Abstract: A method for performing a pressure test on a tank (e.g. hydrogen tank) and a filling apparatus is disclosed. The tank is connected via a tank valve to a tank feed line which has a first valve for shutting off the tank feed line, wherein during the pressure test prior to the tank being filled through the tank feed line a flow of medium, with the first valve closed, is directed into the tank via a bypass line bridging the first valve, wherein the flow of medium is throttled in the bypass line such that a tank feed pressure acting on the tank valve rises in a controlled manner, wherein the tank valve opens particularly when the tank feed pressure exceeds the pressure prevailing in the tank.

Abstract: Various systems and methods for monitoring the level of a feed material layer in a metallurgical furnace are described. At least one non-contact sensor is used to sense a distance between the feed layer and a reference position. A process controller linked to the sensor provides a control signal based upon the sensed distance. The control signal may be used to control various factors in the operation of the metallurgical furnace.

Abstract: A hearth furnace for producing metallic iron material has a furnace housing having a drying/preheat zone, a conversion zone, a fusion zone, and optionally a cooling zone, the conversion zone is between the drying/preheat zone and the fusion zone. A moving hearth is positioned within the furnace housing. A hood or separation barrier within at least a portion of the conversion zone, fusion zone or both separates the fusion zone into an upper region and a lower region with the lower region adjacent the hearth and the upper region adjacent the lower region and spaced from the hearth. An injector introduces a gaseous reductant into the lower region adjacent the hearth. A combustion region may be formed above the hood or separation barrier.

Abstract: An apparatus and a method of manufacturing direct reduction iron and a reduction firing apparatus. The apparatus has a reduction furnace including a left chamber, a right chamber, a material containing device, a step mechanism, a slag distributing device, a charging device, heating burners, a fume extraction path, a charging device, a material receiving tank and a slag discharging path. The method includes the following steps: distributing and charging the slag in the material containing device; carrying and sending the material containing device through a preheating station, a heating station and a reduction station sequentially. Meanwhile, heating the material to be reduced by a combustion of fuel with the heating burners; discharging the reduced material into the material receiving tank; placing the material device from which the material is discharged into the feeding side of the other chamber, then a next work circulation begins.

Abstract: Disclosed is a continuous refractory ore bioprocessing apparatus for the digestion of metal ore with bacteria. It includes a long trough tank fitted with a screw conveyer that extends along the length of the tank. A shell, having a number of feed ports, covers the screw conveyer. Granules of ore to be bioprocessed pass through the feed ports toward the screw conveyer portion of the reactor wherein the ore is ground by the screw conveyer and is bioprocessed as the screw conveyer rotates to push the ore along the reactor. Gas distribution manifolds are attached to the tank and are configured so that gas may be injected into the tank and onto the surface of the shell so as to encourage agitation of the materials in the tank and in the screw conveyer portion of the bioreactor while discouraging fouling of the shell and clogging of the feed ports.

Abstract: An apparatus for the removal of uranium from a body of material is provided. The apparatus has at least one ultrasonic extractor, having a bottom and a top. The at least one ultrasonic extractor is configured to accept solids at the bottom and acid at the top, and has a mixing screw and at least one source of ultrasonic energy. The mixing screw is configured to transport the solids in a direction countercurrent to the acid in the at least one ultrasonic extractor; and the source of ultrasonic energy is configured to impart ultrasonic energy into the solids and the acid, as the solids and the acid traverse the at least one ultrasonic extractor countercurrently.

Abstract: A method for discharging a reduced product produced on a movable hearth of a movable-hearth furnace uses a discharging device. The discharging device includes a removal unit for removing the reduced product from the movable hearth, a separation unit for separating the reduced product from a solid reductant, a leaving-returning unit for either leaving substances other than the reduced product on a solid reductant layer or returning the substances onto the solid reductant layer, and a discharge unit for discharging the reduced product to the outside of the movable-hearth furnace.

Abstract: A device for producing sponge iron from iron oxide lumps consists of a reduction shaft in which a hot dust laden reducing gas is delivered. The gas is produced in a gas generator by means of partial oxidation of solid carbon carriers and passes into the lower end of the reduction zone via lateral reduction gas inlets. The iron oxide lumps are fed to the upper area of the reduction shaft and are radially fed as sponge iron to the lower end of said reduction shaft via delivery organs. The delivery organs are arranged in such a manner that the sponge iron is conveyed only radially outwardly.

