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US 3,947,621 AGranted
Furnace and method for reducing metal oxides to molten metal
AssigneeAllmanna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget
InventorsPer Harald Collin, Yngve Sundberg
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AssigneeAllmanna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget
InventorsPer Harald Collin, Yngve Sundberg
Estimating the term…
To reduce metal oxides to molten metal, an electrically non-conductive, annular hearth is used, the hearth being radially corrugated to form radial ridges and valleys. A circumferentially continuous coke bed forming a closed electric circuit, is formed on this bed and heated to incandescence by electric current passed through the bed in its circumferential direction, the current being either induced or applied directly. The oxides in particulated form are fed to this bed for reduction to molten metal, the metal collecting in the valleys of the hearth and thereby being prevented from forming a circumferentially continuous melt of higher electrical conductivity than the coke. Particulated coke and oxides can be fed continuously to the bed, the molten metal being then continuously tapped from the valleys of the hearth to thereby prevent the formation of a circumferentially continuous melt.
A furnace for producing molten metal from particulated metal oxides, comprising an annular hearth having a radially corrugated bottom forming radial valleys interspaced by radial ridges, a bed of particulated coke on said bottom and which is continuous in the bottom's annular direction, electric means for heating said bed to incandescence by an electric current passed through the bed in said direction, feeding means for feeding said oxides and additional particulated coke to said bed, said oxides being reduced by the incandescent bed to molten metal which flows into said vallyes, and means for removing said molten metal from said valleys so that said ridges prevent the molten metal from forming a melt that is continuous in said annular direction.
A method for producing molten metal from particulated metal oxides, comprising forming an annular continuous bed of particulated coke on an annular electrically non-conductive hearth, passing an electric current through said bed in its annular direction and so as to heat said coke to incandescence, feeding said oxides to said bed for reduction to form molten metal, and confining said molten metal against forming an annular continuous melt on said hearth.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.