JP7136015B2 - glass transfer device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a glass transfer device for transferring molten glass.

As is well known, plate glass is used as a glass substrate or cover glass for flat panel displays such as liquid crystal displays and organic EL displays.

For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses an apparatus for manufacturing sheet glass. This manufacturing apparatus includes a melting tank (melting vessel) that serves as a source of molten glass, a clarification tank (clarification vessel) provided downstream of the melting tank, and a homogenization tank ( mixing vessel), a pot provided downstream of the homogenization tank (feeding vessel), a molded body provided downstream of the pot (molded body), and a connecting conduit interconnecting these components. and The clarification tank, homogenization tank, pot, and connecting conduit are made of precious metal such as platinum, and function as a glass transfer device that controls the temperature of the molten glass and transfers it downstream.

The glass transfer device comprises a tubular main body for transferring the molten glass, a flange and an electrode as heating devices for controlling the temperature of the molten glass, and a cooling conduit for cooling the flange and the electrode. and The flange portion and the electrode portion are integrally formed with the body portion, and the cooling conduit is disposed along the periphery (outer edge) of the flange portion and the electrode portion. The cooling conduit cools the flange portion and the electrode portion during transfer of the molten glass by circulating a coolant such as water. In this case, the thickness of the flange portion and the electrode portion is, for example, about 10 mm.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-513092

In a conventional glass transfer apparatus, when the flange and electrode are cooled by water using a cooling conduit, the flange and electrode are cooled excessively, resulting in an increase in power consumption related to temperature control of the molten glass and a decrease in energy efficiency. may lead to It is conceivable to use a gas instead of a liquid such as water as a coolant, but since the gas has a lower thermal conductivity than a liquid, there is a risk of insufficient cooling and oxidization of the flange and the like. Therefore, there is a demand for a cooling structure that can suitably prevent oxidation of the flange portion and the like even if the refrigerant is a gas.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a technical object of the present invention is to perform suitable cooling while using a gas as a coolant.

The present invention is intended to solve the above problems, and is a glass transfer apparatus comprising a glass transfer pipe for transferring molten glass and a cooling device using gas as a cooling medium, wherein the glass transfer pipe is tubular. The cooling device includes a body portion, a flange portion, and an electrode portion, and the cooling device includes a cooling channel through which the coolant flows to cool the flange portion and/or the electrode portion, and the cooling channel includes: It is characterized by comprising an injection port for supplying the coolant, and an introduction port positioned downstream of the injection port for introducing an external gas.

According to this configuration, the gaseous coolant is injected from the injection port and circulated in the cooling channel, and the gas existing outside the cooling channel is injected from the inlet located downstream of the injection port into the cooling channel. By introducing into, the cooling capacity of the cooling device can be enhanced, and the flange portion and/or the electrode portion can be cooled appropriately.

In the above glass transfer device, the cooling channel includes an upstream cooling channel formed in the flange portion and a downstream cooling channel formed in the electrode portion, and the upstream cooling channel has an inlet through which the coolant flows and an outlet through which the coolant that has flowed in from the inlet flows out, and the outlet is the injection port that injects the coolant toward the downstream cooling flow path. may be

According to such a configuration, the flange portion can be cooled appropriately by causing the coolant to pass through the upstream cooling flow path. While the temperature of the coolant rises in the process of passing the coolant through the upstream cooling channel, the temperature of the coolant decreases in the downstream cooling channel due to the gas introduced from the inlet located downstream of the injection port. can be made Therefore, the electrode portion can also be suitably cooled.

The inlet may be a gap provided between the upstream cooling channel and the downstream cooling channel. As a result, since the gap serving as the introduction port is positioned around the injection port, the coolant supplied from the injection port can be suppressed from flowing out from the introduction port, and can reliably pass through the downstream cooling flow path. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, which will be described later, when providing a gap serving as an inlet 21 between the flange portion 9 in which the upstream side flow path is formed and the flow path forming member 17 of the downstream side cooling flow path, As shown in FIG. 2, which will be described later, the length of the inlet in the circumferential direction of the downstream cooling channel can be increased compared to the case where the opening serving as the inlet 21 is provided in the channel forming member 17 of the downstream cooling channel. . As a result, the amount of external gas introduced into the downstream cooling passage increases, so that the cooling capacity can be further enhanced. Moreover, since the temperature of the coolant drops at the inlet of the downstream cooling channel formed in the electrode section, the entire electrode section can be cooled appropriately.

