U.S. patent application number 12/690319 was filed with the patent office on 2011-05-12 for continuous pyrolysis system and its application.
Invention is credited to Jui-Yung Chang, Chun-Yao Wu.
Application Number | 20110107668 12/690319 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 43587468 |
Filed Date | 2011-05-12 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110107668 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Wu; Chun-Yao ; et
al. |
May 12, 2011 |
CONTINUOUS PYROLYSIS SYSTEM AND ITS APPLICATION
Abstract
A continuous pyrolysis system, comprising a reactor with a
charge port, a discharge port and a first gas outlet and a first
axial transporting structure installed therein; a hest-source
generator for supplying heat necessary for carrying out a pyrolysis
reaction in the reactor; a solid-product reformer for performing a
reforming process for the solid product of the pyrolysis reaction,
with a first solid product inlet, a first solid product outlet and
a second gas outlet, and a second axial transporting structure
installed therein, wherein the first solid product inlet is
communicated with the discharge port of the reactor; and a
gas-barrier component for preventing the gas product of the
pyrolysis reaction from entering the solid product reformer and
transporting the solid product of the pyrolysis reaction into the
solid-product reformer, wherein the gas barrier component is
installed in a channel communicating the first solid product inlet
and the discharge port of the reactor.
Inventors: |
Wu; Chun-Yao; (Kaohshing
City, TW) ; Chang; Jui-Yung; (Kweishang, TW) |
Family ID: |
43587468 |
Appl. No.: |
12/690319 |
Filed: |
January 20, 2010 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
48/61 ;
48/197R |
Current CPC
Class: |
C10G 1/10 20130101; C10B
47/44 20130101; C01P 2006/11 20130101; C10G 9/00 20130101; C10B
57/02 20130101; C01P 2006/80 20130101; Y02P 20/143 20151101; C10B
57/005 20130101; C01P 2006/82 20130101; C01P 2006/12 20130101; C09C
1/482 20130101; C10B 53/07 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
48/61 ;
48/197.R |
International
Class: |
C10J 3/46 20060101
C10J003/46; C10J 3/48 20060101 C10J003/48 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 10, 2009 |
TW |
098138048 |
Claims
1. A continuous pyrolysis system, comprising: a reactor having a
charge port, a discharge port and a first gas outlet and a first
axial transporting structure installed therein; a heat source
generator for supplying heat necessary for carrying out a pyrolysis
reaction in the reactor; a solid product reformer for performing a
reforming process for a solid product of the pyrolysis reaction,
having a first solid product inlet, a first solid product outlet
and a second gas outlet, and a second axial transporting structure
installed therein, wherein the first solid product inlet
communicates with the discharge port of the reactor; and a gas
barrier component for preventing a gas product of the pyrolysis
reaction from entering the solid product reformer and transporting
the solid product of the pyrolysis reaction into the solid product
reformer, the gas barrier component being installed in a channel
communicating the first solid product inlet and the discharge port
of the reactor.
2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hest source
generator is a combustion furnace.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat source
generator supplies heat necessary for the solid product
reformer.
4. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gas barrier
component is a gastight valve.
5. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a solid
product processing device communicating with the first solid
product outlet.
6. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the solid product
processing device comprises a solid product cooler having a second
solid product inlet and a second solid product outlet and a third
axial transporting structure installed therein, the second solid
product inlet communicating with the first solid product
outlet.
7. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a gas
product processing device communicating with the first gas outlet
and the second gas outlet.
8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the gas product
processing device comprises a first condenser, an oil-mud separator
communicating with the first condenser and a pyro-oil cooler,
wherein the first condenser has a first gas inlet, a third gas
inlet and a washing-oil inlet, and communicates with the first gas
outlet of the reactor through the first gas inlet; the oil-mud
separator comprises a first pyro-oil outlet and a mud-discharging
opening; and the pyro-oil cooler has a first pyro-oil inlet and a
second pyro-oil outlet, and communicates with the first pyro-oil
outlet of the oil-mud separator through the first pyro-oil
inlet.
9. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the first
axial transporting structure and the second axial transporting
structure has a central axis and comprises a plurality of spiral
vanes.
10. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the third axial
transporting structure has a central axis and comprises a plurality
of spiral vanes.
11. The system as claimed in claim 1, which is used for the
treatment of waste tires.
12. A continuous pyrolysis method, comprising using the system as
claimed in claim 1.
13. The method as claimed in claim 12, comprising performing a
solid product processing procedure for the solid product of the
pyrolysis reaction.
14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the solid product
processing procedure comprises a cooling step.
15. The method as claimed in claim 12, further comprising
performing a gas product processing procedure for the gas product
of the pyrolysis reaction.
16. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the pyrolysis
reaction is carried out at a temperature ranging from about
350.degree. C. to about 550.degree. C.
17. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein solid product
reformer is operated at a temperature ranging from about
250.degree. C. to about 400.degree. C.
Description
RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority to Taiwan Patent
Application No. 098138048 filed on Nov. 10, 2009, the contents of
which are herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a continuous pyrolysis
system; more particularly, the present invention relates to a
continuous pyrolysis system having a solid product reformer, which
is especially suitable for processing waste tires.
[0004] 2. Descriptions of the Related Art
[0005] The process of recycling waste tires generally falls into
one of two categories. One is the physical processing method, in
which the waste tires are first broken up, then the steel wires,
nylon and rubber are separated, and finally the rubber is recycled
to produce reclaimed rubber. However, as a kind of recycled
material, the reclaimed rubber has poor quality and is unsuitable
for use as a raw material to produce tires, so such a recycling
process is known to have a low resource utilization factor and poor
economic benefits. The other processing method incorporates a
chemical process, according to which the waste tires are broken up,
an appropriate percentage of catalyst is added, and then the waste
tires are pyrolyzed at an appropriate temperature and an
appropriate pressure to produce gaseous products, blended oils,
carbon black, residuals and the like. The latter pyrolysis method
provides substantial economical benefits. As a result, current
research focuses on this pyrolysis method.
[0006] According to the existing technologies, pyrolysis products
of waste tires include combustible gases, blended oils, carbon
black and the like. Among these pyrolysis products, combustible
gases may be used to provide the heat necessary for the pyrolysis
of the waste tires; the blended oils may be subjected to a further
processing through, for example, a fractionating process to
separate the by-products of high economic values, such as light
oil, gasoline, kerosene, diesel oil and heavy oil. As for the
carbon black, due to its complex composition and very instable
quality thereof, it still cannot be used for industrial purposes
and even causes problems associated with subsequent disposal.
[0007] However, in industrial applications, carbon black may be the
best and most commonly used black pigment because of its good heat
resistance, chemical resistance and light fastness as well as its
good tinting strength and hiding power. At present, carbon black is
mostly produced through an additional process, for example, by
combusting or pyrolyzing carbonaceous raw materials such as natural
gases or crude oils. However, this requires additional costs for
the production of the carbon black, consumes valuable petrochemical
materials and exacerbates the problems of environmental pollution
and carbon dioxide emission. During times of environment protection
awareness, reforming the carbon blacks of poor quality obtained
from pyrolysis of the waste tires into usable carbon blacks of
great commercial values will not only solve the disposal problem of
waste carbon blacks, but also prevent damage to the environment
caused by carbon black production. Therefore, it is highly
desirable in the art to provide a pyrolysis system, for use in
waste tire pyrolysis for example, that features stable operation,
stable and acceptable product quality and can prevent the
generation of unusable pyrolysis products that would cause
pollution to the environment.
[0008] In view of this, the present invention provides a pyrolysis
system capable of operating continuously that, when used for
pyrolysis of waste tires, can produce carbon black with a very low
sulfur content and a great economic value for use in industrial
purposes.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] An objective of this invention is to provide a continuous
pyrolysis system, comprising: a reactor having a charge port, a
discharge port and a first gas outlet and a first axial
transporting structure installed therein; a heat source generator
for supplying heat necessary for carrying out a pyrolysis reaction
in the reactor; a solid product reformer for performing a reforming
process on the solid product of the pyrolysis reaction, having a
first solid product inlet, a first solid product outlet and a
second gas outlet, and a second axial transporting structure
installed therein, wherein the first solid product inlet
communicates with the discharge port of the reactor; and a gas
barrier component for preventing the gas product of the pyrolysis
reaction from entering the solid product reformer and transporting
the solid product of the pyrolysis reaction into the solid product
reformer, with the gas barrier component being installed in a
channel communicating the first solid product inlet and the
discharge port of the reactor.
[0010] Another objective of this invention is to provide a
continuous pyrolysis method that uses the continuous pyrolysis
system described above.
[0011] The detailed technology and preferred embodiments
implemented for the subject invention are described in the
following paragraphs accompanying the appended drawings for people
skilled in this field to well appreciate the features of the
claimed invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is an embodiment of a continuous pyrolysis system of
the present invention;
[0013] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a reactor in an
embodiment of the continuous pyrolysis system of the present
invention;
[0014] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a solid product reformer
in an embodiment of the continuous pyrolysis system of the present
invention; and
[0015] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a solid product cooler
in an embodiment of the continuous pyrolysis system of the present
invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0016] Unless otherwise stated, "a," "an," "the" and the like terms
used in this specification (especially in the Claims) shall be
interpreted to include both a singular and a plural form.
