Patent Grant
9091034
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to cleaning toxic waste, and more particularly, to an apparatus, system and method for remediation of contaminated materials from a body of water.
2. Related Art
It has been found that some naturally occurring bodies of water such as lakes, reservoirs, rivers and streams have become contaminated with material, such as, for example, with chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls (“PCBs”) or chlorinated dioxins.
There is a need for an apparatus, system and method for removal of these contaminated materials.
A first aspect of the present invention provides an apparatus, comprising: a vessel including a rimmed opening, wherein when the rimmed opening is facing a bottom of a body of water, wherein the vessel has been configured to contain and suspend materials inside the vessel; a first pipe coupled to the vessel and configured to transport the contained and suspended materials from an interior of the vessel to an exterior of the vessel, wherein the first pipe includes an attachment selected from the group consisting of a filter and a drill head or auger; and a second pipe coupled to the vessel and configured to return the suspended materials to the interior of the vessel.
A second aspect of the present invention provides an apparatus, comprising: a vessel including a rimmed opening, wherein when the rimmed opening is facing a bottom of a body of water, wherein the vessel has been configured to contain and suspend materials inside the vessel; a first pipe coupled to the vessel and configured to transport the contained and suspended materials from an interior of the vessel to an exterior of the vessel, wherein the first pipe includes an attachment selected from the group consisting of a filter and a drill head or auger; and an agitating device being configured to suspend the suspended materials and being selected from the group consisting of a paddle, an auger, a spray head, a whip, a prop, and a fluid distribution device.
A third aspect of the present invention provides an apparatus, comprising: a vessel including a rimmed opening, wherein when the rimmed opening is facing a bottom of a body of water, wherein the vessel has been configured to contain and suspend materials inside the vessel; a first pipe coupled to the vessel and configured to transport the contained and suspended materials from an interior of the vessel to an exterior of the vessel, wherein the first pipe includes an attachment selected from the group consisting of a filter and a drill head or auger; and a filtering system coupled to the first pipe, the filtering system being configured to filter the materials transferred through the first pipe.
A fourth aspect of the present invention provides a method for transporting materials from a bottom of a body of water for processing, the method comprising: providing a vessel including a rimmed opening, wherein the rimmed opening is facing a bottom of a body of water so as to isolate a contained area of the vessel from the outside of the vessel, wherein the vessel has been configured to contain and suspend materials inside the vessel; positioning the vessel such that the opening is facing the bottom of the body of water and is in direct physical contact with the bottom of the body of water; containing and suspending the materials inside the vessel by providing an agitating device coupled to the vessel and selected from the group consisting of a paddle, an auger, a spray head, a whip, a prop, and a fluid distribution device; providing a first pipe coupled to the vessel, wherein the first pipe includes an attachment selected from the group consisting of a filter and a drill head or auger; and transporting the contained and suspended materials from an interior of the vessel to an exterior of the vessel via the first pipe.
a illustrates a top view of the vessel of
b illustrates a perspective view of the vessel and the curtain plates of
c illustrates a side view of the vessel and the curtain plates of
The vessel 110 may comprise: viewing devices 105a and 105b, such as waterproof cameras, may be used to display the contained area 93. The vessel 110 may be a compartment-box or any other appropriate container having water-proof walls. The vessel 110 may be made of rigid material such as plastic, rubber or metal. Alternatively, the vessel 110 may be made of flexible material such as flexible rubber. The vessel 110 may have any appropriate solid geometric shape such as polygon, cubic, cylindrical, spherical, pyramidal, rhomboid or conical. Conduits 70 may house coaxial cables or other appropriate wiring to supply the viewing devices 105a and 105b with electricity and to provide a data highway over which pictures of the contained area 93 may be projected to another location for remote viewing. In addition, the viewing devices may be equipped with lights for illuminating the contained area 93, such as waterproof electrically powered lights or with light sticks that may be illuminated by chemiluminescence.
The apparatus 100 may comprise a “closed loop” piping system 45, wherein a portion of the “closed loop” piping system 45 may be defined by paths GA, IM, and LN from vessel 110 via exit lines 145a′, 145b′ and 145c′ respectively, and processing system feed line 60 to a process system 140, such as a filter system, via a valve 51, wherein the process system 140 may include a pump. A remaining portion of the “closed loop” piping system 45 may be defined by paths DH, EJ, and FK to vessel 110 via return lines 147a′, 147b′, and 147c′ respectively, and process system exit lines 62, 149, and 151 via valves 52 and 53. In addition to the filtering system and the pump, the process system 140 may include viewing, monitoring, pressure, and vacuum control, material transport, testing, tooling, and treatment technologies. The treatment technologies may include the aforementioned treatments, for example, removal of toxic chemicals or elements by chemical treatments using additives, reducers, catalysts, microbes, stabilizers, adhesives, charged particles, gases, or elements. The apparatus 100, including the process system 140, may bring a controlled clinical setting out of the laboratory and into the environment. The apparatus 100 also may include isolation valves 50-55, and 69.
