JPH01148303A - Throttling method and apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To make it possible to easily express soluble components from seaweed, etc., by successively and separately depositing solid-liquid mixtures on a porous septum, pressing these mixtures onto a septum and expressing liquid. CONSTITUTION: The porous septum 10 of a continuous belt shape is made intermittently movable. The batches of the solid-liquid mixtures formed by subjecting plants to a heat treatment with a water-soluble alkaline medium are successively and separately deposited on the porous septum 10. The respective batches are pressed to the porous septum 10 by a piston 26, by which the liquid is expressed. The residual solids are collected into a vessel 79 by a scraper 74. Further, a spray nozzle 80 for washing and removing the residual tacky adhesive solid residues is mounted near the porous septum 10 below this scraper 74. The liquid after washing is collected into a vessel 82.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a method for squeezing soluble components from plants, particularly seaweed, and to a squeezing device particularly useful for carrying out such a method. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART Traditionally, soluble components such as carrageenan, amanita, red algae and other slimy materials have been extracted from various plants, particularly seaweed, by heating in excess aqueous alkaline solution and then filtering. Something has been proposed. These are for example U.S. Pat. No. 3,094,517, 3.1
No. 76.003, No. 3,236,833, No. 3,47
No. 6.741 and No. 3,907,770, in such processes large amounts of excess liquid are used and/or the mucilaginous components are broken down. Ultimately, the desired product is obtained only after removing a large amount of liquid from the diluted and filtered solution in a decomposed or substantially undecomposed state, ie, in a minimally decomposed state. Removal of excess liquid, such as water, significantly increases process implementation time as well as product cost. It has also been proposed to squeeze out the liquid by passing the solid-liquid mixture through a screen or porous membrane and pressurizing it, such as in a cedar press. Devices for performing throttling operation include boxes, platens, pots, and curve and cage types.
They range from simple, low-cost batch presses (type) to complex continuous screen presses, roller mills and belt presses. Continuous squeezing devices are beneficial from a labor reduction perspective, but are typically applied to solid-liquid mixtures with low internal stresses. This is because in such devices the solid-liquid mixture is squeezed out of the pressing wall or member beyond its margins rather than through the porous membrane. A solution has been proposed by incorporating auxiliary materials into the mixture, but this increases the overall cost of operation and requires the disposal of used auxiliary materials.In addition, continuous pressing, especially belt pressing, requires virtually no Batch-type squeezing equipment, using commonly known methods such as confinement squeezing, produces a squeezing product that contains sized solids and is therefore of reduced purity. can be used, but it has the disadvantage of being labor-intensive, and in addition, in practice, the use of viscous products obtained by heating plants containing soluble mucilaginous components, especially seaweeds containing carrageenan, in an aqueous alkaline solution. It is customary to dilute a liquid-solid mixture with a large amount of water before separating it into liquid and solid. This dilution allows separation of the liquid by conventional filtration or centrifugation. However, it significantly increases the amount of liquid that has to be removed to obtain a dry product. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, the liquid to solid ratio is not greater than 6:1 and the mucilage material, i.e. alginate, The concentration of carrageenan, amanita, carob gum, tragacanth gum, pectin, chocolate, etc. is greater than 2% by weight (,
It is possible to rapidly separate liquid from a liquid-solid mixture, preferably from 3% to 10% by weight. The present invention expresses liquid from liquid-solid mixtures, especially mixtures containing low concentrations of liquid, at high speeds and at low labor costs while reducing the need for adding low internal stress compaction aids to the mixture or As is well known, the average velocity of squeezing out of a liquid-solid mixture can be increased by increasing the applied pressure or decreasing the wall thickness of the liquid-solid mixture on the porous membrane. Ru. The effectiveness of increasing pressure decreases rapidly with increasing pressure. Therefore, in the present invention, there is little benefit in using throttling pressures greater than about 4.2 