Barrel Heaters

With a suitable choice of heater, this ought to work. Another possibility might be to freeze the tote, pour off the oil, and wipe off the ice block with sorbent material.

Hope they have a large freezer.

I would suggest that you invest in a simple multi-chamber oil and fat separator, like is used for floor drains in kitchens. The water would "settle" in the first LARGE chamber, allowing the oil and grease to float to the top. The second chamber is a "back-up" for the first (the water flows slowly from each chamber to the next below a barrier wall) and the third chamber is "clean" water that can be sent down the sanitary system. You just have to skim or pump out the oil from the first two chambers on a regular basis.

Since these have been around for a long time, you should have no problem finding one to match (with some reasonable reserve) you discharge rates.

I know what your talking about. (grease traps) are plumbed into 3 compartment sinks in commercial kitchens. I've installed several and serviced many including my own. Problem here is, If it's plumbed into a sanitary line (normal usage) there are no safe guards preventing the unwanted disposal of hazardous waste. If used isolated it still will not separate any dissolved oils.

At best it would serve as a means of separating the bulk of the oil/water mix that has separated over time. this is just as easily accomplished with a simple pump.

Let the water/oil mix settle and separate on its own and drop a small submersible pump in the tank to remove the water beneath the oil. Further removal of dissolved or suspended oil will still need to be separated.

There are many oil absorbent pads out there which are not water absorbent. float one of these on your contaminated water. This will help but it will not get it to the point where you can dump it down the drain. which means your still paying some one to get rid of it. as well as the contaminated oil.

The cheapest solution is not to mix them and clean the water to the point where your local municipality says its safe. This way anyone who burns or recycles wast oil will at least remove it for nothing or possibly pay you for it. Beats paying for hazmat handling/disposal for someone to do the same thing.

Have you guys ever cleaned out a grease trap. Disgusting job.

Another option, based on the relatively small volume of waste water (100 Gallons / week= 0.01 GPM or about 5 pounds per hour), would be to capture the waste in a drum with an agitator mixer and use a high pressure pump (maybe a gear pump) to feed the waste water through an atomizing nozzle into your boiler's combustion chamber near the burner discharge.

Obviously, you need to interlock the spray pump with the burner operation, using a 15-second delay relay to let the flame fully develop before beginning the spray injection and stopping the spray immediately with a signal to shut off the burner (whatever minor residual release would be evaporated due to the high internal temperature of the combustion chamber immediately after burner shut-down.

The atomized water/oil mix would burn off the oil and the water would be turned into superheated steam, adding to the heat exchange of the boiler and recovering virtually all of the energy required to vaporize it. The high temperature flame would remediate any pollutants in the waste and, additionally, the presence of the water vaporizing would also likely help lower the NOx releases of the boiler.

This solution would eliminate the cost of disposal, slightly reduce the cost of fuel for the boiler due to the burning oil, and avoid any issues of unintended contaminant releases to the sanitary system or any other receptor.

The cost of installing the injection system should be less than $1,000 (likely a lot less) that can be offset by the other previously mentioned economic values of eliminated dump fees and reduced fuel costs.

I do not have enough information on that topic to be of much use I know that burning the oil is beneficial providing Toomany has an oil burning boiler. I do not know exactly how the water will interact. I would suspect that it would pirate heat from the flame making it less efficient.

The boiler does not have to be oil-fired. Any significant flame will be fine to ignite the entrained, misted oil.

The use of ultrasonic mixers with water injection of "normal" oil burners has been in place for some time, so there will be no issue with the minor amount of water present. Yes- the vaporization of the water will SLIGHTLY cool the flame but the added volume of the superheated steam to the exhaust will more than make up for it by enhancing the performance of the total heat transfer (along with the increased exhaust volume that increases turbulence and improves heat transfer). Plus- as noted earlier- a cooler flame (even by just a few degrees) will reduce the formation of NOx.

Interesting I'm figuring that the added heat transfer would be due to the higher density of the steam and for this reason it can deposit its energy more efficiently than the heated exhaust gases. I was not aware of the benefit to the emissions.

I am curious about how this effects the longevity of the vessel in question. Assuming a standard plate tube configuration. How Will the tube joints hold up? welded V.S. rolled. etc...Are there any issues with condensation for those who do not run their boilers constantly?

Obviously I've strayed off topic here but I couldn't help but ask.

Back to the subject at hand. IF Toomany has a boiler with as you stated a significant flame then I can no doubt see a cost effective solution but no matter what they still have the issue of the solids from the floor scrubber to deal with. Obviously these will not pass through the burner nozzle as is and it is doubtful that ultrasonics will break them up substantial enough to do so.

Naturally strainers and filters would play a role here but my question is how can further negation of the costs of the disposal of these solids and potential sludge occur? Would heat once again play a role here and are there potential added benefits? If so can they be identified, at what cost? etc..

Hi Many,

First, separate water from oil and dispose oil only.

Second, the oil could be used in some ways? Think about.

Third, calculate costs for everything. Sometimes, costs verification tells you that the process isn't economic at all or good.

How you separate water from oil or vice versa? On a heating plate let evaporate water. I dried pigment and extender blends to dispose or reuse powders with 1 m2 heating plate with 10 cm high sides (all stainless steel). Check the cost of heating to disposal costs.

In your condition, you have to do by yourself. We don't know about your oil, other ingredients and the rest. You have everything, so, get it done, Gil.