Apparatus and method for ultrasonic treatment of a liquid
US7022505B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 10, 2002 |
| Grant date | Apr 4, 2006 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 24, 2024 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB01J2219/1943
- WIPO fieldBiotechnology
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
The present invention is an apparatus for ultrasonically treating a liquid to generate a product. The apparatus is capable of treating a continuously-flowing, or intermittently-flowing, liquid along a line segment coincident with the flow path of the liquid. The apparatus has one or more ultrasonic transducers positioned asymmetrically about the line segment. The ultrasonic field encompasses the line segment and the ultrasonic energy may be concentrated along the line segment. Lysing treatments have been successfully achieved with efficiencies of greater than 99% using ultrasound at MHz frequencies without erosion or heating problems and without the need for chemical or mechanical pretreatment, or contrast agents. The present invention overcomes drawbacks of current ultrasonic treatments beyond lysing and opens up new sonochemical and sonophysical processing opportunities.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.