U.S. patent number 3,868,213 [Application Number 05/409,444] was granted by the patent office on 1975-02-25 for vibration furnace.
Invention is credited to Jury Nikolaevich Khazhinsky, Anatoly Vladimirovich Savchenko, Valery Petrovich Shulika, Jury Fedorovich Yakimenko.
United States Patent |
3,868,213 |
Shulika , et al. |
February 25, 1975 |
VIBRATION FURNACE
Abstract
A vibration furnace for treating loose dusting and poorly
transportable materials at a temperature of up to 500.degree.C,
made according to the schematic diagram of a vertical vibration
conveyor with a chute attached to supports of a vertical bearing
pipe with the help of brackets mounted to be movable radially and
insulated electrically from the supports of the vertical bearing
pipe by means of insulators; said chute is connected in an electric
circuit as a heater. The proposed vibration furnace may prove to be
most advantageous in the food, drug, chemical and other industries
for high-temperature processes of drying, roasting and
heat-treating of dispersed loose dusting materials. Moreover, the
proposed vibration furnace is suitable for use as a
high-temperature chemical reactor for carrying out such processes
where strict adherence to prescribed technological parameters is of
utmost importance.
Inventors: |
Shulika; Valery Petrovich
(Moscow, SU), Khazhinsky; Jury Nikolaevich (Moscow,
SU), Yakimenko; Jury Fedorovich (Moscow,
SU), Savchenko; Anatoly Vladimirovich (Moscow,
SU) |
Family
ID: |
23620524 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/409,444 |
Filed: |
October 25, 1973 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
432/134;
34/164 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F27B
9/16 (20130101); F26B 3/34 (20130101); F26B
17/266 (20130101); F27B 17/00 (20130101); F27B
9/2453 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
F27B
9/00 (20060101); F27B 9/16 (20060101); F26B
3/32 (20060101); F27B 17/00 (20060101); F26B
3/34 (20060101); F26B 17/00 (20060101); F26B
17/26 (20060101); F27B 9/24 (20060101); F27b
009/16 (); F27b 005/16 () |
Field of
Search: |
;432/134 ;34/164 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Camby; John J.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Holman & Stern
Claims
What we claim is:
1. A vibration furnace for loose materials, comprising: a vertical
bearing pipe with supports; a chute concentric with the vertical
bearing pipe and attached to said supports of the vertical bearing
pipe by means of brackets radially movable under thermal expansion
of said chute; said chute being electrically insulated from said
supports of the vertical bearing pipe by means of insulators and
resistance heated upon connecting the chute in an electric circuit
a loading device communicating with the chute for ensuring the
supply of loose materials onto said chute; an unloading device
communicating with the chute for providing the discharge of treated
loose materials from the chute; and a plurality of vibrators
mounted in the lower section of the vertical bearing pipe and
imparting helical oscillations to the chute.
2. The vibration furnace of claim 1, wherein the brackets are
attached to said supports of the vertical bearing pipe by means of
spring-biased bolts displacing in conjunction with the brackets and
the chute along radial slots provided in the supports of the
vertical bearing pipe.
3. The vibration furnace of claim 1, wherein the loading device
comprises a pan having an oblique bottom and a loading branch pipe
and the chute, which is made helical, is connected to said loading
branch pipe along annular cylindrical surfaces cambered inwardly to
the furnace working volume so that their junction extends along a
surface of the loading branch pipe disposed externally with respect
to said chute.
4. The vibration furnace of claim 1, wherein the vertical bearing
pipe accommodating the chute, which is made helical, comprises an
external cylindrical wall and an internal cylindrical wall with the
space therebetween comprising a gas conduit, and with a bottom
bounded by the internal cylindrical wall, said bottom being
connected to the intake of the chute by means of a pan in the
direction of motion of loose materials, and the bottom of the gas
conduit between the cylindrical walls of the vertical bearing pipe
located above the intake of the chute communicates with the chute
through a hole in the internal cylindrical wall, said internal
cylindrical wall being perforated to admit gases into the
chute.
5. The vibration furnace of claim 4, further comprising a discharge
pan connected to the unloading device at the end of the chute and
fitted with a calibrated opening to enable a proportioned return of
a fraction of the treated material into the intake of the chute for
recycling.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the heat treatment of loose
materials and more particularly to vertical-type conduction
vibration furnaces.
The use of the herein-proposed vibration furnaces is exemplified by
their utilization in the food, drug, chemical and other industries
for high-temperature drying, roasting and heat-treating of
dispersed free-flowing dusting materials.
Another potential application of the proposed vibration furnaces is
their use as high-temperature chemical reactors for carrying out
such processes wherein strict adherence to prescribed technological
parameters is of utmost importance.
