PLASMA ARC CARBONIZER

Abstract

A system and method for plasma arc anaerobic thermal conversion processing is provided to convert waste into bio-gas; bio-oil; carbonized materials; non-organic ash, and varied further co-products. The system and process supports a variety of processes, including to make, without limitation, carbon, carbon-based inks and dyes, activated carbon, aerogels, bio-coke, and bio-char, as well as generate electricity, produce adjuncts for natural gas, and/or various aromatic oils, phenols, and other liquids, all depending upon the input materials and the parameters selected to process the waste, including real time economic and other market parameters which can result in the automatic re-configuration of the system to adjust its output co-products to reflect changing market conditions. Plasma arc carbonizer off-gases produced during carbonization are supplied to a controlled heated column for refining and recovery of the carbonizer hot gases into distillates.

Claims

1. A system for treating waste, the system comprising: at least one plasma arc unit; a carbonizer heated by said at least one plasma arc units and adapted to convert the waste to a useable product and resultant hot gases; and a thermal oxidizer in gaseous communication with said carbonizer to receive the resultant hot gases.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the waste includes at least one of municipal solid waste, infectious medical waste, or bitumen that optionally contains non-reactive inorganics.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said carbonizer employs anaerobic thermal conversion processing to treat the waste.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said carbonizer comprises a thermo-chemical reactor that is one of a drag-chain reactor, batch reactor, continuous-stirred-tank reactor, rotating drum, thermal oxidizers, or plug-in reactor.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said carbonizer operates under a reduced pressure of a partial or complete vacuum.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said at least one plasma unit operates with a nitrogen based atmosphere.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the useable products converted from the waste is one or more of carbon black, carbon-based inks and dyes, activated carbon, aerogels, bio-coke, bio-char, combustion feedstock to generate electricity, adjuncts for natural gas, aromatic oils, or phenols.

8. The system of claim 1 further comprising: a sealed enclosure; and a piston driver for pushing one or more containers of waste into a plasma heating zone of said sealed enclosure.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising: an airlock in mechanical communication with the sealed enclosure, where the airlock introduces the one or more containers of waste into the sealed enclosure to prevent gases from escaping and to maintain the atmospheric conditions within the sealed enclosure.

10. The system of claim 8 further comprising: a drop slot in said sealed enclosure; and a collection bin adapted to move remaining solids and carbon by-products that result from the treated waste with said piston driver to said drop slot for collection in the collection bin.

11. The system of claim 1 further comprising a controlled heated column adapted for refining and recovery of the resultant hot gases into distillates.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the distillates comprise one or more of C2-C36 compounds of alkanes, alkenes, ethers, esters, phenols, aromatics, lignins, polycyclics; and substituted versions thereof where the substituent in place of a hydrogen atom is for example, a hydroxyl, an amine, a sulfonyl, a carboxyl, a halogen, or a combination thereof.

13. A method of using the system of claim 1 for treating waste with said plasma arc carbonizer, the method comprising: adjusting a set of parameters of said carbonizer based on waste feed stock to be inputted; loading waste feedstock into said carbonizer; and collecting useable byproducts obtained from the carbonizer.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the adjustable set of parameters for said carbonizer include one or more of temperature, conveyor speed, dwell times, or atmosphere.

15. The method of claim 13 further comprising safely disposing of non-useable outputs from said carbonizer or reintroducing the non-useable outputs into said carbonizer.

16. The method of claim 13 further comprising supplying the resultant hot gases to a controlled heated column for distilling and refining and recovery into distillates.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the distillates include one or more of C2-C36 compounds of alkanes, alkenes, ethers, esters, phenols, aromatics, lignins, polycyclics; or substituted versions thereof where the substituent in place of a hydrogen atom is a hydroxyl, an amine, a sulfonyl, a carboxyl, a halogen, or a combination thereof.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein any hot gases or solids that do not distill out as a useable by-product are either to be further scrubbed and safely disposed of, or recirculated into the carbonizer for reprocessing.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] The present invention is further detailed with respect to the following drawings. These figures are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention but rather illustrate certain attributes thereof.

