Exhaust reactor

Claim 2

A THERMAL EXHAUST CONVERTER ADAPTED TO CONNECT DIRECTLY TO THE EXHAUST OUTLETS OF AN INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES, SAID CONVERTER COMPRISING AN ELONAGATED OUTER CONVERTER HOUSING AND AN ELONGATED INNER CONVERTER HOUSING, SAID OUTER HOUSING COMPRISING AN UPPER OPEN-SIDED CASING AND A LOWER OPENSIDED CASING, THE OPEN SIDES OF WHICH JOIN TO FORM SAID OUTER HOUSING, SAID INNER HOUSING COMPRISING AN UPPER OPEN-SIDED SHELL AND A LOWER OPEN-SIDED SHELL, THE OPEN SIDES OF WHICH FLEXIBLY JOIN TO FORM SAID INNER HOUSING, LONGITUDINAL RECESSES INSIDE SAID OUTER HOUSING ALONG THE LINE OF JOINER OF SAID UPPER CASING TO SAID LOWER CASING, LONGITUDINAL OUTWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGES ALONG THE LONGITUDINAL EDGE OF SAID UPPER SHELL AND SAID LOWER SHELL, SAID FLANGES BEING SLIDABLY FIT INTO SAID LONGITUDINAL RECESSES TO FLEXIBLY SUSPEND SAID INNER HOUSING INSIDE SAID OUTER HOUSING, EXHAUST INLET MEANS ADAPTED TO CONNECT DIRECTLY TO THE EXHAUST OUTLETS OF AN INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE AND CONDUCT EXHAUST GAS INTO SAID INNER HOUSING, EXHAUST OUTLET MEANS ADAPTED TO CONDUCT TREATED HOUSING AND MEANS FOR INNER HOUSING OUT THROUGH SAID OUTER HOUSING AND MEANS FOR INJECTING AIR INTO SAID EXHAUST GAS SUCH THAT AIR MIXES WITH SAID EXHAUST GAS IN SAID INNER HOUSING THEREBY THERMALLY OXIDIZING THE COMBUSTIBLES IN SAID EXHAUST GAS.

Claim 3

An exhaust converter of claim 1 having a baffle flexibly suspended longitudinally within said inner housing after said means for injecting air, said baffle increasing mixing of said air and exhaust gas.

Claim 4

An exhaust converter of claim 1 wherein said exhaust inlet means comprises extensions in said outer housing adapted to connect rigidly to said exhaust outlets of said engine and a flexibly connected inlet tube within each of said extensions adapted to form a conduit from each of said exhaust outlets of said engine into said inner housing.

Claim 5

An exhaust converter of claim 3 having a baffle flexibly suspended longitudinally within said inner housing after said means for injecting air, said baffle increasing mixing of said air and exhaust gas.

Claim 6

An exhaust converter adapted to connect directly to the exhaust outlets of an internal combustion engine, said converter comprising an outer converter housing and an inner converter housing flexibly suspended within said outer converter housing, said outer converter housing comprising an upper open-sided casing and a lower open-sided casing, the open sides of which join to form said outer converter housing, said inner converter housing comprising an upper open-sided shell and a lower open-sided shell, the open sides of which flexibly join to form said inner converter housing, longitudinal recesses inside said outer converter housing along the line of joinder of said upper casing to said lower casing, longitudinal outwardly extending flanges along the longitudinal edges of said upper shell and said lower shell, said flanges being slidably fit into said longitudinal recesses to flexibly suspend said inner housing inside said outer housing, said inner converter housing having a catalyst container therein partitioning said inner housing into an inlet plenum above said catalyst container and an outlet plenum below said calalyst container, said upper casing having exhaust inlets adapted to connect directly to the exhaust outlets of said engine, inlet means adapted to deliver exhaust gas from said exhaust inlets into said inlet plenum, outlet means to permit treated exhaust gas to escape said outlet plenum, said catalyst container being formed by an upper perforate inlet wall and a lower perforate outlet wall joined by enclosing side walls, channel members attached longitudinally to said catalyst container, longitudinal catalyst container support members slidably fit between said flanges in said recesses such that a longitudinal edge of said suppOrt members extends inwardly into said inner housing and slidably fits into said channel members on said catalyst container to flexibly suspend said catalyst container inside said inner housing.