Referring to
A deficiency of commonly used methods of removal of contaminated sediment, such as dredging of contaminated material may be that only a small percentage, sometimes less than 10 percent by weight of the contaminated material, may be actually removed. Commonly used methods of dredging to remove contaminated sediment typically use an open mouthed bucket, such that the water and suspended sediment 150 and 152, the sediment 78 and 78′, and the mud 85 and 85′ may escape back into the body of water 83 by leaking out of the bucket through the open mouth. Sediment having small diameter such as sediment in the water and suspended sediment 150 and 152, sediment 78 and 78′, such as silt, and/or in the mud 85 and 85′, that may be light and fluffy by nature, may be hard to contain during commonly used methods of removal of contaminated sediment, such as, for example, dredging operations in the open mouth bucket, for example. A purpose of the present invention may be to overcome at least one deficiency of dredging by providing a container, such as the vessel 110, that may be used to essentially completely contain the contaminated material that may be in the body of water 83, such that when the contaminated materials may be contained in the vessel 110, (and the vessel 210 depicted in
The contaminated material in the bottom 80 of the body of water 83 may be located as to longitude and latitude coordinates in the bottom 80 of the body of water 83, such as in the locations 89 and 91, by testing samples from the locations 89 and 91, using any appropriate testing method for detecting and/or quantifying parts per trillion levels or higher of the chemicals or other form of waste, and mapping the concentrations of the contaminants, such as chemical contaminants, from locations 89 and 91 according to the longitude and latitude coordinates from which the sample(s) originated. Hereinafter, mapping means creating a map showing locations on the surface of the earth, as to longitude and latitude coordinates, that may relate concentrations of the contaminants, such as chemical contaminants, according to the longitude and latitude coordinates (e.g. of locations 89 and 91) from which the samples were taken. The longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates of the locations 89 and 91 may be determined using any appropriate mapping system, such as, for example, a Geographical Positioning System (GPS) 40. If tests show the concentration of the contamination, such as chemical contamination, at a location, e.g. 89 or 91, may be sufficiently high designating the locations as being harmful or toxic to people, wildlife or vegetation, because of sufficiently high contamination, such as chemical contamination, the apparatus 100 may be used to remove the contamination, such as the chemical contamination, as described infra in a method 600 for removing chemical contaminants, as depicted in
In the step 620 of the method 600, the apparatus 100 may be positioned over the location designated as having a level harmful to humans, wildlife or vegetation, such as over one or both locations 89 and 91 of the bottom 80 of the body of water 83, as depicted in
The vessel 110 may be “lowered” into position by mechanical or other means, in accordance with the step 620 of the method 600, as described infra, and depicted in
In the positioning step 620 of the method 600, the vessel 110 may be partially submerged or completely submerged below the surface 170 of the body of water 83, as long as the edge 82 directly and physically contacts the bottom 80 of the body of water 83.
In the containing and suspending step 630 of the method 600, paddles 125a and 125b, such as augers, spray heads, whips, props, fluid and gas distribution devices, etc. may provide agitation of the interior 93 of the vessel 110, resulting in suspending a portion or essentially all of the bottom material, e.g., 78, or 85 of the bottom 80 that may be contained in the interior 93 of the vessel 110, wherein the suspended portion may include the contaminated material. The contaminated material may be a range from 0-100 percent by weight of the total material of the bottom 80 in the interior 93 of the vessel 110.
In the step 630, a rate of agitation necessary to suspend the contaminated material, for example, in locations 89 and 91 may be empirically determined, based on the weight percent of the bottom material targeted for removal, wherein higher agitation may be needed to suspend more of the portion of the bottom 80 having contaminated material. The contaminated suspended material in the water and suspended material 152 may be conveyed through the “closed loop” piping system 45 to a processing system 140 such as a filter system having in-line chemical testing equipment in order to identify the suspended materials that may be contaminated and to separate them from a fluid such as water in the suspended material and water 152. In one embodiment, the identified suspended material that may be contaminated can be conveyed from the interior 93 of the vessel 110 through the exit lines 145a′, 145b′ and 145c′, through the processing system feed line 60, through the valve 51 to the processing system 140 where the contaminated suspended materials may be removed. The separated fluid can be recycled back into the vessel 110 through the valve 53, the process system exit lines 62 and 149, the valve 52, the process system exit line 51, the return lines 147a′, 147b′, and 147c′, and finally back to the interior 93 of the vessel 110. A rate of removal of contaminated materials such as, e.g., contaminated soil and silt, from the vessel 110 and rate of return of the processed fluids and processed contaminated material, such as, e.g., soil and silt, to the vessel 110 may be controlled such that an essentially net zero pressure difference may be measured between the interior 93 and the outside of the vessel 110, e.g. at the open rim 90 of the vessel 110, and at the releasable seal 95 that may be formed from bottom 80, e.g., sediment 78′ and mud 85′ of the bottom 80, outside of the vessel 110 that may releasably seal the edge 82 onto either sediment 78, mud 85 or the bedrock 87, depending how deep the vessel 110 was driven. Therefore, in the steps 650-660, essentially no contaminated suspended material may escape from the essentially complete containment provided by the apparatus 100 during operation of the “closed loop” piping system 45 as described in the steps 610-670 of the method 600, as described infra and depicted in
An efficiency of the processing system 140 may be determined by comparing a turbidity of the fluid in the return lines 147a′, 147b′, and 147c′ to the turbidity of the fluid and suspended soil and silt in the exit lines 145a′, 145b′ and 145c′. It has been found that the percent efficiency of removal of contaminated material by filtering may be essentially 100.0% if the processing system 140 may include 0.2 to 100 micron paper or cloth filters, wherein the percent efficiency may be determined by converting a ratio of the turbidity of the fluid into the processing system 140 and the turbidity of the fluid out of the processing system 140 to percent. Efficiency between 50% and 95% may be achieved using sand filters such as for filtering swimming pools, having #20 silica with a particle diameter of the sand being from about 0.40 mm to about 0.50 mm, available from Jandy, PO Box 6000, Petaluma, Calif. 94955-6000. Recommended sands may be sand grade 0.45 mm to about 0.55, having an average diameter of 0.46 mm, available from Wedron/Best Sand Company, or sand grade 0.45 mm to about 0.55 mm, having an average diameter of 0.48 mm, available from U.S. Silica/Silurian Filter Sand. Weight of sand for charging the filter may be determined by one skilled in the art with a minimum of experimentation based on choosing a weight of sand appropriate to filter 2.0 to 2.5 times the volume of suspended sediment and water in the vessel 110 per hour, without exceeding 50 psi internal pressure in the sand filter. The processing system 140 can be a micro-filtration system or a chemical reaction process that may be activated by light such as lasers, light emitting diodes including laser emitting diodes, UV or thermal energy. Once monitoring levels are met, recycled materials, such as the treated contaminated materials or growth packets 780 and 900, as depicted in
The vessel 110 allows for removals “in place” with continuous monitoring and minimal exposure to the surroundings. This process 140 exists for extraction without released re-suspension.
