Apparatus for purifying metal
First Claim
1. A metal purifying apparatus comprising:
- a closed melting furnace equipped with heating means;
a molten metal holding crucible disposed within said melting furnace;
a vertical hollow rotary shaft penetrating through a top wall of said melting furnace;
a packing sealing off a clearance around an outer periphery of said rotary shaft in a shaft penetrating portion of said top wall of said melting furnace;
rotary drive means for rotatingly driving said rotary shaft;
a hollow rotary cooling body which is fixedly provided at a lower end of said rotary shaft and which has a hollow interior space in communication with an interior space of said rotary shaft;
a cooling fluid supply source for supplying a cooling fluid to said hollow interior space of said cooling body; and
wherein said cooling body is immersed in a molten metal placed in said crucible and rotated by rotating said rotary shaft by said drive means while said cooling fluid is being supplied to said hollow interior space of said cooling body from said supply source to crystallize a metal of higher purity on an outer periphery of said cooling body, said rotary shaft having disposed therein a cooling fluid discharge pipe with a top end positioned above said top wall of said melting furnace and a lower end positioned below said top wall of said melting furnace, an outer periphery of said discharge pipe and an inner periphery of said rotary shaft being spaced apart from each other to define said interior space in said rotary shaft which provides a cold cooling fluid supply channel for passing therethrough said cooling fluid to be supplied from said supply source to said hollow interior space of said cooling body, said cooling fluid discharge pipe having an interior providing a hot cooling fluid discharge channel for discharging therethrough a hot cooling fluid supplied to said interior of said cooling body and heated by heat from said molten metal.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A metal purifying apparatus comprises a closed melting furnace equipped with a heater, molten metal holding crucible disposed within the furnace, a vertical hollow rotary shaft penetrating through a top wall of the furnace, a packing sealing off a clearance in the shaft penetrating portion of the top wall around the shaft, rotary drive means for rotatingly driving the shaft, a hollow rotary cooling body fixedly provided at a lower end of the shaft and having an interior space communicating with an interior space of the shaft, and a cooling fluid supply source for supplying a cooling fluid to the interior of the cooling body. The rotary shaft has disposed therein a cooling fluid discharge pipe with a lower end positioned below the top wall of the furnace. An outer periphery of the discahrge pipe and an inner periphery of the shaft are spaced apart from each other and define a space portion providing a cooling fluid supply channel for passing therethrough the cooling fluid to be supplied from the source to the interior space of the cooling body. The discharge pipe has an interior providing a cooling fluid discharge channel for discharging therethrough the cooling fluid supplied to the interior of the cooling body.
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Citations
8 Claims
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1. A metal purifying apparatus comprising:
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a closed melting furnace equipped with heating means; a molten metal holding crucible disposed within said melting furnace; a vertical hollow rotary shaft penetrating through a top wall of said melting furnace; a packing sealing off a clearance around an outer periphery of said rotary shaft in a shaft penetrating portion of said top wall of said melting furnace; rotary drive means for rotatingly driving said rotary shaft; a hollow rotary cooling body which is fixedly provided at a lower end of said rotary shaft and which has a hollow interior space in communication with an interior space of said rotary shaft; a cooling fluid supply source for supplying a cooling fluid to said hollow interior space of said cooling body; and wherein said cooling body is immersed in a molten metal placed in said crucible and rotated by rotating said rotary shaft by said drive means while said cooling fluid is being supplied to said hollow interior space of said cooling body from said supply source to crystallize a metal of higher purity on an outer periphery of said cooling body, said rotary shaft having disposed therein a cooling fluid discharge pipe with a top end positioned above said top wall of said melting furnace and a lower end positioned below said top wall of said melting furnace, an outer periphery of said discharge pipe and an inner periphery of said rotary shaft being spaced apart from each other to define said interior space in said rotary shaft which provides a cold cooling fluid supply channel for passing therethrough said cooling fluid to be supplied from said supply source to said hollow interior space of said cooling body, said cooling fluid discharge pipe having an interior providing a hot cooling fluid discharge channel for discharging therethrough a hot cooling fluid supplied to said interior of said cooling body and heated by heat from said molten metal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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Specification