[0017] Herein below, some embodiments of the present invention will
be described in detail; however, instead of being limited to what
is described herein, the present invention may also be applied to
different embodiments without departing from the spirit of the
present invention. Furthermore, for purposes of clarity, the
dimensions of the individual elements or regions may be exaggerated
in the attached drawings rather than being drawn to scale.
[0018] The continuous pyrolysis system of the present invention
comprises a reactor, a heat source generator, a solid product
reformer and a gas barrier component.
[0019] The reactor has a charge port, a discharge port, a first gas
outlet, and a first axial transporting structure installed therein.
The reactor is preferably a "tubular reactor," although it is not
merely limited thereto. The term "tubular reactor" generally refers
to any appropriate reactor in which the space for containing
materials is shaped like a tube. Thus, while materials charged into
the reactor through the charge port are undergoing the reaction
inside the reactor, the materials are moved forward gradually by
the first axial transporting structure along the axial direction of
the reactor and finally discharged out of the reactor through the
discharge port. In some embodiments of the present invention, the
first axial transporting structure has a central shaft and a
plurality of auger blades. Any appropriate drive device (e.g., an
electric motor) may be used to drive the first axial transporting
structure, and depending on the practical needs (e.g., species,
composition and size of the material to be pyrolyzed), the
rotational speed of the auger blades of the first axial
transporting structure may be adjusted to control the dwell time of
the materials to be pyrolyzed within the reactor.
[0020] Optionally, the reactor may include a plurality of cascaded
sub-reactors. The first axial transporting structure is
correspondingly comprised of a plurality of axial transporting
sub-structures that are installed in the cascaded sub-reactors
respectively. Each of the axial transporting sub-structures has a
central shaft and a plurality of auger blades, and is driven by an
appropriate drive device such as an electric motor. For example,
each of the sub-reactors may have the discharge port thereof
communicate with the charge port of the downstream sub-reactor, and
the last sub-reactor may have the discharge port thereof
communicate with the first solid product inlet of the solid product
reformer to complete the cascade of sub-reactors so that the
materials to be pyrolyzed can be transported between the
sub-reactors. As used herein, the term "communicate" may refer to
any appropriate forms; for example, two sub-reactors may
communicate with each other through a pipeline, or the walls of two
sub-reactors may make contact with each other and communicate
through the openings in the contact areas. By using the plurality
of sub-reactors and individual axial transporting structures, an
excessive load that would have been experienced by the single axial
transporting structure is prevented. Additionally, the sub-reactors
may be arranged on top of each other to make full use of the
space.
[0021] The heat source generator is used to supply the heat
necessary for carrying out a pyrolysis reaction in the reactor, and
preferably also to supply the heat necessary for the solid product
reformer. In an embodiment of the present invention, a combustion
furnace is used as the heat source generator, which supplies heat
in the form of high-temperature gases by combusting any appropriate
fuel oils and/or combustible gases and pyro-oils recycled from the
pyrolysis reaction. The heat source generator that uses combustible
gases and pyro-oils recycled from the pyrolysis reaction may have
less demands on the energy source and reduce the operation
costs.
[0022] It has been found that because the pyrolysis reaction may
generate a variety of gaseous, liquid and/or solid products (e.g.,
carbon black), the solid products thus obtained tend to contain a
certain content of gaseous or liquid impurities regardless of any
improved pyrolysis reaction. Such impurities make it difficult to
make use of the solid products, resulting in a degraded economic
value of the solid products. For example, for processing waste
tires, the solid products (most of which are carbon black)
resulting from the pyrolysis usually contain complex compositions
of the pyro-oils and pyro-gases, which make it difficult to use for
commercial purposes (e.g., for use as pigments) and indirectly
cause pollution to the environment. In view of this, the continuous
pyrolysis system of the present invention is particularly designed
to comprise a solid product reformer and a gas barrier component to
effectively improve the quality of the products, especially the
solid products, of the pyrolysis reaction, thereby increasing the
market value of the products.
[0023] The solid product reformer has a first solid product inlet,
a first solid product outlet, a second gas outlet, and a second
axial transporting structure installed therein. The first solid
product inlet communicates with the discharge port of the reactor.
The reactor is preferably a "tubular reactor", although it is not
merely limited thereto. Thus, while solid products charged into the
solid product reformer through the first solid product inlet are
being reformed inside the solid product reformer, the solid
products are moved forward gradually by the second axial
transporting structure along the axial direction of the solid
product reformer and finally discharged out of the solid product
reformer through the first solid product outlet. Similar to the
first axial transporting structure, in some embodiments of the
present invention, the second axial transporting structure also has
a central shaft and a plurality of auger blades. Any appropriate
drive unit (e.g., an electric motor) may be used to drive the
second axial transporting structure, and depending on the practical
needs (e.g., species, composition and size of the material to be
pyrolyzed), the rotational speed of the auger blades of the second
axial transporting structure may be adjusted to control the dwell
time of the solid products in the solid product reformer.
