Abstract: Manufacturing fuel gases by pyrolyzing municipal refuse is an attractive technology. A laboratory - scale externally heated rotary kiln was designed and developed, and a series of the pyrolysis experiments were done with paper, paper board, waste plastic(including PVC plastic and PE plastic) , rubber, vegetable, wood cloth and orange husk were selected as the sample species of the main organic groups of municipal refuse. The yield and the heating value of the fuel gas were measured; The effects of moisture and size of raw materials on pyrolysis were studied by taking wood chips as an example and the effects of the heating methods on pyrolysis gas yield and the variations of gas composition and heating value during pyrolysis were discussed. At last, the efficiency of pyrolysis, the conversion fraction of fuel gas and gas yield were defined and the results of the experiments were analyzed in terms of such definitions.