Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6619216
-
Patent Number
6,619,216
-
Date Filed
Wednesday, April 24, 200222 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, September 16, 200321 years ago
-
Inventors
-
-
Examiners
- Lazarus; Ira S.
- Rinehart; K. B.
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 110 308
- 110 208
- 110 210
- 110 233
- 110 193
- 110 235
- 110 297
- 110 302
- 110 303
- 110 304
- 110 101 CA
- 110 267
- 110 101 R
- 110 101 C
- 110 101 CF
- 110 185
- 110 186
- 110 190
- 110 322
- 034 427
- 034 446
- 034 524
- 034 573
- 034 575
- 034 90
- 034 86
- 034 170
-
International Classifications
- F23M900
- F23N524
- F23K300
- F26B1900
-
Abstract
An incinerator includes a furnace, a heat-insulating shield, an air conduit, an air blower, and a dryer. The heat-insulating shield has a top wall, a vertically extending peripheral wall that extends downwardly from the top wall and that surrounds and that is spaced apart from the furnace by a gap, and an open bottom end. The peripheral wall of the heat-insulating shield has an air outlet that is disposed adjacent to the top wall and that is in fluid communication with the gap. Atmospheric air is introduced via the open bottom end through the gap and the air conduit and into the dryer. A feed motor is used to deliver solid waste into the furnace. A control unit controls rotating speed of the feed motor based on temperature in the dryer so as to adjust the temperature in the dryer.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an incinerator, more particularly to an incinerator with a dryer and a control unit for controlling temperature in the dryer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide an incinerator with a heat-insulating shield that surrounds a furnace for heating air in a gap therebetween. The heated air is then used for drying crops in a dryer. The temperature in the dryer is controlled by using a temperature sensor and a control unit which controls a feed motor, a rake motor, and an air-flow controller of the incinerator.
According to the present invention, an incinerator comprises: a furnace adapted to incinerate solid waste and including a vertically extending peripheral wall having a bottom section defining a main combustion chamber, an intermediate section extending upwardly from the bottom section to define an auxiliary combustion chamber, and a top section extending upwardly from the intermediate section and formed with an effluent outlet for exit of a combustion gas generated in the main and auxiliary combustion chambers; a feeding unit including a feed motor for delivering solid waste into the furnace; a cyclone separator connected to the effluent outlet for receiving the combustion gas from the furnace; a heat-insulating shield having a top wall, a vertically extending peripheral wall that extends downwardly from the top wall and that surrounds and that is spaced apart from the peripheral wall of the furnace by a gap, and an open bottom end, the top section of the peripheral wall of the furnace extending outwardly through the top wall, the effluent outlet being disposed outwardly of the heat-insulating shield, the peripheral wall of the heat-insulating shield having an air outlet that is disposed adjacent to the top wall and that is in fluid communication with the gap; an air conduit connected to the air outlet and in fluid communication with the gap via the air outlet; a dryer connected to and in fluid communication with the air conduit; an air blower disposed downstream of the air outlet for introducing atmospheric air via the open bottom end through the gap and the air conduit and into the dryer such that the introduced atmospheric air is heated in the gap by virtue of heat flow from the peripheral wall of the furnace into the gap; a temperature sensor mounted in the dryer for measuring temperature in the dryer and for generating an electrical signal that corresponds to the temperature in the dryer; and a control unit electrically connected to the temperature sensor for receiving the electrical signal and further connected to the feed motor for controlling rotating speed of the feed motor based on the temperature in the dryer so as to adjust the temperature in the dryer.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In drawings which illustrate an embodiment of the invention,
FIG. 1
is a schematic view of an incinerator embodying this invention;
FIG. 2
is a schematic top view of the incinerator of
FIG. 1
;
FIG. 3
is a schematic top view to illustrate how an air-flow controller of the incinerator of
FIG. 1
is operated to open a control valve;
FIG. 4
is a schematic top view to illustrate how the air flow controller of
FIG. 5
is operated to close the control valve; and
FIG. 5
is a block diagram showing a dryer, a feed motor, a rake motor, and a driving unit controlled by a control unit upon receiving an electrical signal from a temperature sensor that is disposed in the dryer.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
FIGS. 1
to
5
illustrate a preferred embodiment of an incinerator of this invention for combustion of solid waste, such as hull or shell waste of agricultural crops.
