Apparatus and method for electrically heating a refractory lined vessel by directly passing current througth an electrically conductive refractory via a resilient electrote assembly

An electrical heating assembly for preheating or controlling the temperature of the refractory lining of a refractory lined chemical process vessel from ambient temperature up to a desired or operating temperature for operation of a chemical process, said heating assembly comprising in combination:

• a) a housing attached to and penetrating at least one wall of said reactor and having a distal end and a proximal end from said reactor wall;
• b) said distal end of said housing having an outer interface connecting means sealably and insulatingly penetrating said housing and said outer interface connecting means having a first end connected to a resilient conductor and a second end connected to a power source connector;
• c) said resilient conductor being connected at its other end to the second end of an inner interface connecting means and at its first end electrically attached to a transition connector;
• d) said transition connector being connected at its first end to a electrically conductive refractory block;
• e) said electrically conductive refractory block being electrically insulated from and spaced apart from said reactor vessel wall and in conductive contact with a plurality of similar electrically conductive refractory blocks, whereby when another heating assembly is attached to a spaced apart electrically conductive refractory block, an impressed voltage causes current to flow between said heating assemblies and said electrically conductive refractory block therebetween to be heated resistively.