A system for distributed utilities including electrical power and water. A generation device is provided for converting an available resource to a desired utility; the resource may be water, in which case the generator is a purifier for purifying untreated water, or, alternatively, the generator may convert a fuel to electrical power. In either case, an input sensor is provided for measuring input to the generation device, while an output sensor is provided for measuring consumption of output from the generation device. The monitoring system has a controller for concatenating measured input and consumption of output on the basis of the input and output sensors. Measured parameters are telemetered to a remote site where utility generation and use are monitored and may also be controlled. At least a portion of the electrical power capacity of the electric generation unit may power a water purification unit such as a vapor compression distillation unit, and heat output of the electric generation unit may supply heat to the water purification unit.

A device for pumping and treating gases is disclosed. The device features a stator having a plurality of pumping stages connected in series one after another between a suction side and a delivery side by the inter-stage ducts. The device also includes an inner tube and a blind outer tube, the tubes inserted one inside the other and made of ceramic material, the inner tube connected to the delivery side of the rotor housing of a pumping stage and the outer tube connected to the stator and communicating with at least one inter-stage duct formed in the stator, the tubes defining a path for the pumped gases. The device also includes a plasma source located outside the stator to generate a plasma in the path of the pumped gases.

A rotating liquid ring rotating casing gas turbine (10) has at least one liquid ring rotating casing (13) having an eccentrically mounted impeller (11) adapted to rotate within a surrounding liquid ring (14) so as to form chambers (15) of successively increasing volume between adjacent vanes of the impeller. A working fluid formed by high pressure gas is injected into the impeller where the chambers are narrow via a fluid inlet (19) within a static axial bore (23) of the impeller so as to rotate the impeller and in so doing the gas expands isentropically. A fluid outlet (20) within the static axial bore of the impeller and fluidly separated from the fluid inlet allows the working fluid to escape at low pressure and low temperature.

A liquid-ring, rotating-casing compressor comprises a shaft carrying an impeller having a core and a plurality of radially extending vanes rotatably coupled to the shaft for rotation around a first axis, and a tubular casing mounted for rotation relative to the impeller around a second axis that is parallel to and offset from the first axis. The casing and impeller define a compression zone wherein edges of the vanes rotate in increasing proximity to an inner surface of the casing and an expansion zone wherein edges of the vanes rotate in increasing spaced-apart relationship along an inner surface of the casing. An inlet port communicates with the expansion zone, an outlet port communicates with the compression zone, and a drive imparts rotating motion to the casing. The eccentricity ecr of the casing relative to the impeller is between about (1c)/4 and (1c)/9, preferably less than half (1c)/3.

A method and at least two devices demonstrate improvements to energy extraction from a compressible working fluid in a liquid ring heat engine, which has a rotor mounted in a case. A space in the case is occupied by a liquid that establishes a liquid ring piston for the rotor. The rotor defines at least a first and a second operating zone. In the first zone, the working fluid is expanded against the liquid and, in the second zone, the working fluid is re-compressed. Between the two zones, the working fluid is cooled. In one device, the cooling step occurs on the rotor in a third zone. In another device, the cooling occurs outside of the case.

A modular liquid ring pump has a liquid ring overload protection system including a passage from a working chamber directly to the pump discharge passage and a mechanical relief valve configured to release liquid from the working chamber during compressor overload. The liquid ring pump, when configured to have two stages, has an inter-stage by-pass system that includes an opening in an inter-stage passage and a pressure sensitive mechanical valve that allows the discharge of a first stage compressor to flow directly to the pump discharge at start up or during low pressure operation. The liquid ring pump's modular construction may be easily configured from a single stage pump to a two-stage pump and vice versa by using the same bearings, head, and drive system and only changing the body, cone, and rotor.

A system comprising: a liquid ring pump; a separator coupled to an exhaust outlet of the liquid ring pump; a valve module, the valve module being coupled to the separator via a first drainage line and coupled to the liquid ring pump via a second drainage line, the valve module comprising a first valve arranged along the first drainage line and a second valve arranged along the second drainage line; and a controller configured to control the valves.

An air compressor includes a compressor body; a rotator located inside the compressor body and configured to define an exhaust compartment and an intake compartment; a plurality of exhaust openings and a plurality of intake openings formed on the compressor body; wherein the rotator is rotated within the compressor body to operate exhaust and intake cycles.

The invention relates to a two-stage pump for pumping at least one medium, wherein the pump has a liquid ring stage (1), a side channel stage (2), and two medium accesses (3), wherein the liquid ring stage (1) has a medium chamber (12) and two medium openings (13, 14), wherein the two medium openings (13, 14) of the liquid ring stage (1) open onto the medium chamber (12) of the liquid ring stage (1), wherein the side channel stage (2) has a medium chamber (22) and two medium openings (23, 24), wherein the two medium openings (23, 24) of the side channel stage (2) open onto the medium chamber (22) of the side channel stage (2), and wherein one medium opening (23) of the two medium openings (23, 24) of the side channel stage (2) and one medium opening (13) of the two medium openings (13, 14) of the liquid ring stage (1) merge to form a common overflow opening (4).

The invention relates to a two-stage pump for pumping at least one medium, wherein the pump has a liquid ring stage (1), a side channel stage (2), and two medium accesses (3), wherein the liquid ring stage (1) has a medium chamber (12) and two medium openings (13, 14), wherein the two medium openings (13, 14) of the liquid ring stage (1) open onto the medium chamber (12) of the liquid ring stage (1), wherein the side channel stage (2) has a medium chamber (22) and two medium openings (23, 24), wherein the two medium openings (23, 24) of the side channel stage (2) open onto the medium chamber (22) of the side channel stage (2), and wherein one medium opening (23) of the two medium openings (23, 24) of the side channel stage (2) and one medium opening (13) of the two medium openings (13, 14) of the liquid ring stage (1) merge to form a common overflow opening (4).