Patent GB-710381-A (GB)
Title: Improvement in method and apparatus for treating fibers
IPC: C03B37/06
Filed: 1952-02-07
Abstract: 710,381. Treating glass &c. fibres. OWENS-CORNING FIBERGLAS CORPORATION. Feb. 7, 1952 [Feb. 7, 1951], No. 3283/52. Class 56 Fibres are produced by directing blasts of gas on to spaced parallel streams of the fibre forming material at sufficient velocity to attenuate the streams to fibres and feeding a non-aqueous fibre coating material into a zone adjacent the streams in advance of the application of the attenuating blasts to streams. By thus coating the fibres before they are subjected to atmospheric conditions smaller quantities of coating material are used and longer fibres produced. As shown glass or slag &c. flows in a multiplicity of small streams 16 from orifices in a plurality of feeders 14 in the forehearth 12 of a melting and refining tank 10 and are attenuated by blasts of steam from a blower 18 beneath each feeder. The fibres pass down a hood 27 to form a mat 30 on a conveyer belt 29, being compacted by a roller 33. An exhaust chamber 35 carries away expended steam and facilitates the deposition of the fibres. Lubricant or sizing passes through a manifold 40 adjacent each blower and through pipes 42 having their discharge outlets adjacent the passage 20 of the blower through which the glass &c. streams pass. Each manifold 40 is mounted on a member 45 supported on and slidably adjustable on a projection 46 on one of a pair of blocks 47 supporting the blower by means of screws 48. Each member 45 is connected by a passage 49 with an independent lubricant supply pipe 50 connected to pumping and distributing means. An electric motor 60 drives the latter through a speed reducer 62. A pump 65 for each feeder 14 includes a base 70 and casing 72 enclosing pumping gears &c. Pinions 86 on shafts 75, 76 mesh with gears 88 supported on shafts 89 of the pumping units, the shafts 75, 76 being driven simultaneously through the mechanism 62 by means of sprockets 80, 78, and 83 and chains 79, 84. The coating, e.g. petroleum oil, supplied through pipe 91 and desirably heated to assure uniform viscosity, e.g. by passing through coils in a casing 93 through which steam circulates, passes via pipe 97 through a filter to a flow indicator 99, and hence through manifold 100, pipes 102, and control-valves 104 to the pumps. The speed of the pumps is regulated by controlling the speed of rotation of shaft 81 of the mechanism 62 by means of a reversible motor 112 which drives through sprockets 114 and 117 and chain 116 a conventional speed varying means in the housing 62, the motor 112 being operated as required in either direction by means of switches to increase or decrease the speed of shaft 81 and hence the speed of pumps 72. The lubricant may pass to the attenuating zone in liquid and/or vapour form depending on the temperature in the zones of tubes 42, but since the temperature of the superheated steam of the blast is usually upwards of 400 F., and that of the forehearth &c. in excess of 2000 F. in operation some or a substantial part of the oil is vaporized. The proportions of oil vapour and liquid may be controlled by varying the relative positions of tubes 42. The oil vapour at the attenuating zone protects the newly formed fibres from the atmosphere and direct contact with the steam, particularly since the oil vapour is drawn downwardly by flow of air through openings 20 induced by the blast. The temperature of the glass between feeder and blower is above 800 F. so that no moisture adheres in that zone.