Tray assemblies and methods for manufacturing ceramic articles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9440373-B2
Application number	US-201313834074-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 15, 2013
Priority date	Feb 25, 2010
Publication date	Sep 13, 2016
Grant date	Sep 13, 2016

Abstract

Tray assemblies and methods for manufacturing ceramic articles are provided. In one embodiment, a tray assembly includes a tray body having a supporting surface operable to support a ceramic article for passage through a microwave drying apparatus during a microwave drying process and a microwave coupling cover associated with the tray body. The microwave coupling cover envelopes at least a portion of the ceramic article during the microwave drying process. The microwave coupling cover has a dielectric property such that a greater percentage of microwave energy is coupled into the ceramic article with the microwave coupling cover present during the microwave drying process than with the microwave coupling cover not present. Methods may include rotating the ceramic article when the ceramic article is about 40%-60 dry.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of manufacturing a ceramic article, comprising:
extruding a wet ceramic material with an extruder apparatus;
cutting the extruded wet ceramic material to form a ceramic article;
placing the ceramic article onto a tray body, the tray assembly body associated with a microwave coupling cover configured to cover at least a portion of the ceramic article;
conveying the ceramic article on the tray body along a conveyor travel axis;
subjecting the ceramic article to microwave radiation through at least the microwave coupling cover, wherein the microwave coupling cover has a dielectric property such that a greater percentage of microwave energy is coupled into the ceramic article with the microwave coupling cover present than with the microwave coupling cover not present;
removing the ceramic article from the tray body when the ceramic article is at a target dryness; and
returning the tray body and microwave coupling cover to the extruder apparatus.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the tray body further comprises a tray body longitudinal axis, the conveyor travel axis normal to the tray body longitudinal axis, and a channel disposed within a surface of the tray body parallel to the tray body longitudinal axis;
placing the ceramic article onto the tray body further comprises placing the ceramic article onto the channel such that a ceramic article longitudinal axis is substantially parallel to the tray body longitudinal axis; and
the microwave coupling cover comprises a coupler longitudinal axis that is common with the ceramic article longitudinal axis.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the dielectric property of the microwave coupling cover is approximately equal to

ɛ
O

+

ɛ

R
⁢

⁢
2
⁢
D

2

,

where ∈ O is a dielectric property of air and ∈ R2D is a dielectric property of a dried ceramic article.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the microwave coupling cover envelopes at least a portion of a first half of the ceramic article, and the method further comprises:
rotating the microwave coupling cover or the ceramic article when the ceramic article is between 40% and 60% dry such that the microwave coupling cover envelopes at least a portion of a second half of the ceramic article; and
continuing to subject the ceramic article to microwave radiation until the ceramic article is at the target dryness.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the microwave coupling cover has a length that is greater than about λ g and a thickness between about λ g /8 and about λ g /2, where λ g is the wavelength of microwave radiation propagating in the ceramic article.

6. A method of manufacturing a ceramic article, comprising:
extruding a wet ceramic material with an extruder apparatus;
cutting the extruded wet ceramic material to form a ceramic article;
placing the ceramic article onto a supporting surface of a tray body, the tray assembly body associated with a microwave coupling insert disposed below the supporting surface of the tray body configured to surround at least a portion of the ceramic article;
subjecting the ceramic article to microwave radiation through at least the microwave coupling insert, wherein the microwave coupling insert has a dielectric property such that a greater percentage of microwave energy is coupled into the ceramic article with the microwave coupling insert present than with the microwave coupling insert not present;
removing the ceramic article from the tray body when the ceramic article is at a target dryness.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6 , wherein:
the tray body further comprises a tray body longitudinal axis, a conveyor travel axis that is normal to the tray body longitudinal axis, and a channel disposed within a surface of the tray body parallel to the tray body longitudinal axis;
placing the ceramic article onto the tray body further comprises placing the ceramic article onto the channel such that a ceramic article longitudinal axis is substantially parallel to the tray body longitudinal axis; and
the microwave coupling insert comprises a coupler longitudinal axis that is common with the ceramic article longitudinal axis.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6 , wherein the dielectric property of the microwave coupling insert is approximately equal to

ɛ
O

+

ɛ

R
⁢

⁢
2
⁢
D

2

,

where ∈ O is a dielectric property of air and ∈ R2D is a dielectric property of a dried ceramic article.

9. The method as claimed in claim 6 , wherein the microwave coupling insert has a length that is equal to or greater than about λ g and a thickness of between about λ g /8 and about λ g /2, where λ g is the wavelength of the microwave radiation propagating in the ceramic article, the microwave radiation emitted by one or more microwave sources of a microwave drying apparatus.

10. The method as claimed in claim 6 , further comprising removing the coupling insert from the tray assembly.

Assignees

• Corning Inc

Inventors

• Feldman James Anthony
• George Jacob
• Paramonova Nadezhda Pavlovna
• Seymour Michael Dean

Classifications

• B28B11/241 Primary

  using microwave heating means · CPC title

• B29C48/91

  Heating, e.g. for cross linking · CPC title

• F26B15/14

  the objects or batches of materials being carried by trays or racks {or receptacles, which may be connected to endless chains or belts (trays, racks per se F26B25/18; with vertical movement F26B15/22)} · CPC title

• F26B2210/02

  Ceramic articles or ceramic semi-finished articles · CPC title

• F26B3/347 Primary

  Electromagnetic heating, e.g. induction heating or heating using microwave energy · CPC title