CA1172986A - Coal slurry transport ship - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT
A coal slurry transport ship has a hold for loading the coal slurry, the hold being provided with a drain opening in its bottom and formed in an upper portion of its peripheral wall with openings for passing supernatant water containing fine particles of the coal slurry. The hold is provided at an upper portion thereof with nozzles for injecting a high-pressure fluid, for forcibly moving the supernatant water toward the openings.

Description

i 172986 This is a Division of our co-pending Canadian Patent Application No 360,727, filed September 22nd, 1980.
This invention relates to transporting coal slurries by ship.
Generally coal is transported on the land from coal mining areas to loading ports, where it is loaded in-to ships for transport on the sea. To reduce the cost of transport, it is common practice in recent years to pulver-ize coal to particle sizes of up to several millimeters and disperse the particles in water to obtain a coal slurry in the mining area, transport the coal slurry to a loading port through a pipeline and load the slurry into a ship for transport. With slurry transport ships, the coal slurry must be dewatered to the greatest possible extent during loading or navigation to achieve improved transport effi-ciency and reduced transportation costs. However, when the coal slurry delivered through a pipeline is loaded as is into the ship, it is extremely difficult to dewater, as will be described below. When a slurry of large coal particles is conveyed through the pipeline, the slurry is easy to de-water after transport but causes marked wear on the pipe and requires a relatively high flow velocity, consequently necessitating increased power consumption and entailing higher transportation costs. Conversely a slurry of exceedingly small particles has a high viscosity and requires increased power consumption for transport. Thus the coal i 1~12986 slurry to be transported has an optimum particle size dis-tribution from the point of view of the transportation costs. For this reason, the slurry to be conveyed is adapted to contain large coal particles, for example, of about several millimeters in maximum size, and also fine coal particles of up to several tens of microns in an amount not smaller than a specified proportion. When loaded into a hold, such coal slurry initially contains the coal particles substantially uniformly dispersed there-in, but with the lapse of time, large particles settle to form a lower layer under an upper layer of suspended small particles. Slurries in holds are dewatered usually by drawing off water through a drain opening formed in the bottom of the hold and provided with a filter. If the above~mentioned coal slurry containing fine particles is drained by this method, the small coal particles suspended in the upper layer will progressively cover the lower layer of large coal particles during draining, consequently closing the interstices, namely water channels, in the lower layer. This leads to a reduced drainage efficiency, or in an extreme case, makes it impossible to drain the slurry.
Additionally small coal particles are likely to clog the filter and result in a lower dewatering efficiency.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENT I ON
An object of the present invention is to provide a ship for transporting coal in which the coal loaded into :î ~7~g86 a ship in the form of a slurry can be dewatered with easeand can therefore be transported on the sea with an improved efficiency.
The invention provides a coal slurry transport ship having a hold for loading the coal slurry, the hold being provided with a drain opening in its bottom and formed in an upper portion of its peripheral wall with openings for passing supernatant water containing fine particles of the coal slurry.
A coal slurry transport ship is disclosed in which coal in the form of a slurry can be loaded into its hold and dewatered to the greatest possible extent to achieve an improved transport efficiency.

~ 1 7298 6 BRIEF ~ESCRIPTICN O~ ~ ~ DR~ L~GS
Fig. 1 is a fl~ chart sh~ing a method of this invention;
Fig. 2 is a view in vertical section sho~ing a slurry separator;
Fig. 3 is a rerspective view showing an apparatus for concentrating and solidifying a slurry of fine coal particles;
Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing a modified slurry separator;
Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing another modified slurry separator;
Fig. 6 is a view in longitudinal section showing a hold portion of a coal slurry transport ship embodying the invention;
Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the hatch portion of the nold;
Fig. 8 is a view in vertical section partly broken away and showing a drain tube;
Fig. 9 is a side eievation partly broken away and showing means for raising and lowering the drain tube;
Fig. 10 is a plan view of Fig. 9;
Fig. 11 is a view in longitudinal section of a hold portion for showing a modified structure for suppo~ting the drain tube;
Fiy. 12 is a perspective view partly broken away and showing a hold portion of another coal slurry transport ship embodying the invention;
Fig. 13 is a view in longitudinal section showing the same;
Fig. 14 is a fragmentary view in longitudinal section showing a modi-fied water yuide;
Fig. 15 is a fragmentary view in longitudinal section showing another modified water guide;
Fig. 16 is a front view of Fig. 15i Fig. 17 is a view in section taken along the line S17-S17 in Fig. 16;
Fig. 18 is a view in longitudinal section showing a hold portion of ar,other coal slurry transport ship embcdying the invention;

~ ~ 7 ~ '~ X ~
Fig. 19 is a vie~ in section -t~ken alonc3 the ll~e S19-519 in Fig. 18;
Fig. 20 is a view in longitudinal section shGwing a hold portion slightly different frcm t~.e one sh~ n in Fig. 18;
Fig. 21 is a cross sec,icnal view showing another coal slurry transport ship of the invention;
Fig. 22 is a plan view of Fig. 21, Fig. 23 is the cGmbination of a perspective vie~ showing a turning arm and a view in vertical section showing rotating means and vertically moving means therefor as arranged in corresponding relation;
Fig. 24 is a view in section taken along the line S24-S24 in Fig. 23;
Fig 25 is a front view for illustrating the operation of the turning arm;
Fig. 26 is a fragmentary bottom view showing a modified turning arm;
Fig. 27 is a front view shcwiny another modified turning arm;
Fig. 28 is a frag"~ntary plan view shGwing another coal slurry trans-port ship embGdying the invention;
Fig. 29 is a view in section taken along the line S29-S29 in Fig. 28;
Fig. 30 is an enlarged view in section taken along the line S30-S30 in Fig. 28;
Fig. 31 is a fragmentary side elevation partly broken away and showing a screw conveyor on an enlarged scale;
Fig. 32 is a side elevation partly broken away and showing a modified screw conveyor;
Fig. 33 is a fragmentary enlarged vi~w in section of Fig. 32;
Fig. 34 is a flG~I chart shGI~ing ano'~her methcd embod~ing the inventiGn;
Fig. 35 is a diagram shGwing a system includL~c3 a granulating apparatus and adapted -to practice the method of Fig. 34;

`~ 172986 Fig. 36 is a fl~ cha t shcwin., another reuh~od of t..e in~ntion;
Fig. 37 is a flow char. sh~ing another m~thod of the invention;
Fic,. 33 is a fragnE~ntar~y vi~i in longitudinal section shc~ing another coal slurr~ transport ship embodying the invention;
Figs. 39, 40 and 41 are cross sectional views showing a hold portion of Fig. 38;
Fig. 42 is a perspective view partly broken away and showing the hold portion;
Fig. 43 is a fragmentary view in longitudinal section sh~,~ing another coal slurry transpor'. ship embodying the invention;
Fig. 44 is a fragmentary perspective view partly broken away and show-ing another coal slurry transpor'. ship em~odying the invention;
Fig. 45 is a fragn~ntary perspective view showing a hold of Fig. 44 on an enlarged scale;
Fig. 46 is a perspective view showing separators in Fig. 44 on an en-larged scale;
Fig. 47 is a cross sectional view corresponding to Fig. 46;
Fig. 48 is a fragmentary front view partly broken away and showing a slurly transfer duct in Fig. 44 on an enlarged scale;
Fig. 49 is a view in section taken along the line S49-S49 in Fig. 48;
Fig. 50 is a front view partly broken away and shcwing a modified slurry transfer duct;
Fig. 51 is a bottom view corresponding to Fig. 50;
Fig. 52 is a front view partly broken away and showing another modified slurry transfer duct;
Fig. 53 is a vie~w in lonc~itudinal section s}l~Ji,ng a hold portion of another coal slurry transport ship em~odying the invention;

