Horizontal heat treatment apparatus and carbon fiber production method using horizontal heat treatment apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016369427-A1
Application number	US-201414901864-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 1, 2014
Priority date	Jul 2, 2013
Publication date	Dec 22, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

The present invention is: a horizontal heat treatment apparatus for continuously heat-treating by moving a continuous flat workpiece to be treated (carbon-fiber-precursor fiber bundles) back and forth in the horizontal direction on multiple levels inside a heat treatment chamber, the horizontal heat treatment apparatus being characterized by being provided with a sealing chamber ( 4 ) which is continuous from the entrance ( 6 ) side of the heat treatment chamber ( 2 ) in to which the workpiece to be treated is conveyed to the exit ( 6 ′) side thereof and that is vertically delimited by partition plates making a heat transfer zone in which 2 to 4 levels of the workpiece are transferred, among which the temperature of the workpiece transferred in a lower level is higher than the temperature of the workpiece transferred in a higher level. As a result, the horizontal heat treatment apparatus completely prevents leakage of poisonous gas produced in the heat treatment chamber, and effectively prevents energy loss.

First claim

1 . A horizontal heat treatment apparatus that continuously performs a heat treatment on a continuous flat workpiece while moving the continuous flat workpiece in a reciprocating manner through a heat treatment chamber in a plurality of stages in the horizontal direction,
wherein the following conditions (1) to (3) are satisfied: (1) the heat treatment chamber has sealing chambers which are connected to an entrance and an exit of the workpiece; (2) one or more partition plates having the workpiece traveling in the horizontal direction in both of the upper and lower sides are disposed inside the sealing chamber and zones defined in the vertical direction are formed by two partition plates or by one partition plate and an inner wall of the sealing chamber; and (3) the partition plate is disposed so as to satisfy the following conditions (a) and (b): (a) the zones include one or more heat transfer zones in which the workpiece being conveyed into the heat treatment chamber is located higher in relation to the workpiece being conveyed out from the heat treatment chamber; and (b) one or more steps in which the workpiece firstly passes through one of the heat transfer zones inside one sealing chamber, secondly travels through inside of the heat treatment chamber, and thirdly passes through one of the heat transfer zones inside the other sealing chamber are included.

2 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the number of the heat transfer zones in the condition (a) is 10% or more of the number of all zones inside the sealing chambers.

3 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the number of times of causing the workpiece to travel through inside of the heat treatment chamber in the steps defined in the condition (b) is 10% or more of the number of times of causing the workpiece to travel through inside of the heat treatment chamber.

4 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the number of times of causing the workpiece to travel through each of the heat transfer zones defined in the condition (a) in a reciprocating manner is two to four.

5 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the number of times of causing the workpiece to travel through each of the heat transfer zones defined in the condition (a) is two, and the number of times of causing the workpiece to travel through each of the zones inside the sealing chamber is three or less.

6 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the heat treatment chamber is provided with sealing chambers connected to the heat treatment chamber at an entrance and an exit of the workpiece, and wherein the sealing chamber formed of zones which are defined by a partition plate every two to four stages in the horizontal direction where the workpiece travels.

7 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein at least one of the zones is formed as a heat transfer zone in which the entrance of the workpiece to the heat treatment chamber is located in the higher side and the exit of the workpiece from the heat treatment chamber is located in the lower side.

8 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein each zone is provided with at least one exhaust mechanism.

9 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein an air curtain mechanism or a slit-shaped nozzle is provided so as to eject air from each zone toward a heat treatment apparatus entrance through which the workpiece is conveyed from the outside of the heat treatment apparatus into each zone and a heat treatment apparatus exit through which the workpiece is conveyed out from each zone to the outside of the heat treatment apparatus.

10 . The horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the horizontal heat treatment apparatus is used as a flame proofing furnace that performs a heat treatment on a carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle.

11 . A carbon fiber production method comprising:
a step of continuously performing a heat treatment on a carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle by using the horizontal heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 .

12 . A carbon fiber production method of obtaining a carbon fiber by continuously performing a heat treatment on a continuous flat carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle while moving the continuous flat carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle in a reciprocating manner through a heat treatment chamber in a plurality of stages in the horizontal direction,
wherein sealing chambers are provided so as to be connected to an entrance and an exit of the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle into and out of the heat treatment chamber, wherein one or more partition plates are disposed so as to have the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle in both of the upper and lower sides and zones are defined in the vertical direction by two partition plates or one partition plate and an inner wall of the sealing chamber so that the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle traveling through the sealing chamber satisfies the following conditions (c) and (d): (c) the zone includes one or more heat transfer zones in which the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle being conveyed into the heat treatment chamber is located higher in relation to the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle being conveyed out from the heat treatment chamber; and (d) one or more steps in which the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle firstly passes through one of the heat transfer zones inside one sealing chamber, secondly travels through inside of the heat treatment chamber, and thirdly passes through one of the heat transfer zones inside the other sealing chamber are included.

13 . The carbon fiber production method according to claim 12 ,
wherein the number of the heat transfer zones in the condition (c) is 10% or more of the number of all zones inside the sealing chambers.

14 . The carbon fiber production method according to claim 12 ,
wherein the number of times of causing the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle to travel through inside of the heat treatment chamber in the steps defined in the condition (d) is 10% or more of the number of times of causing the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle to travel through inside of the heat treatment chamber.

15 . The carbon fiber production method according to claim 12 ,
wherein the number of times of causing the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle to travel through each of the heat transfer zones defined in the condition (c) in a reciprocating manner is two to four.

16 . The carbon fiber production method according to claim 12 ,
wherein the number of times of causing the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle to travel through each of the heat transfer zones defined in the condition (c) is two, and the number of times of causing the carbon-fiber precursor fiber bundle to travel through each of the zones inside the sealing chambers is three or less.

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Rayon Co

Inventors

• Mizuno Keishi
• Hatanaka Youji
• Tomobe Hitoshi
• Oka Yusuke

Classifications

• D01F9/32 Primary

  Apparatus therefor · CPC title

• F27D99/0073

  Seals · CPC title

• F27D7/06

  Forming or maintaining special atmospheres or vacuum within heating chambers (supplying steam, vapour, gases or liquids F27D7/02) · CPC title

• D10B2101/12

  Carbon; Pitch · CPC title

• F27B9/28

  for treating continuous lengths of work · CPC title