In developing the vibration furnaces the problems pertaining to
their strength, mode of heat transfer to the material being
treated, stable conveyance of materials whose properties are being
changed in the course of heat treatment, and to throughput
capacities of the furnaces must be solved.
Owing to specific features involved in the technology of heat the
treatment of powdered dusting materials, the design of a vibration
furnace shall suit additional requirements associated with
air-tightness of a working zone and heat transfer to materials by
conduction, and a reduction in the speed of gases removed from the
furnace working zone.
In heat-treating powdered materials in a vibrating bed process
efficiency is to a larger degree dependent on a working temperature
and the length of time over which the material is held in the
working zone.
In this connection heat treatment of powdered dusting materials is
usually performed in vertical-type vibration furnaces based on the
principle of vertical vibration conveyors.
Known in the art is a vertical-type vibration furnace made as a
vertical bearing pipe with helical chutes fixed rigidly on the pipe
and adapted to convey the material to be treated. In the bottom
part of the vertical bearing pipe a vibrator of helical
oscillations is fastened thereto. The entire oscillating part of
the vibration furnace is mounted on springs and enclosed in a
heat-insulating casing which is either a stationary cabinet or a
shell vibrating together with the oscillating part of the vibration
furnace.
As for a heat carrier, use may be made of hot air (see, for
example, Author's Certificate of the USSR No. 314,985, Cl.F26 b
17/12, a vibrating drier "Xerotron," Switzerland-FRG, vertical
vibrating driers manufactured by "Sinex," France), electrical
spirals arranged either outside (see, for example, "Jost" vibrating
driers, FRG) or inside of the vertical bearing pipe.
All the aforesaid types of vibration furnaces suffer from such
major disadvantages as low concentration of heat energy on the
heat-transferring surface of the chute, low efficiency owing to a
low heat tranfer factor and the use of a principle of indirect
heating for the chute, and a reduction in the stress-rupture
strength of the vertical bearing pipe under the effect of high
temperature.
In terms of their strength, the main units of the known vibration
furnaces exposed in service to vibrations and high temperatures are
found under most unfavorable conditions since the bearing and most
heavily loaded vertical pipe are always arranged either in close
proximity to the heater or in a most heated zone, being often
heated to a much higher temperature than the heat-transferring
conveying chute.
The above disadvantage results in a substantial decrease in all the
strength and technological characteristics of the vibration
furnace, such as its throughput capacity, permissible working
temperature, furnace height and related limitations to the length
of transportation and process duration.
Moreover, peculiar to the prior-art designs of the vibration
furnaces is irregular heating of material being dried with all the
ensuing serious technological problems involved in high quality
treatment of most materials.
This explains various known improvements in design whose object was
to reduce the effect of irregular heating, such as reduced width of
the chute, the use of appliances for stirring the material being
dried, an increase in the length of the chute ensuring adequate
time for the drying of material being treated.
In addition, it is known that nichrome heaters used in most cases
are unreliable in service and require frequent replacement.
The heating of the entire conveying column to a working temperature
brings about considerable thermal stresses in the structural
elements of the vibration furnaces with rigid attachment (usually
by welding) of the conveying helical chute to the vertical bearing
pipe, the stresses being attributable to irregular heat exchange
and temperature gradients between the bearing vertical pipe and the
helical chute. As shown by calculations, the vibration furnace with
the helical chute connected rigidly the vertical bearing pipe is
able to operate without failure at a temperature of not more than
200.degree.C.
The vertical-type vibration furnaces known in world practice
operate at working temperatures not in excess of 250.degree.C.
Hence, the conceptual design of the vibration furnaces developed so
far does not enable efficient utilization of the advantages
concerned in the use of a vibrating bed for high-temperature
processes involved in heat treatment of powdered dusting
materials.
It is commonly known that conveying-technological setups are
suitable only for transportation of materials not prone to
sticking.
However in chemical technology the properties of materials to be
treated in vibration furnaces are far from being ideal in terms of
their vibrotransportability. Usually they constitute damp materials
poorly transportable in their original state, with the material
properties liable to vary in a permissible deviation range. Under
these conditions the througput capacity of a vibration furnace
depends in the first place on stability and the degree of filling
the chute with materials.
