FI104382B - Device for purifying blister copper - Google Patents

Description

104382

Apparatus for the purification of crude copper

Separated from patent application 915453.

The invention relates to an apparatus for the purification of raw copper from a conversion furnace 5 comprising a plurality of anode furnaces. The invention also relates to an anode furnace for receiving and refining crude copper into higher quality copper.

As schematically shown in Figures 1 and 2, the hitherto known copper smelting apparatus consists of several furnaces. The smelting apparatus comprises a melting furnace 1 for melting and oxidizing copper concentrates which are fed therewith together with oxygen-enriched air to form a mixture of metallic rock M and slag S, a separation furnace 2 for separating metallic stone M from slag S, a converter or conversion furnace 3 for oxidizing C and slag, and the anode furnace t 4 and 4, wherein the crude copper C thus obtained is refined to produce purer copper. Both the melting furnace 20 1 and the conversion furnace 3 are provided with a feed duct 5 consisting of a double-tube structure through the furnace roof and fixed thereto for vertical movement. Copper concentrates, oxygen-enriched air, flux, etc. are fed into each furnace through the feed duct 5. The separation furnace 25 2 is an electric furnace equipped with electrodes 6.

As shown in Figure 1, the melting furnace 1, the separation furnace 2 and the conversion furnace 3 are disposed so that they have different levels in descending order and are connected in series by troughs 7A and 7B such that the trough is lowered by gravity in these troughs 7A and 7B. 'v through.

Crude copper C continuously produced in the conversion furnace 3 is temporarily stored in a hot holding furnace 8 and then taken into a pouring bar 9 which is transferred by means of a crane 10 2 104382 to the anode furnaces 4 and poured into the upper wall through an inlet.

Thus, the process operates continuously up to the conversion furnace 3, whereas the anode furnaces 4 must be operated batchwise, since the final composition of the copper, i.e. the quality of the copper, must be controlled therein. The above-mentioned hot holding furnace 8 is connected to the apparatus for adjusting the timing due to this difference in operation.

In Figure 2, the letter L denotes an example of the location of the movement of the ingot-10 gon 9 which conveys the raw copper melt from the hot holding furnace 8 to the anode furnaces 4. In the anode furnaces 4, impurities are oxidized and removed from the raw copper C and the copper oxide formed The resulting copper is then cast into anode plates and subjected to electrolytic purification for greater purity.

Although in the conventional melting apparatus described above, the operations up to the conversion furnace 3 are performed continuously, the cleaning operations on the anode furnaces 20 4 are carried out batchwise. Therefore, the raw copper C produced in the conversion furnace 3 must be temporarily stored in the hot holding furnace 8. Thus, a hot-button furnace 8 is required to be installed. In addition, a ladle, crane, etc. is required to transfer the raw copper C from the hot holding furnace 8 to the anode furnaces 4. In addition, a large amount of energy is required to maintain the temperature of the raw copper C sufficiently high during these operations. As a result, plant installation costs as well as operating costs are high and the possibilities for reducing the installation area of the melting apparatus 30 are limited.

«In addition to this, when taking a copper copper smelt into a casting bucket or pouring a smelt therefrom, the smelt will have to fall from a high position. As a result, there is a high flow of air, accompanied by the formation of gases containing sulfur dioxide and metal vapor-35, resulting from a mechanical collision, sudden expansion, etc., which adversely affects the environment. Therefore, steam and dust collection equipment that is effective over large areas is required.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for purifying crude copper coming from a conversion furnace, wherein the apparatus is optimally housed with a plurality of anode furnaces to substantially reduce the total installation area of the apparatus.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide an improved anode furnace for a copper smelting apparatus specifically designed for a non-hot holding furnace melting system.

The apparatus of the invention is characterized in that each anode furnace comprises a cylindrical furnace body having a sheath portion and a pair of end plates mounted at both ends of the sheath portion, wherein the furnace body comprises an axis and is rotatable with said axis extending horizontally; the heating means being connected to the body of the 20 oven to maintain the interior of the oven at elevated temperature; an operating arrangement for rotating the furnace body between the receiving and cleaning position of the raw copper; the furnace body casing portion having an opening for receiving the crude copper, which opening extends circumferentially with the casing portion and is arranged so that said opening is directed upward in both the crude copper receiving position and the said cleaning position; and said anode furnaces are connected in parallel such that one end of each anode furnace is directed toward a conversion furnace, with the shell portions • of adjacent anode furnaces facing each other.