`i 17~9~
Fig. ~4 is a pl~l view sho~inc3 the s~me;
rig. 5~ is a frcnt view shc~ing means for adjusting the angle of turn of a nozzle mountlng pipe;
Fig. 56 is a view for illustratir.g the operation of injection nozzles;
Fig. ~7 is a view in longitudinal section showing a hold portion of ano~.er coal slurr~ transport ship embodying tlle invention;
Fig. 58 is a plan view shcwing the hold portion of Fig. 57;
Fig. 59 is a perspective view showing a flap and means for moving the fl~p;
Fig. 60 is a fragmentary view in section shcwing the relation between the flap and a guide rail;
Fig. 61 is a side elevation of Fig. 60;
Fig. 62 is a perspective view partly broken away and shc~wing another coal slurry transport ship embodying the invention;
Fig. 63 is an enlarged view in vertical section showing a tray of Fig.
62;
Fig. 64 is a view in vertical section showing a modified tray;
Fig. 65 is a plan view schemati^ally shcwing a transport, ship and system for practicing another ~ethod of the invention; and Fig. 66 is a schematic diagram shcwing a granulating and classifying apparatus.
DESCRIPTION OF Tl~ PREFERRED EMBODL~3NTS
Fig. 1 is a flow chart shc~wing a method of this inv~ntion.
With referenoe to Fig. 1, coal is pulverized by a coal mill 2 installed at a coal mining area 1. The coal is pulverized to particles up to about 3 mm if largest and about 0.1 to about 0.4 mm in average size. The pulverizcd ccoal is supplied to a slurri preparing apparatus 3 to obtain a slurry containing about i 1729~6 50~- by ..eig!lt of :ater. The particle size distributicn of the pulvcrized co.~l and ~.e co-.cent~-aticn of the slurry are determined in view of the distance of trans or~ of th slurr~, the ~ear to be produced on the transport pipe, the pos-sible clogg,ir.g of the pipe, the quality of the coal, he characteristics of ~he coal .mill 2 and ~h.e like. Thus the distribution and con oe ntration are suitably variaole in accor~ance with variations of these conditions. The coal slurry is trans,ported through a pipeline to a loading port, where the slurry is separated by a slurry separator 4 into a fine particle coal slurry containing fine part-icles of 0 to 0.15 ~m in size and a coarse particle slurry containing coarse part-icles of 0.15 to 3 m~ in size. The particle size of 0.15 mm is thus set as the separation standard because it is difficult to dewater slurries containing fine particles of not larger than 0.15 mm in size. Hcwever, the separation standard is variable in accordan oe with the quality of the coal and other conditions.
Fig. 2 shcws an example of useful slurry separators 4. m e illustrated separator 4 comprises an agitation tank 6 provided at its bottom portion with agitating blades 5 for directing the contents of the tank upward. An inlet duct 7 for a coal slurry feed and an outlet duct 8 for a coarse particle slurry are disposed on opposite sides of the tank 6 at its lower portion. At an upper portion of the tank 6 a fine particle slurry outlet duct 9 is provided at the same si~e as the slurry inlet duct 7. The fine particle fraction of the coal slurry introduced into the tank 6 through the inlet duct 7 moves up,~ard in the tank 6 and flows out from the outlet duct 9, while the coarse particle fraction settles in the lower portion of the tank 6 and flows out from the outlet duc~ 8.
The coarse particle coal slurry thus separated is temporarily stored ina storage pond 10 c~nd then loaded into the hold of a first transLort ship 11.
m e coal slurry is ~cwatered during naviation for a reduction of its .~eight to lessen the lo~d, whereby the water content of the coal slurry to be disc.arscd at `i 1 72986 a por_ of del~-iery is reduced to ~boUt 10`~ by weight. ~rne coarse particle coal in '~_ forr,~ o- a solid n~ss is discharged onto the ~harf of the port or deli~-ery wit.. a grab, or as con~-erted to a slurry again. The coarse particle slurr~ thus loaded into the tr~nspol^t ship 11 and free fine particles of up .o C.15 mm in size is easier to dewater and can be transported more efficiently and much less expensively tr.an ~h.e unseparated coal slurry containing such fine particles.
On the other hand, the fine particle coal slurry separated is fed LO an apparatus 12 for concentrating and solidifying the slurry. Fig. 3 shows a useful e~nple of such apparatus 12. The illustrated apparatus 12 comprises a ooncentra-tion tank 14 having a slanting bottom wall 13 and a header 15 at its upper end.
m e header 15 has a large number of slurry inlets 16 opened to the interior of the tank 14. A slurry collecting channel 17 extends widthwise of the tank 14 at its lc~er end. A slurry return duct 18 having a pump 19 thereon extends frcm one end of the channel 17 to the header 15. The tank 14 has at one side thereof a solid coal outlet 20 from which a slanting plate 22 for guiding solid coal ex-tends to a solid coal depot 21 disposed obliquely below t'ne tank 14 on the same side. The fine particle slurry is introduced into the concentration tank 14, allowed to flc~ do~n the slanting bottom wall 13 and dried in the sun. The slurry portion flowing into and collected in the chan-nel 17 is returned to the header 15 via the duct 18 and caused to flow down the slanting bottom wall 13 again. In this ~ay the slurry is progressively concentrated by being circulated through the apparatus 12 without stagnation. The resulting solid mass of fine coal particles is forced out from the outlet 20 to the depot 21 by a bulldozer 23 at a specified time interval. l'he solid coal with a water content of 4 to 5 by weight is loaded into a second transport ship 24, carried to the port of de-livery and discnarged from the ship with a yrab. The fine particulate coal rc-maining in the form of slurry in the ap2aratus 12 is stored in a storage pond 25, i 17 29 8~
then loadeà int3 a thira transpor~ ~nip 26 carricd to ~he port of deli~Tcly and unloac~a as a slur~.
Fig. ~ shows another slurry separator ~ co.~rising a plurality of clas-sifying basirls 27 arranged sid~ by side in a row. Openings 29 formed in the upper er.ds of the partitions 28 bet~een the basins 27 are positioned in a stag-gered arrans~nt for overflcwing the slurry. The coal slurry fed to the most up-stre~m classifying ~asin 27 (at the left end of Fig. 4) through an inlet 30 flows dc~instream from basin to basin into the most downstream basin 27 (at the right end of Fig. 4), overflo~ing the partitions 28 at the openings 29. In the mean-time, coarser particles accwmulate in upper basins 27, and finer particles inlcwer basins 27 wi~h respect to the flow of the slurry.
Fig. 5 shows another slurry separator 4 comprising a tray 31 for carry-ing and dewatering slurry provided at the terminal end of the slurry transporting pipeline at the loading port. The dewatering tray 31 comprises an upper tray member 32 and a lc~er tray member 33. The upper tray me~ker 32 is connected to the pipeline and has a large number of drain apertures 34 in its bottom and a fiber filter 35 covering the upper surface of the boLtom wall and the inner sur-face of its side walls. m e upper tray r~mber 32 is form~d in a specified por-tion of its bottom with an opening 36 for discharging coarse particle coal slurry.
m e filter 35 is cut out at the portion corresponding to the opening 36. In ccm-munication with the discharge opening 36, a slurry supply duct 37 extends from the under side of tne bottom wall to the bond 10 for the storage of coarse part-icle coal slurry. The lower tray member 33 coextensive with the upper tray member 32 is disposed below the tray ~ember 32 as spaced therefrom by a spccified distance for receiving the slurry flowing down from the u?pcr tray member 32 and containing fine particles. The terminal erld of the up-er tray m~r~er 32 is con-nected to the coarse particle slurry storage pond 10 and the tcnminal end of thc I 1729~6 l~er tray ?~ r 33 to ~e fine particle slurry storag2 pond 25. ~ne l~.~er tray mer~7er 33 is pro~c.ed with a vibrator 38 for prcmoting separation and cewatcring of tre fed slurr~. The fiber filter 35 is fast~ned to the upp~r tray n ~ ber 32 by holders 39 arranc,ed at specified spacing, such that the filter 35 is ~holl7 replaceable ~n-~n clogged up.
The coal slurry sent forward from the ?,ILning area 1 through the pipe-line is fed to ths upper member 32 of the dewatering tray 31. While the slurry fl~s through the upper tray member 32, a fraction of the slurry containing fine particles falls into the lower tray n~ber 33 through the drain apertures 34, flc.~s through the tray member 33 and is collected in the fine particle slurry storage pond. The coarse particle slurry separated from the fine particle frac-tion and de~atered to scme extent flows into the supply duct 37 through the dis-charge opening 36 in the upper tray member 32 and is led into the coarse particle slurry storage pond 10.
Thus the ~ewatering tray 31 comprises an upper tray member 32 and a lower tray member 33 disposed below the member 32 and spaoe d apart therefrom by a specified distance, at least one of the bottom wall and side walls of the upper tray member 32 being provided with a filter 35 and a multiplicity of drain aper-tures 34 for discharging water containing fine particles. Because of this con-struction, the tray 31 classifies the particles in the coal slurry flowing there-through, affording a coarse particle slurry which has been dewatered to sc~e ex-tent Figs. 6 to 11 show a ship embodying this invention for transporting a coal slurry while dewatering the slurry during navigation.
With reference to Figs. 6 and 7, the transport ship has a slurry hold 40 provided with four guide tubes 43 arrangcd around a hatch 41 and extending through a deck 42. Drain tubes 44 eYtend d~ ard into the hold 40 with their upper ends inserted in the guide tubes 43.

