Improvements in or relating to Cupolas and. Blast Furnaces.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 8th June, 1899
Complete Specification Left, 8th Mar., 1900-Accepted, 14th Apr., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Cupolas and. Blast Furnaces.
I, ALEXANDER PERCY RUSHFORTH, of 2, Cranfield Road, Brockley, in the
County of Kent, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
4.4
1
This invention relates to cupolas and blast furnaces provided with receivers
into which the molten metal is run as it is produced in the cupola or blast
furnace, and in which the air to support combustion in the cupola or blast furnace
is led from the blowing machine or blowing engine, through a pipe or pipes
placed in the aforesaid receiver, to the air belt or pipe leading to the tuyeres of
the cupola or blast furnace, the said air being heated by contact with the internal
surface of the said pipe or pipes in the receiver which said pipe or pipes receives
or receive heat from the hot gases in the receiver and from the molten metal
contained therein.
Heretofore so far as I am aware the air pipe or pipes in the receiver have
been made in the form of coils, and these coils are very liable to break under the
variable temperatures to which they are subjected and are therefore liable to
leak and to discharge air into the receiver instead of into the cupola sor. blast
furnace, thereby cooling down the molten metal in the receiver and producing
other prejudicial effects.
The object of my present invention is to obviate the inconveniences and dis-
advantages arising from the form and arrangement of air pipe. heretofore
employed, and for this purpose 1 employ the following arrangements; I construct
the upper part of the receiver where the pipe or pipes is or are to be placed of
fire-brick, refractory clay blocks, cast iron, cast iron lined with fireclay, or of
other suitable material and I place the pipe or pipes through which the air is
to be passed in order to be heated, across this said upper part of the receiver and I
connect one end of the pipe or pipes with the pipe coming from the blowing
machine or engine by means of a chamber of cast iron or other suitable metal
or material, and the other end of the pipe or pipes with the pipe or belt delivering
the air to the tuyeres or belt, by means of a similar chamber of cast iron or other
suitable metal or material. The chambers at the end or ends of the pipe or
pipes may each be made as simple chambers with any required number of pipes
passing across the receiver from one to the other chamber, or each chamber may
be divided by partitions into a number of separate chambers or compartments
each having one or more of the said pipes entering them, in such manner that
the pipes and the chambers form zig-zag passages which force the air to pass
several times across the receiver, and to be subjected to the heating action
therein.
:
Or, instead of the connecting chambers above described the pipes crossing the
receiver may be connected together outside the receiver by U-bends or other
devices in any way that may be found suitable. But I prefer in all cases to
make the joints connecting the pipes together, whether it be into one continuous

page_text: pipe or into several continuous pipes, outside the receiver, so that in the event of
leakages occurring at any of the said joints the air may escape into the atmosphere
direct and not into the receiver.
1
2
A. P. RUSHFORTH,
Per W. H. Beck,
Agent,
Improvements in or relating to Cupolas and Blast Furnaces.
I, ALEXANDER PERCY RUSHFORTH, formerly of 2, Cranfield Road, Brockley,
in the County of Kent, at present residing at 42, Sandbourne Road, Brockley
aforesaid, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:―
This invention relates to cupolas and blast-furnaces provided with receivers
into which the molten metal is run as it is produced in the cupola or blast
furnace, and in which the air to support combustion in the cupola or blast-furnace
is led from the blowing machine or blowing engine, through a pipe or pipes
placed in the aforesaid receiver, to the air belt or pipe leading to the tuyeres of
the cupola or blast-furnace the said air being heated by contact with the internal
surface, of the said pipe or pipes in the receiver, which said pipe or pipes receives
or receive heat from the hot gases in the receiver and from the molten metal
contained therein.
Heretofore, so far as I am aware, the air pipe or pipes in the receiver have
been made in the form of coils, and these coils are very liable to break under the
variable temperature to which they are subjected, and are therefore liable to
leak, and to discharge air into the receiver instead of into the cupola or blast-
furnace, thereby cooling down the molten metal in the receiver and producing
other prejudicial effects.
The object of my present invention is to obviate the inconveniences and dis-
advantages arising from the form and arrangement of air pipe heretofore
employed, and for this purpose I employ arrangements such as are illustrated
in the accompanying sheet of drawings, in which Figure 1 is a sectional elevation
taken on the line 1-1 of Figure 2 of a cupola and receiver with my invention
applied thereto, Figure 2 a sectional plan of same taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1,
and Figure 3 an elevation looking from right to left in Figure 1.
A represents the body of the cupola and B the receiver, the latter being
connected with the former by means of the passage C in the usual way.
I construct the upper part B1 of the receiver B, where the pipe or pipes is or
are to be placed of fire-brick, refractory clay blocks, cast iron, cast iron lined
with fire-clay, or of other suitable material, and I place the pipes, D for example,
through which the air is to be passed in order to be heated, across this said upper
part B of the receiver B, and I connect one end of the said pipes with the pipe E
coming from the blowing machine or engine (not shown in the drawing) by means
of a chamber F of cast iron or other suitable metal or material, and the other
end of the said pipes with the passage G delivering the air-blast to the air-
belt H, or to a pipe delivering the air-blast to the tuyeres, as the case may be,
by means of a similar chamber I of cast iron or other suitable metal or material.
The chambers F and I at the ends of the pipes may each be made as simple

page_text: chambers with any required number of pipes passing across the receiver from
one to the other chamber, or each chamber may be divided by partitions F¹ I'
for example into separate compartments each having one or more of the said
pipes entering them, in such manner that the pipes and the chambers form
zig-zag passages which force the air to pass several times across the receiver
(as indicated by the arrows) and to be subjected to the heating action therein.
Or, instead of the connecting chambers and I above described, the pipes I)
crossing the receiver may be connected together outside the receiver by U-bends K
as shown by dotted lines in Figure 3, or by other devices in any way that may
be found suitable. But, I prefer in all cases to make the joints connecting the
pipes together, whether it be into a continuous pipe, or into several continuous
pipes or into connecting chambers, outside the receiver B, so that in the event
of leakages occurring at any of the said joints the air may escape into the
atmosphere direct, and not into the receiver.
In some cases, I may provide a ganister lined iron baffle-plate underneath the
whole or part of the pipes in the receiver, and such baffle-plate may be furnished
or not with holes for the passage of heat to the pipes.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
First. In a cupola or blast-furnace having a receiver for the molten metal,
pacing the pipe or pipes through which the air-blast is passed in order to be
heated, across the upper part of the said receiver, and connecting it or them with
the air pipe from the blowing machine or engine, and with the passage leading
to the blast belt or tuyeres, by suitable devices the joints of which with the said
pipe or pipes are outside the said receiver, substantially as described.
Second. In a cupola or blast-furnace having a receiver for the molten metal,
apparatus for heating the air-blast on its way to the cupola or blast-furnace,
which consists of a pipe or pipes passing across the upper part of the said receiver
and connected at its or their end or ends outside the receiver by chambers,
U-bends or the like to the pipes or passages leading from the blowing machine,
or engine, and to the blast-belt or tuyeres of the cupola or blast-furnace, sub-
stantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 8th day of March 1900.