Agitation system for manure slurry

A manure agitation system directed to an open top tank for storage of manure slurry. A gate valve is located in the floor of the tank which can be opened from outside the tank to draw manure slurry from the inside of the tank through a piping system and pump assembly and flow it under pressure through the piping system to an agitator nozzle for substantially high pressure discharge and located inside the tank generally centrally of the floor of the tank and which can be rotated to different positions from outside the tank. A pair of first and second flow control valves are opened to permit the flow of the manure slurry as described and a third control valve is then in closed position. When the third flow control valve is opened and the flow control valve controlling flow to the agitator nozzle is closed then the manure slurry is diverted through the piping system for discharge to a manure spreader or into the top of the stored manure slurry to agitate the same, and break the crust thereon, the discharge to the spreader or tank depending on the open or closed position of a fourth control valve located in the piping system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Previous systems for the agitation of manure stored in an open top tank 
utilized a single center agitation nozzle as in Kellogg U.S. Pat. No. 
3,367,583 which was operated from the top and spaced from the floor of the 
tank. The nature of manure storage depends on successful mixing and 
blending of solids and fibers with the liquid in the manure into a 
homogenized mass which can easily be handled with pumps and field 
spreading equipment. Also a system to break the crust in the upper 
portions of the stored manure slurry is required. The present invention 
provides an emergency system whereby manure may be withdrawn from the 
storage tank and circulated into the top of the crust to break it up or 
the manure may be discharged into a spreader. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The invention is directed to a system for agitating animal manure stored in 
a tank to mix and blend solids, fibers and liquid into a homogenous mass 
for easy handling by pumps and field spreading equipment. The system 
employs a generally centrally located rotatable nozzle supported in the 
floor of the tank. A gate valve located inside the tank is connected by a 
piping system through a pump to the centrally located nozzle. The piping 
system has three flow control valves so when the gate valve is open and 
two of the flow control valves are open manure will be withdrawn from the 
tank through the gate valve and flowed by a pump through the piping system 
for discharge through the nozzle. The third flow control valve is closed 
at this time. When the third flow control valve is open along with the 
gate valve and the control valve controlling the flow of the manure slurry 
to the nozzle is closed then the manure is discharged through a second 
piping system. A fourth flow control valve in a selected open position 
then discharges the manure to a spreader and in a second selected closed 
position permits flow of the manure slurry through the second piping 
system into the upper portion of the storage tank through a rotatable 
nozzle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Referring to the drawings there is shown a circular preferably open top 
tank 1 generally of metal which is coated on the inside and outside with a 
corrosion prevention coating, not shown, and is supported on the ground by 
the concrete foundation 2. 
Foundation 2 supports a piping system which consists of a pipe 3 buried in 
foundation 2 and connected on the inside to the rotatable agitator nozzle 
4 which is located in the floor of tank 1 generally central of the 
circular wall of tank 1. Pipe 3 then extends outwardly through the 
foundation 2. The piping system then consists of a pipe 5 which connects 
to pipe 3 and extends circumferentially along foundation 2 to the 
discharge end of the centrifugal pump 6. The piping system then in turn 
consists of a pipe 7 which is connected to the intake side of pump 6 and 
extends through foundation 2 to a gate valve 8 which is located in the 
floor of tank 1 and disposed to receive the stored manure slurry when 
open. 
A first flow control valve is located in pipe 7 immediately ahead of the 
intake side of pump 6. A second flow control valve 10 is located on the 
discharge side of pump 6 between pipes 3 and 5. 
The piping system is completed by stub pipe 11 which is connected to the 
circumferentially extending pipe 5 between pump 6 and the second flow 
control valve 10 and to the third control valve 12. Pipe 13 which is of 
two parts extends vertically upwardly of the wall of tank 1 and to the top 
of the tank where it is connected to a nozzle 14 which overlies the upper 
end of the wall of tank 1. Pipe 13 is secured to the top of tank 1 by a 
bracket 15 and is rotatable in bracket 15 and in a quick disconnect 
coupling tube 16, which connects the upper and lower sections of pipe 13, 
by lever 17 so that nozzle 14 may be rotated horizontally for discharge of 
manure slurry into the crust formed on the top of the stored slurry over a 
wide range. 
A stub pipe 18 extends from pipe 13 to form a Y-shaped construction and is 
connected to the fourth flow control valve 19. When valve 19 is open 
manure slurry flowing in pipe 13 then flows through stub pipe 18 and flow 
control valve 19, to the spreader fill pipe 20 connected to valve 19 for 
discharge to a manure spreader, not shown, and the spreader fill pipe 20 
is free to be swiveled in an arc. 
The four flow control valves 9, 10, 12 and 19 have a similar construction 
whether operated in a vertical or horizontal position and the description 
of one of the valves is sufficient to understand the construction of all 
of them. 
Flow control valve 9 is exemplary of the construction and as shown in FIGS. 
4 and 5 valve 9 is in closed position. In general flow control valve 9 has 
a housing 21 which is bolted to the flange 22 on the end of pipe 7 and has 
a short or tubular extension 23 on the opposite side which fits within the 
tubular end 24 of the pump 6 and is secured thereto. A rod 25 which 
extends within housing 21 and projects upwardly and outwardly therefrom is 
connected at the inner end to the valve plate 26 and at the outer end is 
pivoted to the manually actuating lever 27. Lever 27 is in turn pivoted to 
a fulcrum member 28 which is secured to the top of housing 21. 
In FIGS. 4 and 5 the valve plate 26 is in the closed position whereby flow 
of manure slurry through pipe 7 to pump 6 is prevented. When lever 27 is 
pulled outwardly this slides valve plate 26 to an upward position and 
opens valve 9 and the piping system for flow of manure. 
