US645284A - Method of electrically treating materials. - Google Patents

Description

No. .$45,284. Patented Mar, I3, |900. E. G. AcHEsoN. METHOD 0F ELECTBICLLY THEATING MATERIALS.-

(Application led May 23, 1899.)

(No Model.)

No. 645,284. Patented Mar. I3, |900.

E. G. ACHESUN.

METHOD 0F ELECTRIGALLY TREATING MATERIALS.

(Application filed May 23, 1899.) (No Mudei.) v2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

EDVARD GOODRIOH AOIIESON, OF BUFFALO, NEV YORK;

METHOD OF ELEGTRICALLY TREATING MATERIALS.

SPECIFICATION forming peut of Letters Patent No. 645,284, dated Merch 13, 1900. Application filed May 23, 1899. Serial No. '717,934- (No specimens.)

To all whom) t may concern.'

Be it known that L EDWARD GooDRIcH AGHESON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inthe Methods of Electrically Treating Materials, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a method of electrically treating materials; and it has for its object to provide an improved method Whereby various materials may be variously treated electrically for various purposes; and to these ends my invention consists in the mode of operation, substantially as hereinafter more particularly set forth. t

While, as above indicated, my invention is adapted for many and various purposes, as in general in heating, roasting, treatin g, purifying, or converting material, and especially treating materials requiring a high temperature, such as is produced by the use of electric currents, or the treatment of materials which require to be protect-ed from the atmosphere or treated in a closed chamberas, for instance, for the collection of the byproducts or distillatesnit is especially adapted for use in the pu rication of carbon and the converting of amorphous carbon into graphite, and Without intending in any Way to limit the scope and application of my invention I have chosen to describe and illustrate it as adapted for this latter purpose,it being understood that the details both of the apparatus and process can be varied by those skilled in the art to adapt the general principles thereof to the particular purpose to which it is applied Without departing from thespirit of my invention.

In order to illustrate the apparatus used in this particular application, as well as to show one means of carrying out my improved method, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in Whichj Figure l is a vertical longitudinal section of a furnace embodying the invention on the line l l, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse'section on the line 2 2, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal side view of the furnace. Fig. 4 is an end view thereof.

One of the principal objects of my present invention is to provide a new method of treating materials and subjecting them to the heat obtainable by the use of an electric current in a continuous process and in such a way that the largest proportion of the heat thus developed can be utilized for the purposes intended and the least proportion Will be lost,- and at the same time the apparatus by which this is accomplished will not be subjected to the destructive influences usually met With Where high temperatures are used.

Broadly stated,` my improved method consists in providing a descending column of material to be treated, allowing it to assume a mass or pile,'the talus or sides of Which have the slope which such a mass will naturally assume under the influence of gravity. I then treat this material in such a pile by producing the zone of highest temperature in the pile or mass at a point between the top and bottom or base of said pile. The treated material is withdrawn from the base of the pile and the pile is maintained in its normal condition by fresh quantities of the material being deposited at its apex, and in this Way the operation-can be continuous. By employing this method thus broadly stated I am enabled to practically carry out the process by apparatus of suitable construction and'arrangement and avoid the great destructive influences on said apparatus from the fact that the materials in contact with the supporting-Walls of the apparatus are not in their hottest condition, and the treated material does not come in contact with said Walls until it has passed the zone of highest temperature. Of course it is understood that the means for conveying the electric current Within this mass or pile-as, for instance, the electrodes-have to be arranged Within the zone of highest temperature; but

they are of such a nature as to be practically indestructible at temperatures such as are used; but the remaining portions of the apparatus need not be of such material, but can IOO ' has passed beyond the zone of highest tenithat their working faces are within the slope of the pile, and all the material will pass between the working faces of the electrodes and be subjected to the-action of the electric current.

