Patent ID: 7641849

Claim:
An injector for injecting particulate material into a metallurgical furnace, the injector comprising: a first elongated tubular barrel extending between a front end and a rear end thereof; a housing defining a chamber comprising: a particulate material inlet through which the particulate material enters the chamber; a first gas inlet; an outlet in fluid communication with the rear end of the first barrel; a first nozzle operable to inject gas through the first gas inlet into the chamber at a supersonic velocity when gas at suitable pressure is passed through the nozzle, said first gas inlet being positioned so as to direct said gas at supersonic velocity through the chamber to the outlet thereof, said gas entraining the particulate material as the gas moves through the chamber and through the first barrel and discharging the entrained particulate material from the front end of the barrel; a second elongated tubular barrel surrounding the first barrel in spaced relationship therewith extending between a front end and a rear end thereof the front end of the second barrel being disposed proximal to the front end of the first barrel; and the second barrel comprising a second gas inlet adjacent its rear end and a second nozzle adjacent its front end whereby gas under pressure supplied to the second gas inlet passes between the first and second barrels and is discharged at supersonic velocity via the second nozzle from the front end thereof adjacent the gas and entrained particulate material discharged from the front end of the first barrel to shroud the particulate material as it is discharged from the front end of the first barrel, the second barrel being made of copper.