JPH07187724A - Method and apparatus for applying air and/or oil vapor to continuous glass filament - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To continuously improve the production of glass filaments by applying air and/or the vapor or fog of oil to the continuous glass filaments drawn out of plural nozzles of a bushing plate.

CONSTITUTION: The air and/or the oil vapor is sprayed toward the continuous glass filaments 16 from the position in the continuous glass filaments 16 in an arrayed state existing below and near nozzle tips. The air and/or the oil vapor is sprayed to the continuous glass filaments from the positions on the outer side of the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state where the filaments are enclosed. The air and/or the oil vapor is sprayed to the continuous glass filaments from both of the positions within the continuous glass filaments and the positions on the outer side enclosing the same.

COPYRIGHT: (C)1995,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a continuous glass filament having a bushing plate.
) Of continuous glass filaments as they are being drawn from a plurality of nozzles by continuously applying a vapor or mist of air and / or oil to the continuous glass filaments.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In a typical process for making commercially continuous glass fibers that produces multifilament glass strands, continuous glass filaments are electrically heated to a precious metal bushing.
ing) multiple nozzle tips. Molten glass is supplied to this bushing from a front furnace of a glass melting furnace of a direct melting type. After these individual continuous glass filaments have been drawn from the bushing nozzle,
This continuous glass filament is applied with water spray and a sizing or binder, after which the individual continuous glass filaments are combined with each other to form a multifilament strand.
Is made. The strands are either wound into a collet to make a post-treatment cake, or cut into short lengths for use in reinforced plastics and the like.

Bushing bottom plates usually have a large number of nozzles in a very small area, for example 500 to several thousand nozzles or orifices. Due to the large number of nozzles in a small area, some of the filaments drawn from the nozzles or orifices may be damaged, which reduces operating efficiency. Breaking a few of the thousands of filaments is not a big problem by itself, but if one or more of the filaments breaks somewhere at the tip of the nozzle, this will always break the surrounding filaments. It Due to this chain reaction, the operation efficiency may be deteriorated and eventually the production process may be interrupted. Thus, in order to improve strand quality and improve bushing operating efficiency, it is desirable to reduce the number and frequency of filament breaks at the nozzle.

The present invention discloses US Pat. No. 4,2,4 which discloses an apparatus and method for sparging vapor onto a continuous glass filament from a bushing to enhance the efficiency of the bushing.
This is an improvement of No. 35,614. This US Pat. No. 4,23
In the device disclosed in US Pat. No. 5,614, steam is sprayed from the nozzle opening of the tube towards the distributor surface, the steam being directed towards the glass filament and flowing over the distributor surface. Are guided towards the continuous glass filament.

[0005]

Applicants have determined that a vapor of air and / or oil is sprayed directly onto the continuous glass filament as it is being drawn from the nozzle tip by spraying a mist of air and / or oil directly onto the continuous glass filament. It has been found that the application of C. to continuous glass filaments reduces the number of broken filaments, which can improve the operating efficiency of one process by about 4.5%. Applicants' method and apparatus are described in US Pat. No. 4,235,614.
No. 13 and 32 used in the method and apparatus of No.
And the air used to convey the vapor used in the method and apparatus of U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,614 to the filament and the air and / or oil vapor to the continuous glass filament. Further control of the direct application of improves the efficiency of the process. The exact reason for this improved operating performance is not completely known, but the application of air and / or oil vapor to the continuous filament results in some additional cooling effect on the filament and the surface tension of the filament. It is considered that the number of breakage of the filament is reduced due to changes, carbon coating of the filament that increases the strength of the filament, increase in smoothness of the filament, removal of static electricity from the filament, and the like.

According to the present invention, when the filament is being drawn out from the nozzle tip of the bushing plate, air and / or oil vapor, that is, mist, is directly applied to the continuous glass filaments arranged in the vicinity of and immediately below the bushing. The present invention provides a method and apparatus for applying the same. This air and / or oil vapor is directed onto the continuous glass filament at an angle of about 90 ° to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament and is applied to the filament. The distribution conduit for spraying air and / or oil vapor onto the continuous glass filaments may be arranged within the array filaments, whereby the air and / or oil vapors are arranged from the internal distribution conduit into a continuous glass filament array. Is sprayed outward toward. However, in a preferred embodiment, an external distribution conduit surrounds the array of continuous glass filaments, vapors of air and / or oil,
That is, the mist is sprayed inward from all sides towards the filament. In a third embodiment, air and / or oil vapors, or mists, are sprayed directly toward the continuous glass filament, both outward from the inner distribution conduit and inward from the outer distribution conduit.

