KR102684818B1 - Apparatus and method for manufacturing float glass - Google Patents

Abstract

An embodiment according to one aspect of the present invention includes a bath containing molten metal so that a glass ribbon floats; a ceiling wall disposed above the bathtub; a casing disposed above the ceiling wall to form a space between the casing and the ceiling wall; A plurality of heaters inserted into through holes of the ceiling wall; and a gas supply pipe provided on the casing to supply gas to the space, wherein the ceiling wall has a predetermined length in the flow direction of the glass ribbon. It is divided into a plurality of regions including at least three regions along the width direction of the glass ribbon in the length section spanning, and the gap between the heater and the through hole is wider in other regions than in the outermost region among the plurality of regions. , provides a float glass manufacturing device. An embodiment according to another aspect of the present invention provides a float glass manufacturing method for manufacturing float glass using the float glass manufacturing apparatus.

Description

Apparatus and method for manufacturing float glass {APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING FLOAT GLASS}

The present invention relates to a float glass manufacturing apparatus and a float glass manufacturing method.

A float glass manufacturing device includes a bathtub containing floating molten metal, a ceiling wall disposed above the bathtub, a casing forming a space between the ceiling wall and the ceiling wall, and a glass ribbon inserted into a through hole of the ceiling wall. Equipped with multiple heaters.

On the other hand, the float glass manufacturing apparatus supplies gas to form an inert atmosphere above the bath, but depending on the molding conditions of the glass ribbon, the gas is not supplied at the same flow rate per unit area over the entire width of the glass ribbon.

The float glass manufacturing apparatus according to the prior art arranges a plurality of partitions along the width direction of the glass ribbon in the space between the ceiling wall and the casing to avoid supplying gas at the same flow rate per unit area across the entire width of the glass ribbon. An attempt was made to form a plurality of spaces, and to control the supply flow rate of gas differently for each of the plurality of spaces.

However, in this case, the number of gas supply pipes corresponding to multiple spaces had to be placed in each casing part of the space, and if the partition was not firmly fixed, it would be difficult to maintain the facility due to tilting or damage of the partition. There was a problem I was experiencing.

The present invention was developed to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides gas flow rate per unit area across the entire width of the glass ribbon without arranging a plurality of partitions along the width direction of the glass ribbon in the space between the ceiling wall and the casing. It is intended to provide a float glass manufacturing apparatus and a float glass manufacturing method that can be used differently.

However, the problem to be solved by the present invention is not limited to the problems mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

An embodiment according to one aspect of the present invention includes a bath containing molten metal so that a glass ribbon floats; a ceiling wall disposed above the bathtub; a casing disposed above the ceiling wall to form a space between the casing and the ceiling wall; A plurality of heaters inserted into through holes of the ceiling wall; and a gas supply pipe provided on the casing to supply gas to the space, wherein the ceiling wall has a predetermined length in the flow direction of the glass ribbon. It is divided into a plurality of regions including at least three regions along the width direction of the glass ribbon in the length section spanning, and the gap between the heater and the through hole is wider in other regions than in the outermost region among the plurality of regions. , provides a float glass manufacturing device.

In this embodiment, the gap between the heater and the through hole may become narrower from the central portion in the width direction of the ceiling wall to both sides.

In this embodiment, partitions may not be arranged along the width direction of the glass ribbon between the ceiling wall and the casing.

In this embodiment, the quantity of the gas supply pipes provided in the length section may be less than the quantity of the plurality of regions.

In this embodiment, the gas supply pipe may be disposed closer to the center of the casing than to both sides in the width direction of the casing.

An embodiment according to another aspect of the present invention provides a float glass manufacturing method for manufacturing float glass using the float glass manufacturing apparatus.

In this embodiment, the molding area of the glass ribbon is divided into an upstream row, a midstream row, and a downstream row in the flow direction of the glass ribbon based on the viscosity distribution of the glass ribbon, and at least one of the upstream row and the downstream row The glass ribbon is divided into a central part and both sides based on the width direction, and the ceiling wall has a gap between the heater and the through hole in at least one length section of the upstream row and the downstream row, and the width of the ceiling wall is It is formed to become narrower from the center to both sides based on the direction, so the gas flow rate per unit area supplied to at least one of the upstream row and the downstream row may increase from both sides to the center of the forming area of the glass ribbon.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the supply of gas flow rate per unit area is varied across the entire width of the glass ribbon without arranging a plurality of partitions along the width direction of the glass ribbon in the space between the ceiling wall and the casing. The flattening can be improved.

