Method and system for hot de-oiling and hot briquetting

Abstract

A system for hot de-oiling and hot briquetting material wherein the material is heated to burn off or vaporize foreign substances and is then transported to a briquetting machine for forming of the material into briquets. The improvements of the invention relate to furnace constructions and to methods of operation for heating the material. The furnace constructions comprise a combustion zone for the material being fed into the system. The material is introduced in two parts comprising coarser material introduced at an upper level and fines and air introduced at a lower level with combustion gases from the lower level being fed upwardly for contact with the coarser material. An outlet is defined by the constructions and means are provided for moving the materials within the furnace to the outlet and for delivering the materials to briquetting equipment.

That which is claimed is: 
     
       1. In a system for heating material formed of a mass of small, individual metallic pieces carrying foreign substances at least part of which are combustible whereby the burning of said substances assists in the heating of the material, and for forming the hot metallic pieces into briquets, the improvement comprising a furnace construction for heating the material, said furnace construction including a combustion zone, at least one inlet opening adjacent the combustion zone, means for feeding a portion of said material carrying said substances through said inlet opening for movement of the material directly into the combustion zone, a second inlet opening located in an upstream position relative to said first inlet opening, and means for feeding a separate portion of said material into said second inlet opening, a first outlet defined by the furnace, means for moving the material fed through said inlet openings across said combustion zone towards said first outlet with the material fed through said second inlet moving past said first inlet, and a second outlet defined by said furnace upstream of said second inlet opening, the gases resulting from said combustion passing out through the material fed through said second inlet opening and out of said furnace through said second outlet, and wherein hot pieces of material previously in said combustion zone serve to ignite material newly introduced into the combustion zone, a briquetting machine, and including means connected to said construction for delivering said metallic pieces from said first outlet directly to said briquetting machine for thereby forming briquets made up of large numbers of said pieces. 
     
     
       2. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first outlet is defined adjacent the bottom of said combustion zone, said material dropping downwardly into said first outlet after being heated in the combustion zone. 
     
     
       3. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said combustion zone is located within a rotating cylinder, a pipe forming said first inlet opening and communicating with said cylinder for introducing a portion of said material directly into the combustion zone, said second outlet comprising a stack, said second inlet opening being formed in said stack for introducing said separate portion of material into said stack whereby gases resulting from said combustion filter through the additional material as they are exhausted from the construction. 
     
     
       4. A construction in accordance with claim 3 wherein said cylinder is inclined with respect to the horizontal and wherein said pipe for introducing material into the cylinder carries a high pressure air stream which entrains the material for passage into the cylinder. 
     
     
       5. A construction in accordance with claim 1 including a separator for handling said material whereby coarser pieces of material are separated from finer pieces of material, said finer pieces being introduced into said first inlet opening adjacent the combustion zone, said second inlet opening providing for the introduction of said coarser pieces, and wherein the combustion gases pass from said combustion zone in contact with said coarser pieces prior to passage of the combustion gases through said second outlet. 
     
     
       6. A method for heating a mass of small, individual metallic pieces in a furnace construction wherein the pieces carry foreign substances at least part of which are combustible whereby the burning of said substances assists in the heating of the pieces, the improvement comprising the steps of continuously introducing a portion of said pieces through first furnace inlet means directly into a combustion zone adjacent the inlet means whereby the combustible substances in the material are ignited by hot pieces previously introduced in the combustion zone, providing a second furnace inlet means upstream of said first inlet means, introducing a separate portion of said pieces into said second inlet means, providing a first outlet for said pieces and progressively moving the pieces introduced toward said outlet, providing a second outlet for the combustion gases at a position upstream of said second inlet means, said second outlet being located whereby the combustion gases move through and in contact with the pieces introduced through said second inlet means as the gases progress toward said second outlet, providing a briquetting machine in direct association with said first outlet, delivering hot pieces to said briquetting machine, and forming said hot pieces into briquets made up of a plurality of such pieces. 
     
     
       7. A method in accordance with claim 6 including the steps of providing a separator for said material and separating coarser pieces of material from finer pieces of material, introducing said finer pieces into said first inlet means adjacent the combustion zone, introducing said coarser pieces into said second inlet means whereby the combustion gases pass from said combustion zone in contact with said coarser pieces prior to passage of the combustion gases through said second outlet. 
     
     
       8. A method in accordance with claim 6 wherein air is introduced into the combustion zone along with said material, the amount of air introduced being controlled to provide approximately the amount necessary to support combustion whereby oxidizing conditions in the area of the combustion zone are minimal. .Iadd. 9. An apparatus for reclaiming metal from adulterated metal chips by removing surface adhering adulterants from the chips, the apparatus comprising: a. an inclined tumbler barrel rotatably mounted to a frame;   b. means for rotatably driving the barrel;   c. heating means for heating and injecting gas into the lower end of the barrel;   d. exit means at the lower end of the barrel for removing hot chips from the barrel; and   e. means in addition to and separation from said heating means for inserting an oxidizing agent into the barrel at a position intermediate its ends wherein adulterated chips may be inserted in the upper end of the barrel while being drivingly rotated, hot gas may be passed from the lower end of the barrel to and out the higher end, and hot metal chips relatively free of surface adhering adulterants may be withdrawn through the exit means. .Iaddend..Iadd. 10. An apparatus according to claim 9 wherein said oxidizing agent inserting means comprises a tube entirely separate from any burner tube extending into one end of the barrel, the tube having an outlet orifice within the barrel and having means external to the barrel for connection solely to a supply of said oxidizing agent. .Iaddend.