Process and installation for maintaining the lining of a furnace shell

Metal melting installation located in a workshop having a lower floor and an operative floor which is raised relative to said lower floor, said intallation comprising

• (a) a shell constituted of two parts, namely, a bottom and a cooled side wall, adapted to be separated and covered by a refractory lining;
• (b) a work floor placed in a corresponding opening of said operative floor and supported on said operative floor by supporting means permitting a light inclination of said work floor about a horizontal axis;
• (c) a central aperture in said work floor and having a section greater than that of said bottom so that the latter can pass freely in the vertical direction inside said central aperture;
• (d) detachable locking means for removably locking said bottom on said work floor in an upper operating position in which said bottom is placed in contact and in line with said side wall, the latter being directly supported by said work floor;
• (e) a frame on which said bottom is fixed, said frame being vertically movable along vertical guides extending between said lower floor and said work floor;
• (f) means for raising and lowering said movable frame with said bottom between said upper operating position and a lower handling position;
• and
• (g) means for transporting said movable frame with said bottom between said lower handling position and a maintenance station away from the furnace.

Metal melting installation located in a workshop having a lower floor and an operative floor which is raised relative to said lower floor, said installation comprising

• (a) two support blocks located on each side of a vertical axis;
• (b) a work floor in the form of a frame placed in a corresponding opening of said operating floor and supported on said support blocks by supporting means permitting a slight inclination of said work floor about a horizontal axis;
• (c) vertical guides extending between said lower floor and said work floor;
• (d) a support frame vertically movable along said vertical guides;
• (e) a shell centered on said vertical axis and constituted of two parts covered by a refractory lining and adapted to be separated, said two parts being a fixed cooled side wall and a removable bottom, said cooled side-wall being directly supported by said work floor and said bottom being fixed on said support frame;
• (f) a central aperture provided in said work floor and having a section greater than that of said bottom so that the latter can pass freely in the vertical direction inside said central aperture;
• (g) means for raising and lowering said support frame with said bottom between a lower handling position placed between said support blocks in the axis of the shell and of the support frame and an upper operative position in which said bottom is placed in contact and in line with said side wall;
• (h) means for laterally holding and means for removably locking said bottom relative to said work floor in its upper operating position;
• (i) at least one further bottom and one further support frame placed in a maintenance station;
• and
• (j) means for transporting said support frame with said bottom from said lower handling position to said maintenance station and for transporting said further support frame with said further bottom from said maintenance station to said lower handling position.