Patent Application
20160032192
The present invention relates to a pyrolysis apparatus for continuously pyrolyzing a solid organic material by heating the material, while causing the material to flow.
When a solid organic material is continuously pyrolyzed by heating the material, while causing the material to flow, a rotary kiln described in Patent Literature 1 listed below can be used, for example. The rotary kiln described in Patent Literature 1 is configured as follows. Specifically, an organic material (material to be treated) is supplied to an inner cylinder (furnace core tube), and the inner cylinder is rotated. While the organic material is caused to flow in the inner cylinder by the rotation, the organic material is heated by introducing heated gas into an outer cylinder (heating furnace). In this manner the organic material can be continuously pyrolyzed. In addition, the measurement of the temperature of the organic material with a thermocouple provided to the inner cylinder makes it possible to adjust the temperature of the heated gas.
Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-292068
However, in the rotary kiln described in Patent Literature 1 mentioned above, the temperature of the organic material in contact with the thermocouple is considered to be the temperature of the entire organic material. Hence, when the temperature of the organic material in contact with the thermocouple is very different from the average temperature of the entire organic material, the entire organic material is not heated with a necessary and sufficient amount of heat, and it is possible that the entire organic material cannot be pyrolyzed with a desired pyrolysis ratio (degree).
In view of this, an object of the present invention is to provide a pyrolysis apparatus capable of pyrolyzing the entire organic material with a desired pyrolysis ratio and with high precision.
To solve the above-described problem, a pyrolysis apparatus according to a first aspect of the invention is characterized in that
the pyrolysis apparatus comprises:
a furnace main body in which a solid organic material flows;
organic material supply means for supplying the organic material into the furnace main body;
heating means for heating the organic material in the furnace main body;
sending-out means for sending out a solid pyrolysis product and a pyrolysis gas resulting from the heating and pyrolysis in the furnace main body;
standard gas supply means for adding a standard gas including nitrogen gas to the pyrolysis gas;
test gas production means for sending out a test gas formed by completely combusting a mixture gas of the pyrolysis gas and the standard gas sent out of the sending-out means with air for complete combustion;
test gas flow amount measurement means for measuring a flow amount Fi per unit time of the test gas sent out of the test gas production means;
gas concentration measurement means for measuring a concentration Cc of carbon dioxide and a concentration Cn of nitrogen gas in the test gas; and
arithmetic control means for
Fn=Fi×Cn (1),
Wc={(Fi×Cc)/(Fn−0.781×Fa)}×{(Fs/22.4)×12} (2),and
Dt=(Wc/Cg)/Wo (3).
Meanwhile, a pyrolysis apparatus according to a second aspect of the invention is the pyrolysis apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention, characterized in that
the arithmetic control means controls the heating means to raise a heating temperature of the organic material, when the pyrolysis ratio Dt is lower than the pyrolysis ratio Dr.
Meanwhile, a pyrolysis apparatus according to a third aspect of the invention is the pyrolysis apparatus according to the first or second aspect of the invention, characterized in that
the arithmetic control means controls the heating means to lower a heating temperature of the organic material, when the pyrolysis ratio Dt is higher than the pyrolysis ratio Dr.
Meanwhile, a pyrolysis apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the invention is the pyrolysis apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects of the invention, characterized in that the heating means heats the furnace main body from outside.
Meanwhile, a pyrolysis apparatus according to a fifth aspect of the invention is the pyrolysis apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects of the invention, characterized in that
the standard gas supply means supplies the standard gas to the furnace main body on an upstream side thereof in a flow direction of the organic material.
Meanwhile, a pyrolysis apparatus according to a sixth aspect of the invention is the pyrolysis apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects of the invention, characterized in that the organic material is a low-rank coal.
