MODIFIED HYDRAULIC RAM PUMP FOR PRODUCTION OF HEATED GAS

Abstract

 A system and method for safe, economical, and environmentally friendly production of heated gas (or steam) from a liquid supply using a modified hydraulic ram pump technology. The system comprises a pipe further comprising a configurable and adjusted two-valve system and is connected to a supply of liquid, wherein the supply of liquid is preferably pressurized or located in an elevated position. The liquid is allowed to flow along the pipe to build up momentum, when the momentum reaches a certain pre-determined limit one of the valves is abruptly closed, sending shockwaves through the pipe and forcing liquid downstream of the closed valve to partially evaporate and form gas. The second valve opens to capture pressurized water and contain it in a pressure chamber. Pressurized liquid from the pressure chamber seeps through a liquid conduit comprising narrow passageways, wherein the pressurized liquid is then transmitted as droplets and/or gas to the previously evaporated gas behind the first valve. The combined gas is heated and extracted for further use.

Description

FIELD OF INVENTION

[0001] The invention is within the field of steam/heated gas generation and also hydropower, or more specifically relates to a system and a method whereas the traditional hydraulic ram pump technology is modified in such a way it economically produces heated and pressurized gas such as steam by repeatedly halting the flow of fast-moving liquid and harnessing it's kinetic energy.

TECHNICAL BACKGROUND

[0002] Mankind has innovatively harnessed hydropower for thousands of years. The water wheel with its blades and buckets brought advances in milling, manufacturing of paper, hammering of iron and production of textiles. The self-acting ram pump or as it is now called, the hydraulic ram pump, envisioned and designed in the late eighteenth century by John Whitehurst and Joseph Montgolfier has for over two centuries supplied rural populations all over the world with drinking water and water for agricultural irrigation. Several decades after the design of the hydraulic ram pump many esteemed inventors developed the technology of the modern water turbine which was further improved on some decades later when coupled with Nikola Tesla's alternating current generator.

[0003] Many modern industrial processes use vast amount of steam. For example, the paper and pulp industries, the chemical manufacturing industries, petroleum refining plants, the textile industry, food producers etc. Steam is furthermore used for central heating. Steam is typically generated by the burning of hydrocarbons, i.e., coal, natural gas, and oil. Other sources of steam e.g., electric boilers and geothermal.

[0004] Traditional electric-hydro power is one of the best ways to create electricity due to minimal operating costs, no burning of hydrocarbons and because of its capability to store and manage energy in water reservoirs. The initial investment costs are however high compared to most other methods of power generation due to its complexity and often tremendous civil works required such as tunnelling, creation of underground turbine halls, installation of expensive and sensitive electro-mechanical equipment etc. Its power output is furthermore electricity which has the benefit (unlike steam) that it can be transmitted vast distances, the flip-side of which is typically lacklustre local support for envisioned new hydropower plants. Anyone wishing to generate steam using traditional electric hydropower will furthermore require installation of expensive electric boiler equipment in addition to the hydropower plant itself.

[0005] The present invention seeks to overcome/ameliorate these or other disadvantages and/or to provide a more cost efficient and easily implementable solution for harnessing hydropower with power output more suited to industrial use and central heating.

SUMMARY

[0006] The present invention is specified in the claims as well as in the below description. In short, the present invention provides both a novel system and a method for producing heated gas by using a system that abruptly stops the flow of liquid converting its kinetic energy into pressure waves that on one hand serves to pressurize said flowing liquid analogous to how a hydraulic ram pump drives/transports liquid (usually water) to a position of higher elevation and the on the other hand it serves to vaporize the liquid as the first step in the process of creating hot and pressurized gas.

[0007] The following section attempts to explain the underlying principles and function of the invention with comparison to a conventional hydraulic ram pump. A hydraulic ram pump works by connecting a pipe (often referred to as a drive pipe) to a steady water supply located at a point of higher elevation. Analogous to the present invention, a hydraulic ram pump comprises a two-component valve system. In a hydraulic ram pump, the operation of the two valves is used to cleverly increase pressure in a container which is then used to lift water from a place of lower elevation to a position of higher elevation without using electricity or fuel, rendering it an economical and environmentally friendly choice for pumping water, especially in locations where electricity is relatively expensive, scarce or unavailable.

[0008] In short, a hydraulic ram pump works by allowing water to flow from a water source (located at an elevated position compared to the ram pump), through a drive pipe wherein the flowing water exits the drive pipe through a valve referred to as the waste valve. The water flows down the drive pipe because of gravitational force. When the momentum or dynamic pressure of the flowing water is sufficiently large to lift the weight of the open waste valve, the waste valve abruptly closes causing shockwaves (also known as the water hammer effect) to surge through the system. Herein, the term "abruptly" refers to a sufficiently rapid process relative to the flow rate (and weight) of the liquid/water such that abrupt closing of the waste valve will always cause the desired water hammer effect. These pressure waves increase the pressure inside the drive pipe and force the second valve, referred to as a delivery valve, to open. While the delivery valve stays open, water flows through it and into a pressure chamber (or a vessel) and/or a delivery pipe, wherein the delivery pipe is used to transport the pressurized water uphill to its target destination. The flow of water the pressure chamber serves to partially relieve the hydrostatic pressure in front of the waste valve. The pressure chamber typically contains air as a dampener or a cushion and is used to mitigate the shockwaves, which in turn makes the pump more durable. As water flows into and begins to fill the pressure chamber, the dampener becomes compressed and, analogous to a compressed spring, the dampener begins to exert a force on the flowing water which serves to push the flowing water in the opposite direction of the flow, i.e., providing a counter-pressure. The counter-pressure aids both in closing and keeping the delivery valve closed and to push the pressurized water into the delivery pipe increasing the pumping efficiency of the ram pump. The pressure of the water in the delivery pipe and/or pressure chamber, and partly the weight of the valve disk itself, forces the delivery valve to shut again. Moreover, shockwaves travel up to the water source, where the shockwaves become dampened by ambient air and converted to a suction force (or a pulse) that travels downstream the drive pipe and aids in relieving the hydrostatic pressure that has built up in front of the closed waste valve. With the decreased hydrostatic pressure, the pressure in front of the waste valve is unable to accommodate the weight of the waste valve and the waste valve re-opens, allowing the entire process to be repeated and a small part of the water entering the system to be pumped uphill against gravitational force.

[0009] According to the present invention, a modified hydraulic ram pump technology is disclosed, wherein the present invention is used to continually produce heated gas (such as steam) and, in some embodiments, to generate and harness electricity. Unlike a classical hydraulic ram pump, the present invention comprises an elongated pipe arranged behind or downstream of the waste valve, the downstream pipe is referred to herein as an elongated gas section. Hence, when the dynamic pressure exerted on the waste valve reaches a limit sufficient to accommodate the weight of the waste valve, the waste valve abruptly closes, forming a separate liquid column inside the elongated gas section.

[0010] Herein, the terms pipe or tube may be used interchangeably and refer to a substantially rigid elongated hollow structure allowing liquid to flow through said hollow structure. Furthermore, the substantially rigid elongated hollow structure is not limited to any specific geometrical shape (cross-section) and may comprise a layered structure (i.e., having layered walls), wherein the material selection and thickness of different layers is selected to obtain desired physical properties of each layer and the overall structure. Moreover, the term "liquid column" as used herein, refers to an expanse or a body of liquid arranged or stretched in any orientation (horizontal, curved or vertical) between two components, wherein the two components may comprise space of near-vacuum, gas, vapour or air, such as a liquid column arranged between a low-pressure space of gas/vapor and ambient air. Depending on the context, a liquid column may be at rest (stationary) or may be moving as a single component.

