| 摘要 |
An apparatus and method for heating and decomposing organic and inorganic household, industrial and commercial wastes to quickly and economically decrease their volume without thereby polluting the air. The device comprises a housing with a removable cover for inserting refuse into the housing. With the cover in place the housing serves as a sealed treatment chamber for the waste. Heating of the wastes is accomplished by an ignition and burner system within the housing which combines hydrogen and oxygen gases and applies the heat generated by their combustion directly to the waste material. The hydrogen and oxygen gases are manufactured by an electrolytic generator comprising cells such as the Knowles cell containing a suitable alkali electrolyte such as potassium hydroxide. The amount of oxygen fed to the burner from the electrolytic generator is limited so that all oxygen is combined with the hydrogen to produce heat, and no excess oxygen is available for oxidizing the waste material. A thermostatic valve responsive to a temperature sensor inside the housing continually limits the oxygen supply unless the housing temperature drops below a predetermined temperature, in which case the oxygen is increased until the temperature is restored. Conversely, more hydrogen is supplied to the burner than is necessary to combine with the oxygen in combustion, and the excess hydrogen reduces rather than oxidizes the waste material, resulting in the formation of hydrocarbon gases and carbon rather than carbon dioxide and ashes. The hydrocarbon gases, together with the water vapor which results from the combustion of hydrogen and oxygen and from the decomposition of the waste material, are collected in the sealed housing, and condensed to avoid polluting the air. Those hydrocarbons which do not condense may be burned to provide additional heat for decomposing the waste material. The condensed gases are fed into the electrolytic generator where the water is used to regenerate the hydrogen and oxygen gases for the burner system. The condensed hydrocarbons may be periodically removed and used for commercial purposes if the process is practiced on an industrial scale, or alternatively they can be disposed of as sewage. The housing includes a grating for holding the waste material above the burner, and a base portion located below the grating for collecting any solid residues which are not vaporized in the heating process and drop through the grating into the base portion. These solid materials are periodically removed from the system and either used for commercial purposes or disposed of.
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