Patent ID: 7027481

Claim:
A method for melting vitrifiable materials, comprising the steps of: providing a melting tank having a floor and side walls made of refractory material for containing a molten bath, with a predetermined head and at least one channel for discharging molten materials from the molten bath; introducing a primary batch of vitrifiable materials into said tank via an entry mouth thereof; providing, inside said tank, a plurality of electrodes having a predetermined shape and length, said electrodes having a substantially constant cross-section over their entire length and being so positioned as to melt completely said vitrifiable materials by means of diffused electric currents; depositing a covering layer of vitrifiable materials in the solid state onto the upper surface of said molten bath so as to contain the dispersion of heat from the bath and screen the upper surface of the furnace; wherein said electrodes have one longitudinal end rigidly secured to a side wall of the tank and the other longitudinal end in contact with the opposite side wall.