Academy Corporation

Ars Services, LLC

Intek Co., Ltd.

Aws Industries, L.l.c.

Curtis Rhodes

Kwang Choon Chung

Deidre Hirschfeld

Robert O'Brien

Hyung Ho Gil

In Ha Kim

Jeong Guck Lee

Christa Hockensmith

Young Choul Shin

A method of reducing or preventing the amount of iron sludge or precipitate that forms as a result of the recovery of silver from chemical solutions, such as a standard photographic solution. The method generally involves the introduction of a source of a conjugate organic base, such as a weak organic acid like citric acid or a salt of the conjugate organic base like a citrate salt, to the chemical fluid either before or during the silver recovery process. Preferably the source of conjugate organic base is introduced by combining it with a binder to form a time release cake or placing it in a container that has a semipermeable membrane that maintains the concentration of the conjugate organic base in the chemical fluid from about 0.2 to about 78 milimolar over a period of time.

Method for treating iron in a silver recovery process

Disclosed herein is an ink cartridge refill system for inkjet printers and a method of refilling ink cartridges using the system. The refill system includes a vacuum pump to supply ink from an ink tank into a cylinder and to forcibly draw ink from an ink cartridge, as well as an air compression pump to generate a compression force to inject ink from the cylinder into the ink cartridge through the nozzle of the cartridge. The cylinder is connected at the inlet end thereof to both the air compression pump and the vacuum pump, and is connected at the outlet end to both the ink tank and the ink cartridge. Both a compression pump line and a first vacuum pump line which pass through the cylinder are connected to the nozzle of the cartridge through an ink supply hose. The vacuum pump includes a second vacuum pump line directly connected to the ink cartridge, as is the first vacuum pump line passing through the cylinder. Both the ink supply hose and the second vacuum pump line are connected to the nozzle of the cartridge through a connection unit. The refill system can regulate the inner pressure of a refilled cartridge by removing predetermined small amounts of air and ink from the refilled cartridge, and can completely remove waste ink from the cartridge at the initial stage of a cartridge refill process when necessary.

Ink cartridge refill system for inkjet printers and method of refilling ink cartridges using the same

An apparatus for transferring effluent from photograph development systems, especially highly automated, high-volume developer systems. A silver-recovery system discharges an iron-rich solution into a tank. Developer fluid and fixer solution is mixed with the iron-rich solution in the tank to buffer its pH. A float in the tank activates a switch located outside the tank to actuate a pump for evacuating the mixed effluent from the tank for disposal. Water may be mixed under pressure with the pumped effluent to reduce clogging in effluent drainage lines due to precipitate and other and build-ups from effluent.

Photographic developer effluent transfer station and drain wash

A silver recovery apparatus is provided for removing silver from waste solutions. The apparatus includes a vessel which defines an internal cylindrical chamber having a transverse cross sectional area. An inlet port is provided at a first end of the vessel and is adapted to receive the waste solution. An outlet port is similarly provided at a location suitable for discharging the waste solution from the vessel once substantially all silver has been removed. A silver replacement core is disposed within the vessel between the inlet and outlet ports. The core substantially fills the transverse cross sectional area of the internal chamber along a longitudinal length of the vessel. The silver replacement core includes sequentially arranged first, second, and third replacement media, wherein each media is composed of a metal which is electropositive relative to silver. The first and third replacement media each have an apparent density lower than that of the second replacement medium.

Three media silver recovery apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Albuquerque, NM, United States of America

Curtis Rhodes