The apparatus by which this improved method is carried out embodies, broadlyspeaking, a furnace provided with an inlet and outlet for the material to be treated and in which are arranged the electrodes for conducting the current to the mass or pile, and the shape and conguration of the furnace are such that while it forms a support for the pile the talus of the pile is such that the material of the pile does not come in contact with the furnacewalls until it has passed beyond the zone of the highest temperature. In order to make the process continuous, of course there is a source of supply of material adapted to deliver the material upon the top of the pile, allowing kit to assume such a talus or form or shape that the sides will correspond to what may be termed the natural gravity slope, and the lowest portions of these sides or slopes, which come in contact with the walls of the furnace, will be below the zone of the highest temperature. There is also provided means for removing the treated material adapted to take the material from the base of the pilein its relatively-cool condition, and of course while the material is thus removed. from the base the material supplied to the top will gradually and continuously pass by the electrodes through the zone of highest temperature and out of the apparatus, where it may be delivered for further treatment or other- Wise. Means may also be provided for artificially cooling or hastening the cooling of the treated material. Y

In the preferred embodiment of the in vention I provide a furnace in which there are means for continuous feeding at the top of the furnace, the shape and configuration being such that the material naturally falls into a pile or mass, the sides of which have the natu ral gravity slope and do not impinge upon the walls except at and below the base of the slope. The electrodes are arrangedin the mass between the top and the base of the talus, so that the zone of highest temperature is between these portions of the pile. The discharging apparatus is arranged also within the furnace, at the bottom thereof, so that it embodies within the furnace-chamber supporting the mass means for heating the mass between its top and base and means for discharging the treated material from the base, and thereby allowing the untreated material l to How freelyinto the furnace. Furthermore, the shape and configuration of the furnace is such that the material does not come in contact with the walls of the furnace from the time it is delivered the top thereof until it peratu're below the electrodes, thereby leaving a free space between the inclined or slopi ing sides of the mass and the walls of the furnace.

With these general statements I will now proceed to describe the furnace illustrated in the drawings.

The shape of the furnace may be varied, but it is arranged to provide an interior chamber in which the material being treated is practically protected from the atmosphere, and in the present instance the width of the chamber is greater than its length inA order that the electrodes may be arranged in proper relation to each other and the descending column and at the same time avoid too great a length of the electrodes, and it is widerin order to provide that the base of the talus or sloping sides of the descending mass or pile shall strike the walls of the furnace at a distance below the bottom part of the electrodes. rThus the furnace comprises a base portion A,with the sides B B', which in the present instance are shown curved inward toward the top C, although this configuration is not necessary. The furnace is closed by the end walls D D', and all these walls are made of suitable material, such as fire-brick or other refractory material. The chamber E is provided with a lining F, which must be of a highly-refractory material, and I have found a lining of carbid of silicon effective. The bottom portion of this lining is preferably inclined from the sides to the central portion of the base, and this inclination is preferably that which corresponds to the inclination of the natural slope taken by the material being treated.

Arranged at' the top of the furnace are suitable means for introducing the material to be treated, shown in the present instance in the form of a hopper G, having' a discharge-opening G through a block g of highly refractory material, and this hopper is supplied with material from a suitable source, as a tank G2, through a chute G3, the end of which delivers directly into the hopper, and the iiow of the material thereto is controlled by the material in the hopper.

Arranged in the crown of the furnace are suitable vents c, which may be closed, as by a plug c', or which may be provided with suitable tubes or passages connected with suitable condensing-chambers or other apparatus to which the gaseous or sublimed material from the furnace may be delivered for suitable treatment. If, however, the gases are not to be so treated or saved, the vents may be closed, and whatever gases are produced will pass up through the passage G into the material in thehopper G and primarily heat it, or the vents may be opened and the gases deflected against the outer portions of the hopper G for the same purpose. The side walls of the furnace may be provided with suitable hand-holes H, closed by plugs H in the usual way, and I also preferably provide a manhole H2 near the base, by

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means of which access maybe obtained to the chamber foi-'inspection or repairs.`

The electrodes II are arranged so as to project into the upper portion of th-e chamberE and are mounted in the end walls D D', and of course suitable means are provided whereby these electrodes can be connected to the source of electric supply. These electrodes may be variously formed; but I have found it preferable to make them in sectionsthat is, composed of a number of longitudinal rectangular bars arranged in close contact and of sufficient length that their inner ends project a desired distance into the furnace-chamber from the opposite ends thereof. The crosssection of these electrodes is proportioned to the amperage of the current to be used in the operation of the furnace, and in dimensions the width is such that none of the material to be treated can pass through the furnace without passing between their opposing faces. Furthermore, as above intimated, these electrodes are arranged so that the plane of the bases of the electrodes is above the line of contact of the material with the walls ofthe chamber of the furnace.

