Slider mechanism for following water surface used for device introduced into oil-water separation tank or raw water tank

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a slider mechanism for following a water surface, whereby each device such as a floating oil recovery device can reliably follow water surface fluctuations even when recovering floating oil accumulated in an oil-water separation tank, a raw water tank, or the like which is large in size and has a large water surface fluctuation range. [Solution] A slider mechanism 6 for following a water surface used for a device introduced into an oil-water separation tank T comprises: a first bar 6a having one end side connected to a suction pump 8 of a floating oil recovery device 1, and extending in a horizontal direction; a second bar 6b connected to the other end side of the first bar 6a and extending in a vertical direction; a tubular body 6c disposed along an inner wall of the oil-water separation tank T and accommodating the second bar 6b slidably along an up-down direction by insertion of the second bar 6b therethrough; and a float plate fixture 70 connected to the first bar 6a and the second bar 6b and fixing a float plate 7 floating on a water surface of the oil-water separation tank T.

Description

Slider mechanism for following the water surface used in a device to be inserted into an oil-water separation tank or a raw water tank

[0007]

[0001] The present invention relates to a slider mechanism for following the water surface that can be used in an oil recovery device that efficiently recovers floating oil accumulated in an oil-water separation tank, a raw water tank, etc., such as a food factory that discharges oil-containing wastewater.

[0002] In food factories, etc., in order to comply with the Sewage Law and the Water Pollution Control Law, they have wastewater treatment facilities using biological treatment or membrane treatment. Manufacturing wastewater from food factories, etc. contains various water pollution substances, and in particular, oil imposes a large load on wastewater treatment. In cases where oil is separated by floating in an oil-water separation tank or a raw water tank to reduce the drainage load, the recovery and disposal of the floating oil accumulated in the oil-water separation tank or the raw water tank have become major issues. Therefore, various methods and devices for efficiently recovering the floating oil have been proposed.

[0003] The methods for recovering floating oil contained in wastewater are roughly classified into (1) suction type and (2) adsorption type. (1) In the suction type, for example, oil-containing wastewater is pooled in a large tank such as an oil-water separation tank or a raw water tank, and the floating oil in the upper layer floating in a large amount is physically sucked out from a suction nozzle equipped with a float corresponding to the fluctuation of the liquid surface. Also, (2) in the adsorption type, a sheet-like or mat-like oil absorption material is put into an oil-water separation tank, etc., and the floating oil on the water surface is directly absorbed using these oil absorption materials.

[0004] In addition, there is disclosed an oil recovery device that includes a slider mechanism arranged along the inner wall of an oil-water separation tank and slidably moving a third pipe vertically, and vertically moves a spiral recovery cup for recovering floating oil by the slider mechanism in accordance with the water surface fluctuation (for example, see Patent Document 1).

[0005] Japanese Patent No. 7482467

[0006] However, the floating oil recovery device shown in Patent Document 1 described above mainly assumes a vertical fluctuation range of 20 to 50 cm of the water surface in an oil-water separation tank, and for example, it has a problem that it cannot cope with large oil-water separation tanks or raw water tanks such as "5 m wide × 7 m long × 4 m high from the ground to the water surface, 2 m water depth".

[0007] In other words, in large oil-water separators and raw water tanks installed on-site in food processing plants and the like, the vertical fluctuation of the water level can exceed 1 meter. The water level tracking mechanism of the conventional floating oil recovery device shown in Patent Document 1 cannot cope with such large vertical fluctuations of the water level. As a result, the floating oil recovery device may not have sufficient floating oil recovery capacity, potentially hindering the recovery of floating oil.

[0008] Furthermore, to efficiently recover floating oil accumulated in large oil-water separators or raw water tanks, such as those with a height of 4 meters from the ground to the water surface, it is essential to adjust the distance between the suction and recovery section of the floating oil recovery device and the water surface to approximately 3-7 cm. Also, in the case of large oil-water separators, the return water alone is insufficient to guide the floating oil and create a vortex in the suction and recovery section, so an auxiliary pump to enhance the water flow is necessary. Adjusting the height and angle between the return water and the water surface of this auxiliary pump is also essential. Performing these adjustments on-site is labor-intensive and time-consuming, and also poses safety problems.

