In-pipe wastewater treatment system

A container for treating wastewater, wherein:

• the container includes an inlet port for receiving wastewater to be treated, and an outlet port;
• the arrangement of the container is such that, when water enters the inlet port, the level of water in the container tends to rise, thereby causing excess water to flow out from the outlet port;
• the container is so arranged that water drains out of the outlet port, down to a minimum-standing-body of water which is retained in the container;
• the minimum-standing-body of water has a standing-inlet-point and a standing-outlet-point, which are the closest points on the surface of the minimum-standing-body of water to the inlet port and the outlet port respectively;
• the minimum-standing-body of water has a standing-water-length, which is the length of the shortest line through the minimum-standing-body, between the standing-inlet-point and the standing-outlet-point;
• the container includes left and right side-walls;
• the left and right side-walls have respective inwards-facing surfaces and outwards-facing-surfaces;
• the inwards-facing-surfaces define a hollow interior of the container, in which the minimum-standing-body of water is contained, and which are in direct wetted contact with the minimum-standing-body of water;
• at each point-P along the standing-water-length of water in the container, the container has a respective standing-water-width-P associated therewith;
• the standing-water-width-P is the width overall of the minimum-standing-body of water at the point-P, as measured between the inwards-facing side-surfaces of the left and right side-walls of the container at point-P;
• the container includes a treatment-pipe, which is of a long/narrow configuration;
• the treatment-pipe is a component of the container, and is so arranged that wastewater, in passing from the inlet port to the outlet port of the container, passes along and through the treatment-pipe;
• each point-P along the standing-water-length comprises also a point-TP of the standing-water-length if:—
• (a) the standing-water-width-P at that point is less than about 120 cm;
• and
• (b) the standing-water-width-P at that point is less than about ¼ the standing-water-length;
• the treatment-pipe comprises the aggregate of all the points-T of the container;
• the line of the standing-water-length passes through the treatment-pipe, and the treatment-pipe has a pipe-length, which is the length of that portion of the line of the standing-water-length that lies within the treatment-pipe;
• the pipe-length is at least two meters;
• portions of the left and right side-walls of the container that lie in the treatment-pipe comprise left and right pipe-side-walls, having respective inwards-facing and outwards-facing side surfaces;
• the treatment-pipe is structurally isolated, in that:—
• (a) no portion of the left and right pipe-side-walls is wetted on both side-surfaces thereof by the minimum-standing-body of water;
• and
• (b) all points on the outwards-facing side-surfaces of the left and right pipe-side-walls lie wholly outside the treatment-pipe, in that all the said points on the outwards-facing side-surfaces are not wetted by the minimum-standing-body of water;
• the wastewater entering the minimum-standing-body comprises sewage;
• the arrangement of the container is such that wastewater entering the minimum-standing-body undergoes anaerobic treatment reactions, and remains in the container long enough that the water exiting from the outlet port has undergone substantially complete septic treatment;
• the structure of the container is such that the wastewater, in passing from the inlet point to the outlet point, has substantially no opportunity to become aerated;
• the treatment-pipe also includes a floor and a roof, which make the treatment-pipe circumferentially complete, having respective inwards-facing and outwards-facing surfaces, and all the points on the outwards-facing surfaces of the floor and roof lie wholly outside the treatment-pipe, in that all the said points are not wetted by the minimum-standing-body of water in the treatment-pipe;
• the container includes an inlet chamber, which contains the inlet-port;
• the treatment-pipe is sealingly attached to the inlet chamber, and is in liquid-transfer-communication therewith;
• the structure of the container is such that there is substantially no airspace above the portion of the minimum-standing-body of water that lies within the treatment-pipe.