PRODUCE HYDROCARBON GAS AND SOLID CHAR

Background

Many systems have been proposed, and even built and tested, to economically extract useful energy from waste or other materials but all known earlier such systems have proven to be uneconomic because the value of the energy output is exceeded by the cost of the energy input demanded, the useful energy outputs are dirty and the cleaning costs exceed their value or they do not function effectively in other ways.

It is the purpose of this invention to provide a process system with specific operational parts which is not only economic but also produces outputs which are sufficiently clean to pass and exceed all current World standards in every instance and some may be used as high-value clean fuel.

Brief Description of the Invention.

The process system which is the subject of this invention, a Waste Refinery, is capable of accepting any hydrocarbon containing waste or other material, even used motor vehicle tyres and mixed plastic waste or other material including composites, and producing from it useful, clean energy in the form of hydrocarbon gas, clean combustion char in the form of briquettes, pellets or powder and also electric power by the process with a value significantly higher than the energy input demand and the other operational costs whist as the same time emitting no harmful or hazardous materials. The hydrocarbon (HC) gas produced by the system is easily introduced into any gas supply demand without further processing requiring only calorific enhancement is some cases depending upon the nature of the waste or other materials which are processed. The clean combustion char production ratio compared to the hydrocarbon gas production may be varied during the operation of the system by changing the temperatures and dwell-times at various stages of the process so as to take maximum advantage of the current values of each of the heat energy bearing outputs.

This is achieved by a unique whole process system which combines known and new techniques, components and processes in a manner which has not been employed before. The invention provides an economic system; which is self- fuelled after start-up; by which potentially hazardous waste and other materials are converted into usable energy and safe, clean and inert by-products of low mass which are easily and safely disposable. The process includes a number of innovative steps which are new technologies including the tulip reactor retort, the HC gas polishing reactor, the system by which the process is isolated from air and therefore oxygen and the very accurate control of the heat energy input into each phase of the process.

The ability to vary the energy bearing output rates of the hydrocarbon gas and the clean-burn char is also a new and innovative step. For example, where the process system is set up for maximum HC gas production rather than maximum char production, with maximum dwell time, the char output would be approximately 250 kg per tonne of waste or other material input. Where the process system is set up for maximum char production rather than maximum HC gas production, with minimum dwell time, the char output would be up to 750 kg of char per tonne of waste or other material input.

The system also has the ability to reduce the moisture content of any waste or other materials being fed into it without any fuel costs by utilising any unused heat energy from the main process sections to dry the materials and even to part- torrify the materials prior to them entering the main process parts of the system so as to increase the throughput of the whole system. The vessel where this pre- treatment is undertaken is not shown in the drawings but is similar in construction to the rotating drum in the pyrolysis island, 109.

Also incorporated into the overall system there may be a process facility to deal with the fines which are always generated by the processing of any wood derived material like paper, cardboard etc. and of any actual wood content in the waste material in-feed. Generally, this fine material is at least a potentially serious nuisance which can agglomerate and cause blockages and can even become explosive. The process which is the subject of the invention may have the facility to collect all fines material by directed air movements and then pass it into process tubes which run through the hot process gas ducts through special rotary or other air-lock valves which prevent the ingress of any air and therefore oxygen.

The fines material in the heated ducts is moved through them at a controlled rate by rotating augers which accurately control the dwell-times in the heat and so ensure that it is all torrified or pyrolysed depending upon the operator chosen settings employed. During this process a certain amount of additional HC gas is generated, and this is introduced into the other HC gas ducts before the gas cleaning cyclone and gas polishing cracker. The resultant material from the fines is high-grade char and is added to the other char feeds through a similar rotating valve or other air-lock before hammer milling. Thus, the fines materials are safely removed and converted into useful fuels at no additional heat energy cost.