In one embodiment, the present invention solves the problem of containing the contaminated material by providing a resealable/sealable vessel 110 for sampling, viewing, monitoring, separating, testing, treating, injecting, replacing or removing contaminated materials that include silt, sludge, stone materials, ores, metals, or elements, etc. from a bottom 80 of a body of water 83.
Generally, the present invention may be an apparatus 100 for sampling, viewing monitoring, separating, testing, treating, injecting, replacing or removing materials that include silt, sludge, stone materials, ores, metals, or elements, etc. from a bottom of a body of fluids, such as, for example, a chemically contaminated bottom 80 of a body of water 83. The apparatus 100 may comprise an open-faced vessel 110, a global positioning device 40, and a closed loop piping system 45.
The open faced vessel 110 may form a releasable seal 95 with the bottom 80 of the body of water 83 and may include at least one agitator 125a, 125b, 135a, 135b, 135c, 135d, and 127 for suspending portions of contaminated materials from the bottoms such as, for example, silt, sludge, stone materials, ores, metals, or elements, etc. Power station 120 may provide power, such as, for example, mechanical or electrical power. The at least one agitator 125a, 125b, 135a, 135b, 135c, 135d, and 127 may also may include at least one outlet port 145a, 145b, and 145c through which a mixture of the portions of the bottoms and water may be withdrawn from the vessel 110 for monitoring, separating, testing, treating, injecting, replacing, or removing the portions. The agitators may be variable speed impellers 125a and 125b, whip 127 or nozzles 135a, 135b, 135c, 135d for directing a stream of water or air at variable pressures from any appropriate device, such as, air or water jets 130. The area sampled may be any area equivalent to the area of contamination, such as, e.g., chemical contamination, limited only by practical considerations such as costs of materials and benefit from minimizing the number of relocations of the vessel 110 in order to sample the contaminated area. In one embodiment the vessel 110 or 210 (as depicted in
The global positioning device (GPD) 40 or other appropriate computerized positioning device may be for determining a position of the vessel to within +/−0.12 inches of, for example, a known chemically contaminated site on the bottom 80 of the body of water 83.
The process system 140 may include a two directional pump for circulating materials into and out of the vessel 110. It may be possible for a vacuum or negative pressure to result in the vessel 110 if the closed loop piping system 45 may be under a vacuum when the contaminated materials, such as, for example, the water and suspended sediment, 152, silt, 78, or mud, 85 inside the vessel 110 may be removed from the vessel 110 and drawn into the piping system 45, wherein the releasable seal 95 may prevent relief of the vacuum, such as, by leakage of materials, such as, for example, uncontaminated silt, 78′, uncontaminated mud, 85′ or uncontaminated water 150 into the vessel 110. Alternatively, it may be possible for a positive pressure to result in the vessel 110 if the closed loop piping system 45 may be full of air or any other compressible fluid when the contaminated materials, such as, for example, the water and suspended sediment, 152, silt, 78, or mud, 85 inside the vessel 110 may be removed from the vessel 110 and drawn into the piping system 45, wherein the releasable seal 95 may prevent relief of the pressure buildup by leakage of materials, such as, for example, the water and suspended sediment, 152, silt, 78, or mud, 85 out of the vessel 110. A portion of the contaminated materials, such as, for example, sediment, 78, such as silt, that may be higher in chemical contamination, may be removed from the water by the processing system 140, such as, e.g., micro-filters, and water and remaining portions of the material, such as, for example, mud, 85, may be returned to the vessel 110. The processing system 140, such as, e.g., the micro-filters may be cleaned to remove chemically contaminated materials, such as, e.g., silt or other micro-materials, with high frequency bursts of pressure or by ultra sonic bursts during periods when the “closed loop” apparatus 100 may be inactive. The monitoring may include testing for chemicals or elements, known, or unknown, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), dioxin, and other toxic chemical solvents such as trichloroethylene (TCE). The treatment may include, for example, removal of toxic chemicals or elements by, for example, chemical treatments using additives, reducers, catalysts, microbes, stabilizers, adhesives, charged particles, gases, or elements. Once treated, cleaned, separated materials, such as the portions absent the silt, may be returned to the bottom 80 of the body of water 83 via the closed loop piping system 45.
In summary, the claimed invention may allow for removals “in place” with continuous monitoring and minimal exposure to the surroundings. The claimed process may extract toxic chemicals from portions of the bottom 80 or may remove silt and/or may return remaining portions of the bottoms in areas as small as 1 square feet with exact positioning within +/−0.12 inches of, for example, a known chemically contaminated site on the bottom of the body of water 83.
The vessel 210 may comprise an opening 210′ adapted for facing and being in direct physical contact with the bottom 180 of a body of water 250 so as to form a contained area 274 inside the vessel 210. The body of water 220 may include water and suspended sediment 250 and bottom 180 of the body of water 220, wherein the bottom 180 of the body of water 220 includes sediment 270 and bedrock 280. The vessel 210 may be made of rigid material such as plastic, rubber or metal. Alternatively, the vessel 210 may be made of flexible material such as flexible rubber. The vessel 210 may have any appropriate solid geometric shape such as polygon, cubic, cylindrical, spherical, pyramidal, rhomboid or conical. The vessel 210 can be made of steel, plastic, or any material that can isolate and contain air and liquids. In one embodiment, a flexible skirt 185 may extend a rim 183 of the vessel 210, to provide a flexible extension of the rim 183, wherein the flexible skirt 185 may wrap around rocks or other solid debris on the bottom 180 of the body of water 250, enabling the flexible skirt 185 of the vessel 210 to be in direct physical contact with the bottom 180 so as to isolate the contained area 274 of the vessel 210 from the outside of the vessel, even though the rim 183 may be prevented from physically contacting the bottom 180 because it may not be able to penetrate the rock or debris. In one embodiment, the vessel 210 may comprise one or more hooks 214a and 214b. Illustratively, the hook 214b can be used for coupling via cable 186 with a lifting device 182 such as a crane, wherein the lifting device 182 may be secured to a floating vessel 181 such as a boat or barge. The vessel 210 can have any shape that facilitates its movement (lifting and lowering) in or out of the water or to enable it to circumvent rocks or debris on the bottom 180 of the body of water 250.