MPa. It depends on the material to be compressed, the nature of the cake produced and the pressure used. If the solid, including the cake, is compressible (as is the case in most cases involving throttling), the effect of increasing pressure is not linear at average throttling speeds, and increasing the pressure to infinity is not possible. Such high drawing speeds per unit area, with little benefit, can be achieved in thin-walled mixtures and are therefore in no way limiting to the use of pressures above 4.2 MPa inside the drawing chamber. Almost no profit. For example, the pressure and the actual squeezing viscosity are ioo and oo. Using a final cake wall thickness of 0.3 mm at centibore or higher and applied during the compaction period of the lambda carrageenan-supported paste, a drawing rate of 1 kg/sea per square meter of the porous membrane for clearing application ( (by processing) during the pressurization period. The duration of actual pressurization of the chamber during each cycle of operation may be less than 0.05 seconds (and need not exceed approximately 0.5 seconds; longer actual pressurization times may vary in each case). An evaluation to optimize the overall throughput rate would be necessary, but of little benefit. Finally, in one aspect, the present invention is capable of extracting at least one soluble component from a plant mass, such as seaweed, in an aqueous solution. a method of squeezing a layer of plants on a porous membrane at a pressure of at least 2 MPa against the porous membrane, the method comprising:
．． applying pressure for 0.05 seconds to 0.5 seconds to ooze the solution through the porous membrane and leaving a deposit of plant residue on the porous membrane. The thickness of the deposit is about 0.3 mm to 2 mm. Such a process does not require the addition of compaction aids or solids filters (in particular, the lambda carrageenan solution is extracted from alkali-treated seaweed in order to express a volume of solution that is at least 80% by weight of the plant mass to be treated). The present invention also includes an apparatus for expressing liquid from a mixture of solids and liquids, the apparatus comprising a porous membrane for supporting a layer of the mixture to be expressed. , a chamber having an open surface adjacent the porous membrane, means for sealing and unsealing the open surface, and sealed against the porous membrane for squeezing liquid from the mixture through the porous membrane;
means for pressing the layer of mixture against the porous membrane inside the chamber; and after squeezing out the liquid, the chamber is unsealed to remove solids formed from the layer of mixture. means for withdrawing the porous membrane from the open surface of the chamber during the period of time;
The present invention also involves squeezing the soluble components from the plant, preferably in substantially unseparated form, by heating the plant in contact with an aqueous alkaline medium to dissolve the components and form a liquid and solid mixture. The method includes the steps of: depositing successively spaced batches of the mixture on a porous membrane; compressing each batch against the porous membrane to squeeze the liquid through the porous membrane while removing residual solids from the porous membrane; and removing residual solids from each batch from the porous membrane. The porous membranes used in the present invention do not clog, i.e., become clogged with solids over long periods of use, whereas traditional heavy woven fibers of spun staple multifilaments and felts do not clog very quickly. It has a tendency to clog and requires extensive cleaning to restore its permeability, which results in lost manufacturing costs. Best results are achieved with a thin screen twilled from nylon or polyester monofilament as the porous membrane, with pores of nominal diameter from 0.6 to 6 micrometers, and a screen with a filament diameter of 20 to 50 micrometers. was obtained by using Suitable porous membranes with such characteristics are commercially available. Such porous membranes are suitable for the production of mucilaginous solutions with viscosities greater than 1000 cP, which allow solid residues to be separated from the porous membrane by simply scraping after squeezing out the liquid and requiring little cleaning to restore its permeability. Such liquids can be easily separated from solid plant residues by using such porous membranes.

[Explanation of Examples]

Referring to the drawings, the embodiment of FIG. 1 shows a porous membrane 10 in the form of a continuous belt. The porous diaphragm 10 is connected along pulleys 12, 13, 14% 15 and moved intermittently in the direction of the arrow by a belt and motor drive 16. Above the porous diaphragm 10 is a cylinder 18 with an open lower surface forming a chamber 20 with the porous diaphragm.
