Submerged combustion melter comprising a melt exit structure designed to minimize impact of mechanical energy, and methods of making molten glass

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9776902-B2
Application number	US-201514816151-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 3, 2015
Priority date	Apr 27, 2012
Publication date	Oct 3, 2017
Grant date	Oct 3, 2017

Abstract

A melter apparatus includes a floor, a ceiling, and a wall connecting the floor and ceiling at a perimeter of the floor and ceiling, a melting zone being defined by the floor, ceiling and wall, the melting zone having a feed inlet and a molten glass outlet positioned at opposing ends of the melting zone. Melter apparatus include an exit end having a melter exit structure for discharging turbulent molten glass formed by one or more submerged combustion burners, the melter exit structure fluidly and mechanically connecting the melter vessel to a molten glass conditioning channel. The melter exit structure includes a fluid-cooled transition channel configured to form a frozen glass layer or highly viscous glass layer, or combination thereof, on inner surfaces of the fluid-cooled transition channel and thus protect the melter exit structure from mechanical energy imparted from the melter vessel to the melter exit structure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
a) feeding at least one partially vitrifiable material into a feed inlet of a melting zone of a melter vessel comprising a floor, a ceiling, and a wall connecting the floor and ceiling at a perimeter of the floor and ceiling, the melter vessel comprising a batch feeder attached to the wall or ceiling and an exit end comprising a melter exit structure for discharging molten glass, the melter exit structure fluidly and mechanically connecting the melter vessel to a molten glass conditioning channel, the wall comprising a feed end wall, a first portion of an exit end wall connecting the floor to an inlet of the melter exit structure, and a second portion of an exit end wall connecting the ceiling to an inlet of the melter exit structure, wherein the feed end wall forms an angle α with the floor, the first portion of the exit end wall forms an angle β with the floor, angles α and β may be the same or different and range from about 45 degrees to about 75 degrees and the second portion of the exit wall forms an angle γ with the ceiling ranging from about 30 degrees to about 75 degrees;
b) heating the at least one partially vitrifiable material with at least one burner directing combustion products into the melting zone under a level of the molten glass in the zone, and forming the turbulent molten glass while imparting mechanical energy to the melter vessel;
c) discharging molten glass from the melter vessel through a fluid-cooled transition channel of the melter exit structure; and
d) cooling the fluid-cooled transition channel sufficiently to form a frozen glass layer or highly viscous glass layer, or combination thereof, on inner surfaces of the fluid-cooled transition channel thus protecting the melter exit structure from the mechanical energy imparted from the melter vessel to the melter exit structure.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising at least partially damming the fluid-cooled transition channel by moving a movable fluid-cooled dam through a fluid-cooled dam opening in a top of the fluid-cooled transition channel.

3. The method of claim 2 comprising extending the dam an entire distance from top to bottom of the fluid-cooled transition channel and completely isolating the melting zone of the melter vessel from the conditioning channel.

4. The method of claim 1 comprising flowing the molten glass from the melter vessel into the melter exit structure under a fluid-cooled skimmer configured to form a frozen glass layer or highly viscous glass layer, or combination thereof, on outer surfaces thereof, the skimmer extending downward from the ceiling of the melter vessel, the skimmer having a lower distal end defining a top of a throat of the melter vessel.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the flowing of the molten glass from the melter vessel into the melter exit structure under a fluid-cooled skimmer comprises flowing the molten glass under a lower distal end of the fluid-cooled skimmer extending a distance ranging from about 1 inch to about 12 inches (from about 2.5 cm to about 30 cm) but less than a height H of the melter exit structure.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein flowing of the molten glass from the melter vessel into the melter exit structure under a fluid-cooled skimmer comprises flowing the molten glass under a lower distal end of the fluid-cooled skimmer extending a distance substantially greater than 12 inches (30 cm) but less than to the floor of the melter, allowing molten glass in a bottom region of the melter vessel to exit the melting zone preferentially to molten glass not substantially in the bottom region of the melter vessel, and travel generally vertically upward through a relatively less turbulent zone prior to flowing generally horizontally out through the fluid-cooled transition channel of the melter exit structure.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein flowing of the molten glass from the melter vessel into the melter exit structure comprises flowing the molten glass through a seamless liner insert positioned inside the melter exit structure, the liner insert having an entrance and a discharge end, the entrance end accepting flow of molten glass from the throat, and the discharge end directing flow of molten glass to the conditioning channel.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein flowing of the molten glass from the melter vessel into the melter exit structure comprises flowing the molten glass through a molten glass outlet positioned at a bottom of the fluid-cooled transition channel, causing molten glass flowing through the melter exit structure to change direction from substantially horizontal to substantially vertically downward as it exits the channel.

Assignees

• Johns Manville

Inventors

• Mobley John Euford
• Huber Aaron Morgan
• Enright Ryan Patrick

Classifications

• C03B3/00

  Charging the melting furnaces · CPC title

• C03B5/04

  in tank furnaces {(C03B5/02 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• C03B2211/70

  Skull melting, i.e. melting or refining in cooled wall crucibles or within solidified glass crust, e.g. in continuous walled vessels · CPC title

• C03B5/167 Primary

  Means for preventing damage to equipment, e.g. by molten glass, hot gases, batches (C03B5/20, C03B5/42 take precedence) · CPC title

• C03B2211/22

  by direct combustion in the melt · CPC title