Title of Invention

HIELICAL CONVEYOR CENTRIFUGE

Abstract

Screw centrifuge for the wet-mechanical separation of mixtures of solids with a rotor, made up of one cylindrical drum and two conical drums, which rotate around a horizontal axis; with a conveyor screw, which is supported inside the rotor, which rotates around the same axis, and which consists of screws which act in opposite directions; with means for feeding the mixture of solids axially into the centrifuge; and with discharge opening for the skins and for the floats located at the ends of the conical drum walls, characterized in that a radially inward-projecting baffle device for projecting different liquid levels, i.e., one for the floats and another for the sinks, is mounted on the rotor wherein the baffle device consists of a baffle ring, which leaves a ring-shaped gap between it and the shaft of the conveyor screw, and which is mounted upstream - with respect to the direction in which the floats are transported - of an overflow pipe for the carrier liquid/the radially inward-facing inlet of which pipe is a certain distance away from the shaft of the conveyor screw.

Full Text

ORIGINAL 521/MUMNP/04 FORM 2 THE PATENT ACT 1970 (39 of 1970) & The Patents Rules, 2003 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (See Section 10, and rule 13) 1. TITLE OF INVENTION HIELICAL CONVEYOR CENTRIFUGE 2. APPLICANT(S) a) Name : HILLER GMBH b) Nationality : GERMAN Company c) Address : SCHWALBENHOLZSTR. 2, 84137 VILSBIBURG, GERMANY 3. PREAMBLE TO THE DESCRIPTION The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed : - The invention pertains to a screw centrifuge for the wet-mechanical separation of mixtures of solids according to the introductory. A wet centrifuge of this type is known from EP 1 020 227 A, for example. One of the two oppositely directed screws of the screw conveyor conveys the sinks, which have been spun outward to the drum jacket of the rotor, to the discharge openings formed at one end of the - rotor, whereas the other screw conveys the lighter floats, which float on the carrier liquid, to the . discharge openings at the other, conical end of the rotor. The level of the carrier liquid is constant over the entire length of the rotor. The invention is based on the task of making available a screw centrifuge of the basic type indicated in the introductory clause which it is possible to adjust the moisture contents of the sinks and the floats independently of each other. According to the characterizing clause of task is accomplished in that a radially inward-projecting baffle device is provided on the rotor to generate different liquid levels, one for the sinks and another for the floats. With this solution, a sorting decanter is made available, which is made up in practice of two interconnected decanters, where the heavy sinks are discharged from the one decanter, and the lighter floats are discharged from the other decanter. The two decanters are separated from each other here by the inward-projecting baffle device. The screw centrifuge according to the invention is suitable in particular for the separation of plastics of different densities such as PVC or PA and PP, which are suspended in the carrier liquid. In an elaboration of the invention, the baffle device consists of a baffle ring, which leaves a ring-shaped gap free between it and the shaft of the conveyor screw and which is located upstream-with respect to the transport direction of the floats-of the minimum of one overflow pipe for the carrier liquid, the radially irwvard-directed inlet of this pipe being a certain distance away from the shaft of the conveyor screw. 2 It is especially advantageous for the overflow pipe to be radially adjustable so that the distance from the shaft can be varied. In this way, the level of the liquid in the area of the screw which discharges the floats can be varied, as a result of which the length of the drying section through which the floats must pass before they are discharged and thus the residual moisture content of the floats can be determined in advance. In a further embodiment of the invention, the baffle ring has a U-shaped groove profile, . which surrounds the overflow pipe; this profile consists of a radial ring, which is attached to the rotor wall; a transition piece, which forms the base of the groove profile; and an adjacent barrier wall, the free edge of which is a short distance away from the rotor wall. As an elaboration of this feature, the baffle ring is provided with means for adjusting the size of the ring-shaped gap. In this way, it is possible to specify in advance the level of the liquid for the sinks as well, which means that the length of the drying section through which the heavy phase separated from the carrier