Claims
- 1. A method of generating halogen which comprises electrolyzing an aqueous alkali metal halide in an electrolytic cell having an anode compartment and a cathode compartment separated by a sandwich, said sandwich comprising an ion permeable diaphragm having an oppositely charged electrode unit in contact with each side of the diaphragm, each said electrode unit having a porous electrode surface in direct contact with the side of the diaphragm and comprising an electroconductive porous screen engaging the surface and adapted to distribute current over said surface, maintaining an electrolyzing potential between said screens, applying resilient spring pressure at a plurality of spaced points of one screen while restraining more rigidly the other screen whereby to compress the electrode units and the diaphragm together, feeding alkali metal halide electrolyte to one electrode and feeding water to the other electrolyte.
- 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the electrode surface of at least one electrode is bonded to the diaphragm and the screen in engagement therewith is pressed against the electrode.
- 3. A method of generating halogen which comprises feeding an aqueous halide capable of liberating halogen upon electrolysis into contact with the anode of a cell unit which comprises a flexible ion-permeable diaphragm sheet having a porous anode surface in direct contact with one side thereof and a porous cathode surface in direct contact with the opposite side thereof and flexible conductive anode and cathode current distributor sheets of greater rigidity than the diaphragm engaging the outer sides respectively of the anode and cathode, maintaining water in contact with the cathode and pressing the distributor sheets together by applying compacting pressure to the sheets at a plurality of points, pressure points on the anode side being offset with respect to pressure points on the cathode side and maintaining an electrolyzing potential between anode and cathode.
- 4. The method of claim 3 wherein the aqueous halide is fed to a plurality of said units in a cell having a row of a plurality of said units with anolyte and catholyte spaces between units and the units are pressed together into close contact whereby certain controlled deflections of the diaphragms are produced by said offset pressure points.
- 5. The method of claim 3 wherein the halide is alkali metal chloride.
- 6. A method of generating halogen by electrolysis of an aqueous halide of the group consisting of hydrogen halide and alkali metal halide which comprises conducting the electrolysis in a cell having at least two spaced substantially parallel ion-permeable diaphragms in sheet form having spaced electrodes of one polarity bonded to the sides of each diaphragm facing the other diaphragm, removable foraminous current distributors bearing against each of said bonded electrodes and between said diaphragms, an electrolyte space between the distributors, electrodes of opposite polarity on the sides of the diaphragm opposite the bonded electrodes, feeding said halide electrolyte into contact with the positive electrodes and maintaining water in contact with the negative electrodes while applying a resilient pressure to press the distributors against their bonded electrodes and outward with respect to the electrolyte space between distributors and restraining outward movement of the diaphragm and to resist said pressure.
- 7. The method of claim 6 wherein the pressure is restrained on the outer side of the diaphragm.
- 8. The method of claim 6 wherein said halide is a chloride and said pressure is spring pressure.
- 9. The method of claim 8 wherein the distributor is movable with respect to the bonded electrode and spring pressure between the conductor and the electrode is applied at a plurality of spaced zones over the electrode.
- 10. The method of claim 6 wherein the cell has a row of a plurality of units movable with respect to each other and said units comprise a pair of spaced ion permeable diaphragm sheets providing electrolyte space within the units and a separate electrolyte space between units isolated from the electrolyte space within units, electrodes bonded to both sides of the diaphragm of each unit, imposing an electromotive force of substantially the same polarity on the outer electrodes of adjacent units in the rows and an opposite polarity on the bonded electrodes within the units, said bonded electrodes having current distributors bearing against the respective bonded electrodes imposing a resilient pressure between units tend to move units away from each other and to deflect the diaphragm and restraining said movement and deflection whereby the units are firmly held in the row by said pressure and passing said electrolyte in contact with the anodes of said units and maintaining water in contact with the cathode thereof.
- 11. The method of claim 9 wherein alkali metal halide electrolyte is fed to the electrodes within units and an alkaline solution is moved along the outer electrodes with the electrodes within the units being made anodic and the outer electrodes cathodic and the spaced between units are open to the body of alkaline electrolyte enclosing the row.