The anode furnace according to the invention is characterized in that it comprises a cylindrical furnace body having a jacket portion and a pair of end plates mounted at the mild ends of the jacket member, the furnace body comprising an axis rotatable with said shaft extending horizontally; the heating means being connected to the furnace body to maintain the furnace interior at elevated temperature; an operating arrangement for rotating the furnace body at a position between the receiving and cleaning position of the crude copper and the furnace body; the furnace body casing portion has an opening for receiving crude copper, which opening extends circumferentially with the casing portion and is arranged such that said opening is directed upward in both the raw copper receiving position and in said cleaning position.

Preferred embodiments of the anode furnace of the invention are set forth in the appended claims 2-8.

According to one aspect of the invention, in each anode furnace, the jacket portion is provided with an elongated opening 15 extending along its circumference.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a plurality of anode furnaces are disposed parallel to one another with one end of each furnace facing toward the conversion furnace while the shell portions of adjacent anode furnaces 20 are facing each other.

Figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a conventional copper smelting apparatus;

Figure 2 is a schematic plan view of the apparatus of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a plan view of a continuous copper smelting apparatus and associated purification apparatus according to the invention;

Figure 4 is an enlarged plan view of the anode furnace used in the apparatus of Figure 3; Figure 5 is an enlarged vertical side view of Figure 4. an anode furnace;

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of the anode furnace of Figure 4 taken along line VI-VI of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of the anode furnace of Figure 4 taken along line VII-VII of Figure 5; 5, 104382

Figure 8 is a partially sectional plan view of a portion of the anode furnace of Figure 4;

Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view of the anode furnace taken along line IX-IX of Figure 8; Figures 10 to 12 are cross-sectional views of a rotating anode furnace corresponding to a crude copper uptake, oxidation and reduction step in the same sequence,

Fig. 13 is a partially exploded perspective view of a selection device operable with the apparatus of Fig. 3,

Figure 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a portion of the selection device of Figure 13,

Figures 15 to 17 are schematic representations 15 illustrating the functional flow when using the apparatus of Figure 3,

Fig. 18 is a plan view illustrating an arrangement of anode furnaces and a copper copper trough for connecting the conversion furnace to the anode furnace, and Fig. 19 is a plan view similar to Fig. 18, but showing a more preferred arrangement of the anode furnaces and fluid passageways therefor.

Fig. 3 shows a continuous operation of a copper smelting apparatus in which the same letters or numbers are used to define the same parts or members as in Figs. 1 and 2.

As in the prior art smelting apparatus, the continuous copper smelting apparatus of Figure 3 includes a smelting furnace 1 for smelting and oxidizing copper concentrates to produce *: a mixture of slag M and slag S, a separating furnace 2 for slag S, slag furnace 3 S for the oxidation of the separated metal rock M to produce crude copper, and several anode furnaces 4 in the conversion furnace 3 to purify the crude copper thus produced into purer copper 104382. The melting furnace 1, the separation furnace 2 and the conversion furnace 3 are disposed so that they have different levels in descending order, and the melt trough means consisting of tilted troughs 7A and 7B forming the passageways for the melt is connected to the apparatus for connecting the three ovens. Thus, the melt is discharged from the melting furnace 1 through the trough 7A to the separating furnace 2 and from the separating furnace 2 through the trough 7B to the conversion furnace 3. Furthermore, in both the melting furnace 1 10 and the conversion furnace 3, a plurality of feed channels 5 each consisting of a double tube structure copper concentrates, oxygen-enriched air, flux, etc. are fed into the furnace through these feed channels 5. Besides, the separation furnace 2 consists of an electric furnace equipped with a plurality of electrodes 6.

