Liquid separation apparatus

Claim 1

In a liquid treating apparatus within a body of water, for effecting a gravity separation of a two-phase, water-oil mixture, wherein the oil component of said mixture is of a lesser specific gravity than the water component, said apparatus including; an elongated casing having side walls forming a vertically disposed separation chamber with upper and lower ends, the lower end of said elongated casing extending downwardly through said body of water and being communicated with the latter, the improvement therein of conduit means communicated with a source of said two-phase water-oil mixture and having a discharge port positioned within the upper end of said separation chamber, means defining a vertically aligned labyrinth-like passage through said casing, said passage defining means including a plurality of contiguously arranged compartments formed by spaced apart panels, alternate panels having a peripheral segment thereof fixed to a wall of said casing and having a remote edge extending toward, but spaced from an opposite casing wall, whereby to overlap adjacent panels and communicate said respective compartments one with the other, each of said alternate panels being canted downwardly from the fixed peripheral segment thereof toward said panel remote edge, whereby to form an upwardly sloping surface along the underside of each panel, and a collecting pocket for tHe lesser specific gravity oil, said pocket being formed at the juncture of each panel edge with the casing wall, and conducting means communicated with the respective collecting pockets to remove oil therefrom.