Apparatus for injecting gas into high temperature liquids, e.g. molten metals

A gas injection nozzle, for installation in the wall of a vessel and for use in injecting gas into a liquid contained therein, comprising a refractory nozzle body having a passage therein and a gas porous or foraminous closing means closing the passage at a discharge end of the body, a gas supply duct structure extending from the said closing means along the passage to an inlet end for operative connection to a gas supply, and closely fitted in the passage about the duct structure is a cartridge containing a filling of particulate refractory matter, the cartridge having a filling-retaining wall which is thermally disintegratable whereby, upon disintegration in use, the particulate filling is released to settle in the passage and completely block the passage against leakage of liquid which may enter the passage.

A gas injector for an injection nozzle installed in a wall of a vessel for containing liquid such as molten metal, the injector in combination comprising (i) a gas-porous or foraminous refractory block for use to close a discharge end of a passage of said nozzle and (ii) gas-feeding means affixed in operative, substantially gas-tight relationship with the refractory block, in use for admitting gas to the block for injection into liquid, the gas-feeding means including an elongate duct structure which can be extended or contracted to vary its length yet capable of providing a substantially leak-tight gas feed path to the block.

A cartridge for use in a gas injection nozzle passage for protection against metal leakage into the passage, the cartridge comprising an annular body having inner and outer walls with a space therebetween filled with a packing of particulate refractory material, the particulate material being retained in the said space between wads of fibrous refractory material.

A cartridge for use in a gas injection nozzle passage for protection against metal leakage into the passage, the cartridge comprising an annular shell defining an inner longitudinal passage and made of a fibrous refractory material, and its inner passage having a gas-porous packing of particulate refractory material which is retained in this passage between compressible wads of fibrous refractory material.

A cartridge for use in a gas injection nozzle passage to guard against metal leakage into the passage, the cartridge comprising a generally cup-shaped housing and having a resilient, coiled extensible metal duct located therein with its ends projecting substantially axially from the housing, and the duct is embedded in a packing of particulate refractory material which substantially completely fills the cartridge housing.