Portable unit for treating potable water in municipal and similar water distribution systems

A self-regulating apparatus automatically operable in at least two modes for treating water laden with trihalomethanes (THM) in liquid state in a pipeline under substantially constant line pressure above atmospheric and flowing at fluctuating flow rates through said pipeline, said self-regulating apparatus including:

• a housing having a water inlet arrangement in fluid communication with the water in said pipeline at a first location along said pipeline and a water outlet arrangement in fluid communication with the pipeline at a second location along said pipeline, said housing having a ceiling, floor, and a side wall portion extending substantially about a central vertical axis between the ceiling and floor to collect water therein with the surface of the collected water spaced below the ceiling of the housing to create an air gap region between the ceiling and the surface of the collected water therebelow,
• said housing further including an air inlet arrangement and an air outlet arrangement, said air inlet arrangement having a portion thereof positioned above the surface of the collected water in the housing and in fluid communication with ambient air surrounding the housing and with the air gap region of the housing and said air outlet arrangement having a portion thereof spaced from the air inlet portion and positioned above the surface of the collected water in the housing and in fluid communication with the air gap region of the housing and the ambient air surrounding the housing,
• said water inlet arrangement for said housing spraying incoming water laden with THM in liquid state from the first location along said pipeline substantially at a first flow rate into the air gap region of the housing above the surface of the collected water therein, said portion of the air inlet arrangement being positioned adjacent said water inlet arrangement wherein ambient air passes into the housing through said air inlet portion into the spray exposing the THM in liquid state in said spray to air and volatizing the THM in liquid state to a gaseous state in the air gap region, said air and gaseous state THM in said air gap region above the surface of the collected water in said housing then passing out of the housing through the portion of the air outlet arrangement into the ambient air surrounding the housing with the remaining sprayed water adding to the collected water in the housing,
• said self-regulating apparatus further including a pump arrangement to discharge part of the collected water from the housing below the surface of the collected water therein into the pipeline at said second location substantially at a first discharge flow rate substantially matching the first discharge rate of the water inlet arrangement to maintain the collected water in the housing substantially at a first depth,
• said pipeline having an open section extending between the first and second locations thereof bypassing the housing wherein water in the pipeline can automatically flow from the first location to the second location in at least two modes (a) with substantially all of the flow in the pipeline passing from the first location of the pipeline to the second location of the pipeline through the housing in a first mode to be treated when the fluctuating flow rate in the pipeline upstream of the first location is substantially equal to or less than the first discharge flow rate of said pump arrangement and (b) with only a portion of the flow in the pipeline passing form the first location through the housing to the second location to be treated and the rest of the flow in the pipeline passing directly from the first location through the open bypass section of the pipeline to the second location thereof in a second mode when the fluctuating flow rate in the pipeline upstream of the first location is greater that the first discharge flow rate of the pump arrangement, said fluctuating flow rate in said pipeline automatically determining whether the self-regulating apparatus operates in said first or second mode.