US 6,279,752 B1Granted

Wide rectangular clarifiers

AssigneePolychem Corporation

InventorJoseph R. Hannum

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Abstract

A waste water treatment system for removing sludge from within a rectangular clarifying tank having a plurality of sludge collector flights attached to a pair of parallel chains for collecting sludge and scum within the waste water. Each of the collector flights includes a non-metallic elongated main body portion having spaced top and bottom walls connected by spaced front and rear walls for defining a hollow, interior cavity. Buoyant foam material is disposed within the interior cavity for increasing the buoyancy of the collector flight. The waste water treatment system further includes plastic bull and drive sprockets mounted to a drive shaft running across the width of the tank, and a chain drive assembly for driving a pair of parallel drive chains attached to the drive sprockets. The drive assembly causes rotation of a drive shaft through a chain link attachment to the bull sprocket. The rotation of the drive shaft causes the rotation of the attached drive sprockets which, in turn, drive the parallel drive chains.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A water treatment system, comprising:

a water treatment tank having opposing side walls;
at least one water clarifier flight;
first and second stub shafts;
a drive shaft including:
first and second end tubes;
first, second and third drive sprockets;
an interconnecting tube having a bore therethrough, mated with said first and second end tubes wherein said first and second end tubes each include a tube with a given outside diameter, said given outside diameter being less than a given inside diameter of said interconnecting tube such that said interconnecting tube receives a portion of said first and second end tubes and is secured thereto by a spacer ring, an interconnecting tube end cap, and an interlock key for each of said first and second end tubes for transferring rotational motion therebetween;
said first and second stub shafts being rigidly connected to said side walls, said drive shaft being rotatably supported therebetween;
said first and second drive sprockets being fixed to said first and second drive shaft end tubes, and each of said first and second drive sprockets being coupled to opposite ends of said at least one water clarifier flight for driving said at least one water clarifier flight;
said third drive sprocket being fixed to either of said end tubes such that rotation of said third drive sprocket causes rotational motion of said drive shaft carrying said at least one water clarifier flight through said tank;
and
a motor for driving said third drive sprocket.

9 more elements

A drive shaft assembly for use in a water treatment system comprising a tank with opposing sidewalls having first and second stub shafts rigidly fixed thereto, said drive shaft assembly comprising:

first and second end tubes rotatably supported between said first and second stub shafts;
first and second drive sprockets fixed to each of said first and second end tube assemblies;
an interconnecting tube having a bore therethrough, concentric with, axially aligned between and fixed to said first and second end tubes wherein said first and second end tubes each include a tube with a given outside diameter, said given outside diameter being less than a given inside diameter of said interconnecting tube such that said interconnecting tube receives a portion of said first and second end tubes and is secured thereto by a spacer ring, an interconnecting tube end cap, and an interlock key for each of said first and second end tubes, said interconnecting tube transferring rotational motion between said first and second end tubes, wherein said interconnecting tube and said first and second end tubes define a drive shaft;
a third drive sprocket fixed along the length of said drive shaft, said third drive sprocket being driven by a motor, whereby rotational motion of said third drive sprocket causes rotational motion of said drive shaft assembly.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.