[0011] The liquid column keeps traversing downstream said elongated gas section, the front of said moving liquid column traveling toward the system's exit while the whole column forms a low-pressure (or near-vacuum) conditions or space behind said liquid column. This causes the hydrostatic pressure of said liquid to reduce below the liquid vapour pressure at the interface between the water column and the low-pressure space, forcing evaporation from said liquid column and/or cavitation, wherein the evaporated particles (herein, referred to as gas) or bubbles escape from said liquid column and into the low-pressure space. In the present invention, this gas is further augmented by liquid traveling through a liquid conduit comprising an ensemble of narrow passageways connecting the high-pressure area in the pressure chamber to the low-pressure area behind the exit valve. Herein, the terms waste valve and exit valve are used interchangeably and refer to the same valve. Thus, unlike the hydraulic ram pump, where the pressurized liquid is pumped uphill, the pressurized liquid is largely returned into the system into the low-pressure area created behind the exit valve.

[0012] The narrow passageways of the liquid conduit connect at one end to the pressure chamber and the other end the part of the elongated gas section behind the exit valve and serves to transmit (or transfer) the highly pressurized liquid flowing into the pressure chamber to an area behind the exit valve, in particular during the continually formed low-pressure conditions that closing of the exit valve creates. During the transportation process and prior to being transmitted, the highly pressurized liquid may be converted to liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles. The combined previously evaporated gas particles arranged in the low-pressure space and the transmitted particles from the liquid conduit are then heated by a means of heating to form heated gas (for example steam) which is then extracted from the system.

[0013] The highly pressurized liquid flowing through the narrow passageways of the said liquid conduit becomes charged (e.g., obtaining a positive charge) during the transportation process caused by abrasive effects of the flowing liquid with surfaces encountered in the liquid conduit, wherein said surfaces may be comprised of the inner walls of said liquid conduit and/or abrasive particles either coated on the surface of said inner walls or freely arranged inside said liquid conduit. The surfaces the liquid encounters in the liquid conduit are further constructed from a triboelectric material that is characterized by triboelectric properties with respect to the flowing liquid. Therefore, a net accumulation or separation of charge occurs in both the flowing liquid and on the said surfaces of the liquid conduit. The charged droplets and/or bubbles and/or evaporated gas are then transmitted into the low-pressure space inside the elongated gas section, proximal to the waste valve, wherein the surface of the inner walls of said elongated gas section comprises a piezoelectric material configured to accumulate the opposite charge compared to the liquid arranged inside said liquid conduit, during the sudden drop in pressure caused by the closing of the waste valve and/or the ensuing oscillations of the material. Therefore, when the transmitted particles, enter the low-pressure proximal region behind the exit valve, the high voltage differential between the charged particles and the oppositely charged surface of the inner walls of the elongated gas section causes an electric breakdown allowing electrons to recombine with the positively charged particles (or in the opposite case, allowing electrons to recombine with the positively charged inner walls of the proximal region). This recombination process releases energy into the proximal area and it's gas to further heat up and increase the kinetic energy of said gas particles and/or bubbles and/or droplets arranged inside said proximal region of the elongated gas section to form heated gas (for example steam) for extraction and harnessing of heated gas (such as steam). In other embodiments, additional and more conventional means of heating may be used separately or in tandem to the aforementioned heating by a physical process such as, but not limited to, electrical heating or heating by induction.

[0014] To summarize, the present invention seeks to exploit the well-known water hammer effect, using a configurable two-component valve system analogous to the two-component valve system of a hydraulic ram pump, wherein the collective operational rhythm of the valves is used to continually produce heated gas from repeatedly stopping the flow of liquid at preferably regular intervals. In the simplest embodiment, the set of valves comprise the only movable parts of the present invention, rendering the present invention both durable and to be of low maintenance. Moreover, since the present invention does not require any other sources of energy for its operation besides a source of flowing liquid, renders the invention potentially very economical, safe, and clean alternative to traditional means of producing heated gas (steam in particular). In one embodiment, the system and method may be used additionally to produce and harness electricity that can be used to augment some functions and/or components of the present invention, e.g., to power additional means of heating and/or sensors and a connection means to allow the operational status of the system to be monitored in real-time in situ or at a remote location and/or to provide lighting around the infrastructure.

[0015] The proposed system and method of heated gas (such as steam) generation directly from hydropower leveraging the water hammer effect generated by abrupt stopping of fast-moving column of liquid has several advantages over existing hydropower and steam generation technologies. This method is likely to be significantly less expensive than existing hydropower and boiler installation both in terms of initial- and operating costs. The technology will increase regional energy security as the mechanism will inherently be very sturdy and its operation offers no software or electrical vulnerabilities to nefarious actors. Furthermore, it could be pointed out that this method does not require hydrocarbons or their burning which increasingly is frowned upon. Unlike most other ways to create energy this system should not require mined "rare-earth" materials for its construction. The technology is furthermore safe as it does neither use radioactive materials nor toxic and/or combustible refrigerants.

[0016] According to the first aspect of the invention, a system for producing heated gas such as steam by abruptly stopping the flow of liquid is provided. The system further comprising; an inlet section connected to a supply of liquid. A waste valve (or an exit valve) connected to said inlet section and configured to abruptly close when the dynamic pressure of flowing liquid engaged with said waste valve reaches a pre-determined limit. An elongated gas section arranged downstream of said waste valve, upon abrupt closing of the waste valve, the flowing liquid in the system is separated into a fast-moving liquid column of water behind the waste valve moving down the said elongated gas section and gas that is partially evaporated from said fast-moving liquid column due to the lowered pressure conditions formed downstream of said waste valve and upstream of said liquid column. A delivery valve connected to said inlet section and configured to open when static pressure inside said inlet section due to the pressure-shockwave increases above the pressure exerted on the delivery valve from the liquid arranged in the pressure chamber. A pressure chamber connected to said delivery valve, allowing flow of liquid from the inlet section and into the pressure chamber when said delivery valve opens. A liquid conduit connected to said pressure chamber for pressurized liquid to exit said pressure chamber and flow through said liquid conduit and to form liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas. The liquid droplets and/or gas are transmitted from the liquid conduit into the area of said gas section proximal to the exit valve. Furthermore, a means of heating is used to heat said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas arranged inside said elongated gas section and/or in the liquid conduit and/or pressure chamber. A gas exhaust section is connected to said elongated gas section for extracting and retaining the heated gas (such as steam) from the system and finally a liquid exit section connected to said elongated gas section for flowing liquid to exit said system.

[0017] The waste valve is configured to open when the pressure differential between the front/upstream of the waste valve (in the inlet section) and behind/downstream of the waste valve (in the elongated gas section) is reduced to a pre-determined limit, wherein the waste valve is similar to an inverted weighted or stiffened non-return valve, meaning that it should only allow liquid to flow in the opposite direction, but because the valve is stiffened it allows water to flow through it in the direction it is conventionally designed to stop, up until the dynamic pressure of the water reaches a certain limit when the valve closes.

