With regard to this invention, solidificates that are being prepared for inertisation, neutralisation and immobilisation are obtained from physical-chemical treatment of materials that contain hydrocarbon as well as those obtained from other treatments of organic- inorganic matters and substances, aimed to increasing their stability, reducing polluants and toxic matters in eluate and making them inactive, insoluble, undegradable, i. e. of unchangeable properties and stabile over a very long period of time.

According to the International Patent Classification, the invention belongs to the fields C 02 ; C 08 ; C 10; G 21 F, G; F 01 J; F 26 B.

2. TECHNICAL PROBLEM Solidificates usually differ in their characteristics and properties, and are thus identified as a) solidificates intended for further industrial processing; b) solidificates intended for further technological processing; c) solidificates that make side-products of various technical or physical-chemical treatments; d) solidificates that make final ecological products after being previously reduced their toxicity, poisonousness or noxiousness for the nature and the environment; e) solidificates that make material component of further technological treatments, physical-chemical and mechanical treatments, and f) solidificates intended for technological processes or for civil engineering, road-building, or g) intended for obtaining technical protective materials for constructing barriers against aggressive and noxious influencing of other materials (e. g. radionucleides), etc.

Solidificates are often subjected to further technological processes or some other treatment because of their inadequate, non-technical and non-technological statuses, such as very fine powders, inflammability in air, hygroscopicity, noxious elements contents above the maximum allowed concentrations, etc.

Most often, solidificates are used directly, as powders, as processing additives, or packed in the so called yumbo-bags (1,000 kg) or fixed by pressing as plates, blocks or briquettes; aglomerised or pelletised.

Some solidificates may be aglomerised and pelletised, and some, when subjected to high pressures (> 20 MPa) produce liquid fractions (mineral and other oils, water and gases).

Most often, such pressed solidificates extracted contents are ecologically inadequate and make new technical, ecological and technological problem.

Some solidificates contain noxious matters even after undergoing very high pressures, as established by the standard analysis (solving in 5% acetic acid, 24 hours of intensive agitation, longer standing and analysing the eluate content in the end).

To make the solidificate that is to be dumped at a dumping site (the first ecological aspect of processing of matters and substances) as stabile as possible, and to be in line with regulations of waste classification by eluate content, it is to undergo some treatment that is to improve its properties.

As the categorisation of wastes dumped at communal and/or sanitary dumping sites impose problems of securing the dumping location and manner, of significant differences in costs of such dumping, of transportation, etc., from the technical-technological, ecological and economic point of view, its inertisation, stabilisation and immobilisation become more important, even more important than the very solidification treatment.

This invention solves the above technical problems, where solidificates obtained by processing waste oils and special wastes (hydrocarbons) as well as solidificates obtained by processing other sorts of organic and inorganic materials are given properties of stabile, inert and immobilised material whose chemical content, mechanical properties and eluates allow its dumping at communal dumping sites.

A particular problem in solidification of waste hydrocarbons is the temperature of the solidificate when leaving the reactor, because it is hard to compress at temperatures above 105°C, and as powder it cools in air very slowly and is dispersed into the environment by slightest winds.

Also, if solidificates contain evaporating or inflammable matters, they will burn by bluish flame for several days.

3. STATE OF THE ART There have been attempts to settle the solidificate by adding electrofilter ash, straw, clay or by injecting silicate liquids. Other ways of inertisation, neutralisation and immobilisation of solidificates are not known to the author of this invention at the moment of his writing this claim.

In petroleum and oil refineries, at petroleum refining and derivation, and thereby obtaining various waste oils, gudrons, oil gatch, tar-mazout and other sediments and silts, oiled water, etc., these are mostly kept in large tank farms, lagoons (soil areas with clay base-dumping bildges), concrete pools or steel tanks, and left there (usually in open space), where after longer periods of time lower parts of the mixture solidify by sedimentation of heavy fractions, bituminize, and form, that way, compact, homogenous layers at the bottom.

This way of settling is ecologically inadequate and such material is still unsafe and ecologically harmful for the nature and the environment, it cannot be transported, further industrially used, incinerated, nor dumped at dumping sites.

Storing of such material in standard metal drums of about 200 I volume results in decaying of the drums with corrosion and leaking of the noxious material into the nature and the environment.

