Patent Abstract:
The invention relates to a device for cleaning fluid media containing particulate matter, particularly from livestock husbandry, by means of ozonization in a closed ozonization container ( 11 ) and subsequent separation of the particulate matter portions. A vertically extending hollow cylindrical fixture ( 17 ) is disposed in the closed ozonization container ( 11 ). The fixture ( 17 ) is operatively connected to a rotating agitator shaft ( 16 ), wherein agitation means ( 18, 19 ) are associated with the agitator shaft ( 16 ), and the fixture ( 17 ) is equipped with supply lines ( 22, 23 ) by means of which ozone can be fed.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is the U.S. National Stage of International Application No. PCT/EP20091007300, filed Oct. 7, 2009, which designated the United States and has been published as International Publication No. WO 2010/040563 and which claims the priority of German Patent Application, Serial No. 10 2008 050 223.5, filed Oct. 7, 2008, pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d). 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Device for cleaning fluid media containing particulate matter, particularly from livestock husbandry, through ozonization in a closed ozonizing container and subsequent separation of the particulate matter portions. 
     Wastewater from livestock husbandry containing feces, namely liquid manure, is typically collected in storage tanks and after the harvest deployed on farmland as natural fertilizer. As a result, a significant amount of unpleasant odor is generated in the environment. 
     Such wastewater collection occurs also onboard ships. More particularly, a significant amount of wastewater is produced onboard large seagoing vessels, in particular cruise ships, which cannot and must not simply be discarded overboard. As a result, a commensurately large tank storage space must be provided. 
     DE 29 20 010 A1 discloses removing contaminants in ground water and surface water with ozone. In this way, wastewater with natural contaminants or contaminants stemming from production processes of the chemical industry is cleaned. 
     A method for condensing and freezing water vapor from a gas mixture disclosed in DE-OS 1 960 953 is in employed in systems used to precipitate a particular component, for example sulfur dioxide, from a gas mixture, wherein the cold residual gas is used for heat exchange with supplied hot and unprocessed gas, and the gas mixture is supposedly relatively free of water before entering the condenser. It is known from DE-OS 2 025 523 to perform volumetric measurements for monitoring and controlling chemical treatment baths. 
     The publication “Wasser, Luft und Betrieb” ( Water, Air and Operation ), 19 (1975) No. 4, p. 147-152 discloses the use of ozone for the treatment of water and air. DE-AS 10 62 394 discloses a method and an apparatus for removing odor from air, in particular from industrial waste gases, with ozone, which in essence consists of an inlet tube with a Venturi nozzle. The contaminated air is mixed via the inlet tube with ozone in a mixing device, wherein the ozone is suctioned from an ozinator by a vacuum created at the Venturi nozzle of the inlet tube. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,306 discloses an apparatus for recovering oxygen after ozonizing reactions. To this end, O 2  which is not consumed in an ozonizing reaction is supplied to a drying tower where contaminants such as water, organic contaminants and CO 2  are absorbed on zeolites. The cleaned oxygen is returned to the ozinator for increasing the ozone yield. 
     GB 1 427 614 C1 describes a method and an apparatus capable of cleaning contaminated, in particular foul air by applying ozone. Ozone-saturated moist air and very fine ozone-saturated water droplets are blown into the contaminated gases, wherein the ozone concentration can be continuously measured and regulated. 
     While all these methods and apparatuses are used for removing noxious odors caused by contaminated wastewater, the contaminated wastewater must be intermediately stored in relatively large tank vessels and the ozone consumption is relatively high. This requires significant storage space which is generally not unlimited, in particular on ships. Moreover, they are not suited to remove the sources from the wastewater at reasonable costs and to keep the required intermediate storage space as small as possible. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a device for removing contaminants from liquid media, which minimizes the ozone consumption and which is capable of cost-effectively removing the suspended particles causing the unpleasant odors. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This object is attained with a device for cleaning liquid media containing particulate matter, in particular from animal husbandry, wherein the device includes a closed ozonizing container in which the liquid media containing particulate matter is ozonized and the particulate matter fraction is subsequently separated, a vertical hollow-cylindrical fixture arranged in the closed ozonizing container, a rotatable agitator shaft having two ends and being operatively connected to the fixture, agitation means cooperating with the agitator shaft, and ozone feed lines connected to the fixture for introduced ozone into the closed ozonizing container. 
     The device according to the invention includes a closed ozonizing container, in which vertical hollow-cylindrical fixtures are arranged, the fixtures are operatively connected with a rotatable agitator shaft, with agitation means associated with the agitator shaft, and the fixtures are provided with feed lines through which ozone can be introduced. 
     An advantageous embodiment of the invention has a closed ozonizing container in which a vertical hollow-cylindrical fixture which is open on both ends is arranged, with a rotatable agitator shaft passing through the fixture and a agitating propeller being associated with both ends of the agitator shaft, wherein the fixture is provided with a ring-shaped line through which the ozone can be introduced into the hollow-cylindrical fixture; the closed ozonizing container is preferably spherical. 
