# US 2019/0376204 A1 · Electrolytic On-Site Generator

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- Number: US 2019/0376204 A1
- Document ID: US20190376204A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 16/526,144
- Filed: 2019-07-30
- Published: 2019-12-12
- Earliest claimed: 2006-11-28
- Assignees: De Nora Holdings US, Inc.
- Applicants: De Nora Holdings US, Inc.
- Inventors: William J. Stewart; Matthew R. Santillanes; Kevin Schwarz; Justin Sanchez; Geofrey C. Showalter; Kyle Lee
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190376204A1

## CPC

- C25F 1/00: Electrolytic cleaning, degreasing, pickling or descaling
- C02F 1/4674: {with halogen or compound of halogens, e.g. chlorine, bromine}
- C25B 1/14: Alkali metal compounds
- C25B 1/26: Chlorine; Compounds thereof (by simultaneous production of alkali metal hydroxides and chlorine, oxyacids or salts of chlorine C25B1/34)
- C25B 9/70: Assemblies comprising two or more cells
- C25B 9/75: having bipolar electrodes
- C25B 11/036: Bipolar electrodes
- C25B 15/02: Process control or regulation
- C25B 15/08: Supplying or removing reactants or electrolytes; Regeneration of electrolytes
- C25B 15/085: {Removing impurities}
- 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)}
- C02F 1/008: {Control or steering systems not provided for elsewhere in subclass C02F}
- C02F 2001/46119: {Cleaning the electrodes}
- C02F 2001/46128: {Bipolar electrodes}
- C02F 2001/46185: {only anodic or acidic water, e.g. for oxidizing or sterilizing}
- C02F 2201/007: Modular design
- C02F 2201/4611: Fluid flow
- C02F 2201/4613: Inversing polarity
- C02F 2201/46135: Voltage
- C02F 2201/4614: Current
- C02F 2201/46145: Fluid flow
- C02F 2201/4615: Time
- C02F 2201/4616: Power supply
- C02F 2209/02: Temperature
- C02F 2209/03: Pressure
- C02F 2209/05: Conductivity or salinity
- C02F 2209/42: Liquid level
- C02F 2303/22: Eliminating or preventing deposits, scale removal, scale prevention (C02F1/042, C02F1/4602, C02F5/00 take precedence)
- C25F: PROCESSES FOR THE ELECTROLYTIC REMOVAL OF MATERIALS FROM OBJECTS; APPARATUS THEREFOR
- 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)
- C25B: ELECTROLYTIC OR ELECTROPHORETIC PROCESSES FOR THE PRODUCTION OF COMPOUNDS OR NON-METALS; APPARATUS THEREFOR (anodic or cathodic protection C23F13/00; single-crystal growth C30B)

## Abstract

Method and apparatus for a low maintenance, high reliability on-site electrolytic generator incorporating automatic cell monitoring for contaminant film buildup, as well as automatically removing or cleaning the contaminant film. This method and apparatus preferably does not require human intervention to clean. For high current density cells, cleaning is preferably performed by reversing the polarity of the electrodes and applying a lower current density to the electrodes, preferably by adjusting the salinity or brine concentration of the electrolyte while keeping the voltage constant. Electrolyte flow preferably comprises water and brine flows which are preferably separately monitored and automatically adjusted. For bipolar cells, flow between modules arranged in parallel is preferably approximately equally distributed between modules and between intermediate electrodes within each module.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A bipolar electrolytic cell, comprising:
a plurality of modules arranged in parallel, each module comprising primary electrodes and one or more intermediate electrodes;
a manifold for distributing electrolyte substantially evenly between each module;
a flow diffuser in each module located inside an electrolyte inlet; and
a gap region in each module or openings in one or more of the intermediate electrodes to facilitate uniformity of electrolyte and oxidant flow in the electrolytic cell;
wherein a general flow direction of electrolyte in each module is parallel to the electrodes.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 1, wherein the flow diffuser blocks electrolyte entering each module from flowing directly between the electrodes.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 1, wherein the gap region is formed by the shape of the intermediate electrodes.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 1, wherein the gap region is formed by the size of an edge protector.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 4, wherein the edge protector comprises one or more grooves for receiving and holding the intermediate electrodes.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 4 wherein the edge protector comprises chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) or Viton®.

### Claim 7 (depends on 4)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 4, wherein the edge protector is replaceable by a different size edge protector, thereby enabling a single module housing to accommodate different sizes of intermediate electrodes.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The bipolar electrolytic cell of claim 1, wherein the openings on an intermediate electrode are staggered or offset from openings in adjacent intermediate electrodes.

### Claim 9

A method of operating a bipolar electrolytic cell, the method comprising:
with a manifold, substantially evenly distributing a flow of electrolyte entering the electrolytic cell between a plurality of modules arranged in parallel,
each module comprising primary electrodes and one or more intermediate electrodes,
each module comprising an inlet and a flow diffuser located inside the inlet of the module, and
each module being configured for electrolyte flow generally parallel to the electrodes of the module;
diffusing a flow of electrolyte entering each module with the flow diffuser of the module such that the electrolyte flow is substantially even between one or more intermediate electrodes present in each module;
mixing the electrolyte flows between the intermediate electrodes in a gap region of a module or one or through more openings present in one or more of the intermediate electrodes; and
flowing the electrolyte in a direction generally parallel to the intermediate electrodes.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein the diffusing comprises blocking electrolyte entering each module from flowing directly between the intermediate electrodes.

### Claim 11 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, further comprising:
selecting a low threshold amount of oxidant in an oxidant tank, which amount signals initiation of electrolysis; and
initiating electrolysis of the electrolyte when an oxidant amount in the oxidant tank is higher than the low threshold amount.