Importance

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Abstract

The invention is concerned with a method of biologically decomposing organic material by the action of microorganisms thereon in the presence of an oxygen-gas containing medium, in which method the material is charged to the top of a vessel and caused to sink downwardly therethrough while passing one or more zones during continuous decomposition of the material and discharge of the treated material at the bottom of said vessel, the oxygen-gas medium being charged to the bottom of the vessel and caused to move upwardly therethrough against the pressure of the overlying material, wherein the sinking movement of said material is effected by causing one or more rotatable screws to cut and finely-divide the treated material and to transport said cut and treated material to a discharge location in the lower part of the vessel; and wherein the oxygen-gas containing medium is introduced through gas-supply means in the bottom part of the vessel and caused to pass through a layer of particulate material and through a layer comprising a finely divided part of the treated organic material in a manner such that the said medium is uniformly distributed over the whole cross sectional area of the vessel prior to it being passed into the material undergoing said biological decomposition.

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First Claim