Plant and method for melting metal materials

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017171919-A1
Application number	US-201515115824-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jan 30, 2015
Priority date	Jan 31, 2014
Publication date	Jun 15, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

Plant for melting metal materials comprising at least a heating unit ( 11 ) provided with a container ( 13 ) to contain the mainly metal materials and with at least an induction heating device ( 22 ) configured to heat the mainly metal materials contained in the container ( 13 ). The plant also comprises a transfer unit ( 25 ) disposed downstream of the heating unit ( 11 ) and configured to move, substantially continuously, the mainly metal solid materials exiting from the heating unit ( 11 ) to a melting furnace ( 12 ). The container ( 13 ) is provided with an aperture ( 16 ) through which the mainly metal material, heated and in a solid state, is discharged onto the transfer unit ( 25 ), and opening/closing members ( 17 ) are associated with the aperture ( 16 ), commanded by an actuator ( 19 ) and configured to open, close and choke the aperture ( 16 ) in order to regulate the delivery of the metal materials that is discharged onto the transfer unit ( 25 ).

First claim

1 . Plant for melting metal materials comprising at least a heating unit provided with a container to contain mainly metal materials and with at least an induction heating device configured to heat the mainly metal materials contained in said container to a temperature comprised between 300° C. and 800° C. and keeping them in a solid state, said plant also comprising a transfer unit disposed downstream of said heating unit and configured to move, substantially continuously, said mainly metal materials exiting from the heating unit to a melting furnace located downstream of said heating unit and configured to melt said mainly metal materials, wherein said container is provided with an aperture through which said mainly metal material, heated and in a solid state, is discharged onto said transfer unit, said transfer unit being configured to move with a pre-determined delivery rate and temperature said mainly metal materials, opening/closing members, governed by detectors of the flow of said mainly metal materials discharged through said aperture of said container, being associated with said aperture, commanded by an actuator and configured to open, close and choke said aperture in order to regulate the flow of said metal materials that is discharged onto said transfer unit and sent to said melting furnace as a function of the requirements of the melting cycle in said melting furnace.

2 . Plant as in claim 1 , wherein said opening/closing members comprise a sliding valve connected to said actuator and able to be selectively opened, closed, or choked by the action of said actuator.

3 . Plant as in claim 2 , wherein said detectors and said actuator are connected to a control and management unit configured to correlate at least the data detected by said detector and the process data of said melting furnace in order to command the activation of said actuator and to control the entity of opening of said sliding valve.

4 . Plant as in claim 1 , wherein said transfer unit comprises at least one of either a conveyor belt, a cup-type transporter, a plate conveyor belt.

5 . Plant as in claim 4 , wherein said transfer unit comprises a conveyor belt that extends between the heating unit and the melting furnace, and a protection body, or housing, in which the conveyor belt is inserted and kept substantially hermetically closed.

6 . Plant as in claim 1 , wherein said opening/closing members comprise a vibrating feeder configured to facilitate the extraction of said mainly metal materials from said container.

7 . Plant as in claim 1 , wherein said induction heating device comprises one or more coils mounted externally to said container.

8 . Plant as in claim 7 , wherein said coils are wound around a winding axis corresponding to the axis of axial development of said container.

9 . Plant as in claim 1 , wherein said heating unit comprises a plurality of induction heating devices associated with said container in different positions along the longitudinal extension of the latter.

10 . Method for melting metal materials comprising the heating of mainly metal materials in at least one container of a heating unit using an induction heating device which heats said mainly metal materials to a temperature comprised between 300° C. and 800° C. and keeping them in a solid state, said method also comprising the transfer, substantially continuously, of said mainly metal materials, by means of a transfer unit disposed downstream of said heating unit, from the heating unit to a melting furnace located downstream of said heating unit and in which said mainly metal materials are melted, wherein said mainly metal materials, heated and in a solid state, are discharged from said container to said transfer unit through an aperture of said container and are moved, in said transfer unit, with a pre-determined delivery rate and temperature said mainly metal materials, and in that opening/closing members, governed by detectors of the flow of said mainly metal materials discharged through said aperture of said container, are associated with said aperture in order to regulate the delivery rate of said metal materials to said melting furnace, by opening, closing and choking said aperture as a function of the requirements of the melting cycle in said melting furnace.

Assignees

• Danieli Off Mecc

Inventors

• Villemin Bernard
• Morsut Stefano
• Codutti Andrea
• Guastini Fabio

Classifications

• C21C5/565 Primary

  Preheating of scrap · CPC title

• C21C5/56

  Manufacture of steel by other methods (making liquid steel by direct processes C21B13/00 {; C21C5/005 takes precedence}) · CPC title

• F27D3/10

  Charging directly from hoppers or shoots · CPC title

• H05B6/02 Primary

  Induction heating · CPC title

• H05B7/00

  Heating by electric discharge (plasma torches H05H1/26) · CPC title