liquid must pass before it enters the discharge openings can be varied. A longer drying section also means here a longer residence time before discharge and thus a lower residual moisture content for the sinks. Additional features and advantages of the invention can be derived from the claims and from the following description of exemplary embodiments, which are illustrated in the drawing: FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal cross section through the upper half of a screw centrifuge according to the invention; FIG. 2 shows an enlarged drawing of area "S" of FIG. 1 with the baffle device; FIG. 3 shows a vertical cross section along plane III-III of FIG. 2; FIG. 4 shows a variant of FIG. 2; FIG. 5 shows a cross section along plane V-V of FIG. 4; 3 FIG. 6 shows a variant of FIG. 4; FIG. 7 shows a cross section along plane VII-VII of FIG. 6; FIG. 8 shows a variant of FIG. 6; and FIG. 9 shows a cross section along plane IX-IX of FIG. 8. As FIG. 1 shows, the screw centrifuge has a rotor 10, which is made up of a central cylindrical drum 12 and two conical drums 14, 16, which are connected permanently to the center drum. In a housing (not shown), two roller bearings 18 are provided to support the rotor 10. A belt pulley 20, which is used to drive the rotor 10 in rotation around its horizontal axis 24, and a gearbox 22 are indicated on the right in FIG. 1. In the rotor 10, a conveyor screw 26 is supported, which is driven around the same axis 24 as that of the rotor 10 by the gearbox 22 but at a speed different from that of the rotor. The conveyor screw 26 consists of a hollow shaft 28, on which two oppositely directed screws 30, 32 are mounted. The helices 34 of the two screws 30, 32 have openings 36 in the area near the shaft 28. The mixture to be separated, which is suspended in a carrier liquid, is supplied in the direction of the arrow A in FIG. 1 by means of a stationary or rotating feed pipe (not shown). The mixture thus passes through the hollow shaft 28 and enters a chamber 38, which is formed in the central area of the shaft 28. From there, the mixture passes through the radial openings 40 and enters the space between the conveyor screw 26 and rotor 10. Discharge openings 42 for the light phase (the floats), which are machined into the drum wall, are provided in the form of a ring around the end of the conical drum 14 on the left in FIG. 1. Corresponding discharge openings 44 for the heavy phase (the sinks) are machined into the end of the opposite conical drum 16. In the area of the cylindrical drum 12, a baffle disk 46 is attached to the shaft 28 of the conveyor screw 26; this disk prevents the floats from remixing with the suspension. 4 According to the invention, a radially inward-projecting baffle device 48 is attached to the rotor 10; in the exemplary embodiments, this device is located at the transition between the cylindrical drum 12 and the conical drum 14 on the left in FIG. 1. In the manner to be described below, the baffle device 48 has the effect that the liquid level 50 produced for the floats, which are discharged via the discharge openings 42, is different from the liquid level 52 for the silks, which are separated via the discharge openings 44 at the right end of the rotor 10. The baffle device 48 consists of a baffle ring, designated overall by the number 54, which, in longitudinal cross section, has a U-shaped groove profile. This groove profile consists of a ring 56, which is attached to the rotor wall 58 and projects inward fro this wall; an axial transition piece 60, which forms the base of the groove profile; and an adjacent barrier wall 62, which slants away from the transition piece 60. Between the transition piece 60 and the shaft 28 of the screw 30, a ring-shaped gap 64 is present. The free end of the barrier wall 62 is a short radial distance 66 away from the rotor wall 58. FIGS. 2 and 3 show that, in the area of the baffle ring 54, four overflow pipes 68 are mounted in the rotor wall 58; the radially inward-facing inlets 70 of these pipes open out into the U-shaped groove profile of the baffle ring 54. The overflow pipes 68 are adjustable in the radial direction by means of suitable devices (not shown), as indicated in FIGS. 2, 4, 6, and 8 by double arrows. In the exemplary embodiment according to FIGS. 1-3, the baffle ring 54 is permanently connected to the rotor wall 58 and has a bevel 72 in the area between the ring 56 and the transition piece 60. As previously mentioned, the suspension to be separated, such as plastic pieces of different weights suspended in a carrier liquid, arrives via the openings 40 in the hollow shaft 28 in the area of the cylindrical drum 12, where the liquid level 52 is determined by the ring-shaped gap 64, that is, by the distance