Arranged at the bottom of the furnacechamber is some suitable device for discharging the material, and I have shown a worm or screw J extending through the base A into at least the central portion of the chamber, where the lining is shaped to provide a suitable discharge-opening E. It is obvious,how ever, that other well-known conveying devices may be substituted for that shown. It is also obvious that suitable means may be provided for driving the worm or screw, as the shaft J', adapted to receive power from a suitable source. (Not shown.) As beforeintimated, the discharge of the material from the base of the chamber can be regulated by regulatin g the movements of lthe discharge device or screw, and by this means the feeding or supplying of the material to the chamber is also regulated, for as the material is withdrawnA from the base of the pile or cone-shaped mass of material the material passes downward between the opposing faces of the electrodes, allowing fresh quantities to be delivered from the hopper G through the passage G', so that the pile is maintained in practically-uniform condition, it being understood that the apex of the cone is constantly acting as a regulating valve or stopper for the passage G, and in this way a regulated flow of the material from the tank to the dischargeoutlet can be maintained and the material be exposed to the action of the zone of highest temperature the desired or necessary time.

In some instances I have found it advantageous to provide means for articially cooling the treated material, and I have shown a `series of pipes K passing through the walls of the furnace and through the lower portions of the chamber, and these pipes are connected to a suitable source of water-supply or other refrigerating material. So, too,it is -at the bottom of the chamber a continuous feed of material is attained and the talus of the pile maintained throughout the operation.

Having thus described the preferred embodiment of apparatus for carrying out my improved method, it will readily be seen that it is capable of embodiment in other apparatus differing in details from that shown.

While my inyention is adapted for treatv ment of many and various substances in some of which the gases or sublimed portions are the. valuable products and the main body which is delivered at the lower outlet the refuse, in others the gases or sublimed portions are waste or by products and the main body of treated material the main product. Thus, for instance, one special application of the invention is in the production of graphite from carbonaceous vmaterial--such, for instance, of coke-and in which process it is necessary to use, in order to produce the requisite degree of temperature, electric currents of enormous quantity. For instance, in a furnace of the character described in producing graphite, in order to obtain an output of five hundred pounds an hour, the opposing faces of the electrodes would be placed approximately twenty inches apart, andr they would have a cross-section of twelve hundred and fifty square inches and a current measuring about twelve volts and thirtyseven thousand five hundred amperes. Currents of such volume require electrodes having a very large effective surface, and the heat produced is so intense as to necessitate the removing of the walls of the furnace from the inIiuence ofthe Zone of high temperature.

Under the present practice it not being per- IOO mitted to claim the process and apparatus in t a single application, I do not herein make any claim to the apparatus shown and described.

What I claim isl. The method substantially as hereinbefore described of treating materials for the purpose set forth, which consists in continuously supplying the material to be treated to the apex of a pile having sides of the natural gravity slope, and heating the same by passing all portions of the material between electrodes the working faces of which are within the slope ofthe pile. t

2. 'The method substantially as hereinbefore described of treating materials for the purpose set forth, which consists in continuously supplying the material to be treated to In testimony whereof I have signed my the apeX of a pile having sides of the natural name to this specification in the presence of gravity slope, heating the same by passing all l two subscribing Witnesses.

portions of the material between electrodes EDWARD GOODRICII ACIIESON. the Working faces of which are Within the slope of the pile, and delivering the treated material from the base of the pile.

Witnesses:

F. L. FREEMAN, 'I W. C. DUVALL.

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