Patents by Inventor Gérard Le Gouefflec

Gérard Le Gouefflec has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9046264
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for controlling the operation of a burner used for heating liquid glass feeders of a glass furnace. A burner is supplied with a fuel and oxygen. An additional gas is injected so that the sum of the oxygen flow, the fuel flow and the additional gas flow is greater than a minimum cooling flow for the burner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: L'Air Liquide Société Anonyme Pour L'Étude Et L'Exploitation Des Procedes Georges Claude
    Inventors: Son-Ha Giang, Luc Jarry, Gerard Le Gouefflec, Dominique Robillard
  • Publication number: 20090053658
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for controlling the operation of a burner used for heating liquid glass feeders of a glass furnace. A burner is supplied with a fuel and oxygen. An additional gas is injected so that the sum of the oxygen flow, the fuel flow and the additional gas flow is greater than a minimum cooling flow for the burner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 15, 2008
    Publication date: February 26, 2009
    Inventors: Son-Ha Giang, Luc Jarry, Gerard Le Gouefflec, Dominique Robillard
  • Publication number: 20070018011
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for controlling the operation of a burner used for heating liquid glass feeders of a glass furnace. A burner is supplied with a fuel and oxygen. An additional gas is injected so that the sum of the oxygen flow, the fuel flow and the additional gas flow is greater than a minimum cooling flow for the burner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2004
    Publication date: January 25, 2007
    Inventors: Son-Ha Giang, Luc Jarry, Gerard Le Gouefflec, Dominique Robillard
  • Patent number: 6935856
    Abstract: A furnace apparatus and method for increasing the productivity and/or quality of reheated products by improving the temperature profile of a furnace for reheating products.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2005
    Assignee: L'Air Liquide, Société Anonyme à Directoire et Conseil de Surveillance pour l'Etude et l'Exploitation des Procédés Georges Claude
    Inventors: Gérard Le Gouefflec, Olivier Delabroy
  • Publication number: 20040259047
    Abstract: A furnace apparatus and method for increasing the productivity and/or quality of reheated products by improving the temperature profile of a furnace for reheating products.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2004
    Publication date: December 23, 2004
    Inventors: Gerard Le Gouefflec, Olivier Delabroy
  • Patent number: 6652681
    Abstract: Method of reheating metallurgical products, in which solid products, especially steel products, are reheated so as to bring them from a temperature substantially below 400° C. to a temperature of at least about 1000° C. by passing them through a furnace having an upstream zone in which the said products are preheated and a downstream zone in which the said products are brought to their final temperature on leaving the furnace, the downstream zone of the furnace being fitted with burners, at least some of which operate with an oxidizer which is air, the smoke (flue gases) generated by these burners flowing as a countercurrent to the products and preheating these products in the upstream preheating zone. According to the invention, at least one burner is placed in the upstream preheating zone of the furnace, this burner being fed with a mixture of oxidizer and fuel, the oxidizer containing more than 21 vol % and preferably more than 30 vol % oxygen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2003
    Assignee: L'Air Liquide Societe Anonyme a Directoire et Conseil de Surveillance pour l'Etude et l'Exploitation des Procedes Georges Claude
    Inventors: Olivier Delabroy, Rémi Tsiava, Gérard Le Gouefflec, Fouad Ammoury
  • Patent number: 6579088
    Abstract: Provided is a burner which includes a pipe having a free end region designed to be housed in a furnace quarl. The pipe includes one or more fuel feed ducts surrounded over part of their length by a sheath which defines an oxidizer feed channel and is fastened to a flange. A jacket is disposed around at least part of the length of the end region so as itself to be housed in the quarl and to define a feed channel for a second oxidizer between the jacket and the internal wall of the quarl. The jacket is fastened to a flange for securing to the quarl and the flange for the sheath is fastened to that for the jacket. The burner has particular applicability in industrial furnaces, especially for melting non-ferrous materials, for rehearing or for annealing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2001
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2003
    Assignee: L'Air Liquide Societe Anonyme a Directoire et Conseil de Surveillance pour l'Etude et l'Exploitation des Procedes Georges Claude
    Inventors: Thierry Legiret, Gérard Le Gouefflec, Stéphane Arnoux, Thierry Borissoff, Dominique Robillard
  • Publication number: 20020050670
    Abstract: Method of reheating metallurgical products, in which solid products, especially steel products, are reheated so as to bring them from a temperature substantially below 400° C. to a temperature of at least about 1000° C. by passing them through a furnace having an upstream zone in which the said products are preheated and a downstream zone in which the said products are brought to their final temperature on leaving the furnace, the downstream zone of the furnace being fitted with burners, at least some of which operate with an oxidizer which is air, the smoke (flue gases) generated by these burners flowing as a countercurrent to the products and preheating these products in the upstream preheating zone. According to the invention, at least one burner is placed in the upstream preheating zone of the furnace, this burner being fed with a mixture of oxidizer and fuel, the oxidizer containing more than 21 vol % and preferably more than 30 vol % oxygen.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 7, 2001
    Publication date: May 2, 2002
    Inventors: Olivier Delabroy, Remi Tsiava, Gerard Le Gouefflec, Fouad Ammoury
  • Patent number: 6283747
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for heating a furnace comprising at least one burner capable of operating on an oxidant the oxygen content of which can vary; in a first period (P1) the burner is supplied with practically pure oxygen so as to provide a large amount of energy for heating, in a second period (P2) the burner is supplied with an oxidant, the oxygen content of which can vary between about 100% and 21%, in a third period (P3), the burner is supplied with an oxidant, the oxygen content of which is minimal, and which corresponds to a pilot period which requires only a small amount of heating energy. This method makes it possible to optimize the use of the furnace according to the desired thermal performance and oxidant operating costs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 1999
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2001
    Assignee: L'Air Liquide, Societe Anonyme pour l'Etude et l'Exploitation des Procedes Georges Claude
    Inventors: Thierry Legiret, Gérard Le Gouefflec, Thierry Borissoff, Olivier Charon
  • Patent number: 6183246
    Abstract: The products (1) pass from a charging end (2) to a discharging end (3); at the discharging end side, the furnace exhibits a heating zone (4) equipped with air/fuel burners (41), possibly doped with oxygen, and, on the charging end side, exhibits a flue-gas recuperation or drainage zone (5) in which the flue gases are removed. At least one fuel body in the gaseous state is incorporated into the flue gases, and oxygen is introduced upstream of that possibly doped air/fuel burner (41) which is situated furthest upstream when referring to the direction of travel of the products (1), so as to burn the gaseous fuel body and thus raise the temperature in the recuperation zone (5). Possible use for heating steel-making products prior to rolling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 1999
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2001
    Assignee: L'Air Liquide, Societe Anonyme pour l'Etude et l'Exploitation des Procedes Georges Claude
    Inventor: Gérard Le Gouefflec