In the pyrolysis apparatus according to the present invention, the arithmetic control means calculates the flow amount Fn by the above-described formula (1) on the basis of the flow amount Fi and the concentration Cn, calculates the generated amount Wc by the above-described formula (2) on the basis of the flow amounts Fs, Fa, Fn, and Fi and the concentration Cc, calculates the pyrolysis ratio Dt by the above-described formula (3) on the basis of the weight Wo, the generated amount Wc, and the concentration Cg, and controls the heating means to make the pyrolysis ratio Dt equal to a desired pyrolysis ratio Dr. Hence, the amount of heat applied to the organic material can be set on the basis of the pyrolysis ratio (degree) of the entire organic material after the completion of pyrolysis. Therefore, even when the temperature of the organic material in the furnace main body greatly varies depending on the position, the entire organic material can be heated with a necessary and sufficient amount of heat without being influenced by the variation. Consequently, the entire organic material can be pyrolyzed with a desired pyrolysis ratio Dr and with high precision.
Embodiments of a pyrolysis apparatus according to the present invention are described based on the drawings; however, the present invention is not limited exclusively to the following embodiments described based on the drawings.
A main embodiment of a pyrolysis apparatus according to the present invention is described based on
As shown in
On a base end side (the left side in
On the tip end side (the right side in
To the combustion furnace 117, a fuel supply source 118 for supplying a fuel 5 for combustion such as natural gas into the combustion furnace 117 is connected, with a flow amount adjustment valve 118a provided therebetween. In addition, an air blower 119 for supplying air 6 for combustion into the combustion furnace 117 is connected to the combustion furnace 117. The combustion furnace 117 is configured such that combustion gas 7 can be generated by combustion of the pyrolysis gas 3 with the fuel 5 and the air 6 and sent out.
An outlet for the combustion gas 7 of the combustion furnace 117 is connected to the inside of the outer cylinder 111. To the outer cylinder 111, an exhaust line 111a is connected through which the combustion gas 7 fed into the outer cylinder 111 is emitted to the outside of the system.
A portion between the upper portion of the chute 116 and the combustion furnace 117 is connected to a small combustor 120 for taking out and completely combusting an aliquot of a mixture gas of the pyrolysis gas 3 and the standard gas 4 sent out of the chute 116. To the combustor 120, a small air blower 121 for feeding air 8 for complete combustion is connected, and the combustor 120 is configured such that a test gas 9 in which all carbon components in the mixture gas are oxidized to carbon dioxide (completely combusted) by combusting the mixture gas taken out together with the air 8 from the air blower 121 can be produced and sent out.
A gas outlet of the combustor 120 is connected to a gas concentration measurement device 131, such as a gas chromatograph, which is gas concentration measurement means for measuring the concentrations of components such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas in the test gas 9 sent out through the gas outlet. A gas flow meter 132 is provided near the gas outlet of the combustor 120. The gas flow meter 132 is test gas flow amount measurement means for measuring the flow amount of the test gas 9 sent out through the gas outlet. A portion between the gas flow meter 132 and the gas concentration measurement device 131 communicates with the outside of the system. The gas concentration measurement device 131 and the gas flow meter 132 are electrically connected to an input unit of an arithmetic control device 130, which is arithmetic control means.
An output unit of the arithmetic control device 130 is electrically connected to a driving motor 113a of the supply feeder 113, the flow amount adjustment valve 115a of the standard gas supply source 115, the flow amount adjustment valve 118a of the fuel supply source 118, and the air blowers 119 and 121. The arithmetic control device 130 is configured such that the arithmetic control device 130 can control operations of the driving motor 113a, the flow amount adjustment valves 115a and 118a, the air blowers 119 and 121, and the like on the basis of information from the gas concentration measurement device 131 and the gas flow meter 132, information inputted in advance, and the like (details are described later).
Note that, in this embodiment, organic material supply means is constituted by the supply feeder 113, the supply hopper 114, and the like, heating means is constituted by the outer cylinder 111, the combustion furnace 117, the fuel supply source 118, the air blower 119, and the like, and test gas production means is constituted by the combustor 120, the air blower 121, and the like.
Next, operations of such a pyrolysis apparatus 100 according to this embodiment are described.
