Cyclone separator for impurity separation in intelligent recirculating aquaculture systems

Abstract

This invention relates to the field of water purification technology and discloses a cyclone separator for separating fish waste. The device includes a main cylinder, an upper cylinder cover, and a lower cylinder cover, forming a vertically arranged internal cavity. The cavity contains a separation zone, a buffer zone, a purified water zone, and a residue zone. The main cylinder has an inlet tangentially connected to the separation zone, causing wastewater to swirl within the separation zone. A convex conical separation hood is located at the bottom of the separation zone, with its bottom edge forming a separation slit between the hood and the inner wall of the cylinder, used to guide the fish waste and impurities separated during the cyclone process into the residue zone. A first guide hood with water passage holes is located at the top of the separation zone, used to guide the separated liquid into the buffer zone. A filter structure is installed between the buffer zone and the purified water zone, and the purified water zone is connected to the outlet. A drain outlet is located at the bottom of the residue zone. This device combines cyclone separation with structural guidance to achieve effective separation of fish waste from water, improving operational stability and ease of maintenance.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of separator technology for water purification, and more specifically to a cyclone separator for separating impurities in an intelligent recirculating aquaculture system. Background Technology

[0002] In aquariums and recirculating aquariums, fish continuously produce waste during their growth, along with uneaten food scraps, algae debris, and other suspended or settled impurities. These impurities, if left in the water for extended periods, not only affect water clarity and aesthetics but also easily breed bacteria and produce harmful substances such as ammonia and nitrite, thus impacting fish health and potentially leading to death. Therefore, timely and effective separation and removal of fish waste and related impurities is a crucial technical issue in aquarium and aquaculture equipment.

[0003] In existing technologies, a common treatment method is to filter water using filler materials such as filter cotton, activated carbon, and sand to intercept solid impurities. However, this type of filtration relies on a large amount of filler material, resulting in high filtration resistance, high filler material costs, and easy clogging by fish feces and feed residue during use. This requires frequent manual disassembly and cleaning, leading to high maintenance costs, low efficiency, and difficulty in meeting the requirements for long-term stable operation.

[0004] To reduce the amount of filter media used and improve separation efficiency, existing technologies have also developed devices that utilize the principle of cyclone separation for solid-liquid separation. Wastewater enters the separator tangentially, creating a cyclone. Large particles are thrown against the sidewalls by centrifugal force and gradually sink, while the water flows out through a filter cartridge located in the center, thus achieving solid-liquid separation. This type of cyclone separation structure is relatively simple and is effective in separating denser, harder particulate impurities.

[0005] However, when practically applied to aquariums or aquaculture water bodies, the aforementioned cyclone separators still have significant shortcomings. First, fish waste and uneaten feed typically have a density close to that of the water itself and a relatively soft texture, making them difficult to effectively separate from the water in a short time during the cyclone process, resulting in low separation efficiency. Second, fish waste easily adheres to the internal surface of the separator, especially to the central filter cartridge or filter structure, causing a rapid reduction in filtration area, clogging the outlet, and affecting normal water output. Third, in existing cyclone separators, the cyclone zone, filtration zone, and sedimentation zone are often interconnected or interfere with each other. The disturbances generated by the cyclone can easily be transmitted to the sedimentation zone, causing already settled residue to be re-stirred, prolonging sedimentation time, and reducing the overall separation effect.

[0006] In summary, existing fish waste separation and treatment devices still suffer from problems such as low separation efficiency, easy clogging, mutual interference between areas, and insufficient intelligent sewage control when dealing with soft impurities such as fish waste that have a density close to that of water and are easy to adhere to. Further improvements are needed. Summary of the Invention

[0007] To address the problems of inefficient separation of solid residues such as fish feces from water in existing aquaculture systems, secondary disturbances during separation, reliance on manual cleaning of residues, and inconvenience in cleaning filter structures, this invention provides a cyclone separation device for fish feces separation. By combining cyclone separation with gravity sedimentation, it achieves effective separation of fish feces from water. Furthermore, through structural zoning and detection control methods, it improves separation efficiency and the level of automation in wastewater discharge.

