Apparatus and method for enhanced capacitive deionization of contaminated water
AssigneeUniversity of Kentucky Research Foundation
InventorsAyokunle Omosebi, James Landon, Xin Gao, Kunlei Liu
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Abstract
An apparatus and method are provided for enhanced capacitive deionization of contaminated water. The apparatus includes a contaminated water source, a capacitive deionization reactor and a flushing fluid source that is used to flush concentrated contaminants from the capacitive deionization reactor while that reactor is isolated from the contaminated water source.
Claims19
An apparatus for capacitive deionization of contaminated water, comprising:
- a contaminated water source;
- a capacitive deionization reactor downstream from the contaminated water source, the capacitive deionization reactor including a plurality of electrodes separated by a flow space for the contaminated water;
- a voltage source connected to the plurality of electrodes;
- a pump adapted for pumping contaminated water from the contaminated water source to the capacitive deionization reactor;
- a flushing fluid source;
- a first flow control valve between the pump and the capacitive deionization reactor;
- and
- a second flow control valve between the capacitive deionization reactor and the flushing fluid source.
A method for enhanced treated water recovery by capacitive deionization, comprising:
- delivering contaminated water to a capacitive deionization reactor;
- electro-sorbing contamination from the contaminated water onto a plurality of electrodes in the capacitive deionization reactor by polarizing the plurality of electrodes;
- discharging the treated water from the capacitive deionization reactor;
- isolating a volume of contaminated water in the capacitive deionization reactor from the contaminated water source;
- releasing the previously electro-sorbed contamination from the plurality of electrodes into the isolated volume of contaminated water to produce a concentrated contaminated water volume by depolarizing the plurality of electrodes;
- and
- discharging the concentrated contaminated water volume from the capacitive deionization reactor by flushing the capacitive deionization reactor with flushing fluid.
A method of enhancing treated water recovery by capacitive deionization, comprising:
- in a first mode of operation, delivering contaminated water from a contaminated water source to a capacitive deionization reactor, electro-sorbing contamination from the contaminated water onto a plurality of electrodes in the capacitive deionization reactor by polarizing the plurality of electrodes, and discharging the treated water;
- and
- in a second mode of operation, isolating the capacitive deionization reactor from the contaminated water source, releasing the previously electro-sorbed contamination from the plurality of electrodes into a volume of contaminated water isolated in the capacitive deionization reactor to produce a concentrated contaminated water volume by depolarizing the plurality of electrodes and discharging the concentrated contaminated water volume from the capacitive deionization reactor by flushing the capacitive deionization reactor with flushing fluid.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.