GB2112119A

GB2112119A - Heat insulating panels

Info

Publication number: GB2112119A
Application number: GB08230191A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Melvyn Alan Watkins
Original assignee: FUEL CONSERVATION SERVICES
Current assignee: FUEL CONSERVATION SERVICES
Priority date: 1981-12-23
Filing date: 1982-10-22
Publication date: 1983-07-13

Abstract

A thermally insulating panel for a furnace, kiln, oven or the like, comprising an inner layer (1) of a high thermally insulating material which is secured to an outer supporting layer (12), the inner layer (1) being in the form of a corrugated layer sheet (2) of said material. An intermediate layer, preferably in the form of at least one sheet (6) of the thermally insulating material, may be provided between the inner corrugated layer (1) and the outer supporting layer (12). Also, the inner layer (1) and the outer layer (12) can be secured together by means of a plurality of spaced, double or single- ended, hook-shaped connectors (5) attached at respective ends thereof to an array of rods (3, 4), passing through the inner corrugated layer (1), and another array of rods (13, 14) which constitutes at least part of the outer supporting layer (12). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Heat insulating panels This invention relates to thermal insulating panels for use in the construction of roofs, walls, floors, doors and ducting in furnaces, kilns, ovens and the like.

A known structure of furnace comprises an inner layer of a thermal insulating material in the form of a planar fibrous web in which the fibres are not bonded to each other but are connected to an outer supporting layer for retaining the inner thermal insulating layer in position within the furnace.

In accordance with the invention, there is provided a thermal insulating panel, for use in a furnace, kiln or oven, comprising an inner layer of a thermal insulating material which is secured to an outer supporting layer, the inner layer being in the form of a corrugated sheet of said material.

Between the inner layer and outer supporting layer, they may be provided an intermediate layer of a thermal insulating material, preferably the material of which the inner corrugated layer is made.

The inner layer can be secured to the outer layer by any suitable arrangement, although in a preferred embodiment the corrugated layer has an array of rods passing therethrough, preferably in a criss-cross pattern, to which a plurality of spaced double-ended, hook-shaped connectors are attached at one end with their other ends being attached to a similar array of support rods which form at least part of the supporting outer layer.

Alternatively, each connector can have a single hook-shaped end, for attachment to the array of rods passing through the corrugated inner layer, with the other, straight end of the connector being attached to the array of support rods by any suitable means. For instance, the straight connector end may be passed through an appropriately sized aperture in a generally planar securing element, which rests upon a pair of adjacent rods of the supporting outer array, and then bent over, to lie in confronting relationship with the upper surface of the securing element, whereby the connector and securing element are retained firmly in position with respect to the outer array of rods. As a consequence the corrugated inner layer is attached firmly to the supporting outer layer.

In the criss-cross array of rods passing through the inner corrugated layer, a first set of spaced parallel rods preferably lie between selected pairs of adjacent corrugations of the thermal insulating material, whilst the second set of spaced parallel rods, lying at right angles to the first rod set, actually pass through this material with the two sets of rods, at their respective intersection points, in contact with each other. In this arrangement, the second set of rods, which pass through the material of the inner layer, retain the first set of rods in position between the respective pairs of corrugations of the inner layer.

Where an intermediate layer of thermal insulating material is employed, this may comprise one or more sheets of such a material with the double or single-ended, hook-shaped connectors passing therethrough.

The outer supporting layer preferably comprises a rigid frame to which is attached the array of support rods which lie in a plane substantially parallel to the major plane of the inner corrugated layer and, optionally, that of the intermediate layer.