[0008] The present invention provides a cyclone separator for separating fish waste, comprising a main cylinder, a cylinder upper cover and a cylinder lower cover, which enclose a vertically arranged internal cavity, and the internal cavity is provided with a separation zone, a buffer zone, a water purification zone and a residue zone; The main cylinder is provided with a water inlet and a water outlet; The inlet is connected to the separation zone tangentially to create a swirling flow of wastewater entering the separation zone. A separation hood is provided at the bottom of the separation zone. The upper surface of the separation hood is a cone-shaped structure that convex upwards. A separation slit is formed between the bottom edge of the separation hood and the inner wall of the main cylinder, which is used to allow the fish feces and impurities separated during the swirling process to enter the residue zone below. A first flow guide shroud is provided at the top of the separation zone, and the first flow guide shroud is provided with water passage holes for introducing the liquid in the separation zone into the buffer zone above; A filtration structure is provided between the buffer area and the purified water area, and the purified water area is connected to the water outlet. The bottom of the residue area is equipped with a sewage outlet.

[0009] Preferably, the lower surface of the first flow guide is a concave cone structure, and the water passage hole is located at the top of the first flow guide.

[0010] Preferably, the conical upper surface of the separation hood is used to guide fish feces and impurities to move downward along its surface during the swirling process and enter the residue zone through the separation slit.

[0011] Preferably, a second flow guide is provided below the separation cover, and the upper surface of the second flow guide is a downwardly concave conical structure; The separation shroud is mounted on the second guide shroud via a bracket, and the separation slit is formed between the separation shroud and the second guide shroud; The bottom center of the second flow guide is provided with a separation hole, which is connected to the residue area.

[0012] Preferably, the buffer zone is located at the top of the internal cavity, the purified water zone is located below the buffer zone, and the filter structure is disposed between the buffer zone and the purified water zone, so that the liquid in the buffer zone flows from top to bottom through the filter structure, so as to facilitate cleaning of the filter structure.

[0013] Preferably, the water passage hole of the first flow guide is connected to the buffer area through a water passage pipe, and the water passage pipe passes through the clean water area.

[0014] Preferably, the filter structure includes a filter frame and a plurality of detachable filter cylinders mounted on the filter frame; the filter cylinders are vertically oriented with their openings facing upwards, and the side walls of the filter cylinders are provided with a plurality of filter holes.

[0015] Preferably, the lower cover of the cylinder has a conical structure with the tip pointing downwards, the drain port is located at the lowest point of the lower cover of the cylinder, and an electromagnetic drain valve is installed at the drain port.

[0016] Preferably, at least two parallel electrode plates are provided on the lower cover of the cylinder, and the deposition thickness of the residue is obtained by detecting the capacitance change between the electrode plates; The residue area is equipped with an observation hole, and a camera is installed at the observation hole to collect images of the residue deposition and perform image analysis to obtain information on the accumulation height and volume of the residue.

[0017] Preferably, the Kalman filter algorithm is used to fuse the electrode sheet detection thickness and visual analysis statistical results; When the thickness of the residue deposit is detected to be greater than or equal to 5 cm, or when the volume ratio of the residue is greater than or equal to 80% and the accumulation height is greater than or equal to 4 cm, the electromagnetic drain valve is controlled to open to discharge the residue.

[0018] The cyclone separator for impurity separation in a recirculating aquaculture system, which utilizes the above-mentioned technical solution of the present invention, has the following effects: By setting up vertically arranged separation zones inside the main cylinder and connecting the inlet tangentially to the separation zones, the wastewater containing fish excrement forms a stable vortex within the separation zones. Under the combined action of centrifugal force and gravity, solid impurities such as fish excrement migrate to the outside and downwards, improving the solid-liquid separation efficiency and avoiding the problem of unstable separation effect caused by relying solely on static sedimentation.

[0019] By setting a separation hood with an upwardly convex conical structure on the bottom of the separation zone and forming a separation slit between the separation hood and the inner wall of the main cylinder, the fish feces and impurities separated during the swirling process can smoothly enter the residue zone below through the separation slit, thereby achieving effective isolation between the separation zone and the residue zone and reducing the interference of the deposited residue on the flow field of the separation zone.

[0020] By setting a first guide hood with water passage holes at the top of the separation zone, the liquid after cyclone separation is introduced into the buffer zone from the top of the separation zone, so that the movement paths of the separated water and the bottom residue are independent of each other, avoiding the bottom sediment from being re-entered into the water flow, which helps to improve the stability of the effluent water quality.

[0021] By setting up a filtration structure between the buffer zone and the purified water zone, and allowing the separated liquid to pass through the buffer zone before entering the purified water zone, the synergistic effect of cyclone separation and filtration is achieved, further removing residual fine impurities in the water without increasing flow disturbance in the separation zone.