In one embodiment, the at least one pipe(s) 248 can comprise an attachment 248″, wherein the attachment 248″ may be operatively coupled to the pipe 248 at an opening 248′ of the at least one pipe(s) 248. The attachment 248″ may be a drill head or auger to facilitate inserting the at least one pipe(s) 248 into the bottom 180 of the body of water 220. The attachment 248″ of the at least one pipe(s) 248, when the attachment 248″ may be a drill head or auger, can be used for performing core sampling, wherein a core sample is a sample of soil or sediment from the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, as depicted in
Alternatively the attachment 248″ may be a filter.
Referring to
The at least one agitating device(s) 227 can have the form of a whip having multiple branches. Each branch may have a hollow core through which water (or other fluids) can be pumped under high pressure into the interior 274 of the vessel 210 so as to agitate the materials inside the vessel 210. The whip 227 can spin or rotate while water may be being pumped through it into the interior 274 of the vessel 210. Similar to the at least one device(s) 225a and 225b, the at least one agitating device(s) 227 can also be powered by the power station 390.
In one embodiment, the at least one observing device(s) 205a, 205a′ can comprise a sonar head 205a and a sonar display 205a′. The sonar head 205a can be used for collecting information about the thickness of the sediment layer 270. The sonar display 205a′ can be used for displaying the information collected by the sonar head 205a.
In one embodiment, the at least one observing device(s) 205b, 205b′ can comprise a camera 205b and a display 205a′. The camera 205b can be used for collecting image data inside the vessel 210. The display 205a′ can be used for displaying the image data collected by the camera 205b. The camera 205b can include a light bulb (not shown) that can emit light sufficiently strong for viewing the entire interior 274 of the vessel 210. In one embodiment, the at least one observing device(s) 205b, 205b′ can be used as a camera for determining if the vessel 210 may be lowered upon an uneven bottom 180 of the body of water 220, such as a river bottom or upon a rock or debris at the river bottom. If so, the position of the vessel 210 can be adjusted such that the edge of the vessel 210 would touch the river bottom so as to isolate the interior 274 of the vessel 210 from the outside of the vessel 210.
In one embodiment, the vessel 210 may be designed to be airtight on all sides except the opening 210′. As a result, when the vessel 210 has been inserted in the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, such as the sediment layer 270 at the bottom of the river, the materials inside the vessel 210 (i.e., in the interior 274) may be essentially completely isolated from an exterior of the vessel 210.
Next, in step 630, materials inside the vessel 210 may be essentially completely contained and suspended inside the vessel 210. In the containing and suspending step 630 of the method 600, paddles 225a and 225b, such as augers, spray heads, whips, props, fluid and gas distribution devices, etc. may provide agitation of the interior 252 of the vessel 210, resulting in suspending a portion or essentially all of the bottom material, e.g., 270, or 280 of the body of water 220 that may be contained in the interior 252 of the vessel 210, wherein the suspended portion may include the contaminated material. In one embodiment, the at least one agitating device(s) 235a, 235b, 235c, 235d, 225a, 225b, and 227 may be operated to suspend the contaminated material in the mixture 252′ in the interior 252 of the vessel 210. As a result, the contaminated materials in the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, such as, e.g., the contaminated materials in the sediment layer 270 may form a mixture 252′ by removing contaminated materials from the sediment layer 270 and interspersing the contaminated materials with water in the interior 252 of the vessel 210. As long as agitation continues, the contaminated materials such as, e.g., the contaminated sediment in the mixture 252′ do not precipitate to the bottom. In other words, the contaminated sediment materials in the mixture 252′ may be said to be suspended in the mixture 252′. In step 630, the mixture 252′ that may contain contaminated sediment materials may be essentially completely contained and suspended in the mixture 252′ in the interior 252 of the vessel 210.
Then, in step 640, an at least one pipe(s) 245 may be provided which may be coupled to the vessel 210. In one embodiment, the at least one pipe(s) 245 may branch as at least one branch pipe(s) 245a, 245b, and 245c. Then, in step 650, the materials suspended inside the vessel 210 may be transported out of the vessel 210 through the pipe 245 for processing. More specifically, the mixture 252′ containing the removed and suspended contaminated sediment materials may be transported out of the vessel 210 via the pipe 245 for processing.
Each of the at least one isolation valve(s) 405-482 can be either open or closed. If open, the at least one isolation valve(s) 405-482 may allow fluid to pass through. When closed, the valve(s) prevents fluid from passing through. The valves 405-482 in the apparatus 200 can be used for isolating different portions of the apparatus 200. By opening some of the valves 405-482 and closing the remaining valves, materials can be carried around the apparatus 200 along a desired path for processing. In one embodiment, in order to keep the pressure inside the vessel 210 unchanged, materials (e.g., air or water) may be allowed to flow from the clean holding site 360 to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 446, 464, and 470, and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c. The clean holding site 360 can be used for holding a filtrate transported from the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the filtering system 330. The materials in the clean holding site 360 can undergo further processing and treatment before being either transported back into the interior 274 of the vessel 210 or shipped elsewhere. The adder site 370 can be used for holding materials to be added to the interior 274 of the vessel 210. In one embodiment, each of the at least one valve(s) 446, 464, and 470 may be configured to become open when the pressure difference between its two ends exceeds some pre-specified value. As a result, when the mixture 252′ containing the removed sediment materials may be pumped out of the vessel 210 via the pipe 245, the at least one valve(s) 446, 464, and 470 may automatically open to allow materials (e.g., air and/or water and/or treatment chemicals to convert toxic or harmful contaminants into carbon dioxide, water or HCl) to flow from the clean holding site 360 to the interior 274 of the vessel 210. Therefore, the pressure inside the vessel 210 may remain unchanged.