Accordingly, the number of gas supply pipes that supply gas to the glass ribbon can be reduced, and since no partition is used, manpower and costs required for maintenance and management of the partition can be reduced.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a float glass manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. 1.

The present invention will become clear by referring to the embodiments described in detail below along with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below and will be implemented in various different forms. The present embodiments only serve to ensure that the disclosure of the present invention is complete and that common knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains is not limited. It is provided to fully inform those who have the scope of the invention, and the present invention is only defined by the scope of the claims. Meanwhile, the terms used in this specification are for describing embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. As used herein, singular forms also include plural forms, unless specifically stated otherwise in the context. As used herein, “comprises” and/or “comprising” refers to the presence of one or more other components, steps, operations and/or elements. or does not rule out addition. Terms such as first, second, etc. may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. Terms are used only to distinguish one component from another.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a float glass manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. 1. .

The float glass manufacturing apparatus 100 supplies molten glass onto the molten metal M in the bath 40 to form a plate-shaped glass ribbon G. The glass ribbon (G) floats on the molten metal (M) and gradually hardens as it flows. The glass ribbon G is spaced apart from the molten metal M in the downstream area of the bath 40 and is conveyed toward the slow cooling furnace.

The float glass manufacturing device 100 includes a spout lip 10, a twill 20, a bathtub 40, a ceiling wall 50, a casing 60, an upper roll 70, a heater 80, and a gas supply pipe 90. ) may include.

The spout lip 10 supplies molten glass to the bathtub 40 at a flow rate depending on the distance from the twill 20.

The bath 40 accommodates the molten metal M from which the glass ribbon G floats. The molten metal (M) may be, for example, but is not limited to molten tin or molten tin alloy. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the liquid surface of the molten metal M has a covered portion covered with the glass ribbon G and an exposed portion not covered with the glass ribbon G. The exposed portion is formed on both left and right sides of the covered portion. The bathtub 40 may be made of, for example, brick.

As shown in FIG. 1, the ceiling wall 50 is disposed above the bathtub 40 and covers the space 41 above the bathtub 40. A reducing gas or an inert gas may be supplied to the upper space 41 of the bathtub 40 from the through hole 50a of the ceiling wall 50 to prevent oxidation of the molten metal M. The reducing gas may be, for example, a mixed gas of nitrogen gas and hydrogen gas.

The casing 60 forms a space (hereinafter referred to as an internal space of the casing 60) between the casing 60 and the ceiling wall 50. The reducing gas or inert gas is supplied to the inner space of the casing 60 through the gas supply pipe 90, and then supplied to the upper space 41 of the bathtub 40 through the through hole 50a of the ceiling wall 50. It can be. The gas supply pipe 90 may be provided on the casing 60 to supply reducing gas or inert gas to the internal space of the casing 60. The internal space of the casing 60 may be divided into a plurality of unit spaces 61a, 61b, 61c, and 61d by arranging partitions 62 along the flow direction of the glass ribbon G. The amount of gas supplied or the type of gas can be changed for each of the plurality of unit spaces 61a, 61b, 61c, and 61d.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the upper roll 70 can apply tension to the glass ribbon G in the width direction by supporting both end sides in the width direction over a predetermined section of the glass ribbon G. Thereby, the shrinkage of the glass ribbon G in the width direction can be limited and the glass ribbon G can be molded into a thin glass ribbon G.

The upper roll 70 is disposed on both ends of the glass ribbon G in the width direction, and may be disposed in plurality at intervals in the flow direction of the glass ribbon G. The arrangement area of the upper roll 70 along the flow direction of the glass ribbon G may be, for example, an area where the viscosity at the center of the width direction of the glass ribbon G is 10 ^4.5 dPa·s to 10 ^7.5 dPa·s. there is.

As shown in FIG. 1, the heater 80 is inserted into the through hole 50a of the ceiling wall 50, protrudes downward from the ceiling wall 50, and heats the glass ribbon G. .

A plurality of heaters 80 are controlled for each zone, and different controllers may be used for each zone. Depending on the embodiment, the controller may be implemented in various forms such as a circuit board that controls the heater 80, an integrated circuit chip, a series of computer programs mounted on hardware, firmware, and software.