Vertical vibration conveyors of the known designs intended for
carrying material upwards along in a helical chute are usually
fitted with loading devices made as an overhang branch pipe
connected to the helical chute with the help of a pan with parallel
walls and a radial axis of symmetry (see, for example, vertical
vibration conveyors manufactured by "Schenk") or tangential to the
chute (see, for example, vertical vibration conveyors of the "Jost"
firm, FRG). Upon entering the loading device of a vertical screw
conveyor, the material commences to circle under the effect of
helical oscillations, i.e, each particle of the above material
moves in a direction at right angles to the radius connecting it to
a vertical conveyor axis. In this case the material loaded radially
and tangentially upon coming into contact with the walls of the
loading device is decelerated and collects impeding full and
uniform charging of the conveying chute. This diminishes materially
the throughput capacity of the vertical-type vibration furnaces,
particularly in conveying materials with low free-flowing
properties. In this case to avoid accumulation of material the
loading device of a vertical vibration conveyor, whose layout is
taken as the basis in designing a vibration furnace, is made as a
tapered pan mated with the first coil of the helical chute and
protruding beyond the limits of the conveying chute (see, for
example, the "Sinex" catalogues, France, or a book by Slivakovsky
A.O., Goncharevich I.E. "Vibration conveyors, feeders and auxiliary
equipment" 1972, 223 pp.). The material circling along the tapered
porting of the loading device pours gradually to an inside diameter
to enter the helical chute.
A disadvantage of the above loading device lies in a limited
possible range of application, i.e. only in conveyors with an
internal bearing pipe, this being attributable to its large overall
dimensions and to the arrangement of a tapered loading device in
the zone of maximum stresses.
An attempt to reduce accumulation of material in the loading device
resulted in the provision of a loading means with walls made as
evolvent cylinder-shaped surfaces combining specific features of
all the three known loading devices disclosed hereinbefore (see,
for example, the device of the type disclosed in Author's
Certificate of the USSR No. 194,631, Cl.81e 51, 49c, 30/01,
1967).
The above-described major types of the loading devices as well as
other known designs do not meet completely contradictory
requirements which, if satisfied, can ensure enhanced throughput
capacities and more reliable design of vibration furnaces, i.e.,
preclude accumulation of material and provide a reduction in the
passage of the loading device.
It is known that a vibrating bed featuring principal advantages of
a gas fluidized bed resulting from an intense heat mass exchange is
free from the main disadvantage-- dust carryover, a feature which
enables its efficient use in many cases in treating dusting
powdered materials. However, successful heat treatment of powdered
materials in a vibrating bed with minimum dust carryover is
possible only with properly organized ventilation. Usually heat
treatment of powdered materials is accompanied by intense evolution
of gaseous products removed by drawing ambient air through the
working space of a vibration furnace, the carryover being in this
case dependent on gas velocities in the furnace working space. A
reduction in gas velocities is obtained by increasing the total
passage of gas flues.
Known in the prior art are vibrating driers wherein a gaseous heat
carrier is admitted into a working zone through a perforated
vertical bearing pipe (see, for example, the "Xerotron" vibrating
drier, Switzerland-FRG).
Gas flows moving with low speeds do not prevent the dust from being
entrained and settled in gas flues, which hinders stable operation
of the vibration furnace.
Also known is a method of vibrotransportation of damp sticky
materials adhering in a damp state and losing this property in a
dry state, said method being based on that prior to loading the
starting damp sticky material onto a conveying chute, it is loaded
with same material but slightly dried up to a degree when it stops
adhering (see, for example, Author's Certificate of the USSR No.
299,426, 1971).
With the above method an up to 40-fold increase in the rate of
material being conveyed can be obtained; it also makes it possible
to reduce the dimensions of a vibration conveyor, to increase its
throughput capacity and ensure stable operation.
The list of materials capable of adhering in a damp (initial) state
and non-sticky in a dry (final) state is rather long, the use of
the above described method in the vibration furnaces being
therefore very efficient in terms of their versatility and an
expansion in their range of application.
The vibration furnaces of the known design do not comprise
appliances ensuring partial recycling, i.e., return of a fraction
of the treated material into a zone proceeding to a material
loading station.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to overcome the above
disadvantages.
Another object of the invention is the provision of a
high-production vertical-type furnace for heat-treating at a
temperature of up to 500.degree.C of powdered dusting materials
poorly transportable along a vibrating surface in their initial
state with the evolution of a large amount of gases.
Said objects are accomplished by a chute of a vibration furnace
attached to supports of a vertical bearing pipe with the help of
brackets movable radially, and insulated electrically from the
supports of the vertical bearing pipe by means of insulators with
the chute being connected in an electric circuit as a heater.
It is expedient that the brackets be secured to the supports of the
vertical bearing pipe with the aid of spring-biased bolts
displacing in conjunction with the brackets and the chute, which is
made annular, along radial slots provided in the supports of the
vertical bearing pipe.
It is desirable that at the place of arrangement of a loading
device made as a pan with an oblique bottom and a cylinder-shaped
loading branch pipe that the chute should mate with said
cylinder-shaped loading branch pipe along annular cylindrical
surfaces cambered inwardly to a working volume so that their
junction line runs along an external with respect to the chute
surface of the loading branch pipe.
