Liquid purification or separation – Processes – Making an insoluble substance or accreting suspended...
Patent
1997-01-13
1998-09-01
Upton, Christopher
Liquid purification or separation
Processes
Making an insoluble substance or accreting suspended...
210801, 210519, 210521, 2105321, B01D 2108
Patent
active
058007156
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
THIS INVENTION relates to the separation of a suspension into its component parts. It relates in particular to a method of, and separating apparatus for, separating particulate material from a carrier fluid in which it is suspended. It relates also to clarifying means.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of separating particulate material from a carrier fluid in which it is suspended, which method comprises clarified fluid zone thereof; of fluid; fluid zone to pass from the first zone to the second zone through a sub-zone in which at least some separation of particulate material from carrier fluid, against the direction of flow, takes place, with the sub-zone being of smaller cross-sectional area than the body of fluid.
In one embodiment of the invention, the first zone may be a feed zone, with the feeding of the suspension being into the feed zone. However, in another embodiment of the invention, the first zone may be a settling zone, with the feeding of the suspension being effected directly into the sub-zone.
In particular, the particulate material may have a higher density than the carrier fluid so that the clarified fluid zone is located at a high level in the body of fluid, while separated particulate material settles at the bottom of the body of fluid in the or a settling zone.
It is envisaged that the fluid will normally be a liquid. The carrier liquid can then be water, while the particulate material can be soil, sand, gravel, colloidal particles or the like. The method can thus be used to separate a suspension of soil, sand and gravel particles in water into a slurry and clarified water. In particular, the feed suspension may be turbid underground water from mines, or the like.
The separation of the zones from each other may be effected by locating a fluid impervious or impermeable, eg a solid, barrier between the zones.
The sub-zone may be provided by a fluid passageway through the barrier.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided separating apparatus for separating particulate material from a carrier fluid in which it is suspended, which apparatus comprises zone and preventing the passage of fluid from the first zone to the clarified fluid zone; carrier fluid, into the vessel; zone; from the first zone to the clarified fluid zone, the clarifying member also being adapted so that at least some separation of particulate material from carrier fluid takes place therein, and with the cross-sectional area of the passageway being less than that of the vessel.
The barrier and the clarifying member thus constitute clarifying means in the vessel. The vessel may be in the form of a gravity settler, clarifier or thickener. A settling zone may be provided below the clarifying member.
As mentioned hereinbefore, the first zone may be a feed zone, in which case the feed means may include a fitting leading into the vessel. However, instead, the first zone may be a settling zone. The feed means may then include a conduit leading into the clarifying member so that feed suspension is fed directly into the clarifying member.
The clarifying member may comprise an upright open ended cylinder, which may be of substantially constant cross-sectional area or dimension along a major portion of its length, or along its entire length.
Normally, more than one clarifying member, ie more than one cylinder will be used, with each connecting the first zone to the second zone. The cylinders may be of any desired cross-sectional shape, eg circular, square, hexagonal or any other regular or irregular cross-sectional shape. The lengths of the cylinders will generally be greater than their diameters or representative cross-sectional dimensions. Generally, their lengths will be from 2-8 times their diameters or representative cross-sectional dimensions. In particular, the cylinders may be located such that their longitudinal axes extend vertically.
Without wishing to be bound by theory, the Applicant believes that energy must be applied to a suspension to cause collision bet
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Baker Hughes Incorporated
Upton Christopher
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