Then, in step 660, the materials transported out of the vessel 210 may be processed outside the vessel 210. In one embodiment, the mixture 252′ containing the removed contaminated sediment can be transported from inside the vessel 210 to the processing system 320 via the at least one pipe(s) 245a, 245b, and 245c (i.e., the branches off pipe 245) and the at least one valves 432 and 410. In the processing system 320, the mixture 252′ can undergo thermal, chemical, radiation, or other processes so as to treat (remove, alter, etc.) the contaminants from the mixture 252′ so they become less or nontoxic. After processing, the mixture 252′ can be transported either back to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 412, 422, 436, 464, and 470 and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c or to the clean holding site 360 via the at least one valve(s) 412, 422, 436, and 446. The materials in the clean holding site 360 can be returned to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 446, 464, and 470, and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c.
In one embodiment, the mixture 252′ can be transported to the filtering system 330 via the at least one valve(s) 440 so that contaminants in the mixture 252′ can be filtered out. The filtered contaminants can be periodically removed from the filter system 330. The remaining mixture after filtering can be transported either back to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 442, 454, 462, and 470 and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c or to the clean holding site 360 via the at least one valve(s) 442, 444, and 446. The materials in the clean holding site 360 can be returned to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 446, 464, and 470, and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c.
In one embodiment, the mixture 252′ containing the removed sediment materials can be transported from inside the vessel 210 to the contaminants holding site 350 via the at least one pipe(s) 245a, 245b, and 245c, the valve 450, the by-pass system 340, and the at least one valve(s) 452, 454, 444, 436, and 424. In the contaminants holding site 350, the mixture may undergo processes similar to those in the processing system 320 described above. After being processed at the contaminants holding site 350, the mixture can be transported either back to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 424, 436, 464, and 470 and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c or to the clean holding site 360 via the at least one valve(s) 424, 436, and 446. The materials in the clean holding site 360 can be returned to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one valve(s) 446, 464, and 470 and the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c.
The concentration of contaminants may be monitored along the at least one path(s) by locating an at least one sample site(s) 310a, 310b, 310c, and 310d on the at least one path(s) of the mixture 252′ from the vessel 210 before and after processing.
More specifically, the sample site 310a may be directly coupled via the valve 431 to a node A1 which the mixture 252′ from the inside of the vessel 210 flows through before going to different destinations. Here, “directly coupled” means that there may be no processing in between. As a result, samples of the mixture 252′ before processing can be taken via the valve 431 from the sample site 310a, such that the concentration of the contaminants in the mixture 252′ before processing can be measured. In one embodiment, in the step 670 of the method 600, when the measured concentration of the contaminants may be below a pre-specified level, the processing may be stopped and either (i) the vessel 210 may be lifted from the current location and lowered and inserted into another location on the bottom of the body of water 220 or (ii) more sediment materials from the top of the sediment layer 270 may be removed by agitation as described above for further processing. In one embodiment, the pre-specified level of contaminants can be specified by the owner(s) of the body of water 250 (
Similarly, the sample site 310b may be directly coupled via the valve 434 to a node A2 which the mixture 252′ from the filtering system 330 exits through before going to different destinations. As a result, samples of the mixture 252′ after filtering can be taken via the valve 434 to the sample site 310b where the concentration of the contaminants in the mixture after filtering can be measured so that the quality of the filtering process can be monitored.
Similarly, the sample site 310c may be directly coupled via the valve 460 to a node A3 which the mixture 252′ after processing flows through before returning to the interior 274 of the vessel 210 via the at least one pipe(s) 247a, 247b, and 247c. As a result, the sample site 310c can be used for monitoring a concentration of contaminants in the mixture 252′ that flows back to the interior 274 of the vessel 210, after processing.
Similarly, the sample site 310d may be directly coupled via the valve 414 to a node A4 which the mixture 252′ from the processing system 320 exits through before going to different destinations. As a result, samples of the mixture 252′ after processing can be taken via the valve 414 to the sample site 310d where the concentration of the contaminants in the mixture after processing can be measured so that the quality of the processes performed in the processing system 320 can be monitored.
In step 670, a determination may be made as to whether the materials transported out of the vessel 210 may be sufficiently clean (i.e., the concentration of the contaminants in the resulting mixture 252′ has been reduced to a pre-specified level). If the answer may be negative, the method 600 loops back to step 650. In other words, suspended materials continue to be transported out of the vessel 210 (step 650) and processed (step 660) so as to remove contaminants. If the answer to the question in step 670 is affirmative, the method 600 may stop. Then, the vessel 210 may be removed from the current location and positioned at another location on the bottom 80 of the body of water 83, and the method 600 may be performed again. In one embodiment, after the sediment layer 270 inside the vessel 210 has been treated to a satisfactory level (i.e., the concentration of the contaminants in the resulting mixture 252′ has been reduced to a pre-specified level), a contaminants map may be updated to indicate that the current location has been treated. Then, a determination may be made as to whether the current location may be the last one to be treated. If the answer is negative, the vessel 210 can be lifted and lowered to the next untreated location using a lifting device such as a crane 182 coupled to the hooks 214a and 214b. If the answer to the question is affirmative, the operation may be concluded.
In step 730, materials inside the vessel 210 may be contained and suspended inside the vessel 210. In one embodiment, the at least one agitating device(s) 235a, 235b, 235c, 235d, 225a, 225b, and 227 may be operated to stir up (i.e., agitate) the water 252, that may be inside vessel 210. A chemical contamination map may be used which shows how deep the sediment layer 270 may be contaminated with a certain contaminant. In step 740, the materials suspended in step 730 may be processed to eliminate the contaminants. In step 750, a determination may be made as to whether a pre-specified thickness of the sediment layer 270 may be suspended in the mixture 252′ inside the vessel 210. If the answer is negative, the method 700 loops back to step 730. In other words, steps 730 and 740 may be performed until the pre-specified thickness of the sediment layer 270 may be suspended in the mixture 252′ inside the vessel 210. If the answer to the question in step 750 is affirmative, the method 700 stops. After that, the vessel 210 can be lifted and placed at another untreated location 190 of the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, and the method 700 may be performed again at the other untreated location. In one embodiment, the at least one observing device(s) 205a, 205a′ and 205b, 205b′ can be used to monitor the thickness of the sediment layer 270 so as to determine whether agitation has reached the desired depth. For example, assume, according to the contaminant map, that at the location where the vessel 210 may be inserted into the sediment layer 270, the thickness of the sediment layer 270 may be 25 inches. Assume further that only the top 10 inches of the sediment layer 270 contain the contaminant according to the contaminant map. As a result, the at least one agitating device(s) 235a, 235b, 235c, 235d, 225a, 225b, and 227 may be allowed to operate until the at least one observing device(s) 205a, 205a′ and 205b, 205b′ determine that the thickness of the sediment layer 270 has been reduced to 15 inches.
