A manually-actuated device for the deliver of a volume of liquid which includes an outlet through which liquid is in use delivered and a cover member which is movably disposed relative to the housing between a first position in which the cover member at least partly covers the outlet and a second position in which the cover member acts as a lever which in use is acted upon by a user to actuate the delivery device.

Equipment (10) for the preparation of a hot beverage comprising a boiler (10) capable of containing a liquid component of the beverage, for example water, a collection container (14) and means (22, 20, 28) defining a delivery path for the liquid component from the boiler to the collection container. The equipment also comprises valve means (40) located along the delivery path for the liquid component comprising a plug (44) which can move between a position in which the delivery path is closed and one in which it is open and means (70, 72; 74, 76; 78) to immobilise the plug in the open position. These means are arranged in such a way that they can be activated and deactivated by a force exerted in the direction of movement of the plug.

A stacked plate chemical reactor in which simple plates, each incorporating no surface features other that an opening, are stacked together. When openings in adjacent plates are properly aligned, a fluid pathway is defined between inlet ports for each chemical reactant and an outlet port for a chemical product. In one embodiment of the invention, sixteen simple plates are stacked to provide a reactor incorporating three heat transfer fluid pathways, two reactant fluid pathways, one product fluid pathway, multiple mixing chambers, multiple reaction chambers, two reactant pretreatment heat exchangers, two reaction chamber heat exchangers, and multiple temperature sensor pathways. Precise dimensional control of the reactant fluid pathway height enables stacked laminar flow paths for the reactants to be achieved, allowing efficient and rapid diffusion mixing to occur. Because the simple plates incorporate no features other than openings, fabrication of such plates is easily achieved. Different reactor designs, having additional reactant pathways, more or fewer heat transfer fluid pathways, more or fewer heat exchangers, more or fewer mixing chambers, more or fewer reaction chambers, and more or fewer sensor pathways can readily be achieved by adding or removing plates from the stack, and/or by changing the pattern and number of openings in the simple plates that are used. The simple plates can be held in the stack during use of the chemical reactor using pressure exerted on opposite outer simple plates of the stack, or can be permanently joined. A preferred material for the fabrication of the plates is stainless steel, although other materials such as glass, plastic, and other metals can alternatively be used, which are compatible with the selected reactants and the desired product.

The present invention is a compact apparatus and method that provides an efficient manner for monitoring the condition and level of a functional fluid directly in operating equipment. A sensor device is provided that includes a plurality of liquid sensors and a plurality of vapor sensors that when used in conjunction with one another at different temperatures, can provide a thorough evaluation of the oxidative degradation, liquid contamination and solid contamination of the fluid to detect the end of the useful life of the fluid. By providing liquid sensors and vapor sensors on the same device, the present invention allows for a compact, efficient, and economically feasible manner to monitor the condition of fluid as well as detecting abnormal operating conditions prior to further component damage and eventual equipment failure.

The present invention relates to an ink composition and a respective varnish, suitable for use in heatset printing, in particular heatset web offset printing, which is suited to avoid fluting during the printing process. The ink composition comprises at least one solvent having a boiling point of from 200°C to 240°C which is present in an amount suited to allow the ink composition to dry at a printed web temperature of from 40°C to 60°C during the printing process to avoid fluting.

A device that may be applied in particular to shutters and similar and that will allow, by means of the rotation of the sole handle (28), the opening of the shutter, the orientation of movable blades (6) and the determination of the blocking in a plurality of different positions by moving rods (18) with the possibility of different interposition of metal plates (55, 56, 63, 66, 66 min ). In variants, i.e. the case of shutters with fix blades (6), the same handle (28) may be used for the sole opening of the shutter, while in the case of fix shutters with movable blades (6) said handle (28) may be used for the sole orientation of blades.

The invention relates to a heat exchanger for motorized vehicles, comprising: at least one heat-conducting conduit for passage of a first medium, a covering of a thermally conducting porous structure connected to an external side of the conduit for passage of a second medium surrounding the conduit.

A sampling device comprising an extraction body (3) with a surface (31), which is partially designed as an abrasion area (1), where the abrasion area consists of microcavities (11) that are regularly or randomly arranged and designed as recesses, where the micro cavities have a smaller depth in a micrometer range and the abrasion area is coated or uncoated depending on application, and the micro cavities are formed by charging, is new. An independent claim is also included for abrasion of a microsample on a surface.

A handheld, small but accurate and reliable device for diagnostic NO measurements using a NO sensor, where the parameters governing the taking of the sample are different from the parameters optimal for the accuracy of said NO sensor is described. By temporarily storing a portion of the exhaled air, and feeding this to the sensor at a flow rate adapted to the NO sensor, the accuracy and sensitivity of a system and/or a method involving NO sensors, can be increased.