Abstract:
A system and method are disclosed for processing sewerage sludge and other organic based feedstocks, in an energy efficient manner that minimizes or eliminates unwanted byproducts, including pathogens, and generates useful environmentally safe products, wherein the sewage sludge or other feedstocks are partially dried before being input to a gasifier operating under partial pyrolytic conditions to produce synthesis gas, bio-oil fuel, and char; a percentage of which may be used to maintain the operation of the system after it is started in order to make the system economically viable.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     This invention relates to processing of sewerage sludge and other organic based feedstocks in a way that generates more energy than is used to process the sewage sludge into useful products, destroy pathogens and minimize or eliminate byproducts.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Various methods have been developed over the years to dispose of sewage sludge. Such methods include wet spreading, composting, land filling, incineration, and special processing that requires dewatering, drying and heat treatment to produce a fertilizer which is substantially free of pathogens (a product designated by the EPA as “Class A Biosolids”). However, these methods are proving to be controversial and unacceptable in today&#39;s environment. As more and more landfills close transportation costs to new locations have increased. Wet application is not sufficiently sanitary, and often results in the contamination of local streams, rivers and groundwater supplies. Although biosolids fertilizer is rich in nutrients, its heavy metal content has raised questions about the acceptability of its repeated application to farmland, which may cause a cumulative buildup of metals like cadmium, lead, mercury, selenium, silver and other toxic metals.  
         [0003]     Sewage sludge has a high water content, and requires dewatering prior to wet spreading, composting, land filling, incineration or thermal treatment to manufacture biosolids. Typically, dewatering is carried out with settling tanks, screening systems filter presses, belt filter presses or centrifuges. Drying uses cylindrical rotary kilns, kilns with overlying beds, grinding driers or indirect driers of different construction. A representative apparatus for drying sewerage sludge is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,634,281. A representative apparatus for incineration of sewage sludge is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,954,069. Another such apparatus is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,311,103.  
         [0004]     The steps of dewatering and drying sewerage sludge to manufacture biosolids fertilizer requires significant amounts of energy, which is obtained using hydrocarbon-based fuels that are subject to price instability and a growing scarcity. Electrical energy may also be used but is extremely impractical due to its cost.  
         [0005]     Ashes from the incineration of sewerage sludge may be disposed of directly into landfills, may receive further processing before disposal, or may be converted into value-added products. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,079,091 &amp; 4,997,711 teach compaction of sewerage sludge incineration ashes to have the bulk specific gravity of 0.9-2.5 that enables mass dumping without causing secondary pollution. Further, if the compacted ashes are then fired to have the bulk specific gravity of 1.4-3.5, both the volume and weight are reduced much more, realizing easy handling of the resultant burned product. However, due to the high cost of drying and incineration or other processes needed to convert sewerage sludge ash into value-added products, which have yet to be proven cost effective, there is no real recovery of the costs associated with these disposal options.  
         [0006]     Thus, there is a need in the art to reduce the cost of processing and disposing of sewerage sludge. This includes the use or disposal of any final by product(s).  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     The present invention solves the problem in the prior art by teaching the disposal of sewerage sludge or other organic based feedstocks in a cost-effective manner. More particularly, the present invention makes use of latent energy in the feedstocks, including sewage sludge, to drive the system, to safely dispose of same, and produce useful, safe products (pathogen free), including electrical energy and synthetic fuels, while minimizing or eliminating the production of harmful byproducts.  
         [0008]     The invention is a system and method for processing sewerage sludge and other organic based feedstocks in an energy efficient manner that allows the manufacture of useful products, wherein the sewage sludge or other organic based feedstocks are dewatered and dried before being input to a fluidized bed gasifier system operating under partial pyrolytic conditions to produce synthesis gas and pyrolytic oil (also called bio-oil and referred to as such in this specification), and char (ash and carbon powders). Some of which may be used to maintain the operation of the system after it is started, thereby making the system economically viable, and some of which may be used to produce useful, environmentally safe, end products.  
