Apparatus for electrochemical treatment of water

• US 5,427,667 A
• Filed: 03/25/1994
• Issued: 06/27/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: ECTG Limited, Puricore Inc. (ESSA Pharma, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Boris I. Leonov, Igor N. Naida, Jury A. Rakhmanin, Jury G. Zadorozhny, Nikolai N. Naida, Nugzar V. Dzheiranishvili, Sergei K. Butin, Viktor G. Vedenkov, Vitold M. Bakhir
• Inventors: Naida, Igor N., Rakhmanin, Jury A., Bakhir, Vitold M., Zadorozhny, Jury G., Vedenkov, Viktor G., Butin, Sergei K., Leonov, Boris I., Naida, Nikolai N., Dzheiranishvili, Nugzar V.
• Primary Examiner(s): Niebling, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Phasge, Arun S.
• Application Number:
  US08/157,039
• Time in Patent Office: 459 Days
• Field of Search: 204/260, 204/263, 204/272, 204/275
• US Class Current: 204/260
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/001 Processes for the treatment of water whereby the filtration technique is of importance C02F1/44 takes precedence; construction of filters in general B01D24/00 - B01D41/00
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/46104 Devices therefor; Their operating or servicing
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/4618 for producing "ionised" acidic or basic water
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/4674 with halogen or compound of halogens, e.g. chlorine, bromine
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2001/46138 Electrodes comprising a substrate and a coating
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2001/46152 characterised by the shape or form electrodes in particulate form or with conductive or non-conductive particles between them C02F1/46114
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/003 Coaxial constructions, e.g. a cartridge located coaxially within another
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/4611 Fluid flow
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/46115 Electrolytic cell with membranes or diaphragms
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/46145 Fluid flow
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2303/04 Disinfection
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2303/185 The treatment agent being halogen or a halogenated compound
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/36 Hydrogen production from non-carbon containing sources, e.g. by water electrolysis

Abstract

An apparatus for electrical treatment of water can be used for purifying and disinfecting potable water, and also for producing detergent and disinfecting solutions, and comprises at least one electrochemical cell made up of an upright cylindrical electrode and a rod electrode of a variable cross-section mounted coaxially in dielectric sleeves, an ultrafiltration diaphragm made from ceramics based on zirconium oxide and coaxially mounted in the sleeves between the electrodes, the geometrical dimensions of the cell meet some definite relationships. The system of openings in the electrodes and ducts in the sleeves provides for the optimal hydraulic characteristics of the cell. The sleeves and cylindrical electrode have the same external diameter and the cells are specially secured by means of gaskets in the upper and lower headers of a dielectric material with cylindrical sockets in each and supply and discharge ducts. The headers have several sockets each or are made as a built-up structure composed of units having one socket each, and are provided with means for sealing and bracing the structure, and the cells accommodated in the sockets are hydraulically connected in parallel and electrically connected in parallel and series-parallel. The apparatus can also comprise flow rate control devices adapted to meter a reagent and mounted at the water supply line, containers with a catalyst and a hydraulic connection. The apparatus permits of reducing the electric power consumption, simplifying the design, reducing labour expenditures in assembly and disassembly of the apparatus, and also makes it possible to widen the functional potentialities due to simplifying and unifying the hydraulic system of the apparatus.

Claims

1. An apparatus for electrochemical water treatment comprising means for water supply and discharge, at least one electrochemical cell made of vertical coaxial cylindrical and rod electrodes mounted in dielectric sleeves, a ultrafiltration diaphragm made of a ceramic material based on zirconium oxide with additions of aluminium and yttrium oxides, said diaphragm being coaxially mounted in said sleeves between said electrodes and dividing an electrode spacing into electrode chambers, an upper and a lower sleeves being formed with ducts open to side surfaces of the sleeves to supply water to and discharge it from the rod electrode chambers, an upper and lower portions of the cylindrical electrode being formed with openings to supply water to and discharge it from the cylindrical electrode chamber, said sleeves and cylindrical electrode being of the same external diameter, a surface of the cylindrical electrode, respectively, over the opening in the lower portion and under the opening in the upper potion, and a surface of the sleeves, respectively, under and over the duct openings, being formed with grooves, and a current source connected to the electrodes through a switching unit, characterized in that said rod electrode is of variable cross-section, a diameter of its ends disposed at the level of the openings in the cylindrical electrode being 0.75 of the diameter of its middle portion, said diaphragm is mounted so that the geometrical dimensions of the cell satisfy the relationships:

##EQU2## where K=electrode spacing, mm,

L=distance between openings in the lower and upper portions of the cylindrical electrode, mm,

Ds=internal diameter of the cylindrical electrode, mm,

Db=diameter of the middle portion of the rod electrode, mm,

Ss, Sb=cross-sectional areas of the chambers,

respectively, of the cylindrical and rod electrodes;

the surface of the cylindrical electrode and the periphery of the sleeves being formed with annular recesses having openings for water supply and discharge.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said means for water supply and discharge are formed, respectively, as a lower and an upper header of a dielectric material with cylindrical sockets in each and with supply and discharge ducts, and said cell is rigidly secured in said sockets by means of resilient gaskets accommodated in the grooves of said sleeves and cylindrical electrode.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said headers have several sockets each, said cells mounted in the sockets being parallel connected hydraulically, and said switching unit being connected to the electrodes of of all said cells.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the headers are made as a built-up structure from units having one socket each and provided with means for sealing and bracing the structure.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said cells are electrically connected in series, or parallel, or series-parallel.

6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that it comprises flow rate control devices mounted at the line of water supply to the cylindrical electrode chamber and/or to the rod electrode chamber, and/or at the outlet from the electrode chambers,

7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that it additionally comprises a device for metering reagent mounted at the water supply line and made as, say, a water-jet pump.

8. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the positive terminal of the current source is connected to the cylindrical electrode, and the negative terminal is connected to the rod electrode, said apparatus additionally comprising a container with a catalyst with an inlet in the upper portion and an outlet in the lower portion thereof, and the inlet of the container with a catalyst is connected with the outlet of the cylindrical electrode chamber.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that the water supply line is connected to the inlet of the cylindrical electrode chamber, and the outlet of the container with a catalyst is connected to the inlet into the rod electrode chamber.

10. In an apparatus for electrochemical treatment of water having at least one cell having a vertical tubular electrode, a rod electrode coaxially inside the tubular electrode and defining a space between the electrodes, a diaphragm coaxially between the electrodes and dividing the space between the electrodes radially into inner and outer chambers, upper and lower end dielectric sleeves respectively for supporting opposite ends of the electrodes and diaphragm, inner chamber water-supply means in the sleeves for supplying and discharging water for treatment to the inner chamber at the opposite ends of the rod electrode, and current means for supplying electric current from a switching unit to the electrodes, the improvements wherein:

the inner chamber water-supply means comprises ducts opening from side surfaces of the sleeves;

upper and lower portions of the tubular electrode have openings of an outer chamber water-supply means respectively for discharging and supplying more water for the treatment to the outer chamber;

diameters of the rod electrode respectively at the openings in the upper and lower portions of the tubular electrode are 0.75 of a diameter of a middle portion of the rod electrode therebetween;

the diaphragm is an ultrafiltration ceramic based on zirconium oxide with additions of aluminium and yttrium oxides; and

##EQU3## wherein K=the space between the electrodes in mm,

L=a distance between the openings in the upper and lower portions of the tubular electrode in mm,

Ds=an internal diameter of the tubular electrode in mm,

Db=the diameter of the middle portion of the rod electrode in mm, and

Ss, Sb=cross-sectional areas of the outer and inner chambers, respectively.