Abstract:
A bladder-containing wall assembly for use in containment berms is disclosed. A bladder contained in the wall assembly communicates with the interior area of the containment berm via one or more inlet ports. The bladder self-deploys from the wall upon a substantial spill or leak inside the containment berm in order to increase the fluid containment volume of the containment device. The bladder-containing wall assembly may be substituted for a wall section of either permanent or portable containment berms.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/834,159 filed Jun. 12, 2013, which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to containment berms, and more particularly relates to bladder-containing wall assemblies for containment berms. 
       BACKGROUND INFORMATION 
       [0003]    Liquid containment berms are used to prevent hazardous fluids from entering the environment from the spillage of the fluids during, for example, the loading and unloading of storage containers and transport vehicles, wash-down of equipment and vehicles, and repair/maintenance of equipment and vehicles. Conventional containment berms may be intended for permanent use, while others are designed to be portable. One type of permanent containment berm is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,297, which is incorporated herein by reference. Such permanent berms are built from multiple elongated strips connected by corner pieces that are secured to a floor or ground by an adhesive such as caulking. Examples of portable containment berms are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,316,175, 5,762,233, 6,092,686 and 6,880,720, which are incorporated herein by reference. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    The present invention provides bladder-containing wall assemblies for use in containment berms. A bladder contained in the wall assembly communicates with the interior area of the containment berm via one or more inlet ports. The bladder self-deploys from the wall upon a substantial spill or leak inside the containment berm in order to increase the fluid containment volume of the containment device. The bladder-containing wall assembly may be substituted for a wall section of either permanent or portable containment berms. 
         [0005]    An aspect of the present invention is to provide a containment berm comprising: at least one fluid-restricting sidewall; and at least one bladder-containing wall assembly attached to the at least one fluid-restricting sidewall. The at least one bladder-containing wall assembly comprises: an interior wall; a bladder having an interior volume; and an inlet port extending through the interior wall in fluid flow communication with the interior volume of the bladder. 
         [0006]    Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a bladder-containing wall assembly for a containment berm comprising: an interior wall; a bladder having an interior volume; and an inlet port extending through the interior wall in fluid flow communication with the interior volume of the bladder. 
         [0007]    A further aspect of the present invention is to provide a bladder for use in a containment berm, the bladder comprising: an interior volume structured and arranged to contain overflow fluid that is introduced into the containment berm; and an inlet port in fluid communication with the interior volume of the bladder structured and arranged to direct the overflow fluid from the containment berm into the interior volume of the bladder. 
         [0008]    These and other aspects of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is an isometric view of a containment berm having a bladder-containing wall with a stowed bladder contained therein in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is an isometric view of the containment berm of  FIG. 1 , with the bladder deployed from the bladder-containing wall. 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  is a partially schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a bladder-containing wall with a stowed bladder contained therein in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  is a partially schematic cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 3  with the bladder filled with fluid and deployed from the bladder-containing wall. 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  is an isometric view of a containment berm having a bladder-containing wall with a bladder partially deployed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 6  is an isometric view of the containment berm of  FIG. 5 , with the bladder fully deployed from the bladder-containing wall. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]      FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate a containment berm  10  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The containment berm  10  includes fluid-restricting sidewalls  12  and a bladder-containing wall assembly  20 . In  FIG. 1 , the containment berm  10  does not have a fluid contained therein and the bladder-containing wall assembly  20  is in a non-deployed position in which a bladder contained therein remains stowed. In  FIG. 2 , the containment berm  10  has a fluid F contained therein and the bladder-containing wall assembly  20  is in a deployed position in which a filled bladder  30  extended therefrom. The fluid-restricting sidewalls  12  may be of the permanent type, e.g., each fluid-restricting sidewall  12  may be substantially rigid and/or non-collapsible. In certain embodiments, such permanent fluid-restricting sidewalls  12  may be of modular construction, may be secured together with corner pieces, and may be secured to a floor or ground by an adhesive. In other embodiments, the fluid-restricting sidewalls  12  may be flexible and/or collapsible, for example, when the containment berm  10  is of the portable type. 
         [0016]      FIGS. 3 and 4  are partially schematic cross-sectional views illustrating aspects of the bladder-containing wall assembly  20  with the bladder  30  in its stowed position ( FIG. 3 ) and in its deployed position ( FIG. 4 ). As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the bladder-containing wall assembly  20  includes a housing  22  having a base  24 , interior wall  25  and exterior wall  26 . The exterior wall  26  is pivotally mounted on the interior wall  25  by a hinge  27 . The hinge  27  may comprise a mechanical hinge, a flexible strip of material, a plastic living hinge or the like. An adhesive  28  or heat welding may be used to secure the housing  22  to a floor or on a bottom fluid-impermeable sheet (not shown) of the containment berm in order to provide a liquid tight containment area. The bladder-containing wall assembly  20  may be bonded at each end to the fluid-restricting sidewalls  12  of the containment berm  10 . The heights of the fluid-restricting sidewalls  12  and bladder-containing wall assembly  20  may be selected as desired, e.g., from 1.5 to 18 inches, or from 2 to 12 inches. While the housing  22  shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4  has a generally triangular-shaped cross section, any other suitable shape may be used, e.g., rectangular, rounded, and the like. 
