Friday, 3 November 2017

Important Applications Of Fluids In Spray Form

By Haywood Hunter


Although most people are familiar with the idea of a spray, it is perhaps less well understood exactly what a spray is. The definition of a spray is a collection of droplets dispersed in a gas. When someone sprays, for example, an aerosol can of deodorant, liquid stored inside the can is scattered as a cloud of fine drops in the air. It can be seen how this fits together with the definition of a spray.

Fleshing out the definition, the liquid in the illustration is of course the deodorant product. Once dispensed, the gas it is distributed within is of course the air. There are also instances where a spray is used in a medium other than air, such as where particular fluids can be sprayed into the fumes of power plants to make them less damaging to the environment.

The process of creating a spray is sometimes called atomization. In practice, the liquids are not literally split down into individual atoms, but rather, small liquid droplets. The significance of changing liquids into this state can be seen by looking at some examples of how sprays are used. Since liquid sprays are used in so many applications, only a selection will be considered.

Sprays are used extensively by companies producing foods and drinks. Spray washers are used to clean fruit and vegetables, while many flavorings and additives are sprayed onto foods. Sprays are very controllable, which helps manufacturers to ensure the correct amount of ingredient is added, for example a little too much spice will make food inedible for some people, so reasonable precision is required. Another advantage of sprays is that they can help ensure a uniform distribution of ingredient is applied over a food product.

Another huge application for sprays within the food and drinks industry involves the process of spray drying. This is the technique used for creating such ubiquitous products as instant coffee, powdered milk, spices, colorings and many others. Because spraying turns a liquid into many tiny particles, these can be dried very quickly in warm air.

A more common and well recognized use of sprays is that of spray painting, although there are more refined examples of this than the simple can of spray paint that immediately comes to mind. Whatever product has to be painted can be made to literally attract the paint, by using electrical charges. The product and the paint are charged oppositely, and this is called electrostatic spray painting. Using this technique can be advantageous where paint has to be applied into tight spots which a paintbrush cannot reach.

One final example of the importance of spray techniques is that of fuel sprays. Fuel sprays are used in a huge variety of engine types, such as petrol, diesel and jet engines, as well as steam boilers and even rocket engines. The fuel is atomized prior to being ignited, and the fact it has been atomized is very important. This maximizes the surface area of the fuel and mixes it with the air, creating the optimum conditions for combustion.

While the finer details of what a spray actually is elude most people, their myriad applications in food manufacture, in generating power, in fueling our engines and also in everyday things like deodorants and spray paint, demonstrates how important they really are.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment