Patent ID: 7410577

Claim:
An apparatus for recovery of a viscous fluid, comprising: a rotatable fluid recovery unit having a radial axis; said rotatable fluid recovery unit having a surface patterned with a plurality of small scale grooves which have confined spaces; said grooves having openings, interiors, and inner termini: said grooves configured for collecting and retaining a viscous fluid which contacts said surface; said grooves patterned on a sufficiently small scale to draw and retain said viscous fluid by capillary effect in the confined space of each of said grooves for retaining the viscous fluid in menisci pooled at the inner terminus of each of said grooves; each of said grooves having a sufficient opening to allow said viscous fluid to enter, and having groove dimensions tailored to the viscosity of the viscous fluid to be recovered toward maximizing recovery; and said grooves oriented with the radial axis of said fluid recovery unit and configured for receiving a scraper through the opening of said grooves to scrape out viscous fluid from the interior of said grooves during recovery of the viscous fluid.