MXPA98003019A - Apparatus for the separation and reaction of quimi products - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a chemical reaction and processing apparatus for the separation of volatile substances from non-volatile substances and from volatile substances, one from the other, comprising: an outer shell, a retort of vacuum heat treatment rotatably placed inside of the outer shell, a rotating sleeve and a seal connected to at least one end of the retort, means for transporting material to be processed in the retort, an internal filter placed inside the retort, means for transporting volatile substances out of the retort attached to the internal filter, means to rotate the retort, means to cool the rotating sleeve and seal, means to establish and maintain a vacuum pressure inside the retort between 3,386 to 98,205 Pa (1 to 29 inches of mercury), collapsing thus the boiling point of volatile substances during the operation of the apparatus, and means for heating the retort to a temperature sufficient to vaporize volatile substances

Description

APPARATUS FOR THE SEPARATION AND REACTION OF CHEMICALS TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an apparatus for use in the separation of volatile substances from non-volatiles, separation of volatile substances, from one another and for carrying out various chemical reactions and, in particular, to an apparatus to carry out these functions using a combination of higher ambient temperatures and a vacuum greater than 2.54 mm of mercury inside a rotating vessel equipped with or without an internal filter through which the gases and vapors that must pass escape. Due to the density allowed by the present invention, the apparatus can also be configured to operate in self-contained mobile mode. BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION Various thermal treatment systems have been and continue to be used to separate volatile substances from non-volatile ones. For example, thermal desorption units are commonly used to remove substances such as mercury and volatile organic products from soil and other solids. Said prior art system is described in Publication No. WO 95/06505 of FRS Patented Technologies LTD, entitled: Material Cleaner Device. This prior art system uses a heated non-rotating vessel operated under high vacuum of 101.592 Pa (76.2 mm Hg). The high vacuum in the non-rotating system serves to shorten the process time. Although the technology is well known, there are several drawbacks and limitations that are overcome with the current invention. First, there are many cases in which one or more of the components of the matrix and / or the substances that are to be separated are thermally sensitive. This is one or more of the substances ending with the undesired substances and / or the structure of one or more of the matrix components are altered in a way that adversely affects the subsequent or reused treatment. Although these prior art systems employing heat and vacuum can be used for these situations, the use of vacuum decreases the boiling point of the substances and, depending on the substances involved, may allow the separation of chemicals at lower critical temperatures. . However, this prior technique is not alternate and therefore the small batch system requires large processing times. Prior art systems do not use rotation in combination with elevated temperature and substantial vacuum due to difficulties with sealing a hot rotating container under these conditions. Inadequate seals allow uncontrolled amounts of air to flow into the resulting retort that carries out the particulates and adds to the requirements of the malodorous gas treatment. To overcome the low processing speeds of this and other systems of the prior art, the present invention employs a heated rotating container operating under a significant vacuum. Another prior art system employing rotation is described in Publication No. WO 93/08936 of Recycling Nederland B.V., entitled: Method and Device for Removing one or more Contaminants from a Dense Material. These prior art systems use heated rotating vessels operated under a vacuum of less than 230 Pa (3 millibars). The prior art system describes a treatment chamber in which a vacuum is formed by a vacuum tube through an intermediate steam treating element. The treatment chamber is rotated and closed by the upper flanges provided with collars, which are arranged between the drum and the flanges. The seals of the treatment chamber are preferably made of copper or annealed titanium at elevated operating temperatures. For lower operating temperatures, for example up to 500 ° C, seals made of an elastomer or asbestos are used.

The rotation increases the processing speed by improving the heat transfer of the process material, minimizing the path length of the volatilized substances that have to travel towards the exit of the retort and minimizing the interference made by the collision between the volatilized substances and the particulates before the retort leaves. However, when operating at higher temperatures it produces cleaner substances, this prior art system requires the use of expensive seals that can withstand high internal temperatures, thus making the system even more expensive. Also these seals can leak. The present invention overcomes the problem of sealing a heated rotating container under substantial vacuum through the use of a uniquely designed rotating sleeve and a seal configuration mounted to the outside which allows the seal to be easily cooled and maintained below the temperature maximum seal operation. The methods and prior apparatuses for processing materials described in the Patent Titles of the U.S.A. Nos. 4,268,306; 5,183,499; 5,244,492; and 5,300,137, decrease the boiling point of the substances and, depending on the substances involved, may allow the separation of chemicals at lower critical temperatures. However, prior art systems that use a higher ambient temperature and substantial vacuum do not rotate and therefore are systems for small batches that require large processing times. The prior art systems do not use rotation in combination with high temperature and substantial vacuum due to difficulties with sealing a hot rotating container under these conditions. Inadequate seals allow uncontrolled amounts of air to flow into the resulting retort that carries out the particulates and that add to the treatment requirements for the malodorous gas. To overcome the lower processing speeds of the prior art systems, the present invention employs a heated rotating container operating under a large vacuum. The rotation increases the speed of the process by improving the transfer of heat to the process material, minimizing the path length of the volatilized substances that have to travel to the exit of the retort and minimizing the transfer originated by the collisions of volatilized substances and particulates before they exit the retort. The present invention overcomes the problem of sealing a heated rotating container under substantial vacuum through the use of a uniquely designed rotating sleeve and the externally mounted seal configuration allows the seal to be easily cooled and maintained below operating temperatures. maximum of the seal. Another problem associated with the systems of the prior art is that the common materials available for the construction of the retort limit the maximum operating temperature of an indirectly ignited unit. Therefore, substances with boiling points above these temperature limits can not be rapidly volatilized within these units but must be processed using units coated with an internally heated refractory material in an expensive manner. However, in the present invention, the use of a high vacuum within a rotating vessel lowers the boiling point of the substances up to several hundred degrees Fahrenheit. This improvement allows the present invention to volatilize materials with high boiling points at a lower cost than what has been possible to be used in the prior art. Finally, the levels of cleanliness in contaminated sites are often dictated by the best available technology demonstrated. OftenIf acceptable cleaning levels can not be achieved from the point of view of protection of human health and the environment with on-site treatment, the contaminated material must be excavated and hauled to a site to be treated and buried. The reason why other technologies do not reach an acceptably low residual level of contamination in the processed material is frequent because the bottom contaminants within the material particulates are not removed. Out of time, you can find "clean" sites that will be contaminated due to the chemicals inside the processed material that has migrated to the surface of the particulates of the material and are again detected by analytical tests. The use of a high vacuum in the present invention provides the benefits of accelerating the overall separation process and maximizes the diffusion of volatile compounds from inside the solid to the surface where they are rapidly vaporized and extracted from the retort. The diffusion is maximized by the increased pressure gradient between the center of a particle and the surface of the particle. The contaminant inside the particle vaporizes producing a relatively high pressure inside the particle compared to the very low pressure on the surface of the particle. Therefore the present invention achieves the goal of producing the lowest residual contamination levels achievable by the efficient removal of contaminants from the depth within the solid matrix.

The above methods and apparatuses for processing the materials are described in the U.S. Patent Titles. No. 4,268,306; 5,183,499; 5,244,492; and 5,300,137. COMPENDIUM OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an apparatus for the separation of volatile products from non-volatile substances, the separation of volatile substances from one another, and performing various chemical reactions providing an apparatus, capable of being configured for an operation mobile, which uses an application of ambient temperature greater than or equal to approximately a vacuum of 2.5 centimeters of mercury in a rotating container. This apparatus reduces the particulate and scavenges gases in insignificant amounts, and thus drastically reduces the need for expensive and large malodorous gas processing systems found in the prior art. The apparatus of the present achieves this through the employment of greater vacuum than or equal to approximately 2.54 cm of mercury and an exclusively rotationally designed seal and the seal is placed in combination with an internal filter that effectively removes particulates from the retort exhaust . The present invention combines a vacuum greater than or equal to about 2.54 cm. of mercury with a rotation retort heated externally or internally, which through the use of an internal filter and the seal placed, avoids air leakage to the retort and produces an apparatus that virtually eliminates particulates and decreases to a minimum the introduction of unwanted gases into the retort and, in this way, into the malodorous gas treatment system. In addition, the vacuum of the present invention lowers the boiling point of many volatile compounds so that substances that could not be treated with thermal desorption units ignited indirectly from the prior art are processed efficiently. Importantly, when making the particulate is virtually eliminated by a combination of a vacuum greater than or equal to approximately 2.54 cm. of mercury, lower gas volumes swept and an internal filter with a conventional pressure reduction system to avoid clogging. This combination also leads to a maximum of the veracity of the processing. The volatilization rates accelerate the vacuum of the compounds within the materials such as ground particles creating a pressure gradient between the center and the surface of the particles. The pollutants, in this way, diffuse faster out of the interior of contaminated substances.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For a more complete understanding of the present invention and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an embodiment preferred of the apparatus of the present invention; Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-section of an embodiment of the seal assembly of the apparatus of the present invention; and Figure 3 is a longitudinal cross section of one of the preferred embodiments of the retort of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Turning now to Figure 1, the entire apparatus 10 of the present invention is described therein. The material to be treated can be used in any suitable feeding mechanism for its introduction into the retort 40. If necessary, the material 20 can be prepared using any number of conventional methods, such as grinding, sizing, sieving, the addition of chemicals and / or other additives or defibrated so the material 20 is prepared and reduced to a suitable size to be fed through the first sleeve 30 of the apparatus 10 and processed. As the material 20 is fed through the first sleeve 30, it is fed into the vacuum rotary heat treatment vessel (retort) 40. The material 20 can be introduced into the retort 40 through the sleeve 30 by any mechanism suitable including a drill, a pump or any other transfer method. For example, to load the larger materials, such as a metal tube, the normal feeding device can be replaced with a loading orifice allowing the placement of large pieces of material 20 in the retort. The material 20 can also be stacked in the retort 40. Note that an insulated hearth 50 surrounds the retort 40. The hearth 50 can be constructed of any suitable material capable of withstanding the insulation. In one embodiment, a blanket of insulating material 60 is found between the firebox 50 and the retort wall 40. The retort 40 may be constructed of any material capable of withstanding vacuum and elevated temperature. Preferably the retort 40 is constructed of materials that can withstand temperatures of 1100 degrees Celcius and Voids of 98.205 * Pa (29 + inches of mercury). The retort 40 preferably has an internal filter 70 which is used in connection with the retort 40 to prevent the particulates from entering the malodorous gas treatment system. The filter 70 (in at least one embodiment) is in the form of one or more sintered metal cylinders equipped with a rear ventilation system (not shown) located within the retort 40. The apparatus 10 can also be used, depending on the material to be processed and the operation parameters of the retort 40, without the internal filter 70. During the operation, the volatilized materials pass through a conduit 80 and exit the retort 40 through the sleeve 90. The sleeve 90 has a seal 100 between the stationary malodorous gas tube and the rotation conduit 80 which allow the vacuum to be maintained. Once it leaves the retort 40, the volatilized material is directed to any of a number of malodorous gas treatment systems 110 suitable for further processing or discharge to the atmosphere. A vacuum pump 120 is used to maintain a suitable vacuum within the retort 40 while in use. It is possible to carry out the processing of the malodorous gas under vacuum or ambient pressure, depending on the placement of the vacuum cake. During operation, the heat from the heat source 130 is applied to the retort 40 indirectly through the use of the used hearth 50 and the insulation material 60. The heat source 130 can be any heat body of the conventional type and it can use any conventional fuel that would produce the appropriate temperatures and the necessary heat transfer within the retort 40. For example, the heat source 130 can be from fossil fuels for combustion, heavy duty heaters, infrared heaters and microwave heaters or any number of conventional elements. Alternatively, the resistance, infrared or microwave heaters can be mounted inside the retort 40 with the retort coated or uncoated inside of refractory material or insulated on the outside with material capable of withstanding high temperatures. Preferably, at all times during the operation of the apparatus 10, the vacuum pump 120 is used to establish and maintain a vacuum within the retort 40 from 3,386 to 98,205 + Pa (1 to 29 + inches of mercury) After treatment in the apparatus 10, the gaseous and volatilized materials can go through many types of systems for the treatment of malodorous gas 110 including conventional separators, gas / gas phase reactors, condensers, cleaners, absorption / adsorption beds, catalytic reactors and released direct to the atmosphere. Turning now to Figure 2, there is further disclosed therein a preferred embodiment of sleeve 90 used in connection with the present invention. Note that gaseous and vaporized materials pass through conduit 80 as it leaves retort 40 to malodorous gas treatment system 110. Gaseous and vaporized materials flow through filter 70. Conduit 80 is also added to a seal of rotary vacuum 100 and engages with the external non-rotating tube 140. Also as shown in Figure 2 there is a purge device or process for controlling the flow of gas 150. The use of purge gas 160, which can be air performs two functions: first, it helps maintain the temperature of the outer sleeve 90 near the ambient air. Second, it helps to prevent the entry of malodorous gases from the process, which in turn prevent condensate from contaminants accumulated inside the sleeve 90. In addition, the very slight pressure gradient caused by the purge gas helps to avoid the particulates that enter to sleeve 90. Importantly, the design of the seal also reduces the amount of purge gas required to assist the movement of gaseous and volatilized substances out of retort 40. In addition, high vacuum increases the diffusion rate of the gases and vapors from a higher concentration area within the retort 40 to an area of lower concentration in the malodorous gas treatment system 110. The use of the seal 100 allows the retort 40 to be rotated to be suitably sealed at temperatures high, although the dimensions of retort 40 change due to expansion. Importantly, due to the capacity of the purge gas and the rotating tube within a tube system of the present invention maintain the seal 100 in the cooling interface of the retort 40, commercially available elastomeric seals can be used. One of the disadvantages of the prior art is that most conventional seals can only withstand temperatures of up to approximately 149 to 204 ° C (300 to 400 ° F), which is considerably lower than that of the 811 to 1038 degrees Celsius (1600 to 1900 ° F) of the temperatures generated within the retort 40. While the high temperature seals that are currently being developed are considerably more expensive than those used in the present invention. Also, note that there are thermal shutters 170 also assist in maintaining the differential temperature between the retort 40 and the sleeve 90 and between the coupling tube 140 and the malodorous gas treatment system 110. Turning now to Figure 3, in one embodiment of the apparatus 10 the retort 40 is a cylindrical vessel having internal flights, or spirals, and elevators 180. The support rollers 190 are also used in relation to the retort 40 so that it is easily rotatable within the firebox 50. Once the vacuum has been established by the vacuum pump 120, the retort 40 is adjusted to rotation by a motor system and the appropriate drive motor (not shown). The placement of the flights and the elevators 180 along the inner wall of the retort 40 act to increase the heat transfer from the retort 40 to the material 20 to be processed. The rotation of the retort 40 and the use of the flights and the elevators 180 also increases the surface area of the material 20 exposed to the vacuum inducing a cascade and / or the rolling of the material thereby decreasing the length of the path required by the vapors and the gases leaving the retort 40 and also minimize to a minimum the interferences caused by the interactions between the vapor molecules and the particulates during the movement of the steam outside the retort. The use of. flights and elevators 180 also allows retort 40 to be filled to a depth of bed greater than traditional retorts, thereby increasing production. The rapid removal of the volatilized substances from the retort 40 minimizes the degree of thermal decomposition that occurs within the retort 40, resulting in a more defined malodorous gas stream and a simpler design than the waste treatment system. malodorous gas 110.

Chains, steel balls, or other devices can be used within the retort 40 to further reduce the particle size during processing. The interior of the retort 40 preferably contains a sintered metal filter 70 capable of continuing service under the conditions created within the retort 40. All the gases leaving the retort 40 pass through the filter 70 which acts to prevent the particles enter the malodorous gas treatment system 110. Typically, the filter 70 is coaxially or off-centered in the upper third part of the retort 40 and may or may not rotate within the retort. Note that the apparatus 10 can be placed in trailers or vehicles or unloaded and assembled in any place where the material is going to be processed. Although the process as it is. described in this patent is a batch process can also be used in a continuous feeding mode. In addition, chemical reactions can be performed using the apparatus 10 to create the necessary atmospheric and thermal conditions within the retort 40. Furthermore, the apparatus 10 of the present invention is particularly useful for reducing the volume of the. radioactive materials through the use of retort 40 by removing free water and hydration waters, separating non-radioactive volatile substances from radioactive volatile substances such as radioactive metallic isotope ion exchange organic resins and decomposing non-radioactive solids into one or more gases such as the conversion of non-radioactive calcium carbonate used in the treatment of waste water from a nuclear reactor in calcium oxide and carbon dioxide. Although the invention has been described in detail, it will be clearly understood that it is by way of illustration and example only and should not be considered as a limitation.

Claims (27)

1. An apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals for the separation of volatilized gases from a material containing one or more volatilizable substances, the apparatus for the processing and reaction of chemical products comprises: a retort adapted to rotate around the central axis, the material being arranged inside the retort; a system for treating malodorous gas adapted to receive volatilized gases from the retort; a sleeve extending from the retort and connecting the retort to the malodorous gas treatment system; a rotating seal placed in or around the sleeve capable of maintaining a vacuum within the retort when the material is heated to a temperature greater than 204.4 ° C (400 ° F); , a rotation device in communication with the retort adapted to drive the retort to a rotational movement; a vacuum device in communication with the retort adapted to generate a vacuum between 3,386 to 98,205 + Pa (1 to 29 + inches of mercury) inside the retort; and a heating device in communication with the retort adapted to heat the material in the retort to a temperature sufficient to volatilize one or more of the volatilizable substances in the volatilized gases.

2. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 1, further comprising at least one thermal shutter disposed at the end of the sleeve.

3. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 1, further comprising a cooling device for cooling the rotating seal.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 3, wherein the cooling device comprises a control device for the flow of purge gas connected to the sleeve and communicating therewith to allow the Purge gas flows into the sleeve.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 3, wherein the cooling device establishes a gas flow that cools the sleeve and helps to avoid condensation of the substances that accumulate inside the sleeve.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 1, further comprising at least one riser within the retort to increase the heat transfer of the material and increase the surface area of the material exposed to the vacuum by inducing the cascade formation and / or rolling of the material.

7. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals for the separation of volatilized gases from a material containing one or more volatilizable substances, the apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals comprises: a rotating container element around an axis central to retain the material; a system for treating malodorous gas to receive the volatilized gases from the container element; an element for connecting the container element to the system for the treatment of malodorous gas; a rotating seal in or around the connecting element capable of maintaining the vacuum within the retort when the material is heated to a temperature greater than 204.4 ° C (400 ° F); a rotating element for rotating the container element; a vacuum element for generating a vacuum inside the container element; and a heating element for heating the material within the container element to a temperature sufficient to vaporize one or more volatilizable substances of the volatilized gases.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 7, wherein the connecting element is an integral sleeve with the container element and extending therefrom.

9. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 7, which further comprises a cooling element for cooling the rotating seal.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 9, wherein the cooling element is a purge gas that cools the sleeve and thus the rotating seal.

11. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 10, wherein the purge gas is ambient air.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 9, wherein the cooling means further comprises a purge gas which is introduced into the container element to sweep the volatilized gases in the malodorous gas element.

13. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 12, wherein the purge gas is an inert gas.

The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 9, wherein the cooling element is a thermal sink.

15. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 9, wherein the cooling element is in thermal communication with the rotating seal.

16. The apparatus for processing and reacting chemicals according to claim 9, wherein the cooling element comprises a thermal shutter interposed between the rotating seal and the container element separating the container element in an internal chamber and in an internal chamber. External chamber containing the rotating seal so that a temperature gradient is created between the internal chamber and the external chamber.

17. A method for separating one or more volatilizable substances from a material, the method comprising the steps of: applying heat to the material thereby making an internal temperature within a retort greater than 204.4 ° C (400 ° F); spin the retort; and applying a vacuum to the retort to reduce the boiling point of one or more volatilizable substances so as to volatilize one or more volatilizable substances thereby separating the vaporized substances from the material.

18. The method of compliance with the claim 17, where the retort has a rotating seal that contains the vacuum inside the retort; the internal temperature inside the retort is greater than the maximum operating temperature of the rotary seal.

19. The method according to the claim 18, further comprising the step of cooling the rotating seal so that the temperature of the rotating seal is less than the maximum operating temperature of the rotating seal.

20. The method of. according to claim 17, wherein the vaporized substances exit the retort through the sleeve.

The method according to claim 20, further comprising maintaining a differential temperature between the retort and the sleeve by at least one thermal shutter.

22. The method of compliance with the claim 19, wherein the step of cooling the rotary seal further comprises removing heat from an outer portion of the sleeve by exposing the outlet portion of the sleeve with a cooling medium.

23. The method according to claim 19, wherein the step of cooling further comprises providing a purge gas in the sleeve such that the purge gas is removed from the internal chamber passing at least one thermal shutter, cooling of This way the rotary vacuum seal while reducing the condensate and the particulates of the sleeve.

24. The method of compliance with the claim 17, further comprising the step of evacuating gases from the retort using vacuum to create a gradient thereby forming gases from a higher concentration area within the retort to a lower external concentration area in the retort.

25. The method according to claim 17, wherein the rotary seal is cooled by means of a vacuum.

26. A method for separating at least one substance such as a malodorous gas from a material arranged in a retort comprising the steps of: supplying heat to a retort and the material so that the heat increases the temperature to more than 204.4 ° C (400 ° F) sufficient to vaporize at least one substance; spin the retort; applying a vacuum to the retort, therefore the vacuum decreases the boiling point of at least one substance, thus volatilizing at least one substance within the malodorous gas; and transferring the malodorous gas out of the retort to a system for the treatment of malodorous gas.

27. The method according to claim 26, further comprising the step of evaporating at least one substance at a temperature lower than the boiling point of at least one substance.