Removal of HAB-produced toxins from bodies of water

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9714177-B2
Application number	US-201414524098-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 27, 2014
Priority date	Sep 3, 2014
Publication date	Jul 25, 2017
Grant date	Jul 25, 2017

Abstract

One or more brevetoxins or other toxins produced by red tides or other harmful algal blooms (HABs) are removed from a body of water by contacting an aqueous phase containing water, algae and one or more HAB-produced toxins with an organic phase, extracting the one or more toxins into the organic phase, and separating the organic phase enriched in the one or more toxins from the aqueous phase depleted in the one or more toxins. In some embodiments, the organic phase is comprised of vegetable oil, mineral oil, or other suitable oil. In some embodiments, an annular centrifugal contactor is used to accomplish the contacting, extracting, and separating. In some embodiments, the toxin-depleted aqueous phase is pumped back into the source of the aqueous phase, and the toxin-enriched organic phase is recirculated until a predetermined threshold concentration of the one or more toxins is met.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a liquid-liquid extraction system configured to remove one or more toxins produced by a harmful algal bloom (HAB) from a body of water, the liquid-liquid extraction system comprising an annular centrifugal contactor, the annular centrifugal contactor comprising:
a heavier phase inlet port configured to receive an aqueous phase comprising water, algae, and one or more HAB-produced toxins;
a lighter phase inlet port configured to receive an organic phase;
an annular mixing zone configured to contact the aqueous phase and the organic phase;
a hollow rotor configured to extract the one or more HAB-produced toxins into the organic phase and to separate the organic phase enriched in the one or more HAB-produced toxins from the aqueous phase depleted in the one or more HAB-produced toxins;
an electric motor configured to rotate the hollow rotor;
a lighter phase outlet port configured to output the organic phase enriched in the one or more HAB-produced toxins; and
a heavier phase outlet port configured to output the aqueous phase depleted in the one or more HAB-produced toxins;

a working tank having an inlet port and an outlet port and configured to contain a second organic phase, wherein the inlet port of the working tank is coupled to the lighter phase outlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor through one or more flow control components, and wherein the outlet port of the working tank is coupled to the lighter phase inlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor through one or more flow control components;
a waste tank coupled to the working tank through one or more flow control components;
a sensor configured to measure the concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins;
a supply tank coupled to the working tank through one or more flow control components and configured to contain a third organic phase;
a memory; and
at least one processor coupled to the memory, and programmed to:
activate the liquid-liquid extraction system by activating the electric motor;
flow the organic phase enriched in the one or more HAB-produced toxins from the lighter phase outlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor, through the inlet port of the working tank, and into the working tank containing the second organic phase to produce a diluted organic phase by controlling the one or more flow control components installed between the lighter phase outlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor and the inlet port of the working tank;
recirculate the diluted organic phase as the organic phase from the outlet port of the working tank, through the lighter phase inlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor, and into the annular mixing zone of the annular centrifugal contactor by controlling the one or more flow control components installed between the outlet port of the working tank and the lighter phase inlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor;
measure a concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase by causing the sensor to measure the concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase;
determine whether the concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase exceeds a predetermined threshold by comparing the measured concentration and the predetermined threshold;
remove the diluted organic phase from the working tank in response to determining that the concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase exceed the predetermined threshold by flowing the diluted organic phase from the working tank to the waste tank by controlling the one or more flow control components installed between the working tank and the waist tank;
replace the diluted organic phase removed from the working tank with the third organic phase by flowing the third organic phase from the supply tank into the working tank by controlling the one or more flow control components installed between the supply tank and the working tank.

2. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the heavier phase inlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor is configured to receive the aqueous phase from an upper portion of a water column containing Karenia brevis , wherein the one or more HAB-produced toxins comprises one or more brevetoxins, and wherein the processor is further programmed to flow the aqueous phase depleted in the one or more brevetoxins back into the water column containing Karenia brevis by controlling a pump configured to pump the brevetoxin-depleted water out of the heavier phase outlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor.

3. A computer program product comprising:
a plurality of executable instructions provided on non-transitory computer readable media, wherein the executable instructions, when executed by at least one processor in a digital computing device, cause the digital computing device to:
activate a liquid-liquid extraction system for removing one or more toxins produced by a harmful algal bloom (HAB) from a body of water, the liquid-liquid extraction system comprising:
a source of an aqueous phase comprising water, algae, and one or more HAB-produced toxins;
an annular centrifugal contactor in which the aqueous phase is contacted with an organic phase to extract the one or more HAB-produced toxins into the organic phase and to separate the organic phase enriched in the one or more HAB-produced toxins from the aqueous phase depleted in the one or more HAB-produced toxins;

flow the organic phase enriched in the one or more HAB-produced toxins into a working tank containing a second organic phase to produce a diluted organic phase;
recirculate the diluted organic phase as the organic phase;
measure a concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase;
determine whether the concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase exceeds a predetermined threshold;
remove the diluted organic phase from the working tank in response to determining that the concentration of the one or more HAB-produced toxins in the diluted organic phase exceed the predetermined threshold by flowing the diluted organic phase from the working tank to a waste tank;
replace the diluted organic phase removed from the working tank with a third organic phase by flowing the third organic phase from a supply tank into the working tank.

4. The computer program product as recited in claim 3 , wherein the source of the aqueous phase comprising water, algae, and one or more HAB-produced toxins comprises an upper portion of a water column containing Karenia brevis , wherein the one or more HAB-produced toxins comprises one or more brevetoxins, and wherein the executable instructions further cause the digital computing device to flow the aqueous phase depleted in the one or more brevetoxins back into the water column containing Karenia brevis.

5. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the one or more flow control components include one or more pumps and/or one or more valves.

6. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , further comprising a pre-mix vessel inline before the lighter phase inlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor and configured to receive both the aqueous phase and the organic phase and to output a mixed phase to the lighter phase inlet port of the annular centrifugal contactor.

7. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the organic phase comprises an oil selected from a group consisting of vegetable oils, mineral oils, and combinations thereof.

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Hebig Travis R
• Kuczynski Joseph
• Nickel Steven R

Classifications

• B01D11/0292

  Treatment of the solvent · CPC title

• C02F2103/007

  Contaminated open waterways, rivers, lakes or ponds · CPC title

• B01D11/0288

  Applications, solvents · CPC title

• B01D17/0217

  by centrifugal force · CPC title

• B01D11/0492

  Applications, solvents used · CPC title