Apparatus and method for melting and homogenizing batch material

Abstract

An electric furnace for melting batch material and mixing the molten material. Electrodes are used to create what is believed to be electromagnetically stirred active melting areas within the molten material. The molten material is stirred by moving the electrodes and furnace shell with respect to each other while the electrodes are positioned in a corona discharge relationship to the melt. This can be implemented by rotating the electrodes or the shell or by a compound movement caused by moving the electrode support arms toward and away from the center of the vessel in timed relationship to pivotal movement of electrode support arms so as to cause the electrode tips to traverse an arcuate path concentric with the center of the vessel. In a shallow immersion, simple pivoting of the electrode support arms is beneficial. To further decrease the dead area within a furnace vessel utilizing electrodes which are shallowly immersed, the vessel can be made polygonal as opposed to circular in lateral cross section. The support arms can also be vertically moved toward and away from the furnace bottom in any of the arrangements so as to cause additional stirring.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.