The anaerobic heat treatment of waste materials produces three different fuels which are very clean-burn and may be used to power electricity generators. The gas, known as Syngas, is best used to drive internal combustion gas engines which drive electric power generators on the same site where it is produced so that transport costs are eliminated. As well as satisfying the parasitic load of the process plant, a large quantity of electric power may also be sold into the National Grid and this electricity is “green” as it has been produced from legislation recognised renewable energy sources - waste materials. The solid materials produced are known as Char and there are two different types of Char. Torrified Char, T-Char, has been processed at about 300° C 400° C and some Syngas has been driven off. Pyrolysed Char, P-Char, has been processed at 1 ,000° C to 1 ,200° C and a higher proportion of Syngas has been driven off. The markets for T-Char and P-Char are different and the prices they command vary. The system which is the subject of the invention has the capability of being able to vary the proportions of T-Char to P-Char to meet the demands for the highest value fuels at any particular time. This gives the system the additional economic advantage of producing output fuels of the maximum sales value as the markets change as the result of other influences.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention there is provided an apparatus for heating waste material to produce hydrocarbon gas and solid char, comprising:

a chamber for receiving waste material; and

a cyclone furnace arranged to burn fuel to provide heat to the chamber to heat waste material received therein and produce hydrocarbon gas and solid char;

wherein the chamber has a first output for outputting hydrocarbon gas from the chamber, and a second output for outputting solid char from the chamber; and

the cyclone furnace has a first input for receiving hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber to at least partly fuel the cyclone furnace.

The chamber may be configured to store the waste material in a substantially anaerobic atmosphere during heating. The apparatus may comprise a plurality of airlocks to reduce or prevent the ingress of air into the chamber.

The apparatus may comprise means for flushing the chamber with an inert gas to create an anaerobic atmosphere in the chamber. The cyclone furnace may have a second input for receiving an auxiliary gaseous fuel, wherein the auxiliary gaseous fuel is optionally propane. The cyclone furnace may have a third input for receiving a solid fuel, the cyclone furnace being configured to simultaneously burn solid and gaseous fuel, wherein the solid fuel is optionally waste material.

In certain embodiments the chamber is rotatable. The chamber may comprise longitudinal scalloped formations on an inner surface for tumbling waste material received in the chamber when the chamber is rotated. The chamber may comprise an axial cylindrical formation at its centre arranged to distribute waste material falling within the chamber when the chamber is rotated.

The chamber may be arranged to permit waste material received therein to be heated to at least 650°C, or optionally to at least 850°C, or optionally between 650°C and 1200°C, or optionally between 900°C and 1200°C.

The cyclone furnace may produce hot gas that is directed to the chamber to heat waste material received therein, wherein optionally the hot gas is directed to a cavity between the chamber and an insulated enclosure. The apparatus may comprise one or more dampers for controlling the flow of hot gas from the cyclone furnace to the chamber. The hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber may be fluidly isolated from the hot gas produced by the cyclone furnace.

The apparatus may further comprise a polishing cracker arranged in fluid communication with the first output of the chamber, the polishing cracker being configured to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The polishing cracker may comprise a plurality of cracking tubes disposed in an insulated container, each of the plurality of cracking tubes having an internal spiral formation and being configured to receive hydrocarbon gas whilst a cavity defined in the insulated container around the cracking tubes is configured to be heated. The polishing cracker may be heated by the cyclone furnace.

The apparatus may further comprise a first heated cyclone in fluid communication with and disposed between the first output of the chamber and the polishing cracker, the first heated cyclone being configured to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The first heated cyclone may be heated by the cyclone furnace.

The apparatus may further comprise a second heated cyclone in fluid communication with an output of the polishing cracker, the second heated cyclone being configured to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The second heated cyclone may be heated by the cyclone furnace.

The apparatus may further comprise cooling means arranged to cool solid char outputted from the second output of the chamber. The cooling means may comprise a water jacket surrounding a duct in which the solid char is received. The apparatus may further comprise a controllable auger for moving the solid char through the duct. The auger may be controllable in dependence on one or more of the amount of solid char entering the duct, the temperature of the solid char entering the duct, and the temperature of the solid char exiting the duct. Water may be pumped through the water jacket to cool solid char received in the duct. The apparatus may further comprise a cooling pond thermally connected to the water jacket for acting as a heat sink for heat absorbed by the water jacket.

The apparatus may further comprise a control system that is configured to control the amount of hydrocarbon gas being supplied to first input of the cyclone furnace either in combination with or in place of an auxiliary gaseous fuel being supplied to the second input of the cyclone furnace. The apparatus may further comprise control means for controlling the temperature of the chamber and the time period that waste material is heated in the chamber so that the control means is operable to determine the relative amounts of hydrocarbon gas and solid char produced.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of heating waste material to produce hydrocarbon gas and solid char, comprising:

receiving waste material in a chamber;

using a cyclone furnace to burn fuel to provide heat to the chamber to heat waste material received therein and produce hydrocarbon gas and solid char; and

at least partly fuelling the cyclone furnace using hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber.

