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THE VENTURI PROCESS

The venturi process was named after Dr. Giovanni Venturi, an Italian physicist back in the 1700s who discovered that you can decrease the pressure of a fluid in a pipe by reducing the pipe`s diameter with a gradual taper. If you follow this link ( Bernoulli's Principle ), you can see an interactive animation. How we use it is a little different, but it`s still the same basic idea. We take compressed air and pass it over a small opening in the nozzle. This opening leads to a pick-up tube that ends in the high temperature tank where the hot oil is kept. As the air passes over that opening a low pressure area is created. The fuel in the other end is at a different pressure, so the two are going to want to equalize. That hot fuel flows through the pickup tube towards the opening and mixes with the air to produce atomization in the combustion chamber. Just imagine that the air is pulling the fuel out of the tank towards itself, unlike a system that uses a pump. The pump forces the fuel into the combustion chamber instead of drawing it out and allowing it to mix with the air flow.

So what`s the difference between the two, you ask?

Why not just use a pump? Well, with a pump you`re using a mechanical force to move the oil, which creates more of a chance for breakdown. Also, you usually can`t vary the amount of fuel used with a pump whereas in a venturi system you simply adjust the amount of compressed air. There are no moving parts so you don`t have to worry about a mechanical breakdown.

Now when the burner shuts off, you still have that fuel in the lines. What happens to it? Well, if you`re using a pump, the fuel is left there in the tube losing the heat it had before. Problem is you`ll end up with carbon build-up on the inside, constricting the fuel flow and eventually leading to blockage. That`s going to need to be taken care of by a furnace tech which won`t be cheap. Add to that the down time and well, you get the idea. The venturi tubes bypass this problem completely. When the air is cut off the pressure in the tube will want to equalize. Considering that the fuel can`t continue forward, it reverts to the high temperature tank. Now that there`s no fuel in the tubes you don`t have to worry about carbonization on the inside, and you`ve always got hot fuel ready to go. So it`s a win-win situation: There`s no downtime, mo mess, and you don`t have to shell out a lot of money for an expert.

Peak burners exclusively use this method to reduce maintenance and deliver a better product to you. For more information on the visit this link (venturi process).