EP4677264A1

EP4677264A1 - A cyclone furnace, an apparatus for intensive combustion of material, a method of intensive combustion of materials and use of cyclone furnace

Info

Publication number: EP4677264A1
Application number: EP24715026.1A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Samuel BABJAK; Milan Kopacka
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2023-02-06
Filing date: 2024-02-06
Publication date: 2026-01-14
Also published as: SK500102023A3; WO2024167469A1

Abstract

Cyclone furnace for intensive combustion of material comprising a housing (1) formed by a cylindrical section to which a tapering conical section is attached at the bottom. Inside the housing there is a (11) combustion chamber, the cylindrical part is closed from above by a lid through which the flue passes. The latter is located in the axis of the combustion chamber (11) and runs through the greater part of the length of the cylindrical part, which is fitted at the top with a primary combustion chamber (7) connected tangentially. The primary combustion chamber is (7) fitted with at least one burner (14) and an excess air inlet to create cyclonic flow dynamics of the burning material. The housing (1) is fitted with insulation (6) on the inner side and a duplicator (5) on the outer side for cooling the housing (1) and the outer insulation; the tapered part of the conical section is fitted with a device (17) for continuous removal of combustion residues or a collection vessel (2). Another aspect of the invention is the method of intensive combustion of the material and the use of a cyclone furnace.

Description

A cyclone furnace, an apparatus for intensive combustion of material, a method of intensive combustion of materials and use of cyclone furnace

Field of technology

The invention relates to the intensive combustion of materials. It proposes a continuous combustion method in which solid combustion residues are separated from the flue gas by centrifugal force. This method of combustion allows intensive burning not only of solid materials, such as municipal waste, but also of gases, powders, and aerosols. The apparatus for implementing this method of combustion and disposal can be used not only as a furnace, but also as a chemical reactor, with certain modifications required by the technological conditions for some reactions (e.g. dosing of the necessary components for the reaction).

Background art

Currently, most solid waste, including municipal waste, is kept in landfills. More modern landfills have a venting system for the landfill gases, which are then incinerated. Solid waste, mainly municipal waste, is disposed of by incineration or pyrolysis at temperatures up to 1200 °C - due to the durability of the construction materials, furnaces must often be cooled down. Waste is brought in from a distance - creating a carbon footprint for the trucks. Grid furnaces are used to incinerate the waste, with natural gas used as fuel. There are not enough incinerators, low-capacity incinerators are not cost-effective and large-capacity incinerators are difficult to obtain permits for and are rejected by the local community.

Gas mixtures, aerosols and dust mixtures are usually captured by washing in various solutions or water baths and filtering, which is not ultimately the final disposal of the waste, only its capture, which is not its complete disposal. Examples are the paint shops of car manufacturers or furniture factories.

Summary of invention The shortcomings of the prior art are substantially eliminated by a cyclone furnace for intensive combustion of material, the subject-matter of which is that it comprises a cyclone furnace housing formed by a cylindrical part to which a tapering conical part is attached at the bottom. Inside the housing is the furnace combustion chamber; the cylindrical part is closed from above by a lid through which the flue passes. The flue is located in the axis of the combustion chamber and runs through most of the length of the cylindrical section, which is fitted with a housed primary combustion chamber connected tangentially at the top. The primary combustion chamber is fitted with at least one burner and an excess air inlet to create cyclonic flow dynamics of the burning material. The cyclone furnace housing is fitted with insulation on the inner side and a duplicator on the outer side for cooling the furnace housing and the outer insulation; the tapered part of the conical section is fitted with a continuous combustion residue removal device or collection vessel.

The cyclone furnace according to the present invention is fitted with secondary burners ducted tangentially into the combustion space of the cylindrical section of the housing.

The cylindrical section of the housing is fitted with tangentially arranged inlets for feeding secondary air to the combustion chamber.

The tangential arrangement of the air holes through which air is drawn in and the tangential arrangement of the burners results in better combustion because cyclonic flow is created. Cyclonic flow extends the combustion path because the thickened combusted waste "circles" at the outside of the furnace where the burners are tangentially positioned.

According to a further embodiment, the burner of the primary combustion chamber may be a centric burner and/or a dispersion burner. The cyclone furnace according to the invention may comprise a secondary material inlet directly into the combustion chamber. This input is tangentially connected to the cylindrical part.

Preferably, the excess air inlet (8) is connected tangentially to intensify combustion and cool the primary combustion chamber housing (7).

According to a further preferred embodiment, secondary burners and/or secondary air inlets may be mounted on studs to allow them to be rotated in the vertical and possibly also in the horizontal plane within a range of ±30° to keep the burning material entrained.

The housed primary combustion chamber and flue may be lined with insulation on the inside.

According to a further embodiment, the combustion compartment may be fitted with guiding lugs in the cylindrical portion of the housing to keep the combustion material entrained, thereby extending the combustion time.

The cyclone furnace, according to a preferred embodiment, comprises two burners in the primary combustion chamber, namely a dispersion burner and a centric burner, which are arranged concentrically, the dispersion burner being positioned in the centre of the centric burner, which is in the shape of a circle.

Another aspect of the present invention is an apparatus for intensive incineration of material, in particular municipal solid waste, comprising a cyclone furnace with two burners, a dispersion burner and a centric burner, and another cyclone furnace with one burner. The cyclone furnaces may be connected such that the flue of the first cyclone furnace is connected to the housed primary combustion chamber of the second cyclone furnace. The apparatus for intensive combustion of material, in particular municipal solid waste, may comprise at least one cyclone furnace according to claim 9 and/or at least one cyclone furnace according to claim 4 interconnected in series or in parallel. Another aspect of the present invention is also a method of intensive combustion of material in the apparatus described in the preceding paragraph, according to which the solid waste disintegrated by chopping, shredding or grinding into particles of 5 to 100 mm, homogenized and shaped into a continuous longitudinal element, preferably a tube, is subjected to a flame at a temperature of 1300°C to 3000°C preferably 1500°C to 2500°C preferably at least externally in the presence of an excess of oxygen or air. At the same time, air is supplied to the shaped solid waste to create the dynamics of cyclonic flow of the burning material, then the first combustion gases are separated from the first solid combustion residues, where the first solid combustion residues due to centrifugal force and gravity fall and collect. The first flue gases containing solid waste residues are diverted for refiring at a temperature of 1500 to 1600°C to a second cyclone furnace, where air is introduced to the first flue gases to create the dynamics of the cyclonic flow of the burning material. The second solid combustion residues separate from the second combustion residues under the influence of centrifugal force and gravity, and the second solid residues sink and are collected. The second combustion residues are discharged to the atmosphere or for further chemical or physical treatment; wherein the first and/or second solid combustion residues are preferably treated by grinding for further use or storage.

Another aspect of the present invention is the use of the cyclone furnace as a chemical reactor.

Intensive combustion of the material is achieved by burning hydrogen (or methane) as fuel and is designed so that high temperatures are reached only in the combustion chamber, i.e. only in contact with the combustion material. Advantageously, the combination of high temperatures and fast flowing air destroys all hazardous substances contained in the disposed waste. The increase in the combustion intensity of the material is achieved not only by the use of hydrogen in the combustion, but also by the increase in combustion dynamics achieved by the secondary air. In the combustion chamber of the cyclone furnace, a highly dynamic movement of the burning particles is created with a sufficient excess of secondary air, which rotates around the furnace axis. The solid and heavier combustion residues slide by gravity down the furnace wall into the lower conical part of the furnace through the solid combustion residue extraction tap and the combustion gases exit through the flue, which is located in the axis of the furnace combustion chamber.

The material is usually ignited in the primary combustion chamber and enters the furnace combustion space already burning. When stable combustion conditions are achieved in the furnace combustion chamber, it is possible to feed the combustion material directly into the furnace combustion chamber, via the secondary material inlet, without igniting it in the primary combustion chamber.

Some materials need to be treated before entering the furnace, especially if they are municipal or other wastes. The modification is as follows.

The solid waste is stripped of excess liquid before incineration, sorted (secondary raw materials, construction waste, etc.), then crushed into approximately equal parts, homogenised and compacted and fed into the inlet section, from where this material is fed into the combustion chamber of the cyclone furnace.

High-viscosity wastes such as pastes, paints, etc., may be added to such homogenised waste at a ratio of 10 to 50 %, by weight, of the solid waste prior to pressing and shaping. These become part of the homogenised municipal solid waste and burn with it.

The homogenized solid waste may be shaped into a continuous element of longitudinal shape, preferably an infinite rod, or an infinite continuous hollow shape such as a tube having a circular or n-angular cross-section, or a C-section.

The shaped solid waste in the form of a continuously fed thick-walled tube may, according to a preferred embodiment, be ignited prior to tangentially entering the cyclone furnace in the primary combustion chamber. Advantageously, a flame can be applied simultaneously to both the inner and outer surfaces of the formed solid waste, wherein the outer and inner flames act on the same portion of the cross- sectional area of the hollow profile of the formed solid waste.

The flame is generated by a pair of burners, one of which is a dispersion burner located inside the shaped solid waste and whose flame acts around the entire inner perimeter of the shaped solid waste. The second burner is a centric burner whose flame is externally applied around the entire outer perimeter of the shaped solid waste. It is preferable if the flames of the burners operate in opposite directions, in the same cross-section. To achieve more intense ignition of the combustion material, secondary air is tangentially fed into the primary combustion chamber, which not only creates excess air for better ignition of the material to be burned, but concurrently also cools the walls of the primary combustion chamber.

The solid waste thus ignited passes into the cyclone furnace through a tangential inlet to the upper part of the cyclone furnace, which forms the combustion chamber of the cyclone furnace. The reheating of the residue takes place at a controlled temperature of around 1300°C with excess oxidant for a sufficiently long time. This is in the form of forced air which creates an excess of oxygen in the cyclone furnace and at the same time the cyclone furnace separates the solid combustion residues (ash, slag, unburnt pieces) from the combustion gases on the centrifugal principle - the heavier particles of combustion residues are driven by centrifugal force against the furnace walls, on which they slide and fall to the bottom of the furnace, where they are discharged for further processing by grinding, so that they can be used, for example, as aggregate in concrete. Any incompletely incinerated parts are re-mixed into the waste entering the process described above after separation. Similarly, some of the hot air drawn down the flue may be returned to the cyclone furnace to increase the inlet temperature of the forced air, the spread of the fuel, as well as the possible refiring of the organic parts contained in the combustion gas. The combustion gases to be refired are fed directly into the combustion chamber of the cyclone furnace. There is at least one additional air inlet that is heated tangentially to the combustion chamber of the cyclone furnace by the cooling of the cyclone furnace housing and ensures circulation of the combustion material in the cyclone furnace as well as excess oxygen for good combustion. The combustion chamber of the cyclone furnace is fitted with secondary burners to ensure temperature control of the combustion process.

The combustion gases leave through the flue and are then ducted to the primary combustion chamber of the second cyclone furnace where refiring occurs, and the combustion gases are completely burnt, and the remaining fine solid combustion residues are separated from the combustion gases.

The insulation of the cyclone furnace may be ceramic insulation, preferably AI₂O₃ZrO₂.

The first and second solid combustion residues in the form of ash, sinter and slag are further homogenised to a mutually similar particle size distribution and may be further employed, for example, in concrete or by other suitable solidification.

The cyclone furnace with one burner can also be used separately, e.g. for the disposal of aerosols from paint shops, or for the disposal of combustible dust particles in a gaseous medium or gas mixture, for the automatic separation of combustion residues.

In a cyclone furnace according to the present invention, homogeneous materials of the same kind (solid materials, liquids, aerosols, gases, powdered materials) can be combusted, while one or more other materials can be continuously added to the burning material, which react with the burning mixture and can form a different product. This product may be combustion residues and/or combustion gases, which are automatically separated from each other in the cyclone furnace so used by centrifugal force. Thus, the cyclone furnace can be used as a continuous chemical reactor with automatic separation of the solid or liquid and gas phases. Brief description of drawings

Figure 1 shows a vertical section of a cyclone furnace with a duplicator

Figure 2 shows a cyclone furnace with no external insulation and no secondary air inlets shown;

Figure 3 shows a detail of the location of the annular centric burner in the primary combustion chamber;

Figure 4 shows a vertical section of a cyclone furnace with a secondary burner;

Figure 5 shows a detail of the arrangement of the secondary burner in the ball stud with the possibility of its angular rotation in both horizontal and vertical planes; Figure 6 shows a cyclone furnace with no external insulation section fitted with a continuous combustion residue removal device shown;

Figure 7 shows a horizontal section of the cyclone furnace at the height of the solid waste inlet to the primary combustion chamber;

Figure 8 shows the principle of intensive combustion of material;

Figure 9 shows the combustion chamber of a cyclone furnace with the inlet of the secondary air through a ball stud, which allows the angle of the secondary air inlet to be varied in the vertical plane for continuous control of the entrainment of the combustion material.

Figure 10 shows a combustion chamber of a cyclone furnace with directional protrusions to direct the flow of the burning mixture and to extend the burning time of the mixture by keeping it entrained in the combustion chamber for a longer period of time.

Examples

Example 1 Cyclone furnace

The cyclone furnace shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3 consists of a housing 1 formed in the upper part by a cylindrical part to which is attached a conical part which tapers downwards. At the end of the cone there is a collection container. The upper opening of the cylindrical part is covered by a lid 3, which is fitted with a flue 4 for exhausting the combustion gases, extending up to % of the length (height) of the cylindrical part. The housing 1 of the cyclone furnace is fitted externally with a duplicator 5 and external insulation (not shown in the drawings). The housing 1 as well as the flue 4 are also fitted with insulation 6 on the inside of the housing 1. The cylindrical part is fitted with a housed inlet in focus 7 connected tangentially in the upper half of the height. The primary combustion chamber 7 receives an air inlet 8, a fuel inlet 9 and a combustion material inlet 10. The inner space of the furnace is the combustion space 11. In Figure 2, the cyclone furnace housing 1 is fitted with inlets 12 to the duplicator 5 and outlets 13 from the duplicator 5. The inputs 12 to the duplicator 5 and the outputs 13 from the duplicator 5 are also tangentially connected to the duplicator 5.

Figure 3 is a detail of the tangential connection of the primary combustion chamber 7 to the cylindrical part of the cyclone furnace housing 1, that is, the connection of the primary combustion chamber 7 to the combustion chamber 11 of the cyclone furnace. The primary combustion chamber 7 is fitted with an air inlet 8 and a burner 14, which in this case is a centric burner. The air inlet 8 also serves to create the dynamics of cyclonic flow as air is supplied in excess. The inner walls of the cyclone furnace are fitted with inlets 15 for feeding secondary air to the combustion chamber 11.

Example 2

Cyclone furnace with secondary burners

Figure 4 shows a cyclone furnace, the combustion space 11 of which is fitted with secondary burners 16 for more intensive combustion of the material in entrainment, and is fitted with a device 17 for continuous removal of combustion residues instead of a collecting vessel. The secondary burners 16 are mounted on studs 18 so that they can be pivoted in the vertical plane. A detail of the location of the secondary burner 16 is shown in Figure 5.

Example 3 The cyclone furnace shown in Figure 6 contains a housing 1 comprising both a cylindrical section and a tapering conical section, the latter being fitted at the bottom with a device 17 for continuous removal of combustion residues. The cylindrical upper part of the housing is covered at the top by a lid 3 from which a flue 4 extends, the flue 4 extending into the combustion chamber 11 of the cylindrical section. The cylindrical portion is further fitted with a tangentially connected housed primary combustion chamber 7. The primary combustion chamber 7 comprises two burners 14, a dispersion burner and a centric burner (shown in FIGS. 7 and 8), which will be described in more detail below. The cyclone furnace is further fitted with secondary burners 16, inlets 15 for feeding secondary air or oxygen as well as a duplicator 5 with an inlet 12 and an outlet 13 of the duplicator 5. In the section through the cylindrical section at the location of the primary combustion chamber shown in FIG. 7, the secondary material inlet 19, and the arrangement of the burners 14 in the housed primary combustion chamber 7 are also visible. The burners 14 are arranged concentrically, with the dispersion burner located in the centre of the centric burner, which is ring-shaped. In the intermediate ring between the centric burner and the dispersion burner, a space is formed for the inlet 10 of the combustion material in the form of a tube. A sketch of the arrangement of the burners 14 and the inlet 10 of the combustion material is shown in detail in FIG. 8.

Example 4

The cyclone furnace described in the preceding examples may have guiding lugs shown in FIG. 10 on the inner wall of the combustion chamber. In FIG. 9, the tangentially connected inlet 15 of secondary air placed on the stud 18 is shown and/or has a pivot of the secondary burners 16 in the stud 18 (FIG. 5), and/or is fitted with a tangentially arranged inlet 15 of secondary air placed in the stud 18 (FIG. 9), for keeping the burning material entrained longer.

Example 5

The cyclone furnace described in Examples 1, 2 or 3 may be fitted with guiding lugs 20, on the inner surface of the cylindrical portion of the cyclone furnace, which serve to guide the combustion material entrained. At the same time, the tangential connection of the inlet 15 of the secondary air is also visible.

Example 6

The disintegrated municipal solid waste into particles of 5 to 50 mm in size, which have been homogenised and formed into a continuous longitudinal element - tube, is fed into the primary combustion chamber 7 of the cyclone furnace described in Example 2 or Example 3. In the primary combustion chamber 7, this material is simultaneously subjected to a flame at a temperature of 1600°C from the outside by a centric burner and from the inside by a dispersion burner under excess oxygen. At the same time, excess air is supplied to the burning shaped solid waste to create the dynamics of cyclonic flow of the burning material. The primary combustion chamber includes a diffusion burner that is within the continuous longitudinal member and a centric burner that encircles the continuous longitudinal member circumferentially. The flames from these burners thus act on the continuous longitudinal element from the inside and outside in the same cross-section, which makes the ignition more intense. An inlet 8 of excess air is also tangentially fed into the primary combustion chamber 7, which increases the dynamics of the entire process, blows combustion particles into the combustion space 11 of the cyclone furnace, and simultaneously cools the walls of the primary combustion chamber. Burning material enters the combustion chamber 11 of the cyclone furnace, where the first combustion gases are subsequently separated from the first solid combustion residues. The first solid combustion residues fall due to centrifugal force and gravity and are discharged by the continuous combustion residue removal device or fall into the collection vessel 2. The first flue gas containing the solid waste residue is discharged through the flue 4 for refiring at 1500°C to the next cyclone furnace described in Example 1. To the first combustion residue fed through the primary combustion chamber 7 of the cyclone furnace according to Example 1, air is supplied by an excess air supply to create a cyclonic flow dynamic of the combustion material in the combustion space of the second cyclone furnace, where the second combustion residue solids are separated from the second flue gases. Under the influence of centrifugal force and gravity, the second solid residue sinks and collects in the collection vessel 2 and the second flue gas is discharged to the air or for further chemical or physical treatment. The first and/or second solid combustion residues are preferably processed by grinding for further use or storage, whereby the duration of the flame action and the speed of air movement depend specifically on the type of solid waste being disposed of, as well as its physical and chemical properties.

