Patent ID: 8622225

Claim:
An apparatus for the purification treatment of a water stream, the apparatus comprising: a cylindrical vessel having a top, a bottom and a wall defining an internal space, an inlet at one end through which is delivered a water stream into said vessel from a water source and an outlet at an opposite end which discharges purified water from said water stream; and wherein the water source is capable of delivering said water stream into said vessel at a preselected flow rate; wherein the water stream on entry into the vessel adopting a primary spiral flow pattern on an inner surface of the wall of the cylindrical vessel as it travels from the inlet to the outlet; wherein the vessel includes a plurality of formations extending from the inner surface of the wall, each of the plurality of formations impeding the path of at least some of the water in the primary spiral water flow to induce at least one auxiliary hydraulic water spiral near each formation; and wherein said primary spiral water flow and at least one auxiliary hydraulic spiral cooperate to induce at least a partial separation of contaminants from said water stream so that water exiting said vessel via said outlet has higher purity than the water entering said vessel.