The upstream cooling channel may be formed inside the flange portion. As a result, the flange portion can be efficiently cooled compared to the case where the cooling flow path is arranged on the outer surface side of the flange portion. Further, by forming the upstream cooling passage inside the flange portion, the thickness dimension of the flange portion can be increased. As a result, by reducing the electrical resistance of the flange and increasing the rigidity, it is possible to perform heating and cooling with good energy efficiency and to prevent deformation of the flange.

In the glass transfer device configured as described above, the flange portion is provided at an end portion of the main body portion, and the glass transfer pipes are a plurality of glass transfer pipes connected to each other with the flange portions facing each other. may include.

The flange portion in which the upstream cooling flow path is formed has a structure that has high rigidity and is difficult to deform even when provided at the end portion of the main body portion. Therefore, even when the flange portions of a plurality of glass transfer pipes face each other, it is possible to easily connect the glass transfer pipes without deforming the flange portions.

In the glass transfer device configured as described above, the plurality of upstream cooling passages are formed inside the flange portion, and the plurality of upstream cooling passages extend along the circumferential direction of the flange portion. , may be formed at intervals in the radial direction of the flange portion. By forming a plurality of upstream cooling passages inside the flange portion in this way, it is possible to uniformly cool the entire range of the flange portion.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, suitable cooling can be performed by using gas as a refrigerant|coolant.

It is a side view which shows the whole structure of a glass manufacturing apparatus. 4 is a perspective view showing the end of the glass transfer tube; FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the main part of the glass transfer pipe; 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of the glass transfer pipe; FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an end portion of a glass transfer tube according to another embodiment; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the main part of the glass transfer pipe; 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of the glass transfer pipe; FIG.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, it demonstrates, referring drawings for the form for implementing this invention.

FIG. 1 shows an apparatus for manufacturing glass articles. This manufacturing apparatus connects, in order from the upstream side, a dissolution tank 1, a clarification tank 2, a homogenization tank (stirring tank) 3, a pot 4, a molded body 5, and these components 1 to 5. Glass supply channels 6a to 6d are provided. In addition, the manufacturing apparatus includes a slow cooling furnace (not shown) that slowly cools the plate glass GR (glass article) formed by the molded body 5 and a cutting device (not shown) that cuts the plate glass GR after slow cooling.

The melting tank 1 is a vessel for carrying out a melting step of melting the supplied frit to obtain molten glass GM. The melting tank 1 is connected to the fining tank 2 by a glass feed line 6a.

The clarification tank 2 is a container for carrying out a clarification process in which the molten glass GM is transferred and defoamed by the action of a clarifier or the like. The fining tank 2 is connected to the homogenizing tank 3 by a glass feed line 6b.

The homogenization tank 3 is a tubular vessel with a bottom for performing the process of stirring and homogenizing the clarified molten glass GM (homogenization process). The homogenization tank 3 is provided with a stirrer 3a having stirring blades. The homogenization vessel 3 is connected to the pot 4 by a glass feed channel 6c.

The pot 4 is a container for performing a conditioning step of conditioning the molten glass GM to a state suitable for molding. Pot 4 is exemplified as a volume for viscosity adjustment and flow rate adjustment of molten glass GM. The pot 4 is connected to the molding 5 by a glass feed channel 6d.

The formed body 5 is formed by forming the molten glass GM into a plate shape by the overflow downdraw method. Specifically, the molded body 5 has a substantially wedge-shaped cross-sectional shape (a cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 1), and an overflow groove (not shown) is formed in the upper part of the molded body 5. It is

The molded body 5 causes the molten glass GM to overflow from the overflow groove and flow down along both side wall surfaces of the molded body 5 (side surfaces located on the front and back sides of the paper surface). The formed body 5 fuses the flowing molten glass GM at the lower top portion of the side wall surface. Thereby, a strip-shaped plate glass GR is formed. The band-shaped plate glass GR is cut by a cutting device after passing through a slow cooling furnace to obtain a desired size of plate glass.

The plate glass thus obtained has a thickness of, for example, 0.01 to 10 mm, and is used for substrates and protective covers for flat panel displays such as liquid crystal displays and organic EL displays, organic EL lighting, and solar cells. be. The compact 5 may be formed by another down-draw method such as the slot down-draw method, or a molding apparatus using the float method may be used in place of the compact 5 . The glass article manufactured by the manufacturing apparatus is not limited to plate glass GR, and includes glass tubes and other various shapes. For example, when forming a glass tube, instead of the formed body 5, a forming apparatus using the Danner method is provided.