[0022] By setting up a drain outlet at the bottom of the residue area, the separated fish waste and impurities can be concentrated and discharged in a unified manner. The structure is simple and the sewage discharge path is clear, which is conducive to the centralized treatment of fish waste and reduces the difficulty of manual cleaning.

[0023] Overall, this invention achieves effective separation of fish waste from water while maintaining a compact structure through the coordinated design of a vortex separation structure and an upper and lower partition arrangement, making it suitable for the continuous separation and treatment of fish waste in aquaculture water.

[0024] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in detail in the following detailed description section. Attached Figure Description

[0025] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the external structure of the cyclone separation device of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the cyclone separator of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the cyclone separation device of the present invention.

[0026] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures 1-Top cover of the cylinder; 2-Main cylinder, 21-Inlet, 22-Outlet, 23-Observation hole; 3-Lower cover of cylinder body; 31-Electromagnetic drain valve; 4-Filter screen frame, 41-Water passage hole, 42-Filter water hole; 5-First fairing; 6-Separation cover, 61-Separation seam; 7-Second fairing, 71-Separation hole; 8-Filter screen cylinder; 9-Water pipe; 10-Cache area; 11-Water Purification Area; 12-Separation zone; 13-Residue Zone; 14-Electrode sheet. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The following provides a detailed description of specific embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are for illustrative and explanatory purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

[0028] In this invention, unless otherwise stated, directional terms such as "upper" and "lower" generally refer to the orientation in the assembled and used state. "Inner" and "outer" refer to the inner and outer sides relative to the outline of each component itself.

[0029] I. Overall Structure of the Cyclone Separator The present invention provides a cyclone separator for separating fish waste, which adopts a vertically arranged cylindrical structure, including a main cylinder 2, a cylinder upper cover 1 disposed at the upper end of the main cylinder 2, and a cylinder lower cover 3 disposed at the lower end of the main cylinder 2, which together form a closed internal cavity. The internal cavity contains multiple functional areas, including a separation area 12, a buffer area 10, a water purification area 11, and a residue area 13. These functional areas are arranged vertically in sequence and are connected by corresponding flow guiding or connecting structures to facilitate the transfer of liquid or residue. This system is used to complete processes such as fish waste separation, water filtration, and residue sedimentation and discharge.

[0030] From an overall operational perspective, this invention uses a vertical direction as the primary functional partitioning direction: the separation zone 12 in the middle is used to achieve swirling separation of fish waste from water; the buffer zone 10 and the purification zone 11 above the separation zone 12 are used to buffer, filter, and discharge the separated water; and the residue zone 13 below the separation zone 12 is used for centralized deposition, monitoring, and discharge of the separated fish waste and impurities. This spatial layout structurally isolates the water flow path from the residue deposition path, reducing mutual interference.

[0031] The main cylinder 2 has an inlet 21 and an outlet 22 on its side wall. The inlet 21 is connected to the separation zone 12 and is arranged tangentially to make the sewage entering the separation zone 12 form a vortex in the zone. The outlet 22 is connected to the water purification zone 11 and is used to discharge the filtered water outside the device.

[0032] The separation zone 12 is located in the middle of the main cylinder 2 and is used for cyclone separation of sewage containing fish excrement. A separation hood 6 is provided at the bottom of the separation zone 12. The upper surface of the separation hood 6 is a cone-shaped structure with an upward convex shape. A separation slit 61 is formed between its bottom edge and the inner wall of the main cylinder 2, which is used to guide the fish excrement and impurities separated during the cyclone process to the residue zone 13 below the separation zone 12.

[0033] During the swirling process, fish feces, feed residue and other solid impurities gradually migrate to the outer and lower parts of the separation zone 12 under the combined action of centrifugal force and gravity, while the relatively clean liquid concentrates in the middle and upper part of the separation zone 12, thus forming a preliminary solid-liquid stratification state within the separation zone 12.

[0034] To facilitate the swirling separation process, a separation hood 6 is provided at the bottom of the separation zone 12. The upper surface of the separation hood 6 has an upwardly convex conical structure, which is used to guide the fish waste and impurities that sink during the swirling process to move downward along its surface and separate from the main swirling flow zone at the separation slit 61 formed at the bottom edge of the separation hood 6, and enter the residue zone 13 below.

