Metallurgical furnace with water-cooled work support

The combination with a metallurgical furnace having a water-cooled tubular work supporting structure thereon on which heavy slabs and other heavy metal objects are supported and progressively moved from a charging end to an exit, the supporting structure comprising upright and horizontal tubes through which said metal objects constituting several tons are intermittently moved under conditions creating violent impact and mechanical shock and vibration in the work supporting structure, the invention comprising a heat insulating covering of preformed refractory tiles wherein the tiles comprise a pair of complementary sections with the pairs placed end to end along the exterior of said tubes, each of the said tiles of a pair having a longitudinally extending groove extending along its inner surface which, when the pair is placed about a tube, snugly fits about and encloses the length of tube along which it extends, each tile of a pair having at least one radial opening therethrough near each end of the section, there being a fastening having a tubular shank open at each end in each radial opening and having its inner end welded to the water-cooled tube after placement of the tile section on the said tube, the tubular shank being of a length less than the depth of the radial opening in the tile, said shank having a laterally extending flange at its outer end with the body of the tile fitting around the tubular shank and confined between said flange and the water-cooled tube so that the tube, the fastening and the tile are fixed against relative motion when the water-cooled tube receives impact or shock, and a body of insulation over the flange and filling the radial opening.