Furnace

Abstract

A furnace as described in this invention comprises a temperature regulating portion to assist in melting a non-ferrous material, such as an aluminium, and to reserve said material for the subsequent casting or injection molding procedure. The furnace provides a mean to eliminate an oxide, such as iron oxide, which generally floats on the top layer of a molten material inside a melting portion and a heating portion by preventing the flow of said oxide into the temperature regulating portion. A sensor or any detector that can detect the level of the molten material is utilized to measure the surface level of said molten material. A temperature regulating burner, which is a flat flame type, is utilized on the ceiling of the temperature regulating portion in order to prevent any oxidation reaction to occur as well as to reduce the concentration of oxygen inside the portion.

Claims

1. A furnace wherein the furnace comprises the following components: a furnace wall; a pre-heating portion comprising a lid with a material insert channel; a melting portion and an inclined hearth below the pre-heating portion; a first burner above the inclined hearth; a heating portion comprising an oxide-eliminating door and a connecting passage, wherein the heating portion is configured to hold a molten material that has been melted by the first burner in the melting portion and that has flowed over the inclined hearth; a temperature regulating portion for storing the molten material, the temperature regulating portion comprising a temperature regulating burner which emits a flame, wherein the connecting passage has an inclined or curved bottom and wherein the connecting passage allows molten material to flow from the heating portion into the temperature regulating portion; a separator for forming the connecting passage wherein the separator comprises a lower edge that is located below a liquid surface of the molten material inside the heating portion and a liquid surface of the molten material inside the temperature regulating portion, when there is molten material in the furnace; and an exit channel for the molten material, wherein the temperature regulating portion is a closed system, and wherein the temperature regulating burner is configured to control the oxygen concentration in the temperature regulating portion to 0-5%.

2. The furnace according to claim 1, further comprising a sensor for detecting the level of molten material, wherein the sensor is located in the exit channel.

3. The furnace according to claim 1, wherein the temperature regulating burner is a flat flame burner.

4. The furnace according to claim 1 wherein the temperature regulating portion further comprises: a heat exchanger on one part of the furnace wall or on a ceiling lid.

5. The furnace according to claim 1 wherein the temperature regulating portion is a closed system without a door.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is showing the top view of the furnace of this invention;

(2) FIG. 2 is showing the cross-sectional side view C of the furnace of this invention;

(3) FIG. 3 is showing the cross-sectional side view A of the furnace of this invention;

(4) FIG. 4 is showing the cross-sectional side view B of the furnace of this invention;

(5) FIG. 5 is showing the top view of furnace in the prior arts;

(6) FIG. 6 is showing the cross-sectional side view A of furnace in the prior arts:

(7) FIG. 7 is showing the cross-sectional side view C of furnace in the prior arts; and

(8) FIG. 8 is showing the cross-sectional side view B of furnace in the prior arts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(9) FIG. 1 is showing one embodiment of the top view of the furnace according to this invention which comprises various components as illustrated in the cross-sectional view C of FIG. 2, the cross-sectional view A of FIG. 3, and the cross-sectional view B of FIG. 4. The furnace comprises a material insert channel (17) and a lid (16) wherein once the material is inserted inside the channel (17), it will be moved into a pre-heating portion (5). Below the pre-heating portion (5) is a melting portion (6) and an inclined hearth (15). The upper side of the inclined hearth (15) comprises a burner (9) wherein the material will be melted by heat of the flame of the burner (9) in the melting portion (6) before flowing downward on the inclined hearth (15) into a molten material heating portion (7). The heating portion (7) is used to maintain and to increase temperature of the molten material (1a) and the portion (7) comprises an oxide elimination door (14a) and (14b). The heating portion (7) further comprises a connecting passage (2) for a molten material (1a) to flow into a temperature regulating portion (3) which can hold a molten material (1b) before a molten material (1c) exits the furnace through an exit channel (4). The furnace according to this invention especially comprises the temperature regulating portion (3) wherein said portion (3) comprises the connecting passage (2) for holding the molten material (1a) and the exit channel (4) for discharging the molten material (1c). The connecting passage (2) further connects to the lower part of the pre-heating portion (5), the melting portion (6), the inclined hearth (15) and the heating portion (7).

(10) The connecting passage (2) can protect the furnace against an oxide generation (21a) that generally floats on top of the molten material (1a) which moves from the melting portion (6) and the heating portion (7) into the temperature regulating portion (3) wherein the connecting passage (2) is located below a lower edge (13) of a separator (10) and then flows into the temperature regulation portion (3). The lower base of connecting passage (2) is characterized by an inclined surface that plunges below the position of the lower edge (13). A molten material detector or a sensor (8) is located in proximity to the exit channel (4) or on any part of the furnace wherein the detector (8) can effectively detect and maintain the top surface level and, thus, the height of the molten material (1a), (1b), (1c) above the lower edge (13) of the separator (10) without pumping or discharging the material (1c) from the exit channel (4) so that the oxide (21a) from the heating portion (7) will not be mixed with the molten material (1b) within the temperature regulating portion (3).

(11) Inside the temperature regulating portion (3) comprises a heat exchanger (20) to adjust temperature of the air used in the combustion or at least one hole in the lower edge (13) between the heating portion (7) and the temperature regulation portion (3) or at least one hole and one heat exchanger (20) that may have an effect on the reduction in the energy used in the combustion. Further a temperature regulating burner (12) is located on a ceiling lid (11) of the portion (3) wherein the burner (12) preferably emits a band of flat flame on the ceiling. The flat flame of the burner (12) can also control the oxygen concentration to 1-5%, more preferably less than 1%, of the total combustible gas inside the temperature regulating portion (3) to reduce the thickness of the oxide on the top layer of the molten material (1b).

(12) Unlike the conventional temperature regulating portion (3) which needed to be cleaned up regularly and, thereby, required a temperature regulating door (24) as illustrated in FIG. 6 to eliminate the metal oxide from the furnace, this invention does not require an installation of temperature regulating door (24), but rather utilizes a temperature regulating burner (12) with flat flame which can control the amount of oxygen inside the temperature regulating portion (3) of the furnace and which further comprises the detector or sensor to measure the amount of oxygen inside the temperature regulating portion (3) to reduce the amount of oxide produced. Such configuration as described can also reduce the weight of oxide in the furnace and, at the same time, reduce energy consumption and manpower to clean-up the furnace.

(13) The above process is only one of the variations of this invention and is, by no means, limited to the description as stated above. One can improve upon or modify the components if they are in line with the intention of this invention, such as by having the burner (12) located on the ground surface (19) of the temperature regulating portion (3) or by having an immersion heater or heating tube which is induced by electricity or fuel gas or by having a metal-based heater or burner on the ceiling lid (11) or by having a fiber or porous material based heater or burner which can provide a structure that enables the air to flow through the surface structure.

(14) In an instance of utilizing the immersion heating tube or metal-based heater in the ceiling lid (11) inside the temperature regulating portion (3), to prevent or stop the molten material (1b) from quickly undergoing oxidation reaction, it may be necessary to inject an inert gas to reduce the oxygen concentration inside the temperature regulating portion (3).