Abstract: A nosepiece for directing a charge into a crucible of a furnace. The nosepiece comprises a completely enclosed sleeve which more accurately directs the charge into the crucible. The sleeve has a distal portion that deflects the charge toward a center area of the crucible, thereby minimizing impact of the charge on the top edge of the crucible and its refractory liner. In addition, the nosepiece is split so that the distal portion is movable, thereby to provide access to an interior of the nosepiece. As a result, any bridging in the charge may be addressed by moving the distal portion to an open position.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device comprising a fusion gasifier and a reduction shaft arranged thereabove and for reduction of iron ore in spongy iron. The spongy iron is introduced through horizontal discharge devices in the lower section of the reduction shaft, and a pipe connection is introduced into the head section of the fusion gasifier where it is melted using a oxygen-containing gas and gasifying means also conveyed into the head of the fusion gasifier, and is reduced to liquid crude iron. A reduction gas is produced at the same time which is conveyed out of the head of the fusion gasifier. The discharge devices lead into a dust-blocking container arranged in a lower section of the reduction shaft and to which the pipe connection leading to the fusion gasifier is attached.

Abstract: A sealing apparatus securely seals the inlet and outlet of an atmosphere heat treatment furnace. A pair of elastic rolls 26 and a pair of additional elastic rolls 26 hold a metal strip so as to seal the inlet and outlet of the atmosphere heat treatment furnace which continuously performs bright annealing of the metal strip in a combustible atmosphere gas including hydrogen gas. A pair of intermediate rolls are disposed between the elastic rolls and the additional elastic rolls. The outer peripheral surface of the elastic roll is sealed by a seal plate. By multi-stage sealing, the outside air can be shut off securely from the atmosphere of the furnace.

Abstract: A plant for the production of molten metals includes a melting vessel in whose wall burners and optionally oxygen-containing-gas feeding ducts are installed and on whose upper end a charging device as well as a gas evacuation duct receiving the offgases forming enter.In order to enable the continuous charging of the melting vessel by avoiding any unintentional escape of gas from the melting vessel, both the gas evacuation duct and the charging means run into the upper end of the furnace shaft laterally and approximately diametrically opposite each other. The charging means projects into a charging opening brushed over by a gas curtain and an intake chute for charging material is provided below the charging opening in a manner directed towards the center of the furnace shaft.

Abstract: There is disclosed a plant for treating and melting metals, metal compounds and/or metal alloys or for producing calcium carbide. It includes a burden-receiving shaft and a melting furnace arranged below the shaft and including a heating means. A passage opening is provided between the shaft and the melting furnace, which passage opening serves to introduce the burden present within the shaft into the melting furnace.In order to be able to introduce the hot burden into the melting furnace without difficulties and without operational failures due to charging means, a gas-permeable supporting plate rigidly arranged on the melting furnace is provided at the passage opening, corresponding to at least the shaft cross section by its cross section. A clearance is provided beside the supporting plate. The shaft is designed as a structural unit separate from the melting furnace. The shaft and the melting furnace are relatively movable with respect to each other in the direction of the clearance and back.

Abstract: There is disclosed a process of recovering molten pig iron or steel pre-products from lumpy iron-oxide containing charging substances. The charging substances are reduced to sponge iron in a direct reduction zone, the sponge iron is smelted in a meltdown gasifying zone under supply of carbon carriers and oxygen-containing gas forming a coal fluidized bed, and CO and H.sub.2 containing reduction gas is produced, which is injected into the direct reduction zone and reacted there. For the commercial utilization of low-quality scrap grades, such as, e.g., automotive scrap,(a) scrap is charged into the meltdown gasifying zone in addition to sponge iron,(b) the scrap has an apparent weight of between 300 and 1000 kg/m.sup.3, preferably between 400 and 600 kg/m.sup.3, and(c) the temperature of the coal fluidized bed is maintained at 1,500.degree. to 1,7800.degree. C.

