Method and apparatus for improving oxygen burner performance in a glass furnace

Apparatus for improving oxygen burner performance in a glass furnace having a chamber with a bottom wall connected to a roof wall by side walls, said walls having refractory surfaces, and an opening in the roof wall, said glass furnace being adapted to have a molten glass bath in the bottom which is adapted to be struck by flame from the burner and to be fed by cullet or the like, comprising

• burner means for injecting a flame from a nozzle downwardly into a chamber through the roof opening with the flame being adapted to impinge against the bath of molten glass on the bottom wall of the chamber which is at a distance from the nozzle, p1 means for inserting a shower of cullet into the chamber through the roof opening, and
• means for protecting the walls of the chamber from the radiant energy of the flame and from impingement by the flame, said means controlling the fall of the shower of cullet to form a shroud around the flame and to heat the shower of cullet and to form the cullet into an annular ridge of unmelted cullet on the top surface of the molten glass bath,
• the distance of the nozzle from the glass bath being sufficient to allow the flame to heat the falling cullet in the shroud,
• whereby said ridge deflects the flame upwardly when the flame bounces from the bath of molten glass so that the flame does not bounce horizontally and impinge directly against the near surface of the side walls, and
• the shower of cullet shrouds the flame and protects the furnace walls from the radiant energy of the flame and from impingement by the flame, and the cullet picks up heat from the flame before falling onto the bath of molten glass,
• said roof opening having a wall which is flared outwardly from top to bottom,
• the flame injecting means being an oxygen and gas burner,
• the cullet inserting means being a hopper mounted above the roof opening having a hopper opening which connects with the roof opening,
• the means for shrouding the flame with the cullet being a burner spout having a flared end positioned below the cullet inserting means and adapted to be impinged upon by the cullet to spread the cullet to form a shroud around the flame, and
• means for varying the thickness of the wall of the cullet shroud and for varying the thickness of the annulr ridge of cullet on the top surface of the molten glass bath,
• said thickness varying means comprising
• a burner spout having a flared end positioned below an exit opening in a cullet hopper and adapted to be impinged upon by the cullet to spread the cullet into said shroud,
• said flared end of the burner spout forming an annular ring with the edge of the hopper opening,
• and means for moving the burner spout upwardly and downwardly in the hopper opening to vary the thickness of the annular ring between said flared end of the spout and the edge of the hopper opening.

A process for improving oxygen burner performance in a glass furnace having a chamber with a bottom wall connected to a roof wall by side walls, with an opening in the roof wall, said walls having refractory surfaces, said glass furnace being adapted to have a molten glass bath in the bottom and being adapted to be fed by cullet or the like, comprising

• providing a bath of molten glass on the bottom wall of the furnace chamber,
• injecting a flame from a nozzle downwardly into the chamber through the roof opening to impinge against the molten glass, which is at a distance from the nozzle, and bounce therefrom,
• protecting the furnace walls from radiant energy of and impringement by the flame by controlling the fall of a shower of cullet into the chamber so as to form the shower of cullet into a shroud surrounding the flame and to form an annular ridge of heated unmelted cullet on the top surface of the molten glass bath,
• heating the shower of cullet while in the shroud by the flame before the cullet falls onto the bath of molten glass, the length of the flame being sufficiently long to heat the cullet in the shroud, and
• deflecting the flame upwardly with said ridge when the flame bounces from the bath of molten glass so that the flame does not bounce horizontally and impinge against the near surface of the side walls.