what is an incinerator

An incinerator is a container or plant designed for burning refuse or hazardous materials at high temperatures to destroy contaminants. It is a heat treatment process that involves the combustion of organic substances contained within the waste materials. Modern incinerators include pollution mitigation equipment such as flue gas cleaning, fabric filters, scrubbers, and electrostatic precipitators to remove fly ash and gaseous contaminants. There are various types of incinerator plant designs, including moving grate, fixed grate, rotary-kiln, and fluidised bed. The older and simpler kind of incinerator was a brick-lined cell with a fixed metal grate over a lower ash pit, with one opening in the top or side for loading and another opening in the side for removing incombustible solids called clinkers. Small-scale incinerators exist for special purposes, such as mobile small-scale incinerators that are aimed for hygienically safe destruction of medical waste in developing countries. Incinerator plants usually include facilities for unloading and storing refuse for short periods to permit uniform burning.