Patents by Inventor Raouf E. Baddour

Raouf E. Baddour has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 5476595
    Abstract: A zebra mussel control device uses a combination of electrical current and air bubbles to kill or disable mussels entering water intakes. The current is fed between electrodes that extend radially at equiangular positions around a cylindrical inlet of the water intake. Bubbles are created by an annular air chamber of the water intake below the cylindrical inlet. The bubbles rise, and pass through the gaps separating adjacent electrodes. Mussels entering the gaps are moved upwardly in the gaps by the action of the bubbles, thus increasing the normal transit time of the mussels through the gaps. In the result, the mussels are subjected to electrical current for a longer time than would be the case without the bubbles, and are disabled for a time sufficient to ensure that they pass through the water intake without attaching. The bubbles also drag any drifting mussels away from the water intake. This arrangement has been shown to be a very effective way to control zebra mussel blockage of water intakes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 1994
    Date of Patent: December 19, 1995
    Assignee: The University of Western Ontario
    Inventors: Raouf E. Baddour, Walter J. Lenson