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AssigneeNewcastle Innovation Limited
InventorsGeorge V. Franks, Graeme John Jameson, Yao-de Yan, Simon Richard Biggs
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The present invention relates to methods for the separation of materials from heterogeneous fluids and provides a means of effecting stimulant-sensitive flocculation and consolidation of solid suspensions within a liquid medium. Specifically, the present invention provides a method of controlling the state of a suspension of solid particles in a liquid, including applying to the suspension a stimulus adapted to control inter-particle forces between the solid particles. The stimulus is reversibly operable to control attraction and/or repulsion. Means of consolidating a sediment bed and of separating the resultant liquids-rich and solids-rich phases are also within the ambit of the invention.
A method of controlling the condition of a suspension of solid mineral particles within a liquid by flocculation and/or coagulation, said method comprising contacting said solid mineral particles with a chemical additive consisting of a stimulus-sensitive polymer, the stimulus-sensitive polymer consisting of a polymer selected from the group consisting of a cationic, anionic, non-ionic, and a combined polyelectrolyte, and applying a stimulus, said polymer adapted to control inter-particle forces between said solid mineral particles in response to said stimulus, wherein said inter-particle forces consist of attraction and repulsion, and wherein said stimulus is selectively and repeatedly added and removed to effect reversibly operable conditioning between an initial state of said solid mineral particles and said polymer prevailing prior to applying said stimulus and a conditioned state resultant from applying said stimulus, thereby to control interaction between said solid mineral particles and said polymer within said liquid.
A method of controlling the consolidation of a bed of solid mineral particles within a liquid by flocculation and/or coagulation, said method comprising contacting said solid mineral particles with a chemical additive consisting of a stimulus-sensitive polymer, the stimulus-sensitive polymer consisting of a polymer selected from the group consisting of a cationic, anionic, non-ionic, and a combined polyelectrolyte, and applying a stimulus, said polymer adapted to control inter-particle forces between said solid mineral particles in response to said stimulus, wherein said inter-particle forces consist of attraction and repulsion, and wherein said stimulus is selectively and repeatedly added and removed to effect reversibly operable conditioning between an initial state of said solid mineral particles and said polymer prevailing prior to applying said stimulus and a conditioned state resultant from applying said stimulus, thereby to control interaction between said solid mineral particles and said polymer within said liquid, said stimulus being applied for a predetermined time thereby to liberate at least some liquid otherwise trapped within said bed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.