Patents Examined by Thomas M. Lithgow
  • Patent number: 10478830
    Abstract: What is claimed is a flotation separation system for partitioning a slurry. The slurry includes a hydrophobic species that can adhere to gas bubbles that form within the slurry. The flotation separation system includes a flotation separation cell. The flotation separation cell has a sparger unit and a separation tank. The separation tank is constructed to allow the bubble dispersion to form a froth at the top of the slurry contained in the separation tank. The sparger unit includes a slurry inlet, a slurry outlet, a sparging mechanism, a high shear element, and a gas inlet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2019
    Assignee: Eriez Manufacturing Co.
    Inventors: Michael J. Mankosa, Jaisen Kohmuench, Eric S. Yan, Gerald H. Luttrell
  • Patent number: 10464834
    Abstract: A multi stage process for the separation of bio-components from grease trap waste and animal waste materials is disclosed. Targeted polymers are added to the source and separated streams prior to passing the streams through separation equipment including a rotary screen, one or more presses, a dissolved air floatation device and a clarifier in which the waste stream is separated into a stream containing predominantly oil, grease and protein, a stream containing predominantly water and a stream that predominantly contains fibers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2019
    Inventor: Aicardo Roa-Espinosa
  • Patent number: 10456721
    Abstract: A filter device may include a ring filter element arranged in a filter housing in an upright manner. The ring filter element may have an upper end disc, a lower end disc, a filter material arranged therebetween, and a dirt pot provided on the lower end disc. The dirt pot may be provided on the lower end disc, a protruding pin, and an opening on a base side of the dirt pot. The filter device may include a functional element having a channel configured to receive the protruding pin. A portion of the functional element may be configured to penetrate the opening of the dirt pot such that the ring filter element is sealed at the opening. The portion of the functional element may have at least one water discharge opening. The filter device may be operational when the pin engages into the channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2019
    Assignee: Mahle International GmbH
    Inventors: Michael Braunheim, Torsten Lika
  • Patent number: 10434521
    Abstract: A process for recovery of gold from gold-containing raw materials includes obtaining gold-containing raw material having refractory gold-containing sulfidic minerals including a first type of refractory sulfidic mineral having high gold content and a second type of sulfidic mineral having low gold content; forming a mineral pulp including a first type of refractory sulfidic mineral particles having high gold content and second type of sulfidic mineral particles having low gold content by suspending ground gold-containing material in water and optionally further milling the material; conditioning the mineral pulp by addition of a surface modifying chemical to obtain a conditioned pulp; subjecting the conditioned pulp to a froth flotation process; recovering the non-floatable first type of refractory sulfidic mineral particles having high cold content as flotation tailings; pressure oxidizing (POX) the flotation tailings to obtain a discharge slurry comprising liberated gold; and recovering gold from the discha
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2019
    Assignee: OUTOTEC (FINLAND) OY
    Inventors: Jari Moilanen, Jaakko Leppinen
  • Patent number: 10434520
    Abstract: The invention is related to a flotation process using an improved collector to remove alkaline earth metal carbonate impurities from phosphate ores. The flotation feed may be conditioned with the improved carbonate collector at acidic pH, and subjected to a reverse flotation. The cell overflow may be collected as waste in which carbonate minerals dominate, and the cell underflow may be the phosphate concentrate. The collector may be a combination of chemicals, comprising: (1) any kind of fatty acids, either conventional fatty acid, saponified fatty acid, or modified fatty acid; (2) chemicals with sulfonate or sulfate groups, such as dodecylbenzene sulfonic acid (DDBSA) or its salt, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), sodium coco sulfate (SCS), etc.; and (3) phosphorous-bearing chemicals, such as sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP), sodium hexametaphosphate (SFMP), trisodium phosphate (TSP), Tetrasodiumpyrophosphate (TSPP), etc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2019
    Assignee: Arr-Maz Products, L.P.
