Device For Separating Solid Or Liquid Particles From A Gaseous Medium

Abstract

A device is disclosed for decomposing particulate agricultural waste products such as peanut hulls. The device comprises an elongate cylinder having first end wall means at one end thereof and second end wall means at the opposite end thereof whereby to define a chamber. Inlet means are provided for forcibly introducing the particulate waste product and combustion supporting gas tangentially into the chamber adjacent the first end wall means and axially toward the second end wall means to form an outer helical flow layer adjacent the inner surface of the cylinder which reacts with the second end wall means to reverse axial direction and form a second helical flow layer within the confines of the outer layer. Exhaust conduit means extend through the first end wall means and present a discharge mouth disposed concentrically within the chamber and positioned beyond the inlet means toward the second end wall means. Means are further provided for heating the chamber sufficiently to at least partially decompose the waste products. Flow control means are disposed adjacent the second wall of the chamber to trap partially decomposed waste products adjacent the second end while constraining the gas to reverse its flow and form a compressible vortex from the flow control means to the discharge mouth of the exhaust conduit.