Thermal energy storage tank diaphragm system

An enclosed storage tank for the simultaneous addition and removal, and storage, of two liquid layers of different density, comprising:

• a tank shell having a bottom wall, a side wall extending upwardly from the bottom wall, and a roof at the top end thereof supported at least in part by the side wall, and a central vertical column extending upwardly from the shell bottom wall to an upper portion of the storage tank;
• said central vertical column having a closed top end, a plurality of circumferentially spaced perforations near an upper end, an open bottom end, a baffle plate disposed a distance above the open bottom end, and a flow splitter device beneath the open bottom end;
• a high-density liquid conduit extending from outside of the tank side wall adjoined in liquid communication with interior of the vertical column beneath the baffle plate for conducting high-density liquid into and out of a lower portion of the tank interior through the open bottom end and flow splitter device;
• a lower diaphragm formed of flexible tensile fabric having a liquid restricting ring with a central opening surrounding said vertical column above the baffle plate and the open bottom end and extending radially outward and downward therefrom defining a detention cavity between the tensile fabric material and bottom wall of the tank shell configured to slow the flow velocity of high-density liquid into the tank interior and thereby enable stratification between the low-density and high-density liquids by facilitating establishment of a thermocline layer in the liquid contained in the tank;
• a low-density liquid conduit extending from outside of the tank side wall adjoined in liquid communication with interior of the vertical column above the baffle plate for conducting low-density liquid into and out of an upper portion of the tank interior through the perforations near the upper end of the vertical column;
• and
• an upper diaphragm formed of flexible tensile fabric having a liquid restricting ring with a central opening surrounding said vertical column beneath the perforations near the upper end of the vertical column and extending radially outward and upward therefrom defining a detention cavity between the tensile fabric and the top surface of the liquid contained in the tank configured to slow the flow velocity of the low-density liquid and thereby enable stratification between the low-density and high-density liquids by facilitating establishment of a thermocline layer in the liquid contained in the tank.