A feedstock charger includes a charger conduit and a feedstock conveyor rotatably and translatably carried in the charger conduit. According to a method of using the feedstock charger, feedstock is supplied to the feedstock conveyor of the feedstock charger, feedstock is allowed to fall through the charger conduit and out of an outlet of the charger conduit, and the feedstock conveyor is rotated and linearly advanced in the charger conduit. Also, a disclosed system includes the feedstock charger is coupled to a submerged combustion melter wherein the charger conduit extends into the melter through a feedstock inlet of the melter.

A system for preheating batch materials in a glass melting furnace includes a preheater having an outlet through which fluid is exhausted and an inlet that receives fluids exhausted from the furnace and recirculated from the preheater outlet. In one embodiment, a cyclonic separator has an inlet in communication with the preheater outlet and an outlet in fluid communication with a fan. A controller controls the speed of the fan responsive to a drop in pressure between the separator inlet and outlet and a temperature at the separator outlet. In other embodiments, controllers control valves that (i) control the amount of fluids exhausted from the preheater that are delivered to a flue and recirculated to the preheater or (ii) control the amount of fluids diverted to charger for the furnace, in response to temperatures in a duct coupled to the preheater inlet.

A thermochemical regenerator system is operated without encountering accumulation of unwanted solids on the interior surfaces of the passages through which flue gas passes.

A method of making a hollow container-shaped glass article composed of soda-lime-silica glass includes forming a particulate feedstock comprised of pulverized soda-lime-silica cullet particles into a hollow monolithic glass container preform without melting the cullet particles. The hollow monolithic glass container preform has a container shape that includes a wall defining an interior containment space and an opening to the interior containment space and, upon formation, has a temperature above the glass transition temperature of the soda-lime-silica glass. The hollow monolithic glass container preform is eventually cooled into a hollow, amorphous soda-lime-silica glass article, such as a partially-formed container or a finished container, that retains the previously-established container shape.

A system for preheating batch materials in a glass melting furnace includes a preheater having an outlet through which fluid is exhausted and an inlet that receives fluids exhausted from the furnace and recirculated from the preheater outlet. In one embodiment, a cyclonic separator has an inlet in communication with the preheater outlet and an outlet in fluid communication with a fan. A controller controls the speed of the fan responsive to a drop in pressure between the separator inlet and outlet and a temperature at the separator outlet. In other embodiments, controllers control valves that (i) control the amount of fluids exhausted from the preheater that are delivered to a flue and recirculated to the preheater or (ii) control the amount of fluids diverted to charger for the furnace, in response to temperatures in a duct coupled to the preheater inlet.

A feed assembly for a melting chamber having a plurality of walls and at least one submerged burner, and related methods of its operation are disclosed. The feed assembly includes a tubular body being hollow and having a first end and extending to a second end. The second end is for connecting to one of the plurality of walls. The tubular body further includes a port proximate the second end wherein the port has a first port end and tapers radially inwardly to a second port end at the second end. The feed assembly also has a batch charger disposed within the tubular body and having a first charger end and extending to a second charger end.

A feed assembly for a melting chamber having a plurality of walls and at least one submerged burner, and related methods of its operation are disclosed. The feed assembly includes a tubular body being hollow and having a first end and extending to a second end. The second end is for connecting to one of the plurality of walls. The tubular body further includes a port proximate the second end wherein the port has a first port end and tapers radially inwardly to a second port end at the second end. The feed assembly also has a batch charger disposed within the tubular body and having a first charger end and extending to a second charger end.

A method of making glass having a basic soda-lime-silica glass portion, and a colorant portion, the colorant portion including total iron as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 in the range of at least 0.00 to no more than 0.02 weight percent, a redox ratio in the range of 0.35 to 0.6, and tin metal providing tin in an amount within the range of greater than 0.005 to 5.0 weight percent; the glass product has a tin side and an opposite air side, said tin side of the glass having a higher concentration of tin than the air side, the air side having a uniform concentration of tin from the air side of the glass product towards the tin side of the glass product.

Installation including an industrial glass furnace (1) including a tank (2) for molten glass (3), a combustion heating chamber (4) situated above the tank (2), and a duct for evacuation of flue gases in communication with said heating chamber (4), and a stone furnace including a firing zone (21) for stone to be fired, the flue gas evacuation duct including a flue gas outlet that is connected to the firing zone (21) of stone to be fired and supplying the firing zone (21) of stone to be fired with flue gases at high temperature.

A method for producing fused silica including pre-heating silica sand by passing the silica sand through a gas flame, distributing the pre-heated silica sand to a furnace having an internal temperature of about 1,713 C. or greater to form molten fused silica, and cooling the molten fused silica by flowing the molten silica from the furnace into a water bath to produce fused silica particulates.