Patent ID: 7473095

Claim:
An afterburning method for reducing NO X emissions from industrial exhaust containing evolved hydrocarbon comprising: burning exhaust hydrocarbon in an air mixture at an equivalency ratio of oxidant to hydrocarbon of ER HT <1.0 at above a first temperature of about 900° C. and sufficiently high to break the bonds in the hydrocarbon fuel and for a sufficient time period for all of the oxygen in the exhaust hydrocarbon/air mixture to combine substantially completely with disassociated carbon and hydrogen components of the exhaust hydrocarbon and to thereby produce carbon dioxide, water, and a portion of unburned light hydrocarbon gas; cooling the unburned light hydrocarbon gas to below a second temperature of less than about 800° C.; and oxidizing the unburned light hydrocarbon gas substantially completely in an oxygen rich atmosphere at below the second temperature.