Apparatus for purifying waste water containing organic contaminants

In an apparatus for purifying waste water containing nitrogenous organic contaminants, said apparatus comprising the following elements:

• a cylindrical reaction vessel having a longitudinal axis extending from front to rear of the vessel, first and second transversely spaced, downwardly converging partition walls extending longitudinally in the vessel in spaced relation to the vessel wall to define a contamination separating zone means between the first and second walls and to independently define a first activating zone means and a second activating zone means between the respective first and second walls and the vessel walls below the separating zone means, the lower ends of the first and second walls defining therebetween a fluid transferring interface zone means above at least one of said activating zone means for advancing fluid from such activating zone means into the separating zone means and for discharging contaminants in the form of sludge from the separating zone means to the bottom of the vessel, first conduit means terminating in communication with at least one of the activating zone means for admitting waste water into the vessel, means including first aerating means including first aerating means terminating in communication with the first activating zone means functioning to swirl said waste water in the first and second activating zone means in respectively opposite senses, second conduit means associated with the upper end of the separating zone, means for discharging pumped water from the vessel, and means disposed at the bottom of the tank in communication with the first and second activating zone means for collecting sludge discharged through the interface zone means from the separating zone means;
• said elements cooperative to impart a gradient of aeration into the flow of said waste water sufficient to effectively convert said nitrogenous organic contaminants into gaseous nitrogen.