    Inventors: Zhengxing Gu, Guoxin Wang, Yu Xiong
  • Patent number: 10421669
    Abstract: Disclosed is a dissolved air floatation device which includes a cyclonic flotation separation tank, arranges a return pipe for treated water and a return pipe for floating scum concentrically with respect to the center pipe of a swirling flow within the floatation separation tank, forms a descending water flow along with an ascending water flow within the flotation separation tank, thereby being capable of simultaneously separating settled suspended material and floating suspended material in raw water at an improved efficiency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2019
    Assignee: KOREA AQUOSYS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shi Chun Yang
  • Patent number: 10406462
    Abstract: A filter device may include a filter housing with a filter housing pot and a cover screwable onto the filter housing pot, and an annular filter element arranged in the filter housing. The annular filter element may be connected to the cover via a first thread, which may have a dome protruding centrally and axially from an upper end disc of the annular filter element, with an outer thread interrupted by free passages, and hollow cylindrical spring elements, which may protrude axially from the cover and on which an inner thread portion designed to complement the outer thread may be arranged. Each inner thread portion may extend over a longer circumferential portion than one of the free passages. The first thread may be designed running counter to a second thread arranged between the filter housing pot and the cover.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2019
    Assignee: Mahle International GmbH
    Inventors: Andreas Kollmann, Stephan Mert, Hannes Ogris
  • Patent number: 10406463
    Abstract: A filter device has a securing device (10) for securely fixing a filter element (12) on an element mount (14). The securing device (10) includes a securing ring (16), which may be moved by a control device (18) from a position in which the filter element (12) on the element mount (14) is released into a position in which the filter element (12) is fixed on the element mount (14).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2019
    Assignee: HYDAC TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Michael Stalter, Tim Barr
  • Patent number: 10384958
    Abstract: The invention provides methods and compositions for green compositions and technologies. In an embodiment, the present invention provides a method of separating a first material from a second material. For example, the method can comprise mixing the first material and the second material in a slurry with a beneficiation composition. The beneficiation composition can comprise one or more glyceride and fatty acid mixtures extracted from a fuel ethanol process. Air bubbles can be provided in the slurry to form bubble-particle aggregates with the first material and the bubble-particle aggregates can be allowed to be separated from the second material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2019
    Assignee: ECOLAB USA INC.
    Inventors: Bo L. Tran, Kerem Eraydin, Jianjun Liu, Royce D. Mullins, Jinming Zhang, James A. Counter
  • Patent number: 10377652
    Abstract: A method is provided for recovering fractions from an animal rendering process wastewater stream, wherein the fractions include one or more of fat, oil, grease, and protein derived from an animal source. To recover the fractions, the wastewater stream is processed to separate insoluble or immiscible contaminants as collected skimmings, and treating the collected skimmings with an effective amount of a nonionic demulsifying surfactant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2019
    Assignee: Fremont Industries, Inc.
    Inventors: Kyle Hunter Hanson, Michael Todd Oldsberg
  • Patent number: 10377641
    Abstract: A gas flotation tank is provided that includes a series of adjacent chambers which impart a rotational current therein. Each chamber is separated from a skim oil trough by a skimming weir. Each chamber comprises an alternating fluid communication device between adjacent chambers allowing fluid communication between adjacent chambers in the form of a communication port in the dividing wall between adjacent chambers and a chamber outlet in conjunction with a perforated plate and the outlet is positioned in fluid communication with the final chamber. An optional coalescing media may be positioned in or proximate the communication port to absorb or coalesce contaminants as they pass therethrough.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2019
    Assignee: Exterran Water Solutions ULC
    Inventors: Todd William Kirk, Daniel Clifford Whitney, Douglas Walker Lee
  • Patent number: 10369501
    Abstract: An apparatus and methods secure modular repair plugs to one another to repair different sized cells of a screen. A modular repair plug is configured to attach to another modular repair plug to create an extended modular repair plug. The modular repair plug can fit within a first, smaller cell, and the extended modular repair plug can fit within a larger second cell.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2019
    Assignee: M-I Drilling Fluids UK Ltd.
    Inventor: Andrew Ralph
  • Patent number: 10369577
    Abstract: Compositions including blends of one or more acrylamide/allyl thiourea polymer as a first depressant, and one or more carboxyalkyl dithiocarbamate compound as a second depressant, and their use as depressants in the beneficiation of sulfide minerals from ores and/or concentrates are disclosed herein, along with methods for selectively separating value sulfide minerals from non-value sulfide minerals in a froth flotation process for the recovery of such value minerals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2019
    Assignee: Cytec Industries Inc.