[0009] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and aims to provide a water-level following slider mechanism for devices introduced into an oil-water separator or raw water tank, which allows (1) each device, such as a floating oil recovery device, to reliably follow the water level fluctuations even when recovering floating oil accumulated in a large oil-water separator or raw water tank with a large range of water level fluctuations, and (2) the distance between the floating oil recovery surface or water discharge port and the water surface to be adjusted and set during the manufacturing stage of each device introduced into the oil-water separator or raw water tank, and as a result, (3) each device for recovering floating oil from the oil-water separator or raw water tank to be easily and safely installed.

[0010] To achieve the above objective, the present invention provides a water surface-following slider mechanism for use in a device introduced into an oil-water separator or raw water tank, comprising: a first bar with one end connected to the device and extending horizontally; a second bar connected to the other end of the first bar and extending vertically; a cylindrical body arranged along the inner wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank, through which the second bar is inserted, thereby accommodating the second bar in a slidable manner in the vertical direction; and a float plate fixing device connected to at least one of the first bar and the second bar, for fixing a float plate floating on the water surface of the oil-water separator or raw water tank.

[0011] In this water surface-following slider mechanism, it is preferable to further provide an L-shaped locking member that forms a right angle, wherein the cylindrical body is connected to the lower edge of the locking member, the lower edge is positioned along the inner wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank, and the upper edge of the locking member is fixed to the upper wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank.

[0012] In this water surface-following slider mechanism, the float plate fixing device preferably comprises an L-shaped float plate support bar, one end of which is connected to the first bar and the other end of which is connected to the second bar, and a float plate support surface supported on the upper side of the float plate support bar and clamping the float plate.

[0013] In this water surface tracking slider mechanism, it is preferable that the device is positioned in the water near the water surface side of the oil-water separator tank or raw water tank, and includes a vortex recovery cup having a shape that tapers downwards in diameter, and that the distance between the floating oil recovery surface of the vortex recovery cup and the water surface can be adjusted by the buoyancy of the float plate.

[0014] In this water surface-following slider mechanism, it is preferable that the float plate fixing device is provided on the lower side of the first bar.

[0015] In this water surface-following slider mechanism, it is preferable that the device comprises a flexible hose connected to the downstream side of the water return pipe, a guide pipe connected to the hose for discharging the return water in the return pipe along the water surface, and a third bar that fixes the guide pipe and is connected to one end of the first bar, extending vertically.

[0016] In this water surface-following slider mechanism, it is preferable that the float plate fixing device is provided on the upper side of the first bar.

[0017] In this water surface-following slider mechanism, it is preferable that the device comprises a suction pipe for drawing water from the lower layer of the oil-water separator or raw water tank, and a discharge pipe arranged downstream of the suction pipe for discharging water from the oil-water separator or raw water tank along the water surface.

[0018] The present invention relates to a water-level tracking slider mechanism for use in a device introduced into an oil-water separator or raw water tank, comprising: a first bar extending horizontally with one end connected to the device; a second bar extending vertically with the other end connected to the first bar; a cylindrical body positioned along the inner wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank, through which the second bar is inserted, allowing the second bar to slide vertically; and a float plate fixing device connected to at least one of the first and second bars to fix a float plate floating on the water surface of the oil-water separator or raw water tank. With this configuration, even when recovering floating oil accumulated in large oil-water separators or raw water tanks with large water level fluctuations, each device, such as a floating oil recovery device, can reliably follow the water level fluctuations.