[0035] A second flow guide 7 can be installed below the separation hood 6 to further isolate the separation zone 12 from the residue zone 13 in terms of structure, reduce the disturbance of the liquid in the residue zone 13 by the swirling flow in the separation zone 12, and enable the fish waste that has entered the residue zone 13 to settle stably.

[0036] A buffer zone 10 is provided above the separation zone 12, and the buffer zone 10 is connected to the separation zone 12 through a first guide shroud 5 at the top of the separation zone 12. The first guide shroud 5 is used to guide the liquid after the cyclone separation is completed, so that the liquid located in the upper part of the separation zone 12 with a low residue content enters the buffer zone 10 through the guide structure.

[0037] The buffer zone 10 is set up to buffer the liquid from the separation zone 12, reducing the impact of the vortex on the subsequent filtration process, and also to provide relatively stable water inlet conditions for the filtration structure.

[0038] A filtration structure is installed between the buffer zone 10 and the purified water zone 11. The filtration structure is used to further intercept and filter the fine impurities that are still entrained after separation. The filtered liquid enters the purified water zone 11 and is finally discharged through the outlet 22 on the main cylinder 2, realizing the purified output of water.

[0039] In a preferred configuration, the buffer zone 10 is located at the top of the internal cavity, and the purified water zone 11 is located below the buffer zone 10, so that the liquid can flow from top to bottom through the filter structure under the action of gravity, thereby facilitating the disassembly and cleaning of the filter structure.

[0040] Below the separation zone 12, a residue zone 13 is provided to collect fish waste and solid impurities that have settled after cyclone separation. The residue zone 13 is located at the bottom of the device, which conforms to the natural settling trend of fish waste and impurities.

[0041] The lower cover 3 of the cylinder is usually designed as a cone-shaped structure with the tip pointing downwards, so that the residue will concentrate and deposit at the lowest point of the lower cover 3 under the action of gravity. A drain port is provided at the lowest point of the lower cover 3, and an electromagnetic drain valve 31 can be installed at the drain port to achieve controlled discharge of residue.

[0042] To achieve automated control of residue discharge, a detection structure for detecting the residue deposition state can be set in the residue area 13, such as an electrode plate 14 structure set at the lower cover 3 of the cylinder to detect the residue deposition thickness; or an observation hole 23 can be set in the residue area 13 and a camera can be arranged at the observation hole 23 to collect images of residue deposition, thereby obtaining information on the accumulation height or volume of residue.

[0043] This device can also be equipped with a detection and control system to monitor the sedimentation state of the residue and automatically control the opening of the sewage discharge structure when preset conditions are met, enabling the periodic or on-demand discharge of residue. By integrating detection, judgment, and sewage control into the overall structure of the device, the device achieves intelligent management of the fish waste separation and cleaning process while maintaining a compact structure, reducing manual intervention and improving ease of use.

[0044] II. Water Inlet and Swirl Separation In this invention, an inlet 21 is provided on the side wall of the main cylinder 2. The inlet 21 is connected to the separation zone 12 along the tangential direction of the inner wall of the main cylinder 2, so that the sewage entering the separation zone 12 forms a swirling flow state around the axis inside the main cylinder 2.

[0045] After the wastewater enters the separation zone 12, a stable swirling field is formed under the combined constraints of the tangential inlet water and the inner wall of the cylinder. During the swirling process, there is a significant radial pressure gradient and centrifugal force distribution inside the water. Fish feces, feed residue, and flocculent impurities formed by microbial action gradually move towards the outer area of ​​the separation zone 12 under the action of centrifugal force, while showing a downward settling trend under the action of gravity. The relatively clean liquid tends to move towards the upper and middle areas of the separation zone 12.

[0046] A separation cover 6 is provided at the bottom of the separation zone 12. The separation cover 6 is fixedly installed inside the main cylinder 2, and its upper surface is a cone-shaped structure that bulges upward. The cone-shaped structure allows fish waste and impurities moving downward during the swirling process to slide outward and downward along the cone-shaped upper surface of the separation cover 6 after contacting it, thereby preventing impurities from accumulating in the central area at the bottom of the separation zone 12.

