APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR VITRIFICATION OF HAZARDOUS WASTE

摘要

Apparatus (10) and a method for vitrifying hazardous waste includes a melting vessel (12) into which hazardous waste is introduced for heating by a heater (38), and a metallic containment vessel (46) of the apparatus receives the melting vessel so as to receive and contain any material that exits the melting vessel upon failure. Failure of the melting vessel (12) is detected by a sensor (43). A stirrer (39) mixes the material (18) during the heating. The containment vessel (46) is preferably hermetically scaled around the melting vessel (12) to contain gases and any melted material received from the failed melting vessel (12). The sensing of the failure is by a pressure change in the hermetically sealed chamber (58) or sensing of the presence of material received by the containment vessel (45) from the failed melting vessel (12) by electrical circuit type detection.