DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to the technical field of hydraulics, and relates to an apparatus for lifting liquids, suitable for both domestic and industrial applications .

Hydraulic system for pumping liquids, particularly water, such e.g. centrifugal pumps, submersible pumps, hydraulic turbines or the like are well known.

Such systems are widely used both in domestic appliances equipment, having the combined inlet of solids and liquids, and in the industrial field, for example suction pumps in drainage plants .

The same physical principles that make possible the operation of such systems are also the basis of the functioning of large water lifting equipment in hydroelectric plants.

It is in fact well known that in such systems the water is raised from a lower containing basin to an upper accumulation one during the minimum energy supply periods, in order to store potential energy to be released later to the turbines in the form of mechanical energy during peak energy demand.

The operating principle of these applications has been known for time and generally provide for the use of a pump equipped with an impeller housed in a pressure chamber, particularly a centrifugal pump if relatively high falls are to be overcome.

The inlet of the pressure chamber is connected with the basin or container of the water to be lifted, the outlet thereof being connected with a collecting basin or directly to a discharge .

The high speed-motion of the impeller shall promote the rise of the liquid towards the outlet.

All these solutions have, however, poor efficiency and relatively low performance in view of the power used. In fact, the pumps must provide a relatively high energy to lift the water column, this energy increasing with the prevalence of the plant.

Therefore, the high work to be done requires adequate engines, often oversized to compensate the common losses due to friction and the pressure drop of the liquid inside the pipes.

Main object of the subject-matter of the present invention is, therefore, to overcome the above problems, by providing a liquid lifting apparatus which, with the same prevalence, allows the use of relatively low powers with respect to the known solutions.

An other object of the present invention is to provide a liquid lifting apparatus that minimizes the internal friction .

An other object of the present invention is to provide a liquid lifting apparatus that can be used for both small domestic and industrial applications and, if made in scale, as an energy accumulator in hydroelectric plants. The above objects, as well as other objects that will be more clear hereinafter, are fulfilled by a liquid lifting apparatus which, according to claim 1, comprises a pipe defining at least one feeding axis of the liquid and having an inlet connectable to a lower basin and an outlet connectable to an upper basin or discharge, means for the promotion of the flowing of the liquid from the inlet to the outlet of the pipe being provided, wherein said flowing promotion means comprise at least one nebulizer device inserted into the pipe for nebulizing the liquid and promoting its rising along the pipe.

The at least one nebulizer device comprises a substantially axial transmission shaft operatively associated to the flowing promotion means and at least one turbine with an impeller keyed to said transmission shaft. The impeller has at least one frontal inlet section for the liquid in a substantially axial direction and a plurality of outlet peripheral sections for the nebulized liquid along substantially radial directions.

The impeller has a plurality of radial blades, each defining a pushing surface inclined with respect to said feeding axis and each having an inlet section for the liquid substantially orthogonal to the feeding axis and an outlet section for the liquid parallel or inclined with respect to the feeding axis. The outlet section for the liquid has an area sensibly less than the area of the inlet section to define a throttle adapted to nebulize the liquid and to project it towards the side wall of the pipe.

Further features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the detailed description of a few preferred, non exclusive embodiments of the apparatus according to the invention, presented by way of illustrating and non-limiting examples in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

figure 1 is a hydraulic scheme of an apparatus according to the invention;

figure 2 is a first schematic embodiment of same parts of an apparatus according to the invention applicable in hydroelectric plants;

figure 3 is a cross sectional view of a first particular of an apparatus according to the invention;

figure 4 is a cross sectional partial view of a second particular of an apparatus according to the invention;

figure 5 is a top view of the particular of figure 4;

figure 6 is a cross sectional view of the particular of figure 4.

The apparatus 10 is designed to be positioned between a lower basin 20 containing a liquid to be lifted and an upper basin 30 or discharge, in which the liquid lifted from the basin 20 will be poured.

Where the apparatus 10 is used in hydroelectric plants, the upper basin 30 may be connected to an energy accumulator S.

For example, provided only by way of illustration and not- limitation of the invention, the liquid in question may be water, and to this liquid will be referred hereinafter.

The apparatus 10 will include a pipe 40, defining a feeding axis X of the liquid from the lower basin 20 to the upper one 30, which has an inlet 50 connectable to the lower basin 20 and an outlet 60 connectable to the upper basin or discharge 30.

In order to promote the rise of the water from the lower basin 20 to discharge 30, suitable flowing promoting means

70 are provided, which include one or more nebulizer devices 80 inserted internally to the pipe 40.

Each nebulizer device 80 includes a substantially axial transmission shaft 90 operatively associated with the flowing promotion means 70 and at least one turbine 100 with an impeller 110 keyed to the transmission shaft 90, in such a manner that the pipe 40 defines the stator of the turbine 100.

In this manner, the device 80 nebulizes the water, in such a manner that nebulised water will rise inside the pipe

40. This allow the use of low power flowing promoting means 70, certainly lower with respect to the known devices .

In fact, the flowing promoting means 70 will move nebulized water and not water in a fully liquid state, as with e.g. a centrifugal pump.

Further, a lower power means a lower environmental impact.

In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the flowing promoting means 70 comprise a plurality of nebulizing devices 80, coupled and aligned along the feeding axis X.

Preferably, each nebulizing device 80 comprises a plurality of impellers 110, keyed on the transmission shaft 90 and axially offset with predetermined respective distances 1. In a preferred embodiment, these distances 1 are reciprocally constant .

Suitably, the flowing promotion means 70 comprise motor means 120, e.g. one or more engines, with a . power shaft 130 operatively coupled at one end with a power source 140, which in a preferred but not-exclusive embodiment may be chosen among the clean energy source, e.g. eolic plants and/or photovoltaic cells, and at the other end to the transmission shaft 90 of one of the nebulizing devices 80.

The motor means 120 may be dimensioned for rotating the relative power shaft 130, together with the impellers 110, with a rotation speed comprised between 3000 rpm e 30000 rpm.

Each impeller 110 has ^• at least one frontal water inlet section 150 in a substantially axial direction A and a plurality of outlet peripheral sections 160 for /the nebulized water along substantially radial directions R.

Each impeller 110 has a plurality of radial blades 170 each defining a pushing surface 180 inclined with respect to the feeling axis X and each having a water inlet section 150 substantially orthogonal to the feeding axis X and a water outlet section 160 parallel or inclined with respect to the same feeding axis X and having an area sensibly less than the area of the inlet section 150, so as to define a throttle adapted to nebulize the liquid and to project it toward the side wall of said pipe 40.

The above description clearly shows that the invention fulfils the intended objects. The invention may be obviously modified, within the scope defined by the appended claims.

All the details and materials thereof may be replaced by other technically equivalent parts and may vary with respect to the above disclosure, without limiting the scope of the present invention in any manner.