The incinerator includes: a furnace
10
having a vertically extending peripheral wall
11
with a bottom section
111
defining a main combustion chamber
121
, an intermediate section
112
extending upwardly from the bottom section
111
to define an auxiliary combustion chamber
122
, a cooling section
113
extending upwardly from the intermediate section
112
, and a top section
114
extending upwardly from the cooling section
113
and formed with an effluent outlet
44
for exit of a combustion gas generated in the main and auxiliary combustion chambers
121
,
122
, a partition plate
15
being disposed in the furnace
10
to separate the main and auxiliary combustion chambers
121
,
122
and being formed with a channel
151
that is in fluid communication with the main and auxiliary combustion chambers
121
,
122
; a feeding unit including a feed motor
35
for delivering solid waste into said furnace
10
; a cooler
14
disposed in the cooling section
113
for cooling the combustion gas passing therethrough; a cyclone separator
40
connected to the effluent outlet
44
for receiving the combustion gas from the furnace
10
; a heat-insulating shield
20
having a top wall
211
, a vertically extending peripheral wall
21
that extends downwardly from the top wall
211
and that surrounds and that is spaced apart from the peripheral wall
11
of the furnace
10
by a gap
101
, and an open bottom end
212
, the top section
114
of the peripheral wall
11
of the furnace
10
extending outwardly through the top wall
211
, the effluent outlet
44
being disposed outwardly of the heat-insulating shield
20
, the peripheral wall
21
of the heat-insulating shield
20
having an air outlet
213
that is disposed adjacent to the top wall
211
and that is in fluid communication with the gap
101
; an air conduit connected to the air outlet
213
and in fluid communication with the gap
101
via the air outlet
213
; a dryer
90
connected to and in fluid communication with the air conduit; an air blower
86
disposed downstream of the air outlet
213
and mounted on the air conduit for introducing atmospheric air via the open bottom end
212
through the gap
101
and the air conduit
213
and into the dryer
90
such that the introduced atmospheric air is heated in the gap
101
by virtue of heat flow from the peripheral wall
11
of the furnace
10
into the gap
101
; a temperature sensor
200
(see
FIG. 5
) mounted in the dryer
90
for measuring temperature in the dryer
90
and for generating an electrical signal that corresponds to the temperature in the dryer
90
; and a control unit
300
electrically connected to the temperature sensor
200
for receiving the electrical signal and further connected to the feed motor
35
for controlling rotating speed of the feed motor
35
based on the temperature in the dryer
90
so as to vary feeding rate of solid waste into the furnace
10
and so as to adjust the temperature in the dryer
90
.
The heat-insulating shield
20
is formed with a plurality of baffles
23
,
24
interconnecting the peripheral wall
21
of the heat-insulating shield
20
and the peripheral wall
11
of the furnace
10
so as to form a tortuous channel
102
thereamong for passage of the hot air flowing in the gap
101
.
Referring to
FIGS. 2
to
4
, the air conduit has first and second sections
81
,
82
. An air-flow controller
80
is disposed between the first and second sections
81
,
82
, and includes a control valve
83
, a pinion-and-rack unit
84
, and a driving unit
843
mounted on the air conduit. The first section
81
has one end connected to the air outlet
213
, and an opposite end connected to the second section
82
. The second section
82
has an enlarged end
821
which has an inner wall
822
, which receives the opposite end of the first section
81
, and which converges in a direction toward an opposite end of the second section
82
opposite to the enlarged end
821
. The control valve
83
is disposed in the enlarged end
821
of the second section
82
, and includes a lower disc
85
that extends radially and inwardly from the inner wall
822
around the opposite end of the first section
81
, and an upper disc
87
that is rotatably stacked on the lower disc
85
. The upper and lower discs
87
,
85
are formed with angularly spaced apart upper and lower slots
871
,
851
around the opposite end of the first section
81
. The pinion-and-rack unit
84
includes a rack
841
secured to the upper disc
87
, and a pinion
842
coupled to the driving unit
843
and meshing with the rack
841
so as to permit rotation of the upper disc
87
relative to the lower disc
85
between an open position (see FIGS.
3
and
4
), in which, the upper and lower slots
871
,
851
overlap, thereby permitting atmospheric air to be introduced into the enlarged end
821
of the second section
82
via the upper and lower slots
871
,
851
upon actuation of the air blower
86
, and a closed position, in which, the upper and lower slots
871
,
851
are offset from each other and are closed by the lower and upper discs
85
,
87
, respectively, thereby preventing atmospheric air from flowing into the enlarged end
821
of the second section
82
via the upper and lower slots
871
,
851
. The control unit
300
is electrically connected to the driving unit
843
for moving the upper disc
87
between the open and closed positions based on the temperature in the dryer
90
so as to vary flow rate of atmospheric air into the air conduit via the upper and lower slots
871
,
851
and so as to adjust the temperature in the dryer
90
.
A feeding device
30
is connected to the furnace
10
for feeding the solid waste into the furnace
10
, and includes a hopper
31
with a bottom outlet
332
, a rotary wheel
352
driven by the feed motor
35
and rotatably disposed in the hopper
31
for feeding the solid waste to the bottom outlet
332
, a pipe
33
interconnecting the bottom outlet
332
and the furnace
10
, and a blower
32
connected to the bottom outlet
332
for delivering the solid waste into the furnace
10
via the pipe
33
.