    Inventors: Mikael Brasse, Esau Arinaitwe, Devarayasamudram Ramachandran Nagaraj
  • Patent number: 10357782
    Abstract: Apparatus, such as a flotation separation device, features a flotation cell or column configured to receive a mixture of water, valuable material and unwanted material; receive polymer-based materials, including polymer bubbles or beads, configured to attach to the valuable material in the mixture; and provide enriched polymer-based materials, including enriched polymer bubbles or beads, having the valuable material attached thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2019
    Assignee: CiDRA Corporate Services LLC
    Inventors: Paul J. Rothman, Mark R. Fernald, Francis K. Didden, Christian V. O'Keefe, Alan D. Kersey, Douglas H. Adamson
  • Patent number: 10329168
    Abstract: A method for removing immiscible fluid from contaminated water includes at least one chamber; an injection line in fluid communication with an inlet of the one chamber; bubble generation means in fluid communication with the injection line for injecting gas bubbles into the injection line and allowing mixing in the injection line of the gas bubbles and the contaminated water to form an inlet fluid; an inlet weir within the chamber adjacent the inlet; an immiscible fluid weir within the chamber; a trough for collecting the immiscible fluid and allowing the immiscible fluid to flow out of the at least one chamber through an immiscible fluid outlet; and a cleaned water outlet generally at the bottom of the chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2019
    Assignee: EXTERRAN WATER SOLUTIONS ULC
    Inventors: Douglas W. Lee, George Muir
  • Patent number: 10315202
    Abstract: A method of recovering particles from a liquid, a froth flotation apparatus, and a method of recovering particles in a flotation cell are disclosed. In an embodiment, the method comprises a technique of exposing the particles to first-size bubbles having a first predetermined size; the first-size bubbles adhering to the particles; and exposing the particles in a liquid, with the first-size bubbles adhering to the particles, to second-size bubbles having a second predetermined size, the second predetermined size being at least approximately ten times larger than the first predetermined size. The method further comprises the second-size bubbles adhering to the particles and engulfing the first-size bubbles on the particles; and using the second-size bubbles adhering to the particles to recover the particles from the liquid. In one embodiment a first surfactant is used to form the first-size bubbles, and a second surfactant is used to form the second-size bubbles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2019
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Julia Baldauf, Alexe Bojovschi, Stephen Moore
  • Patent number: 10307770
    Abstract: The present invention relates to the beneficiation of coal by the process of froth flotation and specifically relates to a process for the froth flotation of coal using a mixture of fatty acids and rosin acids (and/or certain derivatives of fatty acids and rosin acids) as a collector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2019
    Assignee: INGEVITY SOUTH CAROLINA, LLC
    Inventors: John B. Hines, Dennis L. Kennedy, Phillip W. Hurd
  • Patent number: 10301190
    Abstract: A method to remove oil from an oily water stream includes the step of pressure controlling a release of dissolved gases from the stream as the stream passes through two or more stages of gas flotation treatment. The operating pressure of the first stage of flotation treatment is purposefully reduced relative to that of an upstream unit so that a certain controlled percent volume of dissolved gases is released. The operating pressure of the second stage of flotation treatment is then purposefully reduced relative to that of the first stage so that another controlled percent volume of dissolved gases is released. Any subsequent flotation treatment stage is at a lower operating pressure than that of the previous stage so that the subsequent treatment stage releases a controlled percent volume of dissolved gases. By controlling the operating pressure in this way, overall separation performance is improved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2019
    Assignee: CAMERON SOLUTIONS, INC.
    Inventors: Wenjun Liu, Luis Eduardo Caires-Fernandez, Daniel E. Shannon
  • Patent number: 10279289
    Abstract: A filter device may include a ring filter element arranged in a filter housing in an upright manner. The ring filter element may have an upper end disc, a lower end disc, a filter material arranged therebetween, and a dirt pot provided on the lower end disc. The dirt pot may have a water separator arranged therein and provided on the lower end disc, a protruding pin, and an opening on a base side of the dirt pot. The filter device may include a functional element having a channel configured to receive the protruding pin. A portion of the functional element may be configured to penetrate the opening of the dirt pot such that the ring filter element is sealed at the opening. The portion of the functional element may have at least one water discharge opening. The filter device may be operational when the pin engages into the channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2019
    Assignee: Mahle International GmbH
    Inventors: Michael Braunheim, Torsten Lika
  • Patent number: 10266424
    Abstract: The present invention pertains to a process for treating waste water from mining. The process involves contacting the mining waste water with an emulsion of a nano scale compound comprising iron, magnesium, or both. Mixing results in a substantially foam-like layer at the surface of the mixture which may be further oxidized to form treated water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2019
    Assignee: Terra-Hydrochem, Inc.
    Inventor: Roger Kubala