The primary object of the invention is to provide for the efficient saturation of large volumes of water drawn from lagoons, ponds, or the like, with atmospheric oxygen and return thereof to the body from which the affluent is drawn. The invention further provides for the use of an intake location from which affluent is drawn and a discharge location at which effluent is returned, which locations may be remote from each other and may use multiple locations depending upon the bottom topography of the specific body to the aerated. The invention further provides for the portability of the device and the system used and, therefore, use of these at multiple locations over a relatively short period of time, particularly during the season when lagoons and ponds are ice covered, at which time aeration becomes critical.
The prior art incorporates both elaborate water treatment systems and simple, but relatively ineffective, baffle systems for increasing the surface area of a flow of affluent with the atmosphere.
In the field of waste water treatment, affluent is frequently treated through the mere placement thereof in shallow lagoons of relatively large surface area. The primary purpose of this is to permit the settling of relatively more dense organic matter, and to permit the growth of microorganisms to break down organic matter, which then settles as sludge, to be removed upon draining of the lagoons. Secondary treatment of waste water is commonly accomplished through the spraying of the primarily treated liquid affluent over beds of gravel, which gravel provides a further habitata for the affixation of additional microorganism on the surface thereof, which microorgansims further breakdown organic matter in the affluent, thereby yielding a relatively organism and nutrient free effluent.
In both the primary and secondary treatment methods, the exposure of the affluent to atmospheric oxygen is incidental to the purpose of permitting relatively broad exposure of the affluent to the appropriate microorganism cultures for treatment. Indeed, anaerobic bacteria in waste water treatment is an important component and evolves in a non-aerated affluent.
Apparatus designed for the purpose of aeration is known in the prior art, but is generally both fixedly mounted and requires relatively large complex machinery. Said aeration devices commonly provide extremely large percentages of dissolved atmospheric oxygen per unit of affluent, but are hampered in their effectiveness by the relatively small flow of the liquid when compared with the total size of the installation. This disadvantage is common in all of the spraying or agitation type devices, such as that revealed by Jalma, U.S. Pat. No. 2,756,976, or Porter, U.S. Pat. No. 3,112,261.
Baffles have been used for the purpose of both enhancing the evaporation of flowing water for humidifier purposes, and in lagoon aeration contexts, such as disclosed by Johnson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,493,216. Prior art usage of baffles has been specifically designed to deal with the use thereof to direct the flow of affluent through a maze-like course, thereby resulting in increased contact of the surface of the affluent with the atmosphere. However, while these devices provide the advantage of relatively larger flow for a given size of installation, they have the disadvantage of having a relatively small resultant percentage of dissolved oxygen per unit of effluent.
In addition to the performance disadvantages of prior art devices, said devices are almost wholly ineffective in combatting the problem of winter kill in natural areas with numberous small lakes, lagoons, or ponds. This application requires that the advantage of portability and consequent rapid deployment, the ability to perform with relatively small intake and outlet holes in ice coverings, and high flow rate in combination with high saturation rate.