In the illustrated embodiment, the two anode furnaces 4 are disposed parallel to one another and the conversion furnace 3 is connected to these anode furnaces 4 by means of a trough 20 or assembly 11, which provides fluid passageways for the raw copper smelting. The trough means 11 through which the raw copper produced in the conversion furnace 3 is conveyed to the anode furnaces 4 includes an upstream main trough 11A connected at one end to the outlet 25 of the conversion furnace 3 and downwardly away from the conversion furnace 3 and a pair of downstream branch troughs 11B and 11B inclined downwardly away from the main chute 11A and connected at its ends to the anode furnaces 4 and 4.

30 Furthermore, the means 12 which drives the main chute 11A

• in fluid communication with one of the branch troughs 11B, is located at the junction of the main trough 11A and the branch troughs 11B.

This means 12 may have any structure. In its simplest form, the portion of each branch trough 3511B adjacent the joint leading to the main trough 11A may be formed with a slightly shallow bottom and a castable refractory material or piece thereof may be cast into a low portion of the branch trough 11B. .

Instead of the device of the structure described above, the passage of the raw copper passageway may be accomplished by a suitable selection means attached to the raw copper gutter. Figures 13 and 14 show an example of such a selection configuration. In the exemplary embodiment 10 described herein, the inclined main chute 11A has an open downstream end and a pair of branch chutes 11B are interconnected by a horizontal portion 11C above which the downstream end of the main chute 11A is disposed. The selection assembly comprises a pair of closure devices 40 disposed upstream of the branch troughs HB 15. Each shutter 40 includes a shutter plate 41 made of the same material as the melt and positioned vertically to close the fluid passage in the branch trough 11B, a lifting means (not shown) connected to the shutter plate 41 from its upper end by a hook 42 20 and a feed As shown best in FIG. 14, the shutter plate 41, which is similar in shape to the cross-section of the branch gutter passage, is formed slightly smaller than the cross-section of the branch gutter. a passageway 41a intentionally formed therethrough and having opposing ends 41b and 41c which open to the upper portion of the closing plate 41. The inlet and outlet pipes 43a and 43b are sealably and releasably connected to the end openings 41b and 41c in the same order and supported by a hook 42 through a connecting member 44. To close the branch trough 11B using the closing device 40 described above, the coolant is led from the feed pipe 43a to the fluid passage 41a. The lifting device of this ice pack 104382 is actuated to cause the shutter plate 41 to move downwardly to close the passage of the crude copper passage of the branch trough 11B. In this situation, although a small gap is formed between the shutter plate 41 and the branch trough 11B, the melt flowing through the slot 5 quickly solidifies when contacted with the closing plate 41 and the solidified copper is blocked at slot S so that the branch trough passage is completely closed. Furthermore, upon opening the fracture gutter 11B, the supply of coolant to the sealing plate 41 is first interrupted and then the feed and discharge tubes 43a and 43b are disconnected from the sealing plate 41. When the feed and discharge tubes 43a and 43b are removed, the solidified and is made to flow downwardly through the branch trough 11B. Thus, the lifting device lifts the closing plate 41.

In addition to the other troughs 7A and 7B, the aforementioned crude copper troughs 11A and 11B are provided with lids and are fitted with heat-maintaining devices such as burners and / or devices for controlling the ambient atmosphere, whereby the downstream melt flows through these troughs in a hermetically sealed state.

As best shown in Figs. 4-6, each anode furnace 4 includes a cylindrical furnace body 21, 25 having a sheath portion 21b and a pair of end plates 21a mounted at opposite ends of the sheath portion 21b, provided with a pair of rims 22 and 22 permanently mounted thereon. mounted on a base to receive the rims 22 such that the furnace body 21 30 is rotatably supported about an axis disposed horizontally. The toothed belt 24a is mounted at one end of the furnace body 21 and is mated to a drive gear 24b which is connected to a drive assembly 25 disposed adjacent the furnace body 21 so that the furnace body 21 is adapted to be rotated by the drive assembly 25 '.

