Screw press extractor

Claim 1

IN A SCREW PRESS FOR EXTRACTING LIQUID FROM A SOLID CONTAINING LIQUID, A ROTATABLE SCREW HAVING ITS AXIS EXTENDING AT A SUBSTANTIAL ANGLE TO THE HORIZONTAL, MEANS PROVIDING A HOUSING SURROUNDING THE SAID SCREW AND EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF, FORAMINATE MEANS SURROUNDING THE SCREW INTERMEDIATE ITS ENDS AND DISPOSED CLOSELY ADJACENT THE OUTER DIAMETER OF SAID SCREW, MEANS PROVIDING AN INLET FOR SAID HOUSING ADJACENT ITS LOWER END, MEANS PROVIDING A LIQUID OUTLET IN SAID HOUSING INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS OF SAID FORAMINATE MEANS, MEANS TO MAINTAIN THE LIQUID LEVEL WITHIN SAID HOUSING SUBSTANTIALLY ABOVE SAID LIQUID OUTLET, SAID SCREW IN PART DEFINING A HELICAL PASSAGE EXTENDING FROM THE LOWER END OF THE SCREW TO THE UPPER END THEREOF, THE CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA OF SAID PASSAGE BEING LESSER AT THE UPPER END OF SAID FORAMINATE MEANS THAN AT THE LOWER END THEREOF WITH A SUBSTANTIAL MAJORITY OF THE REDUCTION IN CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA OF SAID PASSAGE TAKING PLACE ABOVE SAID LIQUID LEVEL, AND MEANS FOR PROVIDING A FLUID PRESSURE SEAL TO PREVENT THE ESCAPE OF FLUID PRESSURE FROM WITHIN SAID HOUSING THROUGH THE UPPER END OF SAID HELICAL PASSAGE COMPRISING MEANS ADJACENT THE UPPER END OF SAID SCREW FOR IMPEDING THE FLOW OF MATERIAL OUT OF SAID PASSAGE.