Method of operating cokeless cupola
AssigneeCokeless Cupolas Limited
InventorsRichard T. Taft, David R. Edwards, Reiner Graf
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The conventional operation of a cokeless cupola furnace has a requirement for a low volume of slag to be produced, because of the fact that there is no ash from coke to remove from the charge, and the fact that flux added to the charge to form slag eats away at the furnace lining, and at the bed of refractory spheres. Running the furnace at low slag volumes makes the slag thick and can cause blockage of the slagging and tapping box. The invention adds more flux materials than is conventional, preferably including silica in the form of broken bottles, so as to deliberately increase the volume of slag, improving the flow. Care must be taken not to add too much slag-forming materials.
Claims19
A method of operating a cokeless cupola metal-melting furnace, the furnace being a kind in which the charge is supported on a bed of heat-exchange bodies of a predominantly silica, alumina composition, comprising the steps of continually monitoring the composition and viscosity of the emerging slag and, as a consequence of the information obtained, adjusting the composition of the slag-forming fluxing agents which are incorporated in the charge along with the metal, the fluxing agents comprising largely limestone and/or dollastone and the adjustment being at least partially obtained by additions of glass or gravel or other silica-containing materials to alter the viscosity and/or volume of the resulting slag so as to keep them just sufficiently low to ensure continuous flow of the slag from the top of the bed of heat-exchange bodies down through the bed, and at the same time ensuring that the minimum amount of fluxing agents necessary to achieve this result are added so as to minimise consumption of the heat exchange bodies.
A method of operating a cokeless cupola metal-melting furnace, the furnace being a kind in which the charge is supported on a bed of heat-exchange bodies of a predominantly silica, alumina composition, comprising the steps of continually monitoring the composition and viscosity of the emerging slag and, as a consequence of the information obtained, adjusting the composition of the slag-forming fluxing agents which are incorporated in the charge along with the metal, the fluxing agents comprising largely limestone and/or dollastone and the adjustment being at least partially obtained by additions of glass or gravel or other silica-containing materials to alter the viscosity and/or volume of the resulting slag and keep it just sufficiently low to ensure continuous flow of the slag from the furnace during tapping.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.