is installed. The cylinder 18 is supported by tie rods 22.22 fixed to a support member 24, which in turn is attached to a piston 26 which is slidably mounted on a hydraulic cylinder 28, said hydraulic cylinder 28 being 0 hydraulic fluid supported by the beam 30 by suitable means (
(not shown) to and from hydraulic cylinder 28 , which may cause piston 26 and cylinder 18 to move up and down to urge the lower margin of cylinder 18 into sealing relationship with porous diaphragm 10 . A pressurizing means for pressurizing the chamber 20 is provided inside the cylinder 18 . The pressurizing means is a drive piston 32 in the form of a flat lower surface 34 which is imperforate. Drive piston 32 is mounted within second hydraulic cylinder 38 . A second hydraulic cylinder 38 is independently supported by I-beams 40, 40 and provides means for introducing and withdrawing hydraulic fluid to actuate piston 36 and drive piston 32 to pressurize and depressurize chamber 20 (see FIG. (not shown) is provided. A permeation anvil is provided between the porous membrane 10 and the cylinder 18 and includes a plurality of spaced apart support rods 44, 44 directly below the open face of the cylinder 18. At the top of these support bars (see FIGS. 2 and 3) is a perforated metal screen 46, and above this, just below the porous membrane 10, is a fine wire mesh screen 48. The transparent anvil is rigidly supported by the construction beams 50, 50,
The I-beam 50.50 is ultimately carried by a support frame 52. A funnel-shaped structure 54 is inserted from the bottom of the transmission anvil.
droops. At a position adjacent to the cylinder 18 of the porous diaphragm 10, a batch 56 consisting of a liquid-solid mixture is sequentially deposited on the membrane surface of the porous diaphragm 10 before the porous diaphragm 10 passes below the open surface of the cylinder 18. A supply means is provided for the purpose. The feeding means includes a hopper 58, a batch measuring chamber 60 depending therefrom, a delivery nozzle 62, and a delivery piston 64-actuated by a hydraulically actuated piston and cylinder 66, all of which are connected to a support frame 68. mounted on. Hydraulic cylinder 66, like cylinders 28 and 38, is provided with a hydraulic supply system (not shown) for delivering quantities of the liquid-solid mixture from hopper 58 at batch timed intervals. Cylinders 28 and 38 and cylinder 6 for porous membrane 10
The hydraulic control system for 6 is coordinated by conventional means for operating in the desired sequence as will be described hereinafter. Below the funnel-like structure 54 is a conveyor belt 7 driven by a conventional belt-motor drive 72.
0 is attached. A scraper 74 removes a batch of solid residue 76 carried by the porous membrane 10 as it emerges from below the cylinder 18.
0 adjacent to the downwardly extending portion. Container 7
8 collects the residue. A spray nozzle 80 is also mounted below the scraper 74 and adjacent to the porous membrane 10 for cleaning sticky solid residues from the porous membrane 10. The liquid after washing is collected in container 82. In operation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a batch of liquid-solid material is deposited from measurement chamber 60 onto the surface of porous diaphragm 10, either while the porous diaphragm 10 is stationary or as it is advanced. The supply means is activated to deposit when there is. To enable advancement of the porous diaphragm 10, pistons 26 and 36, each positioned within the hydraulic chamber, are actuated together to lift the cylinder 18 from the porous diaphragm 10, which causes the chamber 20 to become unsealed. , also pulls up the piston 32, which depressurizes the chamber 20. In this way, the porous membrane 10 moves forward.
batch 5 to a position inside the lower margin of cylinder 18
6, where the porous diaphragm 10 is stopped and the lower margin of the cylinder 18 is conveyed to the batch 5 of the porous diaphragm 10.
The piston 26 is actuated to force the cylinder 18 around the porous membrane 10 and the open face of the cylinder 18 to the porous membrane 10 is sealed. The open side of the cylinder 18 to the porous diaphragm IO is supported downwardly by a permeable anvil 42 and a screen 46,48. Pressure on the portion between the lower margin of the cylinder 18 and the porous diaphragm 10 is applied to the batch 5 inside the chamber 20 to maintain the desired sealing condition.
6, preferably at least 0.6 MPa higher than that subsequently applied to the permeation anvil 42 between said lower margin and the porous diaphragm 10. Piston 36 is then actuated, which causes piston 32 to move downwardly into chamber 20.
and pressurizes the batch 56 against the porous diaphragm 10, squeezing the liquid through the porous diaphragm, which flows into the funnel-like structure 54 and from there onto the conveyor belt 7.
