System for reducing contaminants from a photoelectrocatalytic oxidization apparatus through polarity reversal and method of operation

Abstract

A system and method for operating a photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly for removing fouling from components is provided. The method includes the steps of resetting a first counter, increasing the first counter by a first channel increment value, and determining if the value in the first counter exceeds a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly. If the first counter does not exceed a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly, the following steps are performed: reversing polarity in a channel associated with the value in the first counter, resetting a first timer, determining if an amount of time in the first timer exceeds a first time period, increasing the amount of time remaining in the first timer by a first time increment if the amount of time remaining in the first timer does not exceed the first time period, terminating the polarity reversal in the channel associated with the value in the first counter when the time remaining in the first timer exceeds the first time period, and returning to the step of increasing the first counter by a first channel increment value. If the first counter does exceed a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly, the step of returning to the step of resetting the first counter is performed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for operating a photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly for removing fouling from components comprising:
 resetting a first counter;   increasing the first counter by a first channel increment value;   determining if the value in the first counter exceeds a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly;   performing the following steps if the first counter does not exceed a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly:
 reversing polarity in a channel associated with the value in the first counter; 
 resetting a first timer; 
 determining if an amount of time in the first timer exceeds a first time period; 
 increasing the amount of time remaining in the first timer by a first time increment if the amount of time remaining in the first timer does not exceed the first time period; 
 terminating the polarity reversal in the channel associated with the value in the first counter when the time remaining in the first timer exceeds the first time period; 
 returning to the step of increasing the first counter by the first channel increment value; and 
   returning, if the value in the first counter exceeds a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly, to the step of resetting the first counter.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first channel increment value is preset. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first channel increment value is the integer one. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly is preset. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly is greater than one. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein at least one plate pair having an anode and a cathode is associated with each channel provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the value corresponding to the first time period is less than five minutes. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the value corresponding to the first time period is less than one minute. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the value corresponding to the first time period is not greater than twenty seconds. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first time increment equals one second. 
     
     
         11 . A method for removing scale from a plurality of photoelectrodes associated with a photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly thru polarity reversal, the plurality of photoelectrodes being associated with a plurality of channels, such that at least one photoelectrode is associated with each channel, comprising:
 resetting a first counter and a first timer;   determining if an amount of time in the first timer exceeds a first time period;   increasing the amount of time in the first timer by a first time increment;   increasing the first counter by a first channel increment value;   determining if the value in the first counter exceeds a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly;   performing the following steps if the first counter does not exceed a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly:
 reversing polarity in a channel associated with the value in the first counter; 
 resetting a second timer; 
 determining if an amount of time in the second timer exceeds a second time period; 
 increasing the amount of time remaining in the second timer by a second time increment if the amount of time remaining in the second timer does not exceed the second time period; 
 terminating the polarity reversal in the channel associated with the value in the second counter when the time remaining in the second timer exceeds the second time period; 
 returning to the step of determining if an amount of time in the first timer exceeds the first time period; 
   returning, if the value in the first counter exceeds a value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly and the amount of time in the first timer does not exceed the first time period, to the step of increasing the amount of time in the first timer by a first time increment; and   returning, if the amount of time in the first timer does exceed the first time period, to the step of resetting the first counter and the first timer.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the first time period is a cycle time period. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the first time period is at least the number of channels multiplied by the second time period. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising after the step of terminating the polarity reversal in the channel associated with the value in the second counter when the time remaining in the second timer exceeds the second time period, performing the step of combining the amount to time in the second timer with the amount of time in the first timer and storing the total in the first timer. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the first channel increment value is the integer one. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly is preset. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the value corresponding to the number of channels provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly is greater than one. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein at least one plate pair having an anode and a cathode is associated with each channel provided in the photoelectrocatalytic oxidation assembly. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the value corresponding to the second time period is less than one minute. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the value corresponding to the second time period is not greater than twenty seconds.