Abstract: An apparatus for charging a melting gasifier (2) with gasification media and with sponge iron discharged from a direct reduction shaft furnace (1) arranged above the melting gasifier is described. This comprises inlets and outlets in the lower part of the shaft furnace, connecting lines (4) in the form of downcomers between the shaft furnace and the gasifier in the upper region of the latter, symmetrically to the longitudinal axis of the shaft furnace and/or the gasifier and discharge means (7) for the sponge iron, such as screw conveyors or the like aligned radially to said longitudinal axis. The connecting lines at least approximately vertically issue into the lowermost, substantially horizontal base region of the shaft furnace. The discharge means are arranged at the melting gasifier inlets (9) in the discharge direction behind the connecting lines and the gasification medium inlet (3) is located in the longitudinal axis of the melting gasifier immediately adjacent to the sponge iron inlets.

Abstract: The invention relates to an apparatus for the regeneration of active carbon comprising particularly:a hopper for introducing the active carbon;a reactor (7) delimited by an elongated shaped sheath;a continuous Archimedes screw (10) situated inside the reactor to transport the active carbon to be regenerated;structure for heating by resistances (8), arranged inside the sheath of the reactor;structure situated above the unload end of the reactor (19) and in communication with the reactor, particularly for removing the gases;a coffer into which the Arichmedes screw unloads;structure for communication with the reactor and situated on the one hand close to the input of the reactor and on the other hand along the reactor to regulate the pressure inside the reactor and to inject steam.This apparatus for regenerating active carbon enables the powder active carbon to be regenerated efficiently.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for producing liquid iron from iron oxide, wherein the iron oxide is substantially converted to sponge iron by passing reducing gas through it in a reduction column and is then melted in a melt vessel which is in open communication with the reduction column by heat generated by reaction of oxygen-containing gas and carbonaceous material which reaction provides said reducing gas. To improve control of the process, the oxygen-containing gas and the carbonaceous material are respectively substantially pure oxygen and coal powder which are delivered separately into the melt vessel, and the liquid iron bath in the melt vessel is stirred so as at least partly to be kept in motion. By separate control of the oxygen and coal supplies, e.g. the level and/or direction of delivery, and by control of stirring, it is possible to control the ratio of CO and CO.sub.2 in the reducing gas and also the heat output in the melt vessel.

Abstract: In the case of an arrangement comprising a gasifier and a direct reduction shaft furnace positioned above it and which is connected to the gasifier by a connecting shaft, the direct introduction of the reduction gas obtained in the gasifier, even in the case of a high dust proportion, is made possible in that the sponge iron particles are discharged through several radially positioned screw conveyors and the reduction gas is fed to an annular zone formed above the screw conveyors.

Abstract: Particulate iron ore is reduced to sponge iron in a vertical shaft reduction reactor by forcing the ore upwardly in a moving bed counter-current to a descending stream of hot reducing gas produced by the gasification of coal in a gasifier, for example, a melter-gasifier, containing a molten iron bath and producing a hot dust-laden gas. The product sponge iron may be used as a feed material for the molten bath in the gasifier. The reactor is equipped with a gas outlet plenum containing a renewable body of ore to minimize clogging at the gas outlet.

Abstract: A device is described for directly making liquid pig-iron from coarse iron ore. Hot sponge-iron particles are directly conveyed by a worm conveyor (17) through a communicating passage (19) from a direct-reduction blast-furnace shaft (2) into a smelter-gasifier (1), and a stream (24) of gas flows, after cooling to below 950.degree. C., in counter-current to the sponge-iron particles, from the smelter-gasifier (1) to the blast-furnace shaft (2), this gas stream having a volumetric flow-rate not more than 30 percent of the total reduction-gas flow reaching the blast-furnace shaft (FIG. 1).

Abstract: A process and a device are described for directly making liquid pig-iron from coarse iron ore. Hot sponge-iron particles are directly conveyed by a worm conveyor (17) through a communicating passage (19) from a direct-reduction blast-furnace shaft (2) into a smelter-gasifier (1), and a stream (24) of gas flows, after cooling to below 950.degree. C., in counter-current to the sponge-iron particles, from the smelter-gasifier (1) to the blast-furnace shaft (2), this gas stream having a volumetric flow-rate not more than 30 percent of the total reduction-gas flow reaching the blast-furnace shaft (FIG. 1).

Abstract: The invention relates to a distribution apparatus for throat closures of shaft furnaces, in particular blast-furnace closures, with a lock chamber arranged within the furnace dome, at the entrance of which is arranged a funnel tube and underneath which, opening out above the charging surface is arranged a distribution pipe which may be swung around the pivot axis by means of a horizontal pair of swivel pins, within a frame, whereby the frame is arranged by means of a hollow shaft or a shaft pin normal to the pivot axis, also extending horizontally and penetrating the furnace dome to which it is sealed and connected to a swing drive, and the pivot drive for the distribution pipe is connected to a drive shaft penetrating the hollow shaft and connected with a pin of the swivel-pin pair.