     The device according to the invention can therefore very effectively neutralize constituents in the wastewater that cause unpleasant odors at low costs. 
     According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, a conventional stator is provided in the ozonizing container on the bottom end of the agitator shaft, in which a very fast rotating rotor is arranged as agitation means. The agitator shaft is supported on its top end in a bearing flange and is driven by an electric motor. 
     With this embodiment, relatively high shearing forces are generated with which particulate matter lumps suspended in the medium to be cleaned can be broken down and the medium can be homogenized. 
     In the device according to the invention, the ring-shaped line for introducing ozone is arranged in the region of the bottom opening of the hollow-cylindrical fixture. These measures ensure that the wastewater intensively interacts with the ozone and is effectively aerated with the gas. 
     In another advantageous embodiment of the device according to the invention, the ring-shaped line includes nozzles oriented radially into the fixture. Particularly fine ozone bubbles can be generated with this arrangement. As a result of the increased surface area, the reactive surface of the wastewater also increases which shortens the application time of the ozone and hence also shortens the process. 
     In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the device according to the invention, the agitator propellers arranged on both ends produce a flow in the fixture. The wastewater is thereby permanently kept in motion, so that larger solid components are unable to settle. 
     It is also ensured that heavy solid components are kept suspended in the wastewater and are prevented from lumping together and settling, which would remove them from the interaction with the ozone. 
     In another preferred embodiment of the device according to the invention, a closed material separating container, into which the wastewater that was previously treated with ozone in the ozonizing container can be transferred by pumping, is arranged downstream of the closed container. The wastewater pumped from the closed ozonizing container is centrifuged in the material separating container. The heavier flocculated particulate matter is transported to the outside into catch bags for heavy materials, where they are collected and optionally separated. The remaining and now clean wastewater can be readily disposed of. 
     According to an embodiment according to the invention, the catch bags for heavy materials have discharge flaps which open downward. The flocculated separated heavy materials can then be removed and intermediately stored without taking up much space. The volume of the contaminants which must be intermediately stored for proper disposal can thereby be significantly reduced. 
     In another preferred embodiment of the device according to the invention, a conventional material separating device is used for separating the suspended particles from the homogenized ozonized medium. The material separating device essentially includes a horizontal housing with an inlet for the medium to be cleaned, wherein a receiving drum which consists of a cylindrical drum part and a conical drum part is disposed inside the housing; a feed screw which is operatively connected with the interior surface of the conical drum part is arranged in the receiving drum. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
       Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the appended drawing, which shows in: 
         FIG. 1  shows a spherical closed ozonizing container with a vertical hollow-cylindrical fixture which is open on both sides, through which a rotatable agitator shaft passes, which has on both ends an associated agitator propeller; 
         FIG. 2  shows a spherical closed ozonizing container according to  FIG. 1 , with a vertical hollow-cylindrical fixture which is open on both sides, with an agitator with a rotor that rapidly rotates in a stator arranged in the fixture; 
         FIG. 3  shows a spherical closed material separating container, into which the wastewater that was previously treated with the ozone in the spherical closed ozonizing container can be pumped and centrifuged, wherein the flocculated particulate matter is centrifuged outwardly into capture bags and captured; 
         FIG. 4  shows a material separating container, with one half in form of a truncated cone and the other half in form of a cylinder, into which the wastewater that was previously treated with the ozone in the spherical closed ozonizing container can be pumped and centrifuged, wherein the flocculated particulate matter is centrifuged radially outwardly toward the container wall, where it can settle and be removed with a feed screw. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The cleaning device  10  according to the invention illustrated in  FIG. 1  is composed of a preferably spherical ozonizing container  11 . The ozonizing container  11  may be filled with wastewater to be cleaned, for example liquid manure from agricultural operations or wastewater loaded with feces, through an inlet valve  11   a . The ozonizing container  11  is preferably spherical so as to attain an optimal surface-to-volume ratio. 
     In the installed position, the spherical ozonizing container  11  has at the top a welding neck flange  12  with a manhole  13 . The ozonizing container  11  may be inspected, as necessary, through the manhole  13 . 
     The manhole  13  may be closed to the outside with a blind flange  14 . An agitator drive  15 , for example an electric motor, is attached on the blind flange  14 . An agitator shaft  16 , which extends in the installed position perpendicular through a hollow-cylindrical fixture  17  in the spherical ozonizing container  11 , can be driven with the agitator drive  15 . 
     The hollow-cylindrical fixture  17  has in the installed position at the top an upper agitator propeller  18  and in the installed position at the bottom a lower agitator propeller  19 . The agitator propellers  18  and  19  generate in the hollow-cylindrical fixture  17  a flow  20  of the wastewater to be cleaned which extends from the top to the bottom. To support the flow  20 , the hollow-cylindrical fixture  17  has at its top edge a funnel insert  21 . 