[0024] The solid product reformer of the present invention is used
in conjunction with a gas barrier component. The gas barrier
component is installed in a channel communicating with the first
solid product inlet and the discharge port of the reactor and is
used to prevent the gas products of the pyrolysis reaction from
entering the solid product reformer. There is no particular
limitation on the gas barrier component that can be used in the
present invention, and it may be any conventional component capable
of delivering a gas barrier effect; for example, in an embodiment
of the present invention, a gastight valve is used as the gas
barrier component.
[0025] Similar to the combination of the reactor and the first
axial transporting structure, the solid product reformer may also
comprise a plurality of sub-reformers, and correspondingly, the
second axial transporting structure may be comprised of a plurality
of second axial transporting sub-structures that are installed in
each of the sub-reformers respectively.
[0026] Optionally, the continuous pyrolysis system of the present
invention further comprises a solid product processing device
and/or a gas product processing device disposed at the downstream
of the system for further processing of the solid products and/or
gas products that have been reformed.
[0027] The solid product processing device communicates with the
first solid product outlet. There is no particular limitation on
the solid product processing device that can be used in the present
invention, and it may optionally comprises various appropriate
physically/chemically separating devices for further processing of
the solid products of the pyrolysis reaction, such as a screening
device (e.g., a screen grader or a magnetic separator), a grinding
device (e.g., a grinding machine), a packaging device or the like.
In one embodiment of the present invention, to prevent the
combustion of high-temperature solid products of the pyrolysis
reaction in subsequent processing and transporting processes, the
solid product processing device comprises a solid product cooler
for cooling the high-temperature reformed solid products from the
solid product reformer. The solid product cooler has a second solid
product inlet, a second solid product outlet, and a third axial
transporting structure installed therein. The second solid product
inlet communicates with the first solid product outlet, while the
third axial transporting structure has substantially the same
functionality and structure as those of the first and the second
axial transporting structures. Also, similar to the combination of
the reactor and the first axial transporting structure, the solid
product cooler and the third axial transporting structure may also
be comprised of a plurality of sub-coolers and sub-structures
respectively.
[0028] The gas product processing device communicates with the
first gas outlet and the second gas outlet. There is no particular
limitation on the gas product processing device that can be used in
the present invention, and generally, it may optionally comprise
various condensing devices or separating devices. In some
embodiments of the present invention, the gas product processing
device comprises a first condenser a pyro-oil cooler and an oil-mud
separator communicating with the first condenser. The first
condenser has a first gas inlet, a third gas inlet and a
washing-oil inlet, and communicates with the first gas outlet of
the reactor through the first gas inlet; the oil-mud separator
comprises a first pyro-oil outlet and a mud-discharging opening;
and the pyro-oil cooler has a first pyro-oil inlet and a second
pyro-oil outlet, and communicates with the first pyro-oil outlet of
the oil-mud separator through the first pyro-oil inlet. The second
cooler should preferably be disposed at the downstream of the first
cooler to provide a better cooling and separating effect.
[0029] The continuous pyrolysis system of the present invention may
be used for the pyrolysis of various materials, for example, waste
tires, waste plastics, waste wood, or agricultural biowaste, and is
preferably used for the processing of waste tires.
[0030] For better understanding of the present invention, an
embodiment of the continuous pyrolysis system of the present
invention, which may be used for processing waste tires, will be
illustrated hereinafter with reference to the attached drawings. In
the attached drawings, the dimensions of the individual components
are only provided for purposes of illustration, but do not
represent the actual dimensional scale.
[0031] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic view of the arrangement of a
continuous pyrolysis system 1 according to an embodiment of the
present invention. The continuous pyrolysis system 1 comprises a
reactor 11, a combustion furnace 13 for use as a heat source
generator, a solid product reformer 15 and a gastight valve 17 for
use as a gas barrier component. The continuous pyrolysis system 1
comprises the following: a gas product processing device,
consisting of a first condenser 51, an oil-mud separator 53, a
pyro-oil cooler 55 and a second condenser 57; and a solid product
processing device, consisting of a solid product cooler 41, a
screening device 43 and a grinding device 45. The combustion
furnace 13 is adapted to generate hot air for providing a heat
source necessary for the reactor 11 and the solid product reformer
15.
[0032] FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the reactor 11.
