116,505 Application Date

20th Mar., 1942.

No. 48/4/2.

.Applicant (A cual Inventor)

KELWYLYN

Application and Provisional Specification Complete Specification after Provisiorial Specification Complete Specification Acceptance Advertised (Sec. 50)

Accepted, 15th May, 1942. Lodged, 17th December, 1942.

RlSWAN MOURE.

Accepted, 27th January, 1943. l.th February, 1943.

Classes 16.2; 20.6. Drawing attached.

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.

"Improved

apparatus for the distillation of oil-shales and like carbonaceous materials."

I, KEL.WYLYN ROSWAN MOURIE, Research Engineer, of 33 Mlerrenburn Avenue, Naremburn, New South Wales, Australia, hereby declare this invention and the manner in which it is to be performed to be fully described and ascertained in and by the following statement:This invention has been devised with the object of providing retort apparatus for distilling oil-shales and the like, which by reason of the manner in which material to be treated thereby is handled and fed to the retort, and by reason of its low fuel consumption, is efficient and highly economical in use in respect of both fuel and labour costs. According to a preferred arrangement of this invention, mechanism which operates automatically and without need of any sustained supervision, delivers material to be

treated (herein called "shale") at a uniform rate of feed into a pre-heater vessel where it acquires a proportion of the heat residuum of the furnace flue gases leaving a heating jacket which surrounds a vertical retort vessel. A selected fraction of the inert flue gases leaving the preheater is charged with water and then passed through a superheater header within the furnace. The resulting steam-gas mixture is then injected into the bottom of the retort vessel. A distillates eduction pipe extends from the top of the retort vessel to a condenser of more or less ordinary .construction. The non-condensible output of the condenser passes to a scrubber or a battery thereof, and the resulting gases are employed (once shale distillation has been well started) as a fuel for firing the furnace. Means are provided for regularly feeding the preheated shale 2

481.-25/2/43.-140.-Price, Is. Gd. post free.

116,505 into the top of the retort vessel, and solid residues are gravitationally discharged from the .bottom of the retort vessel into a water seal tank from which solid accumulations are withdrawn by a bucket elevator or other means. An example of the invention is schematically illustrated in the single figure of the accom.panying drawing. Crushed shale from the mine is first fed by a bucket or skip elevator 1 into a receiver bin 2. This bin has a flat floor 3 furnished with a central aperture which constitutes the top open end of a receiver hopper 4. The bin houses a horizontally disposed endless belt conveyor 5 which is furnished with scraper blades, which work almost in contact with the floor 3, and whereby shale is swept along the bin floor into a hopper 4. When the hopper is full, excess shale is carried to the end of the bin whence it passes gravitationally down a return trunk 6 to the shale dump from which the bucket or skip elevator subtracts its load, or is swept into a next hopper which forms part of a companion retort apparatus in the case where a .battery of retorts is employed. It will be readily appreciated that when a battery is employed the bin 5 may be common to all the hoppers such as 4 and the conveyor drive Imay be so timed that practically no shale is returned to the dump. The throat of the receiver hopper is normally closed by a valve plate 7 which opens periodically (by mechanism referred to later herein) to discharge the hopper's contents gravitationally into the preheater vessel 8 wherein the moisture content of the charge is carried off by a flue-gas cross-draft which streams through the charge. The preheater vessel is normally closed at bottom by a valve plate 9 which is of the same construction as that numbered 7. The preheater valve plate 9 opens periodically (by mechanism referred to later herein) to discharge the vessel's contents gravitationally into the retort 10. The retort 10 is a downwardly divergent frusto-conical vessel which is surrounded by an external heating jacket 11. The chimney 12 of a furnace 13 opens into the bottom of the jacket, and said jacket preferably has a helical baffle plate 14 therein which compels the up-going flue-gas stream to follow a substantially helical path as it rises to the top of the jacket. The top of the jacket is furnished with a chimney stack 15 which

has a branch pipe 16 leading therefrom to one side of the preheater vessel 8. The stack 15 has a butterfly valve 17 therein above the branch pipe entrance, and the branch pipe preferably has a butterfly valve 18 therein, thus enabling all, or a selected. fraction, of the flue gas stream to be diverted into the preheater 8. The diverted stream passes through the shale mass in the preheater, and enters and departs from said preheater by way of inwardly and downwardly inclined louvre vanes 19 which retain the shale within said preheater. The flue gas eduction pipe 20 leading from the-. preheater passes upwardly as an auxiliary chimney stack 21. The auxiliary chimney stack has a takeoff pipe 22 open thereto. A butterfly valve 23 in the auxiliary stack, above the take-off pipe entrance, enables all, or a selected fraction, of the gas stream to pass into the takeoff pipe 22. The take-off pipe has an impeller fan 24 therein, whereby the flue-gas allowed to enter the pipe is induced to enter a superheater header 25 in the furnace chamber. Near the furnace, the take-off pipe 22 has a water nozzle 26 projected thereinto. The mixture of inert flue gas and steam thus generated in the superheater passes along duct 27 into the retort at the bottom of the shale column therein and effects internal heating of that column. A distillates eduction pipe 28 open to the top. of the retort leads to a common condenser (not shown), the gaseous output of which passes to one or more conventional scrubbers (also not shown). Gas from the scrubbers is piped by induction due to fan 29 to a burner 30 in the furnace. This burner is provided with an ordinary fuel cource (not shown) which is used for starting a distillation run and for supplementing the scrubber gas if or when necessary. The superheater output is. preferably passed into the retort through the agency of a distributing device herein indicated at 31 which may be the same as that marked 28 in the drawings forming part of the specification of prior Commonwealth Patent No. 2548/1;1, and the water seal arrangement herein indicated at 32 may 'take the form exemplified by that bearing numbers 12 to 15 in the drawings of the prior patent aforesaid. Reverting to the valve plates 7 .and 9 both of these valves are similarly arranged,