[0019] This figure shows an example of the configuration of a floating oil recovery system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. (a) A side view of the floating oil recovery device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, (b) A partial plan view of the floating oil recovery device, and (c) A side view of the locking member provided in the floating oil recovery device. (a) A plan view of the vortex recovery cup provided in the floating oil recovery device, (b) A side view of the vortex recovery cup, (c) A side view of the vortex recovery cup from a different angle, and (d) A diagram illustrating the water flow around the vortex recovery cup. (a) A side view of the return water position adjustment device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and (b) A side view of the locking member provided in the return water position adjustment device. (a) A side view of the water flow enhancement pump device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, (b) A side view of the locking member provided in the water flow enhancement pump device, (c) A partial plan view of the water flow enhancement pump device, and (d) A partial side view of the water flow enhancement pump device.

[0020] (Embodiment 1) A water-level tracking slider mechanism used in a device introduced into an oil-water separator or raw water tank according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3. This device is for efficiently pumping out the upper layer (floating oil, hereinafter referred to as floating oil) floating in large quantities in a relatively large oil-water separator (or raw water tank) such as "5m wide x 7m long x 4m high from the ground to the water surface, and 2m deep" that pools manufacturing wastewater discharged from food factories and the like. The floating oil pumped out from the floating oil recovery device is temporarily stored in an oil sludge resource recovery device, where the oil and sludge components are efficiently separated from the recovered floating oil, and the water remaining after separation is returned to the oil-water separator as inflow water (return water). These devices are basically installed on-site at food factories and the like that discharge manufacturing wastewater.

[0021] As shown in Figure 1, the floating oil recovery system S includes a floating oil recovery device 1, a water surface tracking slider mechanism 6, a return water position adjustment device 30 that adjusts the return position of the return water that is returned from the oil sludge resource recovery device R to the oil-water separation tank T via a return pipe 20, and a water flow enhancement pump device 40, which will be described later.

[0022] First, the basic configuration of the floating oil recovery device 1 will be explained with reference to Figures 1 and 2. The floating oil recovery device 1 is a device for recovering floating oil (oil-containing wastewater) accumulated in the oil-water separator T, and is equipped with a vortex recovery cup 2, a first pipe 3, a second pipe 4, a third pipe 5, and a float plate 7, and is used in a state where it is submerged in the water of the oil-water separator T. The oil-water separator T is also sometimes called a grease trap, oil trap, or grease interceptor, and its basic structure is generally a natural separation and flotation method that utilizes the difference in specific gravity between water and oil.

[0023] The vortex recovery cup 2 is positioned in the water near the surface of the oil-water separation tank T and has the same bowl shape as a deep suction nozzle that tapers downwards. This vortex recovery cup 2 has a relatively large diameter, for example, about 300 to 700 mm, and sucks up a large amount of floating oil in a vortex motion at once.

[0024] As shown in Figures 3(a) to 3(c), the spiral retrieval cup 2 has a baffle plate 21 erected at a predetermined height (for example, 250 mm) over a predetermined range (for example, a range of 120 to 180 degrees) of the upper edge which is circular in plan view, and a weight plate (SUS plate) 22 that is provided over a predetermined range of the upper edge opposite the baffle plate 21 and has approximately the same weight as the baffle plate 21, welded to it. This configuration of the weight plate 22 makes only the side of the spiral retrieval cup 2 with the baffle plate 21 heavier, which effectively prevents the spiral retrieval cup 2 from tilting and keeps the spiral retrieval cup 2 always horizontal.

[0025] Here, we will explain the method for recovering floating oil in the vortex recovery cup 2. When the return water from the oil sludge resource recovery device R is forcefully discharged onto the surface of the oil-water separator T via the return water position adjustment device 30 (described later) and the lower layer of water via the water flow enhancement pump device 40, a flow in a predetermined direction is generated on the water surface, causing the floating oil to move. At this time, as shown by the arrow in Figure 3(d), the floating oil hits the baffle plate 21 near the vortex recovery cup 2, creating a vortex, and the oily wastewater (floating oil) with a large amount of (floating) waste oil circulates around the baffle plate 21 and is efficiently drawn in from the intake port of the vortex recovery cup 2. As a result, the floating oil is efficiently recovered in the vortex recovery cup 2 and guided to the oil sludge resource recovery device R via the first piping 3 to the third piping 5.

