EP0413813A1

EP0413813A1 - Devices for treating human or animal dejections by means of micro-waves.

Info

Publication number: EP0413813A1
Application number: EP90905203A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Maurice Lataillade
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1989-03-09
Filing date: 1990-03-09
Publication date: 1991-02-27
Anticipated expiration: 2010-03-09
Also published as: JPH03504466A; DE69004189D1; FR2644154B1; CA2028099A1; EP0413813B1; WO1990010760A1; DE69004189T2; ES2049028T3; US5145576A; FR2644154A1; OA09630A

Abstract

Pour transformer les déjections en résidus secs et stériles, ces matières sont soumises aux radiations micro-ondes dans une unité de traitement (6). Un séparateur solides/liquides (3) peut être incorporé en amont de l'unité de traitement. Le circuit d'évacuation des liquides comporte une cuve d'évaporation (25), un circuit de récupération de vapeur d'eau (28), une cuve de condensation (11) et un circuit de recyclage (17, 18, 19) de l'eau de condensation.To transform the droppings into dry and sterile residues, these materials are subjected to microwave radiation in a treatment unit (6). A solid / liquid separator (3) can be incorporated upstream of the treatment unit. The liquid evacuation circuit includes an evaporation tank (25), a water vapor recovery circuit (28), a condensation tank (11) and a recycling circuit (17, 18, 19) of condensation water.

Description

PROCESS FOR TREATING HUMAN OR ANIMAL DEJECTION BY MICROWAVE AND DEVICES FOR CARRYING OUT IT

The present invention relates to the treatment of human or animal droppings and aims to propose a new microwave treatment technique capable of solving the sanitation problems posed by the elimination of said droppings and, more particularly, of reducing very substantially the risks of pollution and other nuisances specific to this type of discharge, independently and economically.

To this end, the subject of the invention is a method for treating human or animal excrement by microwaves, characterized in that it consists in subjecting at least the solid parts of the excreta to be treated to irradiation by microwaves in conditions controlled so that at the end of processing of said parts they have reached a predetermined degree of desiccation.

According to an embodiment of the method, the excreta to be treated, namely the solid parts alone or in mixture with the liquid parts, are forced to pass through a determined space subjected to microwave irradiation, under determined flow conditions so as to obtain the desired degree of desiccation of the materials treated on leaving the irradiation zone.

Furthermore, advantageously, the water vapor released during the microwave treatment is collected with a view to possible recycling or recovery of the condensation water. Also, advantageously, the said desiccated materials are collected and conditioned for their elimination or for further treatment.

In the case where only the solid parts are treated in the microwave, the liquid parts are separated before the treatment and subjected to evaporation to collect the water with a view to its possible recycling or recovery.

The invention also relates to devices for implementing the above method. Such a process is remarkably effective and makes it possible to transform, according to a closed circuit and therefore autonomous process, polluting products and generators of various nuisances into dry, sterile residues, of reduced volume and easily handled for their evacuation. In addition, the method allows the recovery of the water contained in the manure and in particular its recycling in the system for collecting manure, thus contributing to ensuring autonomy which can be total at the installation for treating manure, this substantial advantage of the method of the invention being particularly advantageous in its application to the treatment of droppings in sites with high temporary traffic which are not generally equipped in particular with the required water facilities, or in sites comprising large volumes to be treated and sterilized, such as animal husbandry, or on board air, land or sea vehicles.

Other characteristics and advantages will emerge from the following description of modes of implementing the method of the invention, description given by way of example only and with reference to the appended drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of an installation for processing human excrement implementing the method of the invention; Figure 2 is a partial vertical sectional view of another embodiment of the method of

The invention;

Figure 3 is a schematic axial vertical sectional view of the module of the installation of Figure 1 where the solid / liquid separation takes place for microwave treatment of solids, and

Figure 4 illustrates diagrammatically an installation according to the invention intended for the treatment of large quantities of excrement.