Recommendations about injecting some sorts of liquid silicates into solidificate (or during the very solidification process) appears not to be safe enough, expensive and technologically complicated, and did not meet a significant application noticed by this invention author as an adopted practical solution.

Mixing with straw, clay, soils or electrofilter ashes is an ecologically inadequate solution because in this way not only that the basic material keeps the existing state but gets further polluted and results in new forms of environment pollution.

Incineration of such materials has not been approved in waste treating legislation, and its recommendation for cement and brick factories and heating plants had been found unacceptable even before, so that incineration is not been widely accepted.

Consolidation by means of soil and clay (the so called GSF treatment, or treatment by Bölsing, and others), where in the solidification treatment there were used some heavy fat acids (oleic, stearine), and such mixture was subsequently mixed with soil and clay, produced large quantities of material that could not be safely disposed of, and these still accumulate at many places within oil refineries, petrochemical industries and petroleum products distribution sites, taking large industrial or natural areas.

In such consolidation of solidification products, the obtained consolidated material cannot be furtherly used and its disposa is allowed at sanitary dumping sites only, which is another ecological problem and requires extremely high expenses for later soil recovery.

Solidificates have usually been left in open space where winds dispersed them all around, and where they consolidated with time, making solid top crest. Volumes of matter over such areas are very large.

Dumping of large quantities of soil on such solidificates (e. g."Cedre", Brest, France) enabled planting of such areas, usually with more resistant grasses, which proved possible, yet not safe enough for environment protection.

To the best of the author's knowledge, in the present state of art, there is no practical application of any adopted solidificate inertisation, immobilisation and stabilisation technology in an ecologically-economically and technically-technologically acceptable way.

4. DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Solidification of matters and substances are processes where liquids are turned solid, becoming thus dry processing products.

Solidification in accordance with this invention, is a process where a liquid, a solid or any other interim state of matter is turned into completely dry state by water evaporation, which matter at leaving the plant still has the temperature of the process that made the change.

Addition of binding materials to such solidificate for pressing purposes is connected with the problem of differences in temperatures, therefore additives such as straw, fabrics fibbers, jute and like inflame and burn to disappear from the solidificate in the end, which eventually turns powder again.

Solidificate temperatures, after their production and leaving from the reactor are hard or very hard to lower in the air (28-48°C daily), so that there appears the problem of very long periods of time from the solidificate leaving the reactor till its cooling down to a temperature that enables its successful pressing. As solidificates differ by their properties, . depending on the materials they are obtained from and the solidification treatment they underwent, this claim will describe their inertisation, immobilisation and stabilisation treatments.

Solidificates obtained from treatment of waste oils and special wastes (hydrocarbons), and already registered with the State Institute for Intellectual Property of the Republic of Croatia by this author, in particular: P 940323 N (P 1279/86), P 940326 (P 578/90), P 940325 (P 2123/87), P 940324 (P 950/88), P 970498, P 970177 A, P980049 A, P 970530 A and P 931506, are dry and hydrophobic powder, of process leaving temperature of 105-130°C.

The inner caloricity retained in the solidificate (5 to > 20 MJ/kg) results in its high heat and temperature over a relatively long period of time (3-5 days), although the solidificate is not burning.

By the technical solution in line with this invention, such solidificate, thanks to its excellent characteristics upon leaving the process, even hot as it is when leaving the process, is taken by a belt conveyor through a tunnel where it is cooled by air stream and cold sprayed water mist, and when, following thesolidification, it reaches about 55°C, then granulate containing grinded glass and quartz sand, mostly of small to medium granulation is dispersed evenly, too.

Upon leaving the tunnel, the length of which depends on the treatment capacity, such solidificate is cooled to about the environmental temperature and pressed into blocks or briquettes.

The caloricity that still remains in it is being used for absorption of the added granulate and final stabilisation of solid blocks that do not break at transportation or falling on hard floor or when hitting one against other any more.

After a few days, such blocks prove to be very solid and hard, almost completely inerting and immobilising their contents.

Herebelow are given further explanations aimed to better presenting of the treatment of settling and the essence of obtaining the solidificate structure stability, that becomes highly impact and wearing resistant, obtains better ability to compress and inert, where the content purity degree, as assessed by eluate quality analyses, significantly increases.

