Apparatus and method for calcining petroleum coke, coal and similar substances containing volatile combustible material

Claim 1

THE METHOD OF CALCINING PETROLEUM COKE OTHERCARBONACEOUS SUBSTANCE CONTAINING VOLATILES, INCLUDING THE STEPS OF: CONTINUOUSLY ADVANCING A LAYER OF THE SUBSTANCE ALONG THE BOTTOM OF A GENERALLY HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING TUBULAR ENCLOSURE OF RELATIVELY LARGE CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA: CONTINUOUSLY AGITATING THE SUBSTANCE IN A DIRECTION TRANSVERSE TO ITS DIRECTION OF ADVANCE; DISCHARGING THE SUBSTANCE FROM ONE END OF SAID ENCLOSURE; SUPPLYING HEAT TO SAID ENCLOSURE TO DRIVE VOLATILES FROM THE SUBSTANCE; DISCHARGING GASEOUS PRODUCTS FROM THE OTHER END OF SAID ENCLOSURE; AND JETTING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACEDD STREAMS OF AIR SUBSTANTIALLY RADIALLY INTO SAID ENCLOSURE AROUND THE SIDES AND TOP THEREOF INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF, UNDER SUPERATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE AND DIRECTING SAID STREAMS TOWARD THE AXIAL CENTER OF SAID ENCLOSURE WHEREBY TO AGITATE AND INTIMATELY MIX ALL GASES THEREIN, PREVENT STRATIFICATION THEREOF, AND PROMOTE COMPLETE COMBUSTION OF SAID VOLATILES TO THEREBY HEAT SAID SUBSTANCE;E; CONTINOUSLY MOVING SAID STREAMS OF AIR CIRCUMFERENTIALLY OF SAID ENCLOSURE; PARTIALLY OBSTRUCTING FLOW OF SAID SUBSTANCE THROUGH SAID ENCLOSURE AT LONGITUDINALLY SPACEDD POINTS TO INCREASE THE THICKNESS OF THE ENTIRE WIDTH OF SAID LAYER AT SAID POINTS; JETTING SAID CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED STREAMS INTO SAID ENCLOSURE ADJACENT SAID POINTS OF OBSTRUCTION; AND PROVIDING INCREASED SPACE FOR SAID AIR AND VOLATILES FROM SAID POINTS TOWARD SAID OTHER END.