The ceiling wall 50 may be divided into a plurality of regions including at least three regions along the width direction of the glass ribbon G in a length section spanning a predetermined length in the flow direction of the glass ribbon G. Here, the length section may be a section corresponding to at least one of the plurality of unit spaces 61a, 61b, 61c, and 61d in the casing 60. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the plurality of regions are shown to include a total of three regions: a central region 51 and both side regions 52 and 53.

It is preferable that the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a is wider in other areas 51 than in the outermost areas 52 and 53 among the plurality of areas 51, 52, and 53. In this embodiment, the gap (d2, d3) between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a in both areas 52 and 53 is the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a in the central area 51. The gap between d1a and d1b may be wider.

In a state in which the flow of molten glass is constant, the molten glass gathers at the central portion of the glass ribbon G in the width direction, while the amount of molten glass spreading to the surroundings is small and tends to become thick. Therefore, the heater 80 in the central region 51 and The gap (d1a, d1b) between the through holes (50a) is made wider than the gaps (d2, d3) between the heaters (80) and the through holes (50a) in both areas (52, 53) to reduce the gas flow rate per unit area. By making the central portion larger than the both sides in the width direction of the ribbon (G), the molten glass that gathers on the central portion in the width direction of the glass ribbon (G) is spread well to both sides, covering the entire width of the glass ribbon (G). The thickness can be flattened.

It is preferable that the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a becomes narrower from the central portion in the width direction of the ceiling wall 50 to both sides. For example, the size of the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a may be formed in the following order.

- Gap size between heater (80) and through hole (50a): d1a > d1b > d2 = d3

In this way, if the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a is gradually narrowed from the center in the width direction of the ceiling wall 50 to both sides, the gas flow rate per unit area supplied to the glass ribbon G is also reduced. Since the width direction of the ribbon (G) can be gradually increased from both sides to the center, the fluidity of the glass ribbon (G) is further stabilized, and the quality of the final glass product can also be further improved in terms of flatness.

In this embodiment, it is preferable that no partitions are arranged along the width direction of the glass ribbon G between the ceiling wall 50 and the casing 60. In this embodiment, the supply flow rate of gas may vary in different areas in the width direction of the upper space 41 of the bathtub 40 due to the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a, which varies depending on the area. This is because there is no need to separately form a plurality of spaces along the width direction between the ceiling wall 50 and the casing 60. As a result, waste of manpower and costs for maintenance management due to the use of multiple partitions can be prevented.

In this embodiment, the number of gas supply pipes 90 provided in the length section may be less than the number of the plurality of regions 51, 52, and 53. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the number of areas 51, 52, and 53 may be three in total, while the number of gas supply pipes 90 may be two.

The partition is not arranged along the width direction of the glass ribbon G, that is, the internal unit spaces 61a, 61b, 61c, and 61d of the casing 60 are divided into a plurality of spaces along the width direction of the glass ribbon G. This is because there is no need to adjust the supply flow rate of gas for each of these plural spaces.

In this embodiment, the gas supply pipe 90 is preferably disposed closer to the center portion (C) than to both sides (O) of the casing 60 in the width direction. For example, the distance between the central portion (C) in the width direction of the casing 60 and the gas supply pipe 90 is greater than the distance L2 between both sides (O) in the width direction of the casing 60 and the gas supply pipe 90. The distance (L1) can be made shorter.

The gap d1 between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a in the central area 51 is the gap d2, d3 between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a in both areas 52 and 53. ), so the gas consumption flow rate per unit time in the central space (S1) within the casing (60) is high, so the gas supply pipe (90) is connected to the casing (60). By arranging it in the central part (C), it is possible to maintain the remaining amount of gas in the central space (S1) within the casing (60) similar to the remaining amount of gas in the spaces (S2, S3) on both sides.

Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing float glass using the float glass manufacturing apparatus 100 according to the above embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

The float glass manufacturing apparatus 100 may include a process of forming a plate-shaped glass ribbon (G) by supplying molten glass onto the molten metal (M) in the bath 40. The glass ribbon (G) floats on the molten metal (M) and gradually hardens as it flows. The glass ribbon G is spaced apart from the molten metal M in the downstream area of the bath 40 and is conveyed toward the slow cooling furnace.

In this embodiment, the forming area F1 of the glass ribbon G is divided into an upstream heat (a), a midstream heat (b) in the flow direction of the glass ribbon (G) based on the viscosity distribution of the glass ribbon (G), It is divided into a downstream row (c), and at least the upstream row (a) and downstream row (c) are divided into a central part (a1; c1) and both sides (a2, a3; c2, c3) in the width direction of the glass ribbon. You can.

