COOLING PANEL FOR METALLURGICAL FURNACE

Abstract

A cooling panel for a metallurgical furnace includes a body with a front face and an opposite rear face, a top face and an opposite bottom face and two opposite side faces. The body has at least one cooling channel therein, the cooling channel having openings in the rear face; wherein, in use, the front face of the body is turned towards a furnace interior. According to the invention, the cooling panel having at least one cooling pipe arranged in at least one elongate recess formed in the front face, where the cooling pipe has an elongate middle section and at either end thereof, an angled branch, the cooling pipe forming the cooling channel, and where the cooling pipe is arranged in the elongate recess such that the angled branches protrude through the openings in the rear face of the body.

Claims

1. A cooling panel for a metallurgical furnace comprising a body with a front face and an opposite rear face, a top face and an opposite bottom face and two opposite side faces, said body having at least one cooling channel therein, said cooling channel having openings in said rear face; wherein, in use, said front face of said body is turned towards a furnace interior, at least one cooling pipe having an elongate middle section and at either end thereof, an angled branch, said at least one cooling pipe forming said cooling channel, wherein said body comprises at least one elongate recess formed in said front face, said at least one cooling pipe being arranged in said at least one elongate recess such that said angled branches protrude through said openings in said rear face of said body.

2. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein said at least one cooling pipe has a front face with a profile which, when arranged in said body, matches the profile of said front face of said body.

3. The cooling panel according to claim 2, wherein said front face of said body has a structured surface with alternating ribs and grooves and wherein said front face of said at least one cooling pipe has a matching structured surface with alternating ribs and grooves.

4. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein said front face of said at least one cooling pipe is integrally formed with said at least one cooling pipe.

5. The cooling panel according to claim 4, wherein said at least one cooling pipe and front face are formed by extrusion, machining, casting or 3D-printing.

6. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein said middle section of said at least one cooling pipe has round, oblong or rectangular cross-section.

7. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein said at least one elongate recess and said at least one cooling pipe are formed so as to provide a self-locking arrangement.

8. The cooling panel according to claim 7, wherein one of said at least one elongate recess and said at least one cooling pipe comprises a protrusion and wherein the other one of said at least one elongate recess and said at least one cooling pipe comprises a channel for receiving said protrusion therein.

9. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said ribs of said body and at least one of said ribs of said cooling pipe is provided with cooperating through holes, wherein said through holes are in alignment when said at least one cooling pipe is arranged within said at least one elongate recess, and wherein a bolt is arranged through said through holes.

10. The cooling panel according to claim 9, wherein said bolt comprises threaded shaft ends and wherein nuts are provided for cooperating with said shaft ends.

11. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein said at least one elongate recess formed in said front face in a direction essentially parallel to said side faces of said body.

12. The cooling panel according to claim 1, wherein said at least one elongate recess formed in said front face in a direction essentially perpendicular to said side faces of said body.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] Further details and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent from the following detailed description of several not limiting embodiments with reference to the attached drawings, wherein:

[0030] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cooling panel according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0031] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a body of the cooling panel of FIG. 1;

[0032] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a cooling pipe of the cooling panel of FIG. 1;

[0033] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a cooling panel according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0034] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a body of the cooling panel of FIG. 4;

[0035] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a cooling pipe of the cooling panel of FIG. 4;

[0036] FIG. 7 is a cross-section view across the cooling panel of FIG. 4; and

[0037] FIG. 8 is a series of cross-sections across cooling panels according to further embodiments

[0038] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a cooling panel according to a further embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] FIG. 1 schematically shows a cooling panel 10 according to a first embodiment of the disclosure, wherein the cooling panel 10 comprises a body 12 typically formed from a slab e.g. made of a cast or forged body of copper, copper alloy, cast iron, steel or a hybrid combination of these materials. The body 12 has a front face 14 (often referred to as hot face) for facing the interior of a metallurgical furnace and an opposite rear face 16 (often referred to as cold face) for facing the furnace shell. The essentially rectangular body 12 of the cooling panel 10 has a top face 18 and an opposite bottom face 20 and two opposite side faces 22, 24. At least one cooling channel is arranged within the body 12 for feeding coolant therethrough. The body 12 has openings in the rear face 16 corresponding to the inlet and outlet ends of the cooling channel.

[0040] As is known in the art, the front face 14 of body 12 advantageously has a structured surface, in particular with alternating ribs 26 and grooves 28. When the cooling panel 10 is mounted in the furnace, the grooves 28 and lamellar ribs 26 are generally arranged horizontally to provide an anchoring means for a refractory brick lining (not shown).

[0041] The cooling panel 10 comprises an elongate recess 30 (better seen in FIG. 2) in its front face 14. Such an elongate recess 30 may, as shown in FIG. 2, extend from the top face 18 to the bottom face 20.

[0042] The cooling panel 10 further comprises a cooling pipe 32 as shown in FIG. 3. Such a cooling pipe 32 has an elongate middle section 34 and at either end thereof, an angled branch 36, 38. The cooling pipe 32 is dimensioned so as to snuggly fit inside an elongate recess 30 in the body 12, while the angled branches 36, 38 protrude from the rear face 16 of the body 12. The middle section 34 of the cooling pipe 34 forms the cooling channel within the body 12, while the angled branches 36, 38 form the coolant feed pipes.

[0043] The cooling pipe 32 further has a front face 40 with a structured surface with cut-out sections 42 forming alternating ribs 44 and grooves 46. The ribs 44 and grooves 46 of the front face 40 of the cooling pipe 32 are formed such that, when the cooling pipe 32 is arranged in the elongate recess 30 of the body 12, they match the ribs 26 and grooves 28 of the front face 14 of the body 12.