In further utilisation of the solidificate for production of hydrophobic plates and blocks (garden and forest paths, street and square pavements, soil insulation plates and tiles, covers, etc.), the above mentioned granulate mixture is added various metal and other fibbers, that are to bind the solidificate mechanically.

When solidificates are used for manufacturing special waterproof plate or building of technical barriers aimed to protection from toxic and noxious radioactive materials, besides the grinded glass and quartz sand containing dusts, powders and fibbers, the mixture is also added heavy metal scrapings, such as lead, Pb; chrome, Cr; iron, Fe; mangane, Mn ; wolfram, W; vanadium, V; nickel, Ni, etc.

Solidificates obtained from organic silts (waste-water purifier silts, oiled water, oiled bildges, oiled soil and mud) are, besides glass and quartz sand granulates, added semi-dry cement mixture that is applied equally by spraying dry cement in water mist conditions onto the surface of the solidificate that is being transported by belt conveyor through a closed tunnel.

Solidificates obtained from processing of organic matters from special wastes, not characterised by high temperature at exit but by very high temperature in the accumulation (due to subsequent specific burning of the mixture at above 120°C), it is added increased quantities of glass granulates and quartz sands of higher granulation.

Solidificates obtained from processing of soil masses polluted with pesticides (DDT, fungicides, herbicides, organic phosphors and carbamides, chlorinated hydrocarbons, acaricides, nematocides, rodenticides, limacides) are added, besides quartz sands, natural gravels, in order to obtain geo-composites of high pressing hardness.

The purpose of such additives is building of stabile solidificate mixture structure where there are the processes of heat absorption and taking, creation of silicate crusts in the entire pressed block cross-section, and obtaining solidity and hardness with tough core.

The solidificate inner heat binds to the remaining calcium which is, according to this invention, always excessing the added granulate, making complex silicon-calcium compounds that are of higher stability than the pure solidificate and that, subsequently, actively participate in the complete process of polymerisation of the entire content.

In the course of polymerisation, which directly influences creation of conditions required for inertisation of the entire compressed block, it is obtained the goal for which the patent protection is hereby requested.

5. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTPRATIONS The drawings that are attached to and make part of the invention description, illustrate the above presented invention best embodiment and help explaining its basic principles.

Figure 1. Block-diagram of the solidificate neutralisation, immobilisation and stabilisation plant.

Figure 2. Vertical cross-section of the tunnel for adding water mist mixed with grinded additive granulates.

Figure 3. Solidificate compressed as a flat plate (or surface).

Figure 4. Solidificate compressed as a flat plate with fibber structure.

Figure 5. Solidificate compressed as a roll-shaped briquettes.

Figure 6. Solidificate compressed as a rectangular parallelepiped.

Figure 7. Solidificate compressed as a hollow roll (or pipe).

Figure 1 presents the way of the solidificate 2 from the processing reactor 4 and falling as hot powder onto the belt conveyor 10. To cool it to about 55°C, it is conveyed through the tunnel canal 8 above which there is double ceiling 6 through which there runs cold water as the temperature exchange medium. The dosing system for additives that influence the solidificate polymerisation is provided with the compartments A, B, C, D and E from where the additives are let onto the solidificate. The press 12 compresses such mixture as blocks that are to be taken by the belt conveyor 14 into the dispatch container or storage.

Cross-section of the tunnel is presented in the Figure 2, where the solidificate 2 is conveyed by the belt conveyor 10 through the tunnel canal 8, and where in the compartments A, B, C, D and E there are stored the polymerisation additives. Opening of valves in the double screen 6 of the tunnel 8, performed by automatic regulation from the control facility, determines addition speeds and quantities for particular additives, whereas the water steam is taken out by suction pumps at openings 20.

Figures 3,4,5,6 and 7 present some of the usual forms of casts that can be made of the cooled solidificate with adequate bonding agents, and under adequate pressures.

Adequate pressures are 5 to 15 MPa.

Thus, there can be formed flat plates as shown in Fig. 3, or flat surfaces to form hydroinsulation layers over a terrain. Such layers may be from : 200 mm to as much as 1,000 mm thick, whereby it is achieved watertightness of the level of < 2.10-9 m/s.

Thicker slabs, as presented in the Fig 4, are formed by fitting net reinforcements 24, and their dimensions can be over 5000 x 5000 x 1,000 mm.

