Water Purification via Solvent Vapor Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Pork farms face challenges in disposing of liquid manure due to high contaminant concentrations in water vapor, which exceed environmental standards after evaporation, as traditional methods like composting and evaporation fail to effectively remove contaminants, especially neutral ones.
Innovation Solution
A method involving heating contaminated water to form vapor, transferring contaminants into a liquid solvent, and separating the condensed mixture into pure water and solvent constituents using a two-stage purification process with boilers and columns, effectively removing contaminants through azeotropic principles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If traditional evaporation method is used to remove water from liquid manure, then water content is reduced, but contaminant concentration in the remaining water increases and exceeds environmental standards
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts contaminants from the water-vapor phase by introducing a liquid solvent that selectively absorbs contaminants. The vaporized contaminated water is contacted with the solvent, which transfers contaminants from the vapor phase into the liquid solvent phase, thereby separating contaminants from the water vapor that will be condensed back into purified water.
Solution Approach 2:
The liquid solvent acts as an intermediary substance between the contaminated water vapor and the final purified water. It mediates the removal of contaminants by providing a phase and medium where contaminants preferentially transfer, allowing water vapor to pass through and be condensed into clean water without contaminants.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If composting is used to treat liquid manure, then some contaminants are removed, but the high water content must be reduced first which requires additional processing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state parameters of the liquid manure by vaporizing it, which separates the water component from contaminants based on their different volatilities. This parameter change (from liquid to vapor phase) enables subsequent selective contaminant removal that is not achievable in the liquid phase through composting alone.
3Manufacturing precision
If multiple purification stages are implemented to achieve complete contaminant removal, then water purity increases, but process complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes phase transitions (liquid to vapor, then vapor back to liquid) as the core mechanism for purification. The vaporization step separates water from non-volatile contaminants, and the condensation step returns purified water to liquid form. This natural phase transition process achieves high purity without requiring multiple complex purification stages.
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 process significantly reduces contaminant concentrations in water vapor, producing substantially decontaminated water that meets environmental standards, particularly effective for neutral contaminants not addressed by traditional acid or alkaline washers.
Implementation Method 1
a first boiler where contaminated water is vaporized
Implementation Method 2
means for reacting the liquid solvent and the contaminated water vapor
Implementation Method 3
condensing the decontaminated azeotropic vapor into a heterogeneous liquid including condensed water and condensed solvent
Implementation Method 4
separating the heterogeneous liquid into a condensed water constituent and a condensed solvent constituent
Data Source
AI summary
In the water purification process, apparatus, and method, contaminated water vapor is exposed to liquid solvent, which causes a transfer of contaminants from the contaminated water vapor to the liquid solvent. In an advantageous embodiment, this latter step is followed by a second purification step where the decontaminated water in liquid phase is exposed to water vapor which causes a transfer of solvent remaining in the decontaminated water to the water vapor. The energy freed during the condensation of the vapor can advantageously be used for evaporation of the liquids, optionally by compressing the vapors prior to condensation thereof within heat exchangers.