1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a device for burning bulk material, and more specifically this invention relates to an outdoor incinerator.
2. Background of the Invention
Burn barrels are common fixtures in rural and semi-rural areas. Most comprise typical 55 gallon drums with holes formed in their lower halves and perhaps in the bottom end of the drum. The problem with this typical configuration is multifold. First, complete burning is usually not achieved, at least without churning the burning material. This can lead to incomplete combustion if the barrel is left unattended, or burns, smoke exposure, and general unpleasantness to the churner.
Second, the inventor has found that forming ventilation holes into the sides and perhaps bottom of the drums results in an acceleration of corrosion to the drums. The barrels therefore need replacement well before the end of their useful burning life.
Efforts have been made to advance the burn barrel art, those efforts including supporting a barrel on the ground, but suspending a bottom grate inside the barrel so that the grate is above the ground. This can lead to corrosion to the bottom lip of the barrel due to it being in constant contact with the ground.
Other burn barrel designs comprise suspending a barrel or housing off the ground whereby the bottom of the barrel or housing is supported by bricks or some other non-combustible substrate. Air exchange afforded in these designs are also not optimal.
Some burn barrel designs allow for a side door to a bottom half of the barrel. As noted supra, forming apertures into an already formed barrel or housing tends to accelerate corrosion of the housing.
Also, none of the art discussed supra, or otherwise known by the inventor allows for easy removal or access of a grate viz. an incinerator housing.
A need exists in the art for an incinerator, primarily used outdoors, which optimizes airflow into the incinerator to facilitate complete burning of bulk material. The incinerator should be modular in design to afford easy dissembly and cleaning. The incinerators should be transportable. The incinerator should be made from readily available materials.
An object of the invention is to provide an incinerator which overcomes many of the drawbacks of the prior art.
Another object of the invention is to provide an incinerator which optimizes airflow with the ambient environment. A feature of the invention is a bottom-less incinerator housing not in contact with the ground. An advantage of the invention is optimized combustion of materials contained by the incinerator.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a burn barrel system which effectuates complete thermal decomposition of combustible materials. A feature of the invention is that a combustion chamber housing is suspended above the ground so as not to contact the ground. An advantage of the invention is that it utilizes natural thermal convection to draw ambient air into the housing during burning operations.
Briefly, the invention provides an incinerator comprising a housing suspended above the ground, said housing without a top or bottom, an elongated member supporting the housing; and a grate intermediately disposed the housing and the elongated member.
Also provided is a device for aiding combustion reactions, the device comprising a vertically disposed stanchion; a housing defining a cross section, a first open end and a second open end, said housing supported at said second open end by said stanchion; and a grid having a cross section identical to the cross section of the housing, whereby the diameter of the cross section of the grid is less than the diameter of the cross section of the housing, the grid in rotatable communication with said stanchion.
The invention together with the above and other objects and advantages will be best understood from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of certain embodiments of the present invention, will be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings.
As used herein, an element or step recited in the singular and preceded with the word “a” or “an” should be understood as not excluding plural said elements or steps, unless such exclusion is explicitly stated. Furthermore, references to “one embodiment” of the present invention are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features. Moreover, unless explicitly stated to the contrary, embodiments “comprising” or “having” an element or a plurality of elements having a particular property may include additional such elements not having that property.
The invention provides a burn barrel for incinerating and otherwise thermally decomposing bulk material. A salient feature of the device is that the burn barrel is supported at one side by an elongated support, such that the barrel can be rotated about the longitudinal axis of the support at infinite points. The advantage of this configuration is that it facilitates easier removal of detritus from underneath the barrel, which would otherwise collect in an inaccessible location on the ground as a result of a standard burn barrel remaining static over the ground and/or contacting the ground.
In an embodiment of the invention, the housing consists of a cylinder, that is a structure defining longitudinally extending surfaces but lacking an integrally formed top surface and lacking an integrally formed bottom surface. An exemplary housing is a 55 gallon barrel with its top and bottom removed.
