# US 10,118,852 B2 · Glass furnace

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 10,118,852 B2
- Document ID: US10118852B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/782,160
- Filed: 2017-10-12
- Published: 2018-02-01
- Granted: 2018-11-06
- Earliest claimed: 2014-04-25
- Assignees: Owens-Brockway Glass Container Inc.
- Applicants: Owens-Brockway Glass Container Inc.
- Inventors: Zhongming Wang; Scott Weil; Tilak Gullinkala; Udaya Vempati; Shivakumar S. Kadur
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10118852B2

## CPC

- C03B 3/023: {Preheating}
- C03B 3/005: {using screw feeders}
- C03B 3/026: {by charging the ingredients into a flame, through a burner or equivalent heating means used to heat the melting furnace}
- C03B 5/04: in tank furnaces {(C03B5/02 takes precedence)}
- C03B 5/2356: {Submerged heating, e.g. by using heat pipes, hot gas or submerged combustion burners (bubblers C03B5/193)}
- Y02P 40/50: Glass production, e.g. reusing waste heat during processing or shaping
- C03B: MANUFACTURE, SHAPING, OR SUPPLEMENTARY PROCESSES
- Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS

## Abstract

A glass furnace includes a furnace chamber for containing glass melt and a conveyor for receiving glass batch material and feeding the glass batch material to the furnace chamber. A dam wall is disposed with respect to the conveyor such that batch material from the conveyor must flow upward over the dam wall before entering the furnace chamber. The top of the dam wall may be below the level of the melt pool in the furnace chamber.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A glass furnace comprising:
a melt chamber configured to contain a glass melt;
a conveyor configured to receive glass batch material and feed such material to the melt chamber;
a dam wall disposed upstream with respect to the melt chamber and downstream with respect to the conveyor, wherein a top of the dam wall is below a melt level in the melt chamber, and wherein the dam wall forms a well upstream of the melt chamber;
a heater positioned in the well and configured to heat glass batch material prior to flow over the dam wall,
wherein the conveyor is disposed at a position below a top surface of the glass melt within the melt chamber, and wherein the conveyor is configured to drive the raw batch materials into a lower portion of the well for partial melting by the heater prior to entering the melt chamber, and wherein the conveyor and the dam wall are configured to flow the batch materials upward over the dam wall before the batch materials enter the melt chamber.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The furnace set forth in claim 1, wherein the heater comprises a heating element and a conveyor that conveys batch material through the heater toward an outlet of the heater, wherein the outlet of the heater is positioned below a top of the dam wall.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The glass furnace of claim 1 wherein the conveyor is oriented horizontally.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The glass furnace of claim 1 wherein the conveyor is oriented vertically.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The furnace set forth in claim 1 further comprising:
a plurality of heaters positioned in the well, wherein the heaters heat the glass batch material prior to flow over the dam wall, wherein each of the heaters comprises a heating element and a conveyor that conveys the glass batch material through the heater toward an outlet thereof; and
a plurality of chutes through which glass batch material is conveyed prior to being conveyed through the heaters.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The glass furnace of claim 1 wherein the conveyor is a screw conveyor.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The glass furnace of claim 6 wherein the screw conveyor is coupled to an output shaft of a motor, the motor is surrounded by a motor housing, and the motor housing is coupled to a source of cooling fluid that circulates through the motor housing and maintains the motor at an acceptable temperature.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The glass furnace of claim 1 wherein the heater includes a gas heating element or an electric heating element.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The glass furnace of claim 1 wherein the conveyor includes a first conveyor that drives the batch material to the well and a second conveyor that drives batch through the well.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The glass furnace of claim 1 wherein the conveyor extends into the well.

### Claim 11

A glass furnace that includes:
a melt chamber configured to contain a pool of glass melt having a melt level;
a feed chamber proximate a bottom portion of the melt chamber, the feed chamber having an outlet below the melt level;
a conveyor configured to receive batch material and to convey the batch material through the feed chamber toward the outlet of the feed chamber, the conveyor being disposed at least partially within the feed chamber;
a dam wall disposed upstream with respect to the melt chamber and downstream of the conveyor, wherein a top of the dam wall is below a melt level in the melt chamber, and wherein the dam wall forms a well upstream of the melt chamber; and
a heater positioned in the well proximate the outlet of the feed chamber and configured to heat glass batch material prior to flow over the dam wall and that at least partially melts the batch material,
wherein the conveyor is disposed at a position below a top surface of the glass melt within the melt chamber and wherein the conveyor is configured to the raw batch materials into a lower portion of the well for partial melting by the heater prior to entering the melt chamber, and wherein the conveyor and the dam wall are configured to flow the batch materials upward over the dam wall before the batch materials enter the melt chamber.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the conveyor is oriented generally horizontally within the feed chamber.

### Claim 13 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the heater is disposed within the feed chamber such that batch material exiting the feed chamber is forced through or past the heater.

### Claim 14 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the heater is disposed to heat batch material prior to flow over the dam wall.

### Claim 15 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the dam wall forms the well at one end of the feed chamber that separates the feed chamber from the melt chamber.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The glass furnace of claim 15 wherein the well is part of the feed chamber and the conveyor is oriented generally vertically within the feed chamber.

### Claim 17 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the feed chamber has a sloped bottom feed wall that aids in maintaining an even flow of batch material to the vertically oriented conveyor.

### Claim 18 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 including:
a batch feeder that supplies batch material to the feed chamber.

### Claim 19 (depends on 18)

The glass furnace of claim 18 wherein the batch feeder is adjacent a side wall of the melt chamber and supplies batch material under gravity to the feed chamber.

### Claim 20 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the outlet of the feed chamber defines an opening in a side wall of the melt chamber.

### Claim 21 (depends on 20)

The glass furnace of claim 20 wherein the opening in the side wall of the melt chamber defines a plane, and wherein the end of the screw conveyor is in approximate alignment with the plane of the opening.

### Claim 22 (depends on 21)

The glass furnace of claim 21 wherein the heater comprises a submerged heater proximate a bottom wall of the melt chamber, wherein the heater heats the batch material passing through the opening in the side wall of the melt chamber into the melt chamber.

### Claim 23 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the conveyor is a screw conveyor.

### Claim 24 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the heater includes a gas heating element or an electric heating element.

### Claim 25 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the conveyor includes a first conveyor that drives the batch material to the well and a second conveyor that drives batch through the well.

### Claim 26 (depends on 11)

The glass furnace of claim 11 wherein the conveyor extends into the well.

### Claim 27 (depends on 26)

The glass furnace of claim 26 wherein the conveyor extends horizontally.

### Claim 28 (depends on 26)

The glass furnace of claim 26 wherein the conveyor extends vertically.