In one embodiment, the step 740 of the method 700 can be similar to the step 660 of the method 600. In other words, the mixture 252′ containing the suspended sediment materials can be transported out of the vessel 210 via the at least one pipe(s) 245a, 245b, and 245c for treatment. Alternatively, in step 740, the mixture 252′ can be treated inside the vessel 210 instead of being transported out of the vessel 210 for processing (treatment). In one embodiment, treating chemicals can be added using the adder site 370 (
In one embodiment, the growth packet 780 can be prepackaged as a high-energy growing pod and may have any shape such as a round shape to facilitate easy planting, for example, in the river bed.
The growth packet 780 may be pumped by systems such as the apparatuses 100 or 200 or planting systems 1000, or 3000, depicted in
In one embodiment, the growth packet 780 may be designed such that its weight makes it sink into the soil at the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, as depicted in
In one embodiment, the growth packet 780 can be filled with soil and water organisms necessary to restart damaged ecology systems such as brown field sites, slag heaps, run off ponds, lagoons, fire sites, harbors, etc.
In one embodiment, the outer wall 910 can be made of porous material such as burlap, such that air and fluids, such as water moisture, can be exchanged between the interior and the exterior of the growth packet 900, but the plants, self-contained materials such as nutrients, and soil organisms may be confined inside the outer wall 910. A porous outer wall 910, such as one made from Burlap material, may enable plant growth to penetrate the material. In one embodiment, reinforcing strings 920 can be used to help reinforce the growth packet 900. In one embodiment, the size of the growth packet 900 may be from about one inch to twelve inches in diameter. In one embodiment, the contents inside the growth packet 900 may be in conformity with local laws, environment-friendly, and in harmony with the surrounding vegetation. In one embodiment, the self-contained materials contained inside the growth packet 900 may comprise bee plant vitamins, nutrients, pH buffers that buffer the pH from about pH=4 to about pH=10, gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), salts of phosphoric acid, pre-grown plants, and combinations thereof, that may be used to revitalize, sustain, and/or accelerate plant growth from the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, as depicted in
In one embodiment, the growth packet 900 may comprise masses 930a and 930b scattered inside the growth packet 900. Alternatively, the masses 930a and 930b can be outside but tied to the growth packet 900. Although only two masses 930a and 930b may be illustratively shown here, in general, any number of masses like the masses 930a and 930b can be used. The masses 930a and 930b can be any objects having their weights sufficiently large so as to make the growth packet 900 sink to and stay at the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, as depicted in
In one embodiment, the growth packet 900 may comprise floating objects 940a and 940b scattered inside the growth packet 900. Alternatively, the floating objects 940a and 940b can be outside but tied to the growth packet 900. Although only two floating objects 940a and 940b may be illustratively shown here, in general, any number of floating objects like the floating objects 940a and 940b can be used. The floating objects 940a and 940b have light weights and large volumes so as to make the growth packet 900 float. In one embodiment, the floating objects 940a and 940b can be made of a degradable material, e.g., a metal that can dissolve in the body of water 220 or a biodegradable fibrous material such as a textile material such as, for example, burlap, or starch, resulting in protecting the environment, as described supra. In one embodiment, the floating objects 940a and 940b can be air bladders. In one embodiment, multiple growth packets 900 can be tied together to form a floating habitat on the water surface.
In one embodiment, while the boat 1005 may be advancing in a direction of an arrow 1032, the gate 1020 may be periodically opened. As a result, under the pressure created by the pump 1010, any time the gate 1020 opens, one or more growth packets 900 may be pushed into the transport pipe 1025, through the alignment pipe 1030, and into the soil (i.e., sediment layer 1070) at the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, as described in
In one embodiment, while the planting sled 1040 slides on the sediment surface 1065, the plows 1042 and 1044 may be dragged in the sediment layer 1070. The front plow 1042 dashes through the sediment materials and forms a trench 1033 along its path. The back plow 1044 moves after the front plow 1042 and moves sediment materials displaced by the front plow 1042 back into the trench 1033. As a result, whenever a growth packet 900 exits the alignment pipe 1030 via the opening 1034, the growth packet 900 may be planted in the trench 1033 dug by the front plow 1042. Then, the back plow 1044 fills the trench 1033 with sediment materials burying the growth packet 900 in the trench 1033 in the process.
In one embodiment, the front plow 1042 extends deeper into the sediment layer 1070 than the back plow 1044. As a result, when the growth packet 900 may be dropped at the bottom of the trench 1033, formed by the front plow 1042, the growth packet 900 may be below the sweep of the back plow 1044 making it easier for the back plow 1044 to bury the growth packet 900 in the trench 1033.
If it may be desired to move the planting sled 1040 up a slope, the vertical bar 1055 may be drawn up by the hydraulic pump 1060 so as to enable the slanted bar 1050 that may be operably coupled to the boat 1005 to rotate around an axis B1. As a result, the planting sled 1040 can slide uphill. The vertical bar 1055 sliding in the sliding pipe 1060 which can be operably coupled to the boat 1005 provides the force to move the planting sled 1040, as in surfing, along the soil of the bottom of the body of water, such as the sediment 1070.
Similarly, if it may be desirable to move the planting sled 1040 down a slope, the slanted bar 1050 may be lowered by the hydraulic pump 1060 and the vertical bar 1055 so as to enable the slanted bar 1050 to rotate on the axis B1. Alternatively, the vertical bar 1055 may be pushed down by a spring loaded mechanism to exert a downward force on the slanted bar 1050. As a result, the planting sled 1040 can slide downhill.