Although the fourth flow control valve 19 could be manually actuated as 
described with respect to the first flow control valve 9 and the internal 
construction is the same, because flow control valve 19 is a smaller valve 
it is provided with a simple push pull lever 29. 
The gate valve 8 which is connected to the inner end of pipe 7 is located 
in a depression in the concrete floor of foundation 2 so that manure will 
readily flow to it. The gate valve 8 has a housing 30 which is secured to 
foundation 2 by the anchor rods 31 and the opening 32 in the housing 30 is 
opened or closed by valve plate or cover 33 to control the flow of manure 
slurry through valve 8. 
The top of valve plate 33 is provided with an abutment assembly 34 to which 
is secured the inner end of the actuating rod 35 which extends through 
housing 30 and the floor of foundation 2 and outwardly within casing 36 
through the outer upwardly extending portion of foundation 2. 
The outer end of rod 35 is pivoted to a generally upstanding lever 37 which 
is joined by linkage 38 at the bottom to a flat horizontally extending 
member 39 provided with intermittently spaced notches 40 on the bottom. As 
upstanding lever 38 is connected to rod 39 by linkage 38 through notches 
40 then rod 35 may be pulled or pushed and thereby move the valve plate 33 
of gate valve 8 to an open or closed position. 
The pump 6 has a driven shaft 41 which is connected to the drive shaft of a 
tractor, not shown, so that pump 6 may be actuated from the tractor. 
The manure slurry to be stored is loaded into tank 1 either over the top or 
through the bottom by means of piping, not shown, which could, for 
example, extend from the barn where animals are housed. 
In the operation of the agitator assembly the manure is normally directed 
upon loading toward the emergency or gate valve 8 with the valve being 
open. 
Thus at start up gate valve 8 is normally open and the third control valve 
12 connected to pipes 11 and 13 is closed. Flow control valves 9 and 10 
are open. Pump 6 is started and the manure slurry stored in tank 1 then 
flows under static head pressure through pipe 7, flow control valve 9 and 
to pump 6. Pump 6 imparts velocity and pressure to the manure slurry as 
the slurry is pushed by the high speed rotating vanes, not shown, of pump 
6 through pipe 5, second control valve 10 and pipe 3 to the agitator 
nozzle 4. The agitator nozzle 3 discharges the manure slurry in a high 
velocity high volume jet into the stored manure slurry for a thorough 
mixing. Nozzle 4 may be aimed in any desirable position as it can be 
rotated 360.degree. from outside tank 1 by a crank 42 which through a 
rotatable rod 43 is connected to a gear 44 at the inner end within gear 
box 45 as illustrated in FIG. 6, which engages the teeth 46 of the driven 
gear 47 to rotate the latter. Gear box 45 is closed at the top by the 
cover 48 which is bolted to the annular wall of gear box 45 and the rod 43 
extends through a sealed housing 49 located in foundation 2 and is readily 
rotated within the square shaped bushing 50 by the crank 42. 
Nozzle 4 has a flange 51 at the lower end in turn bolted to the flange 52 
of driven gear 47. When gear 47 is rotated this effects rotation of nozzle 
4. Nozzle 4 is concentrically reduced in diameter in its upward extend and 
terminates in a somewhat inwardly tapered configuration and at a slight 
upward slant. 
When it is desired to transfer the manure to a manure spreader, flow 
control valve 10 is closed and the third control valve 12 is opened and 
the fourth flow control valve 19 connected to stub pipe 18 is also opened. 
Under this setting of the valves the manure slurry cannot flow through 
pipe 3 to agitator nozzle 4 and consequently flows through flow control 
valve 10, pipe 11, the lower section of pipe 13, stub pipe 18 and valve 19 
and is discharged to the manure spreader through spreader fill pipe 20. 
In severe cases of crust buildup, if not already assembled with tank 1, the 
upper or over the top section of pipe 13 is connected to the lower section 
of pipe 13 which has been connected to the third control valve 12 to carry 
manure slurry to spreader fill pipe 20. The connection is made through the 
quick disconnect coupling tube 16. In order to discharge manure slurry 
over the top of the tank the second flow control valve 10 is closed to 
prevent flow through pipe 3 to nozzle 4 as is the fourth flow control 
valve 19 controlling flow of the manure slurry to spreader fill pipe 20. 
With pump 6 in operation manure slurry then flows from gate valve 8, 
through pipe 7, the first control valve 9 which has remained open, thence 
through pump 6 into pipe 5 and through the third control valve 12 by means 
of pipe 11. It then flows through the lower section of pipe 13 to quick 
disconnect coupling tube 16 and the second section of pipe 13 for 
discharge through nozzle 14 into the crust formed in the top of the tank 
which is broken up as the upper section of pipe 13 and thus nozzle 14 are 
manually rotated to the position selected by the lever 17. 
It is contemplated that the first, second, third and fourth control valves 
may be incorporated in a single valve body with at least three ports to 
operate in the same manner as the three control valves 10, 11 and 19 
described and shown in the drawings which would then be eliminated. 
The agitator assembly has a number of advantages. Controls are accessible 
at ground level and no climbing is necessary. The positive shut off valves 
9 and 10 allows complete drainage of the exposed pump and conduits in the 
winter thereby protecting the equipment from freezing by any manure slurry 
which may be left inside pipe 5 and pump 6. The approach of agitating from 
the center requires half the pumping distance, more effective mixing and 
blending and cleaning out of a tank particularly of large diameter. 
The crust problem is also overcome by being able to attack it from the top. 
Various modes of carrying out the invention are contemplated as being 
within the scope of the following claims particularly pointing out and 
distinctly claiming the subject matter which is regarded as the invention.