US2627084A - Apparatus for the manufacture of threads or filaments - Google Patents

Description

A. 0. RYAN Feb. 3, 1953 APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF THREADS OR FILAMENTS Filed May 10, 1947 141/701! 0/! I Fqah A TTOR Patented Feb. 3, 1 953 APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF THREADS OR FILAMENTS Albert Olen Ryan, Independence, Ky., assignor to Bedding Manufacturing Company, Inc., Norwalk, Conn, a corporation of Delaware Application May 10, 1947, Serial No. 7 47,239

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to the apparatus for the manufacture of threads or filaments and particularly to an improved apparatus for manufacturing threads, tapes or other elongated articles from liquids which are subject to hardening or solidifying by physical or chemical action.

My Patent No. 2,402,846, granted June 25, 1946, describes the manufacture of a single continuous thread, filament, tape or the like by discharging thread-forming material in liquid form into the center of a stream of hardening liquid flowing with viscous flow through a tube. In such an arrangement substantially all operating parts such as nozzles, fluid streams, etc. are enclosed and substantially inaccessible during operation, and a complete separate apparatus is required for the manufacture of each thread.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus ior making threads, filaments, tapes or other elongated shapes in quantity by introducing a plurality of separate threads in a single stream of hardening liquid.

A further object is to provide a finished product of substantially any shape from a hardenable material which is introduced at a plurality of points into a viscously flowing stream of hardening liquid.

A further object is to provide an apparatus for making threads or the like from hardenable liquid material constructed and arranged to produce substantially any desired number of threads or the like simultaneously with a single elongated sheet-like stream of hardening liquid.

A further object is to provide an apparatus of the type set forth having a plurality of nozzles for controlling the flow of a plurality of streams of hardenable liquid which are accessible for control and adjustment during operation.

Other objects will appear from the following description of an illustrative embodiment of the bodiment of this invention and capable of being used in carrying out the present method, and

Fig; 2 is a partial diagrammatic view in section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

As in my said patent, the present invention makes use of the characteristic of viscous flow of the hardening liquid. Viscous flow, or streamline flow, as it is sometimes designated, is obtained by a proper proportioning of the flow ve- .locity, the cross sectional area, and the viscosity of the hardening liquid. In the present invention the hardening liquid is caused to flow in the form of a substantially flat sheet through a narrow, elongated, fiat, confining space with viscous flow between parallel confining surfaces. Although for the purposes of illustration I describe this spa-ce as vertical and the hardening fluid as flowing downwardly therethroughby gravity, it Will be apparent that the device is equally adapted to upward flow of the liquid through a vertical confining space, or that such space may be horizontal or at some angle to the horizontal, if desired. The hardenable material is introduced in the form of a plurality of parallel liquid streams into the center of the viscous flowing sheet of hardening liquid adjacent one end thereof, and at the same rate of flow as the center of such sheet so as to be surrounded and supported by the stream of hardening material and moved therewith through the confining space. The hardening operation may be accomplished by physical or by chemical action, the hardening liquid being selected or treated to accomplish the desired purpose. For example, if the hardening material is subject to hardening by thermal action the material forming the supporting and hardening liquid stream is heated or cooled to the proper degree to effect hardening of the material while in contact therewith. If, on the other hand, the material is adapted to be hardened by chemical action then the hardening liquid is properly selected to have the desired chemical hardening effect on the material. The stream of hardening liquid is of sufiicient length for the hardenable material to be suificiently hardened while in contact therewith, after which the hardened filaments or threads or tapes or other elongated shapes are removed from the hardening liquid and may, for example, be passed through conditioning and Washing operations.

Although the invention will hereinafter be described in connection with the hardening of latex for the purpose of forming latex threads or filaments or other shapes, it will be apparent that it is equally well adapted to the hardening of other suitable materials.

For example, in the hardening of latex threads by heat, the present invention preferably employs glycerine heated to substantially 210 F. as the hardening liquid. Such glycerine, or other hardening liquid, is drawn from a reservoir or supply sump 5, where its temperature is raised to the desired point by any suitable means such as a heating coil 6, by a circulating pump 1 which :forces the glycerine through aysupply line 8;, and branch inlets 9 to separate supply manifolds or folds l and II and extend to points above the level of the flaring mouth I? to form inlet chambers 23, 24 for directing hardeningfluid over the upper edges of the flaring walls' l5, l6 into the mouth I? and thence downwardly through the space M. Screens 25, 26 are provided for insur-' ing an even distribution of the hardening liquid flowing from the inlet manifolds into thechambers 23, 24.

Enclosing walls 2'1 28 pro vid drainage chambers 29, 3| forexcess hardening liquid which is returned through drain outlets 32, 33 to a return pipe 34 leading to the sump 5.