In one embodiment, a GPS (Global Positioning System) 1075 can be used with the planting system 1000 so as to ensure that the structures 900 may be planted at the desired locations at the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, such as a river bottom, as depicted in
In one embodiment, a sonar device 1080 can be used with the planting system 1000 to help the operator of the planting system 1000 recognize obstacles at the bottom 180 of the body of water 220, such as a river bottom, as depicted in
In the embodiment described above, the slanted bar 1050 may be directly coupled to the alignment pipe 1030. Alternatively, the slanted bar 1050 can be directly coupled to the planting sled 1040.
a-c illustrate a top view of the vessel (or vessel) 110 of
a-c illustrate a perspective view of the vessel 110 and the curtain plates 810, 820, 830, and 840 of
Similarly, the curtain plate 810 may be coupled to the hydraulic ram 810b via a single-plane connector 810f and a piston 810d. The piston 810d may be capable of sliding in and out inside the ram 810b. The single-plane connector 810f may be tightly coupled to one end of the piston 810d. As a result, the single-plane connector 810f can move only up and down while the piston 810d moves up and down inside the ram 810b.
In one embodiment, each of the single-plane connectors 810e and 810f only enables the curtain plate 810 to rotate around it in a plane parallel to the side plate 110a of the vessel 110. As a result, by adjusting the pistons 810c and 810d, the curtain plate 810 can be pulled up, lowered down, and rotated around a plane parallel to the side plate 110a of the vessel 110. In one embodiment, the other three curtain plates 820, 830, and 840 may be coupled to the vessel 110 in a similar manner.
In one embodiment, the curtain plate 810 may be longer in length than its abutting side plate 110a of the vessel 110. Similarly, the curtain plate 820 may be longer in length than its abutting side plate 110b (
a-c illustrate the use of the four curtain plates 810, 820, 830, and 840 for extending the side plates 110a, 110b, 110c, and 110d, respectively. In one embodiment, the vessel 110 may be lowered into a body of water but its top plate 110e may be kept above the water surface 860. Then, the four curtain plates 810, 820, 830, and 840 may be lowered down until they come into contact with the bottom of the body of water such that the vessel 110 and the curtain plates 810, 820, 830, and 840 form with the bottom of the body of water an enclosed space inside the vessel 110. In other words, the four curtain plates 810, 820, 830, and 840 serve as extensions of the side plates 110a, 110b, 110c, and 110d of the vessel 110, respectively.
In one embodiment, the vessel 110 may be positioned in the body of water such that its top plate 110e may be either submerged or un-submerged and may be parallel to the water surface 860 of the body of water, and such that the slope direction of the bottom 850 of the body of water underneath the vessel 110 may be from the curtain plate 830 to the curtain plate 840. A slope direction of a plane may be defined to be the direction of movement of a ball when let to roll freely on the plane under the effect of gravity. Then, the two curtain plates 830 and 840 can be lowered down vertically until they come into complete contact with the bottom 850 of the body of water. Each of the two curtain plates 810 and 820 can be lowered vertically and rotated clockwise in a plane parallel to its abutting side plate 110a or 110b until it comes into complete contact with the bottom 850 of the body of water. As a result of the curtain plates 810 and 820 being longer in length than the side plates 110a and 110b, respectively, the curtain plates 810 and 820 can rotate to completely contact the bottom without creating an opening on the side of the vessel 110, as shown in
In one embodiment, each of the rams 810a and 810b can rotate in a plane parallel to the side plate 110a around a point tightly affixed to the vessel 110. As a result, the curtain plate 810 can be moved horizontally by simultaneously rotating both the rams 810a and 810b. This adds further flexibility in movement of the curtain plate 810.
In one embodiment, similarly, each of the rams 820a and 820b can rotate in a plane parallel to the side plate 110b around a point tightly affixed to the vessel 110. As a result, the curtain plate 820 can be moved horizontally by simultaneously rotating both the rams 820a and 820b. This adds further flexibility in movement of the curtain plate 820.
In the embodiments described above, the connectors 830a and 830b associated with the curtain plate 830 and the connectors 840a and 840b associated with the curtain plate 840 may be of single-plane type. Alternatively, these connectors 830a, 830b, 840a, and 840b can be omitted. In that case, the curtain plates 830 can be soldered to the pistons 830a and 830b, and the curtain plates 840 can be soldered to the pistons 840a and 840b.
In one embodiment, the curtain plates 810, 820, 830, and 840 and associated components (connectors, rams, and pistons) can be made of a stainless material. Their sizes may be sufficient to withstand the expected maximum forces exerted upon them.
The stake and growth packet delivering system 3050 may be secured at a location 3093 to the rig or boat 3095 via connecting tether 3092. The connecting tether 3092 may be flexible material such as rope or plastic or rigid, such as metal ties. The stake and growth packet delivering system 3050 may comprise a stake supply 3090, a stake delivery pipe 3100, wherein stakes 3090 may move in a direction of an arrow 3150 into a trajectory of a ram piston 3020, designated by a direction of an arrow 3160, and a blanket roll guide system 3060, wherein the blanket roll guide system 3060 guides the laying of the blanket roll 3030, such that the blanket roll 3030 may pass through the trajectory of the ram piston 3020, in the direction of the arrow 3160. The stakes 3090 and 3080 may be made of wood, plastic, composites, such as of plastic and rubber, or metal, and may be oblong with pointed ends to facilitate entry into the soil. Alternatively, the stakes may be any appropriate solid geometric shape for penetrating the blanket roll 3030 at a location 3070 and securing the blanket roll to the soil at a location 3140. The roll guide system 3060 may be a wheel that may include a groove on which the blanket roll slides, or any appropriate mechanism for guiding the blanket roll 3030.
