Abstract:
Production of non-self-combustible gaseous product, combustible with added air or other oxygen source, by electric-arc processing of water-slurried fragmented carbonaceous feedstock (e.g., anthracite ore, or graphite ore, or carbon-rich residue) within an appropriate high-temperature reactor defining a reaction zone, as by and between intermittently adjustably spaced-apart high-temperature-resistant electrodes; intermittent and also substantially continuous methods of advancing such feedstock, and of passing an electric arc therethrough, thereby forming—and subsequently collecting from overhead—desired gaseous product; also apparatus for performing the foregoing steps discontinuously and continuously, thus obtaining the non-self-combustible gaseous product—whose combustion effluent with added air or equivalent source of gaseous oxygen is substantially free of harmful gases, and also of liquid and/or solid particulates.

Description:
[0001]     This is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 10/750,393 filed Dec. 31, 2003. and also a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. ______ filed 6 May 2004. 
     
    
       [0002]     This invention concerns conversion of fragmentary carbon-rich feedstock, by electrical arcing, into non-self-combustible gas whose air-combustion effluent is free of noxious gases and particulates.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Underwater arcing of carbon to generate gaseous fuel, is shown in U.S. patents, as by Eldridge in U.S. Pat. No. 603,058; by Dammann in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,183,608, 5,417,817 (et al.), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,900; by Lee (et al.) in U.S. Pat. No. 6,217,713; by Richardson in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,299,738; 6,299,656 [et al.]; U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,263,838; 6,153,058; 6,113,748; 5,826,548, 5,792,435, 5,692,459, and 5,435,274. Others have contributed further to the art, but production of such environmentally desirable fuel is not yet a notable commercial success.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     This invention enables commercially successful production, of such an environmentally friendly non-self-combustible gaseous fuel, by exposing an aqueous slurry of fragmentary carbon-rich feedstock (e.g., anthracite ores, graphite ores, or pre-used carbon residues) to high-temperature electrical-arcing treatment, in an appropriate reaction zone of a high-temperature (e.g., plasma) reactor, and then retrieving the desired gaseous product—which emanates therefrom.  
         [0005]     The reactor preferably contains multiple electrodes, supplied with adequately high-voltage electricity, programmable to conduct (fire) continuously or intermittently, separately or together, and at such intervals and for so long as may be economically productive.  
         [0006]     Fragmented carbon-rich feedstock, is forwarded, preferably in aqueous slurry form, as by a suitable (e.g., helical screw) conveyor to a reaction zone defined in a high-temperature-resistant reactor, where the feedstock preferably is further compacted and/or flooded with water, as may be desired. Therein it is heated greatly, by and between arcing electrodes composed of tungsten or alloy(s) thereof noted for durability as in plasma-like conditions, for example. The desired gaseous product then evolves and is collected thereabove.  
         [0007]     The desired gaseous fuel evolves and collects above whatever residue and water may remain, whence it is removed (as by venting and/or pumping), as for storage or for use on-site, or for shipment elsewhere, readily accomplished by freighter, pipeline, truck, etc. 
     
    
     SUMMARY OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]      FIG. 1A  is a block diagram of electrical equipment to implement this invention upon fragmented wetted carbon-rich feedstock; and  
         [0009]      FIG. 1B  is a block diagram of process steps thus accomplished.  
         [0010]      FIG. 2A  is a plan view of a (partly sectioned) first reactor of this invention, having means for conveying fragmented feedstock to a centrally located reaction zone, and—separately—similar means for conveying residue therefrom to a discharge location; and  
         [0011]      FIG. 2B  is a side view of its electrical grounding plate; and  
         [0012]      FIG. 2C  is a front elevation of the same grounding plate; and  
         [0013]      FIG. 2D  is a medial sectional plan of its electrode plate; and  
         [0014]      FIG. 2E  is a front elevation of that plate&#39;s electrode array.  
         [0015]      FIG. 3A  is a plan view (partly sectioned) of a continuous-flow reactor of this invention, having a grounding plate similar to that of  FIG. 2A  but curved (semicircularly), having a central rotatable hexagonal set of (six) electrode arrays, oriented with one array thereof directly opposite the midpart of the grounding plate; and  
         [0016]      FIG. 3B  is a front elevation of the reciprocally mounted nearly semicircularly curved electrically grounding plate, having a stowed (rest) position very near the semicircular (in plan) rear wall; and  
         [0017]      FIG. 3C  is a front elevation of the hexagonal electrode-array plate, mounted on two concentric vertical hollow supporting shafts, which provide passageways for electrical leads to the respective electrodes, and passageways for cooling water to all electrodes; and  
         [0018]      FIG. 4A  is a sectional elevation of the sidewall along a reaction zone of either embodiment, showing refrigerant circulation piping therein, and piping for circulation of water to—and release thereof above and laterally into—whatever feedstock may be therein (none illustrated in this view).  