As illustrated, viscous flow of 'the glycerine, or other hardening fluid is obtained by suitably proportioning the distance between the confining plates l2 and i3 with relation to the viscosity of the liquid and its velocity of flow. In viscous flow that part of. the liquid which is in contact with the confining surface is substantially. stationary, the velocity of flow of the material increasing up to a certain point with the distance of the fluid from such surface. Hence in the case of glycerine flowing through th space l4 between substantially flat parallel confining plates [2 and I3,1under conditions of viscous flow, theglycerine located midwaybetween the confining plates will flow at maximum velocity and without'turbulence. As a result, a stream of liquid hardenable material, such as latex, introduced intothe glycerine stream midway between the confining plates [2, l3 and at the same velocityv as .the glycerine will be surrounded and supported and will move with the glycerine downwardly through the space J4.

The liquid hardenable material is, in the pres.- ent invention, introduced in a plurality of, thin, parallel streams into the center of the mouth I! at thesame velocity and in the same direction of flow as that of the glycerine or other hardening fluid. For this purpose, a row' of spaced nozzles 4| are supported in brackets 42 above the mouthl'l and so located as to discharge the separate streams of thread-forming material at the top of the mouth I! midway between the flaring walls and [6. 'As shown in Fig. 2, the number of threads or the like which can be simultaneously formedis dependent only upon the width f the apparatus, that is to say thewidth of the space [4 through which the hardening fluid flows, and the necessity of spacing the different streams of the material s'uflicie ntly far apart to prevent any contact between the separate streams during the hardening process. The'discharge velocity at the nozzles can be accurately regulated by any suitable means such as valves, 43, or inany other desired manner; H

The'speed of fiowthroughthe space I4 is such that the filaments or threads or the like 44 are substantially hardened by. the time the lower end of the space-l4 .isfrea'ched, permitting their removal to any suitablefdrying andwashing appa; ratus .(not shown). As illustrated, a -conveycr belt 45 operating over a roller 46 is employed [or removing the solidified threads.

As above indicated, when the thread-forming material is hardenable by heat the hardening liquid in the sump 5 is brought to the desired temperature by any suitable means such, for example, as the heating coil 5 which may be located directly in the sump, a suitable heating medium being circulated through the coil. In making threads from latex by the combined action of heat and dehydration, the drying liquid can be glycerine which will normally be heated in the sump to approximately 210 F. with the result that it has a temperature of approximately 200 F. when it reaches the mouth H where the thread-forming liquid latex is brought into contact with it.

However, instead of using glycerine to harden the latex by the combined action of heat and dehydration, it may be hardened chemically by discharging streams of alkaline stabilized latex into a stream of aqueous hardening fluid having a low pH value. Such fluid might be a solution con taining bufier salts such as magnesium sulphate, zinc ammonia sulphate and thelike, or an acid solution such as acetic acid, formic acid, and the like. In all cases, however, the shape of the thread to be formed is maintained by the equilibrium of forces in the streamline flow.

In operation, assuming that liquid is to be solidified by contact with heated glycerine, the glycerine in heated to approximately 210 F,- by the heating coil in the reservoir or sump 5. The pump! forcesthe glycerine upwardly throughthe pipe 8 and branch outlets 9 into the supply manifolds l0 and H on opposite sides of the parallel plates l2 and I3, thence upwardly through the dispersing screens 25,26 to fill the inlet chambers 23 and 24. The gylcerine flows into the mouth I! over the upper edges ,of the plates l2, l3 and downwardly through the space I4 with viscous flow, as described. The latex is discharged through the nozzles 4 i in separateparallel streams and thedischarge velocity issocontrolledby regulating the valves. 43 or by any other means that the latex moves at the same speed asthe glycerine at the. center of the spacemidway between the plates l2 and I3 to besolidified as described. The hardened threadsv are .drawnoff to any suitabl cleaningand washing apparatus by the endless conveyor 45 and the glycerineis returned to thesump 5 for reheating and recirculation. The temperature of the glycerine at theentrance to themouthll usually approximates 200 F.

The materials from which the, apparatus is made will depend upon,thecharacteristics-of the hardenable material and or the hardening fluid. It is contemplated, for example, that resins or plastics may be discharged into a moving stream of hardening material and there condensed, polymerized or chemically interacted as the case may be. Likewise, with suitable apparatus, molten metal may be discharged into a stream of cooling material and carried therealong until it becomes suitably hardened for withdrawal. It will thus be apparent that in accordance with the principles of this invention substantially. any suitable hardenable material can be treated for hardening by physical or chemical action, provided it is supported within a suitable medium flowing with viscousflow. A .temperature hard.- enable liquid may be defined as any liquid which can bechanged to a substantially permanently hardened condition by thermal action. For best results in forming a round thread it is desired that the interfacial tension be as high as possible, but surface tension is not a controlling factor.

It should be understood that the term thread and its derivatives as used herein is intended to cover products having various cross-sectional configurations.

