Apparatus for incinerating material

Nov. 12, 1935.

2,020,682

R. GRANGER

APPARATUS FOR INCINERATING MATERIAL Filed Dec. 6, 1934

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Patented Nov. 12, 1935

2,020,682

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE

2,020,682 APPARATUS FOR INCINERATING MATERIAL

Roger Granger, Brooklyn) N. Y.

Application December 6, 1934, Serial No. 756,203 3 Claims. (Cl. 110—14)

This invention, relates to apparatus for incinerating material, such as sewage.

More specifically stated, the invention relates to apparatus for disposing of sewage screenings g and sludge cake. The disposal of such matter constitutes a very serious problem in large cities and involves an enormous expense. Sometimes such material is towed out to sea and dumped, thus polluting the coastal waters. It has been 10 proposed to convert the material into fertilizer, but this has been found to be too expensive to be practical.

The burning of sewage screenings and sludge cake presents unusual problems due to the rela15 tively large water content even after a part of the water has been removed by vacuum filters and other means. Unless the temperatures in the various parts of the apparatus are properly regulated and controlled the outer layer of the 20 material will be closed or sealed with the moisture confined therein. Furthermore, it has been found that for proper and efficient incineration the temperature at the receiving end of the apparatus should be relatively low and the material 25 should be gradually fed through the apparatus and kept in motion, being subjected to increasing temperatures until it is burned to ash.

This invention has for one of its objects to provide apparatus for so burning or incinerating 30 sewage screenings or like material that the final product will be in the form of ash easily disposed of and no objectionable gases will be released to the atmosphere.

Another object of the invention is to provide 35 apparatus of the character described and for the purpose described, so designed that the material being incinerated will be kept in motion during its passage through the apparatus so that the heat and hot gases will contact all parts thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus of the character described so constructed and arranged that the temperatures at the various parts of the apparatus will be regulated and controlled.

Further objects of the invention will appear from the following specification taken in connection with the drawing which forms a part of this application and in which

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation somewhat dia50 grammatic of apparatus constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional elevation through one of the rotating drums; and

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation 55 through the other rotating drum showing the mechanism for rotating the drum.

The invention briefly described consists of a method of incinerating sewage screenings, sludge cake or like material by subjecting the material 60 to gradually increasing temperatures while main taining the material in motion during its passage through the apparatus so that the hot gases will engage and contact with all parts of the material and the material will be broken up and burned and the gases will be released therefrom. The 5 apparatus for carrying out the method consists of a pair of rotary drums oppositely inclined and so arranged that the material will pass first through one drum and then through the other and at the outlet end of the second drum will be 10 reduced to ash. The temperatures are so regulated throughout the apparatus that the temperature at the receiving end of the first drum will be relatively low, such for instance as about 200° F., but will be gradually increased as the 15 material passes through the apparatus, the temperature at the outlet end of the second drum being relatively high, such as 2000° F. The drums are continually rotated at a relatively slow rate of speed and are provided with lifts or baffles io so that the material will be carried from the bottom to the top of the drum where it will drop again and during this operation the hot gases will engage the particles of material.

Further details of the invention will appear 25 from the following description.

In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing the apparatus comprises a pair of drums A and B which are supported at the ends on suitable rollers 10. The 30 upper drum is supported on a frame work I1 and the lower drum on frames 12 mounted in a furnace or incinerator. An oil burner nozzle 13 of any suitable construction directs a flame into the outlet end of the drum B and this end of the drum 35 empties into an ash pit 14. The drum B is provided with a lining ! 5 of fire-brick or other suitable heat resisting material and the inner surface of the lining has projecting inwardly therefrom a plurality of radially disposed baffles or lifts IG. 40 The drum is rotated by a motor 16' which drives a motor shaft 17 connected by a bevel gear connection IS to a shaft 19 on which a driving roller 20 is mounted.

