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Removal of volatile compounds and surfactants from liquid

  • US 5,122,165 A
  • Filed: 06/11/1991
  • Issued: 06/16/1992
  • Est. Priority Date: 07/10/1990
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. An improved method for removing volatile organic compounds (VOCs), volatile inorganic compounds (VICs), and surfactants from a contaminated liquid comprises the following steps:

  • discharging the contaminated liquid by pumping or gravity into an enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber (or reactor) which is equipped with a liquid inlet, a liquid outlet, liquid drains, a gas inlet, a gas outlet, gas releases, a sparger system, a vacuum breaker, a manhole with cover, an enclosure, chemical feeders, ultraviolet (UV) tubes, vacuum/pressure gauges, a demister pad, a liquid flow meter, a gas flow meter, a gas mover, a foam collector, a wet scrubber, a VOC condensator, a condensed VOC collector, a gas phase granular activated carbon (GAC) contactor, operating valves, regenerating valves, sampling ports, and a gas feed point,adjusting the hydraulic residence time to conform to different influent liquid flow rates and providing sufficient gas head space above the liquid level in said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber,feeding liquid chemicals and gas chemicals (including ozone) and turning on the UV tubes for combined pH adjustment, chemical reactions and UV reaction in said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber,bubbling gas mixture up through spargers (on said sparger system located at bottom of said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber) into liquid phase with said gas mover,stripping VOCs and VICs from liquid phase into gas phase in said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber by gas bubbles,sucking the gas containing effluent VOSs, VICs and surfactants from the gas outlet of said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber by said gas mover,transporting said gas effluent by said gas mover through said foam collector for removal of surfactants, through said wet scrubber for removal of VICs, through said demister pad for removal of liquid droplets, through said VOC condensator for VOCs condensation, through said gas phase granular activated carbon (GAC) contactor for further removal of VOCs, and through the gas inlet for re-entering said sparger system,regenerating GAC in said gas phase GAC contactor automatically for reuse periodically,replacing absorbing chemical in said wet scrubber, periodically,draining and collecting the recovered surface-active foams, VOCs and VICs in liquid form,supplying more said gas to said sparger system, when necessary,continuously bubbling said gas chemicals up through spargers on said sparger system for a plurality of times,treating the liquid inside said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber for a specific residence time by gas bubble stripping, pH adjustment, chemical reactions, and UV reaction, anddischarging the liquid effluent of said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber through an outlet with a trap (which prevents external gas intrusion into said enclosed dispersed gas stripping chamber) into a storage tank ready for consumption, disposal or further treatment if needed.

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