Gas-liquid contact apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR PROMOTING INTIMATE GAS-LIQUID CONTACT BETWEEN A HIGH VELOCITY GAS STREAM AND A RELATIVELY VISCOUS LIQUID COMPRISING A TREATING PASSAGE HAVING WALLS DEFINING A CONVERGING SECTION, A THROAT SECTION, AND A DIVERGING SECTION, THE THROAT SECTION AND AT LEAST AN ADJACENT PORTION OF THE CONVERGING SECTION HAVING A GENERALLY RECTANGULAR CONFIGURATION IN CROSS-SECTION IN WHICH ONE TRANSVERSE DIMENSION IS GREATER THAN THE OTHER TRANSVERSE DIMENSION, THE MEANS FOR INTRODUCING THE LIQUID INTO THE TREATING PASSAGE IN THE VICINITY OF THE UPSTREAM END OF THE THROAT SECTION, SAID MEANS COMPRISING A PAIR OF HEADERS TO WHICH LIQUID IS SUPPLIED UNDER PRESSURE, EACH HEADER HAVING A ROW OF SPACED ORIFICES FOR THE DISCHARGE OF JETS OF LIQUID, APERTURES IN THE WALLS HAVING THE GREATER DIMENSION, MEANS FOR SECURING THE HEADERS OUTSIDE OF THE WALLS OF THE PASSAGE AND ALONG THE WALLS DEFINING THE GREATER TRANSVERSE DIMENSION OF THE PASSAGE WITH THE ORIFICES IN POSITION TO DISCHARGE THE LIQUID THROUGH THE APERTURES IN THE WALLS INTO THE PASSAGE, SAID HEADER SECURING COMPRISING ELONGATED GENERALLY CHANNEL-SHAPED BRACKETS FIXED TO SAID PASSAGE WALLS WITH THE BASES OF SAID BRACKETS SUPPORTING SAID HEADERS IN POSITIONS SPACED FROM SAID PASSAGE WALLS AND HAVING OPENINGS COINCIDING WITH THE APERTURES IN SAID PASSAGE WALLS, THE LEGS OF SAID CHANNEL-SHAPED BRACKETS EXTENDING OUTWARDLY ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID HEADERS, CONNECTING ELEMENTS ATTACHING SAID HEADERS TO SAID LEGS AND SEALING MEANS AROUND SAID ORIFICES BETWEEN SAID HEADERS AND BRACKETS, AND BAFFLE PLATES SECURED TO AND EXTENDING ALONG THE HEADERS ADJACENT THE ROW OF ORIFICES, THE BAFFLE PLATES EACH BEING MOUNTED AT AN OBLIQUE ANGLE TO AND INTERSECTING THE DIRECTION OF JET DISCHARGE FROM THE ORIFICES TO CAUSE THE JETS TO IMPINGE ON AND BE DISTRIBUTED AS SHEET-LIKE SPRAYS ACROSS THE TREATING PASSAGE IN THE DIRECTION OF THE SHORTER TRANSVERSE DIMENSION THEREOF, SAID BAFFLE PLATE EXTENDING INTO THE OPENINGS IN THE BASES OF SAID BRACKETS TO POSITIONS CLOSELY ADJACENT TO BUT NOT MATERIALLY PAST SAID PASSAGE WALLS.