초록 ▼

An improved retort apparatus for recovering oil from crushed oil shale moved by gravity through a passageway of an elongated housing includes a control assembly connected adjacent the outlet end of the housing to control the rate of movement of the crushed oil shale through the passageway. A plurali

An improved retort apparatus for recovering oil from crushed oil shale moved by gravity through a passageway of an elongated housing includes a control assembly connected adjacent the outlet end of the housing to control the rate of movement of the crushed oil shale through the passageway. A plurality of heat exchangers are located in the housing for transferring heat in sequence to or from the crushed oil shale. The heat exchangers are spaced to define a drying zone, a preheating zone, a hydrocarbon recovery zone, and a waste heat recovery zone. A pump recirculating circuit is provided for passing waste heat recovered from the waste heat recovery zone to the preheating zone. An auxiliary heating assembly connected to the heat exchangers in the hydrocarbon recovery zone delivers sufficient heat to raise the temperature of the crushed oil shale moving through the hydrocarbon recovery zone to the critical temperature for separating hydrocarbons in vapor form therefrom. A separating device, including a condenser, is operatively connected to the hydrocarbon recovery zone to withdraw the mixture of hydrocarbon vapors and gases released from the moving and heated crushed oil shale and to condense and remove hydrocarbons from the mixture. Additionally, the retort apparatus includes a device operatively associated with the separating device for maintaining a predetermined operating pressure in the preheat zone and waste heat recovery zone to prevent separated hydrocarbon vapors from leaking to the atmosphere through either the inlet or outlet of the housing.

대표청구항 ▼

A retort apparatus for recovering hydrocarbons from oil shale comprising: a. an elongated housing, having a passage means end to end therethrough, inlet means to permit delivery of crushed oil shale into one end of the housing for movement along said passage means, and an outlet means in communicati

A retort apparatus for recovering hydrocarbons from oil shale comprising: a. an elongated housing, having a passage means end to end therethrough, inlet means to permit delivery of crushed oil shale into one end of the housing for movement along said passage means, and an outlet means in communication with the end of the passage means remote from the inlet means for removing the spent crushed oil shale from the passage means, b. a plurality of heat exchange means connected in said housing for heat exchange with the crushed oil shale moving through said passage means disposed serially between the inlet means and the outlet means to define in the passage means a dying zone, a preheat zone, a hydrocarbon recovery zone, and a waste heat recovery zone, c. circulating means connecting the respective one of said plurality of heat exchange means in the preheat zone with the respective one of said plurality of heat exchange means in the waste heat recovery zone for passing waste heat from said waste heat recovery zone to said preheat zone, d. auxiliary heating means connected to the one of said plurality of heat exchange means in said hydrocarbon recovery zone to raise the temperature of the crushed oil shale moving therethrough to the critical temperature for separating hydrocarbon vapors from said crushed oil shale, e. separating means connected in said housing for communication with said hydrocarbon recovery zone to withdraw and condense the hydrocarbon vapors released from the crushed oil shale moving through the passage means and to recover the same, f. means connected to the housing to control movement of crushed oil shale through said passage means, g. means for sensing the pressures in said passage means on opposite sides of said hydrocarbon recovery zone, h. means for adjusting the pressure in said hydrocarbon recovery zone in response to the sensed pressures and to a pressure greater than the pressures in the other zones, and i. means adjacent the outlet means for removing spent crushed oil shale discharged therefrom.