The reactor 11 comprises a charge port P01, a discharge port P02
and a first gas outlet P03. In this embodiment, the reactor 11
comprises two sub-reactors disposed on top of each other, namely, a
first sub-reactor 111 and a second sub-reactor 113 which
communicate with each other through a communicating port 116. An
axial transporting structure is installed in the reactor 11. In
this embodiment, the axial transporting structure comprises two
first axial transporting sub-structures 115 installed in the first
sub-reactor 111 and the second sub-reactor 113 respectively, and
each of the first axial transporting sub-structures 115 is coupled
to a corresponding drive device 117. Each of the first axial
transporting sub-structures 115 comprises a central shaft and a
plurality of auger blades. Additionally, the reactor 11 is enclosed
by a first hot air chamber 131. The first hot air chamber 131
comprises a first hot air inlet P04 adapted to receive hot air from
the combustion furnace 13 and a first hot air outlet P05 adapted to
vent the hot air out of the first hot air chamber 131. As shown in
FIG. 1, the combustion furnace 13 comprises a fuel port P06 for
receiving fuels and an air outlet P07 for outputting the hot air
and communicating with the first hot air inlet P04.
[0033] Materials to be pyrolyzed are fed into the reactor 11
through the charge port P01 to undergo a pyrolysis reaction
therein. The gas products of the pyrolysis reaction are discharged
through the first gas outlet P03, while solid products of the
pyrolysis reaction are discharged through the discharge port P02.
In the reactor 11, the materials to be pyrolyzed are first fed into
the first sub-reactor 111 where, through rotation of the first
axial transporting sub-structure 115, the materials are moved
forward gradually along the axial direction of the first axial
transporting sub-structure 115 while undergoing the pyrolysis
reaction therein. The first sub-reactor 111 and the second
sub-reactor 113 are disposed on top of each other, so once the
waste tires undergoing the pyrolysis reaction move forward to the
communication port 116, the waste tires will drop down into the
second sub-reactor 113 and then, through the rotation of the first
axial transporting sub-structure 115 of the second sub-reactor 113,
continue to move forward in the second sub-reactor 113 for further
pyrolysis. The solid products of the pyrolysis will be discharged
through the discharge port P02, while the gas products of the
pyrolysis will be discharged through the first gas outlet P03.
[0034] FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the solid
product reformer 15. The solid product reformer 15 comprises a
first solid product inlet P08, a first solid product outlet P09 and
a second gas outlet P10. A second axial transporting structure 151
is installed in the solid product reformer 15. Similar to the
reactor 11, the solid product reformer 15 may also comprise a
plurality of solid product sub-reformers, and correspondingly, the
second axial transporting structure 151 may be comprised of a
plurality of second axial transporting sub-structures that are
installed in each of the sub-reformers respectively. For
convenience, descriptions are made herein with reference to a
simple case in which the solid product reformer 15 is not provided
with sub-reformers and second axial transporting sub-structures as
shown in FIG. 3.
[0035] In FIG. 3, the second axial transporting structure 151 is
coupled to a drive device 153. The second axial transporting
structure 151 comprises a central shaft and a plurality of auger
blades. The solid product reformer 15 is enclosed by a second hot
air chamber 133. The second hot air chamber 133 comprises a second
hot air inlet P11 and a second hot air outlet P12. The second hot
air inlet P11 communicates with the first hot air outlet P05 to
receive hot air from the first hot air chamber 13 to maintain the
solid product reformer 15 at a desired temperature. The hot air is
then vented through the second hot air outlet P12. The first solid
product inlet P08 communicates with the discharge port P02, and in
a channel communicating with the first solid product inlet P08 and
the discharge port P02, a gastight valve 17 is disposed to prevent
entry of the gas products of the pyrolysis reaction into the solid
product reformer 15. The solid products of the pyrolysis reaction
are discharged from the discharge port P02, pass through the
gastight valve 17, and are then fed through the first solid product
inlet P08 into the solid product reformer 15 to be reformed
therein, thereby resulting in solid products of great economic
value with stable compositions.
[0036] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 4, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional
view of a solid product cooler 41 in the solid product processing
device. The solid product cooler 41, which is adapted to cool the
reformed high-temperature solid products, comprises a second solid
product inlet P13, a second solid product outlet P14 and a third
axial transporting structure 411 installed in the solid product
cooler.
[0037] Similar to the reactor 11, the solid product cooler 41 may
also comprise a plurality of solid product sub-coolers, and
correspondingly, the third axial transporting structure 411 may be
comprised of a plurality of third axial transporting sub-structures
that are installed in each of the sub-coolers respectively. For
convenience, descriptions are made herein with reference to a
simple case in which the solid product cooler 41 is not provided
with sub-coolers and third axial transporting sub-structures as
shown in FIG. 4.