         [0017]    An inlet port  29  extends through the interior wall  25  to allow fluid communication between the interior volume of the containment berm  10  and the bladder  30  contained within the housing  22 . An inlet fitting  36  is provided at the inlet port  29 , and a connecting tube  37  provides fluid communication between the inlet port  29  and bladder  30 . Although multiple inlet ports  29  are shown in the figures, it is to be understood that any other suitable number may be used, e.g., from a single inlet port to several inlet ports. As shown in  FIG. 4 , when the fluid F enters the bladder  30  through the inlet ports  29 , the bladder  30  unrolls or unfolds and may exit the housing  22  by pressing against and pivoting the exterior wall  26 . 
         [0018]    In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the base  24  and walls  25  and  26  are made of rigid or semi-rigid panels of plastic or any other suitable type of material. Alternatively, the housing  22  may be made of one or more flexible sheets of material. For example, the base  24 , interior wall  25  and exterior wall  26  may comprise a flexible, fluid impervious, abrasion resistant material, such as modified vinyl or polyurethane coated fabric or nonwoven. In one embodiment, the base  24  and interior wall  25  may comprise a rigid plastic material, and the exterior wall  26  may comprise a flap of flexible sheet material. A reinforcing shell may be included in the housing  22  to prevent the bladder  30  from being restrained if a downward force is applied to the bladder-containing wall assembly  20 . In certain embodiments, the reinforcing shell may be enclosed within a fluid impervious flexible covering, e.g., a sheet of fluid-impermeable material (not shown) may be supported by the interior wall  25  or any other suitable support member that prevents unwanted contact between the flexible sheet and the bladder  30 . 
         [0019]    As most clearly shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4 , the deployed bladder  30  has opposing upper and lower walls  31  and  32 , side edges  33  and an end edge  34 , forming a fluid containment zone therebetween. The contained fluid has a volume V. During a spill or the filling of the containment berm  10  with a fluid, the fluid F enters the inlet port  29  and flows into the bladder  30 . The fluid F exerts hydrostatic pressure against the interior surfaces of the bladder  30 , causing it to unfurl. As the bladder  30  fills, it pushes the exterior wall  26  open and continues to unfurl, extending away from the containment berm  10 , thereby increasing the fluid holding capacity of the containment berm  10 . The bladder  30  thus extends from the housing  22  in a direction that is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the housing  22  and its interior wall  25 . 
         [0020]    The inlet port(s)  29  are located at a height Hp above the floor or ground. The inlet port height Hp may be selected in order to allow the fluid F to flow into the bladder  30  once the fluid F reaches a sufficient height that will impart sufficient hydrostatic pressure to unfurl the bladder  30 . In addition, the inlet port height Hp may also be selected such that the fluid F flows into the inlet ports  29  before it reaches a level that would spill over the fluid-restricting sidewalls  12 . For example, the inlet port height Hp may typically range from 0.3 to 18 inches, or from 1 to 6 inches. 
         [0021]    The bladder  30  may be made of a fluid impervious flexible material such as polyvinylchloride, polyurethane, polyester, polyethylene, polypropylene, natural rubber, synthetic rubber, or the like. The thickness of such layers may typically range from 1 to 18 mils, for example, from 2 to 5 mils. 
         [0022]    As shown most clearly in  FIGS. 2 and 4 , the fluid-filled deployed bladder  30  has a width W, length L and height H. In certain embodiments, the bladder width W is typically from 1 to 4 feet, for example, typically from 2 to 3 feet. In certain embodiments, the bladder length L is typically from 2 to 10 feet, for example, typically from 3 to 6 feet. In certain embodiments, the bladder height H is typically from 1 to 6 inches, for example, typically from 2 to 4 inches. The contained fluid volume V inside the deployed bladder  30  may be selected in order to provide any desired fluid overflow capabilities for the containment berm  10 . In certain embodiments, the capacity of the contained fluid volume V may range from 1 to 150 gallons, for example, typically from 7 to 90 gallons. As a particular example, the fluid volume V capacity may be about 55 gallons to allow the fluid contained in such a bladder to be drained or pumped into a standard 55 gallon storage drum. 
         [0023]      FIGS. 5 and 6  illustrate another embodiment of the bladder-containing wall assembly  20  in which the bladder  130  includes a central body portion  131  and lateral wings  132  that may be unfolded when the bladder  130  fills with fluid in order to provide additional fluid containment volume. The bladder includes a neck  133  extending into the central body  131 . 
         [0024]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , when the bladder  130  is initially filled with fluid, the central body portion  131  unrolls away from the housing  22  in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the interior wall  25 . At this stage, the lateral wings  132  remain folded over the body portion. 
         [0025]    As shown in  FIG. 6 , when additional fluid flows into the bladder  130 , the lateral wings  132  unfold from the body portion  131  due to hydrostatic pressure of the fluid. The lateral wings  132  thus unfold in a direction substantially parallel with the longitudinal direction of the housing  22 . 
         [0026]    In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the bladder  130  has an overall width W O  and a neck width W N . In certain embodiments, the overall width W O  of the bladder  130  may range from 1.5 to 8 feet, for example, typically from 3 to 6 feet. The neck width W N  may be similar to the width of the bladder W described above in connection with the embodiment of  FIG. 2 . 
         [0027]    Although a single bladder  30 ,  130  is shown in the embodiments of  FIGS. 1 ,  2 ,  5  and  6 , it is to be understood that multiple bladder-containing wall assemblies may be used to further increase the overall fluid capacity of the containment berm  10 . 
         [0028]    Whereas particular embodiments of this invention have been described above for purposes of illustration, it will be evident to those skilled in the art that numerous variations of the details of the present invention may be made without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.