0 directed onto the surface. The liquid 71 is very viscous (and remains in a kneaded state near the center of the surface of the conveyor belt 70, and the liquid 71 is conveyed by the conveyor belt 70 to a station for the next process. Once completed, the piston 32 is raised, thereby depressurizing the chamber 20. The cylinder 18 is then moved to the raised position and its lower margin is released from sealing the porous diaphragm lO. 10 is advanced to the left in the figure as shown in FIG. 1, carrying the residue of batch 56 on its surface. At the same time, the next batch 56
0 into the lower margin of cylinder 18 and the cycle is repeated. Each batch of solid residue 76 reaches the scraper 74 in sequence and is scraped off the surface of the porous diaphragm 1° into the container 78, and the surface of the porous diaphragm 10 is sequentially cleaned by spraying from the nozzle 80. . As shown in the embodiment, porous membrane 10 is a continuous band and is repeatedly reused for successive batches. A second embodiment is shown in FIG. 2 and is comprised of components that generally correspond to those of the first embodiment of FIG. A second embodiment differs from the first in that the piston 32 is provided with an inlet tube or hose 84 extending longitudinally through the piston and connecting to a passageway 86 opening into the bottom surface 34 of the chamber 20. A pole check valve 88 is provided at the lower outlet of the 0 passage 86, which is different from the specific example.
allow downward flow through, but prevent flow in the opposite direction. The upper free end of the hose 84
It is coupled to a nozzle 62 of the supply means as shown in the figure. In a second embodiment, the timing of some drives is such that a new or next batch of liquid-solid mixture is applied after the cylinder 18 has been sealed against the porous diaphragm 10 and after the piston 3
2 is introduced into chamber 20 through passageway 86 before being activated to pressurize chamber 20. 3-5 illustrate alternative constructions of the lower margin of cylinder 18 and the lower margin of transmission anvil 42 and the supporting screen. In the structure of FIG. 3, the lower margin of the cylinder 18 is provided with a compressible elastomeric surface 90, and the margin of the wire mesh screen 48 is also provided with a compressible elastomeric cover 92 opposite the elastomeric surface 90.
is provided. When cylinder 18 is pressed against permeation anvil 42 , elastomeric surface 90 and elastomeric cover 92 cover the margins of cylinder 18 with porous diaphragm 10 .
An alternative construction is shown in FIG. 4, in which the inner lower margin of the cylinder 18 has an elastomeric surface 90 at position 94 to receive an elastomeric O-ring 96. A tenon is formed. The rest of the structure is the same as that shown in FIG. FIG. 5 shows yet another structure, in which cylinder 1
The outer edge 98.98 of the lower margin of 8 is rounded, the elastomeric surface 90 is omitted, and the seal is achieved by compressing the wire mesh screen 48 and elastomeric cover 92. A further alternative construction is shown in FIG. 6 in which the rubber covering at the margins of the wire mesh screen 48 is omitted and the seal is achieved by compressing an elastomeric O-ring 96 against the top surface of the porous diaphragm. achieved. By appropriate selection of the drive components, a total cycle time of more than 3 seconds less can be easily achieved, whereby in the example of a highly viscous aqueous lambda-carrageenan liquid, a rate of 1200 kg/hr per square meter of porous diaphragm is achieved. It is possible to achieve a full-time throttling rate. At 4% carrageenan liquid content, the final yield of equivalent dry lambda carrageenan is 48 kg/hr/m2 of porous membrane. In the example of lambda carrageenan liquid, the conventional equipment (
To achieve these average throughput rates in plate and frame filter presses (e.g. plate and frame filter presses), the viscosity should be approximately 5,00
In order to reduce the content of the lambda carrageenan liquid in the official material, it is necessary to dilute it with water to approximately 0.5% by weight, and a filtration surface of 200 square meters is required. Furthermore, substantial addition of cleaning aids is required to prevent filter clogging. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the configuration of the porous diaphragm and permeation anvil corresponds generally to that of FIG. 1, and the feed arrangement is as in the embodiment of FIG. 8 directly into the chamber 20. However, the piston 34 remains stationary during the period of liquid squeezing through the porous diaphragm, and the pressure necessary to squeeze the liquid through the porous diaphragm is provided by the hydraulic cylinder 66 of the supply means. As shown in Figure 7,
The piston 34 has a transmission anvil 42 attached thereto.
It is supported by a frame 110 attached to form beams 112.112. This support is provided in the form of toggle bars 122, 123, with toggle bar 122 rotatably mounted to frame 110 and toggle bar 123 rotatably secured to piston 34 via a journal bearing 124. The two toggle bars are linked together and to one end of the tie bar or control rod 126, and the control rod 1
The other end of 26 is coupled to a bell crank 128 mounted on one side of frame 110 and actuated by a reversible hydraulic piston 130. The piston 34 in this embodiment also has a flange 13.