[0018] The delivery valve is preferably a non-return valve conventionally oriented and configured to close when the pressure differential in front of the delivery valve (in the inlet section) and behind the delivery valve (in the pressure chamber) reaches a pre-determined limit. In other words, the delivery valve opens when the static pressure inside said inlet section is enough to push said delivery valve open and/or when pressure spikes push the delivery valve open and suddenly close due to the pressure (and weight of the delivery valve) exerted by the liquid arranged inside pressure chamber pushes down on the delivery valve.

[0019] The weight (or stiffness) and the set pressure limits of the two valves is configured and optimized along with other parameters of the system such that the two valves work together to maximize production of heated gas in repeated regular cycles from said flowing liquid. While, the waste valve remains open, the delivery valve remains closed. When the waste valve closes, the delivery valve opens (sometimes repeatedly) allowing pressurized liquid to flow into said pressure chamber. In one embodiment, the waste valve and delivery valve may be selected to be electronic valves used to regulate the flow of liquid through said valves according to factors such as, but not limited to, dynamic pressure, flow rate of liquid or elapsed time. The electronic control of said waste and delivery valves may further comprise suitable sensors equipped to measure aforementioned factors and a connection means to transmit data to an in-situ or remote-control unit for either a manual control or more preferably an automatic pre-programmed means of control.

[0020] The liquid conduit comprises a set of passageways serving as a means for the pressurized liquid arranged inside said pressure chamber to be separated into liquid particles and/or bubbles and/or gas particles to be transmitted into the low-pressure area of the proximal section continually created behind the waste valve. In one embodiment, the set of passageways may be formed from a plurality of narrow pipes, wherein the plurality of narrow pipes may further be coated by a patterned set of abrasive particles/grains or bulges arranged or coated on the innermost surface of said narrow pipes. In one embodiment, the liquid conduit may be comprised of a hollow tube or container of sorts filled with small bodies of any shape, such as pellets, forming narrow passageways for pressurized liquid to flow through inside said container. In yet another embodiment, the set of passageways may be created by constructing the liquid conduit from a porous material. Herein, porous material refers to any material that separates into a solid skeletal part and a plurality of "empty spaces", also referred to as pores, voids or cracks. The pores may be of either regular or irregular shapes (or combination thereof) and of varying size and with any distribution/density of pores, typically characteristic of the manufacturing process of said porous material and/or the chemical structure (crystalline or amorphous) of said material.

[0021] The surface of the inner walls of the set of narrow tubes, the pellets, and/or porous material comprise a material that exhibits triboelectric properties when engaged with flowing liquid droplets, bubbles and/or gas particles for charging said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles flowing through said liquid conduit. While charging said liquid and/or gas, the opposite charge (i.e., opposite to the sign of the charge of the charged liquid and/or gas particles) accumulates on the surface of the narrow tubes and/or pellets and/or porous material. In one embodiment, electrons are transferred from the liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles to the triboelectric narrow tubes and/or pellets and/or porous material such that the walls become negatively charged and the liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles become positively charged. In this embodiment, the triboelectric material is preferably selected as a strongly electron receiving material. In one embodiment, the triboelectric material may be selected from a group of materials comprising; polymers such as, but not limited to, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), low-to-high density polyethylene and polypropylene, silicone polymers or metals such as copper or to be of rock types such as perlite and pumice.

[0022] The inner wall of said elongated gas section (or portion thereof) comprises a piezoelectric material forming charged inner surface the oppositely charged outer surface of said elongated gas section with respect to the charge of the inner walls, when the pressure inside said elongated gas section suddenly drops caused by the shockwaves and the formation of a liquid column. In one embodiment, the inlet section may also comprise a piezoelectric material for charging the outer surface of said inlet section during said pressure fluctuations. The piezoelectric material may be selected from a group of materials comprising; silicone dioxide (quartz), lead zirconate titanate (PZT), Topaz, Tourmaline and various types of ceramic crystals.

[0023] In one embodiment, the means of heating said gas comprises a process of electrical breakdown caused by the high electric field induced by charged inner surface of said elongated gas section and the oppositely charged liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles that are transmitted into said proximal region of the elongated gas section from the liquid conduit. In one embodiment, additional means of heating may be included such as, but not limited to, electrical heating, friction heating, vibrational heating, and/or induction heating in the said gas section and/or said liquid conduit and/or pressure chamber.

[0024] Additionally, the triboelectric material within the liquid conduit, the outer surface of the elongated gas section and/or the outer surface of the inlet section may be connected via loads to the ground and/other parts of system to form an electric circuit. This produced electricity can be harnessed to further increase temperature or pressure of the gas or to power sensors such as, temperature sensors and flow meters, a connection means or a transmitter for data transfer to a remote-control unit such as a receiving computer, lighting fixtures and heating elements.

[0025] The pressure chamber preferably comprises a dampener to partially absorb the pressure waves opening the delivery valve and mitigating damage to the inlet section and pressure chamber, wherein dampener is air or an elastomer-like object that is compressible and expandable such as, but not limited to, an elastic balloon or a bladder that may be filled with air. The dampener inside said pressure chamber may become compressed as pressurized liquid flows into said pressure chamber and provide counter pressure to the flowing pressurized liquid as the dampener begins to expand again. This effect supplements keeping the delivery valve securely closed between pressure spikes that occur in the inlet section.

[0026] In one embodiment of the present invention, a part of the heated gas is extracted through the gas exit section and re-used to heat the liquid arranged in the pressure chamber (and/or liquid conduit) to further increase the temperature of the produced heated gas (such as steam) in return for less heated gas being produced.

[0027] In one embodiment of the present invention, the liquid is selected to be water and said gas is hence water in gaseous phase, and hence heated gas is steam. In other embodiments, the liquid may be selected as any compound in liquid form, any mixture of liquids or any solution that preferably remain in liquid phase under ambient condition.

[0028] The liquid supply may be positioned at a location of higher potential energy than said system, or more precisely at a location of higher potential energy than said waste valve, delivery valve and water exit such that said liquid flows down said inlet section, picking up momentum, due to the gravitational force acting on said liquid. Therefore, the inlet section is configured at a descending angle, wherein the acceleration of flowing liquid down said inlet section increases with increasing descending angle. Alternatively, the liquid supply may be selected as a supply of (highly) pressurized liquid, wherein the momentum of flowing liquid through said inlet section is then generated by the pressure difference between the liquid supply and the liquid exit section. In this embodiment, the inlet section and vapor section may be aligned horizontally.

[0029] In the second aspect of the present invention, a method for producing heated gas from stopping the flow of liquid is provided, said method comprises the following steps; allowing liquid to flow from a source of liquid through a pipe comprising a delivery valve and a waste valve, wherein said waste valve separates said pipe into an inlet section and an elongated gas section. Closing said waste valve and forming a moving liquid column behind (downstream to) said waste valve inside said elongated gas section and pressurized liquid in front of said waste valve. Evaporating parts of said liquid column and forming gas in a low-pressure proximal region arranged in said elongated gas section, downstream to said closed waste valve and upstream of said liquid column. Temporarily opening said delivery valve and directing flow of said pressurized liquid into a pressure chamber. Pushing said pressurized liquid from said pressure chamber into a liquid conduit connected to said proximal region, wherein said liquid conduit converts pressurized liquid to liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles, transmitting said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles into said proximal region, and combining said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles with said evaporated gas from said liquid column, heating the combined gas arranged in said proximal region to form heated gas. Opening said closed waste valve to allow liquid to flow into said elongated gas section again pushing and pressurizing the heated gas toward and out of a gas exhaust section or a steam exit section. The heated gas (or gas pocket) and indirectly said liquid column are pushed downstream said elongated gas section by liquid previously halted by the closed waste valve.