- 12. The method of claim 6 wherein the resilient pressure is an external resilient pressure.
- 13. The method of claim 12, wherein the pressure is applied through a compressible fluid piston assembly.
- 14. The method of claim 12 wherein the pressure is applied by a helicoidal spring.
- 15. A method of generating halogen which comprises circulating an aqueous halide electrolyte in contact with the anodes of an electrolytic cell comprising a row of spaced individual anode compartments adapted to be of substantially the same electric potential and comprising a pair of spaced ion-permeable diaphragms in sheet form and in side to side relation with each other, anodes bonded to the inner sides of said diaphragms with an anolyte space between and providing access to the anodes of said pair, cathodes bearing against the outer sides of said compartments with catholyte space between the compartments, a current distributor bearing against the inner side of each anode of said compartments, a frame enclosing the diaphragms at their peripheries and anolyte spaces isolating the space from the cathodes, means to connect the anodes of said compartments to a positive pole of the same electric potential source and the intervening cathodes to the negative pole of said source and separate means to supply anolyte to each compartment while maintaining the potential between anodes and cathodes sufficient to electrolyze the halide.
- 16. The method of claim 15 wherein the halide is aqueous alkali metal chloride and water is maintained in contact with the cathodes.
- 17. The method of claim 15 wherein aqueous alkali metal chloride is circulated past the anodes and chlorine evolved is withdrawn from the cell and aqueous alkali metal hydroxide generated at the cathodes flows to a common body of said hydroxide within the cell and wherein the anode cathode series is enclosed in a tank containing said hydroxide.
- 18. The method of claim 15 wherein the halide is hydrochloric acid.
- 19. A method of generating halogen which comprises flowing halide electrolyte through a plurality of spaced individual substantially parallel anode compartments having anodes therein and disposed in a tank, said anode compartments having means including a pair of spaced ion-permeable diaphragms separating the halide electrolyte from electroltye of the tank, said tank having cathodes disposed between the anode compartments, maintaining a separate electrolyte in contact with the cathodes, said separate electrolyte in said contact also being maintained in communication with a body of electrolyte in the tank, maintaining an electrolyzing potential between the anodes and the cathodes sufficient to electrolyze the halide and withdrawing evolved halogen from the cell separately from the individual anode compartments.
- 20. The method of claim 19 wherein each anode compartment comprises a pair of spaced ion permeable diaphragms in sheet form having electrolyte permeable anodes bonded thereto on the inner side of each diaphragm.
- 21. The method of claim 20 wherein the electrolyte permeable cathodes are bonded to the outer sides of said diaphragms.
- 22. The method of claim 21 wherein the halide is aqueous alkali metal chloride and alkaline electrolyte is maintained in contact with the bonded cathodes and alkaline electrolyte is withdrawn from the cathodes and is collected in said tank from a plurality of cathode space as a common body of alkaline electrolyte in said tank.
- 23. The method of claim 22 wherein the halide is hydrochloric acid.
- 24. The method of claim 3 wherein the halide is alkal metal chloride.
- 25. A method of generating halogen by electrolysis of an aqueous halide of the group consisting of hydrogen halide and alkali metal halide which comprises conducting the electrolysis in a cell having at least two spaced substantially parallel ion-permeable diaphragms in sheet form having spaced electrodes units of one polarity in contact with the side of each diaphragm facing the other diaphragm, said electrode units comprising removable foraminous current distributors associated with an electrode surface bearing against said diaphragm, an electrolyte space between the distributors, electrodes of opposite polarity on the sides of the diaphragm opposite the electrode units, feeding said halide electrolyte into contact with the positive electrodes and maintaining water in contact with the negative electrodes while applying a resilient pressure to press the electrode units against their respective diaphragm and outward with respect to the electrolyte space between distributors and restraining outward movement of the diaphragm and to resist said pressure.
- 26. The method of claim 25 wherein the pressure is restrained on the other side of the diaphragms.
- 27. The method of claim 25 wherein said halide is a chloride and said pressure is spring pressure.
