An oil shale retort which was reported to have met with some success in Germany is the so-called "laminated retort". The information obtained was that this retort consisted of a series of rectangular cells about 48" wide x 36'high by 1" to 2" thick, so fitted together that crushed shale could be flowed by gravity through alternate cells while a heating medium, reported to be a liquid silicone, could be pumped through the other cells. The relatively thin layers of shale were reported to permit rapid and continuous retorting. The oil shale cells were equipped with baffles to agitate the shale as it flowed downward and vapor off-takes under these baffles permitted the oil vapors to escape from the retorting zone as rapidly as they were formed.