Clay calcining plant

Clay calcination plant (10) for the activation of clay as a feed material, which clay has a significant proportion of at least 40% of thermally activatable layered silicates in the form of kaolinite, illite and/or montmorillonite,

• comprising a directly heated rotary kiln (20), which comprises a kiln inlet (21) and a kiln outlet (22), wherein the rotary kiln (20) is configured to convey the feed material as a material flow from the kiln inlet (21) to the kiln outlet (22) and to thermally treat it while conveying it,
• wherein a gas infeed (31) is provided at the kiln outlet (22) and a gas outfeed (32) is provided at the kiln inlet (21), and
• wherein the clay calcination plant is configured to guide calcination gas from the gas infeed (31) through the rotary kiln (20) to the gas outfeed (32), characterized
• in that the gas infeed (31) of the rotary kiln (20) is fluidically connected to a mixing chamber (40) for generating a temperature-homogeneous flow of calcination gas,
• in that the mixing chamber (40) has a cylindrical-like shape,
• in that a burner (42) for generating hot flue gas (46) from combustion gas as an energy source and combustion air is provided on a face side (41) of the mixing chamber (40),
• in that the mixing chamber (40) has a process gas infeed (45) for the infeed of warm process gas,
• in that the clay calcination plant is configured to supply warm process gas through the process gas infeed (45) into the mixing chamber (40),
• in that the process gas infeed (45), the burner (42) and the mixing chamber (40) are configured to generate a spiral-like flow (47) of the warm process gas, at least in the region of the process gas infeed (45), in order to generate the hot flue gas (46) flowing axially into the mixing chamber (40) by means of the burner, in order to generate the temperature-homogeneous flow of calcination gas.