SAID CASING AND OPERATIVE TO URGE SAID SHAFT, SAID PUMPING MEANS, AND ROTATABLE ELEMENT IN AN AXIAL DIRECTION AWAY FROM SAID OPPOSITE CHAMBER END, SAID CASING HAVING A FLUID INLET OPENING AT SAID OPPOSITE CHAMBER END COMMUNICATING WITH THE INTERIOR OF SAID STATIONARY ELEMENT, AND AN EXHAUST PORT ADJACENT SAID ONE CHAMBER END AND COMMUNICATING WITH SAID PUMPING MEANS, SAID ANNULAR ELEMENTS HAVING SPACED APERTURES THEREIN, WHEREBY UPON ROTATION OF SAID SHAFT, SAID PUMPING MEANS IS OPERATIVE TO CAUSE FLUID TO FLOW FROM WITHIN SAID STATIONARY ELEMENT AND OUTWARDLY THROUGH SAID APERTURES TO SAID ANNULAR SPACE AND SAID EXHAUST PORT, AND THE APERTURES IN SAID ROTATABLE ELEMENT ARE ROTATED PAST THE APERTURES IN SAID STATIONARY ELEMENT TO THEREBY SHEAR PARTICLES IN THE FLUID PASSING BETWEEN APERTURES IN SAID ROTATING AND STATIONARY ELEMENTS, RESPECTIVELY.