[0020] FIG. 1 is a prior art functional diagram of a plasma gasification system that converts inputted waste to synthesis gas;

[0021] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a plasma arc carbonizer with a piston driver for pushing containers of waste into the plasma heating zone in accordance with embodiments of the invention;

[0022] FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of a chain drag carbonizer with plasma arc heating sources in accordance with embodiments of the invention;

[0023] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a plasma arc carbonizer with a controlled heated column for refining and recovery of carbonizer hot gases; and

[0024] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a process for refining off-gases that are produced by a carbonizer in accordance with embodiments of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] An inventive system and method for plasma arc anaerobic thermal conversion processing is provided to convert waste into bio-gas; bio-oil; carbonized materials; non-organic ash, and varied further co-products. In the inventive technology presented herein, any carbonaceous waste is converted into useful co-products that can be re-introduced into the stream of commerce at various economically advantageous points. The present invention has utility to support a variety of processes, including to make, without limitation, carbon, carbon-based inks and dyes, activated carbon, aerogels, bio-coke, and bio-char, as well as generate electricity, produce adjuncts for natural gas, and/or various aromatic oils, phenols, and other liquids, all depending upon the input materials and the parameters selected to process the waste, including real time economic and other market parameters which can result in the automatic re-configuration of the system to adjust its output co-products to reflect changing market conditions. In a specific embodiment of the plasma arc carbonizer, off-gases produced during carbinization are supplied to a controlled heated column for refining and recovery of the carbonizer hot gases. The controlled heated column performs hydro-carbon recycling, and acts as a cracking tower that takes the carbonizer off-gas as a feedstock and distills the off-gases into constituent parts under pressure and temperature conditions where the feedstock evaporates and condenses into a fractional column of distillates. The number of theoretical plates needed to exact a desired level of separation is readily calculated using the Fenske equation.

[0026] Distillates extracted are appreciated to be a function of the chemical nature of the feedstock and the carbonizer conditions. Illustrative distillates include C2-C36 compounds of alkanes, alkenes, ethers, esters, phenols, aromatics, lignins, polycyclics; and substituted versions thereof where the substituent in place of a hydrogen atom is for example, a hydroxyl, an amine, a sulfonyl, a carboxyl, a halogen, or a combination thereof.

[0027] As used herein, the terms carbonized material, carbonaceous product and carbonaceous material are used interchangeably to define solid substances at standard temperature and pressure that are predominantly inorganic carbon by weight and illustratively include char, bio-coke, carbon, activated carbon, aerogels, fullerenes, and combinations thereof.

[0028] It is appreciated that a feedstock is readily treated with a variety of solutions or suspensions prior to carbonizer to modify the properties of the resulting inorganic carbon product. By way of example, solutions or suspensions of metal oxides or metal salts are applied to a feedstock to create an inorganic carbon product containing metal or metal ion containing domains. Metals commonly used to dope an inorganic carbon product illustratively include iron, cobalt, platinum, titanium, zinc, silver, and combinations of any of the aforementioned metals.

[0029] It is to be understood that in instances where a range of values are provided that the range is intended to encompass not only the end point values of the range but also intermediate values of the range as explicitly being included within the range and varying by the last significant figure of the range. By way of example, a recited range of from 1 to 4 is intended to include 1-2, 1-3, 2-4, 3-4, and 1-4.

[0030] Since a core element of the inventive process for refining off-gases that are produced by a carbonizer is carbonization, there are a wide variety of possible operating configurations and parameters to adjust product mixes and waste stream throughput. The system is readily re-configured, and system operating parameters changed, some in real time, to adjust co-product outputs and percentages thereof to reflect on-going market conditions. For illustrative purposes, wood, before entering the process, can have its moisture removed, but not so much as to burst the plant cells within the cellular structure of the wood, but rather to rendered contained water as steam and thus destroy the cellular fabric of the wood. The temperature range, duration of exposure, mixing rate, and other factors claimed as part of the inventive process, machine and system of systems herein are thus focused on controlling the many variables inherent in such anaerobic thermal conversion processes in order to produce results with utility for future use as opposed to just destruction.