[0026] The first pipe 3 is, for example, a PVC pipe with a diameter of about 25 mm, and is connected to the discharge port below the vortex recovery cup 2, guiding the floating oil recovered in the vortex recovery cup 2 downwards.

[0027] The second pipe 4 is located downstream of the first pipe 3 and guides the floating oil in the first pipe 3 horizontally. For example, it is a PVC pipe with a diameter of about 50 mm. Between the first pipe 3 and the second pipe 4, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, a suction pump 8 is provided to efficiently suck up the floating oil from the vortex recovery cup 2. Specifically, the suction pump 8 is a submersible pump with its body submerged upside down in the oil-water separation tank T and equipped with a motor to form a water flow. The suction port of the suction pump 8 is connected to the first pipe 3, and the discharge port is connected to the second pipe 4. The weight of the suction pump 8 is, for example, about 8 kg. Alternatively, instead of the suction pump 8, an air-driven pump that operates by using the force of expansion of compressed air created by an air compressor may be used.

[0028] The oil-water separator T is typically 2 meters or more deep, and the height of the floating oil recovery device 1 itself is, for example, 700 mm, which is the sum of the distance from the water surface to the upper edge of the vortex recovery cup 2 (50 mm), the height of the vortex recovery cup 2 (150 mm), the height of the float plate 7 (100 mm), and the height of the suction pump 8 (400 mm). Therefore, the floating oil recovery device 1 can remain submerged within the oil-water separator T.

[0029] The third pipe 5 is located downstream of the second pipe 4 and guides the floating oil in the second pipe 4 upwards. For example, it is a PVC pipe with a diameter of about 50 mm. By making the diameters of the second pipe 4 and the third pipe 5 about 50 mm, it is possible to prevent foreign matter contained in the sucked-up floating oil from blocking the pipes and causing malfunctions. In this embodiment 1, as shown in Figure 2, the second pipe 4 and the third pipe 5 are screw-connected (jointed) at a right angle via an L-shaped pipe 4a.

[0030] Next, the water surface tracking slider mechanism 6 will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. The water surface tracking slider mechanism 6 slides the floating oil recovery device 1 (vortex recovery cup 2) vertically in accordance with the vertical fluctuations of the water surface in the oil-water separation tank T. Specifically, the water surface tracking slider mechanism 6 is the area shown by the dotted line in Figure 2 and comprises a first bar 6a that extends horizontally and is connected at one end to the suction pump 8 (and at least one of the first pipes 3) using screws or the like, a second bar 6b ​​that extends vertically and is connected to the other end of the first bar 6a, a cylindrical body 6c that is arranged along the inner wall of the oil-water separation tank T and accommodates the second bar 6b ​​so that it can slide vertically by being inserted through it, and a float plate fixing device 70 that is connected to the first bar 6a and the second bar 6b ​​and fixes the float plate 7 that floats on the water surface of the oil-water separation tank T. The first bar 6a and the second bar 6b ​​are made of a relatively strong metal such as SUS.

[0031] Here, the cylindrical body 6c can be any shape that allows the second bar 6b ​​to be inserted through it and fixed so as to slide vertically, such as a cylinder, a rectangular tube, or a tube with a U-shaped horizontal cross-section and a slit-shaped opening space extending in the vertical direction, and is made of a relatively strong metal such as SUS.

[0032] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2(c), the cylindrical body 6c is connected and integrated with the lower side 6da of the L-shaped locking member 6d which forms a right angle, and the upper side 6db of the locking member 6d is fixed to the upper wall of the oil-water separator tank T using anchor bolts or stud bolts 6e, thereby allowing it to be fixed along the inner wall of the oil-water separator tank T. The inner wall of the cylindrical body 6c is coated with grease or the like as a lubricant so that the second bar 6b ​​can slide smoothly up and down. With this configuration, the water-following slider mechanism 6 allows the floating oil recovery device 1 to move up and down significantly by more than 1 meter in accordance with the height of the water surface in the oil-water separator tank T, and the vortex recovery cup 2 can always maintain a constant distance from the water surface even in a large oil-water separator tank T.