9 ~ 6 The m,~ o~.~r 45 or the dîaill tube 44 cor~r ses an upper portion serv-ir.g as a caslng portion 46, an intermediate por,icn as a filter portion 47 and a ~ er end por-_~on 48. Tne filter portion 47 comprises an iimer tube 49 and an outer tube 50. The inner tube 49 is formed with a large number of holes 51 whichare out of alic,~ ent with like holes 52 formed in the outer tube 50. An inner filter 53 of metal netting and an outer filter 54 of nylon or like fiber over the filter 53 are fittcd around the inner tube 49 in an annular space within the outer tube 50. These filters 53, 54 are tubular. ~ne inner tube 49 has upper and lower threaded ends 49a and 49b which are screwed in the casing portion 46 and tne lower end portion 48 respectively. The outer tube 50 has a threaded upper end 50a screwed on the inner tube 49. Indicated at 55 and 56 are rubber packings. The l~er end portion 48 has a closed lower extremity, is tapered and has an interior space serving as a water accommodating spa oe 57. An underwater pump 59 is retained in the lower end portion 48 by a rib 58. The underwater pump59 has a dcwnwardly opened inlet 59a and an outlet 59b connected to a drain pipe60 in the form of a flexible hose. The drain pipe 60 extends outward from the drain tube main body 45 over a guide roller 61 at the upper end of the casing portion 46. A power supply cable for driving the pump 59 is incorporated into the drain pipe 60.
The guide tube 43 has a pair of rope guide tubes 62. Wire ropes 64 attached to connecting mem~ers 63 on the lcwer end of the drain tube 44 and ex-tending through the rope guide tubes 62 support the drain tube 44 in suspension.Each of thc ropes 64 is paid off from a winch 65 and passed over guidc sheaves 66 and 67 on the upper and l~er ends of the tube 62. The winches 65, ro~es 64, rope guide tubes 62 and guide sheavcs 66, 67 constitute means 68 for raising andlcwering the drain tube.
The slurry will be draincd by the following metho~. The ro~es 64 are `~ 17~9~6 paic c .rcm ~e ~inc es G~ to low~r tLLIC drairl tu~e 44 along thc guide tu~s 43 in susper.slor~. (as s~ n on th.e rignt side of Fig. 6) and place the drain tube 44 into the la~er of slu~y. The watcr in the slurry layer flows into the drain tube 44 thrcugh the ,.oles 51, 52 in the inner and outer tubes 49, 50 and Jhe inr.er and outer filters 53, 54 and is collected in ~he water accor,~odating space 57 in th~ lcT;~er end por,ion 48. The water is then discharged by the pum? 59 thrcugh the drain ?ipe 60. The solid cor,~onent of the slurry is prevented from fla~ing into the dr~in tube by the filters 53 and 54. Large solids are unable topass through the holes 52 in the outer tube 50. The inner tube 49 supports the filters 53, 54 against the pressure of the slurry acting thereon. When the filters 53, 54 have sufficient strength, the inner tube 49 can be dispensed with.
P,fter the slurry has been drained, the drain tube 44 is raised by the winches 65. The drain tube 44, when tapered in its entirety toward the lower end, can be withdrawn from the concentrated slurry layer easily. A vibrator, if mounted on the upper end of the drain tube 44, further facilitates the withdrawal of the tube. Although the drain tube 44 projects high above the deck when raised, the tube 44 will not becorae an obstacle when the casing portion 46 is removed from the threaded end 49a, or if the upper portion of the tube 44 is made bend-able.
As seen in Fig. 11, the drain tube 44 rnay be turnably supported at its upper end by a pivot 70 on the under side of a hatch cover 69. In this case, a winch 72 is provided on the under side of the hatch cover 69 for taking up a wire rope 71 attached to the lower end of the drain tube 44. With this arrangement, the drain tube 44 is used in its vertical suspended position for draining, whileit is held along the under side of the hatch cover 69 when out of use as indic-ated in a broken line in Fig. 11. T~le drain tube 44, whcn thus storcd along tr.e under side of the hatch cover 69, docs not project above the dcck and will cau_eno trou~le.

:i 17298~
.~ith ~e trlr.spolt ship sho~ in Figs. 6 to 11, drain tubes having filters are placed i~to '.he hold for the removal of water from the coal slurry, so that Lh.e slurry can be dewatered smoot'lly through efficient preparatory and otr.er t~ork procedures.
~ hen tr.e drain tube is adapted to be brought into the hold along guide tubes, -he drain tube is easily insertable into and withdrawable from the slurr~
layer. Especially it is easily withdrawable from the layer in a concentrated state.
The drain tube, when pivoted to the under side of the hatch cover, can be stored along the under side of the hatch cover. This assures effective use of the spaoe available without permitting the drain tube to cause so~e trouble while it is out of use.
Figs. 12 to 17 show another slurry transport ship of the dewatering type.
With reference to Figs. 12 and 13, a lateral partition 74 within a hold 73 has at its la.ier portion a drain opening 76 provided with a filter 75. The water passing through the drain opening 76 is collected in a water receptacle 78 disposed under a bottom plate 77. The water re oe ptacle 78 is connected to an in-let of a draining pump 79. The bottom plate 77 is formed at suitable portions with a plurality of drain openings 80, under which there is provided a water re oeptacle 81 connected to the inlet of the draining pump 79. The drain opening 80 has a perforated plate 82. Fiber water guides 83 and 84 each in the form of an endless belt are disposed respectively on a oentral vertical portion 74a and a l~er slanting portion 74h of he lateral partition 74. The water guide is reeved around a pair of arms 85 fixed to each of the vertical and slanting por-tions 74a and 74b. The opposcd upper and lcwer water guides 83 are in contact with or in pro:~ity to each other. The upper water gui~es 83 are so positioned :i 172~36 th2t ' eir ~per ~nds ;~ e above tihe laver of coal particles, 86, placed into and settling i!l the hold 73. The water guides 83 and 84 are made endless so as to be _urn~ble wien subjected to the pressure of the particle layer 86 ~hat would othert~.ise rupture the guide. Water guides 87 of fiber e~tends on the bottcm plate 77 lonsitudir.ally thereof. A lateral water guide 89 of fiber at right angles with trle longitudinal water guides 87 extends on both the bottom plate 77 and lcngitudiral partitions 88. The drain openings 80 are positioned under the intersections of the longitudinal and lateral water guides 87 and 89. Both ends of the la,eral water guide 89 are substantially at the same level as the upper ends of the upper water guides 83. The water guides 83, 84, 87 and 89 may be made of the same material as the fi~er filter, or sponge or the like, such that the guide will not be clogged up with particles and is permeable to a liquid only.
Even when a coarse particle coal slurry separated from fine coal part-icles is placed in the hold, large particles in the slurry will settle as a lower layer with the lapse of time under an upper layer of small particles. Thus the small coal particles floating to form the upper layer cover the underlying layer of large coal particles, with the resulting likelihood of closing the interstices (water channels) in the mass of slurry and presenting difficulty in dewatering the slurry.
It is naw assumed that when a coa] slurry is loaded into the hold 73 provided ~ith the above means and the pump 79 is operated to dewater the slurry, the water char~lels through the layer 86 of particles are clogged up. Even in this case, the upper ends of the upper water guides 83 and of the lateral water guide 89 are positioned above the particle layer 86, so that the water over the layer 86 is partly led from the upper ends of th.e upper guic~s 83 through the guides 83, then through the lower guid~s 84 to the drain o~ening 76, while the water is also partly led from the upper ends of the lateral guicl~ 89 through the ', ~72~86 guice 89 to ~e drain openings 80. Consequently the water is discharged by the pu~ 79. FuL~.er .he water passing through the particle layer 86 and along the outer æ ripher~ t ereof and reaching tke longitudinal and lateral partitions 88, 74 ar.d the bottcm plate 77 is led through tke water guides 83, 84, 87 and 89 to the drain openings 76, 80 for discharge.
Although t~o kinds of water guides 83, 84 and 87, 89 are used in tihR
abcve eTrbGdiment, the lateral water guide 89 on the longitudinal partition 88 is replaoe able by er.dless water guides 83, 84, or conversely, water guides similar to the lateral guide 89 are usable in place of the endless guides 83, 84 on the lateral partition 74.
The two water guides 83, 84 are further replaceable by a single water guide 90 in the form of an endless belt as seen in Fig. 14. m e guide 90 is held by an arm 91 extending along the junction between the vertical portion 74a and the slanting portion 74b of the lateral partition 74.
The endless water guides 83, 84 are further replaceable by a single station~ry water guide 92 as shown in Figs. 15 to 17. Indicated at 93 is an inverted U-shaped frame secured to the lateral partition 74 for holding the guide 92, and at 94 a holding plate disposed over the outer periphery of the guide 92 within the frame 93. The holding plate 94 is pressed against the guide 92 by a multiplicit~ of ~olts 95 screwed into the holding frame 93.
With the transport ship shown in Figs. 12 to 17 and having water guides provided on suitable portions of the inner surfaces of the hold and extending to drain openings, water is led through the guides to the drain o~enings to dewater the coal slurry placed in the hold even when the interstices, namely water channels, in the layer of deposited coal particlcs arc clogged up. Accordingly the siurr~ can be drained within a much shorter reriod of time than is convention-ally possible.

