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Important Purposes Of Liquids 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.

In the above example, the air was the gas that that the drops of deodorant were dispersed in. However, the definition of a spray allows for liquid to be sprayed into any gas, for example when various liquids are sprayed into the emissions of power plants, to help strip out harmful chemicals.

The name given to the act of turning a liquid into a spray is atomization. Despite the implication, this does not mean that the fluid is actually dispersed as lone atoms, but instead simply as minute liquid globules. By looking at some of the many applications sprays have, some of the more useful properties will be revealed. Because of the great variety of functions for sprays, only a few notable cases will be looked at.

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.

Spray drying is another important process in the manufacturing of edible products. Liquid foods and drinks are dried by spraying them into hot air, which evaporates the moisture and leaves a powder. This procedure is used to create additives like colorings and spices, as well as more common staples such as instant coffee or powdered milk.

While spray drying is perhaps not familiar to the lay person, spray painting is far more widely known. As well as the mundane spray paint can known to all, there are other more advanced forms of spray painting. An interesting variation is electrostatic spray painting, where the paint spray is given an electric charge, and the item to be painted is given an opposite charge so that it will attract the paint. This has clear advantages over brush painting, where it can be very hard to paint into awkward areas.

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.

As can be seen, the familiar but poorly understood concept of the spray touches our lives in numerous and powerful ways, whether that is in the power stations that heat our homes, the food we eat, common products like deodorants and spray paint, or the vehicles that make our world run.




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