     The hollow-cylindrical fixture  17  has in the installed position at the bottom a ring-shaped line  22  through which ozone can be blown in radially inwardly via nozzles  22   a . The ozone reaches the ring-shaped line  22  from an external ozone generator  24  through an ozone supply line  23 , from where the ozone is blown in against the flow  20 . This causes optimal intermixing between the wastewater to be cleaned and the ozone. Control fittings  26  are provided for withdrawing samples. 
     The spherical ozonizing container  11  rests on container supports  27  and includes a drain fixture  25  for draining. After ozonization, where the contaminants are neutralized and flocculated as particulate matter, the wastewater to be cleaned can be pumped from the spherical ozonizing container  11  with a siphoning pump  29  through a pump line  28  and transferred to a particle separation device  10   a  or  30   a , as illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4  below. 
     In the embodiment according to  FIG. 2 , a stator  39  is arranged in the ozonizing container  11  on the bottom end of the agitator shaft  16 . A fast rotating rotor  40  is arranged in the stator  39 . The agitator shaft  16  is hereby supported at its top end in a bearing flange  38  and is driven by an agitator drive  15  in form of an electric motor. 
     The stator  39  has a rotor space which is open towards the bottom; the ozone feed line  23  terminates in the rotor space. The medium to be cleaned, namely wastewater or liquid manure from farming, it is not a homogeneous material and can contain solid lumped-together particulate matter islands of different size which either do not react at all with the ozone or only insufficiently. 
     The medium to be cleaned is therefore homogenized by the rotor  40  which rapidly rotates in the stator  39 , while simultaneously ozone is introduced through the ozone feed line  23 . The rotor  40  rotates with approximately 250 and 500 RPM, producing shearing forces high enough to dissolve and intermix the particulate matter islands. 
     The particulate separating device  10   a  illustrated in  FIG. 3  is essentially comprised of an upright material separating container  30  which is arranged in an upright housing  31 . The material separating container  30  is constructed according to the invention in form of a truncated cone, wherein the greater diameter of the truncated cone is in the installed position at the top. The material separating container  30  is provided with a centrifugal drive  32  and has an inlet valve  33  through which the medium to be cleaned, which arrives from the cleaning device  10  according to  FIG. 1  and has already been ozonized, can be introduced. 
     After filling, the ozonized wastewater is set into a rapid rotary motion by the centrifugal drive  32 . All process steps inside the material separating container  30  can be monitored with an external measuring station  34 . 
     As a result of the rotation, the flocculated suspended particles are centrifuged radially outward, where they are captured in capture bags  35  and  35   a  and collected. The capture bags  35  and  35   a , respectively, are distributed along the entire circumference of the truncated-cone-shaped material separating container  30 . The capture bags  35  are located at the top in the region of the larger diameter and are provided with coarse sieves  36 . The larger, because heavier particulate matter is transported outwardly first and farther during centrifuging, and collected in the upper catch bags  35  arranged in the region of the larger diameter. 
     The smaller and lighter particulate matter is moved outwardly less far and collected in the catch bags  35   a  which are provided underneath in the region of the small diameter. The lower catch bags  35   a  are here provided with fine sieves  36   a . The flocculated particulate matter is fractioned due to the truncated-cone-shaped design of the material separating container  30 . 
     After all particulate matter is removed from the cleaned wastewater, the cleaned wastewater can be disposed of through a drain valve  33   a  and, for example, returned again to the cleaning flow loop. 
     The cleaned wastewater can also be transported to an additional water treatment system where it is sufficiently cleaned and disinfected so that it can be used again, for example on a ship, as process water and/or drinking water. 
     The particulate matter captured in the capture bags  35  and  35   a  may be discharged, for example, into a storage space  37  provided in the housing  31  and intermediately stored until the time of final disposal. To facilitate emptying the catch bags  35  and  35   a , the coarse sieves  36  and the fine sieves  36   a  are constructed as discharge flaps and can be opened discontinuously. The collected solids can be transported to an unillustrated incinerator for disposal. 
     The conventional material separating device  30   a  illustrated in  FIG. 4  is essentially constructed of a horizontal a housing  31   a  with an inlet valve  42  for the medium to be cleaned. A receiving drum  46  which is rotatably supported on a container bearing  27  is disposed in the horizontal housing  31   a . The receiving drum  46  is constructed of a cylindrical drum part  43  and a conical drum part  44 . 
     An inlet valve  42  is arranged in the region of the cylindrical drum part  43 . The cylindrical drum part transitions into the conical drum part  44  as a single piece. 
     A feed screw  45 , which is operatively connected with the interior surface of the conical drum part  44 , is arranged inside the receiving drum  46 . The receiving drum  46  can be set into a rapid rotation by a drum drive  47 , for example by an unillustrated electric motor. The rotation speed which is important for the material separation can be varied with a control drive  48 . 
     After the material has been separated, the fluid can be drained through a drain valve  49 . The relatively dry, solid suspended particles that were separated from the medium to be cleaned can be removed through a solid matter discharge port  50 .

Technology Classification (CPC): 1