US1176368A - Chemical-pump controller for water-softening apparatus. - Google Patents

Description

C. L. KENNJCOTT.

CHEMICAL PUMP CONTROLLER FOR WATER SOFTENING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FI'LED 050.9. 1915.

5:1 Patented. Mar. 21,1916.

2 SHEETS--SHEET l.

j'wzrfl drr g, I W

c. L. KENNIC'OTT.

.CHEMICAL PUMP CONTROLLER FOR WATER SOFTENING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION men 02c. 9. 1 915.

1,175,368. I Patented Mar. 21,1916.

V 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

C. L. KENNICOTT. .CHEMICAL PUMP CONTROLLER FOR WATER sonsmwe APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 9, IBIS. 36, t Patented am 21, 1916.

. 2 SHEETSSHEET 2- grammatic, of a water-treating plant ems and described w re snares PATENT ornion CASQ. L. KENNICOTT, OF CHICAGO HEIGHTS, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE KENNICOTT COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

CHEMICAL-PUMP CONTROLLER FOR WATER-SOFTENING APPARATUS.

icence,

Specification of Letters Patent.

" I Application filed December 9,1915 Serial m. 66,010.

below the normal water, level in the treating reservoir, and in which a'pump is employed for lifting the fluid chemicals or container to the.

chemical solution from the treatmg reservoir.

More particularly, the inventionrelates to that type of water-softening apparatus in which chemicals flow to the pump from a chemical sump which, in turn, receives the chemicals from a regulating tank, or

other controlled supply, which may at times supply liquid to the sump less rapidly than it is removed by the pump;

It is the object of my invention to'provide; a means by which, under .theT-above iiamed' conditions of operation, "thapumpf may be prevented from emptying'the'sump, and. which will accomplish this result without-:-. interfering with the continuous. operation of the pump, or supplying liquid tothe sump from any source other thanthe chemical-supply means.

The foregoing objects are accomplished by the construction and combination of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings in the specification annexed hereto.

vation, partly in sectlon *and partly di bodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a view of the lower portion of the apparatus shownfl'; in Fig. 1, the pump of Fig. 2*be1ng'a centrifugal pump having another means for:

controlling its operation ;j Fig. 3 is a; similar view of a still further modification of the apparatus, and Fig. 1 is an-enlarged verti cal section showing a form of balanced valve adaptable for use with my pump controller.

Referring more particularly to the drawoutlet 22;

re 1 afront ing, the numeral 10 designates the main treating reservoir of my apparatus, above Patented Mar, 21, 1916.

which ismounted a dividing box 11 to p which the raw water is supplied as by a'pipe 12 controlled by a float valve 13, the float of which rides upon the surface of the liq 111d 1n the dividing box. In the box 11 the raw water is divided into two streams, a

the waterpasses downwardly through a flaring conduit 17, known-as a 'downtake, in

which it is designed that the raw water and chemicals shall thoroughly intermingle and react to cause a precipitation of the objectionable materials of the water." A conical bottom 18, below the downtake 17, serves to collect this precipitate and to permit it to be drawn 01f from time to time, as by a sludge pipe 19 which empties: into a sludge sump 20; The treated water, rises through the "annular space surrounding the downtake conduit 17 and after passing through a filter-bed .Zl may be drawn ed as by the It is the function of the relatively-small pipe 15 leading from the dividing box 11 to actuate a means by which the flow of chemicals is accurately regulated in proportion "to the flow of raw water. This is accomplished by a regulating tank 23 into which the pipe" 15 discharges and within which there is mounted aprogressively-rising float 24 which"- is :connected by a cable 25 tma lift-pipe'26 pivoted for movement ins vertical planewithin the chemical tank 2t; The chemicals entering the upper end nf-the lift-pipe pass therethrough and are discharged by a-spout 28 connected with the lift-pipe into a chemical sump 29; From the bottom-ofthis sump the regulated chemicals'are' withdrawn as by a pump 30 which i is preferably constantly driven, as will later appear, and are discharged from the pump through a pipe 31 onto the top of the mixing-plate 16, there mixing with the entering pipel lgthere is a mixing-plate'ldupon wwhich'theeraw water impinges-to be there mixed with theinflowingjb m as Will i elater appean. Below,"themiking-plate 16 raw water which is discharged from the out-- let 14.