On certain occasions it is expedient that the vertical bearing pipe
accommodating the chute be fitted with double walls with a space
therebetween being utilized as a gas conduit, and a bottom bounded
by an internal wall of the vertical bearing pipe and communicating
with the beginning of the chute with the aid of a pan arranged in
the direction of material flow, the bottom of the gas flue
contained between the double walls of the vertical bearing pipe and
arranged above the beginning of the chute being open to the chute
through an opening in the internal wall of the vertical bearing
pipe, which is perforated to blast the chute with gases.
Moreover, it is sound practice that the end of the chute be
provided with the pan connected to an unloading device and be
fitted with a calibrated opening for proportioned return of a
fraction of the treated material into the chute intake.
Since the chute is secured to the support of the vertical bearing
pipe through the brackets which are movable radially and fastened
by the spring-biased bolts, the design of the herein-proposed
vibration furnace allows reducing temperature stresses and
enhancing furnace efficiency at high temperatures. This will
augment substantially the effectiveness of vibration furnaces by
extending their life and by affording the possibility of utilizing
them for the drying-roasting operations at temperatures of up to
500.degree.C.
The design of the loading elements of the vibration furnace makes
it possible not only to reduce the passages of the loading device
but to obviate accumulation of material therein.
A reduction in the passages of the furnace loading device and,
hence, in its overall dimensions and weight decreases inertial
loads on most stressed portion of the vertical bearing pipe of the
vibration furance. This is assisted by the elimination of stress
concentrators through the use of radially conjugated constructional
members and due to a reduction in the area of ports in the vertical
bearing pipe. All these factors enhance considerably functional
reliability of the vibration furnace.
At the same time with the herein-proposed design of the vibration
furnace accumulation of material in the loading device is
practically avoided, insofar as the material upon striking against
the wall cambered to the chute and flowing concurrently along the
oblique bottom is directed tangentially to the wall and, hence,
does not meet any resistance being therefore uniformly admitted
into an intake coil of the conveying chute. This increases both the
height of the layer of material being loaded and the throughput
capacity of the vibration furnace.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will be better understood from a
consideration of a detailed description of exemplary embodiments
thereof, to be had in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
FIG. 1 is a general view of the periodic vibration furnace with the
annular chute;
FIG. 2 - is a sectional view taken along line II--II of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 - is a sectional view taken along line III--III of FIG.
1;
FIG. 4 is an axonometric projection of the layout of the vibration
furnace elements;
FIG. 5 - is a sectional view taken along line V--V of FIG. 2;
FIG. 6 - is a sectional view taken along line VI--VI of FIG. 5;
FIG. 7 depicts operating cycles of the unloading device of the
vibration furnace;
FIG. 8 illustrates the operation of the unloading device during the
discharge of material;
FIG. 9 is an attachment unit of the annular chute secured to the
support of the vertical bearing pipe;
FIG. 10 is a version of attachment of insulators;
FIG. 11 illustrates the design of the insulators;
FIG. 12 is an axonometric projection of a layout of the elements of
the vibration furnace as they are assembled;
FIG. 13 is a general view of a continuous vibration furnace with a
helical chute;
FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of a vibration furnace;
FIG. 15 - is a sectional view taken along line XV--XV of FIG.
14;
FIG. 16 is an axonometric projection showing the design of
supporting flanges for securing radial brackets of the helical
chute;
FIG. 17 is an attachment unit of the helical chute;
FIG. 18 is an axonometric projection of the loading device;
FIG. 19 is a top view of the loading device;
FIG. 20 - is a sectional view taken along line XX--XX of FIG.
19;
FIG. 21 is an axonometric projection of the gas conduit layout;
FIG. 22 is a general view of the continuous vibration furnace with
an open box-type helical chute;
FIG. 23 is an axonometric projection showing the layout of the
elements of a compartment-type furnace as they are assembled;
FIG. 24 is a schematic diagram of the compartment-type vibration
furnace;
FIG. 25 is an axonometric projection of the gas conduit layout;
FIG. 26 depicts an attachment unit of the open chute;
FIG. 27 - is a sectional view taken along line XXVII--XXVII of FIG.
26;
FIG. 28 illustrates the layout of chute fastening elements (an
axonometric projection) and
FIG. 29 is a layout of the partial recycling of the treated
material being returned into the loading zone.
In terms of their design the vibration furnaces may be continuous
and periodic.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
An annular periodic vibration furnace with a working volume of 0.07
m.sup.3 is intended for heat-treating loose dusting materials at a
temperature of up to 550.degree.C over an unlimited period of time.
