Liquid thermal diffusion method

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR CONTINUOUSLY SEPARATING, BY THERMAL DIFFUSION, TWO FRACTIONS CONTAINING DISSIMILAR MATERIALS THAT ARE NORMALLY LIQUID UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF SEPARATION AND WHICH ARE INCLUDED IN A MIXTURE NORMALLY LIQUID UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF SEPARATION, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES FORMING A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL, CONTINUOUS AND SHALLOW STREAM OF LIQUID HAVING A DEPTH LESS THAN ABOUT 0.15 INCH AND DEFINED BY SMOOTH, UPPER AND LOWER, CLOSELY SPACED, MUTUALLY PARALLEL AND OPPOSED WALLS OF INERT, HEAT CONDUCTIVE MATERIAL; CONTINUOUSLY INTRODUCING THE LIQUID MIXTURE INTO THE STREAM AT ONE END THEREOF; MAINTAINING A TEMPERATURE GRADIENT ACROSS THE STREAM TO CONCENTRATE A FIRST CONTINUOUSLY MOVING FRACTION ENRICHED IN ONE COMPONENT OF THE MIXTURE ADJACENT ONE OF THE WALLS AND TO CONCENTRATE THE SECOND FRACTION, MOVING CONCURRENTLY WITH THE FIRST FRACTION AND IMPOVERISHED IN SAID ONE COMPONENT ADJACENT THE OTHER OF THE OPPOSED WALLS; AND CONTINUOUSLY AND SEPARATELY REMOVING THE TWO FRACTIONS FROM THE STREAM AT THE OTHER END.