         [0009]     First, sewerage sludge or other organic based feedstocks are dewatered to have between 25% and 30% solids (70%-75% water) content using mechanical means such as centrifugal separation. It is then dried using thermal energy to between 75% and 95% dryness, followed by processing in a gasifier to produce energy-containing products such as synthesis gasses, bio-oil and char. An auxiliary energy source, usually natural gas, is initially input to the system to produce the thermal energy required for drying the sewerage sludge to an acceptable degree before a pyrolytic or gasification process can be employed to manufacture synthesis gas, bio-oil and char from the sewage sludge. When the system is properly functioning a percentage of the synthesis gas, bio-oil and char manufactured may be used to replace the auxiliary energy supply, thus eliminating one of the single greatest costs incurred in drying and heat treating sewage sludge.  
         [0010]     Other than synthesis gas and bio-oil, the other byproduct of the drying and gasification process is char. The char is generally considered to be environmentally safe and may be buried, however as is the case with biosolids it may contain trace amounts of heavy metals. This char may be processed further to produce safe, useful end products as described in the following paragraph.  
         [0011]     To accomplish the production of safe, useful end products from the char some of the remaining synthesis gas and/or bio-oil may be burned to produce the thermal energy necessary to further process the char. One such process involves mixing the char with cement, pelletizing the mixture to produce an aggregate and exposing the aggregate to elevated temperatures in a sintering furnace. The finished product can be safely added to concrete in place of natural aggregate. Another safe and useful end product is produced by adding some sand to the char and vitrifying the combination in either a direct resistance heated or Joule heated furnace or by some other means such as exposing the ash to a high temperature plasma The vitrified material is environmentally safe and may be buried, or used as fill in construction projects, or it may be mechanically processed further to produce an abrasive frit that is in high demand for sand blasting applications. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
       [0012]     The invention will be better understood upon reading the following Detailed Description in conjunction with the drawing in which:  
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a system that uses a supplemental fuel to start the system for processing dewatered sewage sludge to produce synthetic gas, bio-oil and char, some of which may be returned to the dryer or gasifier or burned in the sewage sludge drying system to continue its operation;  
         [0014]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a system that uses electricity to start the system processing sewage sludge to produce synthetic gas, bio-oil and char, some of which may be returned to the dryer or gasifier or burned in the sewage sludge drying system to continue its operation; and  
         [0015]      FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a system that uses a fuel to initially heat oil that is then used to start the system processing sewerage sludge to produce hot synthetic gas that is cooled to produce synthetic gas, bio-oil and char. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]     In  FIG. 1  is shown a block diagram of a system that initially uses a fuel, such as natural gas but other fuel gasses may be used, to start the partial drying of sewerage sludge and other organic based feedstock materials, to produce safe, useful end products such as fuels synthetic gasses or bio-oil, and char that may be recycled into useful byproducts. Thus, the operation is energy efficient, environmentally safe and economically viable. Hereinafter, such organic based feedstock waste are only referred to as sewerage sludge, but those skilled in the art will understand that any organic based feedstock materials may be processed using the novel method disclosed herein.  
         [0017]     Pyrolytic and/or gasification processes are capable of extracting synthesis gasses such as carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H 2 ) from a wide range of organic materials including, sewage sludge. In the following description sewage sludge is referenced but other materials, (i.e. feed stocks), may also be processed using the teaching of the novel process.  
         [0018]     The present invention combines the operation of wet sewage sludge drying equipment  11  driven by fuels  12 , gaseous fuels in  FIG. 1 , to dry the wet sewage sludge  10  to between 75% and 95% dryness, and a fluidized bed gasifier system  16  where the wet sewage sludge  10  is heated under partial pyrolytic conditions in a manner to produce synthesis gasses carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H 2 ), bio-oil and char.  
