High heat flux furnace cooler comprise CuNi pipe coils cast inside pours of high purity (99%-Wt) copper. The depth of front copper cover over the pipe coils in the hot face to manufacture into the casting is derived from a projection of the thermal and stress conditions existing at the cooler's end-of-campaign-life. CFD and/or FEA analyses and modeling is used for a trial-and-error zeroing in of the optimum geometries to employ in the original casting of CuNi pipe coils in high purity copper casting. Individual pipe coil positions to cast inside a copper casting mold are secured with devices that will not melt, cause thermal shear stresses, or be the source of contaminations or copper defects. Pipe bonding to the casting results because the differential coefficient of expansions of the pipes' and the casting's copper alloys involved do not exceed the yield strength of the casting copper during operational thermal cycling.

High heat flux furnace cooler comprise CuNi pipe coils cast inside pours of high purity (99%-Wt) copper. The depth of front copper cover over the pipe coils in the hot face to manufacture into the casting is derived from a projection of the thermal and stress conditions existing at the cooler's end-of-campaign-life. CFD and/or FEA analyses and modeling is used for a trial-and-error zeroing in of the optimum geometries to employ in the original casting of CuNi pipe coils in high purity copper casting. Individual pipe coil positions to cast inside a copper casting mold are secured with devices that will not melt, cause thermal shear stresses, or be the source of contaminations or copper defects. Pipe bonding to the casting results because the differential coefficient of expansions of the pipes' and the casting's copper alloys involved do not exceed the yield strength of the casting copper during operational thermal cycling.

A furnace system including an outer shell which comprises a top flange, an elongated body portion, and a bottom flange, wherein the outer shell is a pressure vessel, with no penetrations in the elongated body portion; a heater assembly which comprises (i) a single-piece annular shaped insulation layer, and (ii) a plurality of heaters embedded in the insulation layer, wherein the heater assembly is disposed within the elongated body portion of the outer shell; and an innermost layer disposed within the annular-shaped insulation layer, wherein the innermost layer is a baffle tube configured to force a natural convective flow, wherein each of the plurality of heaters is individually controllable and the plurality of heaters are configured to heat different zones within the furnace to different temperatures and/or at different rates. The system may be used to heat treat magnet materials, such as those formed of Bi-2212, therein.

A thermal shielding system for thermally shielding a batch space of high-temperature furnaces includes at least one shielding element. The shielding element has an encasing wall formed of refractory metal sheet(s) and a ceramic material accommodated in the wall. The ceramic material is present in a particulate and/or fibrous structure and it is based on zirconium oxide (ZrO.sub.2)

A thermal shielding system for thermally shielding a batch space of high-temperature furnaces includes at least one shielding element. The shielding element has an encasing wall formed of refractory metal sheet(s) and a ceramic material accommodated in the wall. The ceramic material is present in a particulate and/or fibrous structure and it is based on zirconium oxide (ZrO.sub.2)

The invention relates to a method for producing an expanded granulate from sand grain-shaped mineral material (1) with a propellant, wherein the material (1) is fed into a vertically upright furnace (2) from above and said material (1) falls along a drop section (4) through multiple heating zones (5) in a furnace shaft (3) of the furnace (2), wherein each heating zone (5) is heatable using at least one independently controllable heating element (6), and the material (1) is heated to a critical temperature at which the surfaces (7) of the sand grains (15) plasticize and the sand grains (15) are expanded by the propellant. In order to enable setting a closed surface of the expanded granulate in a purposeful fashion, it is provided in accordance with the invention that upon detection of a first reduction in the temperature of the material (1) between two successive positions (9) along the drop section (4) the heating elements (6) are controlled along the remaining drop section (4) depending on the critical temperature.

The invention relates to a method for producing an expanded granulate from sand grain-shaped mineral material (1) with a propellant, wherein the material (1) is fed into a vertically upright furnace (2) from above and said material (1) falls along a drop section (4) through multiple heating zones (5) in a furnace shaft (3) of the furnace (2), wherein each heating zone (5) is heatable using at least one independently controllable heating element (6), and the material (1) is heated to a critical temperature at which the surfaces (7) of the sand grains (15) plasticize and the sand grains (15) are expanded by the propellant. In order to enable setting a closed surface of the expanded granulate in a purposeful fashion, it is provided in accordance with the invention that upon detection of a first reduction in the temperature of the material (1) between two successive positions (9) along the drop section (4) the heating elements (6) are controlled along the remaining drop section (4) depending on the critical temperature.

A blast furnace for ironmaking production wherein iron ore is at least partly reduced by a reducing gas which is injected in the stack of the blast furnace. The blast furnace includes an external and an internal wall, having a thickness T.sub.int, in contact with matters charged into the blast furnace. The thickness T.sub.int of the internal wall is substantially constant above and below the injection area of a reducing gas.

A blast furnace for ironmaking production wherein iron ore is at least partly reduced by a reducing gas which is injected in the stack of the blast furnace. The blast furnace includes an external and an internal wall, having a thickness T.sub.int, in contact with matters charged into the blast furnace. The thickness T.sub.int of the internal wall is substantially constant above and below the injection area of a reducing gas.

A heat storage device such as a hot blast stove including a heat regeneration checkerwork made of checker bricks, the checkerwork being supported by a support assembly (16). In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, the support assembly having a carrier structure made of refractory material and carrier floor also made of refractory material, the carrier floor resting on the carrier structure and being arranged and formed to carry the checker bricks of the checkerwork.