Solid waste comminutor

Abstract

A solid waste material comminuting system having a an electric motor for providing rotary motion, a pair of cutter stacks with cutter elements of one stack interleaved with cutter elements of the other, and gear means to transmit the rotary motion of the electric motor to counter-rotate cutter elements of one stack with cutter elements of the other. Each of the cutter stacks comprise comprises a central shaft journaled for rotation and a seal-bearing assembly/module at each end of the central shafts. Each bearing assembly/module comprises an end housing, and a pair of insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing elements/assemblies mountable in each of said end housings. One seal-bearing element/assembly has a thru-hole for journaling a first shaft for rotation and a second seal-bearing element/assembly has a thru-hole for journaling a second shaft for rotation.

1. Apparatus for comminuting solid waste material comprising:
 drive means for providing rotary motion, a pair of cutter stacks with cutter elements of one stack interleaved with cutter elements of the other, and gear means to transmit the rotary motion of said drive means into counter-rotation of cutter elements of one stack with cutter elements of the other, each of said cutter stacks comprising a central shaft journaled for rotation proximate each end, a seal-bearing assembly at each end comprising an end housing, a pair of insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing elements mountable in each of said end housings, one seal-bearing element having a thru-hole for journaling a first shaft for rotation and a second seal-bearing element having a thru-hole for journaling a second shaft for rotation and a seal for each of said first and second seal-bearing elements to provide fluid isolation between said seal-bearing element and said end housing.  
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein each of said pre-assembled seal-bearing elements comprises a seal cartridge, a spring mounted on the seal cartridge, a dynamic race biased by said spring, a bearing cartridge, a static race mounted on said bearing cartridge, a bearing of said seal-bearing element being mounted in said bearing element  cartridge and means to secure said bearing in said bearing cartridge and to urge said static race into contact with said dynamic race. 
     
     
       3. The apparatus of  claim 2  further comprising  wherein a seal of said seal-bearing element comprises means to fluid  fluidly isolate said bearing from said static race. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus of  claim 2  further comprising spring means to bias said bearing cartridge in said end housing. 
     
     
       5. The apparatus of  claim 2 , further comprising a spring to bias said static race and provide axial float for said static and dynamic races. 
     
     
       6. The apparatus of  claim 1  further comprising a labyrinth positioned on top of both seal-bearing elements, said labyrinth insertable onto said end housing and having a flange conforming in shape to a portion of each end housing proximate to said cutter stacks. 
     
     
       7. The apparatus of  claim 1  further comprising an inspection port in said gear means. 
     
     
       8. The apparatus of  claim 1  further comprising a labyrinth mountable on said end housing and protruding in part into the enfluent  effluent stream, said labyrinth having a bearing surface that causes said labyrinth to elastically deform and compensate for variations in cutter stack height. 
     
     
       9. The apparatus of  claim 1  further comprising a housing for said gear means, and means to mount one of said end housings to said housing for said gear means. 
     
     
       10. The apparatus of  claim 1  further comprising a shaft seal disposed on each central shaft to isolate ends of said shafts from said seal-bearing assembly, each of said shaft seals positioned in said housing. 
     
     
       11. A solid waste material comminuting system comprising:
 an electric motor for providing rotary motion, a pair of cutter stacks with cuter elements of one stack interleaved with cutter elements of the other, and gear means to transmit the rotary motion of said electric motor to counter-rotate cutter elements of one stack with cutter elements of the other, each of said cutter stacks comprising a central shaft journaled for rotation, a seal-bearing module at each end of the central shafts, each seal-bearing module comprising an end housing, and a pair of insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing assemblies mountable in each of said end housings, one seal-bearing assembly having a thru-hole for journaling a first shaft for rotation and a second seal-bearing assembly having a thru-hole for journaling a second shaft for rotation and a seal for each of said seal-bearing assemblies to isolate it from said end housing.  
 
     
     
       12. The apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein each of said pre-assembled seal-bearing assemblies comprises a seal cartridge, a spring mounted on the seal cartilage, a dynamic race biased by said spring, a bearing cartridge, a static race mounted on said bearing cartridge, a bearing of said seal-bearing assembly being mounted in said bearing cartridge and means to secure said bearing in said bearing assembly cartridge. 
     
     
       13. The apparatus of  claim 12  further comprising  wherein a seal of said seal-bearing assembly comprises means to fluid  fluidly isolate said bearing from said static race. 
     
     
       14. The apparatus of  claim 12  further comprising spring means to bias said bearing cartridge in said end housing. 
     
     
       15. The apparatus of  claim 12 , further comprising a spring to bias said static race and provide axial float for said static and dynamic races. 
     
     
       16. The apparatus of  claim 11  further comprising a labyrinth positioned on top of both seal-bearing assemblies to provide a wear interface between said seal-bearing assemblies and the enfluent  effluent flow, said labyrinth conforming to a portion of each end housing to provide a removable mounting surface. 
     
     
       17. The apparatus of  claim 11  further comprising an inspection port in said gear means. 
     
     
       18. The apparatus of  claim 11  further comprising seal means carried by each of said shafts and positioned in each of said thru-holes to provide fluid isolation for the ends of each of said shafts. 
     
     
       19. The apparatus of  claim 11  further comprising a housing for said gear means, and means to mount one of said end housings to said housing for said gear means. 
     