The waste material may be heated in the chamber in a substantially anaerobic atmosphere.

The method may comprise flushing the chamber with an inert gas to create an anaerobic atmosphere in the chamber prior to heating waste material therein.

The method may comprise at least partially fuelling the cyclone furnace with an auxiliary gaseous fuel when the amount of hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber is not sufficient to fuel the cyclone furnace and maintain a desired output temperature, wherein the auxiliary gaseous fuel is optionally propane.

The method may comprise fuelling the cyclone furnace with a solid fuel, the cyclone furnace being configured to simultaneously burn solid and gaseous fuel, wherein the solid fuel is optionally waste material. The method may comprise rotating the chamber when heating waste material received therein.

The method may comprise heating waste material received in the chamber to at least 650°C, or optionally to at least 850°C, or optionally between 650°C and 1200°C, or optionally between 900°C and 1200°C.

The method may comprise heating the chamber using hot gas produced by the cyclone furnace to heat waste material received in the chamber, wherein optionally the hot gas is directed to a cavity between the chamber and an insulated enclosure.

The method may comprise using one or more dampers to control the flow of hot gas from the cyclone furnace to the chamber.

The method may comprise using a polishing cracker arranged in fluid communication with the chamber to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The method may comprise heating the polishing cracker using heat from the cyclone furnace.

The method may comprise using a first heated cyclone in fluid communication with and disposed between the chamber and the polishing cracker to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The method may comprise heating the first heated cyclone using heat from the cyclone furnace.

The method may comprise using a second heated cyclone in fluid communication with an output of the polishing cracker to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas outputted from the chamber so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The method may comprise heating the second heated cyclone using heat from the cyclone furnace.

The method may comprise cooling solid char outputted from the chamber.

The method may comprise controlling the amount of hydrocarbon gas being supplied to the cyclone furnace from the chamber either in combination with or in place of an auxiliary gaseous fuel being supplied to the cyclone furnace.

The method may comprise controlling the temperature of the chamber and the time period that waste material is heated in the chamber so as to determine the relative amounts of hydrocarbon gas and solid char produced.

The method may comprise reducing the moisture content of waste material prior to heating the waste material in the chamber.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pyrolysis chamber for heating waste material received therein in order to produce hydrocarbon gas and solid char. In certain embodiments the chamber is rotatable. The chamber may comprise longitudinal scalloped formations on an inner surface for tumbling waste material received in the chamber when the chamber is rotated. The chamber may comprise an axial cylindrical formation at its centre arranged to distribute waste material falling within the chamber when the chamber is rotated.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a polishing cracker configured to be arranged in fluid communication with an output of a pyrolysis chamber, the polishing cracker being configured to receive and heat hydrocarbon gas received from the pyrolysis chamber so as to remove solid materials from the hydrocarbon gas. The polishing cracker may comprise a plurality of cracking tubes disposed in an insulated container, each of the plurality of cracking tubes having an internal spiral formation and being configured to receive hydrocarbon gas whilst a cavity defined in the insulated container around the cracking tubes is configured to be heated.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments of the invention are further described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic overview of a apparatus for heating waste material in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view of a pyrolysis chamber for heating waste in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2B is a schematic cross-sectional view of the pyrolysis chamber in a plane orthogonal to the view of Figure 2A;

Figure 3A shows an internal helical formation of a cracking tube of a polishing cracker in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 3B shows a part sectional view of a cracking tube of a polishing cracker in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

Figure 3C shows a polishing cracker in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Description of the Invention with Reference to the Drawings

Fig 1 shows the schematic layout of one embodiment of the invention where 100 is the waste or other material pre-treatment station. Flere the waste or other material is fed into the process system at 101 and is separated to provide fuel suitable for the cyclone furnace and the general waste or other material which is to be processed. Generally, this part of the process system will be undertaken by other contractors on or close to the process site but it is equally possible and economic for it to form part of the overall process system. The cyclone furnace suitable fuel part of the waste or other material input is fed into the special cyclone furnace, 102, where it is burned with air to produce the heat energy at 1 ,300° C to 1 ,500° C for the whole system. Any partially burned fuel from the cyclone furnace, 102, is removed at 401 and separated from any ash at 402 from where is passed to the process tubes, 403, for further heat treatment. Imported combustible gas, for example propane, is introduced at 103 during start-up and HC gas from clean HC gas outlet at 121 is introduced at 104 at rates determined by the overall system controller after the whole process is running to ensure that the combustion process produces only clean exhaust gases.

