Patent ID: 7780922
Filing Date: 2010-08-24
Classification: C01B,C04B,F23G,Y02W

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for the thermal treatment of waste materials, the apparatus including an intake to receive material for combustion and an ash outlet to discharge ash produced by combustion of the material, a gas supply and a spent gas outlet, a first vortex generator and a second vortex generator to create inner and outer gas vortices respectively in the apparatus about a common axis, the vortices defining a gas stream which leaves via said spent gas outlet and the gas stream containing sufficient oxygen for exothermic combustion of the feed material, the vortex generators being arranged provide flow in opposite axial directions and in the same angular direction, wherein the apparatus further includes a mixing zone located adjacent each of said vortices, said intake delivering feed material to the apparatus at said mixing zone to be entrained in the inner vortex with a centrifugal force component to cause the material to move outwardly from the inner vortex into the outer vortex and so that the material is then entrapped in the gas stream and carried repeatedly by the outer vortex into and through the mixing zone for entry back into the inner vortex so that the material is transported in the gas stream until the feed material is converted predominantly to an ash having escape criteria needed to travel through the ash outlet.