Reclaiming and utilizing discarded and newly formed coke breeze, coal fines, and blast furnace revert materials, and related methods

• US 5,487,764 A
• Filed: 12/13/1994
• Issued: 01/30/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Headwaters Incorporated (Seven Group Holdings Limited)
• Original Assignee: Covol Technologies, Inc. (Seven Group Holdings Limited)
• Inventors: Ford, George W. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Howard, Jacqueline V.
• Application Number:
  US08/354,693
• Time in Patent Office: 413 Days
• Field of Search: 44/551, 44/553, 44/591, 44/592, 44/607, 44/634
• US Class Current: 44/553
• CPC Class Codes: B29B 9/08 by agglomerating smaller particles
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 48/00 Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor extrusion blow-moulding B29C49/04
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 48/04 Particle-shaped making granules B29B9/00
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 5/04 Raw material of mineral origin to be used; Pretreatment thereof pretreatment of fuels of non-mineral origin C10L5/40
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 5/14 with organic binders
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 5/40 essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin
• CPC Class Codes: C21B 13/00 Making spongy iron or liquid steel, by direct processes
• CPC Class Codes: C21B 13/0066 Preliminary conditioning of the solid carbonaceous reductant
• CPC Class Codes: C21B 5/007 Conditions of the cokes or characterised by the cokes used
• CPC Class Codes: C21C 5/527 Charging of the electric furnace
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 1/24 Binding; Briquetting ; Granulating
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 1/244 organic
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 7/02 Working-up flue dust
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 50/30 Fuel from waste, e.g. synthetic alcohol or diesel
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 10/20 Recycling

Abstract

A method and a solid fuel product, such as briquettes and pellets, comprising carbon fines, in the form of heretofore discardable coke breeze and/or coal fines and/or revert materials, bound together chemically into smaller pieces to substantially prevent degradation and which constitutes a source of high heat without creating significant pollution or smoke.

Claims

1. A method of forming a solid blast furnace fuel product which does not risk generation or release of a hazardous substance, comprising the steps of;

(a) creating a water lean well mixed mixture of coke breeze and/or coal fines and water to form free carboxy ions on the surface of the carbon particles;

(b) dissolving styrene polymer resin in a hygroscopic solvent;

(c) combining the dissolved styrene resin in the water and coke breeze and/or coal fines mixture and well mixing the combination, to react the surface with the mixture of hygroscopic solvent and styrene to form free carbon ions by exchange of the styrene polymer resin in the hygroscopic solvent for water;

(d) emulsifying polyvinyl acetate in water, adding the emulsion to the combination of set (c) and well mixing the resultant to react the polyvinyl acetate with the styrene resin;

(e) subdividing the resultant of step (d) into segments and applying pressure to each segment to create hard, non-degradable solid fuel objects.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the hygroscopic agent comprises methyl ethyl ketone.

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein the water of step (a) is on the order of thirty percent (30%) by weight.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein all of the mixing comprises mechanical mixing.

5. A method according to claim 1 wherein the dissolved styrene polymer resin produced by step (b) is combined in an amount on the order of seven percent (7%) by weight of the total combination in step (c).

6. A method according to claim 1 wherein the polyvinyl acetate emulsion produced by step (e) is added in an amount on the order of twelve percent (12%) by weight of the total resultant of step (e).

7. A method according to claim 1 wherein carbon particles in the form of coke breeze and/or coke fines are bonded together by polymerization of the styrene polymer.

8. A method according to claim 7 wherein the polymerization comprises molecular attachment of the styrene polymer to carbon ions.

9. A method according to claim 7 wherein the hygroscopic agent acts as a catalyst to remove and allow the styrene polymer to react with polyvinyl acetate.

10. A method according to claim 1 wherein the pressure of step (f) is on the order of about 3,000 psig.

11. A method of forming solid fuel objects comprising the steps of blending a solution of a hygroscopic solution and styrene with an aqueous composition comprising coke breeze and/or coal fines and reacting the styrene with free carbon ions to form a long chain polymer and subjecting quantities of the styrene and aqueous composition to high compressive force to create solid fuel objects.

12. A method of binding carbon particles in the form of coke breeze and/or coal fines together into fuel object for blast furnace utilization comprising the steps of creating available carbon ionic bonding sites at the carbon particles by application of a hygroscopic solvent to an aqueous composition comprising the carbon particles, bonding styrene polymer to the carbon ionic bonding site and reacting the aqueous composition and styrene polymer in segregated quantities at a high compressive force to create ionically bound non-degradable fuel objects.

13. A low pollution, high heat object found of discardable carbon particles comprising:

a primary body of compressed coke breeze and/or coal frees and/or revert material comprising a long chain polymer comprising polymeric binder chemically reacted to carbon attachment sites on the carbon particles which body does not emit more than negligible amount of pollutants or hazardous substances when the fuel body is oxidized in a blast furnace.

