Supply chute for sinter material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016010921-A1
Application number	US-201414772824-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Feb 24, 2014
Priority date	Mar 4, 2013
Publication date	Jan 14, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A supply chute, and a system and a method for supplying sinter material from a sinter belt to a sinter cooler ( 26 ). A flow of the sinter material ( 16 ) is input into the supply chute ( 1 ). The flow of sinter material ( 16 ) after being input is concentrated by a device in the chute. This means that the flow is remixed for more uniform grain size distribution. The flow is thereafter widened by a widening device in the chute. Then the widened flow of sinter material ( 16 ), optionally after making the movement direction of the flow of sinter material ( 16 ) uniform, the flow is passed through a segregation device ( 8,25 ) and is there segregated, which means that a grain size distribution across the thickness and across the width of the flow is made more uniform. This occurs after the widened flow of sinter material moves in the direction of the output region ( 5 ). After passing through the output region ( 5 ), the flow of sinter material ( 16 ) is supplied to the sinter cooler ( 26 ), wherein the horizontal main component B of the movement direction of the flow of sinter material is largely perpendicular to the horizontal main component A of the movement of sinter material by the sinter belt.

First claim

1 - 20 . (canceled)

21 . A method for supplying sinter material from a sinter belt to a sinter cooler, the method comprising:
providing a flow of sinter material on a sinter belt, advancing the sinter belt with the sinter material thereon toward an input region of a sinter material supply chute along a first direction of movement of the sinter belt and the sinter material thereon having a direction of movement with a first main horizontal component A; delivering the sinter material to the input region of the supply chute; moving the sinter material under the effect of gravity from the input region of the chute downward toward an output region from the chute; during passage of the sinter material through the chute, concentrating the flow of sinter material into a flow; wherein the different size particles of the sinter material, which had been separated and segregated from one another and therefore, had become separated when being input to the supply chute, are remixed to reverse uneven distribution of particles of different grain size; after the concentrating, widening the flow of sinter material for exiting the output region; segregating the flow of sinter material after the widening thereof, so that a grain size distribution across the thickness of flow of the sinter material from top to bottom and substantially uniform across the width of the flow is established for passing through the output region; optionally aligning a direction of movement of flow of the sinter material for the output region as it moves toward the output region; and passing the flow of sinter material through the output region of the chute and as and after the sinter material passes through the output region of the chute, providing a direction of movement of the sinter material through the output region at a direction of movement having a main horizontal component B which is substantially orthogonal to the direction of movement of the first main horizontal component A.

22 . The method as claimed in claim 21 , further comprising changing the main horizontal component of the direction of the flow of sinter material between the input region and the output region of the supply chute, the change occurring at least when the flow is concentrated and/or when the flow is widened.

23 . The method of claim 22 , further comprising changing the main horizontal component of the direction of movement of the flow of sinter material in the chute as the sinter material passes through the segregating step and toward the output region.

24 . An apparatus for implementing a method as claimed in claim 1 , comprising:
a sinter belt which is configured to advance sinter material toward an input region; a supply chute configured for passage of sinter material therethrough, the chute having the input region to which the sinter belt delivers the sinter material; the supply chute comprising a shaft through which the sinter material passes from the input region of the shaft, the chute having an output region from the shaft for the sinter material; in the shaft of the supply chute, between the input region and the output region, the shaft including a sinter material concentrating device configured for concentrating and therefore remixing the flow of the sinter material from the input region past the concentrating device into a flow of the sinter material that is remixed to reverse an uneven distribution of particles of different grain size than the flow of the sinter material had prior to the concentrating device; the concentrating device comprising a first support supported in the shaft of the supply chute at a first orientation of the first support for retaining a cushion of the sinter material on the first support during the concentrating of the flow of sinter material past the concentrating device; the concentrating device being followed in the chute by a widening device which comprises a second support supported in the shaft at a second orientation of the second support for retaining a cushion of the sinter material on the second support during the widening of the flow of the sinter material past the widening device, wherein the widening is for the sinter material to enter the output region; then a segregating device configured for segregating the flow of sinter material segregating the flow of sinter material after widening thereof, so that a grain size distribution across the thickness of flow of the sinter material from top to bottom and substantially uniform across the width of the flow is established for passing through the output region; and the output region following the segregating device; following the output region from the chute, the system being configured such that the direction of movement of the sinter material past the output region is in a direction of movement that is substantially orthogonal to the direction of movement of the sinter material on the sinter belt.

25 . A supply chute for supplying a sinter material between an input region of the chute and an output region of the chute below the input region;
the chute comprising an upper end and the input region is at the upper end, a hollow shaft below the upper end, and an output region at a lower end of the shaft, the shaft is bounded by a plurality of sidewalls of the shaft and the sidewalls extend between the input region and the output region; the shaft having an interior; a concentrating device supported in the shaft interior below the input region, the concentrating device being configured for concentrating the flow of sinter material passing the concentrating device to a narrower flow; a widening device supported in the shaft interior, following the concentrating device in the shaft and configured for widening the flow of sinter material passing the widening device to a wider flow; a segregating device supported in the shaft interior following the widening device and configured for segregating the flow of sinter material into at least two flows thereof toward the output region; the shaft of the supply chute being comprised of at least two chute modules arranged in succession one above the other defining a vertical orientation of the shaft; and at least one of the chute modules is movable laterally with respect to the other.

26 . The supply chute as claimed in claim 25 , further comprising the widening device is formed from at least two widening device modules, arranged one above the other and defining a vertical orientation of the shaft, wherein a higher-lying widening device module is connected to and can be moved jointly with a higher-lying one of the chute modules.

27 . The supply chute of claim 26 , further comprising the higher lying widening device module has a lower edge, and an edge barrier on the lower edge of the higher lying widening device module, the edge barrier being configured for supporting a cushion of sinter material behind the edge barrier.

28 . The supply chute of claim 25 , wherein the concentrating device is comprised of components which extend from at least one of the sidewalls of the shaft to inside the shaft; and
at least a portion of the concentrating device having a surface facing the input region to the chute and the surface has a slope which is greater than an angle of repose of the sinter material, such that some of the sinter material forms a cushion of the sinter material on the surface.

29 . The supply chute of claim 25 , wherein the widening device configured for widening a flow of sinter material is formed from at least one component which extends from at least one of the sidewalls of the shaft to the inside of the shaft;
at least a portion of the widening device having a second surface facing the input region to the chute has a

Assignees

• Primetals Technologies Austria GmbH

Inventors

• Boeberl Michaela
• Fehringer Edmund
• Hattinger Stephan
• List Stefan

Classifications

• B65G11/088

  for bulk · CPC title

• B65G11/083

  for bulk (B65G11/085 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F27D3/00 Primary

  Charging; Discharging; Manipulation of charge · CPC title

• F27B21/06 Primary

  Endless-strand sintering machines · CPC title

• F27D15/02

  Cooling · CPC title