Claims
- 1. A silo for receiving, storing and discharging a composition of particulate material, the silo comprising:
- a vertically extending vessel having an upper end and a lower end;
- a horizontal upper floor secured to the upper end of the vessel, the upper floor having a plurality of substantially rectangular receiver openings therethrough and wherein each said rectangular receiver opening has one side longer than an adjacent side;
- a batcher positioned above the upper floor of the vessel, the batcher having an upper end and a lower end;
- a batch hopper corresponding to each receiver opening, each batch hopper extending from the lower end of the batcher and each batch hopper having a substantially rectangular outlet to the upper floor, each outlet being vertically aligned with the corresponding receiver opening; and
- a plurality of discharge hoppers extending from the lower end of the vessel, each discharge hopper having a substantially rectangular discharge opening having one side longer than an adjacent side;
- wherein the lengthwise direction of each discharge opening is perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of each receiver opening.
- 2. The silo of claim 1 wherein the receiver openings are parallel to each other and the discharge openings are parallel to each other.
- 3. The silo of claim 2 wherein a portion of each receiver opening is in vertical alignment with a portion of each discharge opening.
- 4. The silo of claim 2 wherein each batch hopper is flat-sided and frusto-conical.
- 5. The silo of claim 4 wherein the vessel is cylindrical.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a file wrapper continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 07/549,856, originally entitled "AIR TIGHT STORAGE SILO," filed Jul. 9, 1990, now abandoned, which is a division of U.S. Ser. No. 07/292,904, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,957,221.
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to storage silos.
2. Background of the Invention
The present invention provides an economical and efficient system for creating an air tight seal at the discharge and receiver openings of a storage silo. The present invention further provides an efficient system for reducing the effect of particle segregation occurring in a silo-stored material composed of particles varying in size.
Generally, when constructing air tight storage silos, elaborate sealing systems above or below the silo gates are employed. In some instances, these sealing systems include a separate floor having an gate system adjacent the silo gates. In other instances, the sealing systems may included a grease injection apparatus for applying grease between the silo gate and the silo. In either case, these systems generally increase the cost and weight of the silo.
Further, when storing a composition having a range of particle sizes in the silo, a uniform mass flow of the composition through the silo is inhibited. As the composition is withdrawn from the silo, segregation of the components may occur within the silo. This may result in an uneven delivery of the composition from the silo.
This invention comprises a silo having an improved air barrier system. The air barrier system of this invention includes a vertically adjustable silo gate and a deformable seal disposed between the silo and the gate. An air tight seal is formed by compressing the deformable seal between the silo and the gate.
The present invention further comprises a silo having a pair of side-by-side rectangular discharge openings and a pair of side-by-side rectangular receiver openings. The discharge and receiver openings are positioned in a perpendicularly overlapping manner. By feeding the composition into the silo through a rectangular receiver opening and extracting the composition through a rectangular discharge opening positioned 90.degree. with respect to the receiver opening, the segregation pattern of the composition is disturbed as the composition is discharged from the silo. In this way, the effect of segregation occurring within the composition traveling the length of the silo is reduced and a more uniform delivery of the composition from the silo is achieved.
US Referenced Citations (10)
Foreign Referenced Citations (9)
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Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
| Parent |
292904 |
Jan 1989 |
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Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
| Parent |
549856 |
Jul 1990 |
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Patent Grant
5108010