         [0019]      FIG. 4B  is a longitudinal section through a single electrode, showing the (insulated) electrical lead connecting thereto, and its surrounding passageway for flow of cooling water thereto, also weep holes for discharging such water into surrounding slurry—not shown.  
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0020]      FIG. 1A  identifies (reading downward from the top) electrical components and steps in the practicing of this invention. Suitable electricity is readily obtainable, as from an off-site High-Voltage A.C. Source  10  (e.g., a commercial supplier). Electricity therefrom or from a similarly suitable source is readily convertible, as by conventional Rectifier to D.C.  12 . The electrical output therefrom (to be applied to the feedstock) is provided by Pulser and Shaper  14  to Electrode Array(s)  15  (examples of which are shown subsequently).  
         [0021]     Pulse Timer  16  and Pulse Allotter  18  enable individual pulses of whatever predetermined size and shape to actuate (i.e., electrify or “fire”) Conducting Electrodes  20 , whether at random or according to preselected patterns—whichever may be preferred—in a designated Reaction Zone  65 . It will be understood that the actuators of these various steps—and/or their effects upon the feedstock being treated—may be under human and/or electronic surveillance, and also that adjustments or variations may be made therein as desired.  
         [0022]      FIG. 1B  traces (also reading downward) the path of Fragmented Carbon-Rich Feedstock  30  as a related sequence of events: Add Water  31 , and—perhaps—Add Optional Ion Source  32  (e.g., acetic acid), resulting in Feedstock Aqueous Slurry  40 ; then Compress Slurry While Advancing  45  (to the reaction zone), and/or Compress Slurry While Stationary  55  (as in that reaction zone, for example).  
         [0023]      FIG. 1B  shows steps, performed on resulting Compressed Slurry of Feedstock  60 , including Ground Slurry Electrically at One Side  70 , and Apply Electrical Potential (e.g., A.C.) at Other Side  75 , culminating in Electric Arcing of Wet Feedstock  80 . Final steps are Collect Gaseous Product Overhead  90 , and Discard or Recycle Feedstock Residue  99 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 2A  shows, in plan (partly in section), a first reactor structure according to this invention, with inverted U-shaped outline (angle-cornered) from Feedstock (IN) hopper  1  to Residue Disposal (OUT) platform  99 . Included are parallel input housing  11  and output housing  94 —shaded for brickwork structure. Three intervening path legs (lightly shaded to sugest contents while revealing installed components) comprise angled initial portion  111 , then mid-leg portion  112  (the site of reaction zone  65 ), and finally last angled portion  113  connecting to output housing  94 .  
         [0025]     Both parallel input and output housings contain a conventional conveyor (e.g., helical-screw type) not illustrated here. At the feedstock input entrance (lower left) is conventional engine or motor  6  with drive shaft  2  for the first (hidden) conveyor of conventional design, within first conveyor housing  11 . Shown at residue exit (lower right) is similar drive engine or motor  106  with drive shaft  102  for a similar second or output conveyor (not shown) in parallel output housing  94 .  
         [0026]     Adjustable water inlets and/or drains  8   a  and  8   b  for the input feedstock, and  8   c  and  8   d  for feedstock residue or waste, adjoin the respective housings to facilitate desire aqueous slurry viscosity.  
         [0027]     Visible despite light shading of the contents within centrally located reaction zone  65  are the components between which the desired electric arcing occurs. Grounding plate  71 , shown in its rest or stowed position adjacent the short transverse mid-portion of the path, is mounted upon externally grounded outer shaft  73 , which is reciprocatable by conventional exterior drive means (not shown).  
         [0028]     Accessory electrode array plate  61 , shown in its opposing wall-adjacent rest or stowed position, is mounted on its own similarly reciprocable outer tubular shaft  63 , which is hollow to accommodate (cabled) electrical leads from the exterior to the respective electrodes, and also, via tubular inner shaft  62 , to provide cooling water flow to all the electrode housings. At least one (usually both) of these shaft mountings is (are) reciprocatable—by conventional means (not shown here) from such rest or stowed position near the reactor wall inwardly into compressive contact with intervening feedstock slurry, so as to facilitate desired electric arcing. Slurry passage through such reaction zone may preferably be slowed, or even interrupted, during such compression and electric arcing.  
         [0029]      FIG. 2B  shows (also in plan, in more detail) electrical grounding plate  71  on reciprocatable shaft  73 , also its (five) rows and columns (five) conductive nubs  72  each extending a relatively modest distance from the face of the plate.  
         [0030]      FIG. 2C  shows the identical grounding plate in front elevation. Its (five) rows  71  and columns of nubs  72  thereon, extending a short distance from the face of the plate, appear as black spots. They are juxtaposable to a similar pattern of respective electrodes on electrode plate  15 —itself shown head-on in subsequent  FIG. 2E .  
         [0031]     All the grounding nubs  72  and their metal plate  71  are at the same voltage (preferably grounded). The nubs are located so as to be juxtaposable to respective electrode ends when the space between the respective plates is reduced to facilitate electrical arcing.  