between the transition piece 60 and the shaft 28 of the conveyor screw 26. The solid particles with the higher specific gravity are spun against the wall 58 of the rotor as a result of the centrifugal force generated by the rotor 10, whereas the solid particles with lower specific gravity float on the surface of the liquid level 52. The screw 32 transports the 5 ^ieavy phase (the sinks) toward the right in FIG. 1 to the discharge openings 44. At the end of the conical drum 16, a drying section 74 of greater or lesser length is formed as a function of the level 52 of the liquid; at the beginning of this section, the solid particles are lifted by the screw 32 out of the carrier liquid and transported along this drying section 74 to the discharge openings 44. The baffle ring 54 can be replaced with a larger or a smaller baffle ring to change the size of the ring-shaped gap 64, i.e., to provide it with either a smaller or a larger radial dimension. As a result, the liquid level 52 and therefore the length of the drying section 74 can be changed. The floats, i.e., the material of lower specific gravity floating on the top 52 of the liquid, are conveyed via the radially smaller screw 30 in the opposite direction toward the ring-shaped gap 64, where the bevel 72 of the baffle ring 54 supports the overflow of the floats into the conical drum 14 on the left. In this drum, the liquid level 50 depends on the distance between the inlet 70 of the overflow pipe 68 and the shaft 28 of the conveyor screw 26. If, proceeding from the example of FIG. 2, the overflow pipe 68 is shifted radially outward, some of the carrier liquid will escape through the overflow pipe 68 until the new liquid level 50 is reached. As a result, regardless of the liquid level 52 for the sinks, the drying section 76 in the conical drum 14 on the left in FIG. 1 is increased. Conversely, this drying section 76 will be shortened when the overflow pipe 68 is shifted radially inward. The distance 66 between the barrier wall 62 and the rotor wall 58 prevents the floats suspended in the carrier liquid from escaping outward through the overflow pipe 68. In the exemplary embodiment according to FIGS. 4 and 5, the ring-shaped gap 64 is closed off by a diaphragm 78, which has a diaphragm ring 80 formed as an integral part of the ring 56; this diaphragm ring extends radially from the ring 56 as far as the lateral surface of the shaft 28 of the conveyor screw 26. Overflow windows 82 are machined into the inner edge of the diaphragm ring 80, these windows being distributed uniformly around the circumference of the ring. The openings of the windows can be made larger or smaller by weir plates 84. The weir plates 84 can be adjusted radially from the outside by the use of suitable elements (not shown), so that the radially inner edge of the weir plates 84 can determine the liquid level 52 in the cylindrical drum 12 and in the conical drum 16 on the right. 6 In the variant according to FIGS. 6 and 7, the diaphragm 78 consists of two ring-shaped disks, which can be rotated with respect to each other, namely, the diaphragm ring 80, which is permanently connected to the ring 56 in this case as well, and a ring-shaped disk 86, situated upstream with respect to the overflow direction. This disk is connected to the conveyor screw 30 in a manner not shown and thus rotates along with the screw. Here, too, the diaphragm ring 80 has overflow windows 82; similar overflow windows 88 are machined intro the ring-shaped disk 86 which rotates along with the screw 30, as a result of which, during the rotation of the screw 30, the floating material flows in a pulsating manner through the ring-shaped gap 64 and into the conical drum 14. In the exemplary embodiment according to FIGS. 8 and 9, the diaphragm 78 also consists of two ring-shaped disks which can rotate with respect to each other, namely, the diaphragm ring 80 and, axially upstream with respect to the transport direction, the ring-shaped disk 86, which is attached to the ring 56. The two disks have overflow windows 82,88, which are on their radially inner edge and in the form of triangles. As a function of the degree to which they overlap, these windows determine the overall size of the opening through which the floats can flow into the conical drum 14. The ring-shaped disk 86 can be shifted with respect to the diaphragm ring 80, a step which is carried out when the centrifuge is assembled. Alternatively, it is also possible to use actuating elements (not shown) to rotate the ring-shaped disk 86 from the outside in the circumferential direction in order to adjust the size of the overflow windows 82,88 in accordance with the requirements at hand. 7 WE CLAIM: 1. Screw centrifuge for the wet-mechanical separation of mixtures