In Figure 1 there is shown schematically an embodiment of the method of the invention applied to the treatment of human excrement collected from a bowl of

WC 1. The bowl 1 is connected by a pipe 2 in a slight downward slope to a tank 3 for solid / liquid separation.

The tank 3 is connected by a pipe 4 to the lower part of a module 5 for conveying solid materials coming from the tank 3 upwards in the direction of a microwave irradiation unit 6. Above the irradiation unit 6 is arranged an extractor 7 of the gases generated during the microwave treatment.

More specifically, the solid materials coming from the treatment unit 6 are conveyed through the extractor 7 by a conduit 8 which leads to a tank 9 for recovering the desiccated treated materials.

The extractor 7 consists of an enclosure surrounding the duct 8 and intended to recover the vapors conveyed in the duct 8 and which escape therefrom at the level of the extractor 7 by passages provided for this purpose in the wall of the said duct 8. The vapors collected are conveyed by an insulated pipe 10 in a tank 11 for condensing the vapors into water. Condensation takes place at atmospheric pressure, the tank 11 being vented through a chimney 12 comprising a filter (not shown), an extractor fan 13 and a ventilation cap 14.

The tank 9 is an enclosure into which the duct 8 opens after passing through the extractor 7. The tank 9 is provided with an access hatch 15 allowing the insertion into the tank of a bag for collecting the desiccated materials conveyed through said conduit 8.

The enclosure of the tank 9 is connected by an insulated pipe 16 to the chimney 12. The pipeline collects residual vapors at

Inside the tank 9 and evacuates them with return of the condensation water to the tank 11.

The tank 11 is also connected by a pipe 17, optionally provided with a filter 18 and a booster 19, to the bowl 1 in order to reuse the condensed water for emptying and cleaning the bowl.

The tank 3 is also provided with vents 20, a conduit

21 for discharging gas, an access hatch 22 and a conduit 23 equipped with a filtering sleeve 24 responsible for conveying the liquid parts coming from the tank 3 towards an evaporation tank 25. This tank, of conventional design, is fitted with plunging electric heating resistors responsible for evaporating the water contained in the water-urine mixture coming from the separation tank 3.

The tank 25 is provided with vents 26, a gas evacuation duct 27 and a pipe 28 for supplying the vapors to the condensation tank 11. A bypass 29 provided with a valve 30 for regulating steam connects the pipe 28 to the chimney 12, upstream of the filter.

The assembly 5-6 of FIG. 1 is, for example, in accordance with the device represented diagrammatically in FIG. 2.

In this FIG. 2, a vertical cylindrical duct has been shown at 31 in which an Archimedes screw 32 is disposed, moved by a geared motor assembly symbolized by

33.

The conduit 31 passes through an annular enclosure 34 forming a waveguide or applicator and concentrating the microwaves emitted by a generator 35 on the material passing through the interior of the said conduit 31, the wall of which is made of a suitable material, for example " Teflon ", transparent to microwaves.

Archimedes' screw 32 does not extend to the microwave applicator 34. The installation of FIG. 1 may include a processing unit 6 consisting of an applicator 34 and a generator

35 as shown in FIG. 2 and a module 5 for conveying the materials to be treated in a conduit 31 comprising a vertical Archimedes screw 32 actuated by example by an electric motor 36 via an appropriate transmission 37.

In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the duct 31, after crossing the applicator 34, opens into a etanσhe reservoir 38 vented by a duct 39 provided with a filter 40.

Still in the embodiment of FIG. 2 and contrary to the embodiment of FIG. 1, all of the solid and liquid parts of the excrement brought by gravity by the pipe 2 coming from the bowl 1, is admitted into the module 31 -32 routing of materials to the microwave treatment area. However, only the solid materials are taken up by the screw 32, the liquid part being evacuated to the lower part of the conduit 31 by a pipe 41 in the direction of an evaporation tank 42 similar to the tank 25 of FIG. 1 and provided with a pipe 43 for discharging the vapors with filter 44.

