US 6,244,197 B1 · Thermal induced cooling of industrial furnace components

Abstract

Chimney-like cooling passages that have opposite outlet and inlet end regions open to ambient air also have central regions that extend through heated components of industrial furnaces. The passages preferably are defined by conduits that are oriented and configured in a manner that enables thermally induced flows of ambient air to self establish through the conduits to cool the furnace components once the furnace components become heated. The passages function like chimneys, with each having its outlet located higher than its inlet so that ambient air will effectively rise as it flows from the inlet to the outlet. The passages may provide increases in cross-sectional area somewhere along their lengths so that heated ambient air expanding in the passages is encouraged to discharge from the less restrictive, larger area outlets rather than from the smaller area inlets. If the passages are defined by conduits formed from high heat resistant metal such as stainless steel, and if the conduits have central regions that are embedded in furnace components formed from cast refractory materials, end regions of the conduits may be connected to a framework that supports the cast refractory components, whereby the conduits serve both to cool and to mount the cast refractory components on the framework.

Claims60

Dependent claims

A method of cooling a component formed from cast refractory material having two faces that, during use, is subjected to high heat on one face thereof, comprising the steps of:

a) providing at least one passage through the interior of the cast refractory material component that extends continuously between spaced openings located near opposite ends of the passage and which are on the other face of the component;
and,
b) positioning the cast refractory material component so that, when the component is subjected to heat on the one face thereof during use, the spaced openings are at differing vertical levels and communicate with a body of relatively cooler ambient air at the other face, with at least one of the openings defining an inlet to the passage that is located below at least another of the openings defining an outlet to the passage, so that ambient air may enter the passage inlet, may become convectively heated and rise upwardly through the said at least one passage in the absence of any mechanical inducement to air flow, and may discharge from the passage outlet, thereby to establish a flow of ambient air through the passage to cool the component as it is heated on the one face thereof.

A method of cooling a component formed from cast refractory material having two faces that becomes heated to temperatures well above ambient temperature during use with a self-cooling capability that occurs when the component is subjected to heat on one face thereof, and that provides additional cooling as the component becomes hotter, comprising the steps of

a) providing at least one passage through the interior of the cast refractory material component that extends continuously between spaced inlet and outlet openings located near opposite ends of the passage and which are on the other face of the component;
and,
b) positioning the cast refractory material component with the outlet opening located above the inlet opening so that, when the component is subjected to heat on the one face thereof during use, the spaced openings communicate with a body of relatively cooler ambient air at the other face of the component to permit ambient air to enter the inlet opening, to become convectively heated and rise upwardly through the said at least one passage in the absence of any mechanical inducement to air flow, and to discharge from the passage outlet opening, thereby to establish a flow of cooler ambient air through the passage to cool the component as it is heated on the one face thereof, with the rate of said flow increasing as the temperature of the component increases while being subjected to heat on one face thereof during use.

A method of providing a self-cooling mount for a cast refractory component of an industrial furnace, comprising the steps of:

a) providing a mold having an interior that defines the desired exterior configuration of at least a portion of the component;
b) positioning a metal conduit so that a central region of the conduit extends through a central region of the mold, and so that opposite ends of the metal conduit, which respectively define an inlet and an outlet, extend beyond the desired exterior configuration defined by the mold:
c) pouring castable refractory material into the mold to form the component with the central region of the conduit establishing a gaseous coolant flow passage that extends interiorly through the component;
and,
d) positioning the component with the metal conduit therein so that, when the component is subjected to significant heat during use, the outlet is positioned to communicate with a body of ambient air at a location above where the inlet communicates with the body of ambient air so that as ambient air is heated in the conduit central region and rises, ambient air may enter the lower-positioned inlet may become heated and rise through the central region, in the absence of any mechanical inducement to air flow and may discharge from the outlet, thereby to establish a flow of coolant ambient air through the flow passage to cool the component as it is heated during use.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Thermal induced cooling of industrial furnace components

Life of this patent

Thermal induced cooling of industrial furnace components

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims60