US3303947A

US3303947A - Feeder for moving refuse and like compactable materials

Info

Publication number: US3303947A
Application number: US436822A
Authority: US
Inventors: Bertram B Reilly
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1965-03-03
Filing date: 1965-03-03
Publication date: 1967-02-14
Anticipated expiration: 1984-02-14

Description

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 w I m. V 7 .m

ATTORNEYS.

B. B. REILLY FEEDER FOR MOVING REFUSE AND LIKE COMPACTABLE MATERIALS Filed March 5, 1965 5- B. REILLY Feb. 14, 1967 F'lEDER FOR MOVING REFUSE AND LIKE COMPACTABLE MATERIALS 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed March 1965 INVENTOR. BERTRAM B. REILLY.

ATTO R N EYS United States Patent 3,303,947 FEEDER FOR MOVING REFUSE AND LIKE COMPAQTABLE MATERIALS Bertram B. Reilly, 17 Briar Cliff Road, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15202 Filed Mar. 3, 1965, Ser. No. 436,822 4 Claims. (Cl. 21423) This invention relates to a feeder for moving large amounts of compactable material, such as refuse, from one enclosure to another, as where municipal refuse is moved from a receiving bin into an incinerator.

In moving or feeding large volumes of compactable material, such as municipal refuse, it is desirable, due to the varied nature of the material, to push it through a confined channel or passage with a pressure-actuated ram or plunger. Such apparatus requires a minimum number of mechanical parts which may be contacted by the refuse, and therefore involves minimum risk of the widely varying components of refuse becoming involved with or fouling the feeding or transfer mechanism.

Since the invention has particular application to the feeding or the moving of refuse into an incinerator, it will be particularly described herein for such purpose, but without limitation to the feeding of other materials or in other environments which involve like or similar problems.

A difliculty in feeding municipal refuse or the like by a ram-operated pusher as above described is the frictional resistance offered by the material to being pushed through a confined passageway with the result that as the resistance increases, the compaction of the material being moved increases, thereby further increasing the resistance to its movement. This is particularly so with the pushing of rubbish of various kinds horizontally into an incinerator, where, because of the high temperature in the incinerator the passageway or portions thereof through which the refuse is moved is of a refractory material that has a substantially higher frictional coefficient than metal plates that may be used elsewhere. The compacting of the rubbish is particularly objectionable under these conditions, because it is more difficult to burn the rubbish after it has been so compacted,

According to the present invention provision is made for decreasing the frictional resistance to the movement of the material through a passage by means of air jets in one or more walls, particularly the bottom wall or floor of the passageway in the region of greatest resistance to the movement of the rubbish. Air so admitted tends to levitate or float the material and reduce the frictional contact between the refuse and the passage walls through which air is so admitted. Also the air tends to loosen the material which rests on the ceramic until it is pushed along by a succeeding mass of material with the feeding stroke of the pusher.

The invention has for its object to provide a pusher type feeder for compactable material with a feed passage in which air is utilized in a manner to reduce the resistance of the passage to the movement of the material therethrough, and particularly to facilitate the feeding of municipal refuse into an incinerator.

The invention may be more fully understood by reference to the accompanying drawings showing an embodiment of the invention and wherein:

FIG. 1 represents a vertical longitudinal section through a pusher type feeder arrangement at the charging end of an incinerator; and

FIG. 2 is a horizontal section in the plane of line IIII of FIG. 1.

In the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts, there is shown somewhat schematically the forward or charging end of an incinerator A, with a horizontal charging passage 2 in the front wall l3 thereof. This charging passage is generally rectangular ll'l section, being wider than it is high. It has a'refractory bottom wall or floor 3, side walls 4, and a top wall 5. At 6 there is an upwardly and outwardly-movable door, movable from the closed position shown in the drawings to the open position indicated by dot-ted lines. A fluid pressure cylinder and piston mechanism 7 is here indicated for operating the door.

Forwardly of the charging door there is a receiving bin C at the top of which there may be a platform D from which trucks dump refuse int-o the bin. The bin has side walls 10 and a metal bottom 11 flush with the floor 3 of the passage. The wall opposite the incinerator opening is designated 10a. At the bottom of wall 10a there is a pusher 12 having a pan portion 12a that rides on the bottom of the bin and a vertical pusher plate 12b. There are bracing gussets 14 attached to both plates for strengthening the pusher. At the rear of the pusher there is a ram having a fixed cylinder 15 and a plunger 16 which is attached to the pusher at 17. There is an apron 18 at the back of the pusher over the plunger which moves with the plunger. Beneath the apron are supporting rollers 19.

In operation, the plunger moves the pusher toward the charging passage, forcing refuse in the lower portion of the bin toward and into the assage, while the apron 18 prevents the overlying refuse from getting in behind the pusher. At this time the door 6 is open and the refuse is pushed forward onto the floor 3 of the passage and then withdraws to repeat the operation, pushing the material previously advanced off the floor 3 into the incinerator.

According to the present invention, one or more walls of the refractory passage, and especially the floor 3, is provided with means for projecting high pressure jets of air outwardly from the wall surface. The floor 3 in the critical area has numerous air passages therethrough, and provision is made for forcing air under pressure upwardly through these passages. One arrangement for accomplishing this is here illustrated wherein there is a series of parallel pipes 20 beneath the surface of the refractory, each having outlet holes therealong to project air up through registering holes or ports 21 extending through the refractory to the surface. These pipes are connected with a manifold 22, preferably through individual control valves 23. The manifold is connected to a source of high pressure air, not shown. The air streams or jets are disposed across substantially the full width of the bottom 3 and for a portion at least of its length, especially the portion where impaction of the material is most likely to impede its movement.

In operation, as the refuse starts to move through the opening and the forward part of the mass being pushed starts to encounter substantial resistance, the jets of air entering through the passages or ports 21 in the bottom wall tend to lift the mass, and interpose air between the refuse and the surface along which it is moving. The air may be used continuously or may be used only under certain conditions. If the refuse is dry and easily moved, the air may not be necessary, but when the refuse is damp or soggy, or has gummy or sticky components, it is desirable to use it. The air not only reduces the friction, but aerates the refuse and may aid in loosening and drying it. The refuse will normally rest on the passage floor 3 until the next feeding stroke of the pusher when it will be pushed ahead by the incoming charge and eventually move onto the incinerator grates. The high pressure air keeps the holes 21 free of material that tends to get into them.

While I have shown and specifically described one embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that various changes may be made in the construction and the Patented Feb. 14, 1967 9 invention may be otherwise embodied within the contemplation of my invention.

I claim:

1. The combination with a bin having bottom, side and end walls for retaining a supply of compactable material, said bin having a discharge opening in one end wall thereof leading into a passageway having a bottom and sides with thebottom of the opening and of the passageway being flush with the bottom of the bin, a pusher at the bottom of the bin movable from a retracted position adjacent the other end wall of thebin toward and through said discharge opening into said passageway, the pusher being arranged to support the overlying mass of material in the bin as the lowermost mass at the bottomis pushed through the opening into the passageway, the walls of the bin extending above the level of the pusher so that the bin may retain substantially more material than the pusher can move in. a single operation, one wall of the passageway having means therein to blow air therein at numerous locations against and into the mass of material which has' been pushed throughsaid opening and compacted by such pushing, thereby aerating the same and reducing its resistance to further movement along the passageway andtthe compacting eflect which it exerts against a succeeding mass similarly pushed from the bin through the discharge opening.

2. The combination defined in claim 1 in which the wall of the opening through which air is supplied is the bottom 4 wall of the passage and the means for supplying air is effective across substantially the entire width of the passage and also over a portion of the length of the bottom wall of the passage.

3. The combination defined in claim 1 in which the wall of the opening through which air is supplied is the bottom wall of the passage and the means for supplying air is effective across substantially the entire width of the passage and also over a portion of the length of the bottom wall of the passage, said bottom wallof the passage being formed of refractory material.

4. The combination defined in claim 1 in which the Wall of the opening through which air is supplied is the bottom wall of the passage and the means for supplying air is effective across substantially the entire width of the passage and also over a portion of the length of the bottom wall of the passage, said bottom wall of the passage being formed of refractory material, said bottom wall of the passage being located inside anincinerating furnace.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 11/1908 Leask 214-23 6/1960 Reed 214-1 X

Claims

1. THE COMBINATION WITH A BIN HAVING BOTTOM, SIDE AND END WALLS FOR RETAINING A SUPPLY OF COMPACTABLE MATERIAL, SAID BIN HAVING A DISCHARGE OPENING IN ONE END WALL THEREOF LEADING INTO A PASSAGEWAY HAVING A BOTTOM AND SIDES WITH THE BOTTOM OF THE OPENING AND OF THE PASSAGEWAY BEING FLUSH WITH THE BOTTOM OF THE BIN, A PUSHER AT THE BOTTOM OF THE BIN MOVABLE FROM A RETRACTED POSITION ADJACENT THE OTHER END WALL OF THE BIN TOWARD AND THROUGH SAID DISCHARGE OPENING INTO SAID PASSAGEWAY, THE PUSHER BEING ARRANGED TO SUPPORT THE OVERLYING MASS OF MATERIAL IN THE BIN AS THE LOWERMOST MASS AT THE BOTTOM IS PUSHED THROUGH THE OPENING INTO THE PASSAGEWAY, THE WALLS OF THE BIN EXTENDING ABOVE THE LEVEL OF THE PUSHER SO THAT THE BIN MAY RETAIN SUBSTANTIALLY MORE MATERIAL THAN THE PUSHER CAN MOVE IN A SINGLE OPERATION, ONE WALL OF THE PASSAGEWAY HAVING MEANS THEREIN TO BLOW AIR THEREIN AT NUMEROUS LOCATIONS AGAINST AND INTO THE MASS OF MATERIAL WHICH HAS BEEN PUSHED THROUGH SAID OPENING AND COMPACTED BY SUCH PUSHING, THEREBY AERATING THE SAME AND REDUCING ITS RESISTANCE TO FURTHER MOVEMENT ALONG THE PASSAGEWAY AND THE COMPACTING EFFECT WHICH IT EXERTS AGAINST A SUCCEEDING MASS SIMILARLY PUSHED FROM THE BIN THROUGH THE DISCHARGE OPENING.