Processing quarantined materials

A method for converting a feed material to a plurality of products in a continuous converter including a reaction chamber, an inlet for supplying the feed material to an upstream end of the reaction chamber, an assembly for moving the feed material through the reaction chamber from the upstream end towards a downstream end of the reaction chamber, and a plurality of outlets for discharging the products from the reaction chamber, the method including the steps of:

• (a) supplying the feed material to the upstream end of the reaction chamber via the inlet, the feed material comprising quarantined materials and biomass, the quarantined materials comprising between 25 wt % and 50 wt % of the total mass of the quarantined materials and the biomass;
• (b) moving the feed material through the reaction chamber from the upstream end to the downstream end and exposing the feed material within the reaction chamber to a time-temperature profile such that the feed material is heated from 200° C. to 600° C. over a period of 5-20 minutes which destroys biosecurity hazards in the feed material and dries and pyrolyses organic material in the feed material and releases water vapour and a volatile products gas phase from the feed material as the feed material moves through the reaction chamber;
• (c) moving the water vapour and the volatile products gas phase produced in step (b) through the reaction chamber in a direction counter to that of the feed material so that at least a part of the water vapour and condensable components of the volatile products gas phase condense in cooler upstream sections of the reaction chamber and form liquid water and liquid oil, at least the liquid oil being carried forward in the reaction chamber by the feed material to higher temperature regions of the reaction chamber and being progressively volatilised and cracked to a non-condensable gas;
• (d) discharging from the reaction chamber (i) a gas product via a gas product outlet and (ii) a dried and pyrolysed solid carbon-containing product from a solid product outlet;
• and
• (e) condensing water vapour from the gas product outside the chamber and forming a liquid water product.