An outwardly extending arm consisting of two is provided which overlaps the cylinder 134 and an outwardly extending flange 136 is coupled thereto. Flange 136 and outwardly extending flanges 132, 132 refer to piston 3.
4 and the cylinder 134 by bolts 138, 138, and between the flange 136 and the outwardly extending flanges 132, 132 there are pressure springs 140, 140 for biasing the flanges apart. 140
is provided. A guide bin 142.142 is secured to the transmission anvil 42, and a zero elastic 0 ring 144 is attached to the bottom of the cylinder 134 as a seal and includes a stop to limit movement of the cylinder 134 toward the transmission anvil. act. The longitudinal dimensions of the chamber 20 may be adjusted as desired by inserting or removing a shim 146 between the piston 134 and the journal bearing 124, while the lower margin of the cylinder 134 and the porous diaphragm lO Shim the sealing pressure between 148.148
can be adjusted by inserting or removing it. The device in this embodiment is therefore easily adjustable for use with a variety of liquid-solid feed materials as well as a variety of porous membranes of varying wall thickness or permeability. As in other embodiments, conventional timing means for controlling the sequence and timing of operation of the hydraulic cylinders 66 and 130 as well as the advancement of the porous diaphragm lO below the piston 34 and cylinder 134. The setting is obtained. In operation, when the desired portion of the porous diaphragm is positioned below cylinder 134, hydraulic cylinder 130 is actuated to bias tie bar 126 to the left in FIG. 7, thereby aligning toggle bars 122 and 123. and the piston 34 is moved from the retracted position to the immovably fixed position forming the upper wall of the chamber 20. Chamber 20 is fixed in size, while piston 34 is fixed in position. As the piston 34 is urged downward, the cylinder 134 also loads the pressure spring 140.140.
is pressurized by the contact of the OIJ song 4 against the guide bin 142 and urged downwardly by said pressure spring 140, 140 until it forms a seal with the porous diaphragm. Cylinder 66 is then actuated to deliver a liquid-solid feed material to chamber 20 through inlet tube 84 . The pressure is high enough for the liquid to pass through the porous diaphragm lO (while the piston 34 remains in a fixed position).
0 is maintained until a solid residue mass or cake forms inside. The time required for the formation of a solid residue mass is on the order of magnitude required when the movement of piston 34 is used to apply pressure in FIG. 1, i.e. on the order of 0.05 to 0.5 seconds. Then, the hydraulic cylinder 130 is activated and the piston 34 is raised, and after a slight delay, the cylinder 1 is activated.
34 is pulled up through loosely connecting bolts 138.138. The raising of the cylinder 134 is delayed so that the porous diaphragm 10 relative to the permeable anvil 42
This also facilitates the disengagement of the bottom of the piston 34 from the solid residue mass. The remainder of the operating cycle is identical to that of the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. Optionally, the gap between the scraper 74 and the porous diaphragm 10 (see FIG. 1) is used to recycle the solid residue mass.