The purpose of the introduction of these gasses is to achieve the maximum efficiency of the cyclone furnace and the cleanliness of the hot gasses generated. Vitrified and other slag/char is extracted at this point, 105, and is safe for disposal or processed into clean-burn char in the form of briquettes, pellets or powder for use as fuel in other facilities such as power generation. The hot gasses from the cyclone furnace are passed through a heavily insulated dwell duct, 128, where any remaining hazardous products are burned off by the high temperature. The dwell time is determined by a control damper, 126, which is controlled by the overall system controller.

The hot gases then pass into the primary cyclone, 106, at 1 , 150° C to 1 ,450° C where remaining particulates are removed and discharged as char or other safe waste or usable products at 107 where it is separated from any ash at 402 and is passed to the process tubes, 403, for further heat treatment.

The hot gases then pass through a flow control chamber where flow control dampers governed by the central system controller determine the volumes of hot gasses which are directed into the pyrolysis island, 109, at 1 , 100° C to 1 ,400° C through ducts 1 10 which may incorporate further control dampers, 126, to divert part of the flow to the cracking tubes and process cyclones described later. Within the hot gas ducts, there may be provided tubes with internal, driven and rotational speed-controlled augers, 403 which facilitate the further heat processing of the materials to enhance the fuel values.

The pyrolysis island, 109, contains a heavily insulated chamber in which a rotating, scalloped wall“tulip” retort, 1 1 1 , is heated by the hot gases, 208, on its outside. Waste or other materials are fed into it through a series of gated air-locks 108 which prevent the ingress of any air (and thus, oxygen). The tulip retort is rotated by a chain drive, 1 12, or other suitable mechanism which is located outside the hot chamber. At the opposite end of the tulip retort to that which is driven, there is a gap at start-up, 1 13, to allow for the linear expansion of the tulip retort vessel as it heats up. When the tulip retort has reached operational temperatures, the ring-shaped end contacts a matching sealing ring, 1 14, which is supported by the chamber frame and has a bearing located outside the hot chamber all of which is further described later in relation to Figs 2A and 2B. The load imposed by the expanding retort is carried by a ring of bearings around the seals so that the seals are not overloaded.

The walls of the essentially tubular retort are pre-formed with longitudinal scallops of specific shape illustrated in Fig 2B. The shape and formation of these scallops are such that the heat from the external gases is transmitted evenly to all of the waste or other materials inside the retort as it rotates at between 8 and 20 RPM depending upon the nature of the waste or other materials being treated and ensure that no agglomeration of the waste or other material occurs inside the walls of the retort drum. Temperature detectors inside the retort control the rate of rotation through the system controller so that optimum performance is always maintained. The scallop shapes of high temperature steel from which the retort is made are extended internally to produce formations which ensure the lifting of the waste or other materials being processed to the point where it falls under the effect of gravity. The HC gases produced in the tulip retort are extracted at 1 15 into the first process cyclone, 1 16, at 700° C to 800° C where particulates are removed at 124. Also located at this point is the bio char auger extractor 125 into which the solid materials are assisted by a series of paddle shaped fins protruding from the retort frame to the inside of the retort. The bio char output is processed into clean-burn char in the form of briquettes, pellets or powder for use as fuel in other facilities such as power generation after it has been passed through the process tubes, 403, to enhance the fuel values. The first process cyclone, 1 16, is heated by hot gases from the cyclone furnace, 102, the flow of which is governed by dampers, 126, controlled by the central control system thus ensuring that the temperatures inside the process are maintained for maximum efficiency.

Any solid materials from the process cyclone which are extracted at 124, then pass through an ash separator, 402, where any non-fuel materials are separated and removed and then to the process tubes, 403 for further high temperature processing to enhance the fuel values.