In order that the invention may be more fully understood, two preferred embodiments in accordance therewith will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig 1 is a perspective view of an inner layer of corrugated, thermal insulating material, with associated double ended, hook-shaped connectors partially shown; Fig. 2 is an elevational view of the inner layer of Fig 1 secured to an outer supporting layer; Fig 3 is an elevational view of the inner layer of Fig 1 secured to an outer supporting layer, with an intermediate layer therebetween; Fig 4 is a perspective view of an outer supporting layer showing two preferred forms of support rods to which the inner layer can be secured; Fig 5 is a partial perspective view of the inner layer of Fig 3 secured to one embodiment of outer supporting layer shown in Fig 4;; Fig 6 is a perspective view of the inner layer of corrugated, thermal insulating material, with associated single-ended, hook-shaped connectors; Figs 7A and 7B are respective front and side elevational views of a single-ended, hook-shaped connector associated with the inner layer of Fig 6; Fig 8 is a plan view of a securing element used with the connector shown in Figs 7A and 7B: Fig 9 is a partial elevational end view of the inner layer shown in Fig 6, with the connector of Figs 7A and 7B and the securing element of Fig 8 being used to connect the inner layer to a supporting outer layer: and Fig 10 is a partial perspective view of the inner layer of Fig 6 attached to another embodiment of supporting outer layer by means of the arrangement shown in Fig 9.

Referring firstly to Figs 1 and 2, an inner layer 1 of a thermal insulating panel for a furnace, kiln, oven or the like, comprises a corrugated sheet 2 of high thermally insulating material with a set of spaced parallel rods 3 inserted between selected adjacent pairs of corrugations thereof. Extending at right angles to this set of rods 3 is another set of spaced parallel rods 4 which pass through the corrugations 2 of the thermally insulating sheet material, respective points of intersection between the two rod sets being in contact with each other.

In this manner, a criss-cross array of rods 3,4 is provided with the rods 4 retaining the other rods 3 in position between adjacent corrugations 2.

An array of connectors 5, located at or adjacent these points of intersection, each have a lower hooked end, which is located around the respective rod 4, and an upper hooked end which is located around a corresponding rod 1 3 of an array of rods of an outer supporting layer 12, as shown more clearly in Fig 2. Spring clips 1 5 are located upon the hooks 5 in order to maintain the associated components in positive location with respect to each other.

The criss-cross array of rods 13,14 of the outer supporting layer 1 2 are shown in Fig 4 with their ends welded to a generally rectangular steel frame 16 whose opposed sides and ends are of L-shaped cross section. An alternative array of rods 1 7 is also shown in Fig 4, wherein a plurality of spaced parallel rods only are used, as opposed to the criss-cross array using rods 13,14. This set of parallel rods 17 may, of course, be replaced by a corresponding set of steel tubes.

The embodiment of heat insulating panel shown in Fig 3 is very similar to that described above with referece to Figs 1 and 2, except that two intermediate layers 6 of a low thermal mass material are located between the inner and outer layers 1,12 of the panel. Also, the double hookshaped connectors 5' of the embodiment in Fig 3 are longer than the corresponding connectors 5 of the embodiments shown in Figs 1 and 2, in order to accommodate the additional thickness of the two intermediate sheets 6.

Turning now to Fig 5, here there is shown an assembled thermal insulating panel consisting of the inner and outer layers 1,12 connected together by means of the double hooked-shaped connectors 5' which engage at respective ends with rods 4,13 of the two layers. Tow flanges 18, at either end of the frame 16, retain the corrugations 2 of the inner layer 1 in position, whilst the opposed sides of the frame 1 6 are each provided with three holes 19 for fastening adjacent panels together.

Before assembly of the panel the corrugations 2 are maintained in position by means of loops of adhesive tape 1 0, as shown in Fig 1, whilst the criss-cross array of rods 13,14 of the outer supporting layer is preferably constituted by a welded grid structure sold under the name WELDMESH.

The outer supporting layer 1 2 is advantageously and all-welded steel construction.

