Patent ID: 7972501

Claim:
A fluid clarification system for use in the treatment of a slurry stream, the clarification system comprising: two or more settling compartments for sequential passage and clarification of fluid, each settling compartment comprising at least three substantially vertical compartment walls, each wall having upper, lower, and side edges, each wall joined along its side edges to an adjacent wall to form a compartment having a first horizontal cross sectional area defined by the lower edges of each joined compartment wall; and a compartment base comprising a solids outlet having an opening within the compartment base for gravimetrically discharging solids from the compartment base; and at least three tapered panels, each panel attached to the lower edge of each compartment wall, and joined to an adjacent panel, the tapered panels thereby converging about the opening so as to form a generally inverted pyramidal shape for the compartment base of decreasing horizontal cross sectional area towards the outlet, wherein the settling compartments are formed within a settling tank divided into said compartments by placement of one or more weir walls within the tank such that the at least three walls of each compartment comprise at least one tank outer wall and at least one weir wall, each weir wall extending across the tank and reduced in height from the tank outer walls so as to direct fluid over the weir wall and into a successive compartment, and further wherein one of the settling compartments comprises a baffle extending between opposing vertical compartment walls of said at least three vertical compartment walls, and said baffle being positioned adjacent a preceding weir wall to minimize turbulence of fluid entering the compartment, said baffle having a lower edge terminating above the lower edges of the opposing vertical compartment walls.