         [0019]     Before the wet sewage sludge is input to drying equipment  11  it is first dewatered somewhat using techniques known in the art, such as centrifugal separation, to have between 25% and 30% solids (70%-75% water) content. Such dewatering equipment is not shown in  FIG. 1  or the other Figures. As the dewatering technology advances the amount of water that may be removed increases.  
         [0020]     Some of the synthesis gasses may be used to drive other equipment, such as but not limited, to a steam boiler and generator, in order to produce electricity that may be used or sold.  
         [0021]     More particularly, dewatered sludge  10  is first injected into a dryer  11  where it is heated and dried to between 75% and 95% dryness. To heat dewatered sewage sludge  10 , natural gas  12  is initially provided through open valve  13  to dryer  11  where it is burned to heat dry the sewage sludge  10  to the level described in the previous sentence. Other gaseous fuels may also be used although natural gas is preferred for economic reasons. Initially, valve  14  is closed but is later opened as is described further in this description. Sludge dryers are well known in the art so are not described in detail here.  
         [0022]     As sludge  10  is partially dried to a desired level between 75% and 95% dryness it is transferred via line  15  to gasifier system  16  in a continuous manner. In gasifier system  16 , operating under partial pyrolytic conditions, the dried sludge is heated to the range of 970° Fahrenheit and 2,600° Fahrenheit, to drive off the synthesis gasses carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H 2 ) as the dried sludge degrades. Gasifier system  16  is a fluidized bed gasifier that has a bed of sand that is initially heated to a high temperature using a natural gas-fired heater and a blower (not shown but well known in the art). As the partially dried sludge contacts the heated sand in gasifier  16  synthesis gas, bio-oil products and char are produced. At the high temperature of the heated sand a small portion of the synthesis gasses generated are combusted with the small amount of oxygen permitted in gasifier  16  to generate heat that maintains the operating temperature of the gasifier. The amount of oxygen permitted into gasifier system  16  under the partial pyrolytic conditions is adjusted to control the temperature of the gasifier system.  
         [0023]     There are other types of gasifiers known in the art that may be adapted for use such as updraft, downdraft, cross draft, fixed bed, and moving bed gasifiers, some of which are for gasification of coal, but the fluidized bad gasifier is preferred in the preferred embodiment of the invention described herein.  
         [0024]     As the synthesis gasses are generated and output from gasifier system  16  on output line  18 , valve  14  is opened and valve  13  is closed to direct a portion of the synthesis gasses to the dryer  11  in which it is burned to continuously drive the system. With natural gas only being used to start the operation of the system shown in  FIG. 1 , and the synthesis gasses being used thereafter, the operation actually produces energy and is energy efficient. Excess synthesis gas tapped off at valve  17  is used to drive other equipment such as, but not limited, to a steam boiler and generator, to produce electricity that may be used or sold.  
         [0025]     As sludge  10  degrades in gasifier  16  it turns into char, which is composed of charcoal and ash that is output from gasifier  16  via line  19 . Char is fairly environmentally benign and may be safely disposed of, or it can be re-injected into gasifier  16 , or it can be used to produce other valuable byproducts besides the synthesis gasses and/or the bio-oil. One such char end product is an aggregate made by mixing the char with cement and pelletizing the mixture to produce an artificial aggregate that can be safely added to concrete instead of natural stone. Another safe and useful end product is produced (if a high temperature gasifier is not being used that will ordinarily melt the char) by melting or vitrifying the char in either a direct resistance heating or Joule heated furnace, or by some other means such as exposing the char to a high temperature plasma. The vitrified material is environmentally neutral and may be buried, used as fill in construction projects, or it may be mechanically processed further to produce an abrasive frit that is in high demand for sand blasting applications. The char may also be further processed using techniques such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,047,145, 5,227,047 and 6,027,551 that allow the carbon to be separated from the ash and upgraded in purity. It is then possible to convert the carbon into activated carbon and utilize the remaining ash as a very high-grade pozolin admix for the production of lightweight concrete.  