~ l72sa~7 r igs. 13 to 20 -~IC7iv ano~.er slurI~y tr.~rs~ort sl~ of thc cewatering t~pe.
The snip has a hold 100 shs~7n in Fig. 18. ~t t~.e four corners of a natc~ cover 101 ir.side thereof, there are take-up rollers 103 for payir.g off cables 102. These rollers 103 are covered with covers 104 and are rotatable at the sar~e time by unillustra-tPd drive means. The cables 102 extending da~7nwardfrcm the rollers 103 are attached at th~ir lower ends to the four corners of a dish-sha~d dewatering frarne 105 including a frame rr.ember 106 in the form of arectangular ring. A filter 107 extending over the frame rrember 106 and attachedto the under sice thereof is reinforced by a lattice-like framework 108. Metal netting, fibrous or various other materials are useful for the filter 107. The filter 107 is bulged do~v~ward in its center. The frame member 106 forming the side walls of the dewatering frame 105 is provided therearound with a pneumatic-ally inflatable annular buoy 109 serving as a float and ccmmunicating with air sup?ly-dischar~e means (not shown). A draining pump 110 is disposed in the center of the dewatering frame 105. The pump 110 has an outlet pipe 111 con-nected by a drain pipe 112 to a discharge hose 113 on an upper portion of a sidewall of the hold 100.
At the loading port, the cables 102 are wound on the rollers 103 to store the dewatering frarre 105 inside the hatch cover 101 as indicated in a two-dot-and-dash line in I`ig. 18, and the hatch cover 101 is then rerr,oved to open the hatch 114. A coal slurry is loaded into the hold 100 through the hatch 114.
With tne lapse of tirre, large coal particles of great specific gravity settle to form a l~er layer Sl, while small coal particles of reduced specific gravity float to fonn an uL~per layer S2. Thus the up~er layer S2 contains finc coal part-icles suspendcd in watcr. Tlle c~blcs 102 arc thcn paid off frGm the rollers 103to lower the dewatcring frame 105. ~t thc sa~c timc, th- buoy 109 is inflatcd :~ 172986 with air, ~nd th2 r~me 105 is thereaLter floated on the surfacc Ll of the slurry water. .~.l.h ~ e c'.ewatering frame 105 flc>ating on the water surface L1, the rollers 103 are made free to pav off the cables 102. In this state, the buov 109 prevents -.~c slurry ~ter frcm flowing into the dewatering fram~e 105 over the frame m~mber 106. Since the dewatering fram~e 105 floatir.g on the surface ~1 is dish-snaped, -~.e fiiter 107 is held immlersed in the slurry water, permitting water W alone to 2enetrate the filter 107 and flcw into the frame 105 to separate the water frGm coal particles. ~nen the draining pu~lp 110 is subsequently oper-ated, the water '~l is discharged by the pump 110 through the outlet pipe 112 and hose 113. This lowers the level of the slurcy water, allowing the frame 105 to follGw the water level under gravity. ~hen the draining operation is continued, the upper layer S2 is almost completely dewatered as indicated in a dot-and-dash line in Fig. 18, whereby the frame 105 is placed on the lower layer S1. When the pump 110 beco~es unable to draw off any water, the cables are taken up on the rollers 103 to raise the frame 105 and store the frame inside the hatch cover 101.
At the sam~e time, air is released from the buoy 109 to contract the buoy.
Although the single dewatering frame 105 is used for the hold 100 as described above, the slurry in a single hold 115 can be dewatered with use of a plurality of dewatering frames 116 as shown in Fig. 20, which shows frame m~mbers 118, buoys 119, draining pumps 120, cables 121, rollers 122, a hatch cover 123 and an upper deck 124.
~lile the dewateriny frame in the foregoing ~mbodiment is suspended fr~n the hatch cover or upper deck, a separate support is alternatively usable for suspending the dewatering frame. The term "dish-shapcd" used for describing the ~ atering fralre refers generally to thosc in which the ~rlphcral portion is hiyher than the center portion. Thus t~!e dewatcring fr,~mc, for cxam~le, may ha~
a recessed centcr por lon.

~l72986 ~ ;itl - c Lr~sport shi~ s'lo~vn iIl Fic,s. 18 LO 20 ~1 Wilic;l ~e slu~ is dewatered alwa~-s 1n the vic ni_y of the surface of the slurry water, the reduc-tion in dra~ -.g efficiency due to tne cloc3c3ing of the filter can be minimized.
Furt~.er the dewatering frame, which is kept floating on -he surfaoe of the slurry water a~ all t ~es ;_y a float, is caused by gravity to foll~v the descent of water level due to draining, so that the apparatus is operable without necessitat-ing additional e~ui~ent and is also easy to handle.
Figs. 21 to 27 show another slurry transport ship of the dewatering type.
The ship has a hold 234 provided in its bottom with drain openings hav-ing a filter (not shc~wn). Rotary shafts 237 each carrying a turning arm 236 at its lo~er end extend frcm the top wall 235 of the hold 234. The rotary shafts 237 are disposed, for example, at the four corner portions of a hateh 238, such that the entire area of the hold 234 ean be eovered with the paths of rotation of the turning arms 236 to the greatest possible extent as seen in a plan view (Fig.
22).
The turning arm 236 ec~prises a plurality of segments 236a of box-shaped eross section which are joined together with one fitted in another. m e æ gments 236a are connected to one another by pins 239 and are slightly pivotally movable upward and dc~nward relative to one another but are not laterally thereof at the connccted portions. The turning c~nm 236 is provided on its under sid~
with a larc~e number of stirring blades 240 which are arranged at suitable spacing lcngitudinally thereof. The stirring blades 240 may be inclined with respeet to the lengthwise direction of the arm 23G as scen in Fig. 26, or may ~,e pi rpendic-ular to the lcngthwise direction. ~ conical yrojcction 241 extends from the lc~r end of the rotary shaft 237.
ne rota~ snaft 237 has a hollow uyper portion which is inscrt~d i~ a