[0033] The float plate fixing device 70 comprises an L-shaped float plate support bar 71, such as a square pipe, with one end connected to the first bar 6a and the other end connected to the second bar 6b, and a pair of float plate support surfaces 72, such as SUS plates, which are supported by the float plate support bar 71 and sandwich the float plate 7. With this configuration, the distance between the floating oil recovery surface of the vortex recovery cup 2 and the water surface can be adjusted by the buoyancy of the float plate 7. For example, it can be adjusted to 30mm if it is 30mm, or to 50mm if it is 50mm, during the manufacturing stage, and when installing it on site, it can be placed directly into the oil-water separator tank T to complete the process.

[0034] Furthermore, if it is necessary to adjust the distance between the vortex retrieval cup 2 and the water surface, the height can be adjusted at the bolts on the float plate 7 and the lower float plate support surface 72. For example, by cutting a square pipe with holes for the bolts to the width of the bolts and assembling it onto the left and right bolts on the float plate 7 and the lower float plate support surface 72, the height between the water surface and the vortex retrieval cup 2 can be adjusted by 20 mm on each side.

[0035] As shown in Figure 2, the floating oil recovery device 1 includes an L-shaped pipe 5a connected to the upper end of the third pipe 5, and a duct oil-resistant hose 24 made of a flexible (flexible, elastic) material, with one end connected to the L-shaped pipe 5a and the other end connected to the floating oil from the third pipe 5 on the downstream side. Note that the piping is not limited to this configuration and only needs to guide the floating oil to the downstream side.

[0036] The oil-resistant duct hose 24 is, for example, a PVC pipe (HT50A) with a diameter of 50 mm, and it needs to be kept at an optimal length that expands when the water level drops and loosens when it rises. In other words, the oil-resistant duct hose 24 has a length that allows it to flex appropriately without stretching completely, even when the floating oil recovery device 1 has dropped to the bottom of the oil-water separation tank T. Furthermore, assuming that it is standard to accommodate vertical fluctuations of 1 m or more in the water level, the oil-resistant duct hose 24 is flexible, so the floating oil recovery device 1 can always maintain a constant distance from the water surface.

[0037] The floating oil that has passed through the duct oil-resistant hose 24 is introduced into an oil and sludge resource recovery device R (oil and sludge recovery tank) that temporarily stores the upper layer of the oil-water separator T and recovers oil and sludge, via a connection part 25 and an inlet pipe 26 as shown in Figure 1. The connection part 25 allows the floating oil recovery device 1 to be easily disconnected from the main device pipe for maintenance purposes.

[0038] In the oil sludge resource recovery device R, oil and water are separated according to their specific gravity, with floating oil forming the upper layer and inflowing water the lower layer. This inflowing water is then circulated and recovered in the oil-water separation tank T via the return pipe 20 and the return water position adjustment device 30. As a result, the oil sludge resource recovery device R separates oil and sludge from water in the oily wastewater recovered using the floating oil recovery device 1, allowing the oil to be efficiently extracted, recovered, and recycled.

[0039] The float plate 7 is a float plate that maintains a constant distance between the vortex recovery cup 2, which is submerged in the oil-water separator tank T, and the water surface. Specifically, the float plate 7 is made of a material that has buoyancy so that the vortex recovery cup 2 does not sink into the waste oil layer of the oil-water separator tank T due to its weight, for example, rigid polyurethane foam. The vortex recovery cup 2 weighs approximately 5 kg, the suction pump 8 weighs approximately 8 kg, and the total weight of the floating oil recovery device 1 is constant at approximately 15 kg. The buoyancy of the float plate 7 is adjusted by adjusting the number and thickness of the plates, so that the floating oil recovery surface (upper surface) of the vortex recovery cup 2 is submerged, for example, 50 mm from the water surface of the oil-water separator tank T. This distance is adjusted according to the viscosity of the floating oil to be recovered. That is, the distance is shorter for floating oil with high viscosity and longer for floating oil with low viscosity.