[0030] The process of the present invention is repeated to produce a plurality of liquid columns and heated gas columns, wherein said plurality of liquid columns exit through a liquid exit section of said pipe and said heated gas columns or pockets are extracted and harnessed through a gas exhaust system.

[0031] In one embodiment of the present invention, said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles to be transmitted into said proximal region become electrically charged when flowing through said liquid conduit. The inner surface of said proximal region of said elongated gas section becomes oppositely charged (in respect to the electrically charged flowing liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles exiting or transmitted from said liquid conduit) when said low-pressure proximal region is formed. Then, transmission of charged liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles into said proximal space of said elongated gas section induces electrical breakdown which causes the combined gas arranged in said proximal space to be heated. Furthermore, additional means of heating may be used to heat up the combined gas such as, electrical heating, induction heating, vibrational heating or frictional heating.

[0032] The liquid conduit and elongated gas section are electrically connected to the ground and/or to other parts of the system through at least one electrical load for producing and harnessing electrical power, wherein the liquid conduit is oppositely charged to said flowing liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles and the outer surface of said elongated gas section are oppositely charged to said inner surface of said elongated gas section. The flowing liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles inside said liquid conduit are charged by abrasion with triboelectric material comprising the innards of the liquid conduit and the triboelectric material thus becomes oppositely charged. The elongated gas section comprise a piezoelectric material such that said inner surface of the elongated gas section becomes electrically charged during the rapid drop in pressure caused by said shockwaves, respectively, and the outer surface of said elongated gas section becomes oppositely charged. In one embodiment, the flowing liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles are positively charged and hence the liquid conduit accumulates negative charge. While the inner surface of said elongated gas section is negatively charged and hence said outer surface of said elongated gas section becomes positively charged. In one embodiment, the inlet section may comprise a piezoelectric material and may oscillate between polarity because of the shockwaves.

[0033] In yet another embodiment, the triboelectric material of said liquid conduit becomes negatively charged, the outer surface of the gas section comprising the piezoelectric material becomes mainly positively charged and the outer surface of the inlet section has a charge oscillating at the resonance frequency of the system. The electrically charged parts of the system may be connected via load to the ground and/or other parts of the system to form an electric circuit that harnesses the produced electric power. Herein, the term "load" refers to an electrical load or a component of an electrical circuit that consumes electrical energy such as, but not limited to, resistive loads, inductive load, capacitive load or combination thereof.

DEFINITIONS

[0034] As used herein, including in the claims, singular forms of terms are to be construed as also including the plural form and vice versa, unless the context indicates otherwise. Thus, it should be noted that as used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0035] Throughout the description and claims, the terms "comprise", "including", "having", and "contain" and their variations should be understood as meaning "including but not limited to", and are not intended to exclude other components.

[0036] The present invention also covers the exact terms, features, values and ranges etc. in case these terms, features, values and ranges etc. are used in conjunction with terms such as about, around, generally, substantially, essentially, at least etc. (i.e., "about 3" shall also cover exactly 3 or "substantially constant" shall also cover exactly constant).

[0037] The term "at least one" should be understood as meaning "one or more", and therefore includes both embodiments that include one or multiple components. Furthermore, dependent claims that refer to independent claims that describe features with "at least one" have the same meaning, both when the feature is referred to as "the" and "the at least one".

[0038] It will be appreciated that variations to the foregoing embodiments of the invention can be made while still falling within the scope of the invention. Features disclosed in the specification, unless stated otherwise, can be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose. Thus, unless stated otherwise, each feature disclosed represents one example of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

[0039] Use of exemplary language, such as "for instance", "such as", "for example" and the like, is merely intended to better illustrate the invention and does not indicate a limitation on the scope of the invention unless so claimed. Any steps described in the specification may be performed in any order or simultaneously unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0040] All the features and/or steps disclosed in the specification can be combined in any combination, except for combinations where at least some of the features and/or steps are mutually exclusive. Preferred features of the invention are applicable to all aspects of the invention and may be used in any combination.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0041] 

Figure 1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention used to produce heated gas and harness produced electricity from abruptly stopping flowing liquid.

Figure 2. illustrates how the produced heated gas becomes sandwiched between two liquid columns and is pushed downstream and extracted through the gas exhaust section.

Figure 3. illustrates another embodiment of the present invention, wherein the liquid conduit is constructed from a set of narrow pipes.

Figure 4. shows an embodiment wherein the different sections of the present invention comprise a layered structural composition.

Figure 5. illustrates schematically how in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the system is connected to a water reservoir located at a position of high-potential energy in a rough or hilly terrain.

Figure 6. illustrates schematically how an embodiment of the present invention may be connected to a supply of pressurized liquid.

Figure 7. illustrates a simple conventional hydraulic ram pump.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0042] In the following, exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described, referring to the figures. These examples are provided to provide further understanding of the invention, without limiting its scope. In the following description, a series of steps are detailed. The skilled person will appreciate that unless required by the context, the order of steps is not critical for the resulting configuration and its effect. Further, it will be apparent to the skilled person that irrespective of the order of steps, the presence or absence of time delay between steps, can be present between some or all of the described steps.

[0043] Figure 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention, wherein a drive pipe is connected to a supply of liquid (1) positioned at a point of higher elevation than said drive pipe. The pipe or a tube is connected to said supply of liquid (1) at a descending angle such that liquid flows from the supply of liquid (1) and into an inlet section (2) of said pipe. The pipe may comprise a mechanical or electrical valve at or near the point of connection to the supply of liquid (not shown). Moreover, said valve may be used to control the rate of flow of liquid into said inlet section (2). When said mechanical or electrical valve is open, the liquid will flow into the said inlet section (2) of said pipe through a configurable inverted one-way waste valve (3) and into an elongated gas section (4) and eventually exit said embodiment through a liquid exit section (5). In this embodiment, the inlet section (2) and elongate gas section (4) are arranged at the same descending angle relative to the ground. While the liquid exit section (5) is approximately parallel to the ground. In the preferred embodiment, the length of the elongated gas section (4) is substantially longer than that of the inlet section (2) to accommodate the volume of produced gas inside said elongated gas section (4), as most of the energy required for the production of the heated gas is transforming the liquid to its gaseous form and also so that the system sufficiently depletes the kinetic energy from each column of water.

[0044] As the liquid flows through the inlet section (2), it gains momentum, increasing the dynamical pressure of the flowing liquid. When the dynamical pressure reaches a certain pre-determined dynamical pressure limit characteristic of the configurable waste valve (3), said waste valve (3) closes rapidly to restrict further flow of liquid through said configurable waste valve (3) and into the elongated gas section (4). The configurate waste valve (3) is further configured to re-open when the pressure differential between the front (upstream) and behind (downstream) becomes favourable, i.e., when the pressure exerted by the liquid engaged with the front of the waste valve drops and becomes unable to accommodate the weight of the waste valve (3).

[0045] With further flow of liquid into the elongated gas section (4) restricted, the liquid already arranged inside said elongated gas section (4) is converted into a moving column of liquid and further traverses down the elongated gas section (4) causing a near vacuum / low pressure space to form in the proximal region to the waste valve (3), between the waste valve (3) and the liquid column. An instantaneous change in momentum of the flowing liquid occurs when the waste valve (3) is closed which results in pressure shockwaves traversing through the inlet section (2) and down the elongated gas section (4).