of solids with a rotor, made up of one cylindrical drum and two conical drums, which rotate around a horizontal axis; with a conveyor screw, which is supported inside the rotor, which rotates around the same axis, and which consists of screws which act in opposite directions; with means for feeding the mixture of solids axially into the centrifuge; and with discharge opening for the skins and for the floats located at the ends of the conical drum walls, characterized in that a radially inward-projecting baffle device (48) for projecting different liquid levels (50, 52), i.e., one for the floats and another for the sinks, is mounted on the rotor (10) wherein the baffle device (48) consists of a baffle ring (54), which leaves a ring-shaped gap (64) between it and the shaft (28) of the conveyor screw, (26) and which is mounted upstream - with respect to the direction in which the floats are transported - of an overflow pipe (68) for the carrier liquid, the radially inward-facing inlet (70) of which pipe is a certain distance away from the shaft (28) of the conveyor screw (26). 2. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claims 1, wherein the distance between the inlet (70) and the shaft (28) of the conveyor screw (26) is greater than the radial width of the ring-shaped gap (64). 3. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 2, wherein the overflow pipe (68) is adjusted radially to set the distance. 4. Screw centrifuge as claimed in one of preceding claims 2-3 longitudinal cross section, the baffle ring (54) has a U-shaped groove profile, which surrounds the overflow pipe (68), the profile consisting of a radial ring (56) attached to the rotor wall (58), a transition piece (60) forming the base of the groove profile, and a barrier wall (62) adjacent to the transition piece, the free end of this wall being a short radial distance (66) away from the rotor wall (58). 5. Screw centrifuge as claimed in one of preceding claims 2-4 means for adjusting the ring-shaped gap (64) are assigned to the baffle ring (54). 8 6. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 5 wherein the baffle ring (54) is mounted on the rotor wall (58) in such a way that it can be replaced. 7. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 6 wherein the baffle ring (54) has a bevel (72) in the area between the ring (56) and the transition piece (60). 8. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 7 wherein the ring-shaped gap (64) is closed off by an adjustable diaphragm (78). 9. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 8 wherein the diaphragm (78) consists of two ring-shaped disks (80, 86), which is rotate relative to each other, the radially inner edges of these disks being provided with overflow windows (82,88). 10. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 9 wherein the two ring-shaped disks (80, 86) are attached to the ring (56). 11. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 9 wherein one ring-shaped disk (80) is attached to the ring (56) or is designed as an integral part of that ring, whereas the second ring-shaped disk (86) is connected to the conveyor screw (30) and rotates along with it. 12. Screw centrifuge as claimed in preceding claim 8 wherein the diaphragm (78) has a diaphragm ring (80), which is attached to the ring (56) or designed as overflow windows (82), the openings of which is varied by the use of radially adjustable weir plates (84). Dated this 20th day of September, 2004. HIRAL CHANDRAKANT JOSHI AGENT FOR HILLER GMBH

Documents:

521-mumnp-2004-abstract(03-02-2006).doc

521-mumnp-2004-abstract(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-cancelled pages(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-claims(granted)-(03-02-2006).doc

521-mumnp-2004-claims(granted)-(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-correspondence(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-correspondence(ipo)-(07-07-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-drawing(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-form 1(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-form 19(06-12-2004).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-form 2(granted)-(03-02-2006).doc

521-mumnp-2004-form 2(granted)-(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-form 3(20-09-2004).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-form 5(20-09-2004).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-form-pct-isa-210(20-09-2004).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-general power of attorney(03-02-2006).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-general power of attorney(26-09-2004).pdf

521-mumnp-2004-other document(20-09-2004).pdf

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