AU2009202000B2

AU2009202000B2 - Systems and methods for washing-out concrete pouring equipment

Info

Publication number: AU2009202000B2
Application number: AU2009202000A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Ricki Joe Abney
Original assignee: Richard Amadio Holdings Aust Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Richard Amadio Holdings Aust Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2009-05-20
Filing date: 2009-05-20
Publication date: 2011-02-03
Anticipated expiration: 2029-05-20
Also published as: AU2009202000A1

Description

- 1 AUSTRALIA PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT ORIGINAL Name of Applicant: Richard Amadio Holdings (Aust) Pty Limited Actual Inventor: Richard Amadio Address for Service is: SHELSTON IP 60 Margaret Street Telephone No: (02) 9777 1111 SYDNEY NSW 2000 Facsimile No. (02) 9241 4666 CCN: 3710000352 Attorney Code: SW Invention Title: SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR WASHING-OUT CONCRETE POURING EQUIPMENT The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: File: 62291AUP00 la SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR WASHING-OUT CONCRETE POURING EQUIPMENT FIELD OF INVENTION The present invention relates in general to the construction industry, and in 5 particular, to systems and methods for washing-out concrete pouring equipment. BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field. 10 Concrete is one of the primary building materials used worldwide. One common form of concrete used in construction is "ready-mix" concrete, which is produced in accordance with a given formula at a plant and then trucked to a jobsite. At the jobsite, the concrete is off-loaded from the truck, as required to form a desired structure. Any excess or residual concrete left in the truck is then typically washed-out at the jobsite. 15 One current wash-out practice is to dig a pit in the ground and line it with plastic film. Ready-mix trucks dump any excess concrete into the pit and use roughly 15-20 gallons of water to rinse the truck and chute. The typical concrete pump will dump approximately 4 to 2 a cubic yard of concrete into the pit and then require 30-50 gallons of water for rinsing off the pump truck. The result is not only a significant 20 amount of wasted water, but a significant amount of water contaminated with caustic concrete waste. Furthermore, washout pits normally remain uncovered and if it rains, the washout pit may overflow and cause further contamination of the soil around the pit. This overflow water can also run into storm drains and on into rivers and bays, and possibly even into the ground water. 25 Eventually, a small front-end loader or the like is used to break up the waste concrete in the washout pit and remove it to be crushed and recycled. During this process the plastic liner is ruined and any remaining concrete-contaminated wastewater leaks into the soil. One known solution to the problem of waste concrete is to wash-out ready-mix 30 trucks into roll-off trash dumpsters. However, these types of dumpsters are not watertight and much of the wastewater leaks out and soaks into the soil. Furthermore, concrete pump trucks cannot use these dumpsters and therefore must dump their extra -2 concrete waste and the resulting wastewater onto the ground next to the dumpster. Moreover, dumpsters are also subject to rain contamination and overflow. On some large road jobs, or at extra commercial job sites, contractors will sometimes dig out a large washout pit (approximately % to I acre in size) and set up 5 several large evaporation pits. This technique allows for the washout of trucks in one location followed by wastewater evaporation and periodic waste concrete removal from the evaporation pits. These washout pits are too large and too costly to build and maintain for use in the construction of new home communities or at small commercial job sites. Additionally, the problems of rain overflow and wasted water are not 10 addressed by this technique. Hence, new solutions are required for conserving water and minimizing environmental impact during the wash-out of concrete pouring equipment at jobsites. It is an object of the present invention to overcome or ameliorate at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art, or to provide a useful alternative. 