While I have, for the purposes of illustration, described an illustrative embodiment of the invention, it will be apparent that the invention is not limited to the specific example given but may be variously modified and adapted within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for simultaneously forming a plurality of continuous threads comprising a plurality of spaced plates forming a relatively narrow elongated substantially flat space, one end of said plates being outwardly flared, means for flowing a hardening liquid through said space at such a speed with relation to the dimensions of said space and the viscosity of said liquid that the liquid flows between said plates with viscous flow, a plurality of nozzles disposed at the flared portion of the plates and extending across one end of said space for discharging a plurality of continuous parallel liquid streams of threadforming material into said space in the center of said sheet of viscously flowing liquid at substantially the same speed and in the same direction of flow as the center of said sheet, whereby said hardening liquid supports and surrounds each of said streams of thread-forming material during passage through said space to cause said material to solidify while supported in said stream, means for heating said hardening liquid, means continuously recirculating said hardening liquid through said space, and means for withdrawing the solidified material from said hardening liquid.

2. Apparatus for simultaneously forming a plurality of continuous threads comprising spaced vertical plates forming a relatively narrow elongated substantially flat space, one end of said plates forming a flared section, means forming inlet chambers for directing hardening fluid over the flared section of said plates into said space to flow through said space with viscous flow, supply manifolds located below said inlet chambers and communicating therewith, a reservoir, means for circulating hardening fluid from said reservoir through said supply manifolds into said chambers and over the upper edges of said plates into said space, means for discharging a plurality of continuous parallel liquid streams of threadforming material into said space in the center of said hardening liquid and flowing by gravity at substantially the same speed and in the same direction of flow as the center of said hardening liquid, whereby said hardening liquid supports and surrounds each of said streams of threadforming material during passage through said space to cause said material to solidify while supported therein, and means for withdrawing solidified material from said hardening liquid.

3. Apparatus for simultaneously forming a plurality of continuous threads comprising spaced vertical plates forming a relatively narrow elongated substantially flat space, means forming inlet chambers for directing hardening fluid over the upper edges of said plates into said space to flow through said space with viscous flow, supply manifolds located below said inlet chambers and communicating therewith, a reservoir for the hardening fluid, means for circulat-' ing hardening fluid from said reservoir through said supply manifolds into said chambers and over the upper edges of said plates into said space, a drain for returning excess hardening liquid to said reservoir, means for discharging a plurality of continuous parallel liquid streams of thread-forming material into said space in the center of said hardening liquid at substantially the same speed and in the same directionof flow asthe center of said hardening liquid, whereby said hardening liquid supports and surrounds each of said streams of thread-forming material during passage through said space to cause said material to solidify while supported therein and moving by gravity, and means for withdrawin solidified material from said hardening liquid.

4. Apparatus for simultaneously and continuously forming a plurality of hardenable filaments, comprising a casing having walls relatively close together to form a flat, elongated, wide space, the upper portion of said walls being outwardly flared, an enclosure for the flared portion of said casing for holding a supply of hardening liquid therein and feeding the liquid into the top of the casing, said hardening liquid flowing into the casing, forming a continuous liquid sheet moving with viscous flow, a reservoir for the hardening liquid and supplying the same to the casing, overflow catching means surrounding the casing adapted to return the hardening liquid to the reservoir, a plurality of parallel nozzles positioned above the flared portion of the casing for introducing a plurality of continuous liquid streams of hardenable material into the flared portion of the casing, and into the hardening liquid whereby said hardening liquid supports and surrounds said hardenable liquid during the passage thereof through said space to cause the hardenable material during the passage thereof through said space to harden, means for recycling the hardening liquid from the reservoir into the bottom of the enclosure, and means for withdrawing the solidified material from the hardening liquid.

5. Apparatus for the production of continuous threads comprising, spaced vertical plates forming a relatively narrow elongated substantially flat space, means for flowing a hardening liquid through said space, the thickness of the liquid sheet and the viscosity and speed of flow thereof being such as to produce viscous flow of said liquid within said space, means for delivering a filament of thread forming hardenabl liquid into said space at its longitudinal center at a speed substantially equal to the speed of said hardening fluid at its longitudinal center, said hardening liquid being chemically reactive with the thread forming material whereby said thread forming liquid is hardened as it moves in contact with said hardening liquid, means for withdrawing the hardened thread from said hardening liquid, and means for recycling at least a portion of said hardening liquid.

6. Apparatus for the production of continuous threads comprising, spaced vertical plates forming a relatively narrow elongated substantially flat space, means for flowing a hardening liquid through said space, the thickness of the liquid sheet and the viscosity and speed of flow thereof being such as to produce viscous flow of said liquid within said space, means for delivering a filament of thread forming hardenable liquid into said space at its longitudinal center at a speed substantially equal to the speed of said REFERENCES. ,GITED The following references are-o1- record in the' fileof this-patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 'Ihiele; Dec.- 18. 1906 Madge .Oct:.- 30,1934 Ryan June 25; 1946

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