Claim 7

An exhaust converter adapted to connect directly to the exhaust outlets of an internal combustion engine, said converter comprising an outer converter housing and an inner converter housing flexibly suspended within said outer converter housing, said outer converter housing comprising an upper open-sided casing and a lower open-sided casing, the open sides of which join to form said outer converter housing, said inner converter housing comprising an upper open-sided shell and a lower open-sided shell, the open sides of which flexibly join to form said inner converter housing, longitudinal recesses inside said outer converter housing along the line of joinder of said upper casing to said lower casing, longitudinal outwardly extending flanges along the longitudinal edges of said upper shell and said lower shell, said flanges being slidably fit into said longitudinal recesses to flexibly suspend said inner housing inside said outer housing, said inner converter housing having a catalyst container therein partitioning said inner housing into an inlet plenum above said catalyst container and an outlet plenum below said calalyst container, said upper casing having exhaust inlets adapted to connect directly to the exhaust outlets of said engine, inlet means adapted to deliver exhaust gas from said exhaust inlets into said inlet plenum, outlet means to permit treated exhaust gas to escape said outlet plenum, said catalyst container being formed by an upper perforate inlet wall and a lower perforate outlet wall joined by enclosing side walls, channel members attached longitudinally to said catalyst container, longitudinal catalyst container support members slidably fit between said flanges in said recesses such that a longitudinal edge of said suppOrt members extends inwardly into said inner housing and slidably fits into said channel members on said catalyst container to flexibly suspend said catalyst container inside said inner housing.

Claim 8

An exhaust converter of claim 5 including flexibly connected inlet tubes within said exhaust inlets of said outer converter housing adapted to form conduits from said exhaust outlets of said engine into said inlet plenum.

Claim 9

An exhaust converter of claim 6 having insulation between said inner converter housing and said outer converter housing.

Claim 10

An exhaust converter of claim 5 further characterized by including means for injecting air into said outlet plenum such that said outlet plenum functions as a thermal oxidative reactor compartment

Claim 11

An exhaust converter of claim 8 having upward opening channel members along edges of the ends of said lower open-sided shell and extensions of the edges of the ends of said upper open-sided shell, said extensions being slidably fit into said upward opening channel members to substantially sealably connect the edges surrounding the open sides of said upper and lower shells in a flexible manner.

Claim 12

An exhaust converter of claim 9 having transverse channels at the ends of said catalyst container and transverse angle members slidably fit into said transverse channels and into said upward opening channel members to substantially seal said inlet plenum from said thermal reactor compartment except for the path through said perforate inlet and outlet walls of said catalyst container.

Claim 13

An exhaust converter of claim 10 having a longitudinal first baffle flexibly suspended inside said thermal reactor compartment between said catalyst container and said outlet means, said air injection means being provided in the space between said first baffle and said catalyst container.

Claim 14

An exhaust converter of claim 11 having a second baffle flexibly suspended between said first baffle and said outlet means.

Claim 15

An exhaust converter of claim 12 wherein said fist baffle has an opening proximate to its longitudinal center and said second baffle has openings proximate to both ends providing an elongated exhaust flow path.

Claim 16

An exhaust converter of claim 8 including means for anchoring said longitudinal outwardly extending flange of said upper and lower open-sided shells at a central location in said longitudinal recesses such that said upper and lower open-sided shells expand and contract substantially equally in both directions inside said outer converter housing.

Claim 17

An exhaust converter of claim 8 having a longitudinal first baffle inside said thermal reactor compartment between said catalyst container and said outlet means, said air injection means being provided in the space between said first baffle and said catalyst container.

Claim 18

An exhaust converter of claim 15 wherein said first baffle is flexibly suspended.

Claim 19

An exhaust converter of claim 16 having a second baffle flexibly suspended between said first baffle and said outlet means.

Claim 20

An exhaust converter of claim 17 wherein said first baffle has an opening proximate to its longitudinal center and said second baffle has openings proximate to both ends providing an elongated exhaust gas flow path.