The design of the vibration furnace permits the material to be
treated in inert gases, if required by the technique. The working
volume of the vibration furnace is dust-tight and may be equipped
with additional facilities, if necessary, for operation under a
vacuum. The adopted mode of conveying materials along a closed ring
ensures periodic recycling of the pre-heated materials to a loading
point, a feature contributing to better transportation of materials
prone to sticking in their initial state. This is of prime
importance for the materials which are pasty in their initial state
and for the processes necessitating, according to the techniques
adopted, the supply of liquid reagents onto a loose material being
treated in the vibration furnace. A part of the crust of the
adhered material is dried up and disintegrates under the effect of
vibrations. Electric heating used in vibration furnaces ensures
high reliability of the heated material along with a low thermal
time lag which makes it possible to abruptly change, if required,
temperature conditions in the vibration furnace.
A periodic vibration furnace comprises an annular chute 1 (FIGS. 1
and 2) rectangular in cross section with rounded corners, said
chute being mounted with the help of a bracket 2 encompassing the
annular chute 1 on supports 3 of a vertical bearing pipe 4. Mounted
in the bottom part of the vertical bearing pipe 4 are four
motors-vibrators 5 (FIGS. 1 and 3) energized in pairs. Two of them
generate helical oscillations under whose effect the material being
treated moves along the annular chute 1 (FIGS. 1 and 2) in a
clockwise direction, in a plan view, whereas the other two
motors-vibrators 5 (FIGS. 1, 3) rotate counterclockwise. The
motors-vibrators 5 are mounted with their shafts inclined to the
horizontal plane. The angle of inclination of each motor-vibrator 5
to the horizontal plane is a function of the ratio of horizontal
and vertical amplitudes of oscillations which in turn determines
the degree of thrawup and slippage of the material being treated as
well as its stirring and intensity of vibrofluidization. The above
characteristics are of prime importance in the selection of an
optimum technological duty. The motors-vibrators 5 are fastened
with bolts 6 to a plate 7 (FIGS. 1, 3, 4) of the vertical bearing
pipe 4 which affords the possibility of changing the angle of
inclination of the shafts of the motors-vibrators 5 to the
horizontal plane stepwisely in the range of from 0 to 90.degree..
To this end the plate 7 is fitted with openings 8 (FIG. 4) arranged
uniformly around the circumference and corresponding in size to
those for the bolts 6 (FIG. 1). The plate 7 (FIGS. 1, 3, 4) is
welded to the bottom portion of the vertical bearing pipe 4 as a
chord plane and is reinforced from the interior with stiffening
ribs 9. This ensures adequate strength of an attachment unit for
securing the motors-vibrators 5 along with a minimum weight.
The annular chute 1 (FIG. 1) is enclosed in a detachable casing 10,
the space therebetween being filled with heat-insulating mineral
wool 11.
The annular chute 1 is heated owing to its ohmic resistance when
connected in an electric heating circuit through flexible bars 12
(FIG. 4). At the point of attachment of the flexible bars 12 the
annular chute 1 is provided with an electroinsulating connection 13
(FIGS. 2, 4, 5) made as two flanges 14 and 15 (FIG. 6) separated by
an insulating plate 16. The insulatin plate 16 is fitted with holes
for coupling bolts 17 (FIGS. 5, 6) located at its periphery; at the
center it has a rectangular port 18 similar in shape to the passage
of the annular chute 1. The holes for the coupling bolts 17
provided in the flanges 14 and 15 are made of two sizes, that of
the small holes being slightly in excess of a thread diameter and
that of the large ones slightly in excess of a head diameter of the
coupling bolts 17. The holes of a small diameter in the flange 14
are located opposite to those of a large diameter in the flange 15
with those of large and small diameters being arranged alternately
in the flanges 14 and 15. The use of the coupling bolts 17 provides
an air-tight, vibration-proof, reliable, small-size, heat-resistant
and electroinsulating connection of the ends of the annular chute
1.
For the sake of safety a branch pipe 19 (FIGS. 1, 4) for loading
the material being treated, a branch pipe 20 for unloading the
treated material, a branch pipe 21 for the removal of gaseous
products and a sampling branch pipe 22 are provided with similar
insulation. The treated material is discharged by means of an
unloading device (FIGS. 1, 4, 7, 8) which constitutes a split
section 23 in the bottom of the annular chute, whose edges overlap
each other so that the right-hand edge is beaded upwards and the
lefthand edge downwards. A slit formed between the beaded edges of
the bottom of the annular chute 1 terminates with the unloading
branch pipe 20.
The annular chute 1 (FIGS. 9, 10) with the brackets 2 is secured to
the supports 3 with bolts 24 with helical springs 25 (FIG. 9) or
disc springs 26 (FIG. 10).