[0038] In FIG. 4, the third axial transporting structure 411 has a
central shaft and a plurality of auger blades, and is coupled to a
drive device 413. The third axial transporting structure 411 has
substantially the same functionality as that of the first axial
transporting sub-structure 115. The second solid product inlet P13
communicates with the first solid product outlet P09. Any
appropriate means may be adopted to achieve a cooling effect, and
in this embodiment, a cooling chamber 415 enclosing the solid
product cooler 41 is used. The cooling chamber 415 comprises a
cooling water inlet P15 and a cooling water outlet P16. By
introducing cooling water through the cooling water inlet P15 into
the cooling chamber 415, a cooling effect is achieved, and then the
cooling water drains away through the cooling water outlet P16.
[0039] After being reformed, the high-temperature solid products
are fed through the second solid product inlet P13 into the solid
product cooler 41 to be cooled therein, and by means of the third
axial transporting structure 411, are moved forward in the solid
product cooler 41 to obtain cooled reformed solid products at the
second solid product outlet P14. Then, the cooled reformed solid
products are transported to the screening device 43 to be screened
therein and also to the grinding device 45 to be ground therein,
thereby obtaining the desired products.
[0040] Referring back to FIG. 1, the first condenser 51 has a first
gas inlet P17, a third gas inlet P18 and a washing-oil inlet P19,
and communicates with the first gas outlet P03 of the reactor 11
through the first gas inlet P17; the oil-mud separator 53 has a
first pyro-oil outlet P20 and a mud-discharging opening P21, and
substantially communicates with the first condenser 51; and the
pyro-oil cooler 55 has a first pyro-oil inlet P22 and a second
pyro-oil outlet P23, and communicates with the first pyro-oil
outlet P20 of the oil-mud separator 53 through the first pyro-oil
inlet P22. The second condenser 57 has a third gas inlet P24
communicating with the third gas outlet P18 and a fourth gas outlet
P25.
[0041] After being fed into the first condenser 51 through the
first gas inlet P17, the gas products of the pyrolysis reaction are
washed by oils introduced through the washing-oil inlet P19 for
purposes of cooling. As a result, condensable components (e.g.,
pyrolyzed oils) in the gas products are condensed into liquid and
separated from incondensable components. The incondensable gas
components are introduced out of the third gas outlet P18 and fed
through the third gas inlet P24 into the second condenser 57 for
further condensing. Thus, oils and gases uncondensed in the first
condenser 51 are condensed to a lower temperature so that pyro-oils
with a low flashing point can be collected and optionally
introduced into the combustion furnace 13 for use as fuels or
stored. On the other hand, the resulting gas may be recycled or
used as a fuel for the combustion furnace 13. The liquid components
condensed in the first condenser 51 are then introduced into the
oil-mud separator 53 disposed beneath and communicating with the
first condenser 51 for separation of mud impurities. The mud
impurities are periodically discharged out of the mud-discharging
opening P21 to, for example, a mud processing device for further
processing. The resulting pyro-oil is introduced from the first
pyro-oil outlet P20 through the first pyro-oil outlet P22 into the
pyro-oil cooler 55 to be further cooled therein. A portion of the
cooled pyro-oil is introduced by, for example, a pump from the
washing-oil inlet P19 into the first condenser 51 for use as a
washing oil, and the remaining portion of the pyro-oil may be
optionally stored in an oil storage tank, used as a fuel of the
combustion furnace 13, or subjected to further processing to
produce oil products of a greater economic value.
[0042] The present invention further provides a continuous
pyrolysis method, which adopts the continuous pyrolysis system of
the present invention. In the continuous pyrolysis method,
optionally, a solid product processing procedure may be performed
on the solid products of the pyrolysis reaction, or a gas product
processing procedure may be performed on the gas products of the
pyrolysis reaction. Hereinafter, taking the processing of waste
tires as an example, the continuous pyrolysis method will be
described with reference to the continuous pyrolysis system 1
described above.
[0043] Optionally, prior to the pyrolysis process, a pre-processing
device such as a crusher or a cutting machine is used to
pre-process the waste tires into appropriate sizes (e.g., processed
into particle sizes ranging from about 5 cm to about 7 cm). Then,
the waste tire granules of appropriate sizes are fed into the
reaction chamber 11 through the charge opening P01 at a certain
feeding rate.