For example, the upstream row (a) of the forming region (F1) of the glass ribbon (G) is generally a section where the glass ribbon (G) widens to its maximum width, and the viscosity of the glass ribbon (G) is 10 ^3.8 dPa. ·s to 10 ^5.3 dPa·s, and the downstream row (c) of the forming region (F1) of the glass ribbon (G) is generally a section where the width of the glass ribbon (G) shrinks, and the glass ribbon ( G) may be a region where the viscosity of the glass ribbon (G) is 10 ^5.7 dPa·s to 10 ^7.5 dPa·s.

The ceiling wall 50 has a central region 51 and both side regions 52 along the width direction of the glass ribbon G in at least one length section of the upstream row (a) and downstream row (c) of the forming area F1. , 53).

The ceiling wall 50 has a gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a in at least one length section of the upstream row (a) and the downstream row (c) of the forming area F1 in both side areas 52 and 53. ) may be formed wider in the central area 51 than the central area 51. Preferably, the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a in at least one length section of the upstream row (a) and the downstream row (c) of the forming area (F1) is in the width direction of the ceiling wall (50). It can be formed to become narrower as it goes from the center of the standard to both sides.

Through this, the gas flow rate per unit area supplied to at least one of the upstream row (a) and the downstream row (c) gradually increases from both sides to the center of the forming area (F1) of the glass ribbon (G), so that the glass ribbon (G) The fluidity of (G) becomes more stable, and through this, the quality of the glass ribbon (G) and final glass product can also be improved in terms of flatness.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the gap between the heater 80 and the through hole 50a is wider in other areas 51 than in the outermost areas 52 and 53 among the plurality of areas 51, 52, and 53. Therefore, gas flow rate per unit area can be supplied across the entire width of the glass ribbon G without arranging a plurality of partitions along the width direction of the glass ribbon G in the space between the ceiling wall 50 and the casing 60. By varying , the flattening of the glass ribbon (G) can be improved.

Accordingly, the number of gas supply pipes 90 that supply gas to the glass ribbon G can be reduced, and since no partition is used, manpower and costs required for maintenance and management of the partition can be reduced.

Although the present invention has been described in connection with the above-mentioned preferred embodiments, various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the appended patent claims will include such modifications or variations as long as they fall within the gist of the present invention.

100: Float glass manufacturing device
10: Spout lip
20: Twill
40: bathtub
50: ceiling wall
50a: through hole
60: Casing
70: upper roll
80: heater
90: gas supply pipe

Claims (7)

a bath containing molten metal so that a glass ribbon floats;
a ceiling wall disposed above the bathtub;
a casing disposed above the ceiling wall to form a space between the casing and the ceiling wall;
A plurality of heaters inserted into the through holes of the ceiling wall; And
It includes a gas supply pipe provided on the casing to supply gas to the space,
The ceiling wall is divided into a plurality of regions including at least three regions along the width direction of the glass ribbon in a length section spanning a predetermined length in the flow direction of the glass ribbon,
Ensure that no partitions are arranged between the ceiling wall and the casing along the width direction of the glass ribbon,
The gap between the heater and the through hole is wider in other areas than in the outermost area among the plurality of areas and becomes narrower from the center in the width direction of the ceiling wall to both sides, so that the glass ribbon is in the space. A float glass manufacturing device that gradually increases the flow rate of the gas per unit area supplied from the both sides to the center. delete delete According to paragraph 1,
Float glass manufacturing apparatus, wherein the quantity of the gas supply pipes provided in the length section is less than the quantity of the plurality of regions. According to clause 4,
The gas supply pipe is disposed closer to the center than both sides in the width direction of the casing. A float glass manufacturing method comprising manufacturing float glass using the float glass manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 4, and 5. According to clause 6,
The molding area of the glass ribbon is divided into an upstream row, a midstream row, and a downstream row in the flow direction of the glass ribbon based on the viscosity distribution of the glass ribbon, and at least one of the upstream row and the downstream row is of the glass ribbon. It is divided into a central part and both sides based on the width direction.
The ceiling wall is formed so that the gap between the heater and the through hole in the length section of at least one of the upstream row and the downstream row becomes narrower from the center to both sides based on the width direction of the ceiling wall, and the upstream row and a gas flow rate per unit area supplied to at least one of the downstream rows, which increases from both sides to the center of the forming area of the glass ribbon.

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