The tightening force of the bolts 24 (FIGS. 9, 10) is adjustable
and is set up during erection to ensure radial displacement of the
annular chute 1 together with the bracket 2 along radial slots 27
for the bolts 24 provided in the horizontal plate of the support 3
during thermal expansion of the annular chute 1.
At the points where the bolts 24 are set up, the annular chute 1
with the bracket 2 is electrically insulated with the aid of
insulators 28 from the supports 3 and from the rest of the
supporting structure.
The insulator 28 (FIG. 11) is a ceramic collar 29 rolled out with
the help of a bead 30 along its outside and inside diameters into
metal sockets 31 and 32.
Flat annular supporting surfaces of both the outer and inner metal
sockets 31 and 32 are concentric and overlap each other in a plan
view. The external supporting surface of the outer metal socket 31
is fitted with an annular fillet 33 to fix the insulator 28 in the
opening 34 of the bracket 2 of the annular chute 1.
The periodic vibration furnace operates in the following
manner.
A batch of material to be treated is charged through the loading
branch pipe 19 (FIGS. 1, 4) into the annular chute 1 which is
resistance heated. When two motors-vibrators 5 are switched on the
material being treated is conveyed clockwise along the bottom of
the annular chute 1. Simultaneously it undergoes heat treatment
lasting over the required time period. Gaseous products evolved are
removed along the branch pipe 21 mated through a flexible metal
pipe 35 with an exhaust ventilation system.
During the operating cycle the material being treated is conveyed
from the right- to the left-hand side (FIG. 7), passes a split
section 23 in the bottom of the annular chute 1, is poured over and
under the effect of directed vibrations and proceeds further
without entering the branch pipe 20 for unloading of the treated
material.
When the treated material is unloaded, its motional direction is
reversed from the left- to the right-hand side with the material
which has been admitted into the unloading slit being discharged
from the furnace.
A reversal in the motional direction of the material during
unloading is effected by reversing switching over of the sets of
the motors-vibrators 5 (FIGS. 1 and 3).
The herein-proposed design of the unloading device ensures its
reliability in service and excludes the spilling of material being
treated. If required the branch pipe 20 for unloading the treated
material is utilized for drawing in ambient air.
According to another embodiment based on the use of the
herein-proposed improvements is a continuous vibration furnace with
a working volume of 0.8 m.sup.3 intended for heat treatment of
loose materials not liable to stick at a temperature of up to
300.degree.C for 20-25 min. The conceptual design of the vibration
furnace is determined by a continuous nature of loading and
unloading operations.
An oscillating part of the vibration furnace is made as a helical
chute 36 (FIG. 12) of a rectangular cross section and rounded off
corners, fastened to a vertical bearing pipe 37 in whose bottom
portion are mounted two vibrators 38 imparting helical vibrations
to the oscillating portion of the vibration furnace. Under the
effect of vibrations the material to be treated is conveyed along
the helical chute 36 upwards from a loading branch pipe 39 (FIGS.
12, 13) to an unloading branch pipe 40.
The oscillating section of the vibration furnace rests at the
bottom on springs 41 (FIGS. 12, 14) being held at the top with the
aid of tension members 42 with springs 43. The tension members 42
are fastened to an outer frame 44 (FIGS. 13, 14) made as a
three-dimensional structure formed by the sides of a
parallelepiped. Suspended from the outer frame 44 are
heat-insulating panels 45 made as folding flaps.
The vertical bearing pipe 37 (FIG. 15) has on its generatrices
three slots 46 arranged, for instance, at an angle of 120.degree.
to each other in a plan view. The slots 46 accommodate vertical
straps 47 welded-in in pairs (FIG. 16) and connected by transverse
horizontal supports 48. Attached to the horizontal supports 48 by
bolts 49 (FIG. 17) and springs 50 are radial brackets 51 (FIGS. 15,
17) welded to the helical chute 36. Because the radial brackets 51
are bolted to the horizontal supports 48 (FIG. 17) of the vertical
bearing pipe 37 with the aid of the bolts 49 spring-biased with the
springs 50, the radial brackets 51 can be displaced radially with
respect to the vertical bearing pipe 37 along a groove 52 (FIG. 16)
during thermal expansion of the helical chute 36 (FIGS. 15, 17).
The latter is heated owing to its ohmic resistance when connected
in an electric heating circuit through flexible bars 53 (FIG.
12).