Ϊ 4 104382

In addition, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, a burner 26 that holds the melt in the furnace at high temperature is mounted on one of the end plates 21a and a pair of flues 27 and 27 mounted on the jacket portion 21b to blow air or oxygen-enriched air into the furnace body 21. is provided with a counting hole 28 opposite one of the ridges 27, and the copper purified in the anode furnace is discharged from the counting hole 28 to a casting apparatus where the copper is cast into anode plates. In addition, the inlet 10 for inserting pieces, such as anode scrap, into the furnace is mounted on the sheath portion 21b in the middle of its upper portion. In addition, as shown in Figure 6, the generally elliptical outlet 30 is formed at the top of the shell portion 21b opposite the burner 26. The outlet portion 30 15 extends circumferentially of the shell portion 21b at a point defining the furnace peak when in its normal position.

The shroud 31 attached to the end of the outlet passage is mounted to cover this outlet 30. More specifically, as best illustrated in Figure 7, the shroud 31 extends to cover the entire region of the outer periphery corresponding to the outlet 30 an angle position whose aperture angle changes as the furnace body 21 rotates. Moreover, as shown in Fig. 9, each branch trough 11B in which the raw copper flows is pushed through the side plate of the protective hood 31 such that trough 11B

the end 11C is located above the outlet 30. The shroud 31 as well as the end 11C of the trough 11B are provided with water-cooled diapers J.

Smelting operations using the aforementioned continuous operation of copper smelting equipment * will now be described.

First, granular materials, such as copper concentrates, are blown into the melting furnace 1 through supply channels 5 together with oxygen-enriched air. The copper concentrates thus controlled in furnace 1 are partially oxidized and melted due to the heat generated in the oxidation to form a mixture of metallic rock M and slag S, the metallic rock containing copper sulphide and ferrous sulphide as major constituents with high specific gravity, and has 5 lower specific gravities. A mixture of metal rock M and slag S flows out of the outlet IA of the melting furnace 1 through the trough 7A into the separation furnace 2.

The mixture of metallic rock M and slag S that flows into the separation furnace 2 is separated into two immiscible layers of metallic rock M and 10 slag S due to differences in specific gravity. The metal stone M thus separated flows out through a blade 2A which is connected to the outlet of the separation furnace 2 and is discharged into the concentration furnace 3 through a trough 7B. Slag S is drained from the drain hole 2B and granulated with water and removed to the outside of the su-15 loading system.

The metal rock M lowered into the conversion furnace 3 is further oxidized with oxygen-enriched air which is blown through the feed ducts 5 and the slag S is removed therefrom. Thus, the metallic stone M is converted to crude copper C, having a purity of about 98.5%, and discharged from the outlet 3A into the crude copper main trough 11A. In addition, the slag S separated in the conversion furnace 3 has a relatively high copper content. Therefore, after the slag S has been discharged from the outlet 3B, it is granulated with water, dried and recycled to the melting furnace 1 where it is thawed again.

The raw copper C discharged into the main trough 11A flows through one of the troughs 11B and 11B, which has been previously fluidized with the main trough 11A, by casting a casting member 30 into the second trough and discharging through the outlet 30 into the respective anode furnace 4. during.

When the operation for receiving the copper copper C has been completed 35, the pulling device 25 is actuated to rotate the furnace body li 104382 21 to a position at a certain angle as shown in Fig. 11 where the flues 27 are located below the melt surface. In this position, air or oxygen-enriched air is first blown through the chimneys 27 to furnace body 21 to effect oxidation of a pair of crude 5 to C for a predetermined period of time, which causes the copper sulfur content to approach the target value. Further, the reducing agent containing the mixture of hydrocarbon and air as the main constituent is fed to the furnace body 21 to carry out the reduction operation 10 so as to bring the copper oxygen concentration close to the target value. The evacuated gas produced during the aforementioned operations is recovered by passing the exhaust gas through the outlet 30 and the shield hood 31 to the evacuation gas channel and treating it appropriately. Slag S is purged from the feed port 29.

Thus, the raw copper C discharged from the conversion furnace 3 is purified to a cleaner copper in the anode furnace 4. The drive apparatus 25 is then actuated again to further rotate the furnace body 21 as shown in Figure 12 and the molten copper is discharged through the outlet 28. The molten copper thus obtained is transferred via an anode trough to an anode die and cast into anode plates, which are then transferred to subsequent electrolytic purification plants.

