Fiber suspension thickener having improved discharge consistency

A device for thickening a fiber suspension comprising:

• (a) a vat;
• (b) a hollow filter assembly disposed within said vat and including walls composed of a filter material;
• (c) means for rotating said hollow filter assembly about a horizontal axis;
• (d) supply means for furnishing the fiber suspension to be thickened to the vat at the descending side of said hollow filter assembly, thereby forming a pool of fiber suspension in which said hollow filter assembly partly submerges, whereby gravity forces water and fine particles within the fiber suspension through the filter material and into the interior of said hollow filter assembly, thereby creating a thickened fiber suspension in the vat;
• (e) discharge means for discharging thickened fiber suspension from said vat at the ascending side of said hollow filter assembly;
• and
• (f) a turbulence creating means disposed within said vat outside of and at the ascending side of said hollow filter assembly for creating sufficient turbulence within the flow of said fiber suspension as said fiber suspension flows from said supply means to said discharge means for displacing a portion of said fibers congregating on said filter on the ascending side of said hollow filter assembly from said filter into said filter suspension for subsequent discharge by said discharge means;
• whereby a portion of said fibers which accumulate on said filter are returned into suspension for discharge thereby increasing the efficiency of the thickening process and the overall thickness of said fiber suspension for subsequent use.