-2~)-~(~.29~fi rotati^n ~r~mlitl -g t~e r2 rotat.~bly supported on the top ~all 235 of the hold 234 ar.d ;.-.hich ;~as a screw rod 213 e~tending ~herein.o. mlhe screw rod 243 is rota.~bly su por.ed by a support m~ er 244 on the top wall of the tube 242 and is scr~.ed ~nto a l,~readed member 245 wit~LLn the rotary shaft 237. Thus the shaCt 237 is susperded from the screw rod 243. mlhe screw rod 243 is coupled to a portable air .motor or like drive means. The drive means, screw rod 243, supportmem~,er 244 ar.d threaded member 245 constitute means 246 for vertically moving the rotary shaft 237.
Projectior.s 247 and 248 meshing with each other are provided respect-ively on the inner surfaoe of the rotation transmitting tube 242 and on the outer surface of the rotary shaft 237. A gear 249 is externally formed on the lower end of the tube 242 and is in mesh with a drive pinion 250 coupled to an air motor or drive means. The drive means, drive pinion 250, gear 249, tube 242 and projections 247, 248 provide means 251 for rotating the shaft 237. Indicated at 252 is a member for supporting the drive pinion 250.
The above arrangement operates in the following manner. While not in use, the turning arm 236 is pulled up to and stored inside of the top wall of the hold, i.e., on the rear side of the upper deck inside the hatch coaming, with the shaft 237 retracted in the tube 242 as seen in Fig. 23. When the turning arm is to be used, the scr_w rod 243 is rotated to lower the rotary shaft 237, causing the lower end projcction 241 of the shaft 237 to penetrate a shell-like layer form~d in the top portion of the slurry within the hold 234. The arm 236 is turned by the shaft 237 through the tube 242 to break down the shell-li}ce to~
layer of the slurry with the stirring blades 240. P.t tnis time, the rotary shaft 237 is held stably to smoothly turn the arm 236, by bcing su~portcd at its upprrend ~md also by the shell-like layer picrced with its l~er end projection 241.
Since the arm 236 comprises the seoments 236a which are conncctcd to one anoth^r ~ 1~2986 uF.~ard;~ an~ nw.~~dly mov~bly as describ~d abov2, the ar~,l 236 is fle~ible in ocnfo~it wl-~h - e ccnLiquration of the upper surface of the shell-like lclyer, wit. ~.e result t at -~e arm is turn~Dle sroot}lly without any trouble. Tor~le can _~ ~ransmitted frvm tr.e t~be 242 to the shaft 237 irrespective of the level of '`e snaft 237 because the projections 247 and 248 are used for transmission.
When the shell-l~ke layer is bro~en at the top portion of the slurry, air flows into the slur~y s~oothly, whereby the water component of the slurry is smoothly removable from the bottom of the hold 234.
The turnir.g arr~l 236 may be provided at a corner of the hold 234 as in-dicated at 236' in Fig. 22 so as to turn reciprocatingly over an angle of 90 de-grees, or may be provided close to a side wall of the hold 234 as indicated at 236" in Fig. 22 so as to turn reciprocatingly over an angle of 180 degrees.
Further as shown in Fig. 27, the turning arm 236 may be in the form of an integral rer~er attached to the l~wer end of the rotary shaft 237 slightly turnably upward and da~nward. A large number of turning arms 236 may be attached to the rotary shaft 237 as arranged radially.
With the transport ship sho~n in Figs. 21 to 27, the turning arm having stirring blades and attached to a vertically movable rotary shaft, when turned, easily breaks up the shell-like layer of fine particles in the top portion of slurry, permittir.g uni~npeded flow of air into the slurry to assure smooth removal of water frcm thc slurry via the bottom of the hold. The arm is smoothly turn-able with stability since the lower end conical projection piercing the shell-like layer serv~s as a support for the arm.
Figs. 28 to 33 show another coal slur~y transport ship having an agitator by ~liC'l ~le coarse particle coal held in it_ llold and dc-/atcrcd durir.g navigation is nuce ir.to a slurry again at a port of deliv~ry.
The sllip has a hold 125 of double bottom cOnStr~ctiGn 126. ~ slur~y ~ 17298~
outlet 12 -o.~L~d n the centcr cf the inner bottc~ plate 132 is in communicaticn ~iLh a disc:are p'~T~ 123 via a valve 128. A slurry outlet duct 130 is connected ~o ~-.e p~ p 12~ screw oonveyor 131 e.~terlds frcm each of the four bottcm corners of t~e hold 125 to ~he slurr~ outlet 127. The screw conveyor 131 can be mounted on the inner bottcm plate 132 with bearings, but in the present embodi-ment, the la;er .half of the conveyor 131 is accon ~ dated in a ch~nnel of semi-circ~lar cross section formed in the bottGm plate 132. The screw conveyor 131 is coupled at its base end to drive means 135 by way of transrnitting rreans 134. The conveyor has a blad~ 131a and a water pipe 136 extending along the helical outer periphery of the blade. The base portion of the water pipe 136 is fitted in the base end (see Fig. 31) or the forward end (see Fig. 29) of the conveyor 131 and connected to a oonduit 138 by a rotary joint 137. The helical portion of the water pipe 136 is provided with jet nozzles 141 at specified spacing.
When a mass of coal particles dewatered to some extent during naviga-tion is to be made into a slurry again at the port of delivery, the screw con-veyors 131 are driven, with water for oe d into the water pipes 136 to inject the water into the mass through the jet nozzles 141. The water may be su~plied from a suitable location on the land or the like. While thus being agitated effect-ively, the coal particles are made into a slurry again and led into the slurry outlet 127.
In place of the water pipe 136 and jet nozzles 141, a multiplicity of jet nozzles 144 may be pro~ided on the rotary shaft portion 143 of a screw con-veyor 142 to force out water from between the adjacent portions of a blade 142a as seen in Figs. 32 and 33. Alternatively the nozzles 144 may be used in ccm-bination with lle nozzles 141. With referen oe to Fig. 33, th~ jet nozzlcs 144 are in~lanted in the shaft portion 143 between the adjacent porLions of the blade 142a. The for.~ard end faoe 144a of the jet nozzle 144 is flush with the outer 8 ~
perip:ne~ 3a o~ -~ e snart ?ortioin 143. Thc orifice 1~5 of th.e no~zle com~ni-cates ~~r^~ h a ?assage 147 with a fluid su~ply channel 146 formed in the shaft ?or,icn 143 alons its a;is. Thc jet nozzles 144 are arranged on a helical phantc~m lir.e cn the outer peripAery of the shaft portion 143. Indicated at 148 is m~eans for drivins tAe screw ccnveyor, at 149 a bearing, ar.d at 150 a rotary joint ha~ling an in~ernal passage 151 for holding unillustrated liquid supply means in co~munication with the fluid supply channel 146.
~ iith the transport ship shown in Figs. 28 to 33, the coal slurry can be discharged from its hold rapidly for unloading. Especially when the jet nozzles are adapted to discharge water in a suitable direction, the reaction of the dis-cAarge can be utilized for supplementing the power needed for tAe rotation of the scre~ conveyor.
Fig. 34 is a flow chart shcwing another method of the invention.
Fig. 34 is similar to Fig. 1 in that the coal pulverized by a coal mill 153 at a coal mining area 152 is fed to an apparatus 154 for preparing a slurry, whiGh is transported to a loading port through a pipeline. At the loading port, the coal slurry is temporarily stored in a slurry pond 155 (see Fig. 35). The slurry is then led through a supply duct 156 into the upper end of a first liquid cyclone 157, in which the slurry is wet classified into a fraction of coarse part-icles, for exam?le, larger than 0.15 mm in size and a fraction of fine particles.To assure wet classification effectively, the latter fraction from thc first liquid cyclone 157 is fed to a second liquid cyclone 158 disposed alongside the cyclone 157, whereby the fraction is fur'her subjected to wet classification.
Thus the first and second liquid cyclones 157 and 158 constitute a slurry sepa-rator 159. The coal slurry thus obta~led and containi~.g coarse particlcs of larger than 0.15 ~m is led through ducts 160 ~ld 161 into a pond 162 for stcrac;e.
~s is the case ~i h ~ig. 1, the coarse particle slur~,~ is loaded into a trans?ort s~ ? 163.