The operation of the conveying means (5,31,32) of FIGS. 1 and 2 of the solid materials in the direction of the space, delimited inside the conduit 31, up to the microwave applicator 34, d irradiation of said materials with suitable microwaves is as follows.

The screw 32 continuously pushes the solid materials in the conduit 31 in the direction of the microwave applicator 34. During the crossing of the zone of the conduit 31 surrounded by the applicator 34, the materials undergo irradiation with microwaves such that at the exit from the irradiated area the materials are in the desired dissection state. In the present application, it is desirable to have materials as dry as possible in order to reduce the volume of solid waste, and to facilitate their handling or subsequent packaging.

The microwave generator 35 and its applicator 34 are known devices. One can use for example as an applicator those described in EP-0.252.542 or any other system with rectangular or square section forming a treatment cavity, in accordance with the standards in force, in particular concerning microwave leaks. In this connection, microwave leak sensors are provided, on the one hand, near the generator 35 and, on the other hand, in the passenger compartment where the bowl 1 is installed.

The frequency of the microwave generator is for example of

2450 MHz, or another of the frequencies authorized for industrial, scientific or medical application. One or more generators with restored power of 800, 1200 or more KW are used. Likewise, several applicators 34 can be provided. The same applicator can be connected to several generators, just as several generator-applicator assemblies can be placed in parallel and side by side around the duct 31.

The power of the microwave generation unit is calculated so that it allows the desired degree of drying of the treated materials, the flow rate of the latter in the zone of the conduit 31 passing through the applicator (s) 34, determined and regulated by the speed of rotation of the screw 32, also being an essential parameter of the microwave treatment.

These various parameters obviously depend on the volume of excrement to be treated.

In the installation of FIG. 1, the desiccated materials are conveyed through the conduit 8 by the thrust exerted by the underlying materials themselves pushed by the screw 32, in the direction of the extractor 7 responsible for collecting the vapor d water generated during material processing.

Then, the desiccated materials are pushed into the tank 9 where they are bagged like dust in a vacuum cleaner bag. Thus, the desiccated materials are enclosed in a waterproof bag which is easy to handle with a view to its evacuation or a possible subsequent recovery treatment.

In the simplified embodiment of FIG. 2, the desiccated materials are stored in the reservoir 38 and recovered by means of an inspection hatch 45. In the installation of FIG. 1, the unit 5 receives only the solids from tank 3. In the figure

3 schematically shows an embodiment of such a tank.

This consists of a cylindrical enclosure 46 of vertical axis, provided in its center with an access hatch 47 allowing in particular the installation of a central cylindrical filter 48. The internal annular space of the enclosure 46 is divided into two parts by a grid 49 of tronσonic shape delimiting a lower space 50 for collecting the liquid part 51 (urine and water) droppings and a higher space

52 for collecting solid parts.

The droppings (solid / liquid mixture) are introduced into the enclosure 46 by a conduit (2 in the embodiment of FIG. 1) or by several if the same installation treats the droppings from several bowls 1 connected to the same tank 3 .

The liquid part 51 is evacuated through the conduit 23 connected to said evaporation tank 25.

The solid part 53 is directed through the conduit 4 to the processing unit (5,6). It should be noted that the inclination of the grid 49 tends to push the solid materials 53 outwards towards the orifice of the duct 4 by a wedge effect.

The evaporation tank 25, the structure and operation of which are well known, makes it possible to recover the water by condensation of the steam supplied by the pipe 28 into the condensation tank 11.

The water thus recovered is advantageously recycled to the bowl 1 for example, which makes it possible to operate the installation independently without the need to connect it to an external water supply network.

Optionally, a simple make-up water tank (not shown) can be provided in the installation.

While in the embodiment of FIG. 1, only the solid materials are sent to the conveying screw 32, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, it is the solid / liquid assembly which is admitted directly, by line 2, in the housing of screw 32.