With regard to Figs 6 to 10, here there is shown another embodiment of thermal insulating panel 1", in accordance with the invention, which is similar to the embodiment described above with reference to Figs 2 to 5, except that single ended hook-shaped connectors 5" are provided, as in the case of the embodiment of Fig. 1. However, these connectors 5", as shown in detail in Figs 7A and 7B, are secured to the outer supporting layer 12" by means of generally planar attachment elements 15", as shown in Fig. 8, each having an aperture 20" through which the straight end 21" of the connector 5" is passed.As shown in Fig. 9, the straight connector end 21" is then bent over through 900 to lie in confronting relationship with the upper surface of the attachment element 15", with the lower surface of the element resting upon a pair of adjacent rods 1 3" of the array of such rods constituting a portion of the outer supporting layer 12".

The assembled panel 1" is shown in Fig. 10 with a further modification to that described with reference to Fig. 5. A sealing gasket 22" of thermally insulating material, and preferably the same as that at the inner layer, can be used to form a sealed joint on top of the furnace of kiln walls. Also shown in Fig 10 is a section 30" of corrugated sheet of thermally insulating material, preferably the same as that of the inner layer 1" of the panel, which can be used to connect together a pair of adjacent thermal insulating panels of the invention. It will be noted that the corrugations of this jointing section 30" are at right angles to those of the inner layer of the panels.

Preferably, in all embodiments of the invention, the thermally insulating material, from which the inner layer, intermediate layers and/or sealing gasket is or are made, as the case may be, is a low thermal mass material comprising, preferably, ceramic fibres.

Claims

1. A thermally insulating panel, for use in a furnace, kiln or oven, comprising an inner layer of a thermally insulating material which is secured to an outer supporting layer, the inner layer being in the form of a corrugated sheet of said material.

2. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 1, including an intermediate layer of thermally insulating material between the inner and outer layers.

3. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 2, wherein the thermally insulating material is the same as that of the inner corrugated layer.

4. A thermally insulated panel as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the inner corrugated layer has passing therethrough an array of rods to which a plurality of spaced connectors are attached at one end, with their other ends being attached to another array of rods constituting at least part of the outer supporting layer.

5. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 4, wherein said one end of each connector is hook-shaped.

6. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 5, wherein said other end of each connector is hook-shaped.

7. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 5, wherein said other end connector is attached to the other array of rods by means of a friction fit clip.

8. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 5, wherein said other end of each connector is attached to the other array of rods by means of an attachment element having an aperture therein through which said other connector end passes, with said other connector end being bent over in confronting relationship with the element.

9. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 8, wherein the attachment element is generally planar.

10. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in any of claims 4 to 9, wherein the other array of rods, which constitutes at least part of the other supporting layer, is of a similar pattern to that of the array of rods passing through the inner corrugated layer.

1 A thermally insulating panel as claimed in any of claims 4 to 10, wherein the array of rods, which passes through the inner corrugated layer, and/or the other array of rods, which constitutes at least part of the outer supporting layer, has a crisscross pattern.

12. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 11, wherein, in the criss-cross array of the rods passing through the inner corrugated layer, a first set of spaced parallel rods lie between selected pairs of adjacent corrugations of the thermally insulating material, whilst a second set of spaced parallel rods, extending at right angles to the first set of rods, pass through the material, with the two sets of rods in contact with each other at their respective intersection points, whereby the second set of rods retain the first set of rods in position between the respective pairs of corrugations of the inner layer.

13. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in any of claims 4 to 12, when dependent upon claim 2 or 3, wherein the intermediate layer of thermally insulating material comprises at least one sheet of said material, with the connectors passing therethrough.

14. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in any of claims 4 to 13, wherein the outer supporting layer comprises a rigid frame to which is attached the corresponding other array of support rods lying in a plane substantially parallel to the major plane of the inner corrugated layer.

15. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in claim 14, when claims 4 to 13 are dependent upon claim 2 or 3, wherein the corresponding other array of support rods of the outer supporting layer lies substantially parallel to the major plane of the inner corrugated layer.

1 6. A thermally insulating panel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the thermally insulating material of the inner layer and/or of the or each intermediate layer, as the case may be, comprises ceramic fibres.

17. A thermally insulating panel substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

18. A furnace, kiln, oven or the like incorporating a heat insulating panel as claimed in any preceding claim.