As the composition of plate glass, silicate glass and silica glass are used, preferably borosilicate glass, soda lime glass, aluminosilicate glass and chemically strengthened glass are used, and alkali-free glass is most preferably used. Here, the alkali-free glass is a glass that does not substantially contain an alkali component (alkali metal oxide), and specifically, a glass in which the weight ratio of the alkali component is 3000 ppm or less. be. The weight ratio of the alkaline component is preferably 1000 ppm or less, more preferably 500 ppm or less, and most preferably 300 ppm or less.

The glass supply paths 6a-6d function as a glass transfer device for transferring the molten glass GM. The glass feed channels 6a-6d comprise glass transfer tubes 7 with heating and cooling devices (see FIG. 2). Each of the glass supply paths 6a to 6d is composed of one glass transfer pipe 7, or is composed of a plurality of glass transfer pipes 7 connected together. The glass transfer pipe 7 is entirely covered with a heat insulating material such as bricks (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 2, the glass transfer pipe 7 includes a body portion 8, a flange portion 9 provided on the outer peripheral portion (peripheral surface) of the body portion 8, and an electrode portion 10 functioning together with the flange portion 9 as a heating device. , and a cooling device 11 that cools the flange portion 9 and the electrode portion 10 .

The main body 8 is made of platinum or a platinum alloy and has a tubular shape (for example, a cylindrical shape). The body portion 8 transfers the molten glass GM from one end side (upstream side) to the other end side (downstream side) by passing the molten glass GM inside.

The flange portion 9 has a disk shape and is formed so as to surround the entire circumference of the main body portion 8 . The flange portion 9 is configured (welded) integrally with the body portion 8 so as to be concentric with the body portion 8 . In the present embodiment, the flange portion 9 is provided at the longitudinal end portion of the body portion 8 , but may be provided in the middle portion of the body portion 8 .

The flange portion 9 includes a first flange portion 9a and a second flange portion 9b integrally fixed to the outer circumference of the first flange portion 9a.

The first flange portion 9a is made of platinum or a platinum alloy. The first flange portion 9 a is configured integrally with each end portion of the body portion 8 . The second flange portion 9b is made of nickel or a nickel alloy and has an annular shape (for example, an annular shape). The second flange portion 9b is formed integrally with the first flange portion 9a by joining the inner peripheral portion thereof and the outer peripheral portion of the first flange portion 9a by welding.

The electrode portion 10 is formed in a plate shape from nickel or a nickel alloy. The electrode portion 10 of the present embodiment is provided integrally with the upper portion of the flange portion 9 (second flange portion 9b). A power source (not shown) is connected to the electrode section 10 . In addition, the electrode portion 10 may be provided on the lower portion or side portion of the flange portion 9 (second flange portion 9b).

As shown in FIG. 3, the cooling device 11 has cooling channels 12 and 13 through which a coolant R made of gas such as air is passed. The cooling channels 12 and 13 include an upstream cooling channel 12 formed in the flange portion 9 and a downstream cooling channel 13 formed in the electrode portion 10 .

The upstream cooling channel 12 is formed inside the second flange portion 9b. The upstream cooling channel 12 includes a first cooling channel 12a and a second cooling channel 12b. Each of the cooling channels 12a, 12b has two arcuate channels and a channel connecting them. The two arc-shaped flow paths extend along the circumferential direction of the flange portion 9 and have arc-shaped flow paths arranged side by side at intervals in the radial direction of the flange portion 9 . The number of upstream cooling channels 12 and the number of arc-shaped channels included therein are not limited to those of the present embodiment, and can be set as appropriate according to the dimensions of the flange portion 9 . Alternatively, an inlet port 14 and an outlet port 15, which will be described later, may be provided in each of the arc-shaped flow paths without connecting the plurality of arc-shaped flow paths. In this case, part of the outflow port 15 may be discharged outside the system without supplying the coolant R to the downstream cooling flow path 13 .

Each cooling channel 12a, 12b has an inlet 14 and an outlet 15 for the coolant R. As shown in FIG. The inlets 14 of the respective cooling channels 12a and 12b are provided above the second flange portion 9b. The position of the inflow port 14 is not limited to that of the present embodiment, and may be provided on the side portion or the lower portion of the second flange portion 9b. A cooling pipe 16 for transferring the coolant R is connected to the inlet 14 of each of the cooling channels 12a and 12b.

The outflow ports 15 of the first cooling flow path 12a and the second cooling flow path 12b are provided above the second flange portion 9b, and configured as injection ports for injecting the coolant R upward. The outlets 15 of the first cooling channel 12 a and the second cooling channel 12 b are provided to supply the coolant R to the downstream cooling channel 13 .