The HC gases are then passed into a polishing cracking unit, 1 17, made up of a series of tubes, 1 18, which have internal spiral formations, 303, further described in Figs 3A, 3B and 3C. The tubes are located in the cracking unit chamber which has heavily insulated walls and is heated to 900° C to 1 , 100° C by the hot gases from 1 10 the flow rate of which is controlled by dampers, 126. The purpose of the HC gas polishing is to burn off any remaining toxic materials such as tars and to produce a chemically clean material and to clean the gas of any materials which are unacceptable in the general uses of combustible HC gas. The HC gas is then passed through a further heated process cyclone at 1 19, at 900° C to 1 , 100° C where any remaining particulates are completely decomposed and the resulting dust is removed and discharged at 120. The solid materials from the process cyclone which are extracted at 120, then pass through an ash separator, 402, where any non-fuel materials are separated and removed and then to the process tubes, 403 for further high temperature processing to enhance the fuel values. The temperature to which the second process cyclone is heated by the hot gasses is governed by the overall system controller acting upon dampers, 126.

The HC gas may then be activated charcoal filtered (if necessary and determined by on-line analysis) before being extracted for fuel at 121 . However, the system has proven to be capable of generating HC gas which is generally clean enough as to not require any further purification. Some waste or other material combinations processed by the system produce HC gas of a lower calorific value than is acceptable for some uses, for example only between 14 and 29 MJ/M ³ . In such cases the overall system controller which constantly monitors this data is connected to an enhancement source, for example LPG, and a calorific value enhancement gas is introduced to raise the calorific value to 36 MJ/M ³ . The hot gas exhausts from the pyrolysis island, 122, and the polishing cracking unit, 123, at temperatures generally above 500° C may be used to provide the heat energy for a CHP boiler or other useful purpose before safe discharge into the atmosphere.

Figs 2A and 2B show the design of the pyrolysis island, 109, where the rotating drum, 1 1 1 , the chain drive option, 1 12, the formations and construction of the drum with the longitudinal scalloped formations, 201 , are shown. 202 is an essentially cylindrical steel tube running through the centre of the retort the purpose of which is to break up and evenly distribute the waste or other materials which fall due to gravity from the tulip formations at the higher points. Hot gas is introduced to the retort at positions 204 and exhausted at positions 205.

The rate of flow of the hot gas is governed by dampers controlled by the overall system controller at either the inlets or the outlets or both so as to maintain the optimum temperatures for the efficient conversion of the waste or other materials into HC gas. The HC gas is exhausted from the retort at 206 where it is ducted into the first cleaning process cyclone at 1 16. Solid materials (char and vitrified slag) are also extracted at 206 through an air-locked auger having been directed into the auger by fin-like formations protruding inside the tulip reactor drum from the reactor frame. The char output is processed into clean-burn char in the form of briquettes, pellets or powder for use as fuel in other facilities such as power generation. From here the HC gas is fed into the polishing cracker, 1 17, which is described in detail in the notes relating to Figs 3A, 3B and 3C. The exhausted hot gas may be used to provide the energy for a standard CHIP system or simply discarded.

Figs 3A, 3B and 3C shows the HC gas polishing cracker, 1 17, with the internal spiral formations, 303, in the cracking tubes, 301 . The array of cracking tubes, 301 , is held within a heavily insulated container, 302, and the number of tubes required is determined by specific volume requirements. Each of the cracking tubes has a spiral, helically formed baffle, 303, running its whole length so that as the HC gas spins as it passes through the tubes. In this way, all parts of the HC gas are subjected to the maximum heat. The hot gasses from 1 10 are fed into the polishing cracker and the rate of flow is controlled for maximum performance by dampers in the inlets and/or outlets. The hot gas exhaust, at the opposite end of the unit to the inlet, may be utilised to power a CHIP unit or simply discarded. The HC gas is fed into the cracking tubes at 305 and extracted at similar points, 306, at the opposite end of the unit.

At start up, the interior of the system will have at least some air inside it and the tulip retort, 109, will be shorter than it is at its running temperature by about 75mm. As the cyclone furnace, 102, starts its activity to produce hot gasses to power the system, it is initially fed with fuel consisting of some selected waste or other material input and some imported gas (e.g. propane) at 103. As the system heats up towards its operating temperature, the tulip retort drum expands to make a seal between its exit end the corresponding ring in the retort frame and the whole system is flushed with nitrogen to ensure that no oxygen remains inside the system tract. The seal between the end of the rotating tulip retort and the static duct which carries away the HC gas and the solids is achieved by a ring- like formation made from phosphor bronze or similar suitable material with matching multiple concentric grooves. The load applied by the expanding tulip retort cylinder is carried by a series of roller bearings so that the sealing ring parts are not subjected to excess forces. The static part of the sealing formation has a spring-loaded sliding formation to accommodate any excess expansion and retain the airtight seal between the rotating and the static parts.