The ram piston 3020 may be hydraulic or spring powered and may include an alignment sensor 3015 and an alignment pipe 3040 for aligning the ram piston 3020, such that the trajectory of the ram piston 3020, designated by the direction of the arrow 3160, may drive the stakes 3080 to designated locations 3070 in the blanket roll 3030 and 3140 in the soil 3130. In the method 4100 of the method for planting 4000, depicted in
In
Referring to
Generally, the method 800 described herein with respect to removing contaminated materials illustrated in
ROM 420 contains the basic operating system for computer system 400. The operating system may alternatively reside in RAM 415 or elsewhere as is known in the art. Examples of removable data and/or program storage device 430 include magnetic media such as floppy drives and tape drives and optical media such as CD ROM drives. Examples of mass data and/or program storage device 435 include hard disk drives and non-volatile memory such as flash memory. In addition to keyboard 445 and mouse 450, other user input devices such as trackballs, writing tablets, pressure pads, microphones, light pens and position-sensing screen displays may be connected to user interface 440. Examples of display devices include cathode-ray tubes (CRT) and liquid crystal displays (LCD).
A computer program with an appropriate application interface may be created by one skilled in the art and stored on a system or a data and/or program storage device to simplify the practicing of this invention. In operation, information for or the computer program created to run the present invention is loaded on the appropriate removable data and/or program storage device 430, fed through data port 460 or typed in using keyboard 445. In a first example, the output of the system bus 410 may control the apparatuses 100 and 200 of
The present invention can provide a structure e.g., the apparatuses 100 and 200 of
A global positioning device (GPD) can be used to determine the positioning of the vessels 110 and 210. Also, the open or closed loop piping system 188 may include a “forward and reverse” pump 380 for removing the contaminated material such as silt and sludge materials from attachment 248″ and from piping system 45 of apparatus 100, as depicted in
The apparatuses 100 and 200 have the following advantages over the conventional dredging method that may use the “open mouthed” bucket. First, the apparatuses 100 and 200 may have a multi-use purpose, such as, for example, sampling, viewing, sonar detection, monitoring, separating, testing, treating, injecting, removing or replacing contaminated material from a contained site within the riverbed. Second, the “open or closed loop” piping systems 188 within the containment vessel area may be used to stimulate and control the rate of suspension of materials (turbidity) and the depth of involvement into the riverbed materials as well. The agitators may be variable speed impellers 125a and 125b, whip 127 or nozzles 135a, 135b, 135c, 135d and may be adapted for rising up and down, while advancing into the contaminated material such as sediment 270, e.g., silt and sludge media, to a controlled depth. Third, the apparatuses 100 and 200 may be a multiple “closed looped” or “open loop” piping systems, 45 and 188 that recycle the enclosed fluids out of the vessels 110 and 210 and back into the vessels 110 and 210, enabling elected treatments or filtration processes. Fourth, testing and treatments to the contained sediment 78 and 270, e.g., silt and sludge media, can be done in place in the vessels 110 and 210 in lieu of removing it from the vessels 110 and 210. Fifth, by reversing the process the voids left from removals can be filled with a selected amount of cleaned or new fill materials such as plant life and organisms, etc.
Direct benefits to using the apparatuses 100 and 200 may be seen with respect to working below the mud line with quiet, night-and-day, year-round operations and minimal effects to the river, navigation, public water supplies, improving the public's health, improving the ecology of the river, the fish and wildlife, the food chain, improved agricultural applications, improved transportation and recreation. There may be several objectives achieved using the apparatuses 100 and 200 of the present invention: (1) reduced cancer risks and non-cancer health hazards to people who eat fish, (2) lowered risks to fish and wildlife, (3) diminished PCB levels in sediments in river water above water quality standards, (4) reduced quantity (mass) of PCBs in sediments that may be consumed by fish and wildlife, and (5) stopped long-term movement of PCBs down the river.
One success of the apparatuses of the present invention, e.g., the apparatuses 100 and 200 of
The environmental benefits may be the controlled removal of contaminated materials such as river sediment to prevent downstream migration of the contaminated materials that may result if the contaminated materials were not removed. The present invention may provide economic benefits in the form of returning a body of water such as the Hudson River to safe use again.
The energy benefits of the apparatuses of the present invention, e.g., the apparatuses 100 and 200 of
The present invention can also provide the means to regenerate plant life and install plant life into a body of water such as a river in efficient and economical ways.
According to embodiments of the present invention, plant life may be selected so that it may be able to co-habit together and repopulate the vacant site. Research will be conducted for the nutrients and packets that each habitat may require. The Green Plant Energy Aid System (i.e., the growth packet 900 of
The benefits of this project may be: the river, improving the public's health, improving the ecology of the body of water, such as providing a healthier environment for the fish and wildlife, eliminating PCB's and other toxic chemicals from the food chain, improving the purity of public water supplies, removing waste from the body of water that may result from agricultural applications, such as the use of fertilizers, and improving conditions for recreation on the body of water such as for swimming. The financial benefits may be boundless for both commercial and public applications.
This present invention may be superior because the direct planting process replants the riverbed with GREEN PEAS. Replacing a controlled amount of material will be far more efficient and cost effective than current procedures used today. The energy and economic benefits may be based upon the savings associated with the efficient way of replanting the river bottom voided of habitat. The direct planting process to replant the river bed and replace a controlled amount of clean material (12″ as required by the USEPA) will save a measurable amount of new soil materials over the current methods of transferring or clam shelling the soil material into a flowing river which carries the materials with the current before they settle out unevenly on the bottoms. The environmental benefits to the fish, waterfowl, amphibious and aquatic fauna may be measured by how long it takes to plant the habitat vegetation and replace the ecological functions.
With the GREEN PEAS process, the nutrient rich power pods will jumpstart growing the plants prior to planting in the riverbed. Already able to provide a root area support system, the GREEN PEAS may be placed under the riverbed soils by the mechanical process. This may be unlike current practices that use drop in place techniques in which plant life could be washed away with river currents.
As a summary of the benefits of the present invention, the present invention preserves the quality of life around the site of cleaning operation. The operation of the apparatuses 100 and 200 makes negligible noise, creates no pollution, and generates no smell. Such benefits will be greatly appreciated and welcomed by the public.
While particular embodiments of the present invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, many modifications and changes will become apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to encompass all such modifications and changes as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention.
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| Child | 11779705 | US |
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| Parent | 12471389 | May 2009 | US |
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| Parent | 11779705 | Jul 2007 | US |
| Child | 12471389 | US |