After introduction of the low-rank coal 1 into the supply hopper 114, the type of the low-rank coal 1, a desired pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr of the low-rank coal 1, a weight Wo of the low-rank coal 1 supplied per unit time into the inner cylinder 112, a flow amount Fs per unit time of the standard gas 4 supplied into the inner cylinder 112, and a flow amount Fa per unit time of the air 8 supplied to the combustor 120 are inputted to the arithmetic control device 130, and the inner cylinder 112 is rotated. Here, the arithmetic control device 130 controls an operation of the driving motor 113a of the supply feeder 113 to supply the low-rank coal 1 into the inner cylinder 112 at the inputted weight Wo per unit time, and controls an operation of the flow amount adjustment valve 115a of the nitrogen gas supply source 115 to supply the nitrogen gas 4 into the inner cylinder 112 at the inputted flow amount Fs per unit time. Moreover, the arithmetic control device 130 controls an operation of the air blower 121 to supply the air 8 to the combustor 120 at the inputted flow amount Fa per unit time. On the other hand, the arithmetic control device 130 controls operations of the flow amount adjustment valve 118a of the fuel supply source 118 and the air blower 119 to feed the fuel 5 and the air 6 at standard flow amounts for the beginning of the operations, so that combustion gas 7 is generated at a standard temperature in the combustion furnace 117 and fed into the outer cylinder 111.
With the rotation of the inner cylinder 112, the low-rank coal 1 supplied into the inner cylinder 112 moves in a flowing manner from the base end side (the left side in
Note that the combustion gas 7 having heated the inner cylinder 112 is emitted to the outside of the system through the exhaust line 111a.
In addition, the pyrolysis gas 3 generated with the heating and pyrolysis of the low-rank coal 1 is sent out to the chute 116, while being mixed in the inner cylinder 112 with the standard gas 4 supplied from the standard gas supply source 115 into the inner cylinder 112 on an upstream side thereof in the flow direction of the low-rank coal 1 to form a mixture gas with the standard gas 4. The mixture gas is sent out through the upper portion of the chute 116. While an aliquot of the mixture gas is taken out to the combustor 120, the rest is fed into the combustion furnace 117, and combusted with the fuel 5 and the air 6 to form the combustion gas 7, which is then fed into the outer cylinder 111.
The mixture gas taken out to the combustor 120 is combusted with the air 8 to form a test gas 9 in which all carbon components are oxidized to carbon dioxide (completely combusted). The test gas 9 is sent out of the combustor 120, and the flow amount of the test gas 9 is measured with the gas flow meter 132. Then, an aliquot of the test gas 9 is taken out to the gas concentration measurement device 131, whereas the rest is emitted to the outside of the system.
The gas concentration measurement device 131 measures constituent ratios (concentrations) of carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas in the test gas 9 taken out, and transmits the information to the arithmetic control device 130.
The arithmetic control device 130 calculates a flow amount Fn per unit time of nitrogen gas in the mixture gas supplied to the combustor 120, i.e., the mixture gas completely combusted in the combustor 120 by the following formula (1) on the basis of information from the gas flow meter 132, i.e., a flow amount Fi per unit time of the test gas 9 sent out of the combustor 120 and information from the gas concentration measurement device 131, i.e., a constituent ratio (concentration) Cn of nitrogen gas in the test gas 9:
Fn=Fi×Cn (1).
Moreover, the arithmetic control device 130 calculates a generated amount (weight) We per unit time of carbon components in the pyrolysis gas 3 by the following formula (2) on the basis of the previously inputted flow amount Fs per unit time of the standard gas 4 supplied into the inner cylinder 112, a flow amount Fa per unit time of the air 8 supplied to the combustor 120 used in the combustor 120 for complete combustion of carbon components in the mixture gas, i.e., previously inputted, the flow amount Fn, the flow amount Fi, and information from the gas concentration measurement device 131, i.e., the constituent ratio (concentration) Cc of carbon dioxide in the test gas 9:
Wc={(Fi×Cc)/(Fn−0.781×Fa)}×{(Fs/22.4)×12} (2).