As described above, in the continuous copper smelting apparatus of this invention, the transfer of crude copper C from the conversion furnace to one of the anode furnaces 4 is performed directly through the trough means 11 which defines the fluid pathways to the crude copper smelter. Therefore, no hot hold oven is required and, of course, no hot hold oven heating operation is required. Furthermore, since no transfer equipment such as casting levers, crane, etc. is required, the total installation area of the copper smelting equipment can be substantially reduced. Besides, since 35 equipment such as a hot holding oven, casting rods, 104382 cranes, etc. are not needed, the installation costs as well as the running costs of these plants can be reduced.

Besides, since the transfer of raw copper C from the conversion furnace 3 to the anode furnaces 4 is carried out directly by the raw 5 copper copper gutter means 11, it is relatively easy to keep the raw copper C in a substantially hermetically sealed state during the transfer. Thus, very little sulfur dioxide and metal vapor containing gases are formed and leakage of these gases, which adversely affects the environment, can be prevented in advance. In addition, the temperature variations of the raw copper C can be minimized.

In addition, in the above copper smelting apparatus, the outlet 11C of the branch trough 11B, which serves as a fluid passage for the raw copper smelt, is located above the outlet 30 of the anode furnace 4 and serves not only as an outlet for discharging gas from the furnace body 21. opposed. Further, the shroud 31, which is connected to the outlet duct, is constructed to cover the entire outer peripheral zone 20 corresponding to the angular position of the outlet 30, the opening of which changes as the furnace body 21 rotates. Thus, since the outlet 30, which is really absolutely necessary, serves as the inlet for the raw copper smelting, the structure of the apparatus becomes very simple • 25 moreover, since each branch trough 11B

the outlet 11C is heated by the high temperature of the exhaust gas produced by the burner 26, it is not necessary to use any heat retaining devices.

Besides, since the outlet 30 is formed 30 so that it extends in the circumferential direction of the sheath portion 21b, charging of the lathe is possible even when the anode furnace 4 is rotated by a certain angle. Therefore, the oxidation can be performed in parallel with the uptake of crude copper. Moreover, in comparison with the case where the fin 35 has been pushed through the end plate 21a, the opening area in the furnace body can be reduced. In addition, no disturbance

_ · · I

104382 does not occur between the trough 11B and the furnace body 21 even when the furnace body 21 is rotated.

Besides, since the end 11C of the trough 11B is provided with a water cooling jacket J, the trough strength is increased by cooling it, thus increasing the trough duration.

In the embodiment described, two anode furnaces 4 are used and the raw copper produced in the conversion furnace 3 is lowered to one of them through a trough selected by the selection device 12. As a result, while one of the anode furnaces 4 receives a new batch of crude copper C, the crude copper C previously received in the second anode furnace 4 is subjected to oxidation and reduction and cast into anode plates.

Next, typical operating procedures 15 for the steps involving the reception of crude copper C in these two anode furnaces 4 and 4, oxidation, reduction and casting, will be described with reference to the schedules shown in Figures 15-17.

The choice of the appropriate model depends greatly on the capacity of the continuous melting process, i.e. the balancing between the melting capacity of the melting furnace and the storage and purification capacities of the anode furnaces.

Figure 15 corresponds to the case where the capacities of the anode furnaces exceed the capacity of the conversion furnace.

While crude copper C is received in the second anode furnace (a), the crude copper C received in the previous step is subjected to oxidation, reduction, casting, and other related operations in the second anode furnace (b). In this model, the oxidation takes two hours and the casting operation lasts four hours. In addition, it takes half an hour 30 to purify the chimneys in an oxidation and reduction operation. and one hour to arrange the casting operation between the thymus and the casting operation only, while it takes half an hour to clarify the casting between the casting operation and the start of the reception of the next bet. Thus, it takes 10 hours from the purification of the received copper to complete the preparation of the reception of the next batch of copper.

On the other hand, the reception operation takes twelve hours and the operating time in the anode furnace described above is 5 times shorter than the reception time. Therefore, sufficient time is available to receive the next bet from the completion of the casting operation.

