Process for making combustible gas

Claim 1

THE PROCESS OF MAKING COMBUSTIBLE GAS BY REACTING GAS-MAKING SUBSTANCE AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES IN AN UPRIGHT, ELONGATED GENERATOR HAVING A DEEP MASS OF CHECKERWORK CONFINED THEREIN AS A PREVIOUS STRATUM EXTENDING ACROSS IT BETWEEN THE TOP AND BOTTOM THEREOF, COMPRISING, DISPOSING A DEEP BODY OF FINELY DIVIDED SOLIDS IN SAID GENERATOR IN PART IN THE INTERSTITIAL SPACE OF SAID MASS AND ALSO BELOW SAID MASS, DENSELY FLUIDIZING THE THUS DISPOSED SOLIDS AS A DEEP, SINGLE, SUBSTANTIALLY STATIONARY, CONTINUOUS BED HAVING A WELL DEFINED TOP LEVEL IN SAID GENERATOR, BY FIRST PASSING A GASIFORM STREAM INITIALLY CONTAINING A COMBUSTION SUPPORTING FLUID AND A FUEL UPWARDLY AT A PARTICULAR FLUIDIZING VELOCITY THROUGH SAID BED OF SOLIDS AND THROUGH SAID INTERSTITIAL SPACE, PROMOTING COMBUSTION OF SAID FUEL IN SAID STREAM IN SAID BED THEREBY HEATING BOTH THE SAID SOLIDS AND SAID CHECKWORK TO A REACTION TEMPERATURE BELOW 2000* F., DISCONTINUING THE HEATING OPERATION AFTER REACTION TEMPERATURE HAS BEEN REACHED IN SAID BED, THEN SIMILARLY PASSING A GASIFORM STREAM INITIALLY CONTAINING STEAM AND AT LEAST ONE COMBUSTIBLE REACTANT SELECTED FROM THE GROUP WHICH CONSISTS OF GASIFROM HYDROCARBONS AND POWDERED COAL UPWARDLY UNDER SUPERATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE THROUGH SAID BED FROM BENEATH IT AT A VELOCITY THAT MAINTAINS SAID SOLIDS IN SAID DENSELY FLUIDIZED STATE IN SAID BED THEREBY MAKING SAID COMBUSTIBLE GAS IN THE LATTER STREAM IN SAID BED, DISCHARGING THE LATTER GAS IN SAID LATTER STREAM AND RECOVERING IT, MEANWHILE CONFINING SAID SOLIDS IN SAID BED SUBSTANTIALLY AS A PREMANENTLY RETAINED BODY; SAID PARTICULARLY VELOCITY BEING SUCH THAT TOP TO BOTTOM CIRCULATION OF SAID SOLIDS IN SAID BED IS INHIBITED.