As noted supra, the housing 12 is suspended over the ground in a cantilevered configuration viz the support column 14. In this embodiment, only a proximal portion 18 of a depending lip 16 of the housing 12 is indirectly supported by the support column 14. Good results are obtained when the support column 14 is embedded into the ground approximately 1 foot in depth when support of a 55 gallon drum is desired. A 55 gallon drum has an inner diameter of approximately 22.5 inches and a weight of approximately 39-40 pounds.
A salient feature of the invention is that the combustion housing 12 is supported at substantially one point, that point in rotatable communication with the support column 14. A sleeve 20 having a first end and a second end inferior to the first end, is adapted to be received by the support column 14, so as to be in rotatable communication with the support column. A radially directed protuberance 26 positioned between the first and second ends of the sleeve extend from the sleeve and is adapted to removably contact the proximal region 18 of the housing. The protuberance 26 terminates in an upwardly extending arm so as to prevent the depending lip from slipping off of the protuberance. The upwardly extending arm 28 defines an annular space to the housing wide enough to allow unencumbered placement and removal of the lip of the housing onto and from the protuberance 26 of the lip.
A depending end 22 of the sleeve terminates in a flared surface 24. This flared surface 24 defines a radially extending disk-shaped flange adapted to contact the surface of the ground 9. The diameter of the disk is chosen to prevent the sleeve 20 from being driven into the ground by the weight of the device 10 and perhaps the weight of the material being combusted contained by the device. As depicted in
Also positioned between the first and second ends of the sleeve 20 is one or a plurality of medially-extending brackets, 29. These brackets 29, a first or proximal end of each of which is attached to the sleeve, serve as a means to support a horizontally disposed porous substrate 30. Suitable porous substrates include, but are not limited to, expanded metal substrate, such as wire webbing, wire mesh, wire grating, or screen. In an embodiment of the invention, a ¾×9 expanded grate is utilized.
The grate 30 has a cross section smaller than the cross section of the housing so that its periphery is surrounded by an interior surface of the housing. For example, in the case where a standard 55 gallon drum is utilized as the incinerator housing 12, the grate would have an outer diameter of approximately 22 inches. In an embodiment of the invention, the medially extending brackets 29 extend upwardly at an angle a relative to the longitudinal axis of the sleeve 20 to assure that the grate 30 maintains its horizontal disposition with anticipated weight loadings of combustible materials. In an embodiment of the invention that angle ranges from approximately 45 and 75 degrees, with 3/16″ round bar comprising the brackets.
An embodiment of the device comprises a hollow core support column 14 such as a pipe. This enables the use of an upside down, elongated “U”-shaped clamp 32 to engage both the first lip of the housing 12 proximal to the support column 14, and interior regions of the hollow core of the support column 14. Once so positioned, the “U” shaped clamp 32 prevents the top of the housing from tipping away from the support column 14 when the housing is supported by the sleeve 20.
Aside from accommodating a downwardly depending leg of the “U” shaped clamp 32, the diameter of the hollow core of the support column is also chosen to accommodate an anchor pin 36 of a top grid assembly of the device.
Surprisingly and unexpectedly, the inventor found that the “U” shaped clamp 32 is not necessary. This alternative embodiment is depicted in
The top grid assembly 34 comprises a frame 38 encircling a thermal resistant porous substrate 40 defining a plane, and the aforementioned anchor pin 36. The grid assembly 34 has an outer diameter less than the inner diameter of the housing 12. This serves as a means to disperse ash lifted from the burning material via thermal convection. The top grid assembly 34 also serves to prevent inadvertent entry into the housing by the user during burn operations.
A first (i.e., proximal) end of the pin is attached to the frame and extends at an angle which is approximately 90 degrees relative to the plane formed by the porous substrate. A second (i.e. distal) end of the pin 36 depends downwardly and is adapted to be received by the hollow cavity defined by the support column 14. This arrangement allows the top grid assembly to pivot off center from the housing to facilitate loading of material targeted for combustion.