In this connection the radial brackets 51 (FIGS. 15, 17) of the
helical chute 36 are insulated from the vertical bearing pipe 37 by
the electric insulators 28 (FIGS. 10, 17). The loading branch pipe
39 (FIGS. 18, 19, 20) is connected to an intake coil of the helical
chute 36 with the help of a pan with an oblique bottom 54. Pan side
walls 55 (FIG. 19) are made arcuate and cambered inwardly to the
working volume of the vibration furnace so that their line of
junction A with the loading branch pipe 39 runs on an external with
respect to the helical chute 36 surface of the loading branch pipe
39. This makes it possible to avoid accumulation of damp material
in the loading device, to eliminate hazardous stress concentrators
in the intake of the helical chute 36 and to enhance the degree of
filling of the helical chute 36 with the material to be treated.
From technological aspects the junction elements of the loading
branch pipe 39 and helical chute 36 are made from stampings 56 of a
helical chute 36 one of which is cross-hatched in FIG. 19.
The design of both the unloading branch pipe 40 and connecting
pipes 57 (FIG. 21) for the removal of a gaseous phase are similar
to that of the branch pipe 39. Ventilation of the working space of
the helical chute 36 is effected by drawing air through it. The air
is supplied through air intakes 58 located on one side of the
helical chute 36 and drawn off through the connecting pipes 57 for
the removal of a gas phase positioned diametrically and through
flexible pipes 59 and a vent header 60 coupled with an exhaust
ventilation system.
For heat-treating loose non-sticky materials with a large gas
evolution a vibration furnace with a working volume of 6 m.sup.3 is
available.
The design of the above vibration furnace made on the principle of
the herein-proposed improvements enables continuous heat treatment
of loose material at a temperature of up to 500.degree.C for 25-30
min., with the volume of gases drawn off into the ventilation
system amounting to not more than 2,000m.sup.3 /hr. The volume of
the gases being discharged is limited by the gas rate in the
working volume of a vibration furnace at which dust carryover does
not exceed the value permissible from technological aspects and is
adjusted by varying the parameters of the exhaust ventilation
system.
The vibration furnace comprises a casing 61 (FIGS. 22, 25)
accommodating an open helical chute 62 (FIGS. 24, 25). In the
bottom portion of the casing 61 two vibrators 38 are attached to a
bracket 63 (FIGS. 23, 24), the vibrators 38 imparting helical
oscillations to the vibrating system. The bracket 63 is bolted to
the casing 61 through a terminal belt 64. The entire oscillating
system rests through springs 65 (FIGS. 23, 24) on a frame 66
mounting a busbar panel 67 for supplying power through flexible
bars 68 to the resistance-heated open helical chute 62.
The gases being evolved are removed through diffuser D, and a metal
pipe 69 mounted axially in the top portion of the casing 61. The
ambient air upon entering the working volume of the vibration
furnace is heated in a heating apparatus 70 (FIG. 23) communicating
with the vibration furnace through a flexible air pipe 71. The
material admitted into a loading branch pipe 72 of the type shown
in FIG. 18 is conveyed from below upwards to an unloading branch
pipe 73 under the effect of helical oscillations. The unloading
branch pipe 73 is mated with other technological equipment with the
help of a flexible metal pipe 74 of a small cross section.
The vibration furnace assembly includes thermocouples 75 mounted on
the casing 61 at the points of control of technological
parameters.
The casing 61 is a vertical bearing pipe fitted with double
cylinder-shaped walls 76 and 77 (FIGS. 24, 25). The internal
cylindrical wall 76 is perforated to blast the chute 62 with gases
with openings 78 being located along the top edge of each coil of
the open helical chute 62. The space limited by the internal
cylindrical wall 76 of the vertical bearing pipe has a bottom 79 in
communication with the lower coil of the open helical chute 62
through an oblique pan 80. The space between the cylindrical walls
76 and 77 acts as a gas conduit for supplying ambient air through
the heating apparatus 70 (FIG. 23), flexible air pipe 71 and a
space between tapered surfaces 81 and 82 (FIG. 25) limited by the
external wall 77 and a throat 83 through vertical shafts 84 of a
small cross section and the openings 78 in the working volume of
the vibration furnace.
Increased gas rates in the vertical shafts 84 preclude dust
ejection from the working volume of the vibration furnace into the
surroundings. The vertical shafts 84 are located intermediate of
the cylindrical walls 76 and 77. The bottom 85 of the gas conduit
enclosed in the space between the cylindrical walls 76 and 77 is
arranged above the lower coil of the helical chute 2 and
communicates with the latter through a hole 86 (FIG. 24) in the
internal cylindrical wall 76 with the help of an oblique pan
87.
Material spilled from the bottoms 79 and 85 is returned along the
pans 80 and 87 onto the lower coil of the open helical chute 62
into a zone proceeding to the loading station from which starting
material is charged through the loading branch pipe 72.