When the control systems indicate that all oxygen has been flushed out of the tract, waste or other material commences to be fed into the system at 203 though the airlock gates at 108. As soon as HC gas is produced at the exit from the polishing reactor, 1 17, the imported gas supply is shut down and replaced by HC gas from 1 17 at a controlled rate to maintain the required parameters of the cyclone furnace, 102. The system then continues as long as waste or other material is fed into it at 101 . At the end of an operational cycle, the waste or other material input is stopped and the system is allowed to continue operation until all of the materials in the tract are fully processed when all items may be shut down.

Char output is undertaken at the solid material outlets of all of the cyclones (the cyclone furnace and the gas cleaning cyclones) and from the tulip retort reactor. All of this char has been heated anaerobically to temperatures where it is torrified and becomes completely clean and safe for later combustion. The process results in a fuel very similar to charcoal and it may be processed into briquettes, pellets or powder which may be used as a fuel or a co-fuel with other fuels to heat any type of furnace but it is particularly suitable to supplement or replace wood chip pellets in electric power generation.

It should be noted that“other materials”, that is materials other than general waste materials which may be processed by the system which is the subject of this invention may be so processed by either passing them through the part of the system which also processes waste materials OR by passing them through an additional pyrolysis island which is powered by the excess heat energy available at the end of the basic waste materials processing system where such excess heat energy is available.

It should also be noted that the waste or other materials entering the process system through the airlocks, 108, at 203 may be pre-dried by using the excess heat energy from the whole system to heat a rotating drum, similar to the pyrolysis island arrangement, so as to reduce the moisture content and allow a higher throughput of waste or other materials through the system than would otherwise be possible. Because only excess heat energy is used in this process there is no additional running cost incurred in the procedure.

As noted above, one of the useful and valuable outputs from the Waste Reactor System is Char which is a charcoal-like material with combustion properties which make it a particularly clean and efficient fuel in stoves and furnaces and as an ideal fuel performance enhancer in the case of certain primary fuels like wood- chip pellets. As previously described, Char is the result of the torrification/pyrolysation process inside an isolated chamber and so exits the process very hot - typically more than 350°C and up to 1 ,300°C. The material needs to be cooled before processing into usable fuel and the cooling process can be expensive. It is an object of certain embodiments of the present invention to both economically cool the char and to transport it from the point of extraction from the production unit to the process unit where it is first milled and then sometimes pelleted or converted into briquettes.

If very hot char is milled to the fine powder needed for pellet or briquette production and for use as a fuel or co-fuel, there is a risk of the dust generated becoming spontaneously combustible. It may therefore be cooled before milling to avoid this risk.

It has been found that tube-enclosed augers are particularly effective in moving char between process points as any fine particles produced by the inevitable abrasion of individual pieces of char rubbing together is contained within the tubes and thus retained for processing and not causing any air contamination. Some cooling of the char occurs as it moved by the augers through the tubes but to achieve the significant cooling needed, it is necessary to increase the rate at which heat is removed from the char. This can be provided by blowing air over the tubes, but it has been found to be significantly more efficient to provide a water-jacket around the tubes and to circulate the water from the water-jackets to a cooling pond, or other cooling facility, and then back to the water-jackets. Only a very small quantity of energy is demanded to do this, only enough to operate the small water pumps needed, and the char is cooled from about 350°C to less than 50°C at minimal cost.