Abstract: In a blast furnace installation wherein raw material is changed in a blast furnace successively through a rotary hopper, an impeller and an inclined chute surrounding the impeller, the inclined chute is suspended from a carriage movable along rails so as to decrease the weight of the chute acting upon the blast furnace.

Abstract: In the disclosed method and apparatus, an anode scrap pile is formed by piling anode scraps to be of a predetermined height. The anode scrap pile is conveyed to a substantially U-shaped inclinable chute having a rectangular bottom and parallel side walls rising from the opposed long edges of the bottom, the distance between the opposed side walls being slightly greater, preferably about 5 cm, than the height of the pile. The pile is then pushed with cylinders in toward the bottom of the above-mentioned inclinable chute which has the open side between the side walls directed in the horizontal direction and the side walls positioned horizontally so as to receive the anode scrap pile. The inclinable chute into which the anode scrap pile has been pushed is rotated with a cylinder so that the bottom of the chute is downward and the side walls of the chute are in the vertical direction.

Abstract: The surface contour of material deposited on the hearth of a furnace is sensed by measuring the height of the material on the furnace axis and at a plurality of points about the periphery of the furnace. The height on the furnace axis is measured with an instrument mounted on the axis of a furnace having an internally mounted steerable material distribution chute with the instrument being positioned vertically above the chute and the feed channel through which charge material is delivered to the chute.

Abstract: In a blast furnace installation comprising a blast furnace and a raw material charging apparatus including a hollow inverted frustum shaped rotary hopper mounted above the blast furnace, conveyor means for supplying the raw material to the rotary hopper, a hollow disc shaped impeller located beneath the rotary hopper for receiving the raw material therefrom, stationary inclined chute means including an annular chamber member surrounding the periphery of the impeller for receiving the raw material discharged from the impeller, and an electric motor for driving the impeller, the gas pressure in the furnace top is accurately controlled by detecting the gas pressure in the annular chamber member at a plurality of circumferentially spaced points, comparing the mean value of the detected gas pressure with a preset furnace top gas pressure for producing a control signal proportional to the difference therebetween, and controlling the speed of the motor by the control signal thereby reducing substantially to zero the

Abstract: A rotatable and angularly adjustable charging and distribution device for shaft furnaces, particularly blast furnaces, is presented. A cylindrical or frustoconical distribution spout is suspended at three points which define a plane. The three points of suspension are caused to move longitudinally (i.e. substantially vertically) and synchronously whereby the lateral surface of the distribution spout may be caused to move in a path which is virtually conical without rotating the suspension points about the vertical axis of the furnace. The suspension points may be moved either by delivering a driving force to them or by applying a traction force to them.

Abstract: Disclosed are receptacles, such as shaft furnaces illustrated by a blast furnace and an upright oil shale retort, embodying rotatable charge distributor means for distributing particulate charge material in the furnace, which charge distributor means can provide a high uniformity of distribution of various sizes of particles and also can provide and maintain a stock line of desired contour and heighth in the receptacle. The distributor means includes a hopper having rigidly fixed to it a plurality of downwardly extending chutes with lower discharge portions that discharge in concentric circular zones at the stock line. The distributor means includes a segmented portion at the juncture of the hopper and the chutes that divides the charge material discharged into the hopper in proportion to the area of the circular zone at the stock line that is fed by the chute.

Abstract: A hollow inverted frustum shaped rotary hopper is provided above the furnace top to receive the raw materials from a conveyor. Beneath the rotary hopper is disposed a hollow disc shaped impeller including a dish shaped central portion facing to the lower end of the rotary hopper and a plurality of wedge shaped vanes mounted on the periphery of the impeller for defining a discharge openings between adjacent vanes for throwing out the raw materials by centrifugal force. A stationary inclined chute means is provided including an annular hopper surrounding the impeller for charging the raw materials discharged by the vanes into the furnace top and inert gas is ejected into an annular gap defined between the covers of the impeller and the inclined chute means for preventing the gas in the blast furnace from leaking to the outside.