Abstract: A steam-raising system comprising a boiler, a pump connected by a flow passageway to the boiler to pump water thereto, and flow-control means connected to the flow passageway between the pump and the boiler to control the flow of water from the pump to the boiler. The flow-control means comprise at least two relief means in parallel with one another, but with their points of connection to the flow passageway between the pump and the boiler spaced apart in series with one another. The invention extends to method of operating a steam-raising system such that the system is controlled to keep its condition close to a minimum of the temperature and/or pressure of output from a boiler of the system expressed as a function of the flowrate of water supplied to the boiler.

Abstract: A rotary fluid bed gasifier having a combustor assembly and a stationary feed conduit which is capable of feeding a carbonaceous material and/or limestone from outside of the gasifier and delivering this material to the gasification chamber of the combustor assembly through a rotating wall of the combustor assembly, wherein the stationary conduit is centrally disposed within the combustor assembly such that the rotatable inner assembly of the combustor assembly revolves about the stationary conduit.

Abstract: Fly ash is thermally processed in electrically heated, closed pre-heat and combustion chambers. In the combustion chamber, the fly ash is tumble mixed to produce maximum combustion of carbon in the fly ash. Further, the tumble mixing is done while injecting air and oxygen into the tumbling heated fly ash. The tumble mixing is accomplished by feed screws. The screw shafts are hollow with air orifices at regular intervals. As a result, an oxygenated air mixture may be injected into the tumbling fly ash to aid the combustion of the carbon in the fly ash. The flow rates for air and oxygen, the temperature of the pre-heat chamber and the combustion chamber, and the ash flow rate (speed of feed screws) may be adjusted to obtain the proper combustion to get the desired Loss On Ignition (LOI) value for the fly ash. Spectrometers monitoring the color of the output of the fly ash may be calibrated to adjust one or more of the above variables.

Abstract: A vertical tube, once-through, sliding pressure steam generator comprises a furnace having an outlet and heat exchanger surfaces made of smooth bore tubes, single-lead ribbed (SLR) tubes, and multiple-lead ribbed (MLR) tubes. All of these tubes are preferably constructed as membrane wall tube panels. The steam generator includes fuel burners for burning fuel and air within the housing, creating low, medium and high heat flux regions within the furnace. Fluid flows through the tubes of the wall panels to provide an efficient heat exchanger. The smooth bore tubes are located at the low heat flux regions, and the SLR and/or MLR tubes are located in the high and medium heat flux regions.

Abstract: A material processing apparatus includes a casing having a pyrolysis chamber for receiving and pyrolyzing feed materials therein into a gaseous material and solid ash residue, a mass of refractory material contained in the casing upon a bottom thereof, being spaced below a top and extending between opposite sides thereof, and including an inclined upper surface defining the bottom of the pyrolysis chamber and having a lower terminal edge being spaced from one of the opposite sides of the casing for defining a solid ash residue collection region therein, and a pusher mechanism disposed in the pyrolysis chamber for engaging and moving feed materials down the inclined upper surface of the refractory mass toward the lower terminal edge thereof.

Abstract: A low-nox burner for use in industrial furnaces and/or boilers which burn pulverized coal. The burner includes a burner tip which divides an annular pulverized coal stream into alternating fuel-rich and fuel-lean streams. The tip includes a plurality of alternating main and secondary blade members which are skewed to produce rotational movement in the streams. The main blade has a leading edge that is aligned with a radial vector extending through a center axis of the burner and a trailing edge that is tilted with respect to the radial vector in order to define a substantially planar surface between the leading and trailing edges. The secondary blade includes leading and trailing edges that are both aligned with radial vectors and defines a twisted surfaces between the edges. The secondary blade is skewed with respect to the longitudinal direction by an angle that is substantially greater than the angle at which the main blade is skewed.

Abstract: Combustible gases are produced from a solid fuel by pyrolizing the fuel in a pyrolyzer containing a low grade solid fuel producing combustible gases, and carbonaceous material that is combusted in a furnace to produce hot products that include hot flue gases and particulate material. The hot products are separated into a plurality of streams, one of which contains comparatively coarse ash which is directed into the pyrolyzer for effecting the pyrolyzation of the fuel. A stream of reaction gases is applied to the pyrolyzer in such a way that the stream of reaction gases bubbles through the carbonaceous material in the pyrolyzer without fluidizing such material. In effect, the reaction gases activate the void fraction in the pyrolyzer thereby reducing the residence time of the material therein.

Abstract: A system for disposing of refuse-derived fuel ("RDF") and converting the refuse-derived fuel into a fuel gas is described. The system includes a positive pressure combustion chamber and a feed system for feeding the RDF into the combustion chamber at high speed. No compaction of the low density RDF is required. The feed system includes a feed conveyor, first and second air locks with a first conduit between the feed conveyor and the first air lock, and a second conduit between the first and second air locks. Both conduits are generally vertically oriented, but sloped at an angle that prevents bridging of the RDF.

