Furnace with refractory bricks that define cooling channels for gaseous media

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9863707-B2
Application number	US-201615132310-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 19, 2016
Priority date	Sep 29, 2011
Publication date	Jan 9, 2018
Grant date	Jan 9, 2018

Abstract

A furnace is provided suitable for metallurgical processes, comprising at least one section comprised of refractory bricks with an outer shell plate adjacent to the refractory bricks, including exterior bricks whose external faces adjacent the shell plate define gaseous media cooling channels extending along the exterior of the refractory bricks between them and the shell plate. The furnace further comprises cooling plates within the cooling channels and joints between the successive courses of bricks. Advantageously, the conductivity of the cooling plates is at least 5 times the conductivity of the refractory lining into which it is inserted. Suitable materials include copper and copper-based alloys, brasses, bronzes, cast irons, aluminum alloys, silver, high-temperature steels, refractory metals and their alloys, graphite, silicon carbide, and aluminum nitride.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A furnace suitable for high temperature processes, comprising:
a crucible, defining at least a hearth and a wall, the crucible having an inner refractory lining, and an outer support structure adjacent to and supporting at least a portion of said refractory lining;
said refractory lining having at least a portion with an external face adjacent to said support structure, at least a part of said refractory lining having gaseous media cooling channels, and cooling plates within the cooling channels that provide thermal contact with the gaseous media, said cooling plates extending into said refractory lining.

2. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein said gaseous media cooling channels extend along the exterior of said refractory lining, between said refractory lining and said support structure.

3. The furnace of claim 2 , wherein at least a portion of the refractory lining includes exterior refractory bricks having profiled external faces that define said gaseous media cooling channels.

4. The furnace of claim 3 , wherein said gaseous media cooling channels are aligned with joints between successive courses of said profiled exterior refractory bricks.

5. The furnace of claim 4 , further comprising cooling plates located within said gaseous media cooling channels and extending into said joints between said successive courses of said profiled exterior bricks.

6. The furnace of claim 5 , wherein said channels are defined by complementary recesses along adjacent upper and lower portions respectively of successive courses of said profiled exterior bricks.

7. The furnace of claim 6 , wherein said profiled exterior bricks have tapered external edges so as to define gaseous media cooling channels having a generally triangular cross section.

8. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein said cooling plates are made of copper or a copper alloy, brass, bronze, cast iron, aluminum alloys, silver, high temperature steels, refractory metals and their alloys, graphite, silicon carbide, or aluminum nitride.

9. The furnace of claim 5 , wherein said refractory lining further comprises internal bricks remote from said support structure, and wherein said profiled channel bricks are shorter than said internal bricks to accommodate said cooling plates in contiguous courses of said internal bricks and said profiled channel bricks.

10. The furnace of claim 1 , further comprising inlets in said support structure to allow gaseous cooling media to enter said channels, and outlets to allow gaseous media to be exhausted from said channels.

11. The furnace of claim 10 , wherein the inlets and outlets are concentric.

12. The furnace of claim 10 , further comprising a blower for forcing gaseous media into said inlets and through said channels.

13. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein the gaseous media is air.

14. The furnace of claim 1 , further comprising a metallic conduit within said channels, said conduit containing said gaseous media, and said conduit thermally contacting said cooling plates.

15. The furnace of claim 14 , wherein said conduit is joined to said support structure.

16. The furnace of claim 14 , wherein said cooling plates are made of copper or a copper alloy, brass, bronze, aluminum or an aluminum alloy, refractory metal, graphite, silicon carbide, or aluminum nitride.

17. The furnace of claim 14 , wherein said cooling plates are attached to said conduit by bolts, screws, dovetails, adhesive, or welding.

18. The furnace of claim 17 , wherein said cooling plates extend within said conduit so as to be thermally contacting said gaseous cooling medium.

19. The furnace of claim 16 , wherein said conduit applies a spring force to said cooling plates.

20. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein said cooling plates have a protective coating resistant to corrosion, oxidation and/or liquid metal/matte or slag attack.

21. The furnace of claim 20 , wherein said coating is made of nickel or a nickel alloy, chrome or chrome alloy, aluminum or aluminum alloy, silicon, silicon carbide, or any combination thereof.

22. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein said refractory lining has thermocouples drilled in at various depths to monitor the thickness of said refractory lining and detect ware.

23. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein the gaseous media channels are located on or in a wall of said crucible.

24. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein the gaseous media channels are located on or in the hearth of said crucible.

25. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein said crucible further defines a roof and the gaseous media channels are located on or in the roof of said crucible.

26. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein the furnace is a metallurgical furnace.

27. The furnace of claim 1 , wherein said support structure includes shell plate.

Assignees

• Hatch Ltd

Inventors

• Southall Sean
• Wasmund Bert
• Jastrzebski Maciej
• Stober Frank
• Parravani Michael
• Veenstra Robert
• Shaw John Andrew Ferguson

Classifications

• F27B3/10

  Details, accessories or equipment, e.g. dust-collectors, specially adapted for hearth-type furnaces · CPC title

• F27B3/14

  Arrangements of linings · CPC title

• F27D1/0006

  Linings or walls formed from bricks or layers with a particular composition or specific characteristics · CPC title

• F27D1/12 Primary

  incorporating cooling arrangements · CPC title

• B22D41/02 Primary

  Linings · CPC title