Abstract: Described herein is an Improved Converter System designed to help reduce air, land and water pollution by completely converting materials that presently cause pollution into clean burning fuels and a host of other products beneficial to mankind. The primary conversion unit in the system is a zone controlled multipurpose slagging-ash oxygen jet blast converter. All incoming materials are passed through this process computer aided talented offspring of its two ancient prototypes the blast furnace and slagging-ash gas producers and the zone controlled blast furnaces described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,381,938, 4,495,054, 3,928,023 and 3,814,404. It employs two sets of tuyeres located in the bosh to input endothermic reacting gases, vapors and dusts through tuyere sets T1 and T2. A 100% oxygen jet blast is also input through tuyere set T2.

Abstract: A blast furnace is employed to process a natural material selected from the group consisting of oil shale, oil sandstone, asphalt rock or mixtures thereof. A first carbonaceous material selected from the group consisting of oil shale, oil sandstone, asphalt rock or mixtures thereof and a second carbonaceous material are charged to the top of a blast furnace and the carbonaceous char material remaining when the burden reaches the lower portion of the blast furnace in front of the primary tuyeres is burned to provide a hot, upwardly-moving gas stream containing CO and H.sub.2 to vaporize recoverable hydrocarbons contained in the carbonaceous material as the carbonaceous material moves downwardly through the blast furnace. A gas containing hydrocarbons, CO, H.sub.2 and vaporized carbonaceous oil and tar is withdrawn from near the top of the blast furnace and a molten slag is withdrawn from near the bottom of the blast furnace.

Abstract: Disclosed are methods of precisely operating an improved zone controlled multi-purpose blast furnace mainly by closely controlling gaseous inputs and outputs made through multiple openings in the side of the furnace. The energy can be partially or completely, directly or indirectly, obtained from low cost solid carbonaceous fuels used to produce hot metal, gases and slags, products. "Solution loss" is avoided when operating in a high hot metal production mode but the Boudouard reaction is efficiently employed when operating to produce gases and slags. Gas flows are regulated on the basis of information obtained from on-line samples and performance-impairing recycling alkali metals and zinc may be purged while in a volatile form.