Abstract: An apparatus for removing compressed snow and the like, includes a steam cutter provided with a plurality of longitudinally extending steam pipes connected to a steam header, with each of the steam pipes having a steam discharging opening formed in its undersurface, and an excluding blade located behind the steam cutter. The blade is disposed at an angle of inclination with respect to an advancing direction of the removing apparatus, which angle can be adjusted.

Abstract: A swirl burner of the two-stage combustion type with suppressed NO.sub.x generation which is so arranged that combustion air supplied into the burner is divided into primary and secondary combustion air, and the primary combustion air subjected to a powerful swirling motion by a primary combustion air nozzle having a frusto-conical shape and swirling vanes is supplied into a primary combustion chamber for drawing only primary combustion gas thereinto, while the secondary air is directed, in the form of a rectilinear flow, into a furnace through secondary combustion air nozzles provided around the primary combustion chamber, with oil and gas for fuel being supplied into the primary combustion chamber through a fuel injector nozzle. Part of the fuel is burned in the primary combustion chamber, while the remainder of the fuel is sequentially mixed with the secondary combustion air for combustion in the furnace.