~ ~72986 Cn the ot~er nand, the fine particle coal slurry containing particles of ~p to 0.15 irm and separated from the coarse particle slurry is sent through a duct 164 to a thic'-~ener 165, in ~hich ~he s'urry is thickened by settling. The thickened fir.e particle slurry is run off from the bottom of the thickener 165 and fed to a prLm~r~ granulating tank 168 of a two-stage granulating apparatus 167 via a duct 166. The supernatant in the thickener 165 is discharged via an overflow trough 169. Fuel oil or like binder is then introduced into the prim3~y granulating '~nk 168 through a duct 170. The fine particle slurry and the binder are m~xed together by being vigorously agitated by a homogenizer or like agitator.
The mixture is introduced into a secondary granulating tank 171, in which it is gently agitated, for example, by a device (not shown) having agitating blades of metal net to form the fine particles into granules. Since coal and oil generally have affinity for each other, fine coal particles are joined together with fuel oil or like binder adhering to the surfaces of the particles for granulation.
Examples of useful binders are fuel oil, kerosene, gas oil, residuum oil and vegetable oils. The slurry containing the granules is introduced into the upper end of a third liquid cyclone 173 through a duct 172, whereby the granules are separated frcm the liquid by wet classification. The granules are sent to a storage pond 175 through a duct 174 and loaded into a transport ship 176. m e granules may be sent to the storage pond 162 and loaded into the ship for trans-porting the coarse particle slurry. The coarse particle slurry and granules may be dewatered after loading. m e liquid drawn off from the top of the cyclone 173 is predominantly water, but if the liquid contains a small amount of ungranulated fine coal particles, the liquid is returned to the granulating apparatus 167 via a duct 177 to completely recover the fine particles in the form of granules.
With the m~ethod sho~ in Figs. 34 ar.d 35, a coarse particle fraction is separated from a slurry of particulate coal by ~et classification, a binder is .~ 1 7 2 9 8 6 then ad~d to he r~ Lning portion of ~le slurry conta~ning fine particles to granuiate t~e ir.~a particles, and the grains or granules are then separated from the li~uic for ~"e recover~ of coal from the slurry, so that only the fine part-icles in '~he slurr~ need to be sranulated. Consequently ooal can be recovered frcm the slurri ver~ efficiently by treating a smaller amount of particles with a smaller amount of binder for a shor~er period of time than when the particles in the slurry are all granulated. Moreover, the coal recovered, whic~ comprises granul~s ~nd coarse particles having large sizes, is highly permeable to water and easy to drain. This greatly facilitates the dewatering, dryins and other procedures to be followed for the coal recovered, consequently assuring efficient recovery of particulate coal from the slurry. Granulation of fine coal particles further serves to remove ash from the coal. ~ore specifically stated, thc coal slurry contains fine particles of ash (inorganic substan oe s) produced by the pulverization of coal and having no affinity for fuel oil or like binder. Accord-ingly during the granulation of fine coal particles, the ash does not adhere to the binder but is separated from the granules of fine coal particles, whereby the ash can be removed from the coal recovered.
Fig. 36 is a flcw chart showing another method of the invention.
With reference to Fig. 36, coal is pulverized by a coal mill 181 at a coal mining area 180. The coal is pulverized to a mE~un~m size, for example, of about 3 mm. Until a slurry of fine coal particles is returned frcm the loading port as will ~he described later, the ooal is finely divided to obtain fine coal particles of up to 0.075 mm in size. The pulverized coal is fed to a slurry pre-paring apparatus 182 along with water to obtain a slurry. ~ne particle size dis-tribution of the slurry is so adjusted that a~out 20- by weight of all the coal particles are fine particles of the above-mentioned size. The coal slurry is oon~eyed through a pipeline to a loading port, where tne slurry is fed to a ~ ~7298~
slu ry æ-?ar_tor 133 ~nd hereby separated into a slurry of fir.e coal paLticies up to 0.075 ~ in size and a slurr~ of coarse coal particles 0.075 to 3 mm in size.
The coarse particle coal slurry is stored in a storage pond 1~34 and then lcaded into a tr~nsport ship 185 as is the case with Fig. 1.
On ~he other hand, the fir.e particle coal slurry is returned as it is to the coal mLnins area through a pipeline. This slurry and coarsely divided coal 0.075 to 3 mm in particle size are fed to the slurry preparing apparatus 182 .o prepare a slurry in which about 20% by weight of ~he coal particles are fine particles, like the one already produ oe d. The slurry is conveyed to the loading port throuah the pipeline. After the fine particle coal slurry has been returr.ed to the coal mining area, there is no need to finely divide ~he coal to particle sizes of up to 0.075 mm, but the coal mill 181 needs to give only coarsely divided coal of 0.075 to 3 mm in particle size. Thus with use of the coarsely divided coal and the returred fine particle coal slurry, a slurry is pre-pared which has the desired particle size distribution and which can be continu-ously transported by the pipeline wi~h a relatively small p~er.
The particle size of 0.075 mm is adopted as the separation standard for the follcwiny reasons. For the reduction of thc transport cost, the coal slurry must have incorporated therein finely divided coal, up to 0.075 mm in size, which, ho~ever, is costly to prepare at the coal mining area. ~oreover, slurries ccntaining such fine coal particlcs are very difficult to dewater. ~hen a slurry of large coal particles is conveyed through a pipeline, the slurry is easy to de-water after transport but causes marked wear on the pipe and rec~uires a rela-tively high fl~ velocity, consequently necessitatiny incrcascd pa~er consumption and entailing a higher transport cost. For this reasGn, it is practice to oonvey a slurry ~hich contains both large coal particles and fir.e co~l particles, such i I l 29~6 ~hat _ee _oal ~ s are about 2 to about 3 r.~n in ~ in~n slze ar.d about 0.1 to .-~ou_ 0. ;~n in .~vcra~e si.e and include fine p.~rticles of up to 0.07~ mn in an .-~moun. of ibGut 20~ by w2isht. Such slurry is less likely to wear i~he pipe ar.d c.~n ~ ~,ranspolted at a reduced velocity and therefore at a lo~her cost but is diffic~lt to dewater after transport since it contains fine coal particles.
Addi'ionally coal ~st be finely divided to obtain fine particles for the prepara-tiGn of the slurr~ at the coal rnining area.
~ ith t'r.e rncthod illustrated in Fig. 36, hGwever, the fine particle coal slurr~ separated at the loading port is returned as such to the coal rnining area through a pi~eline, so that the remaining ooarse particle coal slurry is easy to dewater. ~breover, since the fine particle slurry returned to the rnining area is reused for t'r.e preparation of a ooal slurry at the rnining area, the slurry can be conveyed less e.Ypensively due to the presen oe of the fine particles. Addition-ally there is substantially no ne oe ssity for fine pulverization to obtain fine particles needed for reducing the transport cost. Accordingly the slurry can be prepared, conveyed through the pipeline and dewatered at reduoed costs.
Fig. 37 is a flaw chart shcwing another method of this invention.
Fig. 37 is sirnilar to Fig. 1 in that the coal pulverized by a coal mill 187 at a coal rnining area 186 is fed to a slurry preparing apparatus 188 to ob-tain a coal slurry, which is conveyed to a loading port through a pipeline. Atthe loading port, the coal slurry is temporarily storcd in a storage pond 189 and then loaded into a transport ship 190 as such.
As seen in Figs. 38 to 42, the ship 190 has a number of holds 193 arranged longitudinally thereof and dcfined by lateral partitions 191 and opposed side walls 192. A larsc num~r of slurri outlcts (opcnings) 19~ hich arc clos-able, are formed in an upper portion of the latcral partition 191 of each hold 193. A slurr~ witi-~rawing opcning 197 communicating with a slurry disGkarse duct i i7~98G
196 is cis~Ycs~a cu__.ide a l wer sl~ting portion 195 of ~le artition 191. Thedis~arge ~uc_ 196 ~-ter.ds through the interior of a bottom wall 198 of co~ble const~c'_ion to a slur~y storage pond 199 on the shore and has a pum~ 200. A
larse r.~er of ~ewatering filters 201 is provided at the lower end of the lateral partition 191. A water collecting bilge t~ell 202 is disposed inside thebottor., wall 193 at its one end. A water withdrawing opening 203 inside the bilge well 2G2 co~Nnicates with a drain pipe 204 extending outward from the ship.
T.~ slurry S sent for;Jard from the storage pond 189 is charged into the hold 193 as sh~"n in Fig. 39 and is allowed to stand for a specified period of ti~,e. Conseauently the slurry S separates into two layers, namely a coarse part-icle lc.~er layer Sl and a fine particle upper layer S2, as seen in Fig. 40. When the slurry outlets 194 are then opened, the upper layer S2, namely the fine part-icle coal slurry, flows out from the hold 193 through the outlets 194, des oe nds the outer si~e of the lateral partition 191 and is collected under the lcwer slanting portion 195 of the partition outside thereof. The fine particle slurry is then returned to the storage pond 199 on the shore via the discharge duct 196.
As a result, the lcwer layer Sl only remains within the hold 193 as seen in Fig.41. During navigation, the lower layer Sl, namely the coarse particle coal slurry, is drained by the det~atering filters 201. The water is collected in thebilge well 202 and run off from the ship via the drair. pipe 204.
The fine particle coal slurry returned to the pond 199 may be concen-trated for solidification as seen in Fig. 1, or granulated as shown in Fig. 34, or returned to the coal mining area in the form of a slurry as seen in Fig. 36.
Fig. 43 sha~s a transport ship slightly differ~nt frcm the one des-cribed above.
With refcrence to Fig. 43, a hold 205 for fir.e particlc slurry is posi-tioned in the center of a longitudinal arrangement of ~any holds 193. A slurry 11~2~5 disch2r e duc_ 196 is cornect~ vi~ ;t purmp 200 to a sl.l~ry duct 206 e.~tr~nding over ~e upper dec~ into the fine par~,icle co~l slurry hold 205. With the excep-tior of t..e .--~bove feature, the ship is similar to the one sho~vn in Figs. 38 to 42.
I~iith t.~R present em~xxl~ment, the coal slurry conveyed throuah a pipe-lir.e is placed into t.e holds 193. As is the case with the preceding embodiment, fine particle coal slurry is collected under the lower slanting portion 195 of each hold 193 outside thereof, with coarse particle coal slurry remaining in the hold 193. T~.-e fir.e particle slurry is sent into the hold 20S via the duct 206 by the pum~ 200. The fine particle slurry is discharged as such at the port of de-livery by a pum;p.
Figs. 44 to 52 shcw another modified transport ship.
With reference to Fig. 44, the ship has a numker of holds 208 dividedby lateral pa~~titions 207. As seen in Fig. 45, a large number of overflow open-ings 209 are formed in an upper portion of the lateral partition 207 of the hold 208. The openings 209 are provided with an unillustrated movable door for verti-cally adjusting the position of the lower edges defining the openings 209. A
slurry withdrawing opening 212 communicating with a slurry transfer duct 211 is disposed outside a slanting lower portion 210 of the partition 207. The transfer duct 211 thus communicating with all the withdrawing openings 212 extends through the interior of a bottom wall of double construction to a pump 214, from which the duct 211 furt~ter extends to separators 213 above the holds 208. The portion of the duct 211 extending from the pump 214 to the separators partly serves as a granulating tube for mixing a fine particle coal slurry and a binder together by stirring and forYarding the mixture as sho~^Jn in Figs. 48 and 49. M.ore spc-~cific-ally, a rod 215 in alignment with the axis of the tr.~tsfer duct 211 is yrovic'.ed in a short straight portion 211a of the duc~ 211. One end of the rod 215 is rotatably and liquid-tightly supported by an outer corner portion 211b of the ~ ~7298~