Roll-shaped briquettes, as presented in the Fig. 5, can be compressed to the sizes ranging from 0 60 x 30 mm to 0 600 x 150 mm or, if provided with reinforcement nets, even larger.

Rectangular blocks of larger sizes, as presented in the Fig. 6, appear like standard blocks, e. g. concrete blocks (400 x 300 x 200 mm), that can be compressed with or without reinforcements 26, while, with stronger net reinforcements, they can be made as large as over 1,000 x 1, 000 x 1,000 mm.

Fitting elements, pipes and profiles, as presented in the Fig. 7, usually depend on the casts used and allowing application of the required pressures, and pipes can be produced in sizes from 0 100 mm to 0 1,000 mm, or even more, and their lengths depend on the moulds and the net reinforcement number, quality and sorts.

6. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION EMBODIMENT The following chapter fully describes the patent embodiment in detail, as illustrated by the attached drawings.

Figures 1 and 2 explain the way of cooling of the solidificate in the forced stream of cold air produced by the compressor-ventilator situated on the belt-conveyor cover perforated wall 22.

The plant, under this patent claim, uses a recycling water cooler, taking water from a pool, as permanent heat exchange medium. Water in the pool is, if required, especially after longer operation, replaced by running water from any source.

Through large number of openings 22 in the lower part of the double ceiling 6, covering the belt conveyor 6, in air stream, there are let in additives A, B, C, and D that are to mix equally with the solidificate 2 which moves along the belt conveyor 10.

Thickness of the solidificate 2 layer on the conveyor 10 depends on the treatment capacity and the belt width. The best solidificate thickness is about 5-6 mm, maximum 10- 12 mm, and its is adjusted by adequate determining the belt width and its running speed.

Thus, treatment capacity of < 5 m3/h requires conveyor belt about 500 mm wide and moving at about 1 m/s.

Treatment capacity of 15-20 m3/h requires conveyor belt about 700 mm wide and moving at about 2-4 m/s.

Very large treatment capacities of, for instance, about or over 50 m3/h require special belt conveyor tunnel structures and, for reasons of economy, it is better to distribute such solidificate quantities to two exit belts of 25 m3/h each and two equally long tunnels.

Quantity of the additives A, B, C and D varies and depends on many factors such as sort of material the solidificate is obtained from, solidificate exit temperature, solidificate cooling speed, purpose for which the solidificate and its compressed forms will be eventually used.

The following are additive requirements for obtaining good inertisation of an average material, containing 20-30% vol. or 30-40% vol. of hydrocarbons, aimed to obtaining solidificate that will be dumped as an inert material at communal dumping site: -2 mm of additives at every 6 mm of layer of solidificate over the belt, which makes an addition of 33% vol. for any belt width.

Additives to be equally distributed, and making 33% of the total volume, should contain about 65% vol. of grinded glass and about 35% vol. of quartz sand.

Water mist is created by condensation of cooled air in the-stream, of water steam produced by the solidificate, and it is distributed equally across the belt with the additives.

At obtaining solidificate that is to be used as hydro-insulating slabs after compression (hydro blocks and plates), it is to be subjected to the best cooling possible and is to be added about 30% vol. of quartz sand, about 30% vol. of grinded glass, about 30% vol. of harder binding agent granulates and about 10% vol. of cement powder.

Larger slabs should be reinforced by adding reinforcement net or other similar long binding fibres, resistant to the actual solidificate temperatures at compressing, into the press.

Solidificates obtained from processing various matters containing heavy metal oxides (e. g. incinerator ash or metal scrapings or grinding dust with emulsions), especially when such pressed solidificate is to be used for building of protective technical barriers against toxic, poisonous, noxious or radioactive materials, such solidificate is to be cooled down to < 55°C in water mist with forced cold air stream, and is to be added metal dust containing lead, mangane, chrome, zinc, iron or similar, finally to be compressed as briquettes (e. g. 60 x 30 mm).

Briquetting pressures range from 5 to 15 MPa, smaller pressures being used for solidificates intended for subsequent squashing or fragmenting, and larger ones for solidificates that are to be used as plates or blocks.

The length of the tunnel 8, where solidificate coming from reactor moves and cools, is determined according to the solidificate temperature and the quantity of water steam that will be produced by the solidificate on the belt conveyor 10.

Tunnels should be as high as possible, minimum about 450 mm above the belt level.