[0040] Figure 2(b) shows a plan view of the floating oil recovery device 1. As shown in this figure, the water surface tracking slider mechanism 6 and the piping that guides the floating oil (second piping 4 in this figure) are positioned at a predetermined angle in plan view, so that the piping and the water surface tracking slider mechanism 6 do not interfere with each other.

[0041] As described above, the floating oil recovery device 1 includes a water surface following slider mechanism 6 that slides the spiral recovery cup 2 in the vertical direction in accordance with the vertical movement of the water surface of the oil-water separation tank T. This water surface following slider mechanism 6 includes a first bar 6a whose one end is connected to the floating oil recovery device 1 (suction pump 8) side and extends horizontally, a second bar 6b connected to the other end side of the first bar 6a and extending vertically, a cylindrical body 6c disposed along the inner wall of the oil-water separation tank T and accommodating the second bar 6b so that the second bar 6b can slide along the vertical direction by being inserted therethrough, and a float plate fixture 70 that is connected to at least one of the first bar 6a and the second bar 6b and fixes the float plate 7 floating on the water surface of the oil-water separation tank T.

[0042] With this configuration, in the water surface following slider mechanism 6 according to the present embodiment, (1) even when recovering floating oil accumulated in a large oil-water separation tank T with a large water surface fluctuation width (for example, 1 m or more), each device such as the floating oil recovery device 1 surely follows the water surface fluctuation. As a result, a large amount of oil can be efficiently recovered in a short time, and the recovery efficiency of floating oil does not decrease even when used for a long period of time.

[0043] Further, in order to efficiently recover floating oil accumulated in a large oil-water separation tank T or a raw water tank, for example, with a height of "4 m from the ground to the water surface", it is essential to adjust the distance between the suction recovery surface of the floating oil recovery device 1 and the water surface to about 3 to 7 cm. By using the water surface following slider mechanism 6 according to the present embodiment, (2) the distance between the floating oil recovery surface and the water surface can be adjusted and set at the manufacturing stage of the floating oil recovery device 1 to be put into the oil-water separation tank T. As a result, (3) the floating oil recovery device 1 can be easily and safely installed in the oil-water separation tank T or the like.

[0044] The floating oil in a food factory has the characteristic that "it has a high viscosity due to animal and vegetable oils and fats and is likely to solidify". However, at the stage of flowing into and floating on the oil-water separation tank T or the raw water tank, it is still in a sufficiently liquid state, and if it is recovered in a short time at this timing, the floating oil can be recovered easily and most efficiently. The floating oil recovery device 1 using the water surface following slider mechanism 6 according to the present invention solves this problem.

[0045] In recent years, unlike restaurants, some food factories generate several tons of floating oil every day. An oil recovery device 1 equipped with a water surface following slider mechanism 6 as in the present invention can be installed in a large oil-water separation tank T within the factory site to extract reusable oil from the recovered oily wastewater and provide a service for on-site resource utilization. That is, the present invention can be effectively utilized towards the realization of a decarbonized society.

[0046] (Embodiment 2) In this Embodiment 2, a return water position adjustment device equipped with a water surface following slider mechanism and a water flow strengthening pump device will be described while referring to FIGS. 4 and 5.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 4, the return water position adjustment device 30 includes a flexible hose 31 connected to the downstream side of the return pipe 20, a guiding pipe 32 connected to the hose 31 for discharging the return water in the return pipe 20 along the water surface, and a third bar 33 that fixes the guiding pipe 32 and is connected to one end side of the first bar 6a and extends in the vertical direction. The third bar 33 includes a fixture 33a such as a U-shaped screw that is connected to the third bar 33a and fixes the guiding pipe 32 along the vertical direction. In this Embodiment 2, the guiding pipe 32 is composed of a pipe 32a that extends in the vertical direction and an L-shaped pipe 32b that is connected to the lower end of the pipe 32a and guides the return water in the horizontal direction.