Then, the arithmetic control device 130 calculates the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt of the pyrolyzed coal 2 sent out through the chute 116 by the following formula (3) on the basis of the previously inputted weight Wo of the low-rank coal 1 supplied per unit time into the inner cylinder 112, the generated amount (weight) Wc, and the constituent ratio (concentration) Cg of carbon components in the low-rank coal 1 for the previously inputted type of the low-rank coal 1 inputted in advance:
Dt=(Wc/Cg)/Wo (3).
Then, the arithmetic control device 130 compares the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt of the pyrolyzed coal 2 with the previously inputted desired pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr. When the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt takes a value within the range of an allowable error of the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr, the arithmetic control device 130 determines that the low-rank coal 1 is pyrolyzed with the desired pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr and controls an operation of the flow amount adjustment valve 118a of the fuel supply source 118 to feed the fuel 5 at the current flow amount.
On the other hand, when the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt takes a value which is not within the range of the allowable error of the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr, and which is smaller than the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr (Dt<Dr), the arithmetic control device 130 determines that the loss (in weight) on pyrolysis per unit weight of the low-rank coal 1 is small, i.e., the pyrolysis ratio (degree) of the pyrolyzed coal 2 is low, and controls an operation of the flow amount adjustment valve 118a of the fuel supply source 118 so that the fuel 5 can be fed at a flow amount higher than the current flow amount to raise the temperature of the combustion gas 7.
Meanwhile, when the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt takes a value which is not within the range of the allowable error of the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr, and which is larger than the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dr (Dt>Dr), the arithmetic control device 130 determines that the loss (in weight) on pyrolysis per unit weight of the low-rank coal 1 is large, i.e., the pyrolysis ratio (degree) of the pyrolyzed coal 2 is high, and controls an operation of the flow amount adjustment valve 118a of the fuel supply source 118 so that the fuel 5 can be fed at a flow amount lower than the current flow amount to lower the temperature of the combustion gas 7.
This enables the pyrolysis with the pyrolyzed coal 2 always having the desired ratio (degree) Dr.
In other words, the pyrolysis apparatus 100 according to this embodiment is configured as follows. Specifically, the concentration Cc of carbon dioxide in the test gas 9 obtained by taking out and completely combusting an aliquot of the pyrolysis gas 3 after the completion of pyrolysis sent out through the chute 116 together with the pyrolyzed coal 2 after the pyrolysis is detected, and the generated amount We of carbon components in the pyrolysis gas 3 is calculated from the concentration Cc of carbon dioxide. Thus, the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt of the pyrolyzed coal 2 is determined on the basis of the constituent ratio (concentration) Cg of carbon components in the low-rank coal 1 for the type of the low-rank coal 1 determined in advance, and the temperature of the combustion gas 7 is adjusted.
For this reason, in the pyrolysis apparatus 100 according to this embodiment, the amount of heat applied to the low-rank coal 1 can be set on the basis of the pyrolysis ratio (degree) of the entire pyrolyzed coal 2 after the completion of pyrolysis. Hence, even when the temperature of the low-rank coal 1 in the inner cylinder 112 greatly varies depending on the position, the entire low-rank coal 1 can be heated with a necessary and sufficient amount of heat without being influenced by the variation.
Accordingly, the pyrolysis apparatus 100 according to this embodiment makes it possible to pyrolyze the entire low-rank coal 1 with the desired pyrolysis ratio Dr and with high precision.
Moreover, the standard gas 4 is supplied to the pyrolysis gas 3, and the generated amount of carbon dioxide is determined on the basis of the ratio of carbon dioxide in the pyrolysis gas 3 to the standard gas 4. Hence, the amount of carbon dioxide generated can be calculated with higher precision, and the entire low-rank coal 1 can be pyrolyzed with the desired pyrolysis ratio Dr and with high precision more reliably in this case than, for example, in a case where the generated amount of carbon dioxide is determined on the basis of the flow amount of the pyrolysis gas 3 sent out through the chute 116.
