Systems and processes provide for a thermal process to transform sludge (and a variety of other natural waste materials) into electricity. Dewatered sludge and other materials containing a high amount of latent energy are dried into a powdered biofuel using a drying gas produced in the system. The drying gas is recirculated and is heated by the biofuel produced in the system, waste heat (from turbines or internal combustion engines), gas (including natural gas or digester gas) and/or oil. The biofuel is combusted in a boiler system that utilizes a burner operable to burn biofuel and produce heat utilized in a series of heat exchangers that heat the recirculating drying air and steam that powers the turbines for electricity production.

A hybrid feeding device for automatically adjusting a co-firing amount of decaying garbage. The device comprises a mechanical grate furnace, a hybrid garbage conveying device, a raw garbage feeding device, a decaying garbage feeding device, a hybrid garbage crushing device, and a control center. The raw garbage feeding device, the decaying garbage feeding device, and the hybrid garbage conveying device are all connected to the control center. The decaying garbage feeding device is used for transporting decaying garbage to the raw garbage feeding device. The raw garbage feeding device is positioned between the decaying garbage feeding device and the hybrid garbage conveying device. The hybrid garbage crushing device is used for crushing garbage and inputting the garbage to the mechanical grate furnace. The mechanical grate furnace is internally provided with a plurality of temperature sensors, and the plurality of temperature sensors are connected to the control center.

A grate block for a combustion grate including a block body having an upper wall which forms a bearing surface and along which the combustible material is to be conveyed and a front wall which has a lower bearing edge, the bearing edge being designed to come into contact with the bearing surface of an adjacent grate block in a feed direction, wherein the upper wall has an air supply opening formed by an air supply channel. The air supply opening is at least partially surrounded by a thickened portion which protrudes from the bearing surface, forms a protective channel extending the air supply channel, and is designed to prevent liquid from flowing into the air supply opening.

Embodiments of the invention relate to a grate bar front section and a matching grate bar rear section and to a grate bar including the grate bar front section and/or the grate bar rear section configured such that, by releasably connecting the grate bar front section to the grate bar rear section, manufacture and maintenance costs are reduced.

A method facilitates operation of an incinerator for solid fuel. The incinerator includes a device for separating ash from flue gas. The method includes collecting ash deposits originating from the flue gas, resulting in collected ash. To improve the flowability of the ash collected, the method further includes introducing a powdery additive material including i) clay and ii) calcium carbonate into the flue gas. At the location where the additive material is introduced, the flue gas has a temperature of at least 700° C. The additive is introduced with a rate R of at least 0.1 times the mass of ash in the stream of flue gas.

A method includes producing an arrangement of grate bars for supporting fuel that is burned in an incinerator or other furnace device. The method includes positioning a pair of grate bars in adjacent side by side relation and with the respective upper sides that are configured to support the fuel, in generally aligned relation. The method further includes after positioning the grate bars, manipulating a fastener through respective recesses that extend in the grate bars, so that the grate bars are held in operative connection and in pressed together relation by the fastener. The method further includes subsequent to the fastener manipulation step, covering the recesses with at least one cover, such that the fastener is rendered inaccessible through the upper sides of the grate bars.

A biochar apparatus and a related biochar module may have a horizontal table-shaking mechanism and a tapered channel for causing biochar pieces generated in a firebox to fall through openings in the table to a conveyor system below. The table may be configured with replaceable grate panels. A quenching reservoir pan for holding quenching liquid receives a drainage basket at a discharge end of the conveyor system for quenching hot pieces of biochar and allowing easy retrieval of the quenched pieces.

In the case of mono sewage sludge incineration, a solution may be created that enables sewage sludge ash, which may still have a low proportion of unburned carbon, to be discharged from a mono sewage sludge incineration plant. This is achieved by a method for the post-combustion of sewage sludge ash obtained in a mono sewage sludge incineration in a rotary kiln by means of a hot and a low oxygen content, such as an oxygen content of 5-10 vol. % oxygen. The gas stream from the rotary kiln may escape the sewage sludge ash and is fed to the gas flow. This sufficiently hot gas flow may cause oxidation or afterburning of unburned carbon contained in the sewage sludge ash.

Systems and processes provide for a thermal process to transform sludge (and a variety of other natural waste materials) into electricity. Dewatered sludge and other materials containing a high amount of latent energy are dried into a powdered biofuel using a drying gas produced in the system. The drying gas is recirculated and is heated by the biofuel produced in the system, waste heat (from turbines or internal combustion engines), gas (including natural gas or digester gas) and/or oil. The biofuel is combusted in a boiler system that utilizes a burner operable to burn biofuel and produce heat utilized in a series of heat exchangers that heat the recirculating drying air and steam that powers the turbines for electricity production.

Cogeneration plant for the continuous production of electrical and thermal energy from solid woody biomass, the latter being selected from among wood in the form of woodchips, vine branches, shrubs and underbrush, grain, hay, animal litter, suitably-treated muds, shells and kernels, suitably-treated husks, fibrous cultures and compositions thereof, the plant including at least one first container and at least one second container connected by at least one interconnection duct, the first container including the components suitable for inducing the transformation of the biomass into syngas including H.sub.2 and CO; the plant providing for a particular step of screening, drying and briquette-making on board the machine of the solid woody starting biomass.