AU698200B2 - A storage vessel - Google Patents

Description

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it fT 1 P/OVTjoll Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

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944e S 0 0~t~ C 00 C C C ~C (C Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor: Address for service ANDREW KOTZUR Andrew Kotzur in Australia: CARTER SMITH BEADLE 2 Railway Parade Camber-well Victoria 3124 Australia Invention Title: A STORAGE VESSEL Details of Associated Provisional Application: PN6246 filed 27 October 1995 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us 1.

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Sr *5te 0** -2- The present invention relates to a vessel for storage of granular material. In particular, although not exclusively, the invention relates to an air ducting system for use in a silo containing grain. However, the invention is not limited to use in silos containing grain and may be applied to any vessel used for storage of non-liquids.

When storing a product such as cereal or other grains, it is often necessary to force air through the product mass to aerate it or, in some cases to dry the product. This is necessary because high moisture levels and/or high temperatures can be detrimental to the product.

The most common means of introducing air flow into the silo is by providing perforated ducting inside the silo and forcing air into this duct. Air flow may be generated by a fan or blower. Alternatively, particularly in the case of flat floored silos, an aerating duct can be created by placing a louvre around the perimeter of the silo at the base thereof. A third alternative, especially for silos having a conical base portion, is the provision of a fully perforated conical floor which is enclosed 15 therebeneath to form a plenum. Forcing air into the plenum causes air to pass up through the perforated floor and through the grain.

Other silos incorporate partial internal lamellae which provide a break up of silo contents and a plurality of minor voids connected by an air channel chute by which such voids are aerated.

20 There are several problems associated with the ducting systems described above.

Firstly, the ducting systems described above are particularly difficult to clkan.

Further, these ducting systems exhibit uneven airflow characteristics resulting in uneven aeration of the product mass. Furthermore, the fully perforated floor described as the third alternative above is expensive to manufacture and the i perforations can become blocked by grain, dust or residue. Finally, the lamellae incorporating silos do not provide a substantial exposure of a silos contents to

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-3aeration and rely on a complex and space consuming air chute system which involves a plurality of air ducts, all capable of blockage. And such a system is highly costly and exacting to manufacture.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a vessel for storage of granular material which overcomes or at least ameliorates the above-mentioned disadvantages.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vessel for storage of granular material including a substantially hollow storage body having a first end through which granular material can enter said vessel and a second end removed from said first end through which granular material can exist said vessel characterized in that said body has at least one internal projection provided at an intermediate location from either end of said body along a substantial and continuous portion of the inner periphery of said body and extending inwardly from said inner periphery said projection, in use, interfering with the flow of granular material into Co 15 the vessel such that a void is formed beneath said projection into which little or no Sgranular material is stored.

ot C C C Preferably, there are a plurality of internal projections which are vertically spaced within the vessel between the first and second ends thereof. Preferably, each of the ~i projections is also downwardly projecting such that the projection defines with the C 20 granular material and the internal wall or body of the vessel, a triangular shaped void free of granular material through which air can pass to aerate said granular material.

Preferably, each of the projections is in the form of a fin. The projections may extend transversely about the internal periphery of the vessel body. In a most preferred form of the invention, each projection extends continuou 1y about the periphery of the vessel to thereby facilitate the formation of a continuous duct. In a cylindrical vessel, such a projection will allow the formation of an annular duct through which air may be forced to aerate the granular material. Thus, the plurality MAW:PP:19175.CAP 2 Ocober 1996 r -4of vertically spaced projections define a series of vertically spaced annular ducts to effectively aerate the granular material held in the vessel.

In the form described above, the vessel body is most preferably of constant cross section such as a cylindrical vessel. However, it is also envisaged that the vessel may conform to the well known shape of a silo having an upper cylindrical portion and a lower frusto-conical portion. Alternatively, the vessel may be entirely conical and rectangular prism and cuboid shapes are also envisaged.

