Apparatus for contacting gas with particle material in counterflow

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR PASSING GASEOUS MEDIUM THROUGH A PARTICLE MASS, COMPRISING GAS FLOW MEANS AND PARTICLE DUCT MEANS HAVING A COUNTERFLOW PATH IN COMMON IN WHICH PATH THE GAS FLOW HAS AN UPWARD AND THE PARTICLE TRAVEL A DOWNWARD DIRECTION, A FIXED STRUCTURE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID COUNTERFLOW PATH TRANSVERSELY OF SAID DIRECTION, SAID STRUCTURE BEING ADAPTED TO SUPPORT A LAYER OF SAID PARTICLE MATERIAL, SAID STRUCTURE HAVING UPWARDLY EXTENDING WALL PORTIONS WHICH FORM MUTUALLY ADJACENT INTERSTITIAL PARTICLE CHAMBERS AND GAS CHAMBERS, SAID PARTICLE CHAMBERS HAVING MEANS FOR BEING UPWARDLY OPEN TO RECEIVE PARTICLES AND HAVING RESPECTIVE OUTLETS NEAR THE CHAMBER BOTTOM, SAID GAS CHAMBERS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY CLOSED TO INGRESS OF PARTICLE MASS FROM ABOVE AND BEING PERMEABLE TO GAS AT THE TOP AND BOTTOM, SAID GAS-PERMEABLE BOTTOM BEING ADJACENT AND BELOW ON OF SAID OUTLETS AND ADAPTED TO BE NORMALLY COVERED IN SAID GAS CHAMBER BY A REPOSING WEDGE OF PARICLE MATERIAL DRAINED FROM SAID OUTLET, WHEREBY THE FLOW OF PARTICLE MASS FROMS SAID WEDGES THROUGH SAID STRUCTURE IS CONTROLLABLE BY VARIATION OF THE GAS FLOW.