The liquid part is evacuated by gravity at the lower end of the duct 31, via the pipe 41.

In general, the screw 32 is automatically put into service thanks to a material presence sensor disposed near the outlet of the conduit (4, Figure 1; 2, Figure 2) for introducing the materials to be treated into the housing. of screw 32, such a sensor being symbolized at 54 on Figure 2 and connected (55) to the gear motor assembly 33

(36,37) for controlling the screw. Such a sensor 54 can be placed in the tank 3 (FIG. 3) at a suitable location.

If only the solid materials are to be sent into the routing module 5, the liquid materials can be separated before introduction into the module 5 by any appropriate means, with recovery and recycling of the water or simple elimination.

It should be noted that such separation is not essential, the solid / liquid mixture can be treated without separation in unit 6, the microwave generator (s) being adjusted accordingly, the water vapors collected by the extractor 7 and additionally by the enclosure 9 being simply greater in quantity. The condensed water is either recovered and recycled, or eliminated by any appropriate means.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 1 and 2, the screw 32 is arranged vertically but it could be arranged differently and be, for example, inclined or horizontal. FIG. 4 illustrates a variant application of the method of the invention to the treatment of large quantities of excrement and very particularly of animal excrement.

FIG. 4 schematically represents a cascade treatment installation comprising a hopper 56 for receiving the materials (solids and mixed liquids) to be treated, a hopper 57 for receiving the desiccated materials after microwave treatments operated in a plurality of units in series 58a, 58b, etc. in variable number.

Each unit 58a, 58b, etc., comprises at least one horizontal conveying conduit 59 provided for example with an Archimedes screw similar to that of the device in FIG. 2, driven by a geared motor 60. Each conduit 59 connects an upstream hopper to a downstream hopper. In Figure 4 are shown, in addition to the two end hoppers 56, 57, two intermediate hoppers 61 and 62 respectively.

Each duct 59 is equipped with at least one generator-microwave appliσator 63 and at least one vapor extractor 64 surrounding the duct 59 which is, at this level, provided with perforations or the like in its wall for the extraction of vapors. The extractors 64 are connected by conduits 65 to a condensing unit (not shown) for the recovery and possible recycling of the water extracted from the treated materials.

In the diagram of FIG. 4, each unit 58a, 58b, etc ... comprises a single conduit 59, a single generator-applicator assembly 63 and a single extractor 64, but one can provide a single conduit 59 and several devices 63 and 64 side by side, or else several conduits 59 in parallel with each one or more devices 63 and one or more devices 64. The extractor device 64 can be constituted for example by a microwave application chamber of the type equipping the device 63 and whose inlet, instead of being connected to a microwave generator, would be connected to the extraction duct 65, the duct 59 being of course provided with perforations or passages in its wall at the level of this application chamber .

Each intermediate hopper 61, 62 has, in the upper part, a discharge orifice for the conduit 59 of the upstream processing unit and, in the lower part, the conveying screw of the downstream processing unit.

In addition, each intermediate hopper 61, 62 is capped with a vapor extraction manifold 66 also connected to said condensing unit.

The parameters of the processing units 58a, 58b, etσ ..., namely frequency of the microwaves, flow of materials in the conduit (s) 59, are adjusted so that the material discharged into the final hopper 57 has the degree of desired desiccation, the degrees of desiccation of the materials in the intermediate hoppers 61, 62 being intermediate between those of the respectively initial and final states of the materials treated.

Such an installation allows the treatment of large quantities of excrement, notably of animal origin.

The desiccated materials are in bulk in the hopper (s) 57 and are evacuated by any appropriate means for the purpose of elimination, reprocessing or recycling.

Furthermore, without departing from the scope of the invention, it is possible to imagine any other means than an Archimedes' screw for conveying, under the conditions of controlled flow, the materials to be treated into the microwave application space, which space can have a different geometric configuration according to the nature of the conveying means and the morphology of the material conveying conduit.

