A method of recovering solids from water-based effluent. A first step involves evaporating wastewater effluent containing a liquid contaminant, such as ammonium to recover a concentrated solution and a water effluent stream. Where the water effluent stream includes solids, further step can be taken to dry the wastewater effluent further to recover solids, such as by using a thin plate evaporator and a heat exchanger disk evaporator.

The present disclosure is drawn to evaporation panel assemblies, systems, and methods. For example, a modular evaporation panel system can include a plurality of evaporation panels with individual evaporation panels including evaporation shelves that are laterally elongated, vertically stacked, and spaced apart; vertical support columns positioned along the evaporation shelves to vertically support and separate the evaporation shelves; female-receiving openings defined by multiple evaporation shelves and multiple support columns; and male connectors positioned at lateral ends of the evaporation panels. The male connectors can be releasably receivable by the female-receiving openings of an adjacent evaporation panel, thereby providing modular assembly and disassembly of multiple evaporation panels relative to one another.

A thermal distillation apparatus including evaporation surfaces that are wetted with a solution, and from which at least some of the volatile solvent contained in the solution evaporates, condensers having an external surface in close proximity to, but not touching, a corresponding one of the one or more evaporation surfaces, and on which vapors of the solvent condense, releasing thermal energy that heats a flow of the solution moving upward within the condensers, spacers that prevent contact between the evaporating surfaces and the condensers, wherein spaces between the evaporating surfaces and the condensers are filled with a gaseous mixture composed of solvent vapor and one or more non-condensable gases, and except for diffusion of the solvent vapor relative to the non-condensable gases, the gaseous mixture is stationary.

A printed circuit-type heat exchanger includes a vaporizer having a structure in which one or more A-channel plates and one or more B-channel plates are sequentially stacked, to vaporize a fluid A with heat exchange through the A-fluid channels. A gas-liquid separator separates the fluid A into a vaporized gas and a non-vaporized liquid and includes a gas outlet for the vaporized gas and a liquid outlet for non-vaporized liquid. A super heater, having the same structure as the vaporizer, super heats the vaporized gas with heat exchange through the A-fluid channels and discharges the superheated gas through a gas outlet communicating with the outside. A first intermediate plate is disposed between the vaporizer and the gas-liquid separator to separate the vaporizer from the gas-liquid separator, and a second intermediate plate is disposed between the gas-liquid separator and the super heater to separate the super heater from the gas-liquid separator.

The current disclosure provides a method to improve the performance of evaporators and condensers by maintaining the vapor velocities on the heat exchange surfaces within a desired range. This is accomplished by providing a constant or tapered narrow gap for vapor flow in the heat exchangers. The shear induced by the vapor over the heat exchanger improves the evaporator performance by disturbing the liquid film flowing over the heat transfer surface. In the condenser, the vapor shear helps to remove the condensate in the form of film and droplets, and also removes the non-condensable gases from the heat transfer surfaces as the vapor condenses out and increases the concentration of the non-condensable gases over the heat transfer surfaces. Parameters identified include minimum gap and the taper angle between the cover plate and heat transfer surface.

The present disclosure is drawn to systems and methods of treating or utilizing water, including water for cooling applications, using evaporation panels, evaporation panel systems, and evaporation panel assemblies. For example, the system can include an evaporation panel fluidly coupable to a body of water. The system can also include a fluid directing assembly to recirculate water from the body of water to an upper portion of the evaporation panel, wherein as water cascades down the evaporation panel and evaporates, evaporative cooling occurs. The system can further include a fan directed at the evaporation panel to push airflow through a plurality of open spaces of the evaporation panel, thereby generating humidified cooled airflow therefrom.

A membrane evaporative condenser (MEC) includes a repeating sequence of channels for evaporation and/or condensation are arranged, each sequence of channels includes a condensation channel for condensation of a vapor to a liquid, an evaporation channel, and zero to one hundred evaporation-condensation channels. The condensation channel has walls of a non-permeable material which exterior to the condensation channel share the wall with a liquid evaporative medium (LEM) conduit that contains a LEM. The LEM conduit includes a moisture transfer membrane (MTM), where the LEM can evaporate into an evaporation channel or an evaporation-condensation channel that can amplify the effect of the heat transfer for additional mass transfer.

The method, process and apparatus for very low temperature evaporation system novelty of the invention lies in the concept of method, process and apparatus for evaporation and concentration at very low temperature ranges from 5° C. to 80° C. to recover water vapour from liquids or solutions or industrial effluents or spentwash or industrial wastewater or juices or syrups or slurry or sludge or brine or sewer or wastewater or any other evaporative liquid materials in single or multiple effect heat exchanger arranged in horizontal or vertical manner with mechanical vapour compression system under vacuum. This very low temperature evaporation system operates at lowest temperature for maximum clean water recovery from liquids or solutions or industrial effluents or industrial wastewater. The apparatus for low temperature evaporation system eliminates or reduces the utilization of heat generation and rejection units along with other benefits like reduces water extraction from earth and energy losses.

A process of and apparatus for dehydrating an alcohol/water mixture may include pressurizing the mixture to at least 40 psig, heating the pressurized mixture to a temperature of at least 170° F., passing the heated and pressurized mixture through at least one Zeolite separator to produce separate streams of water and pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol, and using the pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol to at least in part heat pressurized mixture and to cool the pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol. At least some implementations may include cooling the pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol to a temperature below its boiling point at atmospheric pressure. At least some implementations may include applying a vacuum to the water stream side of the Zeolite separator. At least some implementations may include cooling the stream of water to a temperature of less than about 200° F.

A process of and apparatus for dehydrating an alcohol/water mixture may include pressurizing the mixture to at least 40 psig, heating the pressurized mixture to a temperature of at least 170° F., passing the heated and pressurized mixture through at least one Zeolite separator to produce separate streams of water and pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol, and using the pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol to at least in part heat pressurized mixture and to cool the pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol. At least some implementations may include cooling the pressurized and heated dehydrated alcohol to a temperature below its boiling point at atmospheric pressure. At least some implementations may include applying a vacuum to the water stream side of the Zeolite separator. At least some implementations may include cooling the stream of water to a temperature of less than about 200° F.