sLrai~nt por-i_n 211a at its one ~nd. ~ae other er.d of ~he rod 215 rotat.~bly and liciid-tig.ltl ~.tends throuh an outer corner por~.ion 211c of the straight por-tion 211a at ~he oth-r end thereof and is conr.ected to unillustrated drive means.
T`ne rod 215 is provided at so~e locations with stirring blades 216 of ~etal rRtt-ing wi h a clearance a formed between the outer periphery of the blade 216 and th~ inner surface of the duct 211. The transfer duct 211 has a binder inlet (not sh~"nj at a suitable portion.
As shc~n in Figs. 46 and 47, each of the separators 213 comprises a main body 218 in the form of an elongated box and movably extending across a hatch coaming 217, and a filter 219 extending over Lhe entire inner area of the main body 218 and positioned at an intermediate portion of its height. m e main body 218 has a slurry inlet 220 at its one end on the upper side of the filter 219 and a water outlet 221 at the other end thereof on the under side of the filter 219. The filter 219 is so inclined that it is at a higher level tcr~ard the slurry inlet 220. The filter 219 has in its center a coal inlet tube extend-ing through the bottom wall of the main body 218 ar.d opened to the hold 208. The slurry inlet 220 of the separator 213 is connected to the slurry transfer duct 211 by a flexible tube 223. The water outlet 221 of the separator 213 is con-nected by a flexible tube 224 to a drain pipe 225 cne end of which extends to the land. The transport ship further has a slurry loading duct 226 extending frcm a slurry storage pond Oll the shore to upper portions of the holds 208.
A slurry of particulate coal is supplied from the storage pond on the shore to the holds 208 through the loading duct 226. While thus loading the slurry, the overfl~ openings 209 arc opened to a suitable dcgree to cause super-natant water containing fine coal particles to overfl~ the latcral partitions 207 through the openinss 209. The water outside the partitions is led into the withdrawing openings 212 into ~he tr~nsfer duct 211 by the pu~p 214. ~nile the :~ i72~
fine ~ c'c ~1 ;lur~ i., 'L~iny passecl ~^ough thc cl~c~ 211 to tl^ separators 213, a bi~nd-r cc.~~isirq fuel oil or he 1ike is adr~Yed with -the slurry by stirr-ing in ~he ~r~r.l~lltily t~e to granulate the rine particles in the slurry. More speci.icl~lly ~ir.e coal particles in the slurry flc,~7ing through the duct 211 and the binc~r arc ~ :ed tosether by being stirred with thc blades 216, where~y finecoal particlcs are ~lhcred to relatively large coal particles to form agglomer-ates, namely grains or granules. The movement of fine coal particles at this time is indicated by an arrow in Fig. 49. This movement is different from that heretofore observed in a static r,i~er in which the duct is provided with only bladelike blocking plates or in a line mixer comprising an agitator having usualblades. Thus the moverent of coal granules and fine coal particles within the duct 211 or the rolling motion thereof on the duct wall serves effectively for the progress of grcmulation. The coal granules formed in the straight portion 211a of the duct 211 flow dcwnstream through the clearance _. Further coal granules forr,ed earlier rapidly fall between the stirring blades 216, permitting other fine coal particles to form granules smoothly. With fine coal particles thus grc~nulated, the slurry is placed onto the filter 219 of the separator 213 through the inlet 220. The slurry containing the granules fl~ws da~n the filter 219, while permitting ash-containing water to pass through the filter 219 to thelower portion of the main body 218 and flow out through the water outlet 221.
Gn the other hand, the granules of large size remain on the filter 219 and pass through the inlet tube 222 into the hold 208. The separator 213 is reciprocated on the hatch coaming 217 at a relatively 1~ spced longitudinally of the ship.
1'he slurry fed to the separator 213 contair.s granules of larye size only and is therefore easy to d~water and separatc. The water run off frcm tre water outlet 221 is sent throuyh tne drain pipe 225 to suitable means on the shorc, w~iereby the ash is removed from the water. Thc watcr is thcn led to a pond on thc shore and rcused as slurry watcr.

~ 172~6 ~ .5ugh ~1' granules of fine coal particlcs are add_d to the coal slurry separat_d fr~m fine coal palticles in the above er,~hcdiment, the granules c~n be plaoed irto a separate nold.
~ s seen in Figs. 50 and 51, the granuiating tube included in the slurry transfer duct may ccmprise bent duct portions 227 provided in an intermediate part of the trans.er duct 211 and ea h including stirring blades 228, the kent duc. porticns being provided in a plurality of stages. Each of the bent duct por-tions 227 co~prises a horizontal tube 227a and a bent tube 227b extending obliquely up.Jard from the horizcntal tube 227a and having a closed end 227c. A
rod 229 disposed in the bent tube 227b and having stirring blades 228 rotatably extends through the closed end 227c ar.d is connected to an unillustrated drive means. The junction 230 between the horizontal tube 227a and the kent tube 227b is connected to one end of the horizontal tube 227a of another kent duct portion 227. Thus the kent duct portions 227 are joined to one another in stages.
The coal slurry in the bent duct portions 227 moves as indicated by arrows and is effectively mixed with the binder, whereby the coal can ke granu-lated efficiently.
Alternatively the stirring means may comprise a rod 232, stirring blades 231 mounted on the rod, and radial blades 233 attached to each side of the blade 231 as seen in Fig. 52.
Figs. 53 to 56 shcw another slurry transport ship having coal slurry separating n~ans.
The ship has holds 253 arranged longitudinally thereof for containing a coal slurry and empty ch~mbers 254 between the holds 253. Drain openings 256 formed in an upper portion of the rcar wall 255 of thc hold 253 are in conmunica-tion with the ~mpty chamber 254. Thc drain opening 256 may be in the form of a cutout or ~l aperture. A drain channel 257 is providcd at tre bottom of the ~. 9 8 6 e~?~- cn~-_~r 25s. ~rhe ~olà 253 is prcvic-d at its bo_tcm with botto~ drain o~ell-ings 2~S ccmr~ cat~ng with the em~ty cnamber 25~. A fire particle coal slurry wit ~~ ing duc_ 2_9 is disposed at the bottc~ of the e~?ty chamber 25~
T~o nozzle mounting pipes 261 are positioned some distance kelow tr.e to? wall O the hold 253 and extend along opposite side edges of a hatc`n 260.
Each OL the mc~ti!lg pipes 261 has a multiplicity of injection nozzles 262 arr~ged lcncjitudinally thereof at suitable spacing. Cne end of the pipe 261 is connectecl by a water supply conduit 264 to a pump 263 for supplying high-pressure jet water. Pressurized air or like high-pressure fluid is usable ir. pla oe of water. The nozzle mounting pipe 261 is rotatably supported at its opposite ends by support me~bers 266 attached to the top wall 265 of the hold 253 and is pro-vic'Qd with means 267 for adjusting the angle of turn thereof. The angle adjust-ing means 267 co~rises a lever 268 fixed to the pipe 261 and a screw rod 269 rotatably connected at its one end to the lever and in screw-thread engagement with a thre,ded m~mber 270 on the top wall 265 of the hold 253~ The screw rod 269~ when turned by a handle 298~ turns the injection nozzles 262 to a substant-ially horizontal position or to an obliquely upward position as seen in Fig. 56~
Preferably the nozzles 262 on the pipe 261 are made turnable toward the front or rear by some means. However, the injection nozzles 262 may be fixed as inclined toward the drain openings 256~
With the arrangement described above, the supernatant water of the coal slurry in the hold is discharged from the drain openings 256 into the empty chamber 254. '~lC fine particles floating in the up~er layer of the slurry can also be discharc;ed ~1 the following m3nner. Water is injected into the upper layer of the coal slurry (i.e. about 1/5 por~ion of ~he height of ',~.e load) from the nozzles 2G2 in horizontal position to ayitate ~le layer. The injection nozzles 262 are thc~ll turr.ed obliquely u~ard toward the drain o~nings 256 to

-3~-1 17298~

force -~e ~lo~t~ug ~~ne pal~;cles tcl.~ard the cpen~lgs 256 wi~ e injected -~ater and cisc.3~ge t`n~rll into the en~ty Gh~rllber 25~. Tile firle particulate coal can be disc:-~r cd e~ en ~c injcctioll nozzles 262 are fixedly directed tc~ard the drai.. o~ninss 256. Since tihe fir.e coal particles are thus removed from the u2per layer of ~2 slurry, no covering ~ill be formed with fine partieles, per-mitting air to -fass through -~he slurry effectively and enabling ~rater to flGw out smoGLhly frcm the bottGm drain openings 258 of the hold 253.
With the transport ship shown in Figs. 53 to 56, the supernatant water eontaining fine coal particles in the top layer of the slurry is diseharged by jets of fluid, so that the slurry ean be separa~ed effieiently without permitting formation of a covering layer of fine eoal particles that would impede removal of water through the bottcm drain openings of the hold.
Figs. 57 to 61 show another slurry transport ship.
Guide rails 272a and 272b are provided on an opposed pair of side walls of t~.e hatch coaming 271 of a hold 253. A flap 273 is provided between and sup-ported by the guide rails. The flap 273 carries rollers 274 in engagement with the rails 272a, 272b and reinforcing members 275. m e flap 273 has sueh a length that it reaches t~.e upper layer of the eoal slurry to be loaded into the hold 253.
Means 276 for driving the flap 273 comprises a pair of endless stcel eables 277a, 277b reeved around pulleys 278 and turnable along the rails 272a, 272b and a motor 273 for driving the pulleys 278. The flap 273 is attachcd to the eables 277a, 277b. With the ~xception ol the above feature, the ship is similar to the one sho~n in Fig. 53.
With this arran~ement, the ~otor 279, ~hen dri~en, rcvcrsibly turns the steel cables 277a, 277b, ~oving thc flap 273 bac'~ and fort~ ~ithin the hold 253 along thc guide rails 272a, 272b, ~hercby the fire particlc coal slurry in the top portion of the coal slurry in ~nc hold 253 can k~ discharscd into thc emp~y t 1729~6 ha~.~er 254 -~hroug;l ,he drain o~ gs 256. This pre~7ents for.nation of a cover-ing la~er of fir.e coal p3rticles, pernitting water and air to pass through the slurry effectively ~nd allowing water to flG~ out smoothly from the bottom drain o~enings 258 of the hold 253.
Thus the transpor. ship sho~n in Figs. 57 to 61 has the simple construc-tion that a flap for discharging fine particle coal slurry is mounted on guide rails cn a hatch coaming, whereby fine particle coal slurry can be separated off and rem~ved sm~othly from the upper l~yer of a coal slurry, and water can be dis-charged from the bottam of the hold efficiently because of an unim~eded flow of air through the slurry.
Figs. 62 to 64 shows another slurry transport ship.
A hold 280 has thereabove a hatch 282 defined by a hatch coaming 281 and closable by an unillustrated hatch cover. A space 284 for accommodating supernatant is provided between lateral parlitions 283. The water accommodating space 284 is prov_ded at its lawer portion with a drain channel 286 ccmmunicating with the interior of the hold 280 through dewatering filters 285. A bilge well 287 in cxmn.unication with the drain channel 286 is provided in the bottGm of double construction o the hold 280. A tray 289 in the form of an angle in cross section extends along the entire inner peripheral surface of the hold 280, i.e.
along the front and rear lateral partitions 283 and opposite longitudinal parti-tions 288. The lateral partition 283 is formed with ol~enings 2gO for holding the in~rior of the tray 289 in communication with the space 284. A bell-mouth 291 for discharging supernatant water is disposed at a lG~er portion of the space 284.
A branch duct 294 of a slurr~ duct 293 on an up~er dec~. 292 has a for~ard end (not shc~n) eA~tending t}~-ough the lateral partition 283 into thc hold 280. Indic-ated at 295 is the lower settling layer (coarse particle coal slun~l) of a slu and at 236 the su-~rnatant water (fine particie coal slurry) of tne slur~.

