Improvements in Vessels, Apparatus, and Appliances for Separating Solid Matter from Water or other Liquids During the Process of Purifying or Softening the same by Treatment with Chemical or other Re-agents.
Year: 1888

page_text: RESS
Date of Application, 24th Mar., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 24th Dec., 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 29th Jan., 1889
Improvements in Vessels, Apparatus, and Appliances for Separating
Solid Matter from Water or other Liquids During the Process
of Purifying or Softening the same by Treatment with Chemical
or other Re-agents.
I, THOMAS LANGFORD SEATON, of Cross House, Padstow in the County of
Cornwall, of no occupation do hereby declare the nature of my Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN VESSELS, APPARATUS AND APPLIANCES
FOR SEPARATING SOLID
OF PURIFYING OR
MATTER FROM WATER OR OTHER LIQUIDS DURING THE PROCESS
SOFTENING THE SAME BY TREATMENT WITH CHEMICAL OR OTHER RE-AGENTS
as follows:
25 to be
My Invention has for its object to provide a simple inexpensive and effective arrange-
ment and combination of parts and appliances by means of which a large area of
surfaces may be provided for the precipitation or deposit of solid matter or impurities
during the process of filtration or softening of water or other liquids and by means of
which arrangement and combination the surfaces of such appliances may be easily
cleaned moved or exchanged.
By some methods at present employed, after the water or other liquid has been
mixed with the re-agent it is caused to flow into a receiver or vessel connected at
the bottom to a second vessel fitted with corrugated, fluted, or zig zag plates arranged
vertically or otherwise within such vessel and having between them a series of corre-
sponding passages all tending upwards, but deviating alternately from side to side,
the said passages being for the upflow of liquid are open at the top and bottom:
communicating at the bottom with the inlet from the first mentioned vessel, and at
the top with the outlet for the filtered or purified liquid.
The liquid to be filtered is either forced or allowed to flow from the first named
vessel through the inlet at the bottom of the second named vessel into a chamber or
compartiment at or near the bottom of the same-and the liquid so forced or allowed
to flow, rises up between the before mentioned plates, the solid matter or impurities
precipitating or depositing themselves upon the surfaces of the plates during the

page_text: upflow of the liquid, the lower part of the vessel being suitably shaped into which the
solid matter is precipitated or deposited as it slides down from the plates, provision
being made for the removal of the matter so deposited at intervals as required, the
first vessel is similarly formed at its bottom and provided with the means of removing
any solid matter which may be deposited or precipitated therein.
By my improved apparatus and appliances, in lieu of the corrugated, fluted, or
zig zag plates herein last referred to, I employ a number of balls, such balls being
placed in the second vessel and by means of a perforated plate or plates, the space
occupied by the balls may be partitioned from the chamber or compartment in the
lower part of such vessel, a number of layers of large balls may be arranged with
smaller sized balls, filling or partly filling the spaces between the larger balls.
In a vessel thus provided with balls a second perforated plate or plates is placed
above such balls, at a sufficient depth below the outlet for the filtered water to allow
of a layer or layers of filtering medium for the absorption or removal of any particles
of solid matter or impurity which may not have been previously deposited or
precipitated.
By the employment of balls as herein described a much larger surface for deposit
or precipitation may be provided, and as a modification of this arrangement and
appliances, hollow balls may be employed, and in some cases such hollow balls may be
provided with holes for the passage of liquid through them by which means a still
larger surface may be obtained.
The balls herein described may be made of metal, or of wood, or of clay, or composi-
tion or of any other suitable material, and although rectangular or other convenient
form of vessel or vessels may be used, i should by preference employ a cylindrical
shaped vessel or vessels as being the best adapted to accommodate balls as herein
described.
The balls could be readily removed from such a vessel or vessels to be cleaned,
exchanged or replaced and when so constructed or made of material which would
float may be cleansed without removing them from the vessel agitating then by the
introduction of a forcible current of liquid or by other mechanical means would
produce a scouring action on their surfaces which would speedily remove the deposited
or precipitated matter.

