Auxiliary flue for furnaces

• US 4,829,703 A
• Filed: 07/29/1988
• Issued: 05/16/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/1987
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Gas Technology Institute
• Original Assignee: Gas Research Institute (GTI Energy)
• Inventors: Watson, James E., Davies, Theodore E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Favors, Edward G.
• Application Number:
  US07/227,436
• Time in Patent Office: 291 Days
• Field of Search: 432/179, 432/180, 432/181, 110/162
• US Class Current: 432/181
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 21/0084 melting and handling molten aluminium C22B21/02, C22B21/04 and C22B21/06 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F23L 15/02 Arrangements of regenerators
• CPC Class Codes: F27B 17/0083 with means for circulating the atmosphere
• CPC Class Codes: F27D 7/04 Circulating atmospheres by mechanical means
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 20/34 Indirect CO2mitigation, i.e. by acting on non CO2directly related matters of the process, e.g. pre-heating or heat recovery

Abstract

An auxiliary flue is disclosed to vent contaminants from a regenerative burner furnace during secondary operations so as to avoid damage to the burners from such contaminants.

Claims

1. In a furnace with a burner heating a furnace chamber having an operational discharge and the operation of the furnace occasionally including a secondary operation producing physical contaminants harmful to part of the operational discharge, an improvement comprising an auxiliary vent and means to selectively operate said auxiliary vent to allow the physical contaminants from the secondary operation to depart the furnace chamber independently of the part of the operational discharge of the furnace that would be harmed by the physical contaminants.

3. The improved furnace of claim 1 wherein the contaminants are customarily produced in an externally controlled secondary operation in the furnace and characterized in that said auxiliary vent is open on initiation of the externally controlled secondary operation in the furnace.

2. In a furnace with regenerative burners heating a furnace chamber having an operational discharge with part of the operational discharge being through an inactive regenerative burner and the operation of the furnace occasionally including a secondary operation producing physical contaminants harmful to part of the operational discharge, an improvement comprising an auxiliary vent and means to selectively operate said auxiliary vent to allow the physical contaminants from the secondary operation to depart the furnace chamber independently of the part of the operational discharge of the furnace that would be harmed by the physical contaminants.

4. In a furnace with two regenerative burners heating a furnace chamber with the burners alternatively firing into and discharging products of combustion from the furnace chamber into an operational discharge and the operation of the furnace occasionally including a secondary operation producing physical contaminants harmful to part of the operational discharge, an improvement comprising an auxiliary vent and means to selectively operate said auxiliary vent and fire the two burners during the period of open operation of said auxiliary vent to allow the physical contaminants from the second operation to depart the furnace chamber independently of the part of the operational discharge of the furnace that would be harmed by the physical contaminants.

5. In a furnace with two regenerative burners alternatively heating a furnace chamber with products of combustion discharged thereinto, the products of combustion operationally discharged from the furnace chamber through an inactive burner, and the secondary operation in the furnace producing physical contaminants harmful to the operational products of combustion discharge through the inactive burner, the improvement of an auxiliary vent, means to selectively operate said auxiliary vent to allow the physical contaminants from the secondary operation to depart the furnace chamber independently of the inactive burner and means to selectively limit the operational discharge of the products of combustion through the inactive burner such that the contaminants from the secondary operation and products of combustion are discharged from the furnace chamber through said auxiliary vent during the period of the secondary operation.

6. The improved furnace of claim 5 characterized in that said means to selectively limit the operational discharge of the products of combustion through the inactive burner comprises the firing of such inactive burner.

7. The improved furnace of claim 5 wherein the contaminants are customarily produced in an externally controlled secondary operation in the furnace and characterized in that said auxiliary vent is open on initiation of the externally controlled secondary operation in the furnace.

8. The improved furnace of claim 5 characterized by the addition of a sensor means to sense the level of contaminants in the furnace chamber during the secondary operation and said means to selectively operate said auxiliary vent is responsive to said sensor means.

9. The improved furnace of claim 5 wherein the operational discharge from the furnace chamber through an inactive burner includes an exhaust blower and characterized by the addition of means to deactivate the exhaust blower during the operation of said auxiliary vent.

10. An improved method for operating a furnace having a burner and an operational discharge, the operation of the furnace occasionally including a secondary operation producing physical contaminants, the method comprising the steps of firing the burner with the operational discharge limited and an auxiliary flue open during the period of production of the physical contaminants in the secondary operation.

12. The improved method of claim 10 wherein there is an exhaust blower that pulls air through operational discharge and characterized in that said exhaust blower does not pull air through the operational discharge substantially during the time the auxiliary flue is open.

11. An improved method for operating a furnace having a burner and an operational discharge through an inactive burner, the operation of the furnace occasionally including a secondary operation producing physical contaminants, the method comprising the steps of firing the burner with the operational discharge limited by firing the burner the operational discharge is through and with an auxiliary flue open during the period of production of the physical contaminants in the secondary operation.

13. An improved method of operating a furnace having two regenerative burners alternatively firing into and discharging products of combustion from a furnace chamber, the operation of the furnace occasionally including a secondary operation producing physical contaminants harmful to the discharge passage through the inactive burner, the method comprising the step of firing one burner while limiting the discharge through the other burner and opening an auxiliary flue during the period of production of the physical contaminants in the secondary operation with the result that the harmful physical contaminants from the secondary operation are discharged from the furnace chamber through the auxiliary flue instead of the inactive burner.

14. The method of claim 13 characterized in that the discharge through the inactive burner is limited by the firing of such burner.

15. The improved method of claim 13 wherein there is an exhaust blower that pulls air through operational discharge and characterized in that said exhaust blower does not pull air through the operational discharge substantially during the time the auxiliary flue is open.

16. The method of claim 13 characterized in that the operation of the auxiliary vent is under the control of a sensor that determines the level of physical contaminants in the furnace chamber during the secondary operation.