Counter current diffusion extractor
AssigneeProcessing Technologies International, LLC
InventorTimothy R. Lang
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A counter current extractor including an elongate housing with a screw conveyor therein and having a strainer at one end thereof to filter a liquid phase out of the counter current extractor, wherein the strainer is provided with a clearing member to prevent the strainer from remaining clogged with particulate material and wherein liquid being fed into the counter current extractor is spilled into the extractor so as to flow in a cascade over and through a solid phase in the extractor, the liquid being maintained at a desired level by a control member.
Claims18
A counter current extractor comprising:
- an elongate housing;
- a screw conveyor provided in said housing;
- strainer means at one end of said housing for filtering a liquid phase passing out of the counter current extractor;
- clearing means associated with said strainer means for preventing said strainer means from remaining clogged with particulate material, said clearing means including at least one liquid jet which ejects liquid so as to dislodge particulate material from said strainer means, said strainer means comprising a wire screen having an upstream side and a downstream side and having apertures therein, said wire screen being formed of wedge wire so that a substantially flat profile is created on said, upstream side of said screen and the apertures in said screen are wider on the downstream side of the screen than the upstream side of the screen.
A counter current extractor comprising an elongate housing with a screw conveyor therein and having liquid feed means comprising a reservoir having a weir disposed laterally across said elongate housing such that a liquid introduced into the reservoir spills over the weir and flows in a substantially continuous cascade over and through a solid phase in the counter current extractor.
A counter current extractor comprising:
- an elongate housing having a solid phase inlet at a first end portion and a solid phase outlet at a second end portion;
- a screw conveyor disposed within said housing and rotatable about its longitudinal axis to move solid phase material introduced into said housing from said first end portion to said second end portion;
- means for spilling extracting liquid into the said second end portion of the housing so that extracting liquid flows in a cascade over and through the solid phase material to the said first end portion;
- drive means for causing the screw conveyor to rotate;
- strainer means for separating liquid phase leaving the housing from solid phase material entering the housing, said strainer means comprising a wire screen having an upstream side and a downstream side, and having apertures therein, the wire screen being formed of wedge wire so that a substantially flat profile is created on the upstream side of the screen and the apertures in the screen are wider on the downstream side of the screen than the upstream side of the screen;
- and
- clearing means for keeping the strainer means substantially clear of solid particles, said clearing means comprising at least one liquid jet for spraying liquid onto said strainer means at sufficient velocity to dislodge larger solids from the screen into the bulk of the solid phase material, whilst smaller solids are pushed through the strainer means into the outflow of the extracting liquid, said strainer means being rotatable so that different portions of said strainer means are presented to said clearing means;
- and
- control means for maintaining extracting liquid at the first end portion of the housing at a predetermined level.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.