It can be adjusted to remove only a portion of the volume or the least dense portion of the solid residue mass. The remaining dense portion may be removed by a second scraper (not shown) such as in FIG. The porous diaphragm 10 may be supplemented, if desired, by a filter or an auxiliary sheet member, such as a cloth, placed over the porous diaphragm. The auxiliary sheet member can be discarded if desired. In fact, the entire porous diaphragm can be discarded if cost permits. Although the invention has been described with reference to specific examples, it will be understood that many modifications may be made thereto.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view of a specific example of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the device of the present invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a seal of the chamber of the first embodiment with a portion cut away. FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a seal of the chamber of the second embodiment with a portion cut away. FIG. 5 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a seal of the chamber of the third embodiment, with a portion cut away. FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing still another shape of the seal used in the present invention. FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view showing a third specific example of the present invention, and is a partially enlarged sectional view of FIG. 1 viewed from the orthogonal direction. The names of the main parts in the figure are as follows. 10: Porous diaphragm 20: Chamber 18 Niji cylinder 24: Support member 22: Tie rod 28: Hydraulic cylinder 30: I-beam 32: Drive piston 38: Second hydraulic cylinder 42: Permeable anvil 46: Perforated metal screen 48 : Fine wire mesh screen 52 : Support frame 54 : Funnel structure 56 : Batch 62 : Delivery nozzle 76 : Solid residue

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method for squeezing out soluble components from plants, comprising:
heating the plant in contact with an aqueous alkaline medium to dissolve the soluble components of the plant to form a liquid and solid mixture; and sequentially spacing batches of the mixture onto a porous membrane. pressing each batch against the porous membrane and squeezing the liquid through the porous membrane while retaining the solid residue on the porous membrane; removing solid residues from the porous membrane. 2. intermittently advancing a porous membrane through a squeezing station, pressing each batch against the porous membrane to squeeze the liquid through the porous membrane while removing the solid residue from the porous membrane; Claim 1: The step of retaining on the membrane is carried out at said squeezing station, and the step of removing solid residues of each batch from said porous membrane is carried out after leaving said squeezing station. A method for extracting soluble components from the listed plants. 3. The step of depositing batches of the mixture on the porous membrane at successive intervals is carried out before the porous membrane is advanced to the squeezing station. A method for squeezing out. 4. Depositing batches of the mixture onto the porous membrane at successive intervals is carried out at a squeezing station, and removing solid residues of each batch from the porous membrane is carried out at a squeezing station. A method for squeezing out soluble components from a plant according to claim 2, which is carried out after leaving the station. 5. The method for squeezing out soluble components from a plant according to claim 1, wherein the plant is a seaweed containing carrageenan, and the squeezed liquid contains at least 3% by weight of carrageenan. 6. The method for squeezing soluble components from a plant according to claim 2, wherein the plant is a seaweed containing carrageenan, and the squeezed liquid contains at least 3% by weight of carrageenan. 7. A method for squeezing soluble components from a plant according to claim 3, wherein the plant is a seaweed containing carrageenan, and the squeezed liquid contains at least 3% by weight of carrageenan. 8. The method for squeezing soluble components from a plant according to claim 4, wherein the plant is a seaweed containing carrageenan, and the squeezed liquid contains at least 3% by weight of carrageenan. 9. Pressing each batch onto the porous membrane and squeezing the liquid through the porous membrane while retaining the solid residue on the porous membrane. A method for squeezing out soluble components from plants according to claim 1, wherein the applied pressure is not maintained for more than 0.2 seconds. 10. A method for squeezing out at least one soluble component from a plant mass contained in an aqueous solution, the layer comprising the plant being placed on a porous membrane at a concentration of about 0.05 to 0. . oozing the aqueous solution through the porous membrane by pressing at a pressure of at least 2 MPa for 5 seconds;
and depositing plant residue on the porous membrane. 11. An apparatus for squeezing liquid from a mixture of liquid and solid, comprising a porous membrane for supporting a layer of the mixture for squeezing, and an open surface for the porous membrane. a chamber; sealing and unsealing means for sealing and unsealing the open surface to the porous membrane; pressing means for pressing the mixture against a porous membrane; and pulling the porous membrane from the open side of the chamber while the chamber is unsealed;
