FI80745C - FOERFARANDE OCH ANORDNING FOER UPPTINANDE AV EN VAEGTRUMMA. - Google Patents

Description

1 80745

Method and apparatus for melting a road drum from ice

The invention relates to a method and an apparatus according to the preambles of claims 1 and 3 for melting a road drum from ice.

Road drums usually freeze in the spring winter. Water remains lying in ditches and meltwater drains along the road surface or over the road surface, but cannot pass through the frozen drum. This causes wear of the road surface and run-off of the surface material. Road maintenance requires new surface material and incurs costs.

The melting of road drums is usually carried out with steam using a hose. The procedure requires expensive equipment and a lot of work. In other words, the costs involved are high.

It is also known to pull the hose through the drum when it is open and to pour hot liquid into the hose, whereby the perimeter of the hose melts and water can flow through the drum. When water is given the slightest space to flow through the drum, it quickly eats up more space for itself and the drum is quickly released from the ice.

This, too, is a laborious method and incurs high costs.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus by which a small "initial flow channel" can be melted into a frozen drum with low equipment costs and essentially no energy and maintenance costs.

This is realized by a method and an apparatus, the main features of which appear from the features of claims 1 and 3.

2 80745

The method according to the invention is based on the utilization of solar and wind energy in such a way that the radiant heat of the sun is conducted through the road drum down to the water and airtight pipe by means of the wind-induced flow. As the wall of this melting tube warms, it melts the surrounding ice.

Solar radiation heats the wall of the heating chamber that has turned in the direction of the hottest radiation from the sun. This wall is preferably dark or black, the other walls being insulated or not radiating heat outwards. This raises the air temperature in the heating chamber as high as possible.

Inside the heating chamber, there are preferably partitions which provide a suitable air circulation which ensures efficient heating of the air and prevents cold air from entering the melting pipe directly.

On the other side of the road drum, i.e. at the other end of the melting tube, there is a flow generating device which sucks warm air through the melting tube. Such a device preferably has a so-called venturi, wind rotor or the like. The flow through the melting tube can be enhanced from the heating chamber end, using wind dam pressure. In this case, a wind-directed or wind-directed - pipe section is fitted at the end of the air inlet pipe.

The venturi, wind rotor or other flow generating device may be fixedly mounted at the end of the melt pipe, preferably at the end of an upward extension connected to the melt pipe, suitably relative to the general direction of the wind. The device may also be mounted at the end of the extension so that, according to the force and direction of the wind, it is positioned as far as possible:; preferably providing efficient suction or dam pressure flow to the melting tube.

3 80745

The air inlet pipe should be located so that no snow or water can get inside.

The heating chamber is also preferably connected to the end of an upward extension connected to the melting tube. It is also important that the melting pipe with its extensions or bends on both sides and its joints is waterproof to the extent that it is below the ice surface or below the water surface. The melting tube may be uniform throughout its length or provided with waterproof splices.

The melt pipe running inside the drum is preferably placed off the bottom of the drum to facilitate water flow in the drum pipe. The melting tube can be pre-attached to the drum tube or it can be pushed into it on suitable supports or completely freely in the drum tube.

When several successive, longitudinally arranged drum tubes can be used, melting tubes of corresponding length can be connected to each other in a watertight manner so that a uniform melting tube is formed.

The structure of the melting tube is preferably such that its inner surface is embossed, whereby as much heat as possible can be conducted from the air flowing in the tube to the surrounding ice.

The device providing the flow of the melting tube and the melting tube extending from there to the bottom are preferably dark or black, in order to heat the air flowing in the tube, to provide a buoyancy and to enhance the flow.

The construction of the melting pipe must be such that it does not compress due to the surrounding ice, impeding flow.

4,80745

A method and apparatus according to the invention will now be described by way of a preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying figures, in which Figure 1 shows a longitudinal section of a road crab melting pipe with pouring chambers and flow generating devices, Figure 2 shows a cross-section along the line II-II the flow in the device.