It will readily be observed that if the flow of raw water should be cut oil or reduced below a certain definite point, the regulating float 24 would maintain this pipe 26 stationary, or lower it so slowly that the constantly-operating pump 30 would empty the chemical sump 29 and begin to pump air. To prevent this condition of afi'airs from occurring, there is provided a by-pass pipe 32 connected to the discharge line 31 of the pump 30 and having its outlet end adapted to discharge, into the sump 29.

Within this outlet end there is mounted a balanced valve 33 which, as shown in Fig. 4, may be of the simple butterfly or pivoted damper type, this valve being controlled by a float 34 which rides upon the surface of the liquid within the sump. When, there-- fore, the pump, 30 tends to withdraw the chemical from the sump faster than it is supplied by the regulating means, the falling liquid level within the sump operates through the float 34 to open the bypass valve 33, whereby the pump acts merely to circulate the liquid from the sump and back.

to the same again. The pump 30 may, therefore, be operated constantly and at a speed suflicient to take care of the maximum chemical feed, and will nevertheless be kept con:

-stantly primed when the chemical feed is small or has ceased altogether.

For constantly driving the pump 30, I

have shown a crank-shaft 35, which is the i be desired.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a modified arrangement of the parts in which the pump, designated 40, is, of the centrifugal type, being driven by miter gears from the shaft 35, as by a shaft 41. In this form of the invention the float 34 is carried by an angular arm 42 which operates a valve 43 directly in the outlet pipe 44 of the centrifugal pump. It is, of'course, well understood that in this form of pump the outlet may be closed without injury to the apparatus, the only result being that the water within the pump is churned and may tend to become slightly heated in time." In the apparatus shown in Fig. 2 it will be seen without further explanation that when the level of chemicals within the sump falls, the float 34 will drop and by cutting off the outlet from the pump will prevent further emptying of the sump. I

In Fig. 3 a chemical sump 45 somewhat supply pipe 50 similar in function to the plpe 38 is shown in Fig. 3 in position to discharge into the chemical sump.

While I have shown and described in considerable detail some specific embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that vention more clear and that I do not regard the invention as limited to these details, nor any of them, except in so far as I have included such limitations within the terms of the following claims, in which it is my intention to claim all novelty inherent in my invention as broadly as is possible in view of the prior art.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

- 1. In a water-softening apparatus and in combination, a raw-water supply-means, a chemical sump, means for feeding chemicals this showing and description is illustrative only and for the purpose of making my into the sump in varying amounts, a continuouslyoperating pump for withdrawing chemicals from the sump and supplying them tothe raw water, and a valve operable by change of level of the chemical in the sump for controlling the supply of chemical pumped to the raw water.

2. In a water-softening apparatus and in combination, a raw-water supply-means, a chemical sump, means for feeding chemicals to the sump in regulated amounts, a continuously-operating pump for withdrawing chemicals from the sump and supplying them to the raw water, and a valve located on the discharge side of the said pump and operable by change of level of the chemical in the sump for controlling the supply of chemicals pumped to the raw water.

3. In a water-softening apparatus and in combination, a raw-water supply-means, a chemical sump, means for feeding chemicals to the sump in proportion to the supply of raw water, a continuously-operating pump for withdrawing chemical from the sump and supplying it to the raw water, a by-pass conduit extending from the discharge side of the said. pump to the said sump, a valve for controllingthe said conduit, and means for operating the said valve by change of level of the chemical in the sump.

4. In a water-softening apparatus and in combination, a treating reservoir, a rawwater supply-means entering the upper portion of the said reservoir, a chemical sump located below the said raw-water supplymeans, means for feeding chemicals to the sump in proportion to the feed of raw water, a continuously-operating pump for withdrawing chemical from the sump and supplying it to the upper portion of the said treating reservoir, a lay-pass conduit communioating with the discharge side of the pump and opening into the said sump, a valve for controlling the said by-pass, and a float riding upon the surface of the liquid Within the said sump and having operative connections with the said valve to open the latter as the liquid level within the sump falls.

CASS L. KENNICOTT. In presence of- PAUL HJKAPP, HARLEY G. ALGER.

Images