15 SUMMARY OF INVENTION To this end, the first aspect of the present invention provides a system for washing-out concrete pouring equipment comprising: a bin for receiving waste materials washed with water from concrete pouring equipment, wherein the bin is adapted to allow liquid to drain therefrom; 20 a base unit including sidewalls defining a receptacle for receiving the bin and a sloped bottom for conveying liquid drained from the bin to a sump; and a filtering system for filtering particulate matter from liquid provided from the sump to recover the water. A second aspect of the present invention provides a wash-out system for washing 25 concrete pouring equipment comprising: a base portion defining a set of receptacles each adapted to receive a removable bin and having a floor sloping to convey liquid drained from a bin received by a selected one of the receptacles to a sump area; a filter system including a plurality of settlement tanks separated by baffles 30 defining apertures allowing liquid to cascade between the settlement tanks; a filtering pump for pumping liquid from the sump area of the base portion to one of the settlement tanks of the filter system; - 3 a clean water tank receiving and storing filtered water provided from another one of the settlement tanks; and a set of at least one bin adapted for reception in a selected one of the receptacles of the base portion and for receiving wash-out waste material and allowing a liquid 5 portion of the wash-out waste material to drain into the selected one of the receptacles. A third aspect of the present invention provides a method of washing a piece of construction equipment comprising the steps of: washing a portion of the piece of construction equipment with water; collecting waste material washed from the construction equipment in a bin; 10 allowing liquid collected in the bin to drain into a receptacle having a sloped bottom for conveying the liquid to a sump; pumping the liquid from the sump; filtering particulate matter from the liquid pumped from the sump to recover clean water; and 15 storing the recovered clean water for recycling in a tank. The principles of the present invention are embodied in methods and systems for washing-out construction equipment, in particular concrete pouring equipment. According to one particular embodiment, a system is disclosed for washing-out concrete pouring equipment that includes a bin for receiving waste materials washed with water 20 from the concrete pouring equipment. The bin includes openings allowing liquid to drain into a base unit that includes sidewalls defining a receptacle which receives the bin and has a sloped bottom for conveying liquid drained from the bin to a sump. A filtering system filters particulate matter from liquid drained from the bin to a sump. A filtering system filters particulate matter from liquid provided from the sump to recover the 25 water. Embodiments of the present principles advantageously protect the environment from exposure to polluted waste water and allows for significant amounts of water to be recovered and recycled. Moreover, extracted waste concrete materials are quickly accumulated and removed, also for recycling. Furthermore, wash-out systems 30 embodying these principles are scalable and therefore can be adapted to include as few as one wash-out station to five or more wash-out stations. Additionally, wash-out - 3a systems according to the inventive principles are easily transportable, inexpensive to maintain on the jobsite, and relative easy to construct. Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description and the claims, the words "comprise", "comprising", and the like are to be construed in an 5 inclusive sense as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of "including, but not limited to". BREIF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with 10 the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1A is a conceptual diagram illustrating a representative wash-out system according to the principles of the present invention in a typical working environment; FIGURE lB is a diagram showing a perspective - exploded view of an 15 exemplary three-bin wash-out system according to the principles of the present invention; FIGURE 2A is a diagram providing a cut-away end view of a selected one of the bins shown in FIGURE IB; FIGURE 2B is a diagram showing a side view of the bin of FIGURE 2A; 20 FIGURE 3A is a diagram showing a side cut-away view of the base portion of the wash-out system shown in FIGURE 1; and FIGURE 3B is a diagram providing an end cut-away view of the base portion of the wash-out system of FIGURE 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 25 The principles of the present invention and their advantages are best understood by referring to the illustrated embodiment depicted in FIGURES 1-3B of the drawings, in which like numbers designate like parts. FIGURES 1A and lB illustrate a wash-out system 100 according to the principles of the present invention. Advantageously, wash-out system allows for the 30 chute of a concrete truck or the nozzle of a concrete pump to be rinsed out and the resulting waste-water mixture to be captured. The solids are then removed from the mixture and the water filtered and recycled for use in subsequent rinse out operation.