Finally, the solid / gas separation downstream of the microwave treatment can be carried out in another way than by steam extraction and condensation of water at atmospheric pressure, in the known manner, as is the case. case in the installation of figure 1.

Claims

11R EVENDICATIONS

1. Process for treating human or animal excrement by microwave, characterized in that it consists in subjecting at least the solid parts of the excrement to be treated to irradiation by microwave under controlled conditions so that at the end treatment of said parts they have reached a predetermined degree of desiccation.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the droppings to be treated, namely the solid parts alone or in admixture with the liquid parts, are forced to pass through a determined space subjected to microwave irradiation, under conditions of flow rates determined so as to obtain the desired degree of desiccation of the materials treated at the outlet of the irradiation zone.

3. Method according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the water vapor released during the microwave treatment is collected with a view to possible recycling or recovery of the water of condensation.

4. Method according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that said desiccated materials are collected and conditioned for their elimination or subsequent treatment.

5. Method according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that only the solid parts are treated in the microwave, the liquid parts being separated before the treatment and subjected to evaporation to collect the water with a view to its possible recycling or recovery.

6. Device for implementing the method according to one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that it comprises means (34,35) for generating and applying microwaves in a determined confined space, arranged on the path of movement of the materials to be treated and means (31,32) for moving said materials along said path at a controlled adjustable rate and so as to irradiate all of the materials.

7. Device according to claim 6, characterized in that said means for generating and applying microwaves consist of at least one microwave generator 12

(35) associated with at least one microwave applicator (34) surrounding a conduit (31) in which the materials to be treated circulate, said conduit being, at least at the level of said applicator, transparent with respect to microwaves.

8. Device according to claim 7, characterized in that said conduit (31), upstream of said microwave applicator (34), is provided with a conveyor screw (32) moved by suitable motor means (33; 36 , 37), the materials to be treated being conveyed into the housing (31) of the screw (32), in the upstream region thereof, by at least one pipe (2; 4).

9. Device according to one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the materials, immediately out of the irradiation space, pass through a vapor extractor (7) connected to a condensation tank (11) put to the atmosphere by a chimney (12) fitted with a filter.

10. Device according to claim 9, characterized in that at the outlet of said vapor extractor (7), the desiccated materials are collected and bagged in a closed enclosure (9) provided with an access hatch (15) and of a gas recovery pipe (16) connected to said condensation tank (11).

11. Device according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the condensation tank (11) is provided with a circuit (17 to 19) for recovering and recycling the condensation water.

12. Device according to one of claims 6 to 11, characterized in that it comprises a tank (3) of solid / liquid separation connected, on the one hand, to one or more sources (1) of manure to be treated, on the other hand, to said means (5,6; 31 to 35) for transporting and treating solids in the microwave and, finally, to a circuit for removing or treating liquids (23-25).

13. Device according to claim 12, characterized in that said tank (3) of solid / liquid separation consists of a cylindrical enclosure of vertical axis (46) provided with a central filter (48), a grid (49) separation of solids / liquids in frustoconical shape, coaxial with said enclosure (46), of at least one liquid evacuation orifice (23), disposed above said grid, of at least one orifice of evacuation (4) of solids, arranged above said grid and at least one introduction orifice (2) for the solid and liquid materials to be treated, also arranged above said grid.

14. Device according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that the liquid evacuation circuit comprises an evaporation tank (25) provided with a circuit (28) for recovering water vapor connected to said tank. condensation (11).

15. Device according to claim 6, more particularly intended for the treatment of large quantities of excrement, characterized in that it comprises a hopper (56) for introducing the materials to be treated, a hopper (57) for receiving materials desiccated, a plurality of intermediate hoppers (61,62) and a plurality of microwave processing units in series (58a, 58b), each unit comprising at least one conveying duct (59) with its conveying means (60), at least one generator-microwave applicator assembly (63) and at least one vapor extractor (64) and each intermediate hopper (61,62) being provided with a vapor collector (66).