Plant-based sewage treatment system for purifying wastewater

• US 7,754,079 B2
• Filed: 11/25/2004
• Issued: 07/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Deere & Company
• Original Assignee: Deere & Company
• Inventors: Bauer, Hartmut
• Primary Examiner(s): PRINCE JR, FREDDIE GARY
• Application Number:
  US11/579,473
• Publication Number:
  US 20080245714A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,056 Days
• Field of Search: 210/602, 210/620, 210/153
• US Class Current: 210/602
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2209/42 Liquid level
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 3/327 characterised by animals and plants
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 10/10 Biological treatment of water, waste water, or sewage
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 10/37 using solar energy

Abstract

The invention relates to a plant-based sewage treatment system for purifying waste water including at least one planter, a supply unit which supplies waste water to be purified to the plant-based sewage treatment system, a discharge unit for discharging purified water from the plant-based sewage treatment system, and plants placed inside the planter. The plants are arranged, without a substrate, inside the planter. At least a portion of the planter is situated on a building roof. A space is provided between the planter and the building roof and an exchange medium from the building can be flowed through the space.

Claims

1. A plant based sewage treatment system for purifying wastewater with at least one plant container, a feed unit for delivering wastewater to the plant based sewage treatment system, a discharge unit for discharging purified wastewater from the plant based sewage treatment system, with plants arranged in the plant container, where the plants are developed so that they are situated in the plant container without a substrate, where at least a part of the plant container is situated on a building roof, characterized by:

an intermediate space is formed between the plant container and the building roof, and an exchange medium from the building is conducted through the intermediate space.

2. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the intermediate space is bounded by a part of the building roof, by a part of the plant container that faces toward the building roof, and by a wall, the wall being between the building roof and the plant container and the wall seals the intermediate space from the external environment.

3. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 2, wherein:

an inlet communicates air from the environment into the intermediate space.

4. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the building roof is a flat roof.

5. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the building roof is a peaked roof.

6. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 5, wherein:

the exchange medium is conducted from the building at a lower edge of the peaked roof into the intermediate space.

7. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container has at least two plant basins, in each of which plants are introduced and which are separate from each other with respect to a flow of water therethrough.

8. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 7, wherein:

the at least two plant basins are situated in cascade fashion at different heights.

9. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container is made of lightweight construction material.

10. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container is sealed with a liner.

11. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the water to be purified flows passively through the plant container.

12. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 11, wherein:

the plant container has at least two plant basins, and a connection between the at least two plant basins communicates the water therethrough and through an opening in a wall of the plant basins.

13. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container has at least two plant basins, and the water to be purified falls freely from one plant basin to the next plant basin at an overflow edge.

14. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container has at least two plant basins, and the water to be purified is transported from one plant basin to an adjacent plant basin by a pump.

15. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the feed unit delivers the water to be purified at a room temperature of the building.

16. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the water to be purified is transported at a given flow rate through the plant container.

17. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container has a plurality of plant basins, and the water to be purified is conducted in different sequences through the plant basins, so that a clarification effect of the plant based sewage treatment system can be varied.

18. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 17, wherein:

plants of specific plant species can be situated in individual plant basins with respect to a direction of flow of the water to be purified, so that the clarification effect can be adjusted.

19. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

only plants of a single species are provided in a plant container.

20. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the plant container has at least two plant basins; and

an L-shaped tube communicates one plant basin with an adjacent plant basin.

21. The plant based sewage treatment system of claim 1, wherein:

the exchange medium conducted through the intermediate space is used for climatization of the building.