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EP-4739448-A1 - TECHNOLOGY TO CONVERT MUNICIPAL WASTE TO COAL

EP4739448A1EP 4739448 A1EP4739448 A1EP 4739448A1EP-4739448-A1

Abstract

A waste conversion system disclosed here comprises a hopper, a coarse feeder, a weigh feeder, a reactor, and a cooling segment. The hopper stores the segregated municipal solid waste (MSW) and provides a constant feed of the MSW to the reactor for continuous operation of the reactor. The coarse feeder is connected to the hopper, to feed a definite amount of MSW into the reactor. The weigh feeder is connected to the coarse feeder to receive the MSW and to push the MSW feed into the reactor. The weigh feeder weighs the MSW that is fed into the reactor. The reactor is configured to receive the MSW via a set of hydraulic pushers and heats the segregated MSW to a predefined temperature in an oxygen deficient space, which causes the MSW to lose moisture and changes phase of the MSW to charcoal.

Inventors

  • GUPTA, GAUTAM
  • Rao, Ajith P

Assignees

  • MACAWBER BEEKAY PVT LTD

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20240115

Claims (17)

  1. We Claim: 1. A waste conversion system (60) comprising: a hopper (1) that stores the segregated municipal solid waste (MSW) as buffer feed stock for a reactor (50), wherein the hopper (1) provides a constant feed of the MSW to the reactor (50) for continuous operation of reactor (50); a coarse feeder (2) that is connected to the hopper (1), wherein the coarse feeder (2) feeds definite amount of MSW into the reactor (50), a weigh feeder (5) that is connected to the coarse feeder (2) to receive the MSW, wherein the weigh feeder (5) pushes the MSW feed into the reactor (50), and wherein the weigh feeder (5) measures weight of the MSW that is fed into the reactor (50); the reactor (50) configured to receive the MSW via a set of hydraulic pushers (3a), wherein the reactor (50) heats the segregated MSW to a predefined temperature in an oxygen deficient space, which causes the MSW to lose moisture and changes phase of the MSW to charcoal; and a cooling segment (17) that receives the charcoal from the reactor (50) and cools down the charcoal to avoid auto ignition.
  2. 2. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coarse feeder (2) is connected to an exit of the hopper (1), and is operated using a hydraulic pusher (3a), wherein the coarse feeder (2) feeds a predefined quantity of MSW from the hopper (1) via the hydraulic pusher (3a), and wherein the feed of the MSW is controllable with the number of operation cycle of coarse feeder (2) through a logic control.
  3. 3. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the coarse feeder (2) pushes the MSW forward and the MSW falls into the weigh feeder (5), wherein the weigh feeder (5) comprises the hydraulic pusher (3a) to push the MSW feed into the reactor (50), wherein the weigh feeder (5) measures weight of the MSW entering inside the reactor (50) by means of load cells (5a) equipped at the weigh feeder (5), which provides feedback to plant PLC (programmable logic control) system to control the process.
  4. 4. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the hydraulic pusher (3a) is positioned in the coarse feeder (2) and the weigh feeder (5), wherein the hydraulic pusher (3a) comprises feeder plates (3), and wherein the hydraulic pusher (3a) consists of a piston rod (3b) which moves back and forth using a power pack assembly (4), wherein the coarse feeder (2) and the weigh feeder (5) are operated by the power pack assembly (4) that uses enclosed fluid to transfer energy to subsequently create rotary motion, linear motion, and force.
  5. 5. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 4, further comprising tubes (4a) through which pressurized hydraulic oil is transferred, wherein the tubes (4a) are connected to the hydraulic pusher (3a) to provide to-fro motion to the hydraulic pusher (3a) and the feeder plate (3).
  6. 6. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 2, wherein after measuring the weight of the MSW, the weigh feeder (5) pushes the MSW inside the first zone (10a) of the reactor (50) through an inlet chute (6), wherein moving baffles (6a) and fixed baffles (6b) are provided to prevent the ingress of air inside the reactor (50), wherein the moving baffle (6a) is hinge (6c) supported and moved up along the MSW to make way and return when the feeding is not in process.
  7. 7. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 6, wherein the reactor (50) comprises: the first zone (10a), which is a pre-heating zone with a temperature range of 50 degree Celsius to 150 degree Celsius, a second zone (10b), which is a heating zone with a temperature range of 100 degree Celsius to 200 degree Celsius, a third zone (10c and 10d), which is a torrefaction zone with a temperature range of 250 degree Celsius to 350 degree Celsius, and a fourth zone (17), which is cooling zone with a temperature below 60 degree Celsius.
  8. 8. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the reactor (50) comprises a rotary inner shell (10) connected with a girth gear (7) for conversion process of the MSW, wherein the girth gear (7) is positioned adjacent to the rotary inner shell (10), wherein the girth gear (7) is connected with a main electric drive (9) and a gear box (8) which facilitates rotary motion for the reactor (50), wherein the gear box (8) provides rotary torque and reduced rpm to the reactor (50) and the main electric drive (9) transfers rotary motion through a belt (8b) and pulley (8a) arrangement, wherein the reactor (50) rotates between 1-6 rpm based on operational capacity and parameter of the reactor (50), which is controlled through a variable frequency drive (VFD) (9a).
