Hydraulically integrated solids/liquid separation system for wastewater treatment
AssigneeProcorp Enterprises, LLC
InventorThomas H. Probst
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and method for treating wastewater includes a treatment container for receiving and treating wastewater and a mixing/aeration system disposed in the treatment container. Wastewater is pumped under pressure from the treatment container through a solids/liquid separation system, preferably comprising multiple parallel membrane bioreactors, to separate the solids and liquids in the wastewater. Liquid retentate from the solids/liquid separation system is cycled back to the treatment container via the mixing/aeration system. The closed-loop system and method for solids/liquid separation and aeration/mixing provides for reduced equipment requirements and energy usage during operation.
Claims14
A processing system for treating wastewater, comprising:
- (a) a wastewater treatment container having a top, a bottom, and a height dimension therebetween and adapted to receive wastewater from a wastewater stream;
- (b) a mixing/aeration system disposed in the wastewater treatment container at a position therein so as to mix and/or aerate wastewater in the wastewater treatment container and including an inlet for receiving retentate wastewater and an outlet for ejecting retentate wastewater into the wastewater treatment container;
- (c) a solids/liquid separation system having an inlet for receiving treated wastewater and a retentate wastewater outlet;
- and
- (d) a pumping system coupled so as to create a pressure differential across the mixing/aeration system and the solids/liquid separation system to move treated wastewater from the wastewater treatment container to the inlet of the solids/liquid separation system and retentate wastewater from the outlet of the solids/liquid separation system to the inlet of the mixing/aeration system and out of the outlet of the mixing/aeration system into the wastewater treatment container.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.