Feed distributor for multiple hearth furnace

A material feed distributor for use in a furnace having at least one hearth, a central vertical shaft rotatable within the furnace and a roof over said hearth defining a material inlet, said feed distributor comprising a conical table feeder attached to said central vertical shaft for rotation therewith, said conical table feeder including a conical surface defining at least one opening therethrough, said opening being positioned radially outward from said central vertical shaft substantially the same distance as is said material inlet whereby, upon rotation of said table with said shaft, said opening is periodically in vertical alignment with said material inlet;

• a convolute plow fixed to said furnace at a position above said table feeder, said convolute plow being generally concentric within said table feeder and extending around the major portion thereof.