Process and apparatus for removal of mineral contaminants from water

An apparatus for precipitating mineral contaminants from water, comprising:

• (a) an aeration tank having a top and an inlet at the top for admitting water from a supply of water to the aeration tank and an outlet for discharging water;
• (b) a diffuser through which water from the inlet is sprayed within the aeration tank;
• (c) an air head within the aeration tank into which the contaminated water is sprayed;
• (d) a source of compressed oxygen-rich gas in direct communication with the top of the aeration tank;
• and
• (e) a means for controlling the source of compressed oxygen-rich gas to permit oxygen to be supplied independently of the water supply to the interior of the aeration tank for recharging the aeration tank with oxygen;
• (f) a pick-up tube with an open end located within the aeration tank and connected to the outlet of the aeration tank;
• (g) a filter tank with an inlet connected to the pick-up tube of the aeration tank and with an outlet adapted to be connected to a water supply line;
• (h) a multimedia filter bed within the filter tank having a plurality of filtration layers, wherein the multimedia filter bed comprises
• a layer of aluminum silicate,
• a layer of manganese dioxide-coated pumicite,
• a layer of fine filter sand,
• a layer of garnet sand, and
• a garnet support bed layer with an effective mesh size of 8-12 millimeters;
• and
• (i) a distributor tube connected to the outlet of the filter tank with an opening within the multimedia filter bed, wherein the oxygenated water may be drawn through the multimedia filter bed so that a significant portion of the contaminants may be removed from the water and the filtered water may be supplied to the outlet of the filter tank.

In a process for removing mineral contaminants from water, having the steps of:

• spraying the contaminated water through a diffuser into a container having an airhead of at least six inches at system pressure;
• and
• drawing the water through a multimedia filter bed to remove the oxydized contaminants from the water;
• an improved process comprising the step of
• pumping oxygen-rich gas directly into the container independently of the flow of water to recharge the airhead with new oxygen when the oxygen within the container is depleted.

In an apparatus for recharging the air head of an aeration tank in an apparatus for the removal of mineral contaminants from water having an aeration tank with an interior, a drain pipe in fluid communication with the interior of the aeration tank, and a valve for alternately permitting and restricting the escape of fluid from the aeration tank through the drain pipe, the improvement comprising:

• (a) an air pump connected to the top of the aeration tank wherein the air pump may supply compressed air to the aeration tank;
• (b) a valve for alternately permitting and restricting air flow from the pump to the aeration tank;
• and
• (c) a controller which activates the air pump when it is desired to recharge the air head and which controls the valves during the recharge to permit air flow from the pump to the aeration tank and to permit the escape of fluid from the aeration tank through the drain pipe.