[0044] The reactor 11 is kept at a pyrolysis temperature of about
350.degree. C. to 550.degree. C., and preferably of about
350.degree. C. to 450.degree. C. In this embodiment, heat necessary
for the reactor 11 and the solid product reformer 15 is supplied by
the combustion furnace 13. At the initial stage of operation, the
diesel or a fuel oil is used as a fuel of the combustion furnace
13; however, once the pyrolysis reaction starts, combustible gases
(and optionally pyro-oils) resulting from the pyrolysis reaction
may be used as fuels to reduce the cost. Here, a flow rate of the
fuel accounts for about 15 wt % to about 20 wt % of the charging
rate. The high-temperature gas generated by the combustion furnace
13 is introduced, by means of windmill drafting for example, into
the first combustion chamber 131 through the first hot air inlet
P04 to keep a temperature necessary for the pyrolysis reaction in
the reactor 11, and then introduced from the first hot air outlet
P05 through the second hot air inlet P11 into the second combustion
chamber 133 to keep a temperature necessary for the reforming
process in the solid product reformer 15.
[0045] After being introduced into the reactor 11, the waste tire
granules are moved forward in the reactor 11 by the first axial
transporting structure 115 to be fully pyrolyzed therein. The
rotational speed of the first axial transporting sub-structure 115
is controlled by the drive device 117 to control the dwell time of
the materials in the reactor 11. In some embodiments of the present
invention, the materials are allowed to dwell in the reactor 11 for
about 40 min to 70 min in total to ensure a good pyrolysis
effect.
[0046] In the reactor 11, once the materials are transported to the
tail end of the first sub-reactor 111, the remaining carbon black
mixture and the un-pyrolyzed waste tire granules will drop down
into the second sub-reactor 113 through the communicating opening
116 for further pyrolysis. Here, the materials pass through the
second sub-reactor 113 in just the same way as that in the first
sub-reactor 113. During the pyrolysis reaction, the oil-gas
products (i.e., a oil-gas mixture) resulting from the pyrolysis
reaction are transported through the first gas outlet P03 to the
gas product processing device to undergo a gas product processing
procedure therein, while the solid products are transported through
the discharge port P02 to the solid product reformer 15 to undergo
a reforming process therein. The disposition of the gastight valve
17 is necessary because it can prevent entry of the gas products of
the pyrolysis reaction into the solid product reformer 15, to
ensure that substantially no undesired gaseous impurity is
contained in the solid product reformer 15.
[0047] The solid product reformer 15 operates at a temperature of
about 250.degree. C. to about 400.degree. C., and preferably about
250.degree. C. to about 350.degree. C. This can reduce the content
of impurities such as organic volatiles in the solid products,
thereby improving the quality of the resulting solid products
(primarily carbon black). The solid products of the pyrolysis
reaction are introduced through the first solid product inlet P08
into the solid product reformer 15 and then, by means of the second
axial transporting structure 151, are moved forward in the solid
product reformer 15 while undergoing the reforming process. The
rotational speed of the second axial transporting structure 151 is
controlled by the drive device 153 to control the dwell time of the
materials in the solid product reformer 15. In some embodiments of
the present invention, the materials are allowed to dwell in the
solid product reformer 15 for about 30 min to 60 min in total to
ensure a good reforming effect.
[0048] The reformed high-temperature solid products are introduced
out of the first solid product outlet P09 into the solid product
cooler 41 through the second solid product inlet P03 and then, by
means of the third axial transporting structure 411, are moved
forward in the solid product cooler 41 while being cooled therein.
Here, the rotational speed of the third axial transporting
structure 411 is controlled by the drive device 413 to ensure that
the solid products dwell in the solid product cooler 41 for a
period of time sufficient to achieve the cooling effect. In some
embodiments of the present invention, the materials dwell in the
solid product cooler 41 for about 10 min to about 20 min in total,
and the solid products are cooled to a temperature of about
40.degree. C. to about 60.degree. C.
[0049] The cooled carbon black is introduced out of the second
solid product outlet P14, and then fed into the screening device 43
disposed at the downstream of the solid product cooler 41 to remove
the steel wires and screen out the impurities of large particle
sizes. Subsequently, the screened solid products, primarily carbon
black, are introduced into the grinding device 45 disposed at the
downstream where they are ground into particle sizes complying with
the market demand. Thus, products of great economic values that can
be used for industrial purposes are obtained.