[0047] An annular separation slit 61 is formed between the bottom edge of the separation shroud 6 and the inner wall of the main cylinder 2. Under the combined action of centrifugal force, gravity, and the conical guide structure, fish waste and impurities leave the main swirling flow zone of the separation zone 12 through the separation slit 61 and enter the residue zone 13 located below the separation zone 12, achieving preliminary separation of solid impurities and liquid. This structure prevents fish waste from remaining in the separation zone 12 for a long time and participating in the swirling flow, thereby reducing the possibility of it being carried back into the upper water layer.

[0048] A first guide shroud 5 is installed at the top of the separation zone 12. The lower surface of the first guide shroud 5 is a concave cone structure, and a water passage hole 41 is provided at its top position. This structure allows the liquid that has undergone preliminary separation by swirling within the separation zone 12 to enter the first guide shroud 5 at a position close to the swirling axis and located at the top. Since this position simultaneously satisfies the characteristics of low swirling intensity and a low probability of fish waste and impurities, the risk of residue entering the upper structure with the water is reduced.

[0049] The water passage 41 is connected to the buffer zone 10 located above the separation zone 12 via the water passage pipe 9. The water passage pipe 9 passes through the clean water zone 11, so that the separated liquid can be guided to the buffer zone 10 without disturbing the internal structure of the clean water zone 11, thereby achieving a stable transition between the separation zone 12 and the subsequent filtration structure.

[0050] Through the coordinated arrangement of the above-mentioned water inlet, swirling flow, separation hood 6, second guide hood 7, and top guide water intake structure, fish waste undergoes spatial stratification under the action of swirling flow after entering the device, and achieves downward concentrated sedimentation and separation from the main swirling flow zone within the separation zone 12. The separated liquid is then guided from the low-impurity area at the top of the separation zone 12 to the buffer zone 10, significantly improving the stability and reliability of fish waste separation from both structural and flow field perspectives.

[0051] III. Separation hood 6 and residue settling structure In this invention, a separation cover 6 is provided at the bottom of the separation zone 12. The separation cover 6 is fixedly installed inside the main cylinder 2 and is located between the separation zone 12 and the residue zone 13. The upper surface of the separation cover 6 is an upwardly convex conical structure, with the tip of the cone facing upwards towards the separation zone 12, and the outer edge of the cone arranged close to the inner wall of the main cylinder 2.

[0052] During the vortex separation process, fish waste, feed residue, and clump-like impurities tend to move towards the outer area of ​​separation zone 12 under the action of centrifugal force, and gradually move downward under the action of gravity. When these impurities move to the bottom of separation zone 12 with the vortex, they first come into contact with the conical upper surface of separation shroud 6. Since the upper surface of separation shroud 6 has an upwardly convex conical structure, the impurities slide outward and downward along the conical surface under the combined action of gravity, centrifugal force, and water flow shear force, thereby preventing impurities from accumulating in the central area at the bottom of separation zone 12.

[0053] An annular separation slit 61 is formed between the bottom edge of the separation hood 6 and the inner wall of the main cylinder 2, and the separation slit 61 is continuously arranged circumferentially. Fish waste and impurities sliding down the conical surface of the separation hood 6, after reaching the outer edge of the cone, leave the main swirling flow zone of the separation zone 12 through the separation slit 61 and enter the residue zone 13 located below the separation zone 12. Through this structure, the separated solid impurities are effectively isolated from the swirling liquid in the separation zone 12 in space, reducing the possibility of impurities participating in the swirling flow again and being carried into the upper water layer.

[0054] Furthermore, a second guide shield 7 is provided below the separation shield 6. The second guide shield 7 is fixed relative to the separation shield 6 by a bracket, and its upper surface is a downwardly concave conical structure. An annular gap is formed between the separation shield 6 and the second guide shield 7, which constitutes the separation slit 61. Fish waste and impurities falling from the separation slit 61 first enter the spindle-shaped buffer space between the upper surfaces of the separation shield 6 and the second guide shield 7.

[0055] A separation hole 71 is provided at the center of the bottom of the second guide shroud 7, and the separation hole 71 is connected to the residue zone 13. Since the intensity of the swirling flow in the separation zone 12 exhibits a "stronger outside and weaker inside" distribution characteristic, the fluid disturbance in the central region of the swirling flow is relatively small. By setting the separation hole 71 at the center of the bottom of the second guide shroud 7, the buffered impurities enter the residue zone 13 under a low disturbance state, thereby effectively preventing the swirling flow field in the separation zone 12 from directly acting on the residue zone 13 through the separation seam 61, and preventing large-scale disturbance of the liquid in the residue zone 13.

