Continuous collection method of particle component in aqueous solution and apparatus therefor

Abstract

The particle components may be collected by using a phenomenon that the particle components in the aqueous phase aggregate at the liquid-to-liquid interface. Both of the particle components and the dissolved components in the aqueous phase may be simultaneously collected if combined with liquid-liquid extraction phenomenon that the dissolved components in the aqueous phase are collected into the solvent phase through the liquid-to-liquid interface. The aggregation phenomenon of the particle components at the liquid-to-liquid interface may be promoted by using an emulsion flow method, a method of applying mechanical external forces (such as stirring and vibrating) or another method combining both the above-mentioned methods.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to a method for collecting continuously particle component in the aqueous solution without using filters and / or centrifuge separators. The method utilizes a phenomenon that particle component in the aqueous solution aggregates at the liquid-to-liquid interface between the aqueous solution (aqueous phase) containing the particle component as the target component and the solvent (solvent phase) having hydrophobic nature and not mixing with water.[0002]Liquid-liquid extraction method (solvent extraction method), by which the target component included in the aqueous solution may be extracted into the solvent (such as organic solvent) that contains extraction agents (extractants) having hydrophobic nature and does not mix with water, is widely used in various industrial fields such as metal refinement, nuclear fuel reprocessing, removal of harmful ingredients in the waste water, recycling by separation and recovering of comme...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0013]By adopting the counter-current method, emulsion flow can be more stabilized and more fine-grained in comparison with the apparatus based on the single current method. In addition, in the counter-current method in which the extracting solvent phase is fine-grained and circulated, the apparatus can be operated in stably without any effect by the particle component. This is realized by using such a characteristic that the particle component in the aqueous solution is never distributed into the extracting solvent. Thus, upon making the extracting solvent phase fine-grained, there is no need for paying attention to the plugging problem in the head part (the second head part). In the emulsion flow based on the counter-current method, it is proved that the structure of the second head part influences the quality of emulsion flow, and that the structure of the first head part spouting the aqueous phase is not dominant. This means that, even if the first head part may not have a structure in which the particle component cannot pass sufficiently through the head part (the structure in which the aqueous phase may not be fine-grained), there is no significant effect on the extractability. The invention of the emulsion flow has been completed according to those new findings.

[0014]It will be appreciated that the apparatus according to the

Problems solved by technology

The above mentioned apparatuses, however, have the common principle for mixing two liquid phases by applying mechanical external forces (such as stirring and vibrating) continuously or intermittently, which may lead to such disadvantageous aspects as being not easy to handle, increased running cost, increased maintenance cost, increased apparatus manufacturing cost (initial cost), uncertain safety features.

More specifically, they include: 1) large energy load required to generate mechanical external forces; 2) load and stress at the driving parts for generating mechanical external forces; 3) long adjusting work required to prepare and setup the operation of apparatus; 4) risk of ignition due to friction or static electricity at the driving parts; 5) high strength and high price materials required to manufacture the driving parts; 6) ambie

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