-3~-~ 1 . 29 ~ ~

T.he ccal slurr~- is cl.~rg-~d i!to t"_ hola 28C~ oug.~ GUC~ 293 and branch duct 294. ~ on the water level reachir.g the u~per end of the tray 289, the supernatant wat~r 236 ov2rflows _~e tray over the entire interior area of the hold 280, flcr~s thrcuc,ih ~he tray 289 c~.d falls into the space 284 through the openings 290.
~ Dnen loadir.g in rough weather, pitching or rolling of the ship will raise the level of the superr.atant water above the upper end of the tray 289, causing a large amount of the water 296 to abruptly flc-~ into the tray. To pre-vent this, the tray shcr~n in Fig. 64 has an extension higher than tre usual height of tray and in the form of a porous fil~er 297. When the supernatant water remains at a normal level A, the water flcws out near the lower end of the filter 297, whereas if the water rises to an abnormal level B due to pitching or rolling, the water flows out over a considerably large area of the filter 297.
With the transport ship of Figs. 62 to 64 which is adapted to separate supernatant water containing fine particles (i.e. fine particle coal slurry) frcm a coal slurry while the slurry is being loaded into the hold, the supernatant water fl~s into the tray o~Jer the entire periphery of the hold and then falls into the water accommodating space through drain openings. The supernatant water therefore flcws into the tray gently without entraining coarse particles that will settle for separation. Thus the coal slurry can be separated properly.
Fig. 65 shows another transport ship for practicing another method of the invention.
~ le transport ship 300 having a nu~er of holds which are defined by longitudinal partitions and lateral partiticns and each of which is provided thereabove ~,ith a scparator 213 of the same construction as those sno~n in Fiys.
44, 46 and 47. The separator 213 has a slurry inlet 220 connccted by a fleY.iblc tube to a slurry loading duct 301, one end of which is co.~lect~d ,o a slu-^ry stor-1 t729~5 age pond 302 cn the s.lore. Tlle loadiIIg duct 301 has a binder inlet a~ a portion thereof close to ~h_ por.d 302. .-~s is the case witn Figs. 48 to 52, the duct 301 has incor?orated t-creill granul_tirg means con~prisir.g stirring blades for r~xing a slurry and a bind_r together bv s_irring. The separator 213 has a water outlet 221 connected by a flexible tube to a drain pipe 303, one end of which is con-nected to an ash r~oving apparatus 304 on the shore. m e ash removing apparatus 304 has a water Gutlet 305 connected to the pond 302 and an ash outlet 306 con-nected to a press fil~er 307.
With the above arrangerrent, a coal slurry is supplied frcm the pond 302 through the loading duct 301, while a binder is added to the slurry through the binder inlet of the duct 301. The slurry and the binder are mixed together by stirring and sent t~ard the separators 213 while coal particles are being granu-lated. The slurry containing the granules is fed to the apparatus 213 through the inlet 220. As in the err~xx~r~ent already described, the granules of large size are separated from ash-containing water and placed into the hold. The ash-containing water is discharged through the water outlet 221 and sent through the drain pipe 303 to the ash rerroving apparatus 304, in which the ash is rerroved frcm water by concentration. The water alone is sent to the pond 302 and used again for the preparation of slurry. The concentrated ash is further sent to the press filter 307 and dewatered.
Although fine particles are granulated while loading the coal slurry into the ship in the above er~bodirnent, the coal slurry may be subjected to granu-lation by an apparatus on the shore near the loading port as seen in Fig. 66 and thereafter loaded into a ship.
With reference to Fig. 6G, a granulating and classi~yiAIg ap~paratus 310 granulates coal particles and classifics the granulcc. T~le aL,paratus 310 in-cludes a gr~lulating device 311 for a~T~ ing the bindcr sul~licd 'ro~. a bin~r ~ 1 7 2 9 8 ~
ccntairer 312 wi1h a coal slurr~ ~y stirr~.g for grar.ulation. A vibrating scr~en 313 classifies the granules frcm the device 311 into three different particle sizes. The ccarse granul-es and somewhat smaller granules separated by the first and second stages of the screen 313 are d~watered by rotary screens 314 anZ 315 respectively and are fur her stored in tanks 316 and 317 respectively. The water separated is sent to a water tank (not shc~n). The granules in the form of fine particles and separated by the third stage of the vibrating screen 313 are sub-jected to ~et classification by a wet cyclone 318. The relatively coarse granules separated are dewatered by a rotary screen 319 and stored in a ta~k 320.
The relatively fine granules separated are dewatered by a rotary screen 321 and stored in a tank 322. The water separated off by the rotary screens 319 and 321 is sent to the water tank.
The coal separated from ash-containing water in this way is loaded into a transport ship as it is or as made into a slurry again with addition of water.

Claims (14)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A coal slurry transport ship having a hold for loading the coal slurry, the hold being provided with a drain opening in its bottom and formed in an upper portion of its peripheral wall with openings for passing supernatant water containing fine particles of the coal slurry.

2. A transport ship as defined in claim 1 wherein the hold is provided at an upper portion thereof with means for forcibly moving the supernatant water toward the openings.

3. A transport ship as defined in claim 2 wherein the means for forcibly moving the supernatant water comprises nozzles for injecting a high-pressure fluid.

4. A transport ship as defined in claim 2 wherein the means for forcibly moving the supernatant water is a flap movably mounted on the hatch coaming of the hold.

5. A transport ship as defined in claim 1 wherein a tray is provided at an upper portion of the peripheral wall of the hold, and the interior of the tray is in communication through the openings with a space for accommodating the supernatant water.

6. A transport ship as defined in claim 1, which is provided with a drain tube suspended from the top of the hold, the drain tube comprising a main body and a draining underwater pump, the main body having a filter in its outer peripheral portion and a water accommodating space in the interior of its bottom, the under-water pump being disposed in the interior of the main body portion.

7. A transport ship as defined in claim 6 wherein the drain tube is vertically movably suspended from guide tubes mounted on the top of the hold.

8. A transport ship as defined in claim 6 wherein the drain tube is attached to a hatch cover and is turnable between a stored position along the hatch cover and a vertical suspended position.

9. A transport ship as defined in claim 1 wherein water guides are provided on the side walls and bottom walls of the hold while extending to the drain opening.

10. A transport ship as defined in claim 1 wherein a dish-shaped dewatering frame having a filter at its bottom is vertically movably suspended from the top of the hold, a draining pump being disposed inside the dewatering frame and a float surrounding the dewatering frame.

11. A transport ship as defined in claim 1 wherein a turning arm having stirring blades is attached to the lower end of a rotary shaft vertically movably suspended from the top wall of the hold, the rotary shaft having a projection at its lower end.

12. A transport ship as defined in claim 1 wherein the hold is provided with a coal agitating apparatus in its interior.

13. A transport ship as defined in claim 12 wherein the agitating apparatus comprises screw conveyors disposed at the bottom of the hold, and each of the screw conveyors has a plurality of nozzles for discharging a pressurized fluid.

14. A transport ship as defined in claim 13 wherein the pres-surized fluid discharging nozzles are arranged helically at suit-able spacing.