- 28. A method of generating halogen which comprises electrolyzing an aqueous alkali metal halide in an electrolytic cell having an anode compartment and a cathode compartment separated by a sandwich, said sandwich comprising an ion permeable diaphragm having oppositely charged electrode units in contact with each side of the diaphragm, each said unit comprising flexible current conducting screen associated with an electrode surface, pressing the screens together by applying compacting pressure to the electrode units at a plurality of spaced points the pressure points on the anode side being offset with respect to the pressure points on the cathode side and maintaining an electrolyzing potential between the anode screen and the cathode screen.
- 29. A method of generating halogen by electrolyzing an aqueous alkali metal halide which comprises conducting electrolysis of an aqueous alkali metal halide solution in a cell having an anode compartment and a cathode compartment separated by a sandwich comprising an ion permeable membrane having oppositely charged gas permeable and electrolyte permeable electrode units in contact with opposite sides of the membrane, one of said units being compressible and having a plurality of resiliently compressible springs in side by side relationship disposed along the membrane and within the compartment of said electrode unit, compressing the springs while restraining the other electrode to squeeze the sandwich together, circulating aqueous alkali metal halide through the anode compartment and maintaining aqueous alkali in the cathode compartment.
- 30. The method of claim 29 wherein the compressible electrode is a cathode and aqueous alkali is maintained in contact with the springs and the halide is a chloride.
- 31. The method of claim 29 or 30 wherein the electrodes comprise a pair of oppositely charged screens and the springs press against the screen of one electrode.
- 32. The method of claim 30 wherein the compressible electrode comprises an electrode surface bonded to the membrane, a conductive screen pressing against the electrode surface and springs which compress the screen against the bonded surface and the membrane.
- 33. A method of generating halogen comprising electrolyzing an aqueous halide in a cell having a row of cell units, each unit comprising an ion exchange membrane with oppositely charged gas an electrolyte permeable electrodes in contact with opposite sides of the membrane and an expandable, compressed resilient pressure means between membranes of adjacent units adapted to expand and press an electrode against the membrane and means on the opposite side of the membrane to restrain said expansion thereby maintaining said electrodes pressed against the membrane, circulating aqueous alkali metal halide into contact with the anode and aqueous alkali metal into contact with the cathode.
- 34. The method of claim 33 wherein the said row of cell units is compressed to compress the intervening resilient pressure means.
- 35. The method of claim 33 or 34 wherein each unit comprises a pair of spaced membranes forming a compartment with electrodes in contact with the inner sides of the membranes of said compartment and oppositely charged electrodes in contact with the outer sides thereof and the compressed expandable pressure means is disposed between outer electrodes of adjacent cell.
- 36. The method of claim 33, or 34 or 35 wherein the expandable pressure means comprises a plurality of spring elements disposed laterally along the membrane.
- 37. The method of claim 35 wherein the expandable means and outer electrodes are cathodic.
- 38. The method of claim 1 wherein the resilient pressure is applied by a plurality of compressed spring elements disposed laterally along the membrane.
- 39. A method of generating halogen by electrolyzing aqueous alkali metal halide which comprises conducting the electrolysis in a cell having an anode compartment and a cathode compartment separated by a sandwich comprising an ion permeable membrane having oppositely charged, electrolyte permeable electrodes extending along and in contact with opposite sides of the membrane, applying pressure to the sandwich at a plurality of points spaced along the membrane to squeeze the sandwich together, distributing said applied pressure over the membrane and between said pressure points wherein pressure is applied to the sandwich at points offset with respect to opposite sides of the sandwich, circulating aqueous alkali metal halide through anode compartment and maintaining aqueous alkali in the cathode compartment.
- 40. The method of claim 39 wherein pressure is applied by springs spaced along the membrane and associated with one electrode and the membrane is more rigidly supported on the other side thereof.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
26171 A/78 |
Jul 1978 |
ITX |
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PRIOR APPLICATION
This application is a continuation-in-part of our copending, commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 57,255 filed July 12, 1979.
US Referenced Citations (6)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
2007260 |
May 1979 |
GBX |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
57255 |
Jul 1979 |
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