116,505 operated and equipped and hence only one retort vessel, a heating jacket which sur(say that of the receiver hopper) need be rounds said retort vessel, means for passing a fluid heating medium into said jacket, a described. stack open to said jacket, means for passing The valve plate 7 is fixed on a -shaft 33 gases from said stack into and through flue exwhereof one end which passes to the vessel, and means for terior of the apparatus has a crank web 34 said preheating fluid heating steam-carrying a delivering fixed thereon. This web 34 is joined to a retort vessel. piston 35, and outward movement of said medium into said 2. Apparatus according to Claim 1 piston from a hydraulic cylinder 36 in which it fits, causes the valve to open from wherein means for feeding shale into said I the closed position shown. The shaft 33 has preheating vessel comprise, a receiver bin eccentric journals so that the valve plate 7 having a flat floor, means for feeding shale into said bin, a conveyor having its working when closing is caused to move and seat squarely on to the bottom of the hopper 4, web almost in contact with said floor, a thul reducing likelihood of dirt on the plate receiver hopper from which shale may fall preventing tight closure thereof. The men- gravitationally into said preheating vessel tioned cylinder is double-acting in order to and which has its top open to said floor, a provide for both opening and closing move- movable valve plate at the bottom of said hopper, and means for periodically opening ment of the valve plate, and said cylinder and closing said valve plate. to a (37) has its two ends pipe connected reversing valve casing 38 connected up to a 3. Apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein The two means which periodically enable preheated water supply under pressure. reversing valve casings 38 and 39 house shale gravitationally to pass from said prevalve plungers which are operated by eccen- heating vessel into said retort vessel comtries such as 40 and eccentric rods such as prise a movable valve plate at the bottom 41 from a lay-shaft 42 which receives drive of said preheating vessel and means for through suitable gearing such as 43 from periodically opening and closing said valve a counter shaft 44. The counter shaft is plate. driven from. a prime mover (not shown). 4. Apparatus according to Claim 1 The induction fans 24 and 29 together with wherein said heating jacket includes a baffle 0S the belt conveyor 5 in the shale receiver bin, plate whereby fluid passing through said are driven from the said countershaft in jacket is caused to follow a substantially Timing mechanism (in- helical path. known manner. dicated at 45) of known type is employed 5. Apparatus according to Claim 1 to control and enable adjustment of the several drives in accordance with the re- wherein means for passing a fluid heating quired retorting period, and said timing medium into said jacket comprise, a furnace mechanism also controls the opening and including a burner, means for fuelling said closing movements of the two valve plates. burner with non-condensible gases resulting In the case of these valve plates, the timing from distillation in said retort vessel, and a and operating mechanisms are so arranged chimney open to the top of said furnace and that the two valves do not open simul- open to the bottom of said jacket. 6. Apparatus according to Claim 1 taneously. wherein means for passing flue gases from Having now fully described and ascer- said stack into and through said preheating tained my said invention and the manner vessel comprise, a branch pipe which opens in which it is to be performed, I declare to said stack and said preheating vessel and that what I claim is:which is furnished with valve means for 1. Apparatus for the distillation of shale, regulating flue gas flow there-into, a plurality comprising, a sealed retort vessel having a of louvre vanes directed downwardly and dictillates eduction pipe open thereto, a inwardly of said preheating vessel between which flue gas entering said preheating preheating vessel fixed above said retort ves el, means for feeding shale into said vessel from said branch pipe passes, an auxiliary chimney stack, a flue gas educpreheating vessel, means which periodically enable preheated shale gravitationally to tion pipe open to said preheating vessel and to said auxiliary stack, and a plurality of pa.s from said preheating vessel into said

116,505 louvre vanes directed downwardly and inwardly of said preheating vessel between whtich flue gas entering said eduction pipe from said preheating vessel passes. 7. Apparatus according to Claiml 1 wherein means for (delivering a steamncarrying fluid heating medium into said retort vessel comprise, a. take-off pipe into which flue gas exhausted from said heating jacket may be directed, an impeller fan included in s~aid take-off pipe, means for feeding water into said take-off pipe, a superheater header into which said take-off p~ipe opens and which is disposed inside

ai furnace chamber, and a duct whicll oucais into said header and into said retort vessel. S. Applaratus for the distillation of shale as l1-erein described with reference to tito accompanying drawing.

7

8

Printed and Published for i11w

l.)EP'.UTAIIENT

Dated this 15th day of December, 1.942. KELWyl~yN- ROS WAN

MIOURE,

By his Patent Attorneys, SPRIJSON

FERGUSON.

Witness-M. Murray.

OF

1w L. F. JOJIINSTON. Coni uuion1wCaltl,

PATENTS.

COMMONWEALTH

OF

Govern uuient Priter. Culoherra.

AI-STRALXA.

116,505