[0050] The gas products of the pyrolysis reaction are introduced
through the first gas inlet P17 into the first condenser 51, and
are washed in the first condenser 51 by a washing oil introduced
through the washing-oil inlet P19 to be cooled down to a
temperature of about 90.degree. C. to about 100.degree. C. and to
remove the entrained carbon black particulates. The cooling
temperature of the gas products may be controlled by regulating the
flow rate and temperature of the washing oil. Then, the pyro-oil
that has been condensed into liquid and the carbon black flow
directly into the oil-mud separator 53 disposed beneath the first
condenser 51 where the mud is separated through sedimentation. The
separated mud is periodically discharged out of the mud-discharging
opening P2 and, optionally, is fed into the reactor 11 through the
charge port P01 anew for further pyrolysis or introduced directly
into, for example, a mud treatment tank for disposal. On the other
hand, the pyro-oil separated through sedimentation is introduced
from the first pyro-oil outlet P20 into the pyro-oil cooler 55
through the first pyro-oil inlet P22 to be further cooled to a
temperature of about 35.degree. C. to about 50.degree. C., and is
finally discharged through the second pyro-oil outlet P23. A
portion of the resulting pyro-oil is introduced from the
washing-oil inlet P19 into the first condenser 51 for use as a
washing oil, and the remaining portion of the pyro-oil may be
optionally stored in an oil storage tank, used as a fuel of the
combustion furnace 13, or subjected to further processing to
produce oil products of a greater economic value. The cooled but
uncondensed gas components are introduced out of the third gas
outlet P18 and fed through the third gas inlet P24 into the second
condenser 57 for further condensing. Thus, oils and gases
uncondensed in the first condenser 51 are condensed to a lower
temperature so that pyro-oils with a lower flashing point can be
collected. On the other hand, pyro-gases that are still uncondensed
are introduced into the combustion furnace 13 for use as fuels.
[0051] Now, the present invention will be further illustrated with
reference to the following examples.
Example 1
Pyrolysis of Waste Tires
[Operation Conditions]
[0052] Particle size of waste tire particulates: about 3 cm to
about 7 cm Feeding rate: about 1000 kg/hour
Reactor:
[0053] Temperature: about 450.degree. C.
[0054] Retention time: about 60 min
Solid product reformer:
[0055] Temperature: about 320.degree. C.
[0056] Retention time: about 50 min
Solid product cooler:
[0057] Retention time: about 15 min
[0058] [Description]
[0059] A waste tire pyrolysis reaction was carried out by using the
continuous pyrolysis system shown in FIG. 1 (operation details of
which are as described above) under the afore-mentioned operation
conditions. The operation duration was about 3,000 hours.
Example 2
Analysis of Product Stability
[0060] According to the standard test methods as listed in Table 1,
analysis was made on the compositions of the pyro-oil obtained in
Example 1, with the results recorded in Table 1 (sampling once per
hour); and according to the standard test methods as listed in
Table 2, analysis was made on the compositions of the carbon black
obtained in Example 1, with the results recorded in Table 2
(sampling once per hour).
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Unit Test Method Value Heat of combustion
kcal/kg ASTM D240 about 9,800 to about 10,200 Density (at
15.degree. C.) g/ml ASTM D4052 about 0.93 to about 0.94 Viscosity
(at 40.degree. C.) mm.sup.2/s ASTM D445 about 5.9 to about 9.2
Flash point .degree. C. ASTM D93 about 30 to about 40 Water content
volume % ASTM D95 about 0.2 to about 0.5 Water & sediments
volume % ASTM D1796 about 0.25 to about 0.6 Sulfur content w.t. %
ASTM D2622 about 1.0 to about 1.2 Flow point .degree. C. ASTM D5950
about -15 to about -18
TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Unit Test Method Value pH value ASTM D3838
about 8.5 to about 8.9 Nitrogen surface area m.sup.2/g ASTM D3663
about 62 to about 78 Flow density g/cm.sup.3 ASTM D2854 about 0.38
to about 0.42 Ash content w.t. % ASTM D2866 about 11 to about 15
Sulfur content w.t. % ASTM D1619A about 2.2 to about 2.5 Grit 325
mesh and ppm about 320 to about above 500 Volatility w.t. % ASTM
D3175 about 2 to about 5 Iodine value mg/g ASTM D1510 about 85 to
about 105
[0061] As can be seen from the results shown in Table 1 and Table
2, the products produced by the continuous pyrolysis system of the
present invention demonstrate very stable quality (with very small
variations in the parameters) without the problem of poor and
varied quality as in conventional pyrolysis products. Therefore,
these products can be used for industrial purposes.
[0062] In summary, the continuous pyrolysis system of the present
invention can provide carbon black and pyro-oil of stable quality
that have great economic values and may be used for industrial
purposes. Thus, the products that were produced with the pyrolysis
technology of the prior art, which could not be used for industrial
purposes due to it varying quality, are no longer produced with the
current invention. In addition, the current invention eliminates
the disposal of solid products generated from the conventional
pyrolysis reaction, and also reduces the environmental pollution
caused by producing carbon black through an additional process,
which represents great industrial applicability.
[0063] The above disclosure is related to the detailed technical
contents and inventive features thereof. People skilled in this
field may proceed with a variety of modifications and replacements
based on the disclosures and suggestions of the invention as
described without departing from the characteristics thereof.
Nevertheless, although such modifications and replacements are not
fully disclosed in the above descriptions, they have substantially
been covered in the following claims as appended.
* * * * *