[0048] The float plate 7 is fixed to the lower surface of the first bar 6a by a method such as sandwiching it with a pair of float plate support surfaces 72 using bolts 73. Here, the float fixture 70 is the bolt 73 and the float plate support surface 72. The float plate 7 floats on the water surface and has the role of keeping the distance between the discharge port of the guiding pipe 32 and the water surface of the oil-water separation tank T constant.

[0049] The return water position adjustment device 30 is connected to the water surface following slider mechanism 6. As shown in FIG. 4(b), the cylindrical body 6c constituting the water surface following slider mechanism 6 is connected and integrated to the lower side 6da of an L-shaped locking member 6d forming a right angle, and is fixed to the upper wall of the oil-water separation tank T by fixing the upper side 6db of the locking member 6d using a stud bolt 6e, thereby being fixed along the inner wall of the oil-water separation tank T.

[0050] This configuration provides the same effects as in Embodiment 1 described above. Specifically, (1) even in a large oil-water separator T with a large water level fluctuation range (for example, 1 m or more), the return water position adjustment device 30 can reliably follow the water level fluctuations. Also, (2) the distance between the return water outlet and the water surface can be adjusted and set during the manufacturing stage of the return water position adjustment device 30 that is introduced into the oil-water separator T. As a result, (3) the return water position adjustment device 30 can be easily and safely installed in the oil-water separator T or the like.

[0051] Next, the water flow enhancing pump device 40 will be described with reference to Figure 5. This water flow enhancing pump device 40 is a device for sucking and discharging water (inflow water) separated to the lower layer of the oil-water separator tank T according to its specific gravity toward the water surface, and comprises a suction pipe 41 for sucking water in the lower layer of the oil-water separator tank T, a discharge pipe 42 located downstream of the suction pipe 41 for discharging water in the oil-water separator tank T toward the water surface, a submersible pump 43 connected between the suction pipe 41 and the discharge pipe 42 for sucking water in the oil-water separator tank T, and a float plate 7 that maintains a constant distance between the discharge port of the discharge pipe 42 and the water surface of the oil-water separator tank T.

[0052] In this water flow enhancement pump device 40, as shown in Figure 5, the float plate fixing device 70 is integrated with the upper surface of the first bar 6a. The float plate 7 is fixed to the upper surface of the first bar 6a by means of clamping it between a pair of float plate support surfaces 72 using bolts 73, and the float fixing device 70 here consists of the bolts 73 and the float plate support surfaces 72. The float plate 7 floats on the water surface and plays a role in maintaining a constant distance between the discharge port of the discharge pipe 42 and the water surface of the oil-water separator tank T. Also, as shown in Figure 5(d), a submersible pump fixing device 44 for fixing the submersible pump 43 is fixed to the float plate support surface 72.

[0053] Even when the water flow enhancement pump device 40 is connected to the water surface tracking slider mechanism 6, the cylindrical body 6 is connected and integrated with the lower side 6da of the L-shaped locking member 6d which forms a right angle, as shown in Figure 4(b), and the upper side 6db of the locking member 6d is fixed to the upper wall of the oil-water separator tank T using stud bolts 6e, thereby fixing it along the inner wall of the oil-water separator tank T.

[0054] With this configuration, (1) even in a large oil-water separator T with a large range of water level fluctuations (for example, 1 m or more), the water flow enhancement pump device 40 can reliably follow the water level fluctuations.

