Ultrafine Bubble Cleaning Apparatus for Cesium Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional dissolved air floatation apparatuses are limited in their ability to separate substances with fine bubbles smaller than 30 nm, particularly failing to float cesium ions and fine oil droplets, due to the difficulty in producing and stabilizing ultrafine bubbles of such sizes.
Innovation Solution
An ultrafine bubble cleaning method and apparatus that utilizes ultrafine bubbles with sizes between 3 Å and 30 nm, involving a swirling flow to concentrate and separate substances by adhering ultrafine bubbles to fine particles and droplets, allowing them to float and be separated effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional fine bubbles (100 nm or more) are used in dissolved air floatation apparatus, then the apparatus can operate with stable bubble production, but the bubbles cannot effectively float cesium ions and fine particles smaller than the bubble size
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the size parameter of bubbles from conventional 100 nm or more to ultrafine bubbles of 3 nm to 30 nm. This parameter change enables the bubbles to effectively attach to and float cesium ions and fine particles that were previously too small to be captured by larger bubbles, thereby resolving the contradiction between bubble size control and separation effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the bubble population into two distinct size groups: ultrafine bubbles (3-30 nm) for capturing fine particles and cesium ions, and fine bubbles (100 nm or more) for maintaining operational stability. This segmentation allows each bubble type to perform its specialized function, resolving the contradiction between precision and reliability
2Manufacturing precision
If ultrafine bubbles of 30 nm or less are produced, then separation effectiveness for fine particles and cesium ions improves, but the bubbles cannot be stably produced in large amounts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges two bubble production systems into one integrated dissolved air floatation apparatus: an ultrafine bubble generation unit (using a porous plate with 0.03-0.003 μm pores) and a conventional fine bubble generation unit. This merging enables simultaneous production of both ultrafine bubbles (3-30 nm) for high-precision separation and fine bubbles (100 nm or more) for stable large-volume operation, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing precision and productivity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by assigning different functional roles to different bubble size ranges within the same system. Ultrafine bubbles (3-30 nm) are specifically targeted for capturing fine particles and cesium ions, while fine bubbles (100 nm or more) handle bulk separation tasks. This local specialization allows the system to achieve both high precision and high productivity simultaneously
3Productivity
If fine bubbles are used to float suspended substances, then separation can be achieved for larger particles, but fine oil droplets and small contaminants cannot be effectively separated due to insufficient contact opportunity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the bubble size parameter to ultrafine (3-30 nm), which is smaller than fine oil droplets and other fine contaminants. This size reduction increases the surface area to volume ratio and enhances the probability of contact between bubbles and fine particles, enabling effective separation of contaminants that were previously too small to be captured by larger bubbles
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 method effectively cleans substances like soil and sand contaminated with radioactive cesium and separates fine oil droplets by using ultrafine bubbles to increase their buoyancy and facilitate separation, achieving significant reduction in radiation dosage and efficient separation of contaminants.
Implementation Method 1
adhering ultrafine bubbles to fine particles and droplets, allowing them to float and be separated effectively
Implementation Method 2
swirling a liquid containing ultrafine bubbles having a size of less than 30 nm and bubbles larger than the ultrafine bubbles to concentrate apart thereof that contains the ultrafine bubbles and has a relatively large specific gravity outside a swirling flow
Data Source
AI summary
A dissolved air floatation apparatus including an ultrafine bubble-containing liquid production device and a dissolved air floatation tank. The ultrafine bubble-containing liquid production device includes a gas-liquid mixing unit and a bubble-containing liquid separation device. The bubble-containing liquid separation device swirls a liquid containing ultrafine bubbles and larger bubbles in a storage tank to concentrate the liquid that contains the ultrafine bubbles and the liquid that contains the larger bubbles to a central part of the swirling flow followed by discharge. A pressurized ultrafine bubble-containing liquid is mixed in a raw liquid containing a subject to be cleansed and is poured into the dissolved air floatation tank to cause a suspended substance and a dissolved component in the raw liquid to be adsorbed on an interface of fine bubbles and be floated in the dissolved air floatation tank to be extracted.