Contacting of aggregate materials with fluids

Claim 1

IN APPARATUS FOR PRODUCTION A DRY METALLURGICAL GAS COMPRISING COMBUSTION MEANS FOR BURNING FUEL AND AIR AND PRODUCING PRODUCTS OF COMBUSTION, AND A COOLER FOR COOLING SAID PRODUCTS OF COMBUSTION, IMPROVED DRYER MEANS COMPRISING WALL MEANS FORMING A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL SHAPED VERTICAL HOUSING HAVING TOP AND BOTTOM CLOSURES; RIGID MEANS WITHIN SAID HOUSING DEFINING WITH SAID BOTTOM CLOSURE A PLENUM CHAMBER; A GAS INLET TO SAID PLENUM CHAMBER; A GAS OUTLET ADJACENT THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID HOUSING ; A PACKED BED OF AGGREGATE DESICCANT MATERIAL IN SAID HOUSING SUPPORTED ON SAID GRID, SAID BED COMPRISING AN ANNULAR LAYER OF AGGREGATE DESICCANT MATERIAWL CONTIGUOUS TO SAID WALL MEANS AND SURROUNDING A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL SHAPED CORE OF AGGREGATE DESICCANT MATERIAL, THE AGGREGATE MATERIAL IN SAID LAYER HAVING A SMALLER AVERAWGE VOID SIZE BETWEEN ITS CONSTITUENT PARTICLES THAN THE AGGREGAGE MATERIAL IN SAID CORE, AND MEANS FOR DIRECTING THE PRODUCTS OF COMBUSTION FROM SAID COOLER TO THE INLET OF SAID HOUSING AND THROUGH SAID PACKED BED TO SAID OUTLET.