Liquid purification or separation – Processes – Separating
Patent
1996-11-15
1998-07-21
Upton, Christopher
Liquid purification or separation
Processes
Separating
2102423, 210523, 210923, E02G 1504
Patent
active
057830959
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to apparatus for use in separation of contaminants floating on the surface of a liquid from the liquid and to a separation method using the apparatus.
BACKGROUND OF THE RELATED ART
A number of proposals have been made for separating floating contaminants from the surface of a liquid, for example a body of water, by generating a fluid jet below the surface of the liquid such that on passing through the surface of the liquid, floating contaminant is entrained in an outer layer of the jet and is carried away from the surface, to be collected.
WO92/16278 discloses a method for separating a less dense liquid contaminant from a body of more dense liquid which comprises passing an annular column of liquid at high velocity substantially vertically from within the body of liquid through the surface thereof thereby to entrain the less dense liquid and carry it away from the body of liquid for collection. WO92/16278 also discloses apparatus for performing the method.
This method and apparatus works extremely well but the apparatus is difficult to manufacture and maintain when the apparatus is of large size since maintaining an annular gap of consistent dimension of the order of a few millimeters between concentric tubes of very much larger diameter is extremely difficult to accomplish.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention provides apparatus for use in the separation of a floating contaminant from a body of liquid which comprises a substantially rectangular planar sheet having on each of two opposed edges an upstanding wall member, said sheet having on one of its other edges an inlet manifold for directing a fast flowing film of liquid over substantially the entire area of the sheet, the inlet manifold having at least one pipe connectable to a source of liquid under pressure, and a slot aperture adjacent and substantially parallel with the edge of the sheet to which the inlet manifold is attached, the slot aperture having an area substantially less than the cross-sectional area of the pipe(s) at entry into the inlet manifold, and said sheet further having at the edge remote from the inlet manifold a collecting device for collecting liquid flowing over the sheet whereby, in operation, the sheet can be positioned in a body of liquid at an inclination such that the inlet manifold and its associated edge of the sheet are below the surface of the body of the liquid and the collecting device and its associated edge of the sheet are above the surface of the body of liquid, and liquid under pressure can be passed through the inlet manifold and the slot aperture to emerge as a high velocity film of liquid covering substantially the entire surface of the sheet such that on passing through the surface of the body of liquid floating contaminants are entrained in the film of liquid and carried to the collecting device.
The inlet manifold may comprise a fishtail section which in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the sheet tapers from a dimension equal to the cross-sectional area of the pipe to the slot aperture, and in the direction of the plane of the sheet flares from a dimension equal to the cross-sectional area of the pipe to a dimension substantially equal to the length of the edge at which it is attached to the sheet. The cross-sectional shape of the fishtail section does of course change from the pipe to the slot aperture as described above, but the cross-sectional area of the fishtail reaction remains substantially constant from the pipe to the slot aperture, area change only occurring at the slot aperture.
Alternatively, the inlet manifold may comprise a box section in which the slot aperture is adjacent the top of the box. Preferably the slot aperture comprises two spaced longitudinally aligned slots. The box may be of any convenient shape but is typically of square cross-section for ease of slot formation and attachment to the sheet, and preferably has two pipes, conveniently attached so as to have inlets positioned at either end of the edge of the sheet t
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patent: 3847815 (1974-11-01), Chastan-Bagnis
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patent: 4978448 (1990-12-01), Terokomos
patent: 5019277 (1991-05-01), Andelin
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Forsey Richard John
Pimm Gareth Ward
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