# US 12,006,232 B2 · Water processing apparatus > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,006,232 B2 - Document ID: US12006232B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/522,223 - Filed: 2021-11-09 - Published: 2022-03-03 - Granted: 2024-06-11 - Earliest claimed: 2020-06-09 - Assignees: Rapid Water Technology LLC - Applicants: Rapid Water Technology LLC - Inventors: Thomas E. Jasper - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12006232B2 ## CPC - B01F 23/2323: {by circulating the flow in guiding constructions or conduits} - C02F 1/006: {Water distributors either inside a treatment tank or directing the water to several treatment tanks; Water treatment plants incorporating these distributors, with or without chemical or biological tanks (for settling tanks B01D21/24)} - B01F 23/23121: {having injection means, e.g. nozzles with circumferential outlet} - B01F 25/3121: {with additional mixing means other than injector mixers, e.g. screens, baffles or rotating elements} - B01F 25/31242: {the main flow being injected in the central area of the venturi, creating an aspiration in the circumferential part of the conduit (B01F25/31243 takes precedence)} - B01F 25/4233: {using plates with holes, the holes being displaced from one plate to the next one to force the flow to make a bending movement} - B01F 25/4521: {the components being pressed through orifices in elements, e.g. flat plates or cylinders, which obstruct the whole diameter of the tube} - C02F 1/72: by oxidation {(C02F1/4672 takes precedence)} - B01F 2101/305: {Treatment of water, waste water or sewage} - B01F 2215/0431: Numerical size values, e.g. diameter of a hole or conduit, area, volume, length, width, or ratios thereof - C02F 1/74: with air (aeration of stretches of water C02F7/00) - C02F 2101/30: Organic compounds - C02F 2301/024: Turbulent - C02F 2301/026: Spiral, helicoidal, radial - C02F 2303/04: Disinfection - C02F 2303/20: Prevention of biofouling - C02F 2303/22: Eliminating or preventing deposits, scale removal, scale prevention (C02F1/042, C02F1/4602, C02F5/00 take precedence) - C02F 2303/26: Reducing the size of particles, liquid droplets or bubbles, e.g. by crushing, grinding, spraying, creation of microbubbles or nanobubbles - C02F 2307/14: Treatment of water in water supply networks, e.g. to prevent bacterial growth - B01F: MIXING, e.g. DISSOLVING, EMULSIFYING OR DISPERSING (mixing paints B44D3/06) - C02F: TREATMENT OF WATER, WASTE WATER, SEWAGE, OR SLUDGE (separation in general B01D; special arrangements on waterborne vessels of installations for treating water, waste water or sewage, e.g. for producing fresh water, B63J; adding materials to water to prevent corrosion C23F; treating radioactively-contaminated liquids G21F9/04; regeneration of reactants for recirculation into processes, see the relevant places for the processes) ## Abstract A water processing system is provided for processing or conditioning water to be distributed to a downstream function or system. The system includes a water processor with a conditioning element disposed inside a housing between an inlet and outlet of the housing. The conditioning element includes a series of plates having apertures with sharp edges to direct the flow of water and facilitate splitting of small gas bubbles into even smaller nano-bubbles. The plates may have different configurations of apertures. Optionally, a mixer injector introduces a gas, in the form of gas bubbles, into the water flow upstream of the water processor. The injector introduces additional gas volume in the form of relatively large bubbles, which are subsequently split into smaller bubbles (including nano-bubbles) in the water processor. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A water processing apparatus for splitting suspended gas bubbles in a water flow into smaller bubbles, said water processing apparatus comprising: a housing having an inlet and an outlet opposite said inlet; a conditioning element disposed inside of said housing between said inlet and said outlet, said conditioning element comprising: a plurality of first flow-directing plates in spaced arrangement and each defining a plurality of first plate flow-directing apertures arranged in a first configuration; and a plurality of second flow-directing plates in alternating spaced arrangement with said first plates, and each of said second plates defining a plurality of second plate flow-directing apertures arranged in a second configuration; and a mixer injector upstream of said housing and configured to introduce a supplemental gas in a turbulent manner into the water flow upstream of said conditioning element to introduce additional gas bubbles into the water flow, said mixer injector comprising an injector body having an upstream inlet, a downstream outlet, and an injector inlet disposed between said upstream inlet and said downstream outlet; said mixer injector configured to create a pressure drop in the water flow to establish a vacuum proximate said injector inlet and draw the supplemental gas into the water flow from said injector inlet; wherein the number of said first plate flow-directing apertures of each of said plurality of first plates is different than the number of said second plate flow-directing apertures of each of said plurality of second plates. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The water processing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a pump for increasing the flow of water toward said upstream inlet of said mixer injector and/or said inlet of said housing. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The water processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein said first configuration of said first plates defines more apertures than said second configuration of said second plates, and said second plate apertures are not co-axial with any of said first plate apertures. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The water processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein adjacent ones of said first plate apertures have a different center-to-center spacing than adjacent ones of said second plate apertures. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The water processing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a gap formed between an outer circumferential edge of each of said plates of said conditioning element and an interior wall of said housing such that some of the water passing through said housing may pass through said gap and over said outer circumferential edge of each of said plates. