Catalytic method
OwnerWilliam Charles Pfefferleinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The method of combusting lean fuel-air mixtures comprising the steps of: a. obtaining an admixture of fuel and air, said admixture having an adiabatic flame above about 900.degree. Kelvin; b. passing least a portion of said admixture into contact with one or more mesolith combustion catalysts operating at a temperature below the adiabatic flame temperature of said admixture thereby producing reaction products of incomplete combustion; and c. passing said reaction products to a thermal reaction chamber; thereby igniting and stabilizing combustion in said thermal reaction chamber.
Claims5
A high turndown ratio thermal gas phase combustion system comprising:
- a. a thermal reaction chamber, having a fluid inlet and an outlet:
- b. catalyst means for continuously stabilizing lean combustion in said chamber, said catalyst means being mounted in the fluid inlet;
- c. means for passing a lean admixture of fuel and air into contact with said catalyst means to produce a reacted admixture, said reacted admixture having a temperature at least 100.degree. Kelvin below the adiabatic temperature of said lean admixture of fuel and air, and
- d. means for passing said reacted admixture to said thermal reaction chamber for stable combustion;
- said catalyst means being a channeled catalyst body, said channels having a flow path through which said lean admixture of fuel and air pass, said channels having a length no more than one-half the length for full boundary layer build-up in each channel up to a maximum length of 6 mm.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.