  9. 9. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 8, wherein the reactor (50) comprises an outer stationary shell (11) that is positioned over the rotary inner shell (10) for movement of hot air in space between outer stationary shell (11) and the rotary inner shell (10), wherein the outer stationary shell (11) is insulated for thermal efficiency of the heating system and the reactor (50), and wherein the outer stationary shell (11) is sealed using layers of leaf seal (12) that prevent ingress of air between stationary outer stationary shell (11) or adopter (6). and the rotary inner shell (10) 10. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotary inner shell (10) is fitted with one or more guide rings (13), which rotates over rollers (14) positioned alongside a bracket (14a) for seamless rotation of the rotary inner shell
  10. (10), and wherein the rollers (14) are positioned alongside the bracket (14a) of the reactor (50) on which the guide ring (13) rotates and prevents the reactor (50) from derailing.
  11. 11. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a discharge feeder (18) that is connected to the cooling segment (17), wherein the charcoal is discharged through the discharge feeder (18), which operates through the power pack assembly (4) provided at discharge gate of the reactor (50), wherein the discharge feeder (18) maintains sealing of the reactor (50) to avoid any ingress of air and leakage of volatile gases, wherein the charcoal discharged from reactor (50) falls on the discharge feeder (18) through a discharge chute (18a), and wherein the discharge feeder (18) pushes the discharged charcoal to either side of the discharge feeder (18).
  12. 12. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a cyclone separator (21) that is connected to outlet of the cooling segment (17) and the discharge feeder (18) to separate dust, mist and solid particles from volatile gases that are generated in the waste conversion system (60), wherein the dust, mist and solid particles are pushed based on their respective masses to outer edges of the cyclone separator (21) due to centrifugal force and any incoming volatile gas is forced to adopt a fast-revolving spiral movement, which causes the separation of the dust, mist and solid particles from the volatile gases.
  13. 13. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 11, further comprising: a set of burners (16) installed below the outer stationary shell (11) of the reactor (50) to provide required heat energy for the conversion process in the reactor (50) that uses the volatile gas as a fuel in the burners (16); and a centrifugal volatile gas blower (15a) that is positioned in line from the cyclone separator (21) to regulate the flow of the volatile gas towards the burners (16); and a centrifugal air blower (15b) that is positioned adjacent to the burners (16) to supply required amount of air for complete and efficient combustion of volatile gas in the burners (16).
  14. 14. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a flue gas blower (15c) that transfers the flue gases towards the chimney (24), wherein the flue gases are generated after combustion and travels across the reactor (50) via space between the outer stationary shell (11) and the rotary inner shell (10), and wherein the flue gas blower (15c) maintains pressure within combustion section of the reactor (50) and draws the flue gases to escape via the chimney (24).
  15. 15. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 11, further comprising: a cooling system (22) that is positioned to maintain sufficient flow and pressure inside the cooling segment (17); a specially designed moving joint (19) that comprises a fixed water inlet (19a) and outlet (19b) , which facilitates water connection through moving pipes (19c) that are attached with the rotating cooling segment (17), wherein the fixed water inlet (19a) and outlet (19b) are provided at discharge chute (18a) of the reactor (50) where cooling water is required to cool down the coal temperature and avoid any self-ignition.
  16. 16. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 11, further comprising thermocouple IR sensors (25) that are connected to the outer stationary shell (11) to measure the temperature of the rotary inner shell (10), and wherein the measurement is used as a reference to control the burner (16) and resulting temperature from the burner (16).
  17. 17. The waste conversion system (60) as claimed in claim 11, wherein process involved in the reactor (50) comprises the following steps: heating the reactor (50) using the external heat source (26); in response to generation of inflammable volatile gas after heating the rotary inner shell (10), switching off the external heat source (26) and switching ON the volatile gas line (16a), wherein the external heat source (26) is switched OFF automatically; setting operation of the external heat source (26) in standby mode and the external heat source (26) is switched ON only when volatile gas generation is low and the external heat source (26) is switched OFF after a definite temperature is generated from the burner (16) using the volatile gas line (16a); and controlling the ON and OFF operation of the external heat source (26) via the thermocouple IR sensors (25) that are installed adjacent to the burner (16) and the reactor (50), wherein the controlled operation makes the process self- sustainable in terms for fuel for heating and reduces reduce dependency upon external fuel to reduce cost.