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The water processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one chosen from (i) said plurality of first plate apertures of each of said first plates and (ii) said plurality of second plate apertures of each of said second plates, comprises at least two differently sized apertures. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The water processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein said plurality of first plate apertures of each of said first plates comprises an outer ring of twelve apertures arranged contiguously in circumferential spaced arrangement proximate an outer perimeter of said first plate and an inner ring of four apertures arranged contiguously in circumferential spaced arrangement proximate a center of said first plate, wherein said plurality of second plate apertures of each of said second plates comprises two non-contiguous groupings of three circumferentially spaced apertures arranged proximate an outer perimeter of said second plate, and wherein said groupings of three apertures are mirrored across from one another across a diametral axis of said second plate. ### Claim 8 A water processing apparatus for splitting suspended gas bubbles in a water flow into smaller bubbles, said water processing apparatus comprising: a housing having an inlet and an outlet opposite said inlet; a conditioning element disposed inside of said housing between said inlet and said outlet, said conditioning element comprising: a plurality of first flow-directing plates in spaced arrangement and each defining a plurality of first plate flow-directing apertures arranged in a first configuration; and a plurality of second flow-directing plates in alternating spaced arrangement with said first plates, and each of said second plates defining a plurality of second plate flow-directing apertures arranged in a second configuration; wherein the number of said first plate flow-directing apertures of each of said plurality of first plates is different than the number of said second plate flow-directing apertures of each of said plurality of second plates; and a mixer injector comprising an injector body having an upstream inlet, a downstream outlet, and an injector inlet disposed between said upstream inlet and said downstream outlet, said mixer injector configured to create a pressure drop in the water flow to create a vacuum proximate said injector inlet to draw a supplemental gas into the water flow from said injector inlet. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, further comprising a pump for increasing the flow of water toward said upstream inlet of said mixer injector and/or said inlet of said housing. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein a total opening surface area of said plurality of first plate apertures of each of said first plates is different than a total opening surface area of said plurality of second plate apertures of each of said second plates. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein said first and second plates each comprises a circular metal plate having a thickness of between about one-eighth inch (0.125 in.) and one-half inch (0.5 in.) and a spacing between adjacent ones of said first and second plates of between about one-half inch (0.5 in.) and about four inches (4.0 in.). ### Claim 12 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein adjacent ones of said first plate apertures have a different center-to-center spacing than adjacent ones of said second plate apertures. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein at least one chosen from (i) said plurality of first plate apertures of each of said first plates and (ii) said plurality of second plate apertures of each of said second plates, comprises at least two differently sized apertures. ### Claim 14 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein at least one chosen from said plurality of first plate apertures of each of said first plates and said plurality of second plate apertures of each of said second plates comprises two non-contiguous groupings of uniformly spaced apertures, and wherein said groupings of apertures are mirrored across from one another across a diametral axis of said plate. ### Claim 15 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein said plurality of first plate apertures of each of said first plates comprises an outer ring of twelve apertures arranged contiguously in circumferential spaced arrangement proximate an outer perimeter of said first plate and an inner ring of four apertures arranged contiguously in circumferential spaced arrangement proximate a center of said first plate, wherein said plurality of second plate apertures of each of said second plates comprises two non-contiguous groupings of three circumferentially spaced apertures arranged proximate an outer perimeter of said second plate, and wherein said groupings of three apertures are mirrored across from one another across a diametral axis of said second plate. ### Claim 16 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein said housing comprises an inner diameter of between about one inch (1.0 in.) and eight and one-half inches (8.5 in.), wherein each of said first plates and said second plates comprises a diameter of slightly less than the inner diameter of said housing. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The water processing apparatus of claim 16, wherein each of said first plates and said second plates comprises a thickness about one-quarter inch (0.25 in.) and are spaced apart from one another at a spacing of between about one-half inch (0.5 in.) and about four inches (4.0 in.). ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The water processing apparatus of claim 17, wherein said water processing apparatus is configured to impart a pressure drop of about three and one-half pounds per square inch (3.5 psi) to a water flow having a flow rate of about fifty gallons per minute (50 gpm). ### Claim 19 (depends on 8) The water processing apparatus of claim 8, further comprising a gap formed between an outer circumferential edge of each of said plates of said conditioning element and an interior wall of said housing such that some of the water passing through said housing may pass through said gap and over said outer circumferential edge of each of said plates.