Oil skimmer module with free floating weir trough
OwnerAngelo J. Crisafulliinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A skimmer for removal of a layer of oil or other floating pollutants from the surface of a body of water incorporating a sump box having a pump disposed therein for conveying material from the sump box into a floating barge, vessel or other area. A free floating weir forming means is disposed forwardly of the sump box and connected and communicated therewith in such a manner that the weir forming means may vary in elevational relation to the sump box without the sump box being elevationally varied in relation to the surface of the water. The weir forming means is supported by float means which orients the weir of the weir forming means in desired relationship to the surface of the water.
Claims7
In combination with a floating vessel, a skimmer including a receptacle at the forward end portion of the vessel, said receptacle including a bottom portion below water level and inlet means above the bottom portion and below water level for gravity inflow of water into the receptacle, pump means communicated with said bottom portion of the receptacle for removing material therefrom, float means disposed forwardly of the receptacle and guided for vertical elevational movement in relation to the receptacle, said float means including a pair of longitudinally extending parallel floats spaced laterally from each other, rigid weir forming means supported rigidly from said floats and communicated with said inlet means for the receptacle to guide a layer of water and any pollutants therein of predetermined constant thickness into the receptacle, said floats extending forwardly of the weir forming means for guiding water and any pollutants toward the weir forming means, said weir forming means being connected to said inlet means by flexible means enabling vertical elevational movement thereof with the floats and confining the layer of water and any pollutants passing from the weir forming means to the receptacle.
A skimmer adapted to be supported in a body of water having floating pollutants therein for removing the pollutants and an upper layer of water therewith, said skimmer comprising a sump box oriented with at least a portion thereof below the surface of the water, said sump box including an inlet opening at least partially disposed below the surface of the water defining a gravity inlet for water and pollutants, pump means communicated with the portion of the sump box below the surface of the water for removing water and pollutants collected therein and discharging them into a desired location for separation, a weir forming device disposed forwardly of the sump box, said weir forming device including float means and a longitudinal elongated weir supported thereby whereby the float means supports the weir in predetermined elevational relation to the surface of the body of water for removing a layer of water and pollutants of a predetermined thickness, means communicating with the weir with the inlet of the sump box to provide gravity flow from the weir into the sump box and enable vertical elevational movement of the weir independent of the sump box and maintaining the same angular relationship to the sump box, said weir forming device including a plurality of rigid tubular members having substantially continuous forward bottom edges defining a weir, said means communicating the weir with the sump box including a plurality of independent tubular conduits of flexible construction interconnecting the tubular members and the sump box, said sump box including a plurality of tubular nipples defining the inlet opening thereto with the tubular nipples extending a short distance forwardly of the sump box, the length of the flexible tubular conduits being greater than the horizontal distance between the tubular members defining the weir and the sump box to enable relative vertical movement between the sump box and weir forming device, said float means including a pair of parallel longitudinally extending floats rigidly connected with the rigid tubular members and extending forwardly and rearwardly thereof, the rearward ends of the floats being spaced forwardly of the sump box and independent thereof, means at the outer central portion of each float for guiding vertical movement thereof and precluding fore-and-aft angular movement of the floats and rigid tubular members.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.