The open helical chute 62 (FIGS. 26, 27, 28) is secured to the
supporting internal cylindrical wall 76 with the aid of radial
brackets 88 attached to the internal cylindrical wall 76 and
interconnected by cone visors 89 (FIGS. 24, 28). In the zone of the
radial brackets 88 the open helical chute 62 is furnished with
radial crosspieces 90 (FIGS. 26, 28) through which the open helical
chute 62 is suspended with the help of bolts 91 and springs 92 from
the radial brackets 88 (FIGS. 26, 27). Owing to the bolted
connection of the radial cross pieces 90 to the radial bracket 88
(with the bolts 91) the crosspieces 90 can be displaced radially
along a groove 93 (FIG. 27) simultaneously with the helical chute
62 with respect to the radial bracket 88 in case of thermal
expansion of the helical chute 62. The latter is heated owing to
its ohmic resistance on being connected in an electric heating
circuit through the flexible bars 68 (FIG. 23).
In this connection the radial crosspieces 90 (FIGS. 26, 28) of the
helical chute 62 are insulated from the radial bracket 88 by the
electric insulators 28 (FIGS. 26, 9).
The loading branch pipe 72 is mated with the intake coil of the
helical chute 62 with the help of a pan with an oblique bottom. Pan
walls are made arcuate and cambered inwardly to the working volume
of the vibration furnace so that their junction line with the
loading branch pipe 72 (FIG. 23) is arranged on the external with
respect to the helical chute 62 surface of the loading branch pipe
72 (see the description of the preceding vibration furnace (FIG.
20).
A discharge pan 94 (FIG. 29) is equipped with appliances for
recycling a fraction of the dried material to the lower intake coil
of the helical chute 62 to enhance thereby transportability of the
starting materials which are liable to stick when damp. In this
case the dried material passes from the discharge pan 94 through an
opening 95 (with a passage adjustable by a cone needle 96) onto an
oblique pan 97. Then it proceeds along a vertical passage 98 onto
the bottom 85 of the gas conduit enclosed between the cylindrical
walls 76 and 77. After that the returned dried material pours
through the hole 86 in the internal cylindrical wall 76 along the
pan 87 onto the lower coil of the helical chute 62 in the zone
proceeding to the loading station for the damp material. Spreading
along the helical chute 62, the dried material forms a non-sticky
interlayer between the surface of the helical chute 62 and sticky
damp material which is being loaded. When the layers intermix under
the effect of vibrations, aggregated lumps of the damp materials
are coated (wrapped) with the dried material and do not grip the
surface of the helical chute 62 which improves operational
stability of the vibration furnace and enhances its throughput
capacity.
The opening 95 of a variable section provided in the bottom of the
discharge pan 94 is fitted with a deflector 99 for accumulation of
a fraction of the material near the opening 95. The latter is
located above the oblique pan 97 at a distance of at least a
maximum height of the layer of material on the oblique pan 97.
The passage of the opening 95 is adjusted with the aid of the cone
needle 96 set up axially of the opening 95 in accordance with the
amount of material which is required to form the interlayer.
With the vibration furnace in operation the material to be trated
upon being admitted through the loading branch pipe 72 (FIGS. 23,
24) to the lower coil of the resistance-heated helical chute 62 is
conveyed under the effect of helical oscillations along the helical
chute 62 upwards of the unloading station. (The transfer of the
material being treated is shown in FIGS. 24, 25 by thick arrows,
gas flow by thin arrows and that of the dust and spilled material
by dotted arrows). In terms of an electric circuit, the helical
chute 62 is subdivided into three self-contained sections with
individual temperature control systems. This permits a requisite
preset distribution of temperatures in the helical chute 62 to be
obtained during the heat-treating operation. As to vibration
conditions, they may be chosen in accordance with the process
technological requirements by varying both the vibration amplitude
and angle whose adjustment is envisaged by the design of the
vibration furnace.
Gaseous products of the heat-treating process are removed from the
furnace working volume by drawing them off into the exhaust
ventilation system through diffuser D and the sealing flexible
metal pipe 69. The vibration furnace can be ventilated either
partially by removing only an excess volume of the gases evolved
(in this case the opening for the flexible air pipe 71 is sealed)
or completely with a full removal of the gases liberated from the
vibration furnace by drawing ambient air through the furnace
working volume. If that is the case, the air heated in the heating
apparatus 70 flows along the flexible air pipe 71 into the space
between the two tapered surfaces 81 and 82 to be admitted through
four narrow shafts 84 into the bottom portion of the space enclosed
between the cylindrical walls 76 and 77. Next the air enters the
working area of the vibration furnace through the openings 78 in
the cylindrical wall 76 and on being directed by the cone visors 89
passes along the helical chute 62 to be further discharged under
the effect of rarefaction through diffuser D, into the exhaust
ventilation system.
* * * * *