# US 12,215,045 B2 · System and method for treatment of wastewater fluids > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,215,045 B2 - Document ID: US12215045B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/414,526 - Filed: 2019-09-24 - Published: 2022-02-17 - Granted: 2025-02-04 - Earliest claimed: 2018-12-16 - Assignees: Wadis Ltd. - Applicants: Wadis Ltd. - Inventors: Oren Gafri - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12215045B2 ## CPC - C02F 1/4672: {by electrooxydation} - C02F 1/4608: {using electrical discharges} - C02F 2001/46171: {Cylindrical or tubular shaped} - C02F 2101/306: {Pesticides} - C02F 2103/06: Contaminated groundwater or leachate - C02F 2103/343: {from the pharmaceutical industry, e.g. containing antibiotics} - C02F 2201/46175: Electrical pulses - C02F 2303/04: Disinfection - C02F 2303/26: Reducing the size of particles, liquid droplets or bubbles, e.g. by crushing, grinding, spraying, creation of microbubbles or nanobubbles - C02F 2305/023: Reactive oxygen species, singlet oxygen, OH radical - 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 system and method for treatment of a wastewater fluid is described. The system includes a gas supply system to provide a process gas into the wastewater fluid, a pulsed electrical-power generator to generate high electrical voltage pulses and a reactor apparatus pneumatically coupled to the gas supply system, and electrically coupled to the pulsed electrical-power generator. The reactor apparatus is configured to produce a plurality of gas microbubbles of the process gas injected into the wastewater fluid supplied into the reactor apparatus for the treatment, and to apply the high electrical voltage pulses generated by the pulsed electrical-power generator to said plurality of the microbubbles. The high electrical voltage pulses have energy sufficient to create a plasma glow discharge within the plurality of the microbubbles, and in an interface of the microbubbles with the wastewater fluid. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system for treatment of a wastewater fluid comprising: a gas supply system configured to provide a process gas into the wastewater fluid; a pulsed electrical-power generator configured to generate high electrical voltage pulses; a reactor apparatus pneumatically coupled to the gas supply system, and electrically coupled to the pulsed electrical-power generator, wherein the reactor apparatus is configured to produce a plurality of gas microbubbles of the process gas injected into the wastewater fluid supplied into the reactor apparatus for the treatment, and to apply the high electrical voltage pulses generated by the pulsed electrical-power generator to said plurality of the microbubbles; the high electrical voltage pulses have energy sufficient to create a plasma glow discharge within the plurality of the microbubbles, and in an interface of the microbubbles with the wastewater fluid; wherein the reactor apparatus includes a housing comprising: a gas input plenum arranged at a lower portion of the housing and including a pneumatic inlet configured to receive the process gas from the gas supply system; a gas chamber arranged at an upper portion of the housing and including a pneumatic outlet for releasing reaction gas products collected at the gas chamber during the treatment of the wastewater fluid; a reaction chamber arranged between the gas input plenum and the gas chamber, the reaction chamber including: a hydraulic inlet for receiving a wastewater fluid; a hydraulic outlet for releasing the wastewater fluid from the reaction chamber after treatment; a supporting plate arranged at a bottom of the reaction chamber and separating the reaction chamber from the gas input plenum, the supporting plate configured to hold a plurality of tubular electrodes, each of the tubular electrodes including: a protruding portion that protrudes from the supporting plate and configured to provide a conductive or capacitive electrical coupling to the wastewater fluid treated in the reaction chamber, and a passing portion that passes through the supporting plate to provide pneumatic communication between the gas input plenum and the reaction chamber for supplying the reaction gas for production of said plurality of the microbubbles; and a grounded plate arranged at a top portion of the reaction chamber and separating the reaction chamber from the gas chamber, the grounded plate including a plurality of openings passing through the grounded plate towards the gas chamber to enable an excess gas mixture containing a chemically active gas released from the microbubbles reaching the grounded plate and other reaction gas products produced during the treatment to pass through the plurality of the openings and be collected in the gas chamber. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein each of the tubular electrodes is tapered or bifurcated to have a sharp or pointed top edge configured to concentrate and intensify a local electric field. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the reactor apparatus further includes a potential electrode and a grounded electrode. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein said supporting plate arranged at the bottom of the reaction chamber and separating the reaction chamber from the gas input plenum is a potential plate being electrically conductive. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein the potential electrode is electrically connected to a bottom side of the potential plate, and a grounded electrode is electrically connected to a top side of the grounded plate. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein said supporting plate arranged at the bottom of the reaction chamber and separating the reaction chamber from the gas input plenum-is made from an electrically isolative material having a high dielectric strength. ### Claim 7 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein the potential electrode is electrically connected to the plurality of tubular electrodes via electrical wires. ### Claim 8 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein the potential electrode and the grounded electrode are coupled to the pulsed electrical-power generator via a low-impedance connection. ### Claim 9 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein the reaction chamber further comprises an insulator plate arranged on a top surface of the potential plate. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The system of claim 9, wherein the insulator plate includes a plurality of capillary openings passing through the potential plate towards the reaction chamber; the capillary openings are configured to tightly accommodate protruding portions of the tubular electrodes which protrude from the potential plate. