| 摘要 |
A dewatering apparatus 10, and associated method, for reducing the moisture content of a stockpile 40 of material, comprises a support 12 for supporting the stockpile, pressure reducing means 30, and fluid communication means 16 for communicating fluid from the support to the pressure reducing means. Preferably, the support is located in a recess 38 in the ground 36, where an impermeable layer 34, such as a plastics material, is located between the support and the adjacent ground. The pressure reducing means may be a suction pump, which could be a vacuum pump, and may be self priming. Preferably, the fluid communication means is a pipe arrangement comprising an inlet part 22 with one or more inlet apertures (24, fig.2). The inlet part may be in the form of a spiral (see fig.4) extending around the central axis 56 of the stockpile. The pipe arrangement may include a filter (26, fig.2), such as a geotextile, to permit entry of fluid but to prevent entry of the stockpile material. Preferably, a plurality of pipe arrangements are connected to the pressure reducing means via a manifold 28. |
