Oil-Water Separation Filter with Prefilter and Hydrophilic Module
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current oil-water separation technologies face inefficiencies in oil recovery during spills due to high water content and clogging from solid impurities, which reduces the effectiveness of emergency equipment and storage tank efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A filter apparatus with a prefilter module and a hydrophilic filter module, featuring a porous structure and mesh support, designed to separate water from oil and impurities by using a core and shell made of hydrophilic materials with superhydrophilic properties, enhancing water flux and preventing clogging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a conventional filter is used for oil-water separation, then water can be drained off, but solid impurities clog the filter holes, causing significant reduction in separation efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The filter is divided into two distinct modules: a prefilter module that captures solid impurities and a hydrophilic filter module that separates water from oil. This segmentation allows each module to perform its specific function without interfering with the other, preventing clogging of the main filter while maintaining separation efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The prefilter module performs preliminary filtration by capturing solid impurities before the fluid reaches the hydrophilic filter module. This preliminary action removes the harmful solid particles that would otherwise clog the main filter, ensuring continuous operation and maintaining high separation efficiency
2Quantity of substance
If emergency equipment is used for oil recovery, then oil can be collected, but water occupies 90% or more of the storage container volume, requiring continuous draining
Solution Approach 1:
The filter utilizes the density parameter difference between water and oil, combined with the hydrophilic property of the filter material, to selectively pass water through while retaining oil. This parameter-based separation allows water to be drained off while oil remains in the storage container, significantly increasing the effective storage volume for oil
3Productivity
If a hydrophilic filter module is used to increase water flux, then water can be drained more efficiently, but the filter structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The hydrophilic filter module uses porous materials with specific surface properties that enable high water flux. The porous structure allows water to pass through rapidly while the hydrophilic surface characteristics ensure selective water permeation, achieving efficient water drainage without requiring complex mechanical structures
Solution Approach 2:
The filter combines prefilter material and hydrophilic filter material into a composite structure that integrates multiple functions. The prefilter component captures solids while the hydrophilic component enables selective water passage, creating a unified device that achieves both impurity removal and efficient water drainage without increasing overall structural complexity
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The filter apparatus effectively drains off water and impurities, increasing storage efficiency by maintaining high water flux and reducing clogging, allowing for efficient oil-water separation in mixed fluid storage tanks during spills.
Implementation Method 1
a prefilter module having an internal space to allow a prefiltered fluid in an external mixed fluid to flow in while disallowing an external impurity to flow in
Implementation Method 2
a first hydrophilic filter module provided on an inner side of the prefilter module to filter the prefiltered fluid
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a filter apparatus for oil-water separation, and according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when the filter apparatus for oil-water separation is mounted in a mixed fluid storage tank for storing a mixed fluid collected in seas or rivers in the event that an oil spill accident occurs, it is possible to drain off only water in the mixed fluid.In addition, it is possible to increase the storage efficiency of the mixed fluid storage tank by selectively draining and removing only water other than oil and impurities in the mixed fluid stored in the mixed fluid storage tank.