Apparatus for liquid-gas contacting tray

Claim 1

IN A LIQUID-GAS CONTACTING TRAY OF THE SIEVE-TYPE FOR EFFECTING INTIMATE CONTACT BETWEEN RISING GAS AND LIQUID FLOWING ACROSS THE TRAY FROM A LIQUID INLET TO A LIQUID DOWNCOMER IN WHICH A MEMBER WITH MAIN FLAT TOP AND BOTTOM SURFACES HAS A PLURALITY OF FIXED SIZE OPENINGS UNIFORMLY DISTRIBUTED ACROSS SUCH SURFACES AND EXTENDING THERETHROUGH WITH WALLS PERPENDICULAR TO SAID SURFACES FOR GAS FLOW, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING: A PLURALITY OF SECTIONS FORMED FROM SAID MEMBER UNIFORMLY DISTRIBUTED ACROSS SAID SURFACES, EACH WITH A TOP SURFACE RAISED FROM SAID MAIN FLAT TOP SURFACE, HAVING A FRONT LEADING EDGE SEPARATED FROM SAID MAIN FLAT TOP SURFACE TO FORM AN ELONGATED APERTURE THEREWITH OF GREATER WIDTH THAN HEIGHT, THE RAISED TOP SURFACE BEING INCLINED OBLIQUELY TO SAID MAIN FLAT TOP SURFACE AND HAVING A BACK EDGE INTEGRAL WITH SUCH SURFACE, EACH SECTION BEING SPACED FROM ADJACENT SECTIONS BY SAID MAIN FLAT TOP SURFACE ENTIRELY SURROUNDING SUCH SECTION AND EACH SECTION BEING ORIENTED WITH ITS BACK EDGE UPSTREAM OF ITS APERTURE AND THE APERTURE WIDTHS PARALLEL TO EACH OTHER, THE FIXED SIZE OPENINGS AND APERTURES BEING SIZED TO PROVIDE A WET PLATE PRESSURE DROP $HW OF BETWEEN 0.05 AND 0.5 INCH LIQUID, THE TOTAL OPEN AREA OF SAID APERTURES BEING LESS THAN THE TOTAL OPEN AREA OF SAID FIXED SIZE OPENINGS AND THE TOTAL OPEN AREA OF SAID APERTURES AND SAID FIXED SIZE OPENINGS JOINTLY FORMING THE ENTIRE OPEN AREA THROUGH SAID MEMBER.