[0055] Furthermore, if the oil-water separator T is large, the return water from the return water position adjustment device 30 alone is insufficient to guide the floating oil and create a sufficient vortex around the vortex recovery cup 2. For this reason, an auxiliary pump to enhance the water flow (i.e., a water flow enhancement pump device 40) is required, and in this case, it is also essential to adjust the height and angle between the return water from the return water position adjustment device 30 and the water discharged from the water flow enhancement pump device 40 and the water surface. Performing these adjustments at the installation site is laborious and time-consuming, and also presents safety problems. In this embodiment 2, (2) the distance between the discharge port of the discharge pipe 42 and the water surface can be adjusted and set during the manufacturing stage of the water flow enhancement pump device 40 that is introduced into the oil-water separator T, thereby increasing the oil recovery capacity. Also, (3) the water flow enhancement pump device 40 can be easily and safely installed in the oil-water separator T, etc.

[0056] For example, by fixing the L-shaped locking member 6d to the inner wall of a large oil-water separator T or raw water tank, and simply inserting the second bar 6b ​​through the cylindrical body 6c, the "floating oil recovery device 1," "return water position adjustment device 30," and "water flow enhancement pump device 40" equipped with a slider mechanism 6 can be easily installed.

[0057] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible without changing the spirit of the invention. For example, instead of a submersible pump used in the water of the oil-water separator T, an air-driven pump located on the surface may be used.

[0058] 1. Floating oil recovery device 2. Swirling recovery cup 3. First piping 4. Second piping 5. Third piping 6. Water surface tracking slider mechanism 6a. First bar 6b. Second bar 6c. Cylindrical body 6d. Locking material 6da. Lower edge 6db. Upper edge 6e. Stud bolt 7. Float plate 8. Suction pump 20. Return piping 30. Return water position adjustment device 31. Hose 32. Guide piping 33. Third bar 40. Water flow enhancement pump device 41. Suction piping 42. Discharge piping 43. Submersible pump 44. Submersible pump fixing device 70. Float plate fixing device 71. Float plate support bar 72. Float plate support surface 73. Bolt

Claims

1. A water-surface-following slider mechanism for use in a device introduced into an oil-water separator or raw water tank, comprising: a first bar extending horizontally with one end connected to the device; a second bar extending vertically with the other end connected to the first bar; a cylindrical body arranged along the inner wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank, through which the second bar is inserted, allowing the second bar to slide vertically; and a float plate fixing device connected to at least one of the first bar and the second bar, for fixing a float plate floating on the water surface of the oil-water separator or raw water tank.

2. The water surface tracking slider mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising an L-shaped locking member forming a right angle, wherein the cylindrical body is connected to the lower edge of the locking member, the lower edge is positioned along the inner wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank, and the upper edge of the locking member is fixed to the upper wall of the oil-water separator or raw water tank.

3. The water surface following slider mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the float plate fixing device comprises an L-shaped float plate support bar having one end connected to the first bar and the other end connected to the second bar, and a float plate support surface supported on the upper side of the float plate support bar and clamping the float plate.

4. The water surface tracking slider mechanism according to claim 3, characterized in that the device is placed in the water near the water surface side of an oil-water separator tank or raw water tank, and comprises a vortex recovery cup having a shape that tapers downwards in diameter, and the distance between the floating oil recovery surface of the vortex recovery cup and the water surface can be adjusted by the buoyancy of the float plate.

5. The water surface following slider mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the float plate fixing device is provided on the lower side of the first bar.

6. The water surface following slider mechanism according to claim 5, characterized in that the device comprises: a flexible hose connected to the downstream side of a water return pipe; a guide pipe connected to the hose for discharging the return water in the return pipe along the water surface; and a third bar that fixes the guide pipe and is connected to one end of the first bar, extending vertically.

7. The water surface following slider mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the float plate fixing device is provided on the upper side of the first bar.

8. The water surface following slider mechanism according to claim 7, characterized in that the device comprises a suction pipe for drawing water from the lower layer of an oil-water separator tank or raw water tank, and a discharge pipe arranged downstream of the suction pipe for discharging water from the oil-water separator tank or raw water tank along the water surface.

Images