Apparatus for water treatment

• US 4,971,687 A
• Filed: 04/24/1989
• Issued: 11/20/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/1987
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Culligan International Company
• Original Assignee: John B. Knight Jr
• Inventors: Anderson, Ellis
• Primary Examiner(s): Schor, Kenneth M.
• Application Number:
  US07/342,613
• Time in Patent Office: 575 Days
• Field of Search: 210/192, 210/232, 210/252, 210/256, 210/335, 210/340, 210/437, 210/438, 210/440, 210/443, 210/85, 210/253, 250/436, 250/437, 250/438, 422/186.3, 422/24
• US Class Current: 210/85
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/283 using coal, charred products, or inorganic mixtures containing them
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/325 Irradiation devices or lamp constructions
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/006 Cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/3223 Single elongated lamp located on the central axis of a turbular reactor
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 9/20 Portable or detachable small-scale multistage treatment devices, e.g. point of use or laboratory water purification systems

Abstract

An apparatus is disclosed for purification and/or sterilization or disinfection of water which has a head with water inlet and outlet openings and a housing secured in water tight relation to said head in which there is a cylindrical filter, preferably of activated charcoal. Between the filter and the housing is an outer water channel communicating with the water inlet so that water entering the apparatus is purified by passing through the filter to an inner channel communicating with the water outlet. Water is sterilized or disinfected by an ultraviolet lamp inside the filter over which water that has passed through it flows to the water outlet. The apparatus may be used in multiples which are connected in series or parallel to obtain a greater degree of filtration and disinfection than obtainable in a single unit.

Claims

1. An apparatus for liquid treatment comprising in combination:

a hollow elongate housing having an open end and a closed end,

a hollow annular elongate liquid filtration means located within said housing and defining an annular shaped outer flow therethrough, said filtration means including an annularly shaped top end piece and an annularly shaped bottom end piece, said bottom end piece contacting said closed end of said house,

a hollow elongate annular flow directing means, capable of passing ultraviolet rays therethrough, located inside said filtration means and defining an annular shaped intermediate flow channel between itself and said filtration means, said intermediate flow channel being in fluid flow connection with said outer flow channel such that fluid is directed to flow from said outer flow channel, through said filtration means, and into said intermediate flow channel,

a hollow elongate tube, capable of passing ultraviolet rays therethrough, located within said flow directing means and defining an annular shaped inner flow channel between itself and said flow directing means such that fluid entering the device is forced to flow in an annularly shaped cross-sectional pattern along the entire length of said inner flow channel after leaving said intermediate flow channel, said tube being closed at a first end to form an interior chamber which is sealed from fluid in said flow channels,

an irradiation means located in said interior chamber for irradiating fluid in said inner flow channel and said intermediate flow channel with ultraviolet rays,

a head unit having a fluid inlet opening in fluid flow connection with said outer flow channel, a fluid outlet opening in fluid flow connection with said inner flow channel, and a central axial opening in fluid-tight connection with the second end of said tube,

a means for securing said head unit to said housing in fluid-tight connection, whereby said filtration means contacts only said head unit and said closed end of said housing when said head unit is secured to said housing with the top end piece of the filtration means contacting the head unit and the bottom end piece of the filtration means contacting the closed end of the housing, and

a power box located on said head unit having a receptacle which holds said irradiation means in its location in said tube, said power box and said irradiation means being removable from said housing and said head unit without disturbing the fluid flow through said annular channels,

whereby, fluid entering said apparatus through said fluid inlet opening first flows through said outer flow channel and is forced to pass through said filter into said intermediate flow channel to be initially irradiated by said irradiation means, then proceeds into said inner flow channel and is forced to pass therethrough in an annularly shaped cross-section pattern where it continues to be irradiated by said irradiation means, and from there into said fluid outlet opening and out of said apparatus.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said filtration means comprises activated carbon material.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said tube comprises quartz material which is translucent to ultraviolet rays.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said flow directing means comprises quartz material which is translucent to ultraviolet rays.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a portion of said irradiation means extends from said interior chamber and is mounted in said head unit.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the apparatus is functionally connected to at least one other similar apparatus to accomplish additional filtration of the water flowing through the apparatus.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 in which the said apparatuses are connected in series.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 in which said apparatuses are connected in parallel.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said head unit is provided with an indicator means for indicating the functional status of the irradiation means.