-4 Advantageously, the waste-water mixture is never in contact with the ground, thereby minimizing environmental contamination. Furthermore, wash-out system 100 can easily be moved from jobsite to jobsite, thereby eliminating the need to dig environmental hazardous wash-out pits. 5 The illustrated embodiment of wash-out system 100 shown in FIGURES 1 A and lB includes three stations supporting the wash-out of three corresponding concrete trucks, such as the exemplary ready-mix concrete truck as shown in FIGURE ] A. (While a ready-mix concrete truck is shown for purposes of discussion, the principles of the present invention are equally applicable to other types of concrete pouring 10 equipment, such as concrete pumps.) Alternate embodiments of wash-out system 100 may have a smaller or greater number of wash-out stations, depending on the number of pieces concrete pouring equipment the user wishes to support at one time. In the illustrated embodiment, wash-out system 100 includes a base portion 101, including three receptacles 102a -102c for receiving a corresponding bin 104a -104c. 15 As discussed further below, wash-out system 100 includes a filter system 103, which filters particulate matter from the contaminated liquids that drain from each bin 104a 104c being used for wash-out. Each bin 104a-104c, which are discussed below in detail in conjunction with FIGURE 2, can be removed from corresponding receptacles 102a 102c, such that waste materials captured with bins 104a - 104c can be hauled away and, 20 for example, crushed and recycled as road base. After filtering through filter system 103, the filter water is stored in a clean water tank 301, discussed in detail below in conjunction with FIGURES 3A and 3B, and recycled for use in washing-out concrete pouring equipment. Preferably, base 101, filter system 103, and bins 104a - 104c are constructed 25 from steel plate, although alternate materials that will sustain the wear and tear typically found at ajobsite are equally acceptable. FIGURE 2A is a cutaway view of the selected one of bins 104a - 104c shown in FIGURE 1B. Bins 104a -104b include a steel frame 201 and sidewalls 203, which define a receptacle 202 for receiving mixture of water, rock, concrete, sand, and similar 30 waste materials washed from the cement pouring equipment. Receptacles 204 provide for receiving a forklift or similar device for inserting and removing bins 104a - 104c from the corresponding receptacles 102a -102c in base 101. Each bin 104a - 104c also includes a hinged bottom 205, which allows accumulated material (e.g. rock, concrete -5 and sand) to be dumped for recovery. Additionally, each bin 104a -104c includes a flexible portion 206, made of rubber or a similar material, upon which a concrete truck chute or concrete pump nozzle rests during wash-out. Sidewalls 203 are fastened to frame 201 at various points, however, spaces or 5 gaps are provided along the edges 207 where the sidewalls meet, such that water can seep out during the wash out process, while larger particulate matter remains within receptacle 202. Similarly, when hinged bottom 205 is in the closed position, spaces or gaps around its periphery similarly allow water and small particulate matter to seep out of bin 104a -1 04c, while larger particulate matter is retained. 10 FIGURE 3A is a front cross-sectional view of base 101 and filter 103. FIGURE 3B provides a corresponding cross-sectional and view. In particular, filter system 103 includes a set of baffles 303a - 304f, which define a set of separation tanks 304a - 304f. Water with particulate matter enters at first settlement tank 304a through pipe 107 and exits separation tank 304f through pipes 302a and 302b during the filtering operations 15 described below. Each settlement tank 304a - 304f is used to collect particulate matter 305, such as sand and concrete. Additional filters 306a - 306e, for example broom filters or sponges, remove particulars from the waste-water mixture cascading over baffles 303a - 303e. Filter system 103 is bolted or fastened to base 101 and can therefore be removed for cleaning through cover 309. 20 The internal floors 307 of base 101 slope to a sump area 308. Base portion 101 also houses a clean water pump 309, for pumping water through a hose to a user, and a sump pump 310, each of which is respectively accessible through a removable cover 31la - 31lb. (While one clean water hose is shown in FIGURE IA as an example, clean water pump 309 can support multiple hoses for simultaneous wash-out of multiple 25 pieces of concrete pouring equipment.) Wheels 312 allow wash-out system 100 to be easily moved around the jobsite. During wash-out, for example wash-out of the chute of a ready-mix concrete truck, a worker rinses the chute, as shown in FIGURE IA, using clean water pumped from clean water tank 301 by clean water pump 309. The resulting mixture of water and 30 waste concrete products are swept into the corresponding bin 104a -104c. The larger particulate matter, such as large pieces of concrete and rock, are retained within the given bin 104a -104c. The water and smaller particulate matter drains through the gaps -6 along the edges of the bin sidewalls and bottom and into the corresponding receptacle 102a -102c. Water and particulate matter draining into the corresponding receptacle 102a 102c flows down the sloped inner floors 307 of base 101 to sump 308. The water and 5 small particulate matter accumulating in sump 308 are pumped by sump pump 310 through pipe 107 into first settlement tank 304a. At least some of the particulate matter 305 settles out to the bottom as settlement tank 304a fills. As the water and remaining particulate matter reach the top of settlement tank 304a, the cascade through filter 306a and into second settlement tank 304b, which begins to fill as additional particulate 10 matter 305 settles to the bottom. This process continues with the progressively cleaner water-waste mixture cascading through settlement tanks 304c - 304f and corresponding filters 306c - 306e. At end settlement tank 304f, the remaining clean water flows through pipes 302a and 302b into underlying clean water tank 301, where it is available for recycling. 15 Advantageously, wash-out system 100 not only protects the environment from exposure to polluted waste water, it also allows significant amounts of water to be recycled. Moreover, removable bins 104a - 104c allow the user to quickly and easily remove extracted waste concrete materials for recycling, for example as road bed. Furthermore, wash-out system 100 is scalable and therefore can be adapted to include as 20 few as one wash-out station to five or more wash-out stations. Additionally, wash-out system 100 is easily transportable, inexpensive to maintain on the jobsite, and relatively easy to construct. Although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, these descriptions are not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. 25 Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments of the invention, will become apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of the invention. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and the specific embodiment disclosed might be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purpose of the present 30 invention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