[0046] The pressure shockwaves traversing in the elongated gas section (4) and the momentum of the liquid column traveling down it causes the pressure of the liquid column to decrease, in particular in the proximal region to the waste valve (3) resulting in rapid deacceleration of the entire liquid column. Due to the low-pressure conditions the liquid column begins to evaporate into said proximal region of the elongated gas section (4).

[0047] Liquid will continuously flow from the liquid supply along the inlet section (2) and engage with said closed waste valve (3) building up static pressure in front of said waste valve (3). The build-up of static pressure inside said inlet section (2) and/or because of the shockwaves will result in repeated openings of a configurable one-way delivery valve (6) arranged at or in vicinity to the lower end of said inlet section (2) and the waste valve (3). The repeated openings of the delivery valve (6) allowing (highly) pressurized liquid to flow into a pressure chamber (7). The flow of pressurized liquid into said pressure chamber (7) aids in relieving build-up of static pressure in front of said waste valve (3) inside said inlet section (2). The fluid levels inside said pressure chamber (7) begin to rise and compress a dampener (8) arranged inside said pressure chamber, wherein said compressed dampener (8) provides counter-pressure to said flowing pressurized liquid, pushing it into the opposite direction to the flow. The high-pressure differential between the pressure chamber (7) and the gaseous section (4) cause pressurized liquid to exit said pressure chamber (7) and to enter a liquid conduit (9) connected to said pressure chamber (7). The pressure in the pressure chamber further aids in keeping the configurable one-way delivery valve (6) in a closed configuration in between shockwave pulses and thus only allowing liquid to flow into the pressure chamber (7) when pressure on the other side of the delivery valve (6) is higher. The dampener additionally serves as a mitigator to dampen the impact of the shockwaves traversing through the system. In this embodiment, the dampener is selected as air or an air-like mixture. Alternatively, the dampener may be selected as an inflatable/compressible object such as an elastic bladder or an elastic balloon. In yet another embodiment, the dampener may be selected as an elastic diaphragm or by using a snifting valve.

[0048] The configurable delivery valve (6) and configurable waste valve (3) are configured to work collectively to efficiently produce heated gas or steam, wherein the configurable delivery valve (6) remains closed while the configurable waste valve (3) is open. When the waste valve (3) closes, the configurable delivery valve (6) continually opens to let liquid flow into said pressure chamber (7). The shockwaves travels upstream the inlet section (2) to the liquid supply (1), wherein they are dampened by the ambient conditions and also converted to downward travelling suction pulses, relieving the static pressure build-up in front of said waste valve (3) causing the waste valve (3) to be re-opened when pressure in the gas section (4) has increased again. This process harvests the shockwaves in front of the waste valve (3) to maintain a supply of pressurized liquid in a pressure chamber (7) via the delivery valve. The process also repeatedly produces gas using low pressure condition behind the waste valve (3) in the elongated gas section (4).

[0049] The liquid conduit (9) comprises a material with porous structure (10) (shown as an inset), wherein the pores serve as either irregular or regular passageways for the pressurized liquid before being transmitted into the proximal region of said elongated gas section (4), when said proximal region is occupied by evaporated gas particles from the liquid column. The pressurized liquid is pushed through said liquid conduit (9) due to a pressure gradient between the pressurized liquid arranged in the pressure chamber (7) and the low-pressure conditions inside said proximal region. In the present embodiment, the pores are of small enough diameter (or at least a portion of the pores) to separate the pressurized liquid and form liquid droplets, bubbles and/or gas particles to be transmitted into said proximal region.

[0050] In one embodiment, electrical charge is harnessed by connecting the outer surface of the inlet section (2) made of piezoelectric material to ground via load. In one embodiment, electrical charge is harnessed by connecting the outer surface of the elongated gas section (4) via load to ground. In one embodiment, electrical charge is harnessed by connecting the porous structure (10) within the liquid conduit (9) exhibiting triboelectric properties such that it becomes electrically charged when interacting with the flowing liquid to via load to ground. In one embodiment, the liquid is connected to ground at the liquid source (1) and/or at the liquid exit (5).

[0051] The electrically charged liquid, transported through said liquid conduit (9), is sprayed or transmitted into the proximal section of the gas section (4) through a nozzle or nozzle-like openings (12). The nozzle-like openings may be selected as a separate component comprising a narrow passageway or be a part of the porous structure.

[0052] In this embodiment, the inner surface of the elongated gas section (4) is at least partially constructed of or coated with a piezoelectric material. The piezoelectric material is preferably a crystalline structure designed to accumulate electrical charge in response to a rapid drop in pressure within said gas section (4) and resulting force applied to its walls. Therefore, when the configurable waste valve (3) is abruptly closed and a sudden decrease in pressure occurs within the proximal region of the elongated gas section (4), charge separation occurs in said piezoelectrical crystal within the low-pressure region. In one embodiment, the inner surface, pointing towards the hollow space of said elongated gas section (4), of said piezoelectric material becomes negatively charged, while the outer surface becomes positively charged.

[0053] When the electrically charged fluid (liquid droplets, bubbles and/or gas particles) is transmitted from the nozzle-like opening (12) and into the proximal region of the elongated gas section (4), an electrical breakdown occurs for the electrically charged fluid arranged inside said proximal region due to the large voltage difference between the charged particles and inversely charged inner surface of the elongated gas section (4) comprising the piezoelectric material. In one embodiment, additional heating elements may be included and arranged at or around the elongated gas section (4) (or parts thereof) and/or the liquid conduit (9) and/or the pressure chamber (7) such as, but not limited to, an electrical heating unit, an induction heating unit.

[0054] When the waste valve (3) opens again and additional liquid flows from the inlet section (2) and into the elongated gas section (4), the accelerating liquid will serve to compress and push the heated gas arranged inside said proximal region and indirectly the previously formed liquid column downstream in the elongated gas section (4). The heated gas and said previously formed liquid column get pushed downstream said elongated gas section (4), the heated gas will eventually engage with and be extracted through a gas exhaust section (13), wherein said gas exhaust section (13) is connected to the elongated gas section (4), preferably near the lower end of said elongated gas section (4), one or more liquid columns may need to be arranged inside said elongated gas section (4) and said liquid exit section (5) to provide enough weight/pressure to push said heated gas downstream to said gas exhaust section (13). In this embodiment, the gas exhaust section (13) comprises a one-way valve to ensure only heated gas is extracted through said gas exhaust section (13) and that heated pressurized gas does not return into the elongated gas section (4) or liquid exit section (5) when pressure in those sections drops during the next cycle of the system. The extracted heated gas can then be further processed or directly applied to industrial, commercial, or residential applications which require heated gas or steam. In one embodiment, the gas exhaust section (13) may be connected to a gas collection unit (not shown), wherein heated gas is collected and further heated and/or pressurized and/or processed prior to being used in various applications.

[0055] The previously formed liquid column eventually exits the system through the liquid exit section (5) due to a combination of previous momentum, gravitational forces, the additional pressure created in the elongated gas section (4) as the gas is heated up and as the gas in the elongated gas chamber (4) is augmented with liquid and/or gas entering from the liquid conduit (9) and because of indirect pressure exerted by the next column of liquid on the sandwiched hot gas.