The drum A is not subjected to as high tern- 45 peratures as the drum B and therefore has no lining, but is provided with inwardly extending, radially disposed lifts 21 which extend longitudinally of the drum and are similar in construction to the lifts IS. The drum A is driven from a 50 motor 22 by driving connections similar to those shown in Fig. 3 for the drum B. The left hand ends of the two drums viewing Fig. 1 open into a chamber 39 which has projecting upwardly thereinto an inclined shelf 31 which receives the ma- 55 terial discharged from the discharge end of the drum A and directs this material into the receiving or inlet end of the drum B.

The maintenance of proper temperatures of different parts of the apparatus is very important 60

2,020,682 and in order to regulate the temperatures an opening 32 leads into the chamber 30 and is provided with adjustable louvers 33. These louvers are provided with a thermostatic regulating de5 vice 34 so that they will automatically open when the temperature exceeds a predetermined maximum and will automatically close when the temperature falls below this predetermined maximum.

The sewage screenings are collected in a tank or drum T and are pumped from this drum by a pump R to a hopper H. The hopper discharges into a casing 35 in which is mounted an endless belt 33 which is supported on hexagonal drums 15 or pulleys 37. The shaft of pulley 37 has mounted thereon a gear 24 meshing with a gear 25 driven by a gear 26. The shaft of gear 26 has mounted thereon a pulley 27 driven by a belt 23 from a motor M. The belt 36 on its upper lap passes 20 between upper and lower sets of presser rolls 38 and 39 which squeeze the material and remove a considerable part of the water therefrom. The water drops into a tray 40 and is drained therefrom through a pipe 41. The discharge end of 25 the belt 36 discharges the pressed screenings into a chute 42 which leads to a conduit 43 having a screw conveyor 44 mounted therein. The discharge end of the conduit 43 is located in the receiving end of the drum A. The chute 42 has 30 also connected thereto an upwardly extending receiving conduit 45 into which sludge cake or like material may be introduced.

The screw conveyor 44 may be driven in any suitable manner and in Fig. 1 is shown as driven 35 by a sprocket and chain connection 46, 47 and 48 on a shaft 49. This shaft is driven by a gear connection 50, 51 from the motor shaft 52 which in turn is driven by a motor 53.

The chamber 30 at the left hand ends of the 40 drums A and B communicates with a stack S. A considerable amount of the gas freed from the incinerated material passes directly from the chamber 30 to· the stack S. A certain portion of the gas, however, passes upwardly and through 45 the drum A, being utilized to heat the material passing through the drum. A chamber 55 at the receiving end of the drum A communicates with an outlet conduit 56 which in turn is connected . to a gas washer 57. From this washer the gas 50 passes through a conduit 58 which is connected at its lower end to the receiving end of an exhaust fan P, the discharge end of this fan communicating with a conduit 59 which discharges into the chamber 30.

Operation

The apparatus above described operates as follows: The material to be incinerated is fed into the receiving end of . the drum A by the spiral con60 veyor 44 and gradually passes from the receiving end to the discharge end of this drum. During this passage the material is continually carried upwardly by the lifts and drops to the bottom of the drum and the hot gases which are passing 65 through the drum in the opposite direction engage the moving particles. The temperature at the receiving end of the drum A is approximately 200 F., although this may be varied as conditions require. At the discharge end of the drum A the 70 temperature may be approximately 800° F. and thus it will be evident that the material in passing through this drum has been gradually raised in temperature. The material discharged from the drum A drops to the shelf 31 and enters the drum B and is gradually fed from the left hand to the right hand end thereof viewing Fig. 1. During this passage of the material it is still kept in mo- δ tion and. subjected, to the increasingly hot gases and high temperatures. The temperatures and rates of rotation of the drums are so regulated that when the material reaches the discharge end of the drum B it has been reduced to ash and io drops into the pit 14. The hot gases which do not pass directly from the chamber 30 to the stack S are conducted through the drum A and thence through the washer to the conduit 58 and through the fan into· the stack. 15

Although one specific embodiment of the invention has been particularly shown and described it will be understood that the invention is capable of modification and that changes in the construction and in the arrangement of the vari- 20 ous cooperating parts may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention, as expressed in the following claims.