[0056] IV. Residue Zone 13 and Sewage Discharge Structure In this invention, a residue zone 13 is provided in the lower part of the internal cavity. The residue zone 13 is located below the separation zone 12 and is used to collect and deposit fish feces and impurities after separation by the separation hood 6.

[0057] The bottom of the residue zone 13 is formed by a lower cover 3 of a cylindrical body, which has a cone-shaped structure with the tip pointing downwards. By setting the lower cover 3 to a downward-convex cone shape, fish waste and impurities entering the residue zone 13 naturally concentrate towards the lowest point under the action of gravity, avoiding the dispersion and accumulation of residue in the bottom planar area, thereby improving the concentration of residue deposition and discharge efficiency.

[0058] A drain outlet is provided at the lowest point of the lower cover 3 of the cylinder, which is connected to the residue area 13. An electromagnetic drain valve 31 is installed at the drain outlet to open or close the drain channel when needed. Through the automatic control of the electromagnetic drain valve 31, the residue can be discharged on a timed or on-demand basis without interrupting the normal operation of the device.

[0059] To achieve automatic detection of residue deposition, at least two parallel electrode plates 14 are installed on the lower cover 3 of the cylinder. The electrode plates 14 are fixedly installed inside the lower cover 3, and their spacing and installation position are pre-calibrated according to the structural dimensions of the residue zone 13. When fish waste and impurities gradually deposit in the residue zone 13 and cover the electrode plates 14, the equivalent medium between the electrode plates 14 changes due to the difference in dielectric constant between the fish waste and impurities and the water, thus causing a change in capacitance. By detecting the capacitance change between the electrode plates 14, the deposition thickness information of the residue in the residue zone 13 can be obtained.

[0060] Furthermore, an observation hole 23 is provided on the side wall of the residue zone 13, and a camera is installed at the observation hole 23. The camera is connected to an edge computing unit located outside the main cylinder 2 via a waterproof cable. The camera captures images of the interior of the residue zone 13 at preset time intervals. The captured residue deposition images are preprocessed and then input into a segmentation model to identify and segment the residue zone 13, thereby obtaining parameters such as the accumulation area, accumulation height, and volume ratio of the residue within the residue zone 13.

[0061] In this embodiment, electrode plate 14 detection and image-based residue identification can be used individually or in combination. When both detection methods are present, the deposition thickness information obtained from electrode plate 14 detection and the residue volume and height information obtained from visual analysis are fused using a Kalman filter algorithm to improve the stability and anti-interference capability of residue state judgment.

[0062] When the fused detection results meet the preset discharge conditions, the control system outputs a discharge control command, driving the electromagnetic discharge valve 31 to open, allowing fish waste and impurities deposited at the bottom of the residue zone 13 to be discharged outside the device through the discharge port. Specifically, the discharge process is triggered when the detected residue deposition thickness is greater than or equal to 5 cm, or when the detected residue volume percentage is greater than or equal to 80% and the accumulation height is greater than or equal to 4 cm. After the discharge is completed, the electromagnetic discharge valve 31 closes, and the residue zone 13 re-enters the deposition state.

[0063] Through the above-mentioned structural design of the residue zone 13 and the setting of the automatic detection and sewage control structure, fish waste and impurities can be centrally deposited, accurately detected and automatically discharged without interfering with the vortex and upper filtration structure of the separation zone 12, which significantly reduces the frequency of manual maintenance and improves the continuous operation capability of the device.

[0064] V. Liquid outlet structure at the top of separation zone 12 In this invention, a first guide hood 5 is provided at the top of the separation zone 12. The first guide hood 5 is used to guide the liquid after the cyclone separation is completed in a directional manner so as to realize the water intake from the low impurity area at the top of the separation zone 12.

[0065] The lower surface of the first flow guide shroud 5 is an upwardly concave conical structure, with the tip of the conical structure facing upwards towards the separation zone 12, forming an inwardly concave flow guide surface that gradually rises towards the center. This structure causes the liquid in the separation zone 12 to converge towards the central region along the lower surface of the flow guide shroud under the action of swirling flow, thereby reducing the possibility of liquid directly entering the upper structure in the circumferential outer region.

