Producing flint glass using submerged combustion melting

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12428330-B2
Application number	US-202016788609-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 12, 2020
Priority date	Feb 12, 2020
Publication date	Sep 30, 2025
Grant date	Sep 30, 2025

Abstract

A method of producing flint glass using submerged combustion melting is disclosed. The method includes operating a submerged combustion melter such that combustion products are discharged from one or more submerged burners combusting a combustible gas mixture that comprises fuel and oxygen. An oxygen-to-fuel ratio of the combustible gas mixture ranges from stoichiometry to 30% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry, a temperature of a glass melt in the submerged combustion melter is between 1200° C. and 1500° C., a residence time of the glass melt is maintained between 1 hour and 10 hours, and a specific throughput rate of molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter ranges from 2 tons per day per meter squared of cross-sectional area of the submerged combustion melter [tons/day/m 2 ] to 25 tons/day/m 2 . A method of forming glass containers from the molten glass discharged from the melter is also disclosed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
introducing a vitrifiable feed material into a glass melt contained within a submerged combustion melter, the submerged combustion melter comprising one or more submerged burners;
discharging combustion products from the one or more submerged burners directly into the glass melt, the one or more submerged burners combusting a combustible gas mixture that comprises fuel and oxygen, and wherein an oxygen-to-fuel ratio of the combustible gas mixture ranges from stoichiometry to 30% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry;
maintaining a temperature of the glass melt between 1200° C. and 1500° C.;
maintaining a residence time of the glass melt between 1 hour and 10 hours;
discharging a flint molten glass from the submerged combustion melter at a specific throughput rate that ranges from 2 tons per day per meter squared of cross-sectional area of the submerged combustion melter [tons/day/m 2 ] to 25 tons/day/m 2 ;
refining the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter to obtain refined molten glass;
thermally conditioning the refined molten glass to produce conditioned molten glass; and
forming a glass container from the conditioned molten glass.

2. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the oxygen-to-fuel ratio ranges from 15% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry to 25% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry.

3. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the temperature of the glass melt ranges from 1330° C. to 1380° C.

4. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the residence time of the glass melt ranges from 2 hours to 4 hours.

5. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the specific throughput rate of the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter ranges from 6 tons/day/m 2 to 12 tons/day/m 2 .

6. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the oxygen-to-fuel ratio ranges from 15% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry to 25% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry, the temperature of the glass melt ranges from 1330° C. to 1380° C., the residence time of the glass melt ranges from 2 hours to 4 hours, and the specific throughput rate of the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter ranges from 6 tons/day/m 2 to 12 tons/day/m 2 .

7. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter has a density of 0.75 gm/cm 3 to 1.5 gm/cm 3 .

8. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the glass container meets flint glass specifications of a dominant wavelength that lies between 572 nm and 578 nm, a brightness above 50%, and a purity below 16%.

9. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the flint molten glass has a chemical composition that includes 60 wt % to 80 wt % SiO 2 , 8 wt % to 18 wt % Na 2 O, and 5 wt % to 15 wt % CaO.

10. The method set forth in claim 9 , wherein refining the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter comprises refining the flint molten glass at a temperature between 1400° C. and 1500° C., the refined molten glass having a density that ranges from 2.3 gm/cm 3 to 2.5 gm/cm 3 ; wherein thermally conditioning the refined molten glass produces the conditioned molten glass with a temperature between 1050° C. and 1200° C.; and wherein forming the glass container comprises delivering a molten glass gob of the conditioned molten glass into a glass container forming machine and forming a glass container from the molten glass gob.

11. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter has a redox value of 0.4 or less.

12. The method set forth in claim 1 , wherein the vitrified feed material includes up to 80 wt % cullet.

13. A method comprising:
introducing a vitrifiable feed material into a glass melt contained within a submerged combustion melter, the submerged combustion melter comprising one or more submerged burners and the vitrifiable feed material being formulated to provide the glass melt with a soda-lime-silica flint glass chemical composition that includes 60 wt % to 80 wt % SiO 2 , 8 wt % to 18 wt % Na 2 O, 5 wt % to 15 wt % CaO, and 0 wt % to 2 wt % Al 2 O 3 ;
discharging combustion products from the one or more submerged burners directly into the glass melt, the one or more submerged burners combusting a combustible gas mixture that comprises fuel and oxygen, wherein an oxygen-to-fuel ratio of the combustible gas mixture ranges from stoichiometry to 30% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry;
maintaining a temperature of the glass melt between 1200° C. and 1500° C. and a residence time of the glass melt between 1 hour and 10 hours; and
discharging a flint molten glass from the submerged combustion melter at a specific throughput rate that ranges from 2 tons per day per meter squared of cross-sectional area of the submerged combustion melter [tons/day/m 2 ] to 25 tons/day/m 2 , wherein the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter has a density of 0.75 gm/cm 3 to 1.5 gm/cm 3 ; and
refining the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter to obtain a refined molten glass, the refined molten glass having a density that ranges from 2.3 gm/cm 3 to 2.5 gm/cm 3 .

14. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the oxygen-to-fuel ratio ranges from 15% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry to 25% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry.

15. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the temperature of the glass melt ranges from 1330° C. to 1380° C.

16. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the residence time of the glass melt ranges from 2 hours to 4 hours.

17. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the specific throughput rate of the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter ranges from 6 tons/day/m 2 to 12 tons/day/m 2 .

18. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the oxygen-to-fuel ratio ranges from 15% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry to 25% excess oxygen relative to stoichiometry, the temperature of the glass melt ranges from 1330° C. to 1380° C., the residence time of the glass melt ranges from 2 hours to 4 hours, and the specific throughput rate of the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter ranges from 6 tons/day/m 2 to 12 tons/day/m 2 .

19. The method set forth in claim 13 , further comprising:
thermally conditioning the refined molten glass to produce conditioned molten glass; and
forming at least one glass container from the conditioned molten glass.

20. The method set forth in claim 19 , wherein the glass container meets flint glass specifications of a dominant wavelength that lies between 572 nm and 578 nm, a brightness above 50%, and a purity below 16%.

21. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the flint molten glass discharged from the submerged combustion melter has a redox value of 0.4 or less.

22. The method set forth in claim 13 , wherein the vitrified feed material includes up to 80 wt % cullet.

23. A method comprising:
introducing a vitrifiable feed material into a glass melt contained within an interior reaction chamber of a submerged combustion melter, the submerged combustion melter comprising one or more submerged burners;
discharging combustion products from the one or more submerged burners directly into the glass melt, the one or more submerged burners combusting a combustible gas mixture that comprises fuel

Assignees

• Owens Brockway Glass Container

Inventors

• Vempati Udaya
• Pinc William
• Rashley Shane

Classifications

• C03C11/007

  Foam glass, e.g. obtained by incorporating a blowing agent and heating · CPC title

• C03C3/118

  containing aluminium · CPC title

• C03C3/115

  containing boron · CPC title

• C03C3/112

  containing fluorine · CPC title

• C03C3/091

  containing aluminium · CPC title