         [0026]     While  FIG. 1  shows the use of natural gas to start the system, with the synthesis gasses used thereafter, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that other fuels may be input via valve  13  to start the operation of the system. These other fuels include, but are not limited to, fuel oil.  
         [0027]     In  FIG. 2  is shown a block diagram of a system that uses electricity to start the system processing sewerage sludge to produce synthetic gasses and pyrolytic oil (also called bio-oil and referred to as such in this specification), some of which may be re-injected into gasifier  16  together with char, or be sold. The operation of dryer  11  and gasifier system  16  and their end products are the same as described with reference to  FIG. 1  and are not repeated here for the sake of brevity.  
         [0028]     The difference in  FIG. 2  is how dryer  11  is heated. As may be seen in  FIG. 2 a  source of electrical power is connected via switch  20  to dryer  11 , Gasifier  16  is pre-heated using natural gas as previously described with reference to  FIG. 1 . The synthesis gasses or bio-oil output from gasifier  16  on line  18  are input to a motor—generator set  22  where the gasses are used to drive the motor and the electricity produced by the generator is output to switches  21  and  23 . Once enough electricity is being produced by motor—generator set  22 , power line switch  20  is opened and switch  21  is closed so that the heater of dryer  11  is then energized solely by electricity generated using the synthesis gasses or bio-oil output from gasifier  16 . Switch  23  is closed to route excess generated electricity to be used elsewhere or sold. Alternatively, the synthesis gasses may be converted to electricity using fuel cells, a boiler and steam turbine or a gas turbine all of which are known in the art.  
         [0029]     In  FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a system that uses a fuel to initially heat-oil that is then used to start the process of drying wet sewage sludge. The basic operation of dryer  11  and gasifier system  16  and their end products are the same as described with reference to  FIG. 1  and are not repeated here for the sake of brevity. Dryer  11  has a screw auger (not shown) for moving the dewatered sludge through dryer  11 . The screw auger is hollow and heated oil is pumped therethrough to aid in the drying process. As the oil cools it exits dryer  11  to be reheated and cycled back to dryer  11 .  
         [0030]     In  FIG. 3 a  source of natural gas is initially applied via valve  12  to be used to fire furnace  24  and heat oil for use by the screw auger in dryer  11 . The heated oil is output from furnace  24  and is input to dryer  11  where it is input to the hollow screw auger. As sludge passes over the screw auger it is heated and water is driven off, cooling the oil. The cooled oil exits dryer  11  via output  25  and is input to heat exchanger where it is partially heated by the hot synthesis gasses and bio-oil output from gasifier system  16  via path  18 . The partially heated oil is then returned to furnace  24  where it further heated.  
         [0031]     As the system reaches its static operational condition the still hot synthesis gasses and/or bio-oil pass through heat exchanger  26  to valve  14 . Natural gas input valve  12  is closed and valve  14  is opened so that furnace  24  is heating the oil solely using the synthesis gasses and/or bio-oil. In addition, excess synthesis gasses and/or bio-oil are tapped off via valve  17  to be used to drive other equipment such as, but not limited, to a steam boiler and generator, to produce electricity that may be used or sold.  
         [0032]     As previously described with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the char produced by gasifier system  16  may be safely disposed of, or be used to produce other valuable end products besides the synthesis gasses and bio-oil. These byproducts are described above with reference to  FIG. 1 , so are not described again for the sake of brevity.  
         [0033]     While what has been described herein is the preferred embodiment of the invention it will be understood by those skilled in the art that numerous changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, while a gasifier is used with the preferred embodiment of the invention, it may be replaced by a furnace operating fully pyrolytically with no oxygen, but a separate heating source must be provided to maintain the temperature inside the furnace. In addition, any excess heat generated by the system may be captured using heat exchangers to produce steam that can be used to drive a steam turbine that operates a generator.