Grate for sintering machines

Sept. 26, 1939.

2,174,338

M. F. WARNER

GRATE FOR SINTERING MACHINES

Filed Aug. 4, 1938 2 _Sheets__{Sheet χ}

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2,174,338

Sept. 26, 1939.

M. F. WARNER

GRATE FOR SINTERING MACHINES Aug. 4, 1938 ₂ ,

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Patented Sept. 26, 1939

2,174,338

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE

2,174,338

GRATE FOR SINTERING MACHINES

Munroe F. Warner, Columbus, Ohio, assignor to American Zinc, Lead &amp; Smelting Company, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Maine

Application August 4, 1938, Serial No. 223,108

Claims. (Cl. 266—21)

This invention relates to sintering machines. In such machines it is essential that the surface of the pallets supporting the material to be sintered shall be provided with restricted air pas6 sages for the air passing down through the material being treated in order to support combustion, which passages, however, must be of such restricted nature as not to permit the material under treatment to pass therethrough. During 10 the sintering operation the surface of the grate is liable to become incrusted with material in process which becomes cemented by fume which, upon slight cooling, adheres to the surfaces of the parts and tends to obstruct the air passages. It is 16 essential that this obstructed incrustation shall be removed. If this incrustation is removed by hand, it results in annoying delay and expense, and accordingly provision has heretofore been made in the prior art to supply a pallet designed 20 to be self-cleaning, i. e., automatically remove such incrustation as the pallet passes through its dumping position and to a horizontal position for repeating the operation.

In the prior art constructions, grate bars have 25 been provided supported on a carrier frame and provided with movable elements to perform the automatic cleaning operation. These have been too costly because of design; have been of faulty design; or, where sufficient open area for passage 30 of gaseous products has been provided, parts have been weak resulting in excessive warpage and breakage with resulting operating troubles; or, where open area has been sacrificed for strength, process difficulties have resulted, and 35 production capacity decreased because of that deficiency.

The object of the present invention is to provide a sintering machine with a pallet in which the liability to warpage and breakage is greatly 40 reduced, in which free area for passage of gaseous products is provided, and in which the efficiency of the cleaning operation is not sacrificed. With this object in view, generally stated, the removable elements of the grate are placed 45 with and restrained by a base casting in the form of a grid, which base casting is reenforced by a rib cast integral therewith and projecting downward therefrom. The grid is provided' with alternating transverse bars and openings, and 50 the reenforcing rib for the grid extends from end to end and below the grid, and independent or separate movable elements are placed in the openings above the rib and are loosely retained in said openings between the grid and carrier 65 frame of the machine so as to permit independ ent movement of each movable element in the openings and at substantially right angles to the upper surface of the grid.

The inventive idea is capable of receiving a variety of mechanical expressions, some of which 5 for the purpose of illustrating the invention, are shown in the accompanying drawings, but it is to be expressly understood that such drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not designed to define the limits of the inven- 10 tion, reference being had to the appended claims for this purpose.

In said drawings—

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a carrier frame forming part of a pallet of a sin- 15 tering machine and the grids supported thereon, each grid having alternating transverse bars and openings, and showing also one of the independent separate movable elements for placement in said openings; 20

Pig. 2 is a broken plan view of the grid;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on the line

3—3 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line 4—4 of

Fig. 2. 25

In said drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, I is a carrier frame of the usual or any suitable construction, such for example, as that employed in the well-known Dwight &amp; Lloyd 30 sintering machine. As shown, this carrier frame has vertical side walls 2—2 and transverse members 3—3 connecting the side walls 2—2, the whole frame travelling on wheels in the usual manner in such constructions. 4 indicates cast 35 grids, here shown as three in number, each grid being provided with alternating transverse bars 5—5 and openings 6—6 and a rib 7 extending from end to end of the grid 4 beneath the bars 5—5 and openings 6—6 and cast integrally with 40 the end walls of the grids 4 and with the transverse bars 5—5. At the end of each opening 6—6 the opening is cut away as at 6'. Each of the grids is held in fixed position on the carrier frame by means of pins 8 passing through the 45 side walls of the frame and into the sunken portion 9 at each end of each one of the grids. Located within each of the openings 6—6 is a movable element 10 of such width as to leave a small air space between the sides thereof and 50 the walls of the opening, said element tapering from its full width at the upper portion inward and downward, as is clearly shown in Fig. 2. This element 10 is provided with projecting lugs or parts 10', one at each end, these lugs engage 55

2,174,338 in the cutaway portion 6' of the openings 6—6, with the surface of the element 10 normally on a level with the upper surface of the grid, as will he clearly understood from an inspection of Figs.

3 and 4. The lugs 10'—10' xio not fit tightly within the cutaway portions 6' of the openings 6—6, but are of such dimensions as to leave the elements 10—10 free for a limited movement outward so that their surfaces project somewhat j₀ beyond the surfaces of the transverse bars 5—5 as the pallet passes through dumping position and onward therebeyond into a practically inverted position. These outward movements of the independent movable elements occur from 1₆ impact of the pallet in dumping under the action of gravity and effect the cleaning operation. It will be readily seen that the reenforcing ribs 7—7, being cast integrally with the grids 4 and with the transverse bars 5—5 thereof, provide a ₂₀ very effective means of resisting any tendency to warpage and breakage, while at the same time said rib passes beneath the openings 6—6 in the grid and beneath . the elements 10. These elements 10 are preferably somewhat cut away on _2g their under sides, as shown at 11 in Fig. 4, to the end that the several .elements may be readily inserted in position in the grid. Moreover, it will be seen that inasmuch as these elements 10 are separate and independent of each other, any in80 jury or damage to one of these may be readily repaired by replacing any damaged element with another like element.

It will be recognized by those skilled in the art that the grid is. one of exceptional strength; jg that liability to warpage and breakage is greatly reduced, and that the cleaning operation, due to the independent movable parts 10 is highly efficient.