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The system of claim 10, wherein a height of the protruding portions of the tubular electrodes is smaller than a total width of the insulator plate to form capillary holes within the capillary openings extending from a top surface of the insulator plate toward top edges of the protruding portions of the tubular electrodes. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein a diameter of the capillary holes is in a range of 0.1 mm to 5 mm. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein a width of the insulator plate is in a range of 5 mm to 50 mm, and a depth of the capillary holes is in a range of 1 mm to 10 mm. ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the capillary holes further include an insert arranged between inner walls of the capillary holes and the tubular electrodes. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The system of claim 14, wherein the process gas flows through the tubular electrodes to the reaction chamber under an intense electrical field and/or a catalyst action of the capillary holes. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a contact tank being hydraulically coupled to a reaction chamber of the reactor apparatus via an outlet tube to receive the wastewater fluid leaving the reaction chamber, and pneumatically coupled to the pneumatic outlet of the gas chamber via at least one gas product reclaiming tube to receive (i) the wastewater fluid after treatment in the reaction chamber, and (ii) the excess gas mixture containing unused process gas released from the microbubbles reaching the gas chamber and other reaction gas products produced during treatment with the high electrical voltage pulses. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the outlet tube connecting the reactor apparatus to the contact tank is a cone shaped tube operating on the basis of the Venturi effect. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a nanobubble generator arranged upstream of the reactor apparatus for pre-treatment of the wastewater fluid supplied for the treatment, the nanobubble generator pneumatically coupled to the gas chamber of the reactor apparatus via a gas product reclaiming tube, the nanobubble generator configured to receive a gas mixture including unused process gas and reaction gas products produced during the plasma discharge within the microbubbles and in the interface between the microbubbles and the wastewater fluid, and to produce nanobubbles of the gas mixture in the wastewater fluid before the wastewater fluid enters the reaction chamber. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a nanobubble generator arranged upstream of the reactor apparatus for pre-treatment of the wastewater fluid supplied for the treatment, the nanobubble generator pneumatically coupled to the contact tank. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a nanobubble generator arranged upstream of the reactor apparatus for pre-treatment of the wastewater fluid supplied for the treatment, the nanobubble generator pneumatically coupled to the gas supply system. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) A method for treatment of a wastewater fluid, comprising: providing the system for treatment of a wastewater fluid of claim 1; receiving the wastewater fluid for the treatment; producing a plurality of gas microbubbles of a process gas in the wastewater fluid, and applying high electrical voltage pulses to said plurality of the microbubbles; the high electrical voltage pulses having energy sufficient to create a plasma glow discharge within the plurality of the microbubbles, and in an interface of the microbubbles with the wastewater fluid. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The method of claim 21, wherein a voltage amplitude of the high electrical voltage pulses is in the range sufficient to create localized electrical fields capable of electrically activating and ionizing the process gas. ### Claim 23 (depends on 21) The method of claim 21, wherein a voltage amplitude of the high electrical voltage pulses is in the range sufficient to reach 5.2 eV electron plasma temperature and to split O2 gas in order to react with H2O and O2 and to produce *OH and O3 by using an electrical field in the range of 30 kV/cm to 60 kV/cm with a peak pulsed current in the range of 100 A to 5 kA. ### Claim 24 (depends on 21) The method of claim 21, wherein a pulse width of the high electrical voltage pulses is in the range of 10 nanoseconds to 100 nanoseconds. ### Claim 25 (depends on 21) The method of claim 21, wherein a pulse repetition rate is in the range of 10 pps to 10×103 pps. ### Claim 26 A method for treatment of a wastewater fluid, comprising: receiving the wastewater fluid for the treatment; producing a plurality of gas microbubbles of a process gas in the wastewater fluid, and applying high electrical voltage pulses to said plurality of the microbubbles; the high electrical voltage pulses having energy sufficient to create a plasma glow discharge within the plurality of the microbubbles, and in an interface of the microbubbles with the wastewater fluid; collecting an excess gas mixture containing the process gas released from the microbubbles and other reaction gas products produced during treatment of the wastewater fluid with the high electrical voltage pulses; and applying the excess gas mixture to the wastewater fluid treated by the plasma glow discharge through a cone shaped tube operating on the basis of the Venturi effect for continuation of treatment of the wastewater fluid. ### Claim 27 A method for treatment of a wastewater fluid, comprising: receiving the wastewater fluid for the treatment; producing a plurality of gas microbubbles of a process gas in the wastewater fluid, and applying high electrical voltage pulses to said plurality of the microbubbles; the high electrical voltage pulses having energy sufficient to create a plasma glow discharge within the plurality of the microbubbles, and in an interface of the microbubbles with the wastewater fluid; collecting an excess gas mixture containing the process gas released from the microbubbles and other reaction gas products produced during treatment with the high electrical voltage pulses; producing nanobubbles containing the excess gas mixture; and pretreating the wastewater fluid by injecting the nanobubbles into the wastewater fluid before transferring the wastewater fluid into the reaction chamber.