-7 It is therefore contemplated that the claims will cover any such modifications or embodiments that fall within the true scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A system for washing-out concrete pouring equipment comprising: a bin for receiving waste materials washed with water from concrete pouring equipment, wherein the bin is adapted to allow liquid to drain therefrom; 5 a base unit including sidewalls defining a receptacle for receiving the bin and a sloped bottom for conveying liquid drained from the bin to a sump; and a filtering system for filtering particulate matter from liquid provided from the sump to recover the water.

2. The system of Claim 1, further comprising a clean water tank for receiving and 10 storing recovered water provided by the filtering system.

3. The system of Claim 1, wherein the filtering system comprises a plurality of settling tanks separated by baffles, the baffles defining apertures for allowing liquid to cascade between adjacent settling tanks.

4. The system of Claim 3, further comprising filters disposed in the apertures 15 defined by the baffles.

5. The system of Claim 3, further comprising a pump for pumping liquid from the sump to a first one of the settling tanks.

6. The system of Claim 2, further comprising a pump for pumping recovered water from the clean water tank for use in washing-out concrete pouring equipment. 20

7. The system of Claim 1, wherein the bin further comprises a hinged bottom for dumping solid matter accumulated in the bin during washing-out.

8. The system of Claim 1, wherein the bin further comprises a flexible portion providing a support for a portion of the concrete pouring equipment being washed-out.

9. A wash-out system for washing concrete pouring equipment comprising: 25 a base portion defining a set of receptacles each adapted to receive a removable bin and having a floor sloping to convey liquid drained from a bin received by a selected one of the receptacles to a sump area; -9 a filter system including a plurality of settlement tanks separated by baffles defining apertures allowing liquid to cascade between the settlement tanks; a filtering pump for pumping liquid from the sump area of the base portion to one of the settlement tanks of the filter system; 5 a clean water tank receiving and storing filtered water provided from another one of the settlement tanks; and a set of at least one bin adapted for reception in a selected one of the receptacles of the base portion and for receiving wash-out waste material and allowing a liquid portion of the wash-out waste material to drain into the selected one of the receptacles.

10 10. The wash-out system of Claim 9, wherein the filter system is removably attached to the base portion during wash-out operations.

11. The wash-out system of Claim 9, wherein the filter system further comprises filters disposed in the apertures defined by the baffles separating the settlement tanks.

12. The wash-out system of Claim 9, wherein the clean water tank is below the 15 another one of the settlement tanks such that water is provided to the clean water tank under force of gravity.

13. The wash-out system of Claim 9, further comprising a clean water pump for pumping clean water from the clean water tank for use in washing-out concrete pouring equipment. 20

14. The wash-out system of Claim 9, wherein the at least one bin includes a flexible portion for supporting a portion of the concrete pouring equipment being washed-out.

15. The wash-out system of Claim 9, wherein the bin includes at least one structure for receiving lifting equipment.

16. The wash-out system of Claim 9, wherein the bin includes at least one hinged 25 wall for dumping materials disposed within the bin.

17. A method of washing a piece of construction equipment comprising the steps of: washing a portion of the piece of construction equipment with water; collecting waste material washed from the construction equipment in a bin; - 10 allowing liquid collected in the bin to drain into a receptacle having a sloped bottom for conveying the liquid to a sump; pumping the liquid from the sump; filtering particulate matter from the liquid pumped from the sump to recover 5 clean water; and storing the recovered clean water for recycling in a tank.

18. The method of Claim 17, wherein washing a portion of the piece of construction equipment comprises pumping clean water from the tank.

19. The method of Claim 17, wherein filtering comprises cascading the liquid 10 through a set of settlement tanks separated by a set of corresponding baffles.

20. The method of Claim 17, further comprising recovering solid material accumulated in the bin for recycling.

21. A system for washing out concrete pouring equipment substantially as herein described with reference to any one of the embodiments of the invention illustrated in 15 the accompanying drawings and/or examples.

22. A method of washing a piece of construction equipment substantially as herein described with reference to any one of the embodiments of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings and/or examples.