         [0032]      FIG. 2D  shows, in side elevation (partly sectioned) electrode array housing plate  49 , with its electrodes supported on the end of hollow grounding shaft  73 , surrounding both cable  62  of electrical leads and cooling-water tubing  77 —to the electrodes. Base  48  (shaded) of the housing preferably is aided, in maintaining proper orientation of the extending arrayed electrodes, by a pair of wireworks  46  and 47 , wrapped about all of the respective electrodes in turn, at selected intervals above their base plate. Each wire is tightly wrapped in a criss-cross pattern therearound to stabilize each electrode perpendicular to the supporting array plate.  
         [0033]     Aquatic and electrical connecting means extend, via respective sheathings, through the hollow supporting shaft to all electrodes in the array. Electrical connections are made to respective electrode hot-wires, whereas water flows into all electrode housings alike.  
         [0034]      FIG. 2E  shows electrode array plate  13  head-on, provided with an array of thirteen electrodes (A to M) in five rows and columns (cf. a 5-spot domino with added outer 3-spot rows along each side).  
         [0035]      FIG. 3A  shows a second reactor embodiment of the present invention with a smoothly curvilinear—not angular—transverse path (more lightly shaded to reveal even more complex installed components), to and from reaction zone  65  located halfway along the connecting pathway between input and output conveyors. Such smooth path can be more conducive to continuous processing than is a more angular path.  
         [0036]     The overall feedstock path extends similarly from hopper  1  via such an input conveyor (hidden) within housing  11  to and through reaction zone  65 —now centered along a smoothly curved path—then continues out of the reaction zone via a like conveyor (hidden) within outhousing  94  to the exterior—and discharge onto apron  99 .  
         [0037]     Shown in  FIG. 3A , at its stowed or rest position against the curved outer wall, is similarly curved grounding plate  81  supported on shaft  83  within cylinder  84 . Such mounting enables the plate to move horizontally inward toward the axis of curvature, to compact slurried feedstock, and to facilitate electrical arcing therein, and then to return to rest—via conventional external means (not shown).  
         [0038]      FIG. 3B  shows curved grounding plate  81  face-on, having a half dozen slightly raised horizontal rows (V, W, X, Y, and Z (shown as black streaks) replacing the more numerous individual nubs on the flat plate of the previous embodiment.  
         [0039]     This curvilinear embodiment of the present invention also has (as shown in dim outline in  FIG. 3A ) a hexagonal cylindrical array of (six) electrode plates—instead of a single such plate—each with an electrode array like that of the previous embodiment. Concentric small and large vertical axles  115  and  116  support a half dozen plates: (P, Q,R, S, T and U), all shown therein edge-on from above, equidistant from the rotation axis.  
         [0040]     As rotation of this multiplicity of array plates inherently twists the electrical leads to the respective electrodes, shortening the effective length of the leads, operations may be interrupted from time to time for rewinding sessions, as at periodic lulls in normal operations. Alternatively, rather complex exterior twist-cancelling mechanism (not described or shown here) may be provided.  
         [0041]      FIG. 3C  shows head-on (as in  FIG. 3B  but opposite thereto and scaled down a bit), such an electrode plate S face-on, plus its flanking slantwise plates R and T. Wide vertical axle  116  is visible extending both above and below the array group, which it supports around smaller vertical axial tube  115 , which carries cooling water to and from the electrodes. All thirteen electrodes on the facing plate are visible end-on (as small circles). Five electrodes on each of the two adjacent slantwise plates (one on on either side) are visible. (No attempt is made here to depict the pair of very fine stabilizing wireworks wound about each electrode in turn.)  
         [0042]      FIG. 4A  shows electrode  79  suited to either the single-array or the multiple-array embodiment of this invention, as seated in and extending from an array plate ( 115 ), and sectioned lengthwise except at its conical tip  20 , whether screwed (as shown), snapped, or otherwise secured in its housing end. Axial hotwire  51  has surrounding insulation  52  except at its end shown seated within axial depression  54  in the adjoining bottom or seat of the cylindrical electrode. The exposed end tapers conically—but might be multihedral instead. Outer wall  53  of the housing tubing has lateral outlets or “weep holes” (note outward arrows) enabling outflow of cooling water from whatever external source into the adjacent slurry (neither shown).  
         [0043]      FIG. 4B  shows, in transverse section, part of a reaction zone wall  24  shaded as composed of brick, with a pair of refrigerant circulation channels  39  therein, useful in maintaining its structural integrity, also a pair of water channels  17  opening into adjacent reaction zone  65 , such as above and below any feedstock slurry surface (not shown) to aid in generating and collecting gaseous fuel.  
         [0044]     Other suitable wall-construction materials include concrete, stone, ceramic materials, even high-temperature-resistant metals, e.g., tungsten or one more of its alloys noted for such capability, such as also is frequently chosen for electrode composition(s).  
         [0045]     Useful variations may be made in the subject invention, as by adding, combining, deleting, or subdividing apparatus, compositions, component parts, or steps—while retaining many of the benefits of this invention, which itself is defined in the following claims.