[0056] During the process of liquid flowing through said liquid conduit (9), the triboelectric material becomes electrically charged which is harnessed by electrically connecting the triboelectric material via load to ground or other parts of the system (14). During the sudden pressure drop in the proximal region of the elongated gas section (4) (after abrupt closing of said waste valve (3)), the outer surface of the piezoelectric material becomes electrically charged which may be harnessed by connecting its outward surface of the elongated gas section (4) via load to ground or other parts of the system (14). The outer wall of the inlet section (2) may, if made in part or full of piezoelectric material, also be electrically connected via load to ground or other parts of the system to harness the generated electricity. The electrical circuits may be used to produce and harness electricity with electrical loads (14). The flow of electric current generated by the system, can be used to power electrical loads such as, but not limited to, sensors, a connection means to a remote-control unit and/or lighting fixtures. In one embodiment, the electricity may be used to aid in powering a heating element to increase the temperature and hence the pressure in different parts of the embodiment or be used to provide further heating for the heated gas. In some embodiments, the use of rectifier is needed to convert the alternating current to direct current. Furthermore, additional grounding may be required in different parts of the system such as, but not limited to, the liquid at its exit (5) or its supply (1).

[0057] Figure 2 shows only a part of the present invention and is used to illustrate how the heated gas (15) and a previously formed liquid column (18) are pushed by the next liquid column (17) downstream said elongated gas section (4) to the gas exhaust section (13) and liquid exit section (5), respectively.

[0058] To begin with liquid flows from the liquid supply (1) to an inlet section (2) arranged at a descending angle. The liquid flows through an open waste valve (3) and into an elongated gas section (4). When the momentum of the flowing liquid reaches a certain point, the configurable waste valve abruptly closed by the pressure exerted on said waste valve (3) by the flowing liquid. In one embodiment of the system, the waste valve is closed electronically at regular intervals or when the liquid's momentum reaches a predetermined level.

[0059] With flow restricted through said waste valve (3), the liquid already present in said elongated gas section (4) forms a fast moving liquid column (18). The liquid column continues to traverse downstream said elongated gas section (4) establishing low-pressure conditions upstream of said liquid column (18), in the proximal region of said waste valve (3). As the liquid column (18) continues to move toward said liquid exit section (5) with steadily decreasing dynamic pressure it rapidly deaccelerates.

[0060] Once the pressure differential in front of (inside said inlet section (2)) and behind (inside sad elongated gas section (4)) the configurable waste valve (3) becomes favourable, the waste valve (3) opens and liquid is again allowed to flow from said liquid supply (1) through said waste valve (3) and into said elongated gas section (4). The heated gas therefore becomes sandwiched between the newly flowing liquid and the previously formed deaccelerated liquid column (16) forming an increasingly compressed moving pocket of heated gas traveling toward the gas exit (13).

[0061] As the waste valve opens (3) gravitational force will accelerate and increase the momentum of the second column of liquid (17) previously halted in the inlet section which in turn pushes the heated gas pocket (15) and the previous liquid column (16) downstream said elongated gas section (4), wherein the heated gas pocket/column is extracted via the gas exhaust section (13) the two columns of liquid (19 and 18) come into contact with each other and travel further downstream toward the liquid exit section (5).

[0062] Figure 3 shows another embodiment of the present invention, wherein a different arrangement of the configurable waste valve (3) and the configurable delivery valve (6) is used compared to the previous embodiment. In this embodiment, the waste valve (3) is arranged perpendicular to the inlet section (2). Nevertheless, the two configurable valves and their settings are collectively adjusted such that the system is capable of continually producing heated gas. Moreover, in this embodiment, the highly pressurized liquid will flow through said delivery valve (6) and into the pressure chamber (7), from which the liquid flows into the liquid conduit (9), wherein the liquid conduit (9) comprises a set of narrow tubes (18).

[0063] The narrow tubes (18) may be packed into said liquid conduit (9) in any suitable manner and/or be of any suitable shape as will be recognized by a person skilled in the art (shown by cross-sectional view of the liquid conduit as an inset). The small diameter of the narrow tubes (18) will serve to convert said pressurized liquid into liquid droplets, bubbles and/or gas particles (collectively referred to as a fluid) flowing through said liquid conduit (9).

[0064] The narrow tubes (18) serve as passageways for the fluid, to be transmitted into the proximal region arranged inside said elongated gas section (4). The fluid is then sprayed or transmitted from the liquid conduit (9) and into said proximal section of the elongated gas section (4) through a nozzle such as, but not limited to, an electrostatic nozzle (19). The electrostatic nozzle increases the velocity of the fluid particles and lowers the static pressure of said fluid inducing further evaporation of said particles during and shortly after said transmission. In one embodiment, a valve can be arranged on said liquid conduit (9) to regularize the flow of fluid from said liquid conduit (9) to the nozzle (19). In yet another embodiment, the set of narrow tubes (18) may simply include a tapered end acting as a nozzle, wherein the fluid particles are transmitted into the proximal section of the elongated gas section (4) through said tapered end.

[0065] In this embodiment, the inner walls of said plurality of narrow tubes (18) are constructed or coated from a triboelectric material such that charge transfer occurs between the flowing liquid and the triboelectric material when said pressurized flowing liquid engages with the triboelectric surface of the narrow tubes (18). In one embodiment, the triboelectric material may become negatively charged, while the droplets and gas particles become positively charged. The inner surface of the triboelectric walls or coating may include a rough surface to maximize abrasive effects such as, but not limited to, incorporating abrasive triboelectric particles on the surface of the inner walls. The positively charged fluid particles are then heated by electrical breakdown when transmitted into the elongate gas section (4). In this embodiment, the liquid conduit (9) is electrically grounded (14) via load to alleviate the build-up of charge or static electricity and/or for harnessing of electrical energy.

[0066] Figure 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a pipe or a hollow tube (20) used for all or any of the sections of the present invention used to carry liquid and/or gas and/or heated gas. In this embodiment, the profile of said hollow tube (20) is round. However, in other embodiments, the profile may be of polygonal shape such as, but not limited to, a square or pentagonal shape. Furthermore, different sections of the present invention may comprise different profiles. In this embodiment, the structure of said hollow tube comprises a two-layer structure comprising an inner layer (22) enclosing the hollow space (21) within the hollow tube (20) and an outer layer (23). The inner-most layer (22) of the hollow tube (20) is in direct contact with the liquid and/or gas and/or heated gas flowing through said hollow tube (20). The inner and/or outer layer (or surface) may comprise a piezoelectric material or be coated by an erosion resistant material. In one embodiment, the second outer layer (25) is used to increase the structural integrity of the hollow tube (20) and/or to generate an electrical circuit by harnessing the electrical charge generated on the outer layer of the piezo electric material and may therefore comprise materials such as, but not limited to, high grade steel or other iron alloys, aluminium and/or durable plastic polymers or mixtures thereof. In one embodiment of the present invention, a thermal insulation layer may be added to the interior or exterior of the second structural layer (23), especially around the elongated gas section and the gas exhaust section carrying the heated gas to prevent heat from being dissipated into the environment. In yet another embodiment, a protective layer to absorb the shockwave energy from the shockwaves caused by the abruptly closing waste valve may be included to protect the structural layer. The shockwave layer preferably comprises a viscoelastic solid material that can absorb the energy of the shockwave, while also returning to its original shape after absorbing said shockwave energy.

