Team:SHSBNU China/Hardware
Hardware
Our hardware introduction video
We made a model to show how our system can be applied to industrial production. Check the video below to see how it works.
Initially, we created a square container for all the waste water treatment steps (including Ag+ absorption, washing off, and recovery), but this design compromised the efficiency of Ag+ recovery and increased the difficulty of post-processing steps. Thus, we decided to separate the treatment steps into four different containers..
Figure 1. The first version of our hardware, modeled in Blender software.
The improvement of our hardware includes acrylic sheets, 3D printing, and LEGO building blocks.
Figure 2. The script of our improved hardware
The new hardware contains a treatment tank, a drainage tank, a stripping tank (to heat aptamer to 55℃, releasing Ag+ ions, “recharge” the adsorption module), and a recovery tank to precipitate and recycling Ag metal. We used a laser cutting machine to cut acrylic sheet. Then, using a 3D printer, we created a cubic mesh structure as the backbone of our BCNF filter, some factory buildings (including a workshop, a chimney, and a storage tank). Then we built a remote-controlled crane from LEGO building blocks. Finally, every parts were put together like this.
Figure 3. The picture shows our hardware system, which includes Treatment tank, Drainage tank, Stripping tank, and Recovery tank.
Treatment tank
We'll put our silver ion adsorption system in the treatment tank. We've upgraded our bacterial cellulose blocks. We made a square carrier of bacterial cellulose that our system could attach to. This allows the waste water to flow more fully through the bacterial cellulose and adsorb it. (The following figure is the treatment tank and model of the carrier)
Drainage tank
Store the treated liquid in the treatment tank.
Stripping tank
In this cell, the silver ions on the silver ion adsorption module are removed with hot water (about 55 ° C depending on the opening temperature of the adapter). This device can be repeatedly washed to remove all the silver ions. After being washed, the silver ions wait in the water of the container for the next step.
Recovery tank
The silver ion solution in the washing tank will flow into the recovery tank, and finally the solution will be taken out for treatment or directly treated in the tank. (Chemical precipitation or electrolytic precipitation can be used)