A main blower
71
is connected to the furnace
10
via an air pipe
72
for delivering air into the furnace
10
.
A perforated supporting plate
13
is disposed in the bottom section
111
of the furnace
10
for supporting the solid waste, and is formed with a plurality of holes
131
for passage of ash therethrough. Ash falling from the supporting plate
13
via the holes
131
is transferred to a bottom exit
115
of the furnace
10
via a second rotary wheel
51
driven by a motor
52
. Another blower
53
is connected to the bottom exit
115
for delivering the falling ash into the cyclone separator
40
via a pipe
54
. A rake
552
is disposed rotatably over the supporting plate
13
for stirring ash on the supporting plate
13
and for facilitating falling of ash through the holes
131
so as to increase combustion efficiency of the furnace
10
. A rake motor
55
is connected to the rake
552
for rotating the rake
552
. The control unit
300
is electrically connected to the rake motor
55
for controlling rotating speed of the rake motor
55
based on the temperature in the dryer
90
so as to adjust the temperature in the dryer
90
.
With the invention thus explained, it is apparent that various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. It is therefore intended that the invention be limited only as recited in the appended claims.
Claims
- 1. An incinerator comprising:a furnace adapted to incinerate solid waste and including a vertically extending peripheral wall having a bottom section defining a main combustion chamber, an intermediate section extending upwardly from said bottom section to define an auxiliary combustion chamber, and a top section extending upwardly from said intermediate section and formed with an effluent outlet for exit of a combustion gas generated in said main and auxiliary combustion chambers; a feeding unit including a feed motor for delivering solid waste into said furnace; a cyclone separator connected to said effluent outlet for receiving the combustion gas from said furnace; a heat-insulating shield having a top wall, a vertically extending peripheral wall that extends downwardly from said top wall and that surrounds and that is spaced apart from said peripheral wall of said furnace by a gap, and an open bottom end, said top section of said peripheral wall of said furnace extending outwardly through said top wall, said effluent outlet being disposed outwardly of said heat-insulating shield, said peripheral wall of said heat-insulating shield having an air outlet that is disposed adjacent to said top wall and that is in fluid communication with said gap; an air conduit connected to said air outlet and in fluid communication with said gap via said air outlet; a dryer connected to and in fluid communication with said air conduit; an air blower disposed downstream of said air outlet for introducing atmospheric air via said open bottom end through said gap and said air conduit and into said dryer such that the introduced atmospheric air is heated in said gap by virtue of heat flow from said peripheral wall of said furnace into said gap; a temperature sensor mounted in said dryer for measuring temperature in said dryer and for generating an electrical signal that corresponds to the temperature in said dryer; and a control unit electrically connected to said temperature sensor for receiving said electrical signal and further connected to said feed motor for controlling rotating speed of said feed motor based on the temperature in said dryer so as to adjust the temperature in said dryer.
- 2. The incinerator of claim 1, wherein said furnace further includes a perforated supporting plate disposed in said main combustion chamber for supporting solid waste thereon, said supporting plate being formed with a plurality of holes for passage of ash therethrough, said furnace further including a rake that is disposed rotatably over said supporting plate for stirring ash on said supporting plate and for facilitating falling of ash through said holes so as to increase combustion efficiency of said furnace, said incinerator further comprising a rake motor for rotating said rake, said control unit being electrically connected to said rake motor for controlling rotating speed of said rake based on the temperature in said dryer so as to adjust the temperature in said dryer.
- 3. The incinerator of claim 2, wherein said air conduit has first and second sections, said incinerator further comprising an air-flow controller which is disposed between said first and second sections and which includes a control valve, a pinion-and-rack unit, and a driving unit mounted on said air conduit, said first section having one end connected to said air outlet, and an opposite end connected to said second section, said second section having an enlarged end which has an inner wall, which receives said opposite end of said first section, and which converges in a direction toward an opposite end of said second section opposite to said enlarged end, said control valve being disposed in said enlarged end of said second section, and including a lower disc that extends radially and inwardly from said inner wall around said opposite end of said first section, and an upper disc that is rotatably stacked on said lower disc, said upper and lower discs being formed with angularly spaced apart upper and lower slots around said opposite end of said first section, said pinion-and-rack unit including a rack secured to said upper disc, and a pinion coupled to said driving unit and meshing with said rack so as to permit rotation of said upper disc relative to said lower disc between an open position, in which, said upper and lower slots overlap, thereby permitting atmospheric air to be introduced into said air conduit via said upper and lower slots upon actuation of said air blower, and a closed position, in which, said upper and lower slots are offset from each other and are closed by said lower and upper discs, respectively, thereby preventing atmospheric air from flowing into said air conduit via said upper and lower slots, said control unit being electrically connected to said driving unit for moving said upper disc between said open and closed positions so as to adjust the temperature in said dryer.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
90220597 U |
Nov 2001 |
TW |
|
US Referenced Citations (10)