Figure 1.6 corresponds to the case where the capacities of the anode furnace and the conversion furnace are generally balanced, i.e. the case where the capacities before the conversion furnace are larger than in the case of Figure 15. In this model, the total time required for the oxidation, reduction and casting operation and other miscellaneous tasks such as chimney cleaning, casting, or casting is the same as in the above model and is ten hours. However, the time required to receive a charge into the anode furnace is also ten hours, so no waiting time is available for the anode furnace.

Fig. 17 illustrates a model that can be applied when the capacities of the anode furnaces are smaller than the conversion furnace. In this case, in order to improve the purification capacity, the oxidation of the raw copper C is performed in parallel with the reception of the raw copper in the final step of the receiving operation. More specifically, the uptake of crude copper into the anode furnace is completed in 8.5 hours, while it takes 9.5 to 10 hours from oxidation to purification for casting. Thus, the required operation time is saved by heating the reception operation and the oxidation operation.

These reception and oxidation operations are performed after the furnace body 21 has been moved from Fig. 10 to Fig. 11 and is continued even after the completion of the raw pair reception.

By the above procedures, the reception and oxidation are carried out side by side, so that the purification time of the crude copper is reduced by the overlapping time. As a result, the capacity of the anode furnace increases, and as the melting capacities of m m 15 104382 in the previous steps are increased, the total production rate increases accordingly.

The schedules shown in Figs. 15-17 above are only examples of the functions of the anode furnaces and various suitable models may be selected depending on the number and capacity of the anode furnaces and the duration of the respective operations. In addition to the receipts of Figure 17 during the overlapping time of the oxidation operations, it must be suitably determined taking into account crude copper production rate, oxidation capacity in the anode furnace, etc.

Moreover, in the above embodiment, the two anode furnaces 4 and 4 are disposed side by side. Thus, when one additional anode furnace is to be installed, the auxiliary furnace may simply be positioned alongside the two furnaces by providing it with an additional copper trough and a selection means.

The arrangement of the anode furnaces and the crude copper beakers attached thereto will be described in detail.

Fig. 18 illustrates an example of anode furnace arrangements 20 in which two anode furnaces 4A and 4B and one spare anode furnace 4C are disposed such that their axes are aligned with each other and the crude copper trough means 11 is arranged to connect the conversion furnace 3 and each the anode furnace 4A - 4C together. More specifically, the two anode ovens 4A and 4B, which operate regularly, are positioned with their outlet openings 30 facing each other, while the spare anode oven 4C is positioned with its outlet opening 30 adjacent to the two anode ovens. The crude copper trough means 11 consists of a main-school ridge 11A which is connected at one end to a converge. 2, one end is connected to the main channel 11A and the other end is connected to the outlet of the respective anode furnace 4A or 4B. In addition, an additional branch trough 11C, one end of which is connected to the outlet of the spare anode furnace 4C, is connected at one end to the upstream portion of the adjacent two troughs I * 104382 HB. In addition to the selection means 12 connected to the connection between the main trough 11A and the branch troughs 11B, the second selection means 12A is disposed in the connection between the auxiliary trough 11C and the branch trough 11B 5 attached thereto. In the drawings, number 45 denotes a ladle receiving slag discharged from the feed opening of the furnace body 21a.

However, in the above arrangements, the distance between the right anode furnace 4B and the left anode furnace is 10 greater than the longitudinal length of the anode furnace. As a result, the troughs connecting the conversion furnace 3 and the anode furnace become too long. In addition, since the outlet 30 and the melt drainage hole 28 are disposed opposite each other with respect to the length of the anode furnace, the distance between the drainage holes 28 of the two adjacent anode furnaces also becomes large. As a result, the casting troughs 46, which connect the casting apparatus 47 and the anode ovens, become long. Therefore, since the raw copper troughs 11 as well as the casting troughs 46 are long, the melting apparatus 20 cannot be sealed and the installation area cannot be reduced. Besides, when the length of the gutter passages is large, the number of burners to be connected to them increases and the gutter structure becomes confused. As a result, operating costs as well as the work required to keep the troughs in a hermetically sealed space are increased.