Description

TECHNOLOGY TO CONVERT MUNICIPAL WASTE TO COAL TECHNICAL FIELD This invention relates to the conversion of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) into charcoal and, more particularly, to a system and associated method of processing such municipal waste into usable charcoal and volatile gas in an environmentally friendly manner. Charcoal can be used as coal in industrial establishment by replacing fossil fuel whereas the volatile gas shall be used in burners of system itself for heating of reactor and other accessories. This makes the system self- sustained and more economical for commercial use. Further by applying suitable technology, this volatile gas can be used in the production of hydrogen (H2) and dimethyl ether (DME) to make it more economical and eco-friendlier. BACKGROUND Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced in prior art. Municipal solid waste is commonly incinerated in a combustion process at high temperatures such as 900 Deg Celsius. In this incarnation process solid waste directly fetches to the combustor in oxygen rich environment and the amount of heat generated from burning is utilized for generation of steam for further electricity generation. One potential problem with such incineration is emission. The incinerator may contain toxic and other unwanted pollutants dangerous to human health and the environment. Another problem with incarnating municipal solid waste is that the resultant ash must be sent to a particular type of landfill subject to restrictive environmental regulations. In case if it is dumped at landfill site, then it has very adverse effect over the environment, soil, and underground water. Therefore, there is a need in the industry for a process of treating municipal solid waste in an environmentally friendly manner which uses all the residual by product of the process. There is also a need for a process of treating municipal solid waste in an environmentally friendly manner which can generate electricity. SUMMARY The following presents a simplified summary of the subject matter in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of subject matter embodiments. This summary is not an extensive overview of the subject matter. It is not intended to identify key/critical elements of the embodiments or to delineate the scope of the subject matter. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of the subject matter in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later. A waste conversion system disclosed here addresses the above-mentioned need a process of treating municipal solid waste in an environmentally friendly manner which uses all the residual by product of the process. The waste conversion system disclosed here comprises a hopper, a coarse feeder, a weigh feeder, a reactor, and a cooling segment. The hopper stores the segregated municipal solid waste MSW as buffer feed stock for a reactor, where the hopper provides a constant feed of the MSW to the reactor for continuous operation of the reactor. The coarse feeder is connected to the hopper, where the coarse feeder feeds definite amount of MSW into the reactor. The weigh feeder is connected to the coarse feeder to receive the MSW, where the weigh feeder pushes the MSW feed into the reactor. The weigh feeder measures weight of the MSW that is fed into the reactor. The reactor is configured to receive the MSW via a set of hydraulic pushers and heats the segregated MSW to a predefined temperature in an oxygen deficient space, which causes the MSW to lose moisture and changes phase of the MSW to charcoal. The cooling segment receives the charcoal from the reactor and cools down the charcoal to avoid auto ignition. In an embodiment, the coarse feeder is connected to an exit gate of the hopper, and is operated using a hydraulic pusher, where the coarse feeder feeds a predefined quantity of MSW from the hopper via the hydraulic pusher. The feed of the MSW is controllable with the number of operation cycle of coarse feeder through a logic control. In an embodiment, the coarse feeder pushes the MSW forward and the MSW falls into the weigh feeder, and the weigh feeder comprises the hydraulic pusher to push the MSW feed into the reactor. The weigh feeder measures weight of the MSW entering inside the reactor by means of load cells equipped at the weigh feeder, which provides feedback to plant PLC programmable logic control system to control the process. In an embodiment, the hydraulic pusher is positioned in the coarse feeder and the weigh feeder, where the hydraulic pusher comprises feeder plates. The hydraulic pusher consists of a piston rod which moves back and forth using a power pack assembly, where the coarse feeder and the weigh feeder are op