Abstract: A fluid heater or boiler is disclosed which has a fire tube or combustion chamber surrounded by a reservoir containing a fluid to be heated. The combustion chamber is defined by an inner shell and the reservoir is defined by an outer shell. The inner and outer shells are joined by one or more flue tubes which are thermally expandable along the axes connecting their points of attachments to the inner and outer shells. The heater is constructed so that the inner shell is deflected relative to the outer shell, when the flue tubes or inner shell expand or contract, thus accommodating the thermal expansion. The flue tubes may optionally be adapted to flex perpendicularly to their axes, as well as deflecting the inner shell, to accommodate thermal expansion. The inner shell may also be suspended within the outer shell by the flue tubes connecting the inner and outer shells.

Abstract: A removable flow rate-restricting device (25) is placed and fixed in a through-opening (18) of the tube plate (15) level with which is fixed the tube (6), from inside the water box (9). The flow rate-restricting device (25) includes an orifice plate which is inserted into the opening (18) of the tube plate.

Abstract: The system (10) for collecting and disposing of contaminated waste products such as medical sharps and other medical wastes includes a housing (11) and its telescopic cover (9) which are fabricated of biodegradable and combustible material such as natural cellulose and non-natural cellulose. An absorbent biodegradable and combustible absorption package (30) or insert (35) can be placed in the bottom of the holding chamber (12) for absorbing any liquids emitted from the sharps and other wastes, and for enhancing the combustion of the medical sharps and other wastes when the housing is placed in a furnace. When the housing is burned it evolves no more than trace levels of sulfur or chlorine and yields substantially only biodegradable ash.

Abstract: A system for providing thermal power to an electrical power plant wherein substantially whole trees are supplied as fuel without being processed into small woodchips or chunks. A stacked cooling grate suspends the substantially whole trees within the combustion chamber. The cooling grate is formed by stacking an upper tube and at least one lower tube vertically beneath the upper tube. The tubes of the cooling grate are supplied with water to cool the grate.

Abstract: A nozzle assembly for a sootblower used to project a fluid cleaning medium against internal surfaces of a combustion device. The nozzle block assembly of this invention incorporates a converging/diverging throat configuration having a truncated center plug in the flow nozzle which provides improved jet flow characteristics within the limited nozzle length available in the sootblower environment. Various techniques for supporting the truncated plug of this invention are disclosed.

Abstract: Waste materials including chlorine compounds are charged into a fluidized-bed gasification furnace having a first fluidized bed of which fluidizing medium comprises CaO. HCl produced from the waste materials is reacted with CaO which is the fluidizing medium and changed into CaCl.sub.2, and then discharged from a discharge pipe together with unburned materials. Gas generated as a result of the above-described reaction flows together with CaCO.sub.3, which is supplied into a second fluidized bed of a fluidized-bed combustion furnace located above, and are burned within the second fluidized bed. CaO is supplied from the second fluidized bed into the first fluidized bed via a supply pipe. In this manner, HCl produced from the waste materials is effectively removed.

Abstract: The sidewall end grate block includes a first side which can be placed adjacent to a press plate and a second side which is adjacent to another grate block. The first side includes press plate attachment provisions while the second side includes a tension rod attachment provisions. The press plate attachment provisions on the first side include a plurality of holes which are adapted to receive bolts which can be received by a corresponding holes in the respective adjacent press plate. The tension rod attachment provisions on the second side include a cross-shaped hole and locking protrusions which can accept the head end of a tension rod.

Abstract: A method is described for environmentally sound usage of combustible hazardous waste in an operating rotary kiln. The method is particularly adapted for disposal of solid hazardous wastes, optionally in the form of a blended waste homogenate, packaged in sealable containers. The containers are used as fuel modules and charged into a rotary kiln cylinder where kiln gas temperatures range from about 950.degree. to about 1200.degree. C. to achieve high destruction and removal efficiencies.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method for obtaining stabilized molded materials from wastes, said method consisting of mixing the waste with a soldification agent and in extrusion molding the material obtained under vacuum and at constant temperature. The corresponding installation has a mixer connected to the molding device.

Abstract: Distributor device comprises at least one lower and/or one upper stationary distributor device for distribution of fuel in the form of gas and particles in a fluidized bed and is arranged above fuel feed nozzles in the bed, or at or above the upper limit of the bed. The task of the distributor device is to spread fuel, rising upwards in the bed, more evenly over a large area in the bed and to create turbulence above the bed. This is achieved by designing the distributor device with a mid-portion and upwardly-inclined wing-like members or the cone to bring about even distribution of fuel by forcing the fuel to follow an outwardly-directed horizontal or obliquely upwardly-rising flow of fuel.

Abstract: A porous matrix, surface combustor-fluid heating apparatus comprising a combustion chamber, a cooled flow distributor proximate an inlet end of said combustion chamber and supporting a stationary porous bed within said combustion chamber, porous bed heat exchanger means embedded in said stationary porous bed and means for introducing a fuel/oxidant mixture into said stationary porous bed said fuel/oxidant mixture burning in said stationary porous bed.

Abstract: The distance between the combustion nozzle and the pump of a waste oil heater can be significantly increased by using a positive displacement pump which is proximate to the reservoir and remote from the nozzle, contary to the usual positioning of oil delivery pumps. The pump, which is not pressure regulated, thus pushes oil to the nozzle at a constant flow rate regardless of oil pressure at the nozzle.