In the light of the above, it is more advantageous that the anode furnaces and the associated gutter means are disposed as shown in Figure 19. In this order, as is the case in the first embodiment, the two anode furnaces 4A and 4B are disposed parallel to one another and the spare anode furnace 4C is disposed parallel to the two furnaces 4A and 4B but slightly moved towards the casting apparatus 47. 11 consists of a main chute 11A 35 connected at one end to a conversion furnace 3, and a pair of branch chutes 11B having one end each connected to the main chute 11A and the other end connected to an outlet 30 of the respective anode furnace 4A or 4B. the end being connected to the outlet 30 of the spare anode furnace 4C, being connected at one end 5 to the upstream portion adjacent to the two branch troughs 11B mentioned above. In addition to the selection means 12 connected to the connection between the main trough 11A and the branch troughs 11B, the second selection means 12A is disposed at the intermediate connection 10 of the auxiliary trough 11C and the associated branch trough HB.

By the above arrangements, the distance between adjacent anode furnaces is quite small and consequently the distance between adjacent discharge openings is minimized. As a result, the lengths of crude copper beads connected to the outlets are substantially reduced. Further, since the drainage holes 28 of adjacent anode furnaces 4A and 4B can be positioned opposite one another, the casting channels 46 can also be shortened. Therefore, the melting apparatus can be made compact, which results in a substantial reduction in the installation area. Besides, as the number of burners to be connected to the equipment decreases and the design of the troughs becomes simple, the operating costs as well as the work required to keep the troughs in a hermetically sealed space are reduced. In the above, the export; The space between the 25 truck-mounted anode ovens may appear small, but sufficient to allow operators to perform the necessary functions, such as the work required by the chimneys, the reception and discharge operations adjacent to the anode ovens.

It will be appreciated that many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the present invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

Claims (8)

18 104382 Apparatus for purifying raw copper from a conversion furnace (3) comprising a plurality of 5 anode furnaces (4A to 4C), characterized in that each anode furnace (4A to 4C) comprises a cylindrical furnace body (21) having a jacket portion (21b). and a pair of end plates (21a) mounted at both ends of the mantle portion, wherein the furnace body comprises an axis and is adapted to be rotatable with said axis extending horizontally, heating means (26) connected to the furnace body to maintain the furnace interior at elevated temperature ) for rotating the furnace body between the receiving and cleaning positions of the raw copper, the furnace body casing portion (21b) has an opening (30) for receiving the raw copper which extends circumferentially on the jacket portion and is arranged so that said opening is directed upwardly; 20 positions that said cleaning position, and said a the nodes (4A to 4C) are connected in parallel so that one end of each anode furnace is directed towards the conversion furnace (3), with the shell portions (21b) of adjacent anode furnaces facing each other. An anode furnace for receiving and refining crude copper into higher quality copper, characterized in that it comprises a cylindrical furnace body (21) having a sheath portion (21b) and a pair of end plates (21a) mounted at both ends of the sheath portion 30; and being rotatable with said axis extending horizontally, the heating means (26) are connected to the furnace body for maintaining the furnace interior at elevated temperature; an aperture (30) for receiving a pair of raw 5 cakes, which extends circumferentially on the jacket portion and is arranged such that said aperture is directed upward in both the receiving position of the raw copper and in said cleaning position. Anode furnace according to Claim 2, characterized in that it further comprises an outlet (30) provided with a protective cap (31) for discharging the exhaust gas, which is adapted to cover the outlet (30) with respect to a particular rotation area of the furnace body; 30) serves as an outlet for 15 exhaust gases. Anode furnace according to Claim 2, characterized in that it further comprises a trough means (11) for supplying raw copper to the furnace body (21) through said opening (30), which trough means includes an end portion (11C) disposed in the furnace. above the housing opening (30) and having a water cooling jacket (J). Anode furnace according to claim 2, characterized in that the furnace body (21) consists of a single chamber. The anode furnace of claim 2, characterized in that the jacket portion (21b) further comprises a drainage hole (28) for removing said higher quality copper. Anode furnace according to claim 6, characterized in that the jacket portion (21b) further comprises at least one flue (27) for blowing air or oxygen-enriched air into the furnace body (21) disposed relative to the drain hole (28). oppositely. Anode furnace according to Claim 2, characterized in that the heating means (26) are connected to the end plate (21a) of the furnace body. • · 104382 20