Material remediation in multi-function heating drum

摘要

Material remediation apparatus includes a remediation drum through which materials, such as soil contaminated with hydrocarbons, are advanced from a feed end to a discharge end of the drum. A tube extending concentrically from the discharge end of the drum into the drum forms a combustion chamber. Materials being decontaminated advance through an annular space between the tube and the drum. The tube is axially first of converging and then of diverging shape, as viewed from the discharge end of the drum. A turbo burner injects combustible gases into the tube which are burned within the diverging shape of the tube. A portion of the burned gases reflow from the outlet of tube through the annular space to the discharge end of the drum. In a zone of the drum occupied by the tube materials are heated by conduction and radiation of energy passing through the wall of the tube as well as by convective heating from the reflow gases. Hot gases are exhausted from the drum at the feed end thereof. However, hydrocarbons volatilized by the heating process in the annular space first pass with the reflow gases through the combustion chamber and are burned before being exhausted. The exhaust gases are filtered in a baghouse filter. Materials from which hydrocarbons have been extracted by volatilization in the annular space are cooled and reconstituted by water injection. Steam generated as a result of the water injection is filtered in a separate filter section of the baghouse filter.