The downstream cooling channel 13 includes a channel forming member 17 fixed to the electrode section 10 . The flow path forming member 17 includes a first wall portion 18 facing the main body portion 8 , and a second wall portion 19 and a third wall portion 20 provided integrally with the first wall portion 18 .

The first wall portion 18 has a width substantially equal to the width of the electrode portion 10 and is configured in an elongated shape along the longitudinal direction of the electrode portion 10 . The first wall portion 18 has an inlet 21 that introduces external air into the downstream cooling channel 13 . The introduction port 21 is formed on the lower side of the first wall portion 18 . The introduction port 21 is configured by a rectangular opening penetrating through the first wall portion 18, but the shape of the introduction port 21 is not limited to this embodiment.

The second wall portion 19 and the third wall portion 20 are integrally provided at the width direction end portions of the first wall portion 18 and have the same length as the first wall portion 18 . The second wall portion 19 and the third wall portion 20 protrude from the widthwise end portion of the first wall portion 18 toward the electrode portion 10 . The ends of the second wall portion 19 and the third wall portion 20 are fixed to the body portion 8 by welding. Thus, the body portion 8 and the first wall portion 18 to the third wall portion 20 form a space through which the coolant R passes, that is, the downstream cooling flow path 13 . The downstream cooling channel 13 is configured as an elongated channel along the vertical direction so that the coolant R rises from the lower end side to the upper end side.

The outlet 15 of the first cooling channel 12a and the second cooling channel 12b formed in the flange portion 9 is located inside the downstream cooling channel 13 (surrounded by the electrode portion 10 and the channel forming member 17). space).

The cross-sectional area of the downstream cooling channel 13 is set larger than the cross-sectional area of the upstream cooling channel 12 . Specifically, the channel cross-sectional area of the downstream cooling channel 13 is set larger than the sum of the opening areas of the outlets 15 in the first cooling channel 12a and the second cooling channel 12b of the upstream cooling channel 12. It is Further, the downstream cooling channel 13 has an outlet 22 for the coolant R at its upper portion (downstream end).

A method for manufacturing sheet glass using the manufacturing apparatus having the above configuration will be described below. In this method, the raw glass is melted in the melting tank 1 (melting process) to obtain the molten glass GM. Then, the molten glass GM is sequentially clarified by the clarification tank 2 and homogenized by the homogenization tank 3. , and pot 4 to perform the conditioning process. After that, the molten glass GM is transferred to the molded body 5, and the plate glass GR is molded from the molten glass GM by a molding process. After that, the plate glass GR is formed into a predetermined size through a slow cooling process using a slow cooling furnace and a cutting process using a cutting device.

When the molten glass GM is transferred by the glass transfer device (glass supply paths 6a to 6d), a voltage is applied to the electrode portion 10 in order to control the temperature of the molten glass GM flowing in the body portion 8 of the glass transfer pipe 7. , heats the body portion 8 . In this case, the cooling device 11 supplies the coolant R to the upstream cooling channel 12 . The upstream cooling passage 12 circulates the coolant R supplied from the cooling pipe 16 from the inlet 14 to the outlet 15 to cool the flange portion 9 .

As shown in FIG. 4 , the coolant R that has passed through the first cooling channel 12 a and the second cooling channel 12 b and is jetted from the outlet 15 is supplied to the downstream cooling channel 13 . The coolant R discharged upward from the outlet 15 passes through the downstream cooling channel 13 and is discharged from the outlet 22 . At this time, the gas around the inlet 21 is caught in the flow of the coolant R, flows into the downstream cooling channel 13, passes through the downstream cooling channel 13 together with the coolant R, and is discharged from the outlet 22. be. The temperature of the coolant R is higher than the air temperature outside the downstream cooling channel 13 by passing through the flange portion 9 . Therefore, the inside of the downstream cooling channel 13 into which the coolant R flows has a low pressure, and the outside of the downstream cooling channel 13 has a high pressure. This pressure difference also causes the air existing outside the downstream cooling channel 13 to flow into the downstream cooling channel 13 from the inlet 21 .

According to the glass transfer device according to the present embodiment described above, the upstream cooling channel 12 formed inside the flange portion 9 and the downstream cooling channel 13 provided in the electrode portion 10 are made of gas. By allowing the coolant R to pass through, the flange portion 9 and the electrode portion 10 can be suitably cooled. In addition, the coolant R is injected from the outlet 15 (injection port) of the upstream cooling channel 12 and passed through the downstream cooling channel 13, and the air existing outside the downstream cooling channel 13 is introduced into the inlet 21. The electrode section 10 can be more preferably cooled by introducing it into the downstream side cooling flow path 13 from the above.