This is because, if the flow amount of the pyrolysis gas 3 is measured by providing a flow meter or the like between the chute 116 and the gas concentration measurement device 131, tar components and the like contained in the pyrolysis gas 3 adhere to the flow meter or the like, so that it tends to be difficult to accurately measure the flow amount of the pyrolysis gas 3.
In addition, even if an extremely small amount of oxygen gas, hydrogen gas, or the like enter the inner cylinder 112 from the outside, and the low-rank coal 1 in an amount corresponding to the amount of the gas should be combusted and lost, the entire low-rank coal 1 can be pyrolyzed with a desired pyrolysis ratio Dr, and hence the yield of the pyrolyzed coal 2 can be stabilized.
In addition, even when H2O or the like enters the inner cylinder 112 from the outside, the H2O or the like does not exert any influence on the calculation of the generated amount We of carbon components in the pyrolysis gas 3. Hence, the pyrolysis ratio (degree) Dt of the pyrolyzed coal 2 can be determined stably, without being influenced by the amount of water in the inner cylinder 112.
Note that, in the above-described embodiment, the standard gas supply source 115 is connected on the base end side of the inner cylinder 112, i.e., the upstream side in the flow direction of the low-rank coal 1 to supply the standard gas 4 into the inner cylinder 112. Alternatively, as another embodiment, it is also possible to, for example, connect the standard gas supply source 115 to a position between the chute 116 and the gas concentration measurement device 131 and supply the standard gas 4 to the pyrolysis gas 3.
In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the case of the pyrolysis apparatus 100 of a rotary kiln type in which the inner cylinder 112 is rotatably supported in the fixedly supported outer cylinder 111 is described. Alternatively, as another embodiment, it is also possible, for example, to use a pyrolysis apparatus of a conveyor type in which an outer periphery of an inner cylinder (furnace main body) is covered with an outer cylinder (jacket), and a mesh conveyor or the like is disposed in the inner cylinder.
In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the pyrolysis is conducted by heating the low-rank coal 1 in the inner cylinder 112 with the combustion gas 7. Alternatively, as another embodiment, it is also possible, for example, to pyrolyze the low-rank coal in the inner cylinder 112 by heating the inner cylinder 112 with an electric heater or the like.
However, it is very preferable to conduct the pyrolysis by heating the low-rank coal 1 in the inner cylinder 112 with the combustion gas 7 as in the case of the above-described embodiment, because the pyrolysis gas 3 generated with the pyrolysis of the low-rank coal 1 can be used as a raw material of the combustion gas 7 to achieve effective utilization.
In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the combustion gas 7 is fed into the outer cylinder 111, and the pyrolysis is conducted by heating the low-rank coal 1 indirectly through the inner cylinder 112. Alternatively, as another embodiment, it is also possible to, for example, heat the standard gas 4 by passing the combustion gas 7 through a heat exchanger and also passing the standard gas 4 through the heat exchanger, supply the heated standard gas 4 into the inner cylinder 112, and conduct the pyrolysis by directly heating the low-rank coal 1.
However, it is not very preferable to heat the standard gas 4, supply the heated standard gas 4 into the inner cylinder 112, and conduct the pyrolysis by directly heating the low-rank coal 1, because a large amount of the standard gas 4 has to be used, and the cost increases.
In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the low-rank coal 1 is pyrolyzed by heating is described. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and the present invention can be applied to any case in the same manner as in the above-described embodiment, as long as a solid organic material is pyrolyzed by heating, and the same operations and effects as those in the above-described embodiment can be obtained.
When the pyrolysis apparatus according to the present invention is applied to, for example, a case where a low-rank coal (low-quality coal) such as lignite or sub-bituminous coal is pyrolyzed, the entire low-rank coal can be pyrolyzed with a desired pyrolysis ratio and with high precision. Hence, the pyrolysis apparatus according to the present invention can be used extremely industrially advantageously.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-093223 | Apr 2013 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2014/060133 | 4/8/2014 | WO | 00 |
