Treatment system for aircraft toilet waste water
AssigneeThomas R. Tracy
InventorsThomas R. Tracy, H. Ed Hohrein
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system is described for the treatment of aircraft toilet waste water to permit discharge of the treated water to the atmosphere during flight, utilizing the pressure differential that is created between the aircraft's cabin pressure and the external atmosphere. The system includes a filter to remove suspended solids and other contaminants from the waste water, and may also include means to purify the water to potable water standards and means to recirculate the treated water for reuse on the aircraft.
Claims25
A treatment system for aircraft toilet waste water comprising a drain mast open to the atmosphere for discharging water from the aircraft, and a filter operatively connected to and disposed upstream of the drain mast to filter contaminants from the waste water to permit discharge of the filtered water from the aircraft through the drain mast during flight, wherein the waste water is passed through the filter and out the drain mast using a pressure differential between the aircraft cabin and the drain mast when the aircraft is in flight.
A treatment system for aircraft toilet waste water, comprising a filter interposed between a waste water holding tank and a drain mast of an aircraft to remove contaminants from waste water held in the tank to a level sufficient to permit discharge of the treated water from the aircraft during flight through the drain mast, and an evacuation tube connecting the tank to the filter, said evacuation tube having an inlet tube that extends into the tank to a predetermined level so that waste water flows through the inlet tube into the filter only when a predetermined volume of water is present in the tank, wherein a pressure differential created between the tank and the drain mast when the aircraft is in flight is capable of moving the waste water from the tank, through the filter and out the drain mast.
A treatment system for aircraft toilet waste water in which waste water is collected and held in one or more holding tanks and discharged from the aircraft during flight through a drain mast, the treatment system comprising a conduit through which waste water may flow from the holding tank to the drain mast, the conduit having an inlet end in the holding tank and an outlet end corresponding to the aircraft drain mast, and purification means disposed within the conduit downstream of the holding tank for removing contaminants from the waste water, wherein the purification means purifies the waste water to a level sufficient to permit discharging the water from the aircraft through the drain mast during flight.
A treatment system for aircraft toilet waste water in which the aircraft has a waste water holding tank and a drain mast, comprising a filter operatively connected between the tank and the drain mast for removing contaminants from waste water held in the holding tank;
- a flush tank interposed between the filter and the drain mast;
- a recirculation tube connected between the flush tank and a toilet;
- a pump operatively coupled to the holding tank to pump waste water out of the holding tank and through the filter, flush tank, and recirculation tube and into the toilet;
- and a flow controller operatively coupled to the pump, the flow controller being operative between a first position wherein the pump is off and water in the flush tank is discharged from the aircraft through the drain mast by means of a pressure differential created between the holding tank and the drain mast when the aircraft is in flight and a second position wherein the pump is on and water is pumped from the flush tank through the recirculation tube and into the toilet.
An aircraft water treatment system for monitoring and improving the purity of water uploaded onto an aircraft, comprising:
- (a) a sterilization chamber interposed between a water uplift port and a water storage tank;
- and
- (b) a flow controller, comprising:
- (i) a sensor operatively coupled to the sterilization chamber to measure the purification level of the water;
- (ii) a flow control valve;
- and
- (iii) a controller,
- wherein a signal from the sensor to the controller controls the rate of water flow through the flow control valve so that the water is held inside the sterilization chamber until it reaches a predetermined level of purity prior to flowing into the water storage tank.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.