     
       20. The apparatus of  claim 11  further comprising a shaft seal disposed on each central shaft to isolate ends of said shafts from said seals seal-bearing module, each of said shaft seals positioned in said housing. 
     
     
       21. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said pre-assembled seal-bearing elements each include a seal housing. 
     
     
       22. The apparatus of  claim 21 , further comprising a dynamic race and a static race, wherein said dynamic race and said static race are at least partially retained by a flange of said seal housing. 
     
     
       23. The apparatus of  claim 21 , wherein each of said seal housings defines a thru-hole for journaling said first and second shafts respectively. 
     
     
       24. The system of  claim 11 , wherein said pre-assembled seal-bearing assemblies each include a bearing housing and a seal housing. 
     
     
       25. The system of  claim 24 , wherein said bearing housing is configured to receive a bearing structure of said pre-assembled seal-bearing assembly. 
     
     
       26. The system of  claim 25 , wherein said bearing structure is fixedly retained in said bearing housing. 
     
     
       27. The system of  claim 11 , wherein said pre-assembled seal-bearing assemblies each include a seal housing. 
     
     
       28. The system of  claim 27 , further comprising a dynamic race and a static race, wherein said dynamic race and said static race are at least partially retained by a flange of said seal housing. 
     
     
       29. The system of  claim 27 , wherein each of said seal housings defines a thru-hole for journaling said first and second shafts respectively. 
     
     
       30. Apparatus for comminuting solid waste material comprising:
   drive means for providing rotary motion, a pair of cutter stacks with cutter elements of one stack interleaved with cutter elements of the other, and gear means to transmit the rotary motion of said drive means into counter-rotation of cutter elements of one stack with cutter elements of the other, each of said cutter stacks comprising a central shaft journaled for rotation proximate each end, a seal-bearing assembly at each end comprising an end housing, a pair of insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing elements mountable in each of said end housings, one seal-bearing element having a thru-hole for journaling a first shaft for rotation and a second seal-bearing element having a thru-hole for journaling a second shaft for rotation and a seal for each of said first and second seal-bearing elements to provide fluid isolation between said seal-bearing element and said housing, and further comprising a housing for said gear means, and means to mount one of said end housings to said housing for said gear means.     
     
     
       31. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said pre-assembled seal-bearing elements each include a bearing housing and a seal housing. 
     
     
       32. The apparatus of  claim 31 , wherein said bearing housing is configured to receive a bearing structure of said pre-assembled seal-bearing element. 
     
     
       33. The apparatus of  claim 32 , wherein said bearing structure is fixedly retained in said bearing housing. 
     
     
       34. Apparatus for comminuting solid waste material comprising:
   drive means for providing rotary motion, a pair of cutter stacks with cutter elements of one stack interleaved with cutter elements of the other, and gear means to transmit the rotary motion of said drive means into counter-rotation of cutter elements of one stack with cutter elements of the other, each of said cutter stacks comprising a central shaft journaled for rotation proximate each end, a seal-bearing assembly at each end comprising an end hosing, a pair of insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing elements mountable in each of said end housings, one seal-bearing element having a thru-hole for journaling a first shaft for rotation and a second seal-bearing element having a thru-hole for journaling a second shaft for rotation and a seal for each of said first and second seal-bearing elements to provide fluid isolation between said seal-bearing element and said housing, said insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing elements each comprising a seal-bearing housing and a seal housing.     
     
     
       35. The apparatus of  claim 34 , wherein said bearing housing is configured to receive a bearing structure of said pre-assembled seal-bearing element. 
     
     
       36. The apparatus of  claim 35 , wherein said bearing structure is fixedly retained in said bearing housing. 
     
     
       37. The apparatus of  claim 34 , further comprising a dynamic race and a static race, wherein said dynamic race and said static race are at least partially retained by a flange of said seal housing. 
     
     
       38. The apparatus of  claim 34 , wherein each of said seal housings defines a thru-hole for journaling said first and second shafts respectively. 
     
     
       39. A solid waste material comminuting system comprising:
   an electric motor for providing rotary motion, a pair of cutter stacks with cutter elements of one stack interleaved with cutter elements of the other, and gear means to transmit the rotary motion of said electric motor to counter-rotate cutter elements of one stack with cutter elements of the other, each of said cutter stacks comprising a central shaft journaled for rotation, a seal-bearing module at each end of the central shafts, each seal-bearing module comprising an end housing, and a pair of insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing assemblies mountable in each of said end housings, one seal-bearing assembly having a thru-hole for journaling a first shaft for rotation and a second seal-bearing assembly having a thru-hole for journaling a second shaft for rotation and a seal for each of said seal-bearing assemblies to isolate it from said end housing, said insertable pre-assembled seal-bearing assemblies each comprising a seal-bearing housing and a seal housing.     
     
     
       40. The apparatus of  claim 39 , wherein said bearing housing is configured to receive a bearing structure of said pre-assembled seal-bearing assembly. 
     
     
       41. The apparatus of  claim 40 , wherein said bearing structure is fixedly retained in said bearing housing. 
     
     
       42. The apparatus of  claim 39 , further comprising a dynamic race and a static race, wherein said dynamic race and said static race are at least partially retained by a flange of said seal housing. 
     
     
       43. The apparatus of  claim 39 , wherein said seal housing defines the thru-hole for journaling said first and second shafts.