List of reference numerals

100 Waste material pre-treatment

101 Waste material input.

102 Cyclone furnace.

103 Imported gas input to cyclone furnace. Used at start-up only.

104 HC gas generated in the system input to cyclone furnace.

105 Slag & char extraction point from furnace.

106 Primary hot process gas cleaning cyclone.

107 Slag & char extraction point from cyclone.

108 Airlocks.

109 Pyrolysis island.

110 Hot process gas ducts with control dampers.

111 Tulip retort.

112 Tulip retort drum drive.

113 Expansion gap or bellows.

114 Retort end sealing rings

115 HC gas extraction point from tulip retort.

116 HC gas cleaning process cyclone.

117 HC gas polishing cracker.

118 Cracker tubes with spiral inserts.

119 HC gas cleaning process cyclone.

120 Particulate extraction point.

121 HC gas outlets.

122 Hot process gas outlet from pyrolysis island.

123 Hot process gas outlet from polishing cracker.

124 Particulate extraction from cleaning cyclone.

125 Char extraction auger.

126 Hot process gas control dampers.

127 HC gas exit to use or process.

128 Hot process gas dwell duct. 201 Scolloped formations.

202 Central deflection tube.

203 Waste materials in process.

204 Hot process gas inlets.

205 Hot process gas outlets.

206 HC gas outlet from pyrolysis island.

207 Heavily insulated enclosure.

208 Hot process gas in pyrolysis island.

301 Gas flow tubes.

302 Heavily insulated enclosure.

303 Spiral formation to spin gas.

305 HC gas inlets

306 HC gas outlets.

401 Char and partial Char extraction point. 105, 107, 124 & 120 already identified

402 Char/ash separator

403 Process tubes for partial char and fines. With internal driven augers.

404 Fines introduction point.

405 Fully processed Char extraction point.

406 Airlock.

All 403 parts are linked to part 404 so that the separated fine materials from points 401 are processed in part 403 after ash has been separated.

Certain aspects and/or embodiments of the present invention may be defined by the following numbered clauses: A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where selected components from the waste or other material input are utilised to produce the heat energy required to drive the system in a special cyclone furnace. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as in 1 above where there is provided an imported gas, for example propane, to start the system process and then to replace the imported gas with HC gas produced by the system process when the whole system has reached operational temperatures. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as in 1 above where the hot gas output from the special cyclone furnace is cleaned by allowing it to dwell at a specific temperature between 1 ,150° C to 1 ,450° C before it is utilised to heat the system. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as in 1 above where the hot gas output from the special cyclone furnace is cleaned by passing it through a heated primary cyclone at about 1 ,200° C to remove particulates before it is utilised to heat the system. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where waste or other materials are introduced into the process system through a series of airlocks thus preventing the ingress of air and therefore oxygen into the process zones of the system. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as in 5 above where the process zones of the system are flushed with nitrogen or other inert gas prior to start up so as to ensure that no oxygen is present in the process zones of the system as the waste or other materials are heated. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the hot gas flow from the cyclone furnace is governed by dampers controlled by the overall system controller so that the required temperatures of various parts of the system are maintained at the most advantageous levels for the system efficiency. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the waste or other material input is heated to at least 650° C to 850° C in a special rotating tulip reactor. A rotatable tulip reactor where the generally cylindrical walls of the vessel have longitudinal scalloped formations which both tumble the waste or other materials and allow more heat energy then would otherwise be possible to be transferred from the outside of the vessel to the waste or other materials and to stiffen the reactor structure. . A tulip reactor vessel where there is an axial cylindrical formation at its centre which ensures that waste or other materials carried to the upper parts of the chamber and then fall due to gravity are evenly distributed as they fall. A tulip reactor as in 8, 9 and 10 above where the vessel is rotated by a chain or other drive from outside the hot chamber which surrounds the tulip reactor with the attendant formations to link the tulip reactor vessel with the drive mechanisms. A tulip reactor as in 8, 9, 10 and 1 1 above where the vessel is shorter when cold than the space demanded for it when at operational temperatures so that after start-up the end opposite the drive mechanism and the waste or other material input is moved by its expansion due to temperature increase by the specific distance demanded to provide a seal with a rotatable ring supported by the reactor frame and which is mounted on bearings outside the hot zone. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described above where the hot gasses used to provide the heat energy to break down the waste or other materials is completely separated from the HC gases generated by the processing of the waste or other materials by seals at both ends of the rotating tulip reactor drum. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the HC gasses are cleaned of any solid materials by a heated cyclone at the exit from the tulip reactor the temperature of which is governed by the central controller to the optimum for maximum efficiency of the operation. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the HC gasses are further cleaned of any impure materials by processing them through a polishing cracker section after the first process cyclone which is heated by the hot gases to the optimum temperatures for the maximum efficacy of the process with the temperature governed by the central controller acting upon dampers in the hot gas flow ducts. A polishing cracker system which is comprised of series of tubes inside each of which is a helical spiral formation which spins the gases to ensure that all parts of the gasses contact the hot walls of the cracker tubes. A polishing cracker as in 15 and 16 where the heat energy to drive the process is passed into the surrounding enclosure at a governed temperature and flow so as to produce the maximum efficiency of the unit controlled by the central controller acting upon dampers in the hot gas flow ducts. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the HC gasses exiting the polishing cracker unit are passed through a second heated cyclone where any solid materials produced by the cracking process are removed at a governed temperature and flow so as to produce the maximum efficiency of the unit controlled by the central controller acting upon dampers in the hot gas flow ducts. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the HC gasses produced by the process of the tulip reactor and the polishing cracker are so free of any contaminating materials that they may be directly introduced into a consumer gas supply. A waste or other material process, a Waste Refinery, control system where the essential parameters for maximum efficiency are maintained by the accurate measurement of the temperatures at the exit of the hot gas from the special cyclone furnace; the inlet and outlet temperatures at the dwell chamber, the tulip reactor, the polishing cracker, the heated cyclones and the hot gas flow between the cyclone furnace and the tulip reactor and the polishing cracker. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the flow of the hot gases to parts of the system is governed by a series of damper valves controlled by the central control system.

