DIRECTED FLOW THIN LAYER GLASS FUSION PROCESS

摘要

Discrete bodies of glass-forming raw materials are formed by agglomerating techniques such as briquetting. These bodies are preheated or prereacted using waste heat from the fusion furnace. The hot glass bodies are charged to a refractory hearth heated to a temperature substantially above the temperature at which the glass product becomes fluid. The discrete bodies absorb heat, form a liquid phase and lose their morphology. The hearth is structured so that the liquid phase flows through it in a thin layer entraining any unreacted/unmelted material. As the molten material flows it is further heated and the reaction is completed. Molten glass product can be drawn from the hearth in a surprisingly short time after charging the heated discrete bodies to the hearth.