Bleaching and dyeing; fluid treatment and chemical modification – Fluid treatment – Manipulation of liquid
Reexamination Certificate
1999-02-01
2001-05-15
Stinson, Frankie L. (Department: 1746)
Bleaching and dyeing; fluid treatment and chemical modification
Fluid treatment
Manipulation of liquid
C068S0180FA
Reexamination Certificate
active
06230353
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for separating oil from oil-absorbent materials so that these materials and the oil can be recycled.
DISCUSSION OF BACKGROUND
The desorption of oil and other industrial lubricants from absorbent materials such as pads or “socks” is a prevalent industrial process. As a result, the current art contains a variety of different methods by which oil is either removed from an oil absorber or process after recovery for recycle of the oil or the materials are cleaned for reuse.
The steps that are used to separate and recover oil from oil-absorbing materials for recycle must be chosen so that the desired results: maximum recycling and minimum waste generation are achieved. This type of optimization inevitably results in a process that is specific to a particular waste stream; that is, it will be dictated by the oil absorber and the composition of absorbed fluids and entrained solids.
Therefore, there remains a need for an oil recovery process that is simple, effective and that allows the recovery of the oil as well as the recycling of the oil-absorbing material.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to its major aspects and briefly stated, the present invention is a method and system for recovering oil and other lubricants from absorbent materials so that both the materials and the recovered oil can be recycled. In the case of the materials, recycle means that the materials are ready for reused following application of the present process. In the case of oil that is removed from these materials, recycle means that the oil may require refining but it is substantially free of water, dirt, and metal shavings, chips and particles.
The system comprises two major components: an excess oil removal component and a drycleaning component. In the first component, excess oil is removed from the materials and then treated to separate clean oil from contaminated, dirty oil. In the second component, the drycleaning component, there is a closed loop drycleaning machine connected to a pair of industrial distillers, a drycleaning fluid tank for storing the distilled dry cleaning fluid, and a waste container.
In the first component, excess oil is drained by gravity into a sump. Additional excess oil is removed by centrifuging. The excess oil that is removed is pumped to a settling tank where, after a period of time, the clean oil at the top is forwarded to a used oil container and the water-contaminated oil is sent to an evaporator. After evaporating the water from this water-contaminated oil, it, too, is forwarded to the used oil container.
In the drycleaning component, the effluent from drycleaning the materials is distilled twice to remove as much oil from the drycleaning fluid as possible and to assure that the drycleaning fluid, when reused to dryclean the materials, is as clean as possible. The oil removed from the distillers is contaminated and is handled accordingly.
A feature of the present invention is the first component. A considerable amount of oil can be removed from oil-absorbent materials simply by allowing them to drain; even less oil will remain in these materials after centrifuging. By minimizing the amount of residual oil in the materials in the first component of the present process, more oil is recovered and the drycleaning component is more effective in cleaning the materials for recycle.
Another important feature of the present invention is the use of two industrial distillers to separate drycleaning fluid, preferably perchloroethyene, from the residual oil that has been removed from the oil absorbing materials through drycleaning. The purpose of double distillation is to assure that the perchloroethylene that is repeatedly used for drycleaning the materials is clean when it enters the drycleaning machine for reuse.
Still another feature of the present invention is the use of gravity draining to remove excess oil before centrifuging. Not only does excess oil drain readily from the absorbing materials, but also particles and metal chips can be removed in this way. This step makes centrifuging and drycleaning more efficient.
Yet another feature of the present invention is the use of an evaporator to remove water from the recovered oil. Oil/water separation by specific gravity prior to this step is a cost-effective way to obtain significant separation but oil recovery can be significantly improved by evaporation.
The use of an industrial distiller rather than a typical dry cleaning machine distiller is another important feature of the present invention. Because both the internal temperature and pressure can be precisely controlled, the independent distiller allows a more effective separation of the perchloroethylene from the lubricants. This in turn maximizes the purity of the recycled perchloroethylene and increases the recovery of lubricants.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a careful reading of the Detailed Description of a Preferred Embodiment presented below.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3595037 (1971-07-01), Pompei
patent: 3600911 (1971-08-01), McLagan
patent: 4314856 (1982-02-01), Steimel
patent: 5222267 (1993-06-01), Fierro
patent: 5244566 (1993-09-01), Bond
patent: 5250197 (1993-10-01), Marcel
patent: 5309587 (1994-05-01), Fierro
Mann Michael A
Nexsen Pruet Jacobs & Pollard LLC
Stinson Frankie L.
LandOfFree
Method and apparatus for cleaning oil absorbent materials does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Method and apparatus for cleaning oil absorbent materials, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Method and apparatus for cleaning oil absorbent materials will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2548176