Conventional water-cooled cooling devices require facilities for supplying and discharging water, increasing facility costs. Moreover, when a water leak occurs, there is a possibility of leading to a serious accident. On the other hand, according to the glass transfer device according to the present embodiment, since a gas is used as a refrigerant, only a device that supplies the refrigerant is required, and equipment for recovering the discharged refrigerant is not required, which greatly reduces the equipment cost. can be reduced. In addition, it is possible to prevent serious accidents from occurring due to water leakage.

5-7 show another embodiment of the glass transfer device. In this embodiment, the configuration of the introduction port 21 associated with the cooling channels 12 and 13 is different from that of the above embodiment.

That is, the flow path forming member 17 is fixed to the electrode section 10 with the lower ends of the walls 18 to 20 separated from the upper portion of the flange section 9 . Thereby, a gap is formed between the lower end portion of the flow path forming member 17 and the upper portion of the flange portion 9 . In the present embodiment, this gap serves as the introduction port 21 that introduces the air existing outside the downstream cooling channel 13 into the downstream cooling channel 13 . By introducing an external gas into the downstream cooling channel 13 from the introduction port 21 (gap) provided between the upstream cooling channel 12 and the downstream cooling channel 13, the electrode part 10 is preferably cooled. can be cooled.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, nor is it limited to the above-described effects. Various modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the gist of the present invention.

In the above embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to the glass transfer pipes 7 included in the glass supply paths 6a to 6d is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration. The invention is also applicable to other components such as clarification tank 2, homogenization tank 3, pot 4, and the like.

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the introduction port 21 of the flow path forming member 17 is formed in the first wall portion 18 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration. The inlet 21 may be formed in one or both of the second wall portion 19 and the third wall portion 20 .

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the downstream side cooling flow path 13 is configured by providing the flow path forming member 17 in the electrode section 10 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration. The upstream cooling channel 12 and the downstream cooling channel 13 may be formed in the flange portion 9 by fixing the channel forming member 17 to the flange portion 9 . From the viewpoint of properly cooling the flange portion 9 and the electrode portion 10, the upstream cooling passage 12 is provided in the flange portion 9 and the downstream cooling passage 13 is provided in the electrode portion 10 as in the above embodiment. is preferred.

The glass supply paths 6a to 6d and the refining tank 2 can be configured to have a desired length by connecting a plurality of glass transfer pipes 7. FIG. In this case, the flange portions 9 of adjacent glass transfer pipes 7 can be opposed to each other, and the glass transfer pipes 7 can be connected in a state in which a heat insulating member or the like is interposed between the flange portions 9 . Since the upstream cooling passage 12 is formed in the inside of the flange portion 9, the thickness dimension thereof is larger than that of the conventional flange portion 9, and thus the rigidity is enhanced. Therefore, when connecting a plurality of glass transfer pipes 7, the connecting work can be easily performed while preventing the flange portion 9 from being deformed. The thickness dimension of the flange portion 9 is preferably, for example, 20 to 50 mm, more preferably 30 to 50 mm.

7 glass transfer pipe 8 body portion 9 flange portion 10 electrode portion 11 cooling device 12 upstream cooling channel 13 downstream cooling channel 14 inlet 15 outlet 21 inlet R refrigerant

Claims (6)

A glass transfer device comprising a glass transfer pipe for transferring molten glass and a cooling device using gas as a coolant,
The glass transfer tube comprises a tubular body, a flange, and an electrode,
The cooling device comprises a cooling channel through which the coolant flows to cool the flange portion and/or the electrode portion,
The glass transfer device, wherein the cooling channel includes an injection port for supplying the coolant, and an introduction port located downstream of the injection port for introducing an external gas. The cooling channel comprises an upstream cooling channel formed in the flange portion and a downstream cooling channel formed in the electrode portion,
The upstream cooling channel has an inlet into which the coolant flows and an outlet from which the coolant that has flowed in from the inlet flows out,
2. The glass transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the outflow port is the injection port that injects the coolant toward the downstream cooling channel. 3. The glass transfer device according to claim 2, wherein the inlet is a gap provided between the upstream cooling channel and the downstream cooling channel. The glass transfer device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the upstream cooling channel is formed inside the flange portion. The flange portion is provided at an end portion of the body portion,
5. The glass transfer device according to claim 4, wherein the glass transfer pipe includes a plurality of the glass transfer pipes connected to each other with the flange portions facing each other. A plurality of upstream cooling channels are formed inside the flange,
6. The glass transfer device according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of upstream cooling passages extend along the circumferential direction of the flange portion and are formed at intervals in the radial direction of the flange portion.

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