Portable self-erecting silo

Abstract

A portable hermetic silo is comprised of flexible, hermetic material. The silo is designed such that air may be introduced into a wall portion thereof, thus inflating the walls during filling of the silo. This allows the silo to be self-supporting while filling, and once the grain or other commodity is inside, air may be removed from the wall portion.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A portable silo for hermetic storage of bulk, dry commodities, the silo comprised of flexible material, the silo comprising:
 a bottom portion; and   a wall portion surrounding and sloping vertically upwards from said bottom portion, thus defining an enclosure for storage of a commodity, wherein the wall portion is comprised of a series of sloping, vertically extending inflatable bladders or ribs around a circumference of the wall portion, forming a double-walled structure.   
     
     
         2 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , wherein the wall portion is comprised of a material having a permeability to oxygen of less than 500 c/m 2 /day and a permeability to water vapor of less than 9 g/m 2 /day. 
     
     
         3 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , further comprising a sealable cover portion on top of the wall portion and hermetically sealing the stored commodity in the portable silo. 
     
     
         4 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , wherein the wall portion has an inward slope such that a bottom diameter of the wall portion is larger than a top diameter of the wall portion. 
     
     
         5 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , having substantially a truncated conical shape. 
     
     
         6 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , further comprising an outlet port in the wall portion for removal of the stored commodity. 
     
     
         7 . The portable silo of  claim 6 , wherein the outlet port is positioned in the wall portion near the bottom portion. 
     
     
         8 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , wherein each of the inflatable bladders individually or collectively includes an inflation/deflation and air relief system port for pumping air into the inflatable bladders and for removing air from the inflatable bladders. 
     
     
         9 . The portable silo of  claim 1 , wherein said portable silo is capable of storing at least 10 tonnes of commodity therein, and wherein said portable silo weighs less than 300 kg. 
     
     
         10 . A storage silo comprising:
 a bottom portion for receiving a commodity thereon; and   a flexible wall portion surrounding said bottom portion and wherein in an extended configuration, said flexible wall portion is configured to extend upwards from said bottom portion thus forming an enclosure for storage of a commodity, the wall portion having an internal wall portion side and an external wall portion side separated from said internal wall portion side by a distance of at least 20 cm, wherein said bottom portion and said wall portion form substantially a truncated conical shape when said wall portion is in said extended configuration.   
     
     
         11 . The storage silo of  claim 10 , wherein said extended configuration is made rigid by providing air into a space between said internal wall portion side and said external wall portion side. 
     
     
         12 . The storage silo of  claim 11 , wherein said space is compartmentalized into a series of vertically extending inflatable bladders. 
     
     
         13 . The storage silo of  claim 10 , wherein the flexible wall portion is comprised of a material having a permeability to oxygen of less than 500 cc/m 2 /day and a permeability to water vapor of less than 9 g/m 2 /day. 
     
     
         14 . The storage silo of  claim 10 , further comprising a sealable cover portion for placing on top of the flexible wall portion and hermetically sealing the stored commodity in the storage silo. 
     
     
         15 . The storage silo of  claim 10 , further comprising an outlet port in the flexible wall portion for removal of the stored commodity. 
     
     
         16 . The storage silo of  claim 15 , wherein the outlet port is positioned in the flexible wall portion near the bottom portion. 
     
     
         17 . The storage silo of  claim 12 , wherein the inflatable bladders include an inflation/deflation and air relief system port for pumping air into the inflatable bladders and for removing air from the inflatable bladders. 
     
     
         18 . The storage silo of  claim 1 , wherein said storage silo is capable of storing at least 10 tonnes of commodity therein, and wherein said storage silo weighs less than 300 kg.