Process for treating oil shale

Patent · Tue Feb 17 04:00:00 EST 1976

OSTI ID:6748875

Reed, Jr, T G

A new economical oil shale retorting process developed by T.G. Reed, Jr., is mechanically sound, produces a high yield of oil and salable high-Btu gas, is sufficiently efficient in regard to heat consumption to require little other fuel other than the char resulting from retorting, and requires a relatively small amount of water since the oil shale occurs in arid areas. The process produces a crude shale oil and a high-Btu gas by retorting crushed oil shale admixed with a small quantity of crushed coal in an indirectly heated, horizontal rotary calciner equipped with mechanical seals to contain the vapors produced and a condensing system to recover the oil vapors. Preheated (300/sup 0/F) crushed shale is continuously introduced to the retort where it is further heated to 900/sup 0/F and held at this temperature for about 15 min. The shale is then continuously discharged into a hopper sized to permit a residence time of about 15 min, during which time residual vapors are swept out with a small quantity of superheated steam. The vapors from the retort and the soaking hopper are passed to a system of air-cooled condensors where the shale oil and water are condensed and separated from the gas, which is then suitable for compression and drying. The oil-free shale, containing the char produced during retorting, is fed to a furnace where it is burned to produce the heat for retorting and preheating the shale. The coal must be added to provide additional heat since the char by itself is insufficient to provide all the heat required.

• Assignee: GSA; ERA-03-052076; EDB-78-107426
• Patent Number(s): US 3939057
• OSTI ID: 6748875
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

04 OIL SHALES AND TAR SANDS
040402* -- Oil Shales & Tar Sands-- Surface Methods
BITUMINOUS MATERIALS
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
COAL
COMMINUTION
CRUSHING
DISPERSIONS
ENERGY SOURCES
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
HIGH BTU GAS
HIGH TEMPERATURE
MINERAL OILS
MIXTURES
MOTION
OIL SHALES
OILS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OTHER ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PRODUCTION
RETORTING
ROTATION
SHALE OIL
SYNTHETIC FUELS
SYNTHETIC PETROLEUM