[0067] Figure 5 illustrates a typical use for an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the system is connected to a liquid supply (1) comprising water such as a lake, river, spring, or the like. The water is located at a point of higher elevation than said embodiment such as in a mountainous, hilly or rough terrain (24). When the inlet section (2) is connected to said liquid supply or water supply (1), water begins to flow down-hill along said inlet section (2), gaining momentum due to the gravitational potential energy of the water being converted into kinetic energy. The change in momentum of said flowing water is dependent on the descending angle (labelled as Φ) and other factors such as the diameter of said inlet section (2). The configurable waste valve (not shown) is configured to open according to a desired momentum (or dynamical pressure) of the flowing water such that a minimal amount of gravitational potential energy is wasted and maximized efficiency of the system and such that the mass and head of the water engaged with and pushing on the closed configurable waste valve is not too large for it to be able to re-open after one cycle of gas generation or for the repeated pressure shockwaves to cause structural damage to the waste valve or the water inlet (2). Therefore, in the preferred embodiment, the configurable waste valve is optimally located at an elevation not too far from the liquid supply (1). In this embodiment, the configurable delivery valve, pressure chamber and water conduit are grouped together into a single unit or container (25) connected on the outset of the inlet section (2) and to the elongated gas section (4). The descending angle (labelled as 8), diameter and length of the elongated gas section (4) and other parameters of the system are selected to maximize the efficiency of the system in hot gas generation. The descending angle of the inlet section (Φ) and the descending angle of the gas section (Θ) may differ. The inlet section (2), the elongated gas section (4) and water exit section (5) need not be straight and can somewhat accommodate for curvature in landscape although such curvature negatively impacts the overall efficiency of the system. The formed water columns arranged inside said elongated gas section (4) are pushed downstream to the liquid exit section (5) and will exit said embodiment through an opening of said liquid exit section (26) typically into a lower reservoir, river or a water distribution system. In this embodiment, the produced heated gas is pushed downstream within said elongated gas section (4) and through said gas exhaust section (13) into a heated gas or steam storage container (27). In this embodiment, the heated gas storage container and/or the gas exhaust section (13) comprise an additional heating element to maintain the temperature and hence pressure of the heated gas. The produced heated gas may then be transferred through a distribution network (28) for industrial use (29) or to supply residential areas (30) with central heating. In an alternative embodiment, the heated gas may be brought directly from said gas exhaust section and into such industrial applications or residential areas.

[0068] Figure 6 shows an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the source of liquid (1) comprises highly pressurized liquid (1). In this embodiment, the highly pressurized liquid will flow rapidly into said inlet section (2) until sufficient momentum of flowing liquid is obtained to abruptly close said configurable waste valve (3) initiating the production of heated gas. In this embodiment, the pipes comprising the inlet section (2), gas section (4) and liquid exit section (5) are all aligned in an (approximately) horizontal fashion of varying length and diameter.

[0069] Figure 7 shows a simple prototypical hydraulic ram pump in comparison to the present invention, wherein the hydraulic ram pump is used to pump water to a position of higher elevation than said water source (1) through a delivery pipe (32) connected to a pressure chamber (7). Hence, water flows from said water source (1) down along an inlet line (2), flows past a closed delivery valve (6), through an open a waste valve (3) and exits the system through a water exhaust (31). When the dynamic pressure of said flowing water reaches a certain point, the waste valve (3) is abruptly closed, causing hydrostatic pressure to swiftly increase in front of said delivery valve (6) and sending shockwaves or pressure waves through the system allowing water to enter said pressure chamber (7) further comprising air (8) as a dampener, through the temporarily open delivery valve (6). The water arranged inside said pressure chamber (7) is then pushed up the delivery pipe (32) against gravitational force and transported to position of higher elevation. In a conventional hydraulic ram pump, majority of the flowing water exits the pump through the water exhaust (31) and only a portion of the water gets transported to its target destination through the delivery pipe.

CLAUSES:

[0070] 

1. A system for producing and harnessing heated gas by stopping the motion of flowing liquid, wherein said system comprises;

a. an inlet section connected to a supply of liquid,

b. a waste valve connected to said inlet section and configured to abruptly close when the dynamic pressure of flowing liquid engaged with said waste valve reaches a pre-determined limit,

c. an elongated gas section connected to and arranged downstream of said waste valve, allowing a moving liquid column to be formed inside said elongated gas section upon closing of the waste valve, wherein the liquid column becomes partially evaporated to form gas due to the lowered pressure conditions obtained in the proximal region to the waste valve behind said moving liquid column,

d. a delivery valve connected to said inlet section, configured to open and allowing flow of pressurized liquid from the inlet section to enter into a pressure chamber when static pressure inside said inlet section becomes higher than the pressure in a pressure chamber,

e. a pressure chamber connected to said delivery valve containing pressurized liquid,

f. a liquid conduit connected to said pressure chamber for pressurized liquid to flow through and be transmitted into said proximal region to the waste valve,

g. a means of heating gas arranged inside said proximal region to form heated gas,

h. a gas exhaust section connected to said elongated gas section for extracting heated gas from said system,

i. a liquid exit section connected to said elongated gas section for removing the moving liquid column from said system.

2. The system according to clause 1, wherein said liquid is selected as water and said gas as steam (water in gaseous phase).

3. The system according to clause 1, wherein said waste valve is an inverted and weighted one-way valve and said delivery valve is conventionally oriented one-way valve.

4. The system according to clause 1, wherein said waste valve and said delivery valve are configured to work collectively and continually to produce gas inside said elongated gas section.

5. The system according to clause 1, wherein said liquid conduit comprises a set of narrow tubes or porous material or a hollow container filled with individual bodies.

6. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein said individual bodies are selected to be pellets.

7. The system according to clause 5, wherein the surface of the set of narrow tubes and/or porous material and/or individual bodies comprises triboelectric material such that said flowing liquid or gas is charged when flowing through and engaged with the surface of said triboelectric material and the opposite charge accumulates in said triboelectric material.

8. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein the triboelectric material is selected from a group comprising; polymers such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), silicone, metals such as copper and various types of porous rock including perlite and pumice.

9. The system according to clause 1, wherein the inlet section and/or elongated gas section (or portion thereof) comprises a piezoelectric material configured to charge its inside surface when pressure fluctuates or drops, while accumulating the opposite charge on the outer surface of said gas section and/or inlet section.

10. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein the piezoelectric material is selected from a group of materials comprising; silicone dioxide (quartz), lead zirconate titanate (PZT), Topaz, Tourmaline and various types of ceramic crystals.

11. The system according to clause 1, wherein the means of heating said gas comprises a process of electrical breakdown caused by the voltage difference induced by the charged inner surface of said elongated gas section and the oppositely charged liquid and/or gas entering the elongated gas section through the liquid conduit.

12. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein the means of heating may further comprise electrical heating or frictional heating or vibrational heating or induction heating.

13. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein a part of the heated gas from the steam exit is re-used to heat the liquid in the pressure chamber to further increase the temperature of the produced steam.

14. The system according to any of the preceding clause, wherein said system further comprises an electrical circuit connecting via ground or to other parts of the system such as the liquid conduit comprising the triboelectric material, the outer surface of said elongated gas section comprising the piezoelectric material, and the outer surface of said inlet section for producing and harnessing electricity.

15. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein the produced electricity is used to power sensors or connection means to a remote control-unit or lighting or said means of heating.

16. The system according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein said liquid supply is positioned at an elevated position relative to said system.

17. The system according to the preceding clause, wherein said system is configured at a descending angle, allowing liquid to accelerate and flow through said inlet section because of gravitational force.

