Double-wall underground container for storing liquids and leak detecting means therefor
AssigneeOwens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation
InventorsPeter J. Pugnale, John M. Clark, William R. Penland
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An aboveground reservoir is connected to the space between inner and outer tanks of an underground double-wall storage container for liquids. Leak detecting liquid fills the space between the tanks and extends to a surface level in the reservoir. Sensing means detects a drop in the level of the liquid in the reservoir and activates a signal when a leak develops in either of the inner and outer tanks.
Claims9
A double-wall underground container for storing liquids, comprising a generally cylindrical reinforced plastic inner tank, a generally cylindrical reinforced plastic outer tank larger than and surrounding the inner tank in spaced relationship thereto, each of said tanks having a generally cylindrical wall portion and a pair of opposed end cap portions, a plurality of reinforced plastic annular connecting ribs spaced from each other axially of the tanks and connecting the cylindrical wall portions of the tanks to each other, annular chambers between the tanks being defined by the cylindrical wall portions of the tanks and pairs of adjacent connecting ribs, two opposed end chambers between the tanks being defined by the end cap portions of the tanks, and the connecting ribs having two sets of generally aligned passageways extending therethrough axially of the tanks, one set being disposed essentially at the tops of the tanks and another set being disposed essentially at the bottoms of the tanks, the passageways interconnecting all the annular chambers and the two end chambers.
A double-wall container comprising a generally cylindrical inner tank, a generally cylindrical outer tank larger than and surrounding the inner tank in spaced relationship thereto, and a plurality of generally annular connecting ribs, said inner tank, outer tank, and connecting ribs comprising hardened hardenable liquid resin, each of said tanks having a generally cylindrical wall portion substantially concentric with that of the other about a common axis, the common axis being substantially horizontal in an installed position of the double-wall container, said connecting ribs being generally perpendicular to and surrounding said common axis, being substantially parallel to each other, being spaced from each other generally along said common axis, being disposed between and connecting the cylindrical wall portions of the tanks to each other, and together with the cylindrical wal portions defining annular chambers surrounding said common axis and respectively being disposed between pairs of adjacent ones of the ribs, and each of the connecting ribs disposed between a pair of adjacent ones of said annular chambers having passageway means therethrough interconnecting the respective pair of annular chambers.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.