# US 2008/0187400 A1 · Soil remediation apparatus > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2008/0187400 A1 - Document ID: US20080187400A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 11/707,732 - Filed: 2007-02-16 - Published: 2008-08-07 - Earliest claimed: 2007-02-07 - Inventors: Russell Gary Kossowan; Lance Christopher Hayman - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20080187400A1 ## CPC - B07B 1/005: {Transportable screening plants} - B07B 1/24: with fixed or moving interior agitators - B07B 1/522: {with brushes} - B07B: SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS BY SIEVING, SCREENING, SIFTING OR BY USING GAS CURRENTS; SEPARATING BY OTHER DRY METHODS APPLICABLE TO BULK MATERIAL, e.g. LOOSE ARTICLES FIT TO BE HANDLED LIKE BULK MATERIAL (wet separating processes, sorting by processes using fluent material in the same way as liquid B03; combinations of dry separating apparatus with wet separating apparatus B03B; using liquids B03B, B03D; sorting by magnetic or electrostatic separation of solid materials from solid materials or fluids, separation by high voltage electric fields B03C; centrifuges or vortex apparatus for carrying out physical processes B04; hand sorting, postal sorting, sorting by switching or other devices actuated in response to detection or measurement of some feature of articles or samples of material B07C) ## Abstract A soil remediation apparatus comprises: a trommel screen having an inlet and an outlet; a trommel screen housing, and air extraction means operable to extract contaminant vapors volatilized by the trommel screen during soil aeration from the housing and to contaminant remediation means, such as a biofilter. The trommel screen housing comprises: a trough in which the trommel screen is mounted with its inlet inclined upwards; a front cover mounted at the front of the trough and having an impacted soil inlet in communication with the trommel screen inlet; a rear cover mounted at the rear of the trough and having a vapor discharge outlet above the trommel screen and a treated soil outlet in communication with the trommel screen outlet, and a vapor cover frame at least partially removably mounted to the trough and a flexible vapor cover removably mounted over the frame. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A soil remediation apparatus comprising: (a) a trommel screen having an inlet and an outlet; (b) a trommel screen housing comprising: a trough in which the trommel screen is mounted with its inlet inclined upwards; a front cover mounted at the front of the trough and having an impacted soil inlet in communication with the trommel screen inlet; a rear cover mounted at the rear of the trough and having a vapor discharge outlet near the top of the trommel screen and a treated soil outlet in communication with the trommel screen outlet, a vapor cover frame at least partially removably mounted to the trough and a flexible vapor cover removably mounted over the frame; and (c) air extraction means fluidly coupled to the vapor discharge outlet and operable to extract contaminant vapors volatilized by the trommel screen during soil aeration from the housing and to contaminant remediation means. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a coarse soil conveyor pivotally coupled to the housing near the rear cover plate, and pivotable between a deployed position and a retracted position. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein when the conveyor is in the retracted position, at least part of the conveyor is located above the vapor cover frame, and the frame comprises a removable section that when removed enables the frame to receive at least part of the retracted conveyor. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 2 further comprising trommel cleaning brushes, and wherein the frame is configured to provide sufficient clearance for the housing to house the cleaning brushes therein. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) A soil remediation device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the rear cover further comprises a curtain covering at least a portion of the treated soil outlet. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the contamination remediation means is a biofilter. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising at least one heated air feed nozzle directed to feed heated air into the trommel screen. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising at least one hot water heating tube mounted inside the trommel screen and fluidly coupled to a hot water supply. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) A soil remediation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the trommel screen has a screen size between about ⅜″ and 2″. ### Claim 10 A kit for modifying a trommel machine into a soil remediation apparatus comprising: (a) a front cover having an impacted soil inlet and mountable to the front of a trommel screen trough of the trommel machine such that the impacted soil inlet is in communication with an inlet of a trommel screen of the trommel machine; (b) a rear cover having a treated soil outlet and a vapor discharge outlet above the treated soil outlet and mountable to the rear of the trough such that the treated soil outlet is in communication with an outlet of the trommel screen and the vapor discharge outlet is near the top of the trommel screen; (c) a vapor cover frame at least partially removably mountable to the trough; (d) a flexible vapor cover removably mountable over the frame; and (e) air extraction means for fluidly coupling to the vapor discharge outlet and operable to extract contaminant vapors volatilized by the trommel screen during soil aeration from the trommel machine and to contaminant remediation means. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) A kit as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rear cover further comprises a curtain covering at least a portion of the treated soil outlet. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) A kit further as claimed in claim 11 further comprising a contaminant remediation means. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) A kit as claimed in claim 12 wherein the contaminant remediation means is a biofilter. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) A kit as claimed in claim 10 further comprising at least one heated air feed nozzle directed to feed heated air into the trommel screen. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) A kit as claimed in claim 10 further comprising at least one hot water heating tube mounted inside the trommel screen and fluidly coupled to a hot water supply.