[0066] During the vortex separation process, the water in the separation zone 12 rotates around an axis, and the vortex intensity gradually decreases from the outside to the inside in the radial direction. At the same time, in the vertical direction, fish waste and impurities tend to settle downwards under the influence of gravity. Based on the above flow field characteristics, placing the water passage hole 41 of the first guide shroud 5 at the top of the separation zone 12 and close to the vortex axis allows the water intake location to simultaneously meet the conditions of minimal vortex disturbance and the lowest probability of fish waste and impurities, thereby effectively reducing the risk of solid impurities entering the upper structure with the water.

[0067] The water passage hole 41 of the first flow guide shroud 5 is connected to the buffer zone 10 located above the separation zone 12 through the water passage pipe 9. The water passage pipe 9 passes through the clean water zone 11, so that an independent and stable flow channel is formed between the separation zone 12 and the buffer zone 10, thereby avoiding the swirling flow in the separation zone 12 from directly acting on the internal structure of the clean water zone 11 and reducing the impact of water flow disturbance on the filtration effect.

[0068] A filtration structure is provided between the buffer zone 10 and the purified water zone 11. The filtration structure includes a filter frame 4 and multiple detachable filter cylinders 8 mounted on the filter frame 4. The filter frame 4 has multiple water filtration holes 42, and the filter cylinders 8 are vertically positioned on the water filtration holes 42 with their openings facing upwards. Multiple filter holes are provided on the sidewalls of the filter cylinders 8. By placing the filter holes on the sidewalls of the filter cylinders 8, the liquid enters the filter cylinders 8 through the filter holes in a lateral seepage manner during the filtration process, thereby reducing the problem of impurities directly clogging the filter holes due to gravity deposition.

[0069] After filtration, the liquid enters the water purification zone 11 located below the filtration structure. The water purification zone 11 is connected to the water outlet 22 on the main cylinder 2. The purified water is discharged outside the device through the water outlet 22, realizing the output of purified water.

[0070] In this embodiment, the buffer zone 10 is located at the top of the internal cavity, the purified water zone 11 is located below the buffer zone 10, and the filter structure is located between the buffer zone 10 and the purified water zone 11, so that the liquid in the buffer zone 10 flows from top to bottom through the filter structure. With this arrangement, the small amount of impurities that are not separated by the cyclone during the separation process are mainly retained on the upper surface of the filter structure. When cleaning and maintenance are required, the filter structure can be cleaned or replaced simply by opening the top cover 1 of the cylinder, without disassembling the separation zone 12 and the structure below it, thereby significantly improving maintenance convenience and reducing operating costs.

[0071] Through the coordinated arrangement of the top guide structure of the separation zone 12, the buffer zone 10, the filter structure and the water outlet structure, the separated liquid can be stably discharged along a low-impurity path, and interference with the separation and residue deposition structure below is avoided during the filtration and water outlet process, thereby achieving a highly efficient, stable and easy-to-maintain fish waste separation and purified water output process.

[0072] VI. Work Process: During operation, wastewater containing fish feces, feed residue, and other impurities enters the separation zone 12 through the inlet 21 on the side wall of the main cylinder 2. Since the inlet 21 is set tangentially, the wastewater forms a stable swirling flow inside the main cylinder 2 after entering the separation zone 12.

[0073] Under the influence of the swirling current, fish feces and impurities in the wastewater gradually move towards the outside and below of the separation zone 12 under the combined action of centrifugal force and gravity. The separation hood 6 located at the bottom of the separation zone 12 guides the sinking impurities, causing them to slide down along the conical upper surface of the separation hood 6 and exit the main swirling current zone through the separation slit 61 into the residue zone 13. After being isolated by the second guide hood 7, the impurities enter the residue zone 13 under low disturbance and gradually settle.

[0074] The separated liquid converges towards the upper and central areas of the separation zone 12 during the swirling process, and is guided to the buffer zone 10 through the water passage 41 on the first guide shroud 5 at the top of the separation zone 12. After the liquid completes the flow buffering in the buffer zone 10, it flows from top to bottom through the filter structure into the clean water zone 11, and the filtered liquid is discharged from the outside of the device through the outlet 22.

[0075] As the device continues to operate, the residue gradually accumulates in the residue zone 13 and concentrates at the lowest point of the lower cover 3 of the cylinder. The residue deposition state is monitored by detection using electrode plates 14 and image-based residue identification. When the detection results meet the preset discharge conditions, the electromagnetic discharge valve 31 is opened to allow the deposited fish waste and impurities to be discharged through the discharge port. After the discharge is completed, the electromagnetic discharge valve 31 is closed, and the device continues to enter the next round of separation operation.