14. A low pollution, high heat fuel in the form of solid objects comprising a compressed quantity of coke breeze and/or coal fines and/or revert material comprising molecular carbon attachment sites ionically polymerized together against degradation by a long chain polymer compound comprising styrene, which fuel does not emit more than a negligible amount of pollutants or emissions or production of harmful substances when the object is oxidized in a blast furnace.

15. A method of producing a non-toxic non-hazardous solid briquette and/or pellet fuel from fine particles comprising carbon comprising the steps of:

(a) creating an aqueous mixture comprising carbon fines to hydrolyze the carbon thereby producing free carboxyl ions;

(b) treating the aqueous mixture with a hygroscopic solvent comprising a styrene polymer resin to attach the styrene polymer to free carbon ions and with an aqueous composition comprising polyvinyl acetate, the hygroscopic solvent functioning as a catalyst to allow the styrene to react to the polyvinyl acetate;

(c) applying pressure to quantities of the resultant from step (b) whereby polymerized briquettes and/or pellets are formed which do not degrade or destruct into pieces over time and which provide high heat, low pollution, and non-hazardous, nontoxic by-products when oxidized in a blast furnace.

16. A solid fuel object comprising the reaction product of

compressed combustible material comprising carbon selected from the group consisting of revert materials, coke breeze, and coal fines;

an anti-degradable binder interconnecting the compressed combustible material and comprising a mixture of acrylonitrile and homopolymer.

17. A method of binding carbon particles in the form of coke breeze and/or coal fines and/or revert material together into fuel objects for oxidation in a blast furnace comprising the steps of creating available carbon ionic bonding sites at the carbon particles in an aqueous composition comprising the carbon particles reacting a non-phenolic polymeric substance to the carbon ionic bonding sites in an environment free from materials from which hazardous substances are obtained and subjecting the aqueous composition and polymer in segregated quantifies to a relatively high compressive force to create ionically bound non-degradable fuel objects.

18. A low pollution, high heat fuel object for oxidation in a blast furnace formed of discardable carbon particles comprising:

a primary body of compressed coke breeze and/or coal fines and/or revert material comprising molecular carbon attachment sites polymerized together against blast furnace degradation by a long chain polymer free of phenolic material and isocyanate which object does not emit more than negligible amounts of pollutants when the fuel object is burned.

19. A low pollution, high heat fuel for oxidation in a blast furnace in the from of solid objects comprising a compressed quantity of coke breeze and/or coal fines and/or revert material comprising molecular carbon attachment sites ionically non-phenolically polymerized together against blast furnace degradation by a long chain polymer free of a substance from which cyanide is derived, which object does not emit more than negligible amount of pollutants when the object is oxidized in a blast furnace.

20. A method for manufacturing solid fuel shapes;

(a) mixing carbon particles with a sufficient amount of water to form a reactive surface on the carbon particles having free carboxy ions;

(b) reacting the reactive surface with a solution of resin dissolved in a hygroscopic solvent to free the ions on the surface of the carbon particles by exchange of the polymer for water which is adsorbed into the solvent,

(c) forming under compression the resultant of (b) into solid shape, and

(d) curing the solid shapes to form a long chain polymer reaction product of the carbon particles and the resin such that the solid fuel shapes that when combusted do not risk generation or release of hazardous substances.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the resin is chosen from the group consisting of styrene and acrylonitrile.

22. The method of claim 20 wherein the hygroscopic solvent is methyl-ethyl-ketone.

23. The method of claim 20 wherein the reactive surface is reacted with a solution of styrene resin and the hygroscopic solvent, and subsequently reacted with polyvinyl acetate emulsion.

24. Solid fuel shapes that when combusted do not risk generation or release of a hazardous substance and which comprise a long chain polymer, the shapes produced by the method comprising;

(a) mixing carbon particles with a sufficient amount of water to form a reactive surface on the carbon particles having free carboxy ions;

(b) reacting the reactive surface with a solution of resin dissolved in a hygroscopic solvent to free the ions on the surface of the carbon particle by exchange of the polymer for water which is adsorbed into the solvent,

(c) forming under compression the resultant of (b) into solid shape, and

(d) curing the solid shapes to form a long chain polymer reaction product of the carbon particles and the resin to form the solid fuel shapes.

25. The solid fuel shapes of claim 24 wherein the resin is chosen from the group consisting of styrene and acrylonitrile.

26. The solid fuel shapes of claim 24 wherein the hygroscopic solvent is methyl-ethyl-ketone.

27. The solid fuel shapes of claim 24 comprising the reaction product of carbon particles, styrene resin, and polyvinyl acetate.