However, in a particulaa.y preferred form of the invention, the vessel is comprised of a plurality of vessel portions, each vessel portion including an upper part of constant cross-section and a lower part inwardly tapered and of frusto-conical shape, the plurality of vessel portions being arranged in tiers with adjacent upper and lower parts being joined with the upper part of a given vessel part being joined at an intermediate location along the lower tapered frusto-conical part of the II. preceeding vessel portion. In this way, that part of the tapered portion adjacent the q, ii :15 successive vessel portion protrudes inwardly into the compositely formed vessel to form the downwardly and inwardly extending projection.

The vessel may be comprised of any number of vessel portions but three is the preferred number. It will be appreciated that the maximum cross-sectional ioi4 "dimension of each of the vessel portions progressively decreases down the tiered arrangement. In an alternative embodiment, each vessel portion may be entirely I conical. In another form of the invention, the vessel portions may be rectilinear in K plan or even octilinear.

Preferably, associated with each void region will be a dedicated inlet vent formed in the body of the vessel to facilitate gaseous exchange including the entry of air or other appropriate gas e.g. fumigants into the vessel. Where the tapered portions define curved or annular ducts, a series of spaced inlets may be provided along the MAW:PP:19175.CAP 25 Ococ 1996 Irl perimeter of each duct. Each inlet vent may be provided with a dedicated fan to force air through the voids and the granular material. However, ducting may be directed to all or a number of the inlets in each vessel, with a common fan directing air through the ducting. A single fan may be provided per vessel (or silo) or multiple fans may be provided depending on the size or purpose of the silo.

Moreover, there may be some provision for determining when the vessel is only partially filled to close off the inlets, ducting or fans corresponding to the unfilled part of the vessel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In order that the invention may be more fully understood, the drawings will now be described which is a schematic cross-sectional view of a silo in accordance with the i preferred embodiment of the present invention.

A C Figure 1 illustrates a cross-sectional side elevation of the silo 10 which is t C substantially sealed to the atmosphere at a first end 1 and is partially filled with 15 granular material 12 such as grain. The silo has a second end 2 which provides an texit for the granular material. Such silos are operating in a substantially vertical orientation such that granular material is emptied into the hollow storage body 3 of the vessel 10 through an opening in the first end 1 which fills up the vessel body by i the action of gravity as the granular material falls down the inside of the vessel body. The granular material is released from the vessel by opening a sealing gate at the second end 2 which allows the granular material to fall from the vessel as «required.

The main elements of the vessel include a hollow storage body 3 being a i substantially cylindrical structure terminating in an internally projecting frustoconical fin 26 which is formed from the inner periphery of the storage body 3. The internal projection projects into the interior of the storage vessel at a position 1MAW:PP:19175.CAP 25 Ocober 1996 L -w i L i il_. -Yl(i-IC..l.li(L-IYL IICllli i~ 1 m1-~14_41111- it C1 ^li-C-~ r.r flre 9.

9 9694 t itt it ~c" -6intermediate of the first and second ends of the body such that as granular material is poured into the vessel it either falls through the center of the internal projections or strikes those projections and rebounds into the vessel. As the vessel is filled up with material, the action of the internal projections becomes effective with the formation of voids 4 in which granular material cannot reach.

The regular provision of such extensive and substantially continuous peripheral voids provides the opportunity for comprehensive ventilation of the stored granular material which is not available in the prior art silos.

The vessel is also provided with a series of vents 30 formed in the vessel body and positioned to correspond with the formation of the voids 4. The vents facilitate gaseous exchange between the outside of the vessel and the inside so as to allow free or active fan forced ventilation of the granular material stored in the vessel.

The silo 10 includes a number of vessel portions 14, 16, 18 which are arranged concentrically one above the other in a tiered arrangement.