a solid residue removal means for removing solid residues of the mixture from the chamber after squeezing out the liquid. 12. The porous membrane is in the form of a strip extending beyond the open side of the chamber, and a permeable anvil is provided on the opposite side of the porous membrane from the chamber and facing the open side, so that the chamber is unsealed. porous membrane advancing means for advancing the porous membrane across the open surface while the porous membrane is being squeezed out of the liquid and solid mixture according to claim 11. equipment for 13. The sealing and unsealing means includes clamping means for moving the chamber and the permeable anvil toward and away from each other and for clamping the porous membrane between the permeable anvil and the margin of the open surface of the chamber. Apparatus for expressing liquid from a mixture of liquid and solid according to claim 12. 14. The pressing means comprises a piston fitted in a sealed manner inside the chamber, and moves the piston toward or away from the porous membrane to press the mixture against the porous membrane; A device for squeezing liquid from a liquid and solid mixture as claimed in claim 11 or 12 or 13, further comprising piston moving means for releasing the same. 15. Claim 11, wherein the pressing means comprises an introduction means for introducing a mixture of liquid and solid into the chamber under hydraulic pressure while maintaining the dimensions and shape of the chamber. Alternatively, an apparatus for squeezing a liquid from a mixture of liquid and solid according to item 12 or 13. 16. Apparatus for expressing liquid from a liquid and solid mixture as claimed in claim 15, comprising means for adjusting the size and shape of the chamber. 17. Pressing means for pressing the mixture against the porous membrane inside the chamber while keeping the dimensions and shape of the chamber intact while being sealed from the liquid squeezed out of the mixture through the porous membrane; Introducing means are provided for introducing a mixture of liquid and solid under hydraulic pressure into said chamber, said chamber having a piston fitted therein in a sealed manner, and said piston being inserted into said chamber. means for moving toward and away from the permeable anvil independently of the rest of the structure, whereby the porous membrane is moved during the period of movement of the piston away from the permeable anvil; 14. Apparatus for expressing liquid from a liquid and solid mixture as claimed in claim 13, wherein the apparatus is sealed to said chamber in at least a portion thereof. 18. Depositing means for depositing a mixture of a liquid and a solid on a porous membrane outside the chamber, the porous membrane sealing the interior of the chamber during the movement thereof; 13. Apparatus for expressing liquid from a liquid and solid mixture according to claim 12, adapted to be conveyed to a location where it is to be expressed. 19. Patent comprising deposition means for depositing a mixture of liquid and solid on a porous membrane outside the chamber while the open face of the chamber is sealed to the porous membrane. Apparatus for expressing liquid from a mixture of liquid and solid according to claim 12. 20. The liquid of claim 18, wherein the deposition means sequentially deposits individual batches of a mixture of liquid and solid, the individual batches of said mixture being sized to fit within the margins of the open face of said chamber. and devices for expressing liquids from solid mixtures. 21. The pressing means includes a piston fitted in the chamber in a sealed manner, and the piston is moved toward and away from the porous membrane to press and release the mixture onto the porous membrane. and means for introducing a deposit of the mixture via the piston while the open face of the chamber is sealed to the porous membrane and before the chamber is pressurized. Apparatus for squeezing liquid from a mixture of liquid and solid as claimed in claim 11 or 12 or 13, comprising the means of: 22. Apparatus for squeezing liquid from a facepiece and a mixture of liquids, comprising an open-ended cylinder having a piston slidable therein for movement toward and away from the open end. an open end cylinder mounted on the underside of the open end and transversely beyond the open end cylinder for intermittent sliding movement transversely across the open end; an extending porous membrane; a permeable anvil mounted below the porous membrane and opposite the open end of the open-ended cylinder; a deposition means for depositing within a margin of an open-ended cylinder; and moving said open-ended cylinder and said permeable anvil towards each other to deposit said open-ended margin within said porous membrane deposit. reciprocal displacement means for sealing against the surroundings; and advancing the piston to force the batch of mixture against the porous membrane, leaving residues of the mixture on the porous membrane. piston advancement means for squeezing liquid through said porous membrane and permeable anvil while causing the open end of said open end cylinder to be pulled up and/or to pull said open end cylinder and permeable anvil apart from each other; an unsealing means for unsealing the mixture, and a porous membrane carrying a residue of the mixture being advanced in a direction transverse to the open end of the open-end cylinder in an unsealed state, to remove the residue from the open-end cylinder. porous membrane advancement means for removing from the end and simultaneously positioning a new portion of the porous membrane below the open end;
device for expressing liquids from mixtures of solids and liquids containing 23. The depositing means comprises means for depositing the next batch of the mixture on the outside of said open-ended cylinder of the porous membrane, the next batch being deposited while the residues of the previous batch are being removed. Claim 22, further comprising cooperating means for cooperating said depositing means, unsealing means, and porous membrane advancing means to move said porous membrane into a margin of said open-ended cylinder. Apparatus for expressing liquid from a mixture of solids and liquids as described. 24. Deposition means for depositing the next batch of mixture through the piston while the piston, sealingly fitted within the chamber, is spaced from the porous membrane and the open-ended cylinder is sealed; It is equipped with
Apparatus for expressing liquid from a mixture of solid and liquid according to claim 22. 25. For squeezing liquid from a mixture of solid and liquid according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the porous membrane comprises twill monofilament fibers with a nominal pore size of 0.6 to 6 micrometers. equipment.