List of reference numbers

1. housing

2. collection vessel

3. lid

4. flue

5. duplicator

6. insulation

7. primary combustion chamber

8. excess air inlet

9. fuel feed inlet to burner

10. combustion material

11. combustion space

12. entrance to duplicator

13. exit from duplicator

14. burner

15. secondary air inlets

16. secondary burner

17. device for continuous collection of combustion residues

18. stud

19. secondary material input

20. guiding lug

Claims

C L A I M S

1. A cyclone furnace for intensive combustion of material, characterised in that it comprises a housing (1) formed by a cylindrical part to which a tapering conical part is attached at the bottom, inside the housing (1) there is a combustion chamber (11) of the furnace, from above the cylindrical part is closed by a lid (3) through which a flue (4) passes, the flue (4) is located in the axis of the combustion chamber (11) and passes through the greater part of the length of the cylindrical part, the cylindrical part is fitted at the top with a housed primary combustion chamber (7) connected tangentially and the primary combustion chamber (7) is fitted with at least one burner (14) and an excess air inlet (8) for generating cyclonic flow dynamics of the burning material, the housing (1) of the cyclonic furnace is fitted with an insulation (6) on the inner side and a duplicator (5) on the outer side for cooling the housing (1) and an outer insulation; the tapered portion of the conical section is fitted with a device (17) for continuous removal of combustion residues or a collection vessel (2), wherein the cylindrical section of the housing (1) is fitted with secondary burners (16) leading tangentially into the combustion chamber (11), wherein the cylindrical section of the housing (1) is fitted with tangentially arranged inlets (15) for feeding secondary air into the combustion space (11).

2. The cyclone furnace according to claim 1, characterised in that the burner (14) of the primary combustion chamber (7) is a centric burner and/or a dispersion burner.

3. The cyclone furnace according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that it comprises an secondary material inlet (19) into the combustion chamber (11), tangentially connected to the cylindrical section.

4. The cyclone furnace according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterised in that the excess air inlet (8), for intensifying the combustion and cooling the housing of the primary combustion chamber (7), is connected tangentially.

5. The cyclone furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the secondary burners (16) and/or the inlets (15) of secondary air are mounted on studs (18) to allow their rotation in the vertical and, where applicable, horizontal plane within ± 30° to keep the burning material entrained.

6. The cyclone furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the housed primary combustion chamber (7), and the flue (4) are lined internally with the insulation (6).

7. The cyclone furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the combustion space (11) is fitted with guiding lugs (20) in the cylindrical part of the housing (1).

8. The cyclone furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterised in that the housed primary combustion chamber (7) comprises two burners (14), the dispersion burner and the centric burner arranged concentrically, wherein the dispersion burner is arranged in the centre of the centric burner, which is in the shape of a circle.

9. An apparatus for intensive combustion of material, in particular municipal solid waste, characterised in that it comprises the cyclone furnace according to claim 7 and the cyclone furnace according to claim 2 connected in such a way that the flue of the cyclone furnace according to claim 7 is connected to the primary combustion chamber (7) of the cyclone furnace according to claim 2 or the cyclone furnace according to claim 2 and the cyclone furnace according to claim 7 connected in such a way that the cyclone furnace flue according to claim 2 is connected to the primary combustion chamber (7) of the cyclone furnace according to claim 7, or at least two cyclone furnaces according to claim 2 connected in series or in parallel, or at least two cyclone furnaces according to claim 7 connected in series or in parallel.

10. A method of intensive combustion of material in the apparatus according to claim 9, characterized in that the solid waste disintegrated by chopping, crushing, or grinding into particles having a particle size of 5 to 100 mm, homogenized and shaped into a continuous longitudinal element, preferably the tube are subjected to a flame at a temperature of 1300 °C to 3000 °C, preferably 1500 °C to 2500 °C, at least externally, in the presence of excess oxygen or air, and at the same time air is supplied to the shaped solid waste to create a cyclonic flow dynamics of the burning material, subsequently separating the first combustion gases from the first solid combustion residues, where the first solid combustion residues sink and collect due to centrifugal force and gravity, and where the first combustion residues containing the solid waste residues are diverted for refiring at a temperature of 1500 to 1600 °C, and where air is supplied to the first combustion residues to create the cyclonic flow dynamics of the burning material, and where the second solid combustion residues are separated from the second flue gases, where the second solid residues sink and accumulate due to centrifugal force and gravity, and where the second flue gases are discharged to air or for further chemical or physical treatment; wherein the first and/or second solid combustion residues are preferably processed by grinding for further use or storage.

11. Use of a cyclone furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 8 for use as a chemical reactor.