The best solidificate inertisation, immobilisation and stabilisation is obtained for processing capacity of about or under 5 m3/h in tunnels about 500-600 mm high, and for capacities of about or above 25 m3/h, in tunnels about or above 1,000 mm high.

7. INVENTION APPLICATION This invention, which is used for cooling of solidificates obtained from treating of various wastes containing hydrocarbons among other matters, and inertisation, immobilisation and stabilisation of such solidificate is performed according to the technological solution as presented in this claim.

The proposed invention application and the technical solution aimed to solidificate inertisation, immobilisation and stabilisation consists of adding of certain additives and additive mixtures containing grinded glass, quartz sand, various fibres, brick dust, heavy metal oxides powders, cement powders, reinforcement fibres and similar bonding materials subjected to creating of water mist equally distributed over the solidificate as it moves along a belt conveyor and is cooled down in a forced air stream by a heat exchanger that utilises recycled running water.

The Table 1 hereunder presents the recommended quantities of additives and conditions resulting in the best inertisation, immobilisation, stabilisation and polymerisation of particular solidificates. Table 1 Solidifi-Solidifi-Solidifi-Solidifi-Solidifi-Solidifi- cate for cate for cate for cate for cate for cate for civil hydro-technical dumping power adding to engine-insulating barriers at production techno- ering and areas, communal purposes logical road plates and dumping processes buildingblocks sites Solidificate temp. at the moment of adding, °C Grinded glass, % vol. 10 15 3 30 5 10 Quartz sand, % vol. 25 10 3 30 5 10 Mechanic fibres, % vol. 0 5 3 30 5 0 Cement dust, % vol. 0 0 3 10 0 0 Brick dust, % vol. 5 0 3 0 0 0 Heavy metal oxid., % v. 0 0 40 0 0 0 Stone dust, % vol. 5 0 0 0 0 0 Coal dust, % vol. 0 0 10 0 40 0 If the casts become loose after a period of drying, such solidificates are to be changed additive parameters, by increasing binders and reinforcement fibres, and the pressing force is to be changed to more adequate.

Optimum conditions in the tunnel are obtained when the air stream relative humidity is about 77-88%, where the additives distribute evenly over the belt and solidificate surface, and solidificate compressing forces are ~ 10 MPa.

If the solidificate is to be pressed as larger plates, a net reinforcement made of material resistant to the solidificate temperature is to be placed in the mould (dens wire net or similar).

Briquetting of the solidificate into smaller roll shapes (e. g. 0 60 x 30 mm) should be done with the solidificate intended for building hydro-insullating layers in road and similar buildings, where they will be crashed on the spot, mixed with building gravel, usually below the asphalt or concrete level. Such solidificate, actually, requires no special additives if its quality is high and if analysis established that it does not produce oil and contains no unpermited elements or compounds that would unfavourably influence the eluate classification (maximum allowed concentrations of tested matters).

In order to obtain as higher solidificate inertness as possible, it is added quartz sand and grinded glass in a determined proportion and total quantity.

Quality of glass that is to be added to the solidificate is of no particular importance. It can be white, coloured or mixed glass, and granulation is determined according to the final purpose of the solidificate casts.

Larger solidificate blocks require larger glass granulation (about 4-15 mm), whereas smaller plates, blocks and briquettes require smaller granulation (about 2-4 mm).

Quartz sand is the common silicate sand, of various granulations. The best for mixing and absorption has proved to be the one with granulation 2-3 mm.

Temperatures under 55°C at adding the above mentioned additives unfavourably effect formation of solid crusts made of calcium-silicon compounds, which compounds improve polymerisation and stabilisation of the entire compressed solidificate structure, while temperatures above 70°C result in too fast absorption and loosing the addition effects, where casts break during cooling in air and take the initial powder state.

Depending on the solidificate compressing force, they will harden faster or slower or will turn into dust, and the best pressures are about 10 MPa. At obtaining highly hydrophobic casts, the pressure may be greater or smaller, but not greater than 15 MPa, because above that occurs the solidificate dripping or"sweating".

Such solidificates are practically watertight, with waterthightness coefficient 1.10-9 < KV < 2.10-9 m/s, and density 935 < 6 < 975 [kg/m3].

Solidificates intended for building technical protective barriers have several times greater density: 1,124 < 6 < 1,311 [kg/m3], due to presence of larger parts of heavy metals.