The same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals in all figures. The drum or drum tube is denoted by reference numeral 1, the drum defrost tube by numeral 2, the heating chamber by numeral 3 and the flow venturi by number 4. The partitions of the heating chamber of Fig. 3 are denoted by reference numeral 5; to the heating chamber, number 7, and the butt piece which joins the venturi, number 8. The dirt road surface is marked with number 9 and the ditches with number 10.

The melting pipe 2 according to the invention is located off the bottom of the road drum and at both ends of it are connected upwardly directed pipe sections 7 and 8, which are connected to a heating chamber 3 and a venturi pipe 4, respectively. The heating chamber with air vents 6 is clearly above the ditch and the highest possible water or ice surface. A venturi is also located substantially above the ground surface, so that the wind indicated by the arrow ES-disjoint access to it. According to Figures 1 and 3, the venturi is fixedly fitted to the end of the tube 8. Its direction is then in line with the general direction of the wind.

li 5 80745

The operation of the melting pipe is as follows: The air flow caused by the wind in the venturi pipe causes suction into the melting pipe 1, into which the outside air is absorbed through the heating chamber 3. The pond in the chamber is heated by the sun's radiation and the air absorbed into the melting tube is warmer than the outside air. The melting of road drums is topical in March-April, when the heating effect caused by solar radiation is already relatively large. A continuous flow of warm air is created in the melting pipe, whereby the walls of the pipe heat up accordingly and melt the ice in the road drum. As soon as the melt tube is surrounded by a small molten space, melt water can flow into the drum and the water flow quickly eats up the surrounding ice mass.

The more solar radiation is directed at one wall of the chamber, the more efficient the air in the heating chamber is, and the better the other walls prevent the flux from escaping through them. The air also heats up the longer it stays in the heating chamber. In order to prolong the residence time, partitions 5 are arranged in the chamber according to the modified embodiment according to Fig. 3, around which air has to circulate as it flows towards the melting tube and the venturi.

As already stated above, the embossing inside the melting tube increases the efficiency of the melting tube by transferring as much heat as possible from the air flowing inside the tube to the wall of the melting tube and further to its surrounding residue.

The melting tube and the annealing chamber are, for example, suitably painted frost-resistant plastic or metal, for example aluminum.

The equipment does not require any maintenance once it has been installed and the directions of the heating chamber and venturi or rotor or the like have been found to be correct. With a small investment of 6,80745 square meters and non-existent maintenance and operating costs, an efficient method and apparatus for thawing tierumum has been provided.

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Claims (9)

A method of melting the ice in a weighing drum (1) by means of a heating medium passing through the barrel of a melting tube (2), characterized in that a device (4) in one end of the melting tube causes suction, which sucks from a heating space (3) arranged in the melting tube at the other end of the solar radiation, heated air through the melting tube to the suction device (4) and further out. 2. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the suction through the melting tube (2) is produced by natural wind force, which preferably flows through a flow generator connected to the melting tube, for example a venturi device (4). Device for melting the ice in a road drum, comprising a melting tube (2) running through the drum (1) and a heat source (3) connected to one end of the melting tube, from which the heating medium seeks through the drum via the melting tube, characterized in that the heating medium source consists of a heating chamber (3) which stores solar radiation heat and is in communication with the outside air to which one end of the melting pipe passing through the dredge is connected, and that the other end of the melting pipe is connected to the device (4) which provides suction in the melt tube. 4. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the device which provides suction is a venturi tube (4) which is pivotally arranged in a vertical extension (8) of the melt tube. 5. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the device which provides suction is a wind rotor. 6. Apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that the wall of the heating room (3) faces the most intense solar radiation and is dark, and that the other walls are insulated or arranged not to emit radiant heat. Device according to any of claims 3-6, characterized in that the heating tube (3) is provided with partitions (5) which provide air circulation. Device according to any of claims 4-7, characterized in that the inner surface of the melting tube (2) is relief patterned. Device according to any one of claims 3-8, characterized in that the pipe inlet (6) which leads to the heating chamber (3) is air directed towards the wind or which is rotatable by the influence of the wind, which provides damning pressure.