Patent ID: 7052661

Claim:
A process for removing and recovering mercury from a feedstock which contains mercury and/or mercury compounds and which is at least partially combustible under oxidizing conditions and at least partially thermally decomposable under reducing conditions into vapor and non-vapor fractions comprising: a. thermally decomposing in a thermal reactor at least a portion of said feedstock by heating it to a temperature above 1000° C. under reducing conditions to produce a vapor stream comprising at least a majority of said mercury and/or mercury compounds present in said feedstock and thermal decomposition vapor products and a non-vapor fraction b. separating in said thermal reactor said vapor stream from said non-vapor fraction and discharging said vapor stream from said thermal reactor c. cooling said vapor stream to produce a cooled vapor stream comprising elemental mercury d. recovering mercury directly from said cooled vapor, or from a gas stream produced by combusting or oxidizing said cooled vapor, followed by cooling, by contact with a mercury adsorbent and e. combusting, at least intermittently, said non-vapor fraction to produce an oxidized flue gas with a reduced content of mercury and/or mercury compounds as compared to an oxidized flue gas prepared by combustion of said feedstock.