15 In this manner, the full advantages of the frusto-conical internal projections and void formation can be realized.

Each vessel portion 14, 16, 18 has an upper part 24 having an associated upper rim and a lower tapered frusto-conical part 26 having a lower rim 22. Adjacent vessel portions, for example 14 and 16, are joined between the upper rim 20 of the 20 lower vessel portion 16 and an intermediate location along the frusto-conical part 26 of the upper vessel pzrtion 14. As shown in Figure 1, this intermediate location is approximately half way along the frusto-conical part 26. Vessel portions 16 and 18 are joined in a similar manner. Thus, a portion of the frusto-conical part 26 between the intermediate location and the lower rim 22 will protrude into the interior of the silo 10 to thereby define an inwardly and downwardly extending projection, in the form of a fin, extending continuously around the inner periphery of the silo 1 k I I~ s MAW:PP:1I9175.CAP 25 Oober 1996 CT 1- T I ~LL--'Cr .A 7 -7- As granular material 12 flows into the silo 10, the projections create an obstruction so that granular material does not flow beneath the projections. Thus, the projections facilitate the formation of annular voids 4 at spaced locations along the internal periphery of the silo.

The side wall of the silo 10 may be provided with inlet vents 30 for the entry of air or other gases, the inlets 30 being located adjacent the annular ducts. Appropriate ducting and fans may be provided to channel air to the inlets The lowermost vessel portion 18 may also be provided with an outlet port 2 as per conventional silos.

Figure 2 shows a cut away view of the silo of the invention were the frusto-conical configuration of the projections and advantage of the tiered embodiment of the Sinvention are highlighted.

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1 The foregoing describes only one embodiment of the present invention and modifications, obvious to those skilled in the art, can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention.

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Claims (9)

1. A vessel for storage of granular material including a substantially hollow storage body having a first end through which granular material can enter said vessel and a second end removed from said first end through which granular material can exist said vessel characterized in that said body has at least one internal projection provided at an intermediate location from either end of said body along a substantial and continuous portion of the inner periphery of said body and extending inwardly from said inner periphery said projection, in use, interfering with the flow of granular material into the vessel such that a void is formed beneath said projection into which little or no granular material is stored.

2. A vessel according to claim 1 wherein a plurality of internal projections are provided vertically spaced within said vessel sequentially from the region of said first end to said second end.

3. A vessel according to claim 1 or 2 wherein said projections extend downwardly toward said second end.

4. A vessel according to any one of claim 1 to 3 where said body is substantially cylindrical and the internal projection forms a continuous fin of inverted frusto- conical shape.

A vessel according to any one of claims 2 to 4 wherein the internal projections delineate a plurality of vessel portions each comprising an upper part of constant cross-section and a lower part shape of frusto-conical.

6. A vessel according to claim 5 wherein each subsequent vessel portion has a smaller diameter than the previous and the diameter of each subsequent vessel upper portion is dimensioned to connect to the preceding frusto-conical lower portion midway along so as to form a tiered vessel.

7. A vessel according to any one of claim 1 to 6 including one or a plurality of vents formed in said body for allowing gaseous exchange between the outside and inside of said vessel wherein said veins are positioned beneath said internal projections so as to allow gaseous exchange between the outside of the vessel and the granular material voids formed beneath said projections. MAW:PP:1917.CAP 25 OcLobr 1996 Y1 -9-

8. A vessel according to claim 7 wherein said gaseous exchange is fan forced.

9. A vessel according to any one of claims 1 to 8 substantially as hereinbefore described with particular reference to the figures. DATED: 25 October 1996 CARTER SMITH BEADLE Patent Attorneys for the Applicant: ANDREW KOTZUR C C," C C '.4 S C S.C. S. ~S 4 Ca,. C. ,C Ss.i C *SSCSC U U. ~C S IS. U *c C CC S 44 p r MAW-:PP:19175.CAP1 2S Oclober 1996 IIL _T :--JLLR&I~LI~ ~LLLLd_~ i 1 iir- *I ABSTRACT A vessel 10 for storage of granular material 12 including a substantially hollow storage body 3 having a first end 1 through which granular material can enter said vessel and a second end 2 removed from said first end through which granular material can exist said vessel characterized in that said body has at least one internal projection 26 provided at an intermediate location from either end of said body along a substantial and continuous portion of the inner periphery of said body and extending inwardly from said inner periphery said projection, in use, interfering with the flow of granular material into the vessel such that a void 4 is formed beneath said projection into which little or no granular material is stored. a.. a. a S a .0.0 a ov.. 0 w• a. a OPIC a a V *l a a **a a ~lv ~ot,