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US 7,131,538 B2Granted
Material classifier having a scoop wheel
AssigneeThor Global Enterprises Ltd.
InventorThor J. Johannsen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A material classifier for classifying a liquid-solid mixture containing solid material to be separated. The material classifier includes a tank and an angularly mounted scoop wheel for scooping solid material which has settled on the bottom of the tank.
Claims26
A material classifier for washing, classifying and dewatering a liquid-solid mixture containing solid material, comprising:
- a tank defining a reservoir having a first end at which the liquid-solid mixture is received and a second end from which liquid from the liquid-solid mixture is discharged, the tank including an angled side wall located between the first end and the second end;
- a first wheel mounted at least partially within the tank adjacent the side wall to rotate about a first wheel axis that is tilted at an angle relative to a horizontal reference and that is substantially perpendicular to the side wall, the first wheel having a plurality of spaced apart radially extending scoops about a periphery thereof for scooping up a first grade of solid material from within the tank and subsequently discharging the scooped solid material from the side wall to outside of the tank during rotation of the first wheel;
- and
- a second wheel mounted at least partially within the tank adjacent the side wall and further from the first end than the first wheel to rotate about a second wheel axis that is tilted at an angle relative to a horizontal reference and that is substantially perpendicular to the side wall, the second wheel having a plurality of spaced apart radially extending scoops about a periphery thereof for scooping up a second grade of solid material from within the tank and subsequently discharging the scooped solid material from the sidewall to outside of the tank during rotation of the second wheel.
1 more element
A method of washing, classifying and dewatering material, comprising:
- providing first and second scoop wheels each having a plurality of scoops located about a periphery thereof and mounted to rotate about a respective scoop wheel axis that is tilted relative to a horizontal reference, the scoop wheels being serially arranged one after the other in a tank with the wheel axes thereof being substantially perpendicular to a flow direction of liquid through the tank, each scoop wheel having a downwardly oriented first side, the tank having an upwardly extending wall adjacent the first sides of the scoop wheels;
- adding a liquid-solid mixture to a first end of the tank to a predetermined fill level;
- rotating the first scoop wheel to scoop settled solid material of a first grade from a bottom of the tank and then subsequently;
- discharge the scooped material from the first side of the first scoop wheel over an upper edge portion of the wall;
- rotating the second scoop wheel to scoop settled solid material of a second grade from the bottom of the tank and then subsequently discharge the scooped material from the first side of the second scoop wheel over a further upper edge portion of the wall;
- and
- discharging liquid from a second end of the tank.
4 more elements
A material classifier for classifying a liquid-solid mixture having various grades of solid material therein, comprising:
- (a) a first classifier stage for removing a first predetermined grade of solid material from the liquid-solid mixture, including:
- a first tank for receiving the liquid-solid mixture;
- a first wheel rotatably mounted at least partially within the first tank, the first wheel having a plurality of spaced apart radially extending scoops about a periphery thereof for scooping up solid material from within the first tank and subsequently discharging the scooped solid material outside of the first tank during rotation of the first wheel;
- (b) a second classifier stage for removing a second predetermined grade of solid material from the liquid-solid mixture, including:
- a second tank connected to the first tank for receiving some of the liquid-solid mixture from the first tank;
- and
- a second wheel rotatably mounted at least partially within the second tank, the second wheel having a plurality of spaced apart radially extending scoops about a periphery thereof for scooping up solid material from within the second tank and subsequently discharging the scooped solid material outside of the second tank during rotation of the second wheel;
- and
- (c) independently controllable drives for the first wheel and the second wheel for rotating the first wheel and second wheel at different speeds relative to each other, and a variable gate between the first and second tanks for controlling respective liquid-solid mixture levels therein.
6 more elements
A material handling system comprising:
- a tank for receiving particulate material, the tank having a substantially planar sidewall portion that is non-parallel to a vertical reference when the material handling system is in a use position, the sidewall portion defining a discharge edge at an upper portion thereof over which particulate material can be discharged outside of the tank;
- and
- a scoop wheel rotatably mounted within the tank to rotate about an axis that is substantially perpendicular to the sidewall portion and that is non-parallel to a horizontal reference when the material handling system is in the use position, the scoop wheel having a first side that is substantially parallel to the sidewall portion, the scoop wheel having a plurality of circumferentially spaced scoops for scooping particulate material from within the tank as the scoop wheel rotates and subsequently discharging the scooped particulate material over the discharge edge, the scoops each having a substantially open end at the first side of the scoop wheel facing the sidewall portion, the scoops being arranged on the scoop wheel with the open ends thereof being closely spaced to the sidewall portion as the scoops rotate thereby to impede scooped particulate material from discharging from the scoops until the scoops rotate above the discharge edge.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.