page_text: Improvements in Vessels, Apparatus, and Appliances for Separating
Solid Matter from Water or other Liquids During the Process
of Purifying or Softening the same by Treatment with Chemical
or other Re-agents.
1, THOMAS LANGFORD SEATON, of Cross House, Padstow in the County of
Cornwall, of no occupation, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN VESSELS, APPARATUS AND APPLIANCES FOR SEPARATING SOLID
MATTER FROM WATER OR OTHER LIQUIDS DURING THE PROCESS OF PURIFYING OR
SOFTENING THE SAME BY TREATMENT WITH CHEMICAL OR OTHER RE-AGENTS" and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :-
My Invention has for its object to provide a simple, inexpensive and effective
arrangement and combination of parts and appliances by means of which a large
area of surfaces may be provided for the precipitation or deposit of solid matter or
impurities during the process of filtration or softening of water or other liquids and
by means of which arrangement and combination the surfaces of such appliances may
be easily cleaned moved or exchanged.
By some methods at present employed, after the water or other liquid has been
mixed with the re-agent it is caused to flow into a receiver or vessel connected at the
bottom to a second vessel fitted with corrugated, fluted, or zig-zag plates arranged
vertically or otherwise within such vessel and having between then a series of corre-
sponding passages all tending upwards, but deviating alternately from side to side, the said
passages being for the upflow of liquid are open at the top and bottom, communicating
at the bottom with the inlet from the first mentioned vessel and at the top with the
outlet for the filtered or purified liquid.
The liquid to be filtered is either forced or allowed to flow from the first named
Vessel through the inlet at the bottom of the second named vessel into a chamber or
compartment at or near the bottom of the same, and the liquid so forced or allowed to
flow rises up between the before mentioned plates, the solid matter or impurities
precipitating or depositing themselves upon the surfaces of the plates during the
upflow of the liquid. The lower part of the vessel being suitably shaped into which
the solid matter is precipitated or deposited as it slides down from the plates, provision
being made for the removal of the matter so deposited at intervals as required, the
first Vessel is similarly formed at its bottom and provided with the means of removing
any solid matter which may be deposited or precipitated therein. By my improved
apparatus and appliances, in lieu of the corrugated, fluted or zig zag plates herein last
referred to, I employ a number of Balls, such Balls being placed in the second vessel
and by means of a perforated plate or plates, the space occupied by the Balls may be
partitioned from the Chamber or Compartment in the lower part of such Vessel. A
number of layers of large Balls may be arranged with smaller sized Balls, filling or
partly filling the spaces between the large Balls.

page_text: In a vessel thus provided with Balls a second perforated plate or plates is placed
above such Balls, at a sufficient depth below the outlet for the filtered water to allow
of a layer or layers of filtering medium for the absorption or removal of any particles of
solid matter or impurity which may not have been previously deposited or precipitated.
By the employment of Balls as herein described a much larger surface for deposit
or precipitation may be provided, and as a modification of this arrangement and
appliances, hollow Balls may be employed, and in some cases such hollow Balls may be
provided with holes for the passage of liquid through them by which means a still
larger surface may be obtained.
The Balls herein described may be made of Metal, or of Wood, or of (lay, or
composition, or of any other suitable material, and although rectangular or other
convenient forms of Vessel or Vessels may be used, I should by preference employ a
Cylindrical shaped vessel or vessels as being the best adapted to accommodate Balls as
herein described.
The Balls could be readily removed from such a vessel or vessels to be cleaned,
exchanged or replaced and when so constructed or made of material which would float
may be cleansed without removing them from the vessel by agitating them by the
introduction of a forcible current of liquid or by other mechanical means thereby
producing a scouring action on their surfaces which would speedily remove the
deposited or precipitated matter.
The nature of my Invention will be better understood on reference to the accompany-
ing sheet of drawings in which
Fig. 1. represents an elevation partly in section of an apparatus and appliances for
purifying or softening water by treatment with re-agents.
Fig. 2. being a plan of the same.
The apparatus here illustrated consists of one cylindrical shaped vessel, divided into
two compartments by a vertical partition, one side of the partition forming as it were
a separate vessel for the in and down flowing liquid, and the other side forming a
separate vessel for the up and outflowing liquid. The action of the Apparatus is the
same whether two compartments are made in one casing or whether each compartment
is made in a separate and distinct casing, (irrespective of form), as herein previously
described.
The same letters refer to similar parts throughout both views.
is a tank or tanks containing the re-agent or re-agents.
, is a tank through which the water from the inlet pipe to be purified or softened
is passed.
is a similar tank through which the re-agents from the tank a, a, are passed by
means of the pipe a².
c, c, are the nozzles through which the water to be purified and the re-agents are
allowed to flow simultaneously, the mixed fluids, in proper proportions, thus discharged
flow through the funnel d, into the first vessel or compartment, and passing through
which and under the partition e, enter the second vessel or compartment f
9: and h, are perforated plates forming a chamber for the balls, i. i. i. i.
j, is a space which is utilized for a layer or layers of further filtering medium.
k, is the outlet for the filtered or softened water to pass away for storage or use.
1, is the lower part of the vessel or vessels suitably shaped for the reception of solid
matter precipitated during the process, and
m, is a sludge cock or valve by which the matter su precipitated may be
discharged.
Where two separate and distinct vessels are employed a communicating passage or
pipe is placed between what may be called the down flow and up flow vessels and in such
cases each vessel has a suitably formed bottom for the precipitated matter and is
provided with a sludge cock or valve for the removal of the same.
Although I have in this specification described a complete apparatus and appliances
and the process carried on there with I wish it to be clearly understood that I lay
no claim to the general arrangement of such apparatus and appliances or process.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is,
(1) In a vessel or apparatus for separating solid matter from water or other liquids
during the process of purifying or softening the same by treatment with chemical or
other re-agents; the application and employment of balls either solid or hollow or of
uniform size or of varying sizes in a chamber or vessel through which the water or
other liquid under treatment is allowed to flow, the external surfaces of such balls or
the external and internal surfaces of such balls, being utilized for the precipitation
of solid matter or other impurities during the process, substantially as and for the
purposes herein described and illustrated.
(2) Improvements in Vessels apparatus and appliances for separating solid matter
from water or other liquids during the process of purifying or softening the same,
(by treatment with chemical or other re-agents), substantially as and for the purposes
herein described and illustrated.
Datad this 2011ve of Davambar 10ek
R. HEBER RADFORD,
Agent for the Applicant.