[0044] The cooling pipe 32 has a shape that is complementary to the elongate recess 30 formed in the front face 14 of the body 12.

[0045] In order to maintain the cooling pipe 32 in the elongate recess 30, the elongate recess 30 is provided with a protrusion 48 which cooperates with a channel 50 arranged in a lateral portion of the cooling pipe 32 thus providing a self-locking construction.

[0046] Once the cooling pipe 32 is arranged in the elongate recess 30, the cooling pipe is securely maintained in place by the protrusion 48 and channel 50 arrangement. As the cooling pipe 32 has a shape complementary to the elongate recess 30, the cooling pipe 32 and body 12 form the cooling panel 10 and heat transfer between the front face 14 of the cooling panel 10 and the coolant circulating in the cooling pipe 32 is maintained.

[0047] Typical cooling panels 10 comprise a plurality of cooling channels in order to provide a heat evacuating protection screen between the interior of the furnace and the outer furnace shell. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a cooling panel 10 is provided with three such cooling channels. In other words, the body 12 comprises three elongate recesses 30 and three cooling pipes 32 arranged therein.

[0048] During operation of a blast furnace or similar, the refractory brick lining erodes due to the descending burden material, causing the cooling panels to be unprotected and exposed to the harsh environment inside the blast furnace.

[0049] The front face 14 of body 12 may be provided with means for protecting the cooling panel against abrasion. One example of such means may be metal inserts (not shown) arranged in the grooves 28, 46.

[0050] However, as the cooling panel 10 is exposed to the harsh environment inside the blast furnace, abrasion of the cooling panel 10 and the cooling pipe 32 occurs. If the cooling pipe 32 is damaged, coolant from the cooling pipe 32 can leak into the furnace. In this case, the damaged cooling pipe 32 is removed and replaced with a new, undamaged cooling pipe 32.

[0051] It should be noted that the cooling pipe 32 of the present disclosure can also be used to repair a damaged cooling channel of a traditional cooling panel. A cooling channel within the body of such a traditional cooling panel is generally obtained by any known means, such as e.g. casting or drilling. A feed pipe is attached to the rear face of the cooling panel by welding and coolant is fed through the cooling channel. The coolant is in direct contact with the material of the body of the cooling panel. If the cooling panel is, in operation, damaged such that abrasion or a crack is formed between the cooling channel and the front face of the cooling panel, coolant from the cooling channel can leak into the furnace. In order to repair such a cooling panel, an elongate recess may be cut into the front face of the cooling panel. A cooling pipe 32 according to the present disclosure may then be installed in the elongate recess and the cooling panel may be used again.

[0052] FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 schematically show a cooling panel 10 according to a second embodiment of the disclosure. As many of the features of this second embodiment are identical with the ones of the first embodiment they will not be repeated here. Mainly the differences are highlighted. As seen in FIG. 6, the cooling pipe 32 has a front face 40 which is considerably wider than the cross-section of the middle section 34 it is connected to. Again, the elongate recess 30 in the front face 14 of the body 12 is shaped so as to be complementary to the shape of the cooling pipe 32 such that the cooling pipe 32 snuggly fits therein. FIG. 5 also shows the openings 52, 54 in the rear face 16 of the body 12, through which the angled branches 36, 38 are fed.

[0053] In order to secure the cooling pipe 32 in the elongate recess 30, some of the ribs 26 of the body 12 and some of the ribs 44 of the cooling pipe 32 are provided with cooperating through holes 56, 58. When the cooling pipe 32 is correctly arranged within the elongate recess 30, the through holes 56, 58 are in alignment and a bolt 60 is passed therethrough. FIG. 7 is a cross-section view across the cooling panel 10 of FIG. 4 and shows three cooling pipes 32 arranged in three elongate recesses 40. FIG. 7 also shows the shaft 60 passing across the ribs 26, 44 of both the body 12 and the cooling pipe 32. At each end of the shaft 60, a nut 62 may be arranged for cooperating with a threaded end of the bolt 60. By tightening the nuts 62, the connection between the body 12 and the cooling pipe 32 can be made stronger. This not only ensures that the cooling pipe 32 remains in place, but also improves the heat transfer between the cooling pipe 32 and the body 12.

[0054] FIG. 8 shows further embodiments of the cooling panel 10 to illustrate further designs. The middle section 34 of the cooling pipe 32 may e.g. have round cross-section as shown in A and C or oblong cross-section as shown in B. In fact, any cross-section that can be obtained by forging, casting or 3D-printing may be envisaged.

[0055] The front face 40 of the cooling pipe 32 may be of various shape and/or width. In A, the front face 40 has a width such that the front faces of neighboring cooling pipes 32 come into contact with each other such that the front face of the body 12 becomes obsolete. In B and C, on the other hand, the front face 40 of the cooling pipe 32 has a width barely exceeding the cross-section of the middle section 34. It should be noted that these are variations that may be applied to both the first and second embodiments described above.

[0056] The body 12 of the cooling panel 10 may be made of copper, steel, cast iron or any alloy based thereon. Similarly, the cooling pipe 32 may be made of copper, steel, cast iron or any alloy based thereon.

[0057] A further embodiment of the disclosure is shown in FIG. 9, wherein the elongate recess 30 is arranged in a direction parallel to the ribs and grooves 26, 28 of the front face 14 of the body 12 of the cooling panel 10. The elongate recess 30 may be entirely arranged within the rib 26; preferably the elongate recess 30 extends over the whole length of the rib 26, i.e. from one side face 22 to the other 24. The front face 40 of the cooling pipe 32 is formed so as to completely fill the elongate recess 30, then the cooling pipe 32 is installed therein, such that the front face 40 of the cooling pipe 32 is flush with the rib 26.