초록 ▼

An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for draining a liquid. An inner drain body is disposed on a container, with an inner liquid outlet in its lower portion, and an air inlet above and at a radial offset from the inner liquid outlet. An outer drain body is disposed around and below the inn

An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for draining a liquid. An inner drain body is disposed on a container, with an inner liquid outlet in its lower portion, and an air inlet above and at a radial offset from the inner liquid outlet. An outer drain body is disposed around and below the inner drain body, and is adjustably coupled to the inner drain body. An outer liquid outlet is disposed in the outer drain body. A lower seal is disposed below the inner liquid outlet and between the inner drain body and the outer drain body, engaging a lower sealing surface. An upper seal circumscribes the inner liquid outlet and the air inlet, and is disposed between the inner drain body and the outer drain body, engaging an upper sealing surface that extends further beyond the upper seal than the lower sealing surface extends beyond the lower seal.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A fuel-water separator for separating water from fuel and draining the water, the fuel-water separator comprising: a container configured to be in fluid communication with a fuel tank, the container configured to receive fuel distributed from the fuel tank and contain the fuel;a self-venting drai

1. A fuel-water separator for separating water from fuel and draining the water, the fuel-water separator comprising: a container configured to be in fluid communication with a fuel tank, the container configured to receive fuel distributed from the fuel tank and contain the fuel;a self-venting drain apparatus in fluid communication with the container, the self-venting drain apparatus including: an inner drain body disposed on the container;an inner liquid outlet in a lower portion of the inner drain body;an air inlet disposed at a radial offset from the inner liquid outlet and above the inner liquid outlet, the air inlet having a cross-sectional area smaller than a cross-sectional area of the inner liquid outlet;an outer drain body disposed around and below the inner drain body, the outer drain body adjustably coupled to the inner drain body;an outer liquid outlet in the outer drain body, the outer liquid outlet disposed substantially below the inner liquid outlet;a lower seal disposed below the inner liquid outlet and between the inner drain body and the outer drain body, the lower seal engaging a lower sealing surface; andan upper seal circumscribing the inner liquid outlet and the air inlet, the upper seal disposed between the inner drain body and the outer drain body, the upper seal engaging an upper sealing surface that extends further beyond the upper seal than the lower sealing surface extends beyond the lower seal,the self-venting drain apparatus being arranged in connection with the container so as to include a fully closed position, a partially open position configured to allow draining the water separated from the fuel in the container under pressure from a pump, and a fully open position to allow venting air through the air inlet for draining the water separated from the fuel in the container under atmospheric pressure. 2. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, further comprising a fastening means that adjustably couples the outer drain body to the inner drain body. 3. The fuel-water separator of claim 2, wherein the fastening means comprises threading on an interior face of the outer drain body and threading on an exterior face of the inner drain body. 4. The fuel-water separator of claim 2, wherein the fastening means comprises a quarter-turn fastener. 5. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein the lower seal comprises an O-ring circumscribing a lower portion of the inner drain body, the lower portion of the inner drain body, the lower portion extending below the inner liquid outlet. 6. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein the upper seal comprises an O-ring circumscribing an upper portion of the inner drain body. 7. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein the lower seal comprises a face seal. 8. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein the cross-sectional area of the air inlet is about less than one fourth of the cross-sectional area of the inner liquid outlet. 9. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein an inner facing edge of the outer drain body is rounded. 10. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein the inner liquid outlet and the outer liquid outlet are oriented vertically such that the liquid drains along a substantially vertical axis. 11. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein an inner surface of the air inlet is water-repelling. 12. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein at least one of the inner drain body and the outer drain body comprises a metal. 13. The fuel-water separator of claim 12 wherein the metal is selected from the group consisting of zinc and aluminum. 14. The fuel-water separator of claim 1, wherein at least one of the inner drain body and the outer drain body comprises a polymer. 15. A system to separate and drain water from a fuel, the system comprising: a fuel-water separator;a self-venting drain valve comprising: an inner drain body disposed on the fuel-water separator;an inner liquid outlet in a lower portion of the inner drain body;an air inlet disposed at a radial offset from the inner liquid outlet and above the inner liquid outlet, the air inlet having a cross-sectional area smaller than a cross-sectional area of the inner liquid outlet;an outer drain body disposed around and below the inner drain body, the outer drain body adjustably coupled to the inner drain body;an outer liquid outlet in the outer drain body, the outer liquid outlet disposed substantially below the inner liquid outlet;a lower seal disposed below the inner liquid outlet and between the inner drain body and the outer drain body, the lower seal engaging a lower sealing surface; andan upper seal circumscribing the inner liquid outlet and the air inlet, the upper seal disposed between the inner drain body and the outer drain body, the upper seal engaging an upper sealing surface that extends further beyond the upper seal than the lower sealing surface extends beyond the lower seal,the self-venting drain valve being arranged in connection with the fuel-water separator so as to include a fully closed position, a partially open position configured to allow draining the water in the fuel-water separator under pressure from a pump, and a fully open position to allow venting air through the air inlet for draining the water in the fuel-water separator under atmospheric pressure. 16. The system of claim 15, further comprising a water sensor that determines when a predetermined amount of water is present in the fuel-water separator and to send an alert signal in response to the presence of the predetermined amount of water. 17. The system of claim 15, further comprising a fuel tank that stores a hydrocarbon based fuel, and further comprising a lift pump that pumps the hydrocarbon based fuel from the fuel tank to the fuel-water separator. 18. The system of claim 15, further comprising a fuel pump that pumps the hydrocarbon based fuel from the fuel-water separator to an internal combustion engine. 19. The system of claim 18, wherein the hydrocarbon based fuel comprises a diesel fuel and the internal combustion engine comprises a compression ignition engine. 20. A self-venting drain valve to drain a liquid from a fuel-water separator, the self-venting drain valve comprising: a substantially cylindrical inner drain body formed in a container wall of the fuel-water separator;an inner liquid outlet in a lower portion of the inner drain body;an air inlet disposed at a radial offset from the inner liquid outlet and above the inner liquid outlet, the air inlet having a cross-sectional area smaller than a cross-sectional area of the inner liquid outlet;a substantially cylindrical outer drain body disposed around and below the inner drain body, the outer drain body threadably engaging the inner drain body;an outer liquid outlet in the outer drain body, the outer liquid outlet disposed substantially below the inner liquid outlet;threading disposed on an exterior portion of the inner drain body and corresponding threading disposed on an interior portion of the outer drain body, the threading configured to adjustably couple the outer drain body to the inner drain body;a lower O-ring seal circumscribing a portion of the inner drain body extending below the inner liquid outlet, the lower 0-ring seal engaging a lower sealing surface disposed on an inner face of the outer liquid outlet; andan upper O-ring seal circumscribing a portion of the inner drain body above at least a portion of the air inlet, the upper O-ring seal engaging an upper sealing surface disposed on an inner face of the outer drain body, the upper sealing surface extending further beyond the upper O-ring seal than the lower sealing surface extends beyond the lower O-ring seal,the self-venting drain valve being arranged in connection with the container wall so as to include a fully closed position, a partially open position to allow draining the liquid under pressure from a pump, and a fully open position to allow venting air through the air inlet for draining the liquid under atmospheric pressure. 21. The self-venting drain valve of claim 20, wherein the outer drain body is adjustable such that a lower edge of the outer liquid outlet ranges from about 25 millimeters to about 30 millimeters below a lower edge of the air inlet. 22. The self-venting drain valve of claim 20, wherein the air inlet is disposed at least 2 millimeters radially from the inner liquid outlet. 23. The self-venting drain valve of claim 20, wherein the outer liquid outlet is about between 4 and 8 millimeters wide.