Arrangement for producing gaseous products

An arrangement for producing gaseous products from solid and liquid, ash-containing fuels and mixtures thereof in an air stream in a reactor. The fuels are introduced into the reactor parallel to the axis thereof. The solid and liquid ash constituents are extensively separated from the gaseous products of the fuel in a slag bath before further cooling-off. The gaseous products are reversed by 180.degree. after leaving the reactor, and subsequently flow into one or more consecutively or parallel connected annular chambers, which are provided with heat exchanger heating surfaces and concentrically surround the reactor. The gaseous products are cooled in these annular chambers.

The present invention relates to an arrangement for producing gaseous 
products from solid and liquid, ash-containing fuels and mixtures thereof 
in an air stream in a reactor; the fuels are introduced into the reactor 
parallel to the axis thereof and the solid and liquid ash constituents are 
extensively separated from the gaseous products thereof in a slag bath 
before further cooling-off. 
The production of gaseous products from solid and gaseous, ash-containing 
fuels and mixtures thereof in an air stream in a reactor is known. The 
produced gaseous products are loaded with solid and liquid ash 
constituents, which require measures for separating them off. Measures for 
separating the solid and liquid ash constituents from the produced gaseous 
products are provided externally of the reactor according to the known 
state of the art. Special apparatus is utilized. Separating the solid and 
liquid constituents with external measures requires considerable design 
and construction expense, as well as extra space. 
It is an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for 
producing gaseous products from solid and liquid, ash-containing fuels and 
mixtures thereof in an air stream in a reactor; the arrangement, in a 
compact construction an extensive separation of solid and liquid ash 
constituents from the produced gaseous products, and the arrangement 
reduces contamination or fouling of the heat exchanger heating surfaces to 
a sufficient extent during subsequent cooling.

The arrangement of the present invention is characterized primarily in that 
the gaseous products, which are loaded with solid and liquid ash 
constituents, are reversed by 180.degree. after leaving the reactor, and 
subsequently flow into one or more consecutively or parallel connected 
annular chambers which concentrically surround the reactor and are 
provided with heat exchanger heating surfaces; the gaseous products are 
cooled in these annular chambers. 
The introduction into the reactor of the fuels which are to be reacted can 
occur in different ways. According to a first embodiment of the present 
invention, the fuels can be introduced into the reactor in an axially 
parallel flow from top to bottom through the reactor, and can, as a 
product flow, be reversed by 180.degree. directly above the slag mass 
which is arranged below the reactor. 
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the fuels which 
are to be reacted and which are introduced into the reactor can also flow 
axially parallel from below to the top through the reactor, with the 
product flow, after extensive separating off of the solid and liquid ash 
constituents within the reactor in a slag bath arranged in the bottom of 
the reactor, being reversed in the upper region of the reactor by 
180.degree.. 
With both inventive embodiments, the product flow in a further arrangement 
according to the present invention can be cooled off in the region of the 
180.degree. reversal by the addition of a coolant flow. 
The one or more annular chambers may be provided internally and externally 
with heating surfaces, with the inner heating surface simultaneously 
serving as the support structure for the reactor brick lining, and 
receiving or absorbing the forces arising as a result of the pressure 
difference between the reactor and the annular chambers. 
It is also within the scope of the present invention that the heat 
exchanger heating surfaces in an annular chamber be constructed as 
radiation heating surfaces and/or as contact heating surfaces. 
The present invention further also allows for the provision of inserts wich 
influence the material flow in the discharge-flow region of the reactor as 
well as in the inlet-flow region of the annular chamber. It is also within 
the scope of the present invention to line the heating surfaces with 
thermally insulating layers in the lower region of the annular chamber. 
The manner of operation of the arrangement in accordance with the present 
invention can also occur loaded. In such a situation, according to the 
present invention, the outer heating surfaces of the outermost annular 
chamber are surrounded by a pressure tank. 
The advantages which are attained with the present invention consist in 
that as a result of the 180.degree. reversal of the produced gaseous 
product, which is loaded with solid and liquid ash constituents, which 
reversal can occur one or more times, the solid and liquid ash 
constituents are separated off to a sufficient extent, and the 
contamination or fouling of the heating surfaces is reduced to a minimum 
during the subsequent cooling of the produced gas. Also decisively 
advantageous is the special arrangement of the heat exchanger surfaces 
relative to the reactor, which surfaces are located concentrical to the 
reactor and accordingly permit a compact construction with optimization of 
the product gas treatment. 
Referring now to the drawings in detail, FIG. 1 shows the unit or 
arrangement 1 in which solid and liquid, ash-containing fuels and mixtures 
thereof are introduced parallel to the axis of the reactor via the inlet 
location 2 to the uppermost part of the reactor 3; the fuel is reacted, 
especially gasified or vaporized. The gaseous products leaving the reactor 
3 in a downward flow are reversed in their flow direction by 180.degree., 
directly above the slag bath 4 located below the reactor 3, at the 
location 5 of the inner heating surface 6 which surrounds the reactor 3; 
from there, the products pass into the annular chamber formed between the 
outermost heating surface 8 and the inner heating surface 6. As 
illustrated in the left half of the longitudinal section of FIG. 1, the 
gaseous products leave the annular chamber of the arrangement 1 uncooled, 
via the outlet connection 11. In accordance with the right half of the 
longitudinal section of the same figure, there is provided a heat 
exchanger 9, embodied as a radiation- and/or as a contact heating surface, 
for cooling the gas in the annular chamber formed by the outer and inner 
heating surfaces 6 and 8. The solid and liquid ash constituents 
precipitated or separated-off in the region of the reversal location 5 are 
carried out via the slag bath 4 and the discharge outlet 10 of the 
arrangement 1. 
FIG. 2 shows the arrangement 1 in a further embodiment, with two annular 
chambers surrounding the reactor 3 and being formed by the wall heating 
surfaces 6, 7 and 8; also provided is a further 180.degree. reversal 
location 12 at the upper edge of the central wall heating surface 7. 
In another embodiment, according to FIG. 3, the reactor of the arrangement 
1 has flow therethrough in an upward stream. The gaseous products leave 
the reactor at its highest location, where they are inventively reversed 
by 180.degree. at the location 5 of the wall heating surface 6. The 
products are conveyed into the annular chamber formed by the wall heating 
surfaces 6 and 8, from where they leave the arrangement 1 via the outlet 
connection 11. The embodiment of the arrangement according to the present 
invention as illustrated in FIG. 3 can be modified with respect to the 
annular chamber which surrounds the reactor 3 in a manner analogous to 
that illustrated in FIG. 2. 
The present invention is, of course, in no way restricted to the specific 
disclosure of the specification and drawings, but also encompasses any 
modifications within the scope of the appended claims.