Methods and systems for cooling optical fiber

A system for processing an optical fiber, the system comprising:

• a draw furnace;
• a fiber conveyance pathway extending between an upstream end positioned at the draw furnace and a downstream end positioned opposite the upstream end, wherein the optical fiber is conveyed along the fiber conveyance pathway from the upstream end to the downstream end in a fiber conveyance direction;
• and
• a cooling device surrounding the fiber conveyance pathway downstream from the draw furnace, the cooling device comprising:
• a plurality of bodies, each body having a top surface and an opposing bottom surface,
• an opening within each of the plurality of bodies extending from the top surface through the body to the bottom surface, wherein the opening is configured to pass the optical fiber through the body along the fiber conveyance pathway,
• one or more air inlets within the body, and
• one or more air outlets within the body configured to direct air to contact the optical fiber as it passes through the opening, wherein the air flowing out of the one or more openings has an average velocity of about 20 m/s to 350 m/s, and wherein the one or more air inlets are fluidly coupled to the one or more air outlets via one or more slots that extend through the body oriented orthogonal to the fiber conveyance pathway.

A method for cooling an optical fiber, the method comprising:

• drawing an optical fiber through a draw furnace;
• and
• conveying the optical fiber through a cooling device, the cooling device having a first inlet and a first outlet positioned opposite the first inlet, the optical fiber entering the first cooling device at the first inlet and exiting the first cooling device at the first outlet, the optical fiber having a first temperature at the first inlet, and a second temperature at the first outlet that is lower than the first temperature, wherein the cooling device comprises:
• a plurality of bodies, each body having a top surface and an opposing bottom surface,
• an opening within each of the plurality of bodies extending from the top surface through the body to the bottom surface, wherein the opening is configured to pass the optical fiber through the body along a fiber conveyance pathway,
• one or more air inlets within the body, and
• one or more air outlets within the body configured to direct air to contact the optical fiber as it passes through the opening, wherein the air flowing out of the one or more openings has an average velocity of about 20 m/s to 350 m/s, and wherein the one or more air inlets are fluidly coupled to the one or more air outlets via one or more slots that extend through the body oriented orthogonal to the fiber conveyance pathway.