Apparatus for pressing slurries

Claim 1

A SLURRY PRESSING DEVICE COMPRISING A DIE ASSEMBLY HAVING CAVITY DEFINING MEANS PROVIDING AN ELONGATED DIE CAVITY OF A CROSS SECTIONAL CONTOUR CORRESPONDING TO THE CROSS SECTIONAL CONTOUR OF A MASS TO BE FORMED, A FILTER HEAD ASSEMBLY FOR CLOSING SAID CAVITY AT ONE END THEREOF, A FREE FLOATING PLUNGER ASSEMBLY HAVING PRESSING MEANS OF CROSS SECTIONAL CONTOUR MOVABLY FITTING IN SAID CAVITY OF SAID DIE ASSEMBLY AND HAVING ONE SIDE THEREOF DEFINING A MOVABLE BOUNDARY OF A SLURRY PRESSING CHAMBER OF SAID CAVITY AND SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY BEING MOVABLE TOWARD SAID ONE END OF SAID CAVITY TO COMPRESS A SLURRY IN SAID PRESSING CHAMBER AND DRIVE FLUID FROM THE PRESSING CHAMBER THROUGH SAID FILTER HEAD ASSEMBLY, MEANS PROVIDING FOR LOADING OF A SLURRY INTO SAID PRESSING CHAMBER, SAID DIE ASSEMBLY HAVING ACTUATING CHAMBER DEFINING MEANS RIGIDLY CONNECTED WITH SAID CAVITY DEFINING MEANS AND PROVIDING AN ACTUATING CHAMBER WITHIN SAID DIE ASSEMBLY FOR CONTAINING FLUID UNDER PRESSURE ACTING ON SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY TO DRIVE SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY TOWARD SAID FILTER HEAD ASSEMBLY, AND MEANS PROVIDING FOR DELIVERY OF FLUID UNDER PREDETERMINED PRESSURE TO SAID ACTUATING CHAMBER TO COMPRESS THE SLURRY IN SAID PRESSING CHAMBER TO A PREDETERMINED CONFIGURATION, SAID ACTUATING CHAMBER DEFINING MEANS PROVIDING A SECOND ACTUATING CHAMBER WITHIN SAID DIE ASSEMBLY FOR CONTAINING FLUID UNDER PRESSURE ACTING ON SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY TO DRIVE SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY AWAY FROM SAID FILTER HEAD ASSEMBLY, THE AREA OF SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY EXPOSED TO FLUID PRESSURE IN SAID SECOND ACTUATING CHAMBER BEING SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THAN THE AREA OF SAID PLUNGER ASSEMBLY EXPOSED TO FLUID PRESSURE IN THE FIRST-MENTIONED ACTUATING CHAMBER, AND SAID DELIVERY MEANS DELIVERING FLUID UNDER SAID PREDETERMINED PRESSURE TO BOTH SAID FIRST MENTIONED AND SAID SECOND ACTUATING CHAMBERS DURING PRESSING OF THE SLURRY IN SAID PRESSING CHAMBER.