IP Library › Granted Patent US 9,428,403
Granted Patent B2
US 9,428,403 · App. 12/902,011 · Granted Aug 30, 2016

Large scale insulated desalination system

Inventor: Joel Haynes (Tarzana, CA)
Assignee: H2O GLOBAL LLC
C02F1/14B01D1/0035B01D1/0094B01D1/18B01D5/006C02F1/06C02F1/12C02F2103/08
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,428,403
App. No.
12/902,011
Granted
Aug 30, 2016
Kind
B2
Abstract

An apparatus and method for the distillation of ocean and brackish water that includes insulation for preventing heat from escaping to the atmosphere is disclosed. The insulation comprises a second wall surrounding the basic assemblies of a desalination system in which the space between the second wall and basic assemblies is under low partial vacuum and is partially or totally filled with an insulation material for structural support. The system allows for flash evaporation of heated input water and condensing the resultant vapors into pure distilled water. The heat of condensation as well as heat from the salt byproduct may be recaptured and used to preheat the input contaminated water.

Claims (18)

1. A method for substantially increasing the efficiency of the distillation of ocean and brackish water by continuously reusing heat energy to reduce overall energy requirements, comprising the steps of:

a. installing a second wall around a desalination system comprised of basic assemblies including an evaporation chamber, a vapor transfer assembly, and a condensing chamber;

b. maintaining a low partial vacuum in the space between the second wall and the basic assemblies;

c. partially or totally filling the space between the second wall and the basic assemblies with an insulation material for structural support;

d. feeding heated input sea water into the evaporation chamber through a plurality of spray nozzles, wherein the heated input sea water comes from an external water heater source;

e. transforming the heated input sea water into droplet-mist that flash vaporize into a density-saturated vapor through use of the plurality of spray nozzles;

f. maintaining the evaporation chamber under partial vacuum, generated by a vacuum pump assembly, so that the pressure in the evaporation chamber is well below the saturation vapor pressure over the range of input water temperature;

g. removing solids that remain from the droplet-mist that flash vaporize in the evaporation chamber and fall and collect at the bottom of the evaporation chamber;

h. preventing the fine droplet-mist from entering the vapor transfer assembly by way of a demister;

i. transferring the density-saturated vapor between the evaporation chamber to the vacuum pump assembly by way of the vapor transfer assembly, wherein the density-saturated vapor is drawn through the demister by the vacuum pump assembly;

j. transforming the density-saturated vapor into a vapor-liquid state and moving the vapor-liquid into a heat exchanger by mounting the condensing chamber below the vacuum pump assembly so that the discharge output of the vacuum pump assembly provides a pressure increase within the condensing chamber that forces the density-saturated vapor into a vapor-liquid state and further forces it into heat exchanger;

k. condensing the liquid-vapor into pure liquid water by continually cooling the heat-exchanger with intake sea water that is distributed by a ratio valve through an intake channel into a heat-exchanger port; and

l. transferring the intake sea water, now heated by the heat-of-condensation of vapor-liquid, from a heat-exchanger exit through a vacuum insulated channel to the external water heater source to be fed back into the evaporation chamber,

m. distributing intake sea water from the ratio valve through a first bottom chamber port into cooling coils to cool the solids that collect at the bottom of the evacuation chamber; and

n. transferring the intake sea water, now heated by the solids, from the cooling coils to the external water heater source by way of a second bottom chamber port and a vacuum insulated channel leading to the external water heater source.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ratio valve adjusts the intake sea water flow rate through the cooling coils to ensure minimum heat loss and maximum heat recovery.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ratio valve adjusts the intake sea water flow rate through the heat-exchanger to ensure minimum heat loss and maximum heat recovery.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein ambient sea water is heated at least in part by solar energy to create the heated input sea water.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 20, 2020
From: H2O GLOBAL LLC
To: FLO-ONICS LLC
Reel/Frame 053252/0420 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 29, 2016
From: HAYNES, JOEL
To: H2O GLOBAL LLC
Reel/Frame 039046/0694 →
Continuity (1)
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