Patent ID: 8753037

Claim:
A device for the treatment, cooling or storage of a fluid such as, for instance, a gas or a liquid, which is provided with a plurality of intermediate grid plate elements with a top surface, a bottom surface, and a middle plane therebetween, which are adapted to be positioned one on top of the other, wherein each intermediate grid plate element comprises a grate strutting as well as a plurality of support members which are distributed, in particular in a regular manner, over the intermediate grid plate element, wherein said support members extend between the bottom surface and the top surface and protrude to both sides of the middle plane of the respective intermediate grid plate element in a direction substantially transverse to the extension of the intermediate grid plate elements and bear on the support members of an adjacent intermediate grid plate element arranged below a respective intermediate grid plate element, and bear the support members of an adjacent intermediate grid plate element arranged above said respective intermediate grid plate element, wherein the support members are of a strand-shaped design and are, in particular, formed as hollow or solid bolts, their opposite ends being provided with a connecting projection at the one end and a connecting projection receptacle at the other end, and wherein adjacent intermediate grid plate elements are plugged together by means of the connecting projections and the connecting projection receptacle with the support members being connected in a load transmitting manner, wherein, within one intermediate grid plate, the connecting projections and connecting projection receptacles arranged at adjacent support member or at support members of adjacent groups of support members are alternately provided along both sides of the middle plane so that a connecting projection is followed by a connecting projection receptacle or a group of mutually adjacent projections is followed by a group of mutually adjacent connecting projection receptacles, and a grid plate top element is placed on the topmost intermediate grid plate element in the stack and a grid plate bottom element is placed under the lowermost grid plate element in the stack, which top and bottom elements are identical and each comprise a grate strutting and support members protruding from a planar surface in one direction only for connection with the support members of the topmost or the lowermost intermediate grid plate element of the stack, wherein the alternating arrangement of connecting projections and connecting projection receptacles or of groups of connecting projections and groups of connecting projection receptacles at the support members of the grid plate top element is the same as that at the support members of the intermediate grid plate elements.