Suitable porous substrates include, but are not limited to, expanded metal substrate, such as wire webbing, wire mesh, wire grating, or screen. In an embodiment of the invention, the porous substrate 40 comprises ½×16-18 expanded metal.
The top grate 40 is attached to the frame 38 via tack welds, snap fit arrangements, bolt/nut configurations, or a combination of these attachment means. Alternatively, the porous substrate 40 is not surrounded by a frame but rather defines the periphery of the top grid assembly 34.
The top grid assembly 34 further comprises a radially extending loop 42 defining a handle 42. The handle 42 extends from a peripheral region of the top grid assembly 34 so as to be generally directly opposite the assembly's anchor pin 36, such that the proximal end of the pin 36, and a mid point of the handle fall along a line running through the center of the assembly 34, that line designated as 11 in
In operation, the housing 12 is supported by the support column, and the bottom grid 30 is coaxially aligned with the housing 12. The top grid 34 is positioned so as to be noncoaxially aligned with the housing. This allows top loading of the housing 12 with material targeted for thermal decomposition.
After the device is loaded, the material targeted for thermal decomposition is set afire. Then, the top grid 34 is pivoted into coaxial alignment with both the housing 12 and the bottom grid 30. Upon substantial combustion of the material targeted for thermal decomposition, the housing is pivoted out of coaxial alignment with the bottom grid so that inspection of the grid can commence.
Replacement/removal of the housing from the support column 14 is accomplished by first removing the top grid assembly 34, then sliding the housing upwardly until it clears the superior end of the support column 14.
Generally, the device 10 comprises thermally resistant material, such as metal (ferrous and non-ferrous), metal alloy, ceramic, porcelain, and composite materials. A preferred embodiment of the device comprises a housing 12 lacking any integrally molded top or bottom surfaces. Also, the housing lacks any apertures in any of its sides as it has been the inventor's experience that such apertures accelerates corrosion, particularly after repeated thermal cycling.
It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. The above-described embodiments (and/or aspects thereof) may be used in combination with each other. For example, more than one housing may be accommodated by a single support column. This essentially results in a doubling of thermal waste reduction capacity. In the case of the grate assembly, more than one handle 42 may be provided.
Also, and as depicted in
In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from its scope. While the dimensions and types of materials described herein are intended to define the parameters of the invention, they are by no means limiting, but are instead exemplary embodiments. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. In the appended claims, the terms “including” and “in which” are used as the plain-English equivalents of the terms “comprising” and “wherein.” Moreover, in the following claims, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third,” are used merely as labels, and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on their objects. Further, the limitations of the following claims are not written in means-plus-function format and are not intended to be interpreted based on 35 U.S.C. §112, sixth paragraph, unless and until such claim limitations expressly use the phrase “means for” followed by a statement of function void of further structure.
As will be understood by one skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, particularly in terms of providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all possible subranges and combinations of subranges thereof. Any listed range can be easily recognized as sufficiently describing and enabling the same range being broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, tenths, etc. As a non-limiting example, each range discussed herein can be readily broken down into a lower third, middle third and upper third, etc. As will also be understood by one skilled in the art all language such as “up to,” “at least,” “greater than,” “less than,” “more than” and the like include the number recited and refer to ranges which can be subsequently broken down into subranges as discussed above. In the same manner, all ratios disclosed herein also include all subratios falling within the broader ratio.
One skilled in the art will also readily recognize that where members are grouped together in a common manner, such as in a Markush group, the present invention encompasses not only the entire group listed as a whole, but each member of the group individually and all possible subgroups of the main group. Accordingly, for all purposes, the present invention encompasses not only the main group, but also the main group absent one or more of the group members. The present invention also envisages the explicit exclusion of one or more of any of the group members in the claimed invention.
This utility application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/794,915, filed on Mar. 15, 2013, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
61794915 | Mar 2013 | US |