Claims
- 1. A grate assembly in combination with a gasifier of carbonaceous material comprising a vertically oriented housing having inner wall regions forming a cylindrical chamber defining a gasification zone intermediate upper and lower regions of the housing and provided with inlet means and outlet means in the upper region of the housing for respectively introducing coal into the housing and removing product gases resulting from the gasification of the carbonaceous material in the gasification zone and with inlet means and outlet means in the lower region of the housing for respectively introducing a stream of reaction supporting gases into the chamber and discharging solids from the chamber, said grate assembly comprising:
- a generally conical grate rotatably supported in said chamber at a location underlying the gasification zone for supporting solid reactants in the gasification zone, said conical grate having upper surface regions with an upward angle of incline from peripheral edge regions toward a central apex thereof facing the gasification zone and a diameter slightly less than the inner diameter of the chamber for defining an annular passageway between said inner wall regions and peripheral edge regions of the grate for the discharge of solid material from the gasification zone;
- said grate defining a plurality of throughgoing passageways extending between inner surface regions and said outer surface regions of the conical grate for distributing the stream of reaction supporting gases within the gasification zone;
- a plurality of elongated vertically oriented first bar means supported on said inner wall regions in a substantially common plane, each bar means having a lower end thereof overlying said annular passageway and positioned at a location substantially vertically spaced from said peripheral edge regions of the grate;
- a plurality of elongated second bar means each supported on and extending from a radial inner region of said upper surface regions of the grate with one end portion of each of said second bar means disposed closer to said inner wall regions than the peripheral edge regions of the grate and in a horizontal plane underlying said lower end of said first bar means; and
- means for rotating said grate in a first direction for contacting and crushing an agglomerate of solid material between the first and second bar means when the agglomerate is of a size larger than the cross section of said annular passageway, and wherein said means for rotating the grate comprises hydraulic motor means, and wherein switch means are arranged to trigger the rotation of the conical grate in an opposite direction for a preselected portion of a single revolution sufficient to reposition an agglomerate of solid material on the upper surface region of the grate in response to a preselected pressure increase in the hydraulic motor means due to an agglomerate of solid material inhibiting the rotation of the grate.
- 2. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 1; wherein said one end portion of each of said second bar means project over said peripheral edge regions of the grate and into said annular passageway for positioning said one end portion of said second bar means in a vertical plane underlying said lower end of said first bar means.
- 3. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 2; wherein each of said second bar means is disposed on said upper surface regions of said grate at an angle to said first bar means that is sufficient to effect the displacement of the agglomerate along the second bar means in an upward direction after the contacting thereof with the first and second bar means.
- 4. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 3; wherein the upper surface region of said conical grate is inclined at angle to a horizontal plane of the chamber that is substantially equal to the angle of repose of the average size of solid material supported on the upper surface region of the grate.
- 5. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 4; wherein said angle of each of said second bar means is defined by positioning each said second bar means on the upper surface region of the grate so that a lower end portion of each said second bar means precedes an upper end portion thereof during rotation of the grate in a first direction.
- 6. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 5; wherein said first bar means and said second bar means are respectively substantially uniformly spaced apart from one another, and wherein the number of said second bar means differs from that of said first bar means for preventing substantially the same proximal positioning of more than one pair of said second bar means with any of said first bar means at any point of rotation of the conical grate.
- 7. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 5; wherein each of said first bar means and each of said second bar means is of a rectangular configuration, and wherein the cross-sectional thickness of the first bar means substantially corresponds to the cross-sectional width of said annular passageway.
- 8. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 7; wherein the end of each of said first bar means is inclined at an angle substantially corresponding to the angle of incline of the upper surface region of the conical grate, wherein the lower end of each of said first bar means is spaced from the upper surface region of the conical grate a distance slightly greater than the cross-sectional thickness of the second bar means, and wherein the end of said one end portion of each said second bar means is inclined at an angle substantially parallel to the angle of incline of the upper surface region of the conical grate and is disposed in a location in said annular passageway in close proximity to said inner wall regions of the housing.
- 9. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 1; wherein annular shelf means are supported by said inner wall regions of the housing at a location underlying said annular passageway, and wherein a plurality of radially angled blade means are supported by said conical grate adjacent to the peripheral edge regions thereof at a location intermediate to the conical grate and said shelf means for displacing solid material from the latter.
- 10. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 1; wherein each of the plurality of throughgoing passageways in the conical grate is disposed at an angle generally perpendicular to the vertical axis of the chamber and sufficient to deter the plugging of any of said throughgoing passageways by solid material contactable with the conical grate.
- 11. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 1; wherein vertically oriented and generally radially extending scoop means are supported on the upper surface regions of the conical grate at a location adjacent to the apex of the conical grate, and wherein the scoop means is of sufficient radial dimensions for displacing solids from a central region of the chamber overlying the conical grate towards peripheral regions of the chamber surrounding the central region of the chamber.
- 12. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 11; wherein the scoop means is defined by vertical wall means and substantially horizontal top wall means supported by the vertical wall means, and wherein a portion of the vertical wall means extend from a location adjacent to the apex of the conical grate towards the peripheral regions thereof.
- 13. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 12; wherein the scoop means is positioned at an angle to the radius and is of a size sufficient to displace a selected portion of the solid material from the central region of the chamber towards the peripheral region thereof.
- 14. A grate assembly for use in a gasifier of carbonaceous material as claimed in claim 13; wherein means are operatively associated with said scoop means for cooling the latter.
Government Interests
The United States Government has rights in this invention pursuant to the employer-employee relationship of the U.S. Department of Energy and the inventor.
US Referenced Citations (12)