A waste or other material process control system where the composition and temperature of the HC gas exiting the tulip reactor, the polishing cracker and the process cyclones are measured so that the gas may be reprocessed or partially reprocessed should this be necessary. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, with the above characteristics where the hot gasses generated by the cyclone furnace may be used to power a CHP unit after the heat demanded to run the waste or other material process system has been already used. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the hot gas flow from the cyclone furnace is controlled so that the required temperatures of various parts of the system are maintained at the most advantageous levels for the system efficiency. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, where the waste or other material input is heated to 900° C to 1 ,200° C in a special rotating tulip reactor where no oxygen is present. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described in any of the preceding clauses where the heat energy to drive each phase of the system, which is generated by the special cyclone furnace, is distributed by way of a central manifold where baffle valves direct the heat energy at the demanded volume to each operational unit to meet the continually changing demands as indicted by the central controller for maximum efficiency and performance. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described in all or any of the above clauses where the temperatures and dwell-times at each stage may be varied so as to produce from the waste or other materials both hydrocarbon gas and clean burn char fuel in controlled variable comparative ratios to as to produce the maximum value in the output fuels produced. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described in all or any of the above clauses where the exclusion of any oxygen (air) and the very high temperatures of the process allow otherwise very difficult materials like car-tyre rubber and mixed composite plastics can be safely processed into clean usable fuel products with no hazardous gas emissions. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described above where there is also provided an additional pyrolysis island to handle additional quantities of other materials where the necessary heat energy is available A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described above where there is also provided a drying drum, similar to the pyrolysis island, to reduce the moisture content of the input materials without additional cost and so increase the potential throughput of the whole system. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described in all or any of the above clauses where the solid materials deriving from all parts of the process are further passed through tubes located within the hot process gas ducts where the materials are further pyrolysed to enhance their fuel values. An additional process facility as described in clause 31 where the dwell-time in the process tubes which are heated by the hot process gas is regulated and controlled by the speed of rotation of internal, driven augers which run at least part of the length of each process tube and may run for the whole length. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described in any of the preceding clauses where there is also a facility to accept and process“fines” produced from the pre-processing wood and wood-based wastes prior to torrification; and/or pyrolysation and which are notoriously difficult to handle; where the fines materials are heat processed in the internal auger tubes in clause 32 so to both enhance the fuel value of other torrified/pyrolysed materials and the likewise process the fines material. A waste or other material process system, a Waste Refinery, as described in any of the preceding clauses where the processed waste materials from the earlier process activities in the overall system are finish-processed in the auger-controlled process tubes in clause 31 above so as to produce the highest possible fuel value in the final char output prior to milling. A tubular duct for transporting hot material, like char, which needs to be cooled prior to further processing where there is provided a cooling means, like a water-jacket, to remove the heat from the material. A tubular duct according to clause 35 where the hot material is moved through the duct by a speed-controlled auger. A tubular duct according to clause 36 where the speed of rotation of the auger is controlled by both the rate of production of the material passing through the tube and the entry and exit temperatures. A tubular duct according to any of clauses 35 to 37 where cooling water is pumped around the system at a rate to maintain the cooling of the material at the required level. A tubular duct according to clause 38 where the heat acquired by the cooling water is lost in a simple cooling pond with a water top-up facility to compensate for evaporation. A tubular duct according to clause 39 where there is provided additional water cooling, like a cooling tower, where the heat accumulation is too much for it to be lost in a water pond.