[0076] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific details in the above embodiments. Within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention, various simple modifications can be made to the technical solution of the present invention, and these simple modifications all fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0077] It should also be noted that the various specific technical features described in the above embodiments can be combined in any suitable manner without contradiction. To avoid unnecessary repetition, the present invention will not describe the various possible combinations separately.

[0078] Furthermore, various different embodiments of the present invention can be combined in any way, as long as they do not violate the spirit of the present invention, they should also be regarded as the content disclosed by the present invention.

Claims

1. A cyclone separator for separating impurities in a recirculating aquaculture system, characterized in that, It includes a main cylinder (2), a cylinder top cover (1) and a cylinder bottom cover (3), which together form a vertically arranged internal cavity. The internal cavity is provided with a separation zone (12), a buffer zone (10), a water purification zone (11) and a residue zone (13). The main cylinder (2) is provided with an inlet (21) and an outlet (22); The inlet (21) is connected to the separation zone (12) in the tangential direction to make the sewage entering the separation zone (12) form a swirling flow; The bottom of the separation zone (12) is provided with a separation cover (6). The upper surface of the separation cover (6) is a cone-shaped structure that bulges upward. A separation slit (61) is formed between the bottom edge of the separation cover (6) and the inner wall of the main cylinder (2) to allow the fish feces impurities separated during the swirling process to enter the residue zone (13) below. The top of the separation zone (12) is provided with a first flow guide (5), and the first flow guide (5) is provided with a water passage hole (41) for introducing the liquid in the separation zone (12) into the buffer zone (10) above; the lower surface of the first flow guide (5) is a concave cone structure, and the water passage hole (41) is located at the top of the first flow guide (5). The buffer zone (10) is located at the top of the internal cavity, and the water purification zone (11) is located below the buffer zone (10). A filter structure is provided between the buffer zone (10) and the water purification zone (11) so that the liquid in the buffer zone (10) flows from top to bottom through the filter structure, so as to facilitate cleaning of the filter structure. The filter structure includes a filter frame (4) and multiple detachable filter cylinders (8) installed on the filter frame (4); the filter cylinders (8) are vertically arranged with their openings facing upwards, and multiple filter holes are provided on the side walls of the filter cylinders (8); The water purification area (11) is connected to the water outlet (22); The bottom of the residue area (13) is provided with a sewage outlet.

2. The cyclone separator according to claim 1, characterized in that: The conical upper surface of the separation hood (6) is used to guide fish feces impurities to move downward along its surface during the swirling process and enter the residue zone (13) through the separation slit (61).

3. The cyclone separator according to claim 1, characterized in that: A second flow guide (7) is provided below the separation cover (6), and the upper surface of the second flow guide (7) is a concave cone structure. The separation shroud (6) is mounted on the second flow guide shroud (7) by a bracket, and the separation slit (61) is formed between the separation shroud (6) and the second flow guide shroud (7); The second flow guide (7) has a separation hole (71) at the bottom center, and the separation hole (71) is connected to the residue area (13).

4. The cyclone separator according to claim 1, characterized in that: The water passage hole (41) of the first flow guide (5) is connected to the buffer area (10) through the water passage pipe (9), and the water passage pipe (9) passes through the clean water area (11).

5. The cyclone separator according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lower cover (3) of the cylinder has a cone-shaped structure with the tip pointing downwards. The drain outlet is located at the lowest point of the lower cover (3) of the cylinder, and an electromagnetic drain valve (31) is installed at the drain outlet.

6. The cyclone separator according to claim 5, characterized in that: At least two parallel electrode plates (14) are provided on the lower cover (3) of the cylinder, and the deposition thickness of the residue is obtained by detecting the capacitance change between the electrode plates (14); The residue area (13) is provided with an observation hole (23), and a camera is installed at the observation hole (23) to collect images of the residue deposition and perform image analysis to obtain information on the accumulation height and volume of the residue.

7. The cyclone separator according to claim 6, characterized in that: The Kalman filter algorithm was used to fuse the detection thickness of the electrode sheet (14) with the visual analysis statistics; When the thickness of the residue deposit is detected to be greater than or equal to 5 cm, or when the volume ratio of the residue is greater than or equal to 80% and the accumulation height is greater than or equal to 4 cm, the electromagnetic drain valve (31) is controlled to open to discharge the residue.

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