18. The system according to any of the preceding clause, wherein said liquid supply is a supply of pressurized liquid.

19. A method for producing heated gas from the stopping of flowing liquid, said method comprising the following steps;

a. allowing liquid to flow from a source of liquid through a pipe comprising a delivery valve and a waste valve, wherein said waste valve separates said pipe into an inlet section and an elongated gas section,

b. closing said waste valve and forming a moving liquid column behind (downstream to) said waste valve inside said elongated gas section and pressurized liquid in front of said waste valve,

c. evaporating parts of said liquid column and forming gas in a low-pressure proximal region arranged in said elongated gas section, downstream to said closed waste valve and upstream of said liquid column,

d. temporarily opening said delivery valve and directing flow of said pressurized liquid into a pressure chamber,

e. transmitting said pressurized liquid from said pressure chamber into a liquid conduit connected to said proximal region, wherein said liquid conduit converts pressurized liquid to liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles,

f. transmitting said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles into said proximal region,

g. heating said gas arranged in said proximal region to form heated gas.

h. Opening said closed waste valve to allow liquid to flow into said elongated gas section again pushing and pressurizing the heated gas toward and out a steam exit section.

20. The method according to the preceding clause, wherein said process is repeated to produce a plurality of liquid columns and heated gas columns.

21. The method according to the preceding clause, wherein said heated gas column and indirectly said liquid column pushed downstream said elongated gas section by liquid previously halted by the closed waste valve.

22. The method according to the preceding clause, wherein said heated gas pushed downstream is extracted through said system through a gas exhaust system connected to said elongated gas section.

23. The method according to clause 21, wherein said liquid column is pushed downstream along said elongated gas section to a liquid exit section connected to said elongated gas section for exiting said pipe.

24. The method according to clause 19, wherein said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles to be transmitted into said proximal region become electrically charged when flowing through said liquid conduit.

25. The method according to clause 19, wherein the inner surface of said proximal region of said elongated gas section becomes oppositely charged (in respect to the charged flowing liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles exiting said liquid conduit) when said low-pressure proximal region is formed.

26. The method according to clauses 24 and 25, wherein transmission of charged liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles into said proximal space of said elongated gas section with oppositely charged inner surface induces electrical breakdown used for heating of the combined gas arranged in said proximal space.

27. The method according to any one of clauses 19 to 26, wherein additional means of heating is used.

28. The method according to any one of clauses 19 to 27, wherein the liquid conduit and elongated gas section are electrically connected to the ground through at least one load for producing and harnessing electrical power.

Claims

1. A system for producing and harnessing heated gas by stopping the motion of flowing liquid, wherein said system comprises;

a. an inlet section connected to a supply of liquid,

b. a waste valve connected to said inlet section and configured to abruptly close when the dynamic pressure of flowing liquid engaged with said waste valve reaches a pre-determined limit,

c. an elongated gas section connected to and arranged downstream of said waste valve, allowing a moving liquid column to be formed inside said elongated gas section upon closing of the waste valve, wherein the liquid column becomes partially evaporated to form gas due to the lowered pressure conditions obtained in the proximal region to the waste valve behind said moving liquid column,

d. a delivery valve connected to said inlet section, configured to open and allowing flow of pressurized liquid from the inlet section to enter a pressure chamber when static pressure inside said inlet section becomes higher than the pressure in said pressure chamber,

e. a pressure chamber connected to said delivery valve containing pressurized liquid,

f. a liquid conduit connected to said pressure chamber for pressurized liquid to flow through and be transmitted into said proximal region to the waste valve,

g. a means of heating gas arranged inside said proximal region to form heated gas,

h. a gas exhaust section connected to said elongated gas section for extracting heated gas from said system,

i. a liquid exit section connected to said elongated gas section for removing said liquid column.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said liquid is selected as water and said gas is water in gaseous phase and heated gas is steam.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein said waste valve is an inverted and weighted one-way valve and said delivery valve is a conventionally oriented one-way valve.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said liquid conduit comprises a set of narrow tubes or porous material or a hollow container filled with individual bodies or pellets.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the surface of the set of narrow tubes and/or porous material and/or individual bodies comprises triboelectric material such that said pressurized liquid flowing through said triboelectric material is electrically charged when engaged with the surface of said triboelectric material and the opposite electrical charge accumulates in said triboelectric material.

6. The system according to the preceding claim, wherein the triboelectric material is selected from a group comprising; polymers such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), silicone, metals such as copper and various types of porous rock including perlite and pumice.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the inlet section and/or elongated gas section (or portion thereof) comprises a piezoelectric material configured to electrically charge its inside surface when pressure drops or fluctuates, while accumulating the opposite charge on the outer surface of said elongated gas section and/or inlet section.

8. The system according to the preceding claim, wherein the piezoelectric material is selected from a group of materials comprising; silicone dioxide (quartz), lead zirconate titanate (PZT), Topaz, Tourmaline and various types of ceramic crystals.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the means of heating said gas comprises a process of electrical breakdown caused by the voltage difference induced by the electrically charged inner surface of said elongated gas section and the oppositely charged liquid and/or gas entering the elongated gas section through the liquid conduit.

10. The system according to the preceding claim, wherein the means of heating may further comprise electrical heating or frictional heating or vibrational heating or induction heating.

11. The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a part of the heated gas from the steam exit is re-used to heat the liquid in the pressure chamber to further increase the temperature of the produced heated gas.

12. The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said system further comprises an electrical circuit connecting via ground or other parts of the system such as the liquid conduit comprising the triboelectric material, the outer surface of said elongated gas section and the outer surface of said inlet section comprising the piezoelectric material for producing and harnessing electricity.

13. The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said liquid supply is positioned at an elevated position relative to said system such that said system is configured at a descending angle, allowing liquid to accelerate and flow through said inlet section because of gravitational force or wherein said liquid supply is a supply of pressurized liquid allowing liquid to flow through said system because of a pressure differential.

14. A method for producing heated gas from stopping of flowing liquid, said method comprising the following steps;

a. allowing liquid to flow from a source of liquid through a pipe comprising a delivery valve and a waste valve, wherein said waste valve separates said pipe into an inlet section and an elongated gas section,

b. closing said waste valve and forming a moving liquid column behind (downstream to) said waste valve inside said elongated gas section and pressurized liquid in front of said waste valve,

c. evaporating parts of said liquid column and forming gas in a low-pressure proximal region arranged in said elongated gas section, downstream to said closed waste valve and upstream of said liquid column,

d. temporarily opening said delivery valve and directing flow of said pressurized liquid into a pressure chamber,

e. pushing said pressurized liquid from said pressure chamber into a liquid conduit connected to said proximal region, wherein said liquid conduit converts pressurized liquid to liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles,

f. transmitting said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles into said proximal region and combining said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles with said evaporated gas from said liquid column,

g. heating said gas arranged in said proximal region to form heated gas,

h. opening said closed waste valve to allow liquid to flow into said elongated gas section again pushing and pressurizing the heated gas toward and out a gas exhaust section connected to said elongated gas section.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein said liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles to be transmitted into said proximal region are electrically charged when flowing through said liquid conduit and the inner surface of said proximal region of said elongated gas section and the inner surface of said elongated gas section is oppositely charged when said low-pressure proximal region is formed,

16. The method according to claims 14 and 15, wherein said heating of gas is carried out by transmission of charged liquid droplets and/or bubbles and/or gas particles from said liquid conduit into said oppositely charged proximal space of said elongated gas section to induce electrical breakdown and heating said gas.

17. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein additional means of heating is used to heat said combined gas arranged in said proximal space.

Drawing