[0031] System configuration in certain embodiments includes carbonization process heat source generators that are plasma arc units. In a specific embodiment, the plasma arc generators are nitrogen based. Reaction-produced carbonization process gases, if present, may be re-circulated to operate the drag chain reactor motors, used to heat water and generate steam for turbines or steam reciprocating engines or to supply subsequent distillation processes. The re-circulated heat in some inventive embodiments may also be used to preheat feedstock or to produce electricity. The pre-processing heating system preheats feedstock material prior to entering the reactor tube.

[0032] A carbonization system in specific inventive embodiments also utilizes a thermo-chemical reactor which may be a drag-chain reactor, or others such as, but not limited to batch, continuous-stirred-tank, thermal oxidizers, or plug-in reactors.

[0033] Another important element of an inventive system is the use of an air-seal, which not only aids mixing and heat diffusion, but allows pressurization of, or the creation of a partial or complete vacuum within the reactor for various reasons, including preventing gaseous contaminants from escaping the reactor, managing pressures, and managing the flow of gases within the overall reactor and associated processing elements.

[0034] Referring now to the figures, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a plasma arc carbonizer 30 with one or more plasma arc generators 40, and a piston driver 34 for pushing containers of waste 36 into the plasma heating zone 42 of the sealed enclosure 38. The sealed enclosure 38 may be maintained at a negative pressure. An airlock 32 may be used to introduce the containers of waste 36 into the sealed enclosure 38 to prevent gases from escaping and to maintain the atmospheric conditions within the process chamber of the sealed enclosure 38. The remaining solids illustratively including metals, glass, and carbon by-products are moved with the piston driver 34 to the drop slot 44 and collected in the bin 46. The collected materials may then be separated, and non-useable by-products may be reintroduced into the plasma arc carbonizer 30 for further processing. A thermal oxidizer 48 in fluid communication with the sealed enclosure 38 acts to destroy any airborne infectious matter and pollutants from the sealed enclosure 38.

[0035] FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of a chain drag carbonizer 50 with one or more plasma arc heating sources 40. Waste is inputted into an airlock 32 that introduces the waste to a shredder 52 that deposits the shredded waste on to a conveyer 56. The conveyer 56 carries the shredded waste into a plasma heated sealed enclosure 54. A thermal oxidizer 48 in fluid communication with the sealed enclosure 54 acts to destroy any airborne infectious matter and pollutants from the sealed enclosure 54.

[0036] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a plasma heated system 100 with a plasma heated carbonizer 102 with a controlled heated column 104 for refining and recovery of by-products from carbonizer hot gases. The plasma heated carbonizer 102 may perform anaerobic thermal conversion processing with one or more plasma arc generators 40 to generate heat that converts input (arrow A1) illustratively including, but not limited to municipal solid waste, infectious medical waste, and bitumen into useable products (arrow A8) such as bio-gas; bio-oil; carbonized materials; non-organic ash. Non-useable output (arrow A9) from the plasma heated carbonizer 102 may either be safely disposed of, or recirculated back into the carbonizer 104 for further processing. The plasma heated carbonizer 102 may be operative with a controlled heated column 104 for refining and recovery of by-products from carbonizer hot gases as detailed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,801,904. Hot gases (arrow A2) generated by and in the carbonizer 102 are feed to the controlled heated column(s) 104 for hydro-carbon re-cycling (cracking). Temperature cut points (zones) within the controlled heated column 104 are signified by outputs 106A-106D that supply distillates represented by arrows A3, A4, and A5. Remaining hot gases or solids (arrow A6) that do not distill out as a useable by-product may either be further scrubbed and safely disposed of, or recirculated (arrow A7) into the carbonizer 102 for further processing.

[0037] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a process 200 for treating waste with a plasma arc carbonizer. The process 200 starts by adjusting the parameters of the plasma arc carbonizer based on waste feed stock to be inputted (Step 202). Carbonizer parameters may illustratively include temperature, conveyor speed, dwell times, and atmosphere. In some inventive embodiments, once the carbonizer is at the required temperature, waste feedstock is loaded into the carbonizer (Step 204). Subsequently, useable byproducts obtained from the carbonizer are collected, and non-useable outputs are either safely disposed of or reintroduced into the carbonizer (Step 206).

[0038] As a person skilled in the art will recognize from the previous detailed description and from the figures and claims, modifications and changes can be made to the preferred embodiments of the invention without departing from the scope of this invention defined in the following claims.