In the case of external distribution conduits, vapors of air and / or oil, ie mist, are applied to the glass filaments from four directions, rather than one, whereby the air and / or oil to the glass filaments. The application of steam or mist is more uniform and complete. Such a complete and uniform coating of continuous glass filaments reduces the amount of oil used, resulting in cost savings and reduced oil consumption due to increased efficiency due to reduced filament breakage. Other advantages of the preferred embodiment of the present invention over the distribution conduit construction of U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,614 are as follows. That is, during operation of the bushing, the bushing is easy to see, the bushing is easily accessible, and the airflow to the generation area below the bushing is increased.
More than 50% reduction in manufacturing cost, more precise positioning of the distribution conduit with respect to the continuous filament, ease of replacement of the distribution conduit, and required when using the distribution conduit of US Pat. No. 4,235,614. It requires almost no troublesome maintenance.

[0008]

1 to 4 show a first embodiment of the present invention during a continuous glass filament manufacturing operation. The illustrated internal air and / or oil vapor application system 12 is attached to a bushing 14, which is supplied with molten glass from a not shown furnace.
From 500 to thousands of continuous glass filaments 16 in an array are pulled from bushing 14 through gathering shoes 18 by chopper / winder 28. The continuous glass filaments in this array are sprayed with water by the spray water applicator 20 and covered with a sizing material by the sizing applicator 22 before passing through the gathering shoe 18. After passing through the gathering shoe 18, the continuous glass filaments 16 are assembled together into a strand 24 by a gathering wheel 26. This continuous glass strand 24 is fed from the gathering wheel 26 to the chopper / winder 2
8 is reached, where it is cut into short lengths or rolled up for further processing.

The internal air and / or oil vapor application system 12 includes an air supply line 30 and an oil supply line 3.
2 and an air and / or oil mixing line or conduit 34
And an air and / or oil mixture heating header 36,
Air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38. Pressurized air is plant equipment air (plant in
The air and / or oil vapor application system 12 is supplied from a source such as that used for the instrument air). This air passes through an air supply line 30 and an air flow meter 40 and an air and / or oil mixing line 34.
Flow into. It should be noted that the air flow meter 40 regulates the amount of air supplied to the air and / or oil vapor application system. The pressurized oil is supplied from the positive displacement pump 43 to the oil supply line 32 via the flowmeter 42. This oil flows from the oil supply line 32 to the air and / or oil mixing line 34, where it is mixed with the pressurized air from the air supply line 30.

The air and / or oil mixture flows from the air and / or oil mixing line 34 to an air and / or oil mixture heating header 36, which header 36
At the internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38
Preheated before flowing into the. 0.95 cm (3/8 inch)
"Inconel" heating header 3
6 is attached to the frame of bushing 14,
With this bushing frame, 316 ℃ (60
Heat to a temperature of 0 ° F). This heating header 36
The heat applied to the air and / or oil mixture in is sufficient to vaporize the air and / or oil mixture. The air and / or oil vapor is fed from this heating header 36 to the internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 3
Inflow to 8.

2-4, "Inconel" internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 is shown.
Extends across the bushing at its center. The internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 is welded to the "Inconel" support rod 44 of the bushing 14. The air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 and the support rod 44 are mounted on the bushing frame directly below the guide rod 48, which guide rod 4
8 holds a bushing cooling pipe 50. The internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 has a plurality of distribution orifices 52 along each side that direct the air and / or oil vapor toward the continuous glass filaments 16 in an array. , Spraying in two directions outward from the center of the bushing plate and the center of the continuous glass filaments in the array. Dispersion orifice 5
2 is typically 0.24 cm (3/32 inch) in diameter
And is directed to spray the air and / or oil vapor at an angle of approximately 90 ° to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament 16. As clearly shown in FIG. 3, the spray orifices 52 must be aligned with the cooling tubes 50, but not with the bushing nozzles 54, so that the vapor or mist is in multiple rows. It is possible to flow well between the continuous glass filaments in both directions over the entire length of the bushing and to cover all of the continuous glass filaments 16 drawn from the tip of the bushing nozzle.

In the case of the apparatus described above, a mixture of air, typically plant equipment air, and oil, typically diethylene glycol, is mixed together in an air and / or oil mixing line 34. This air is typically used with an air flow meter 4 at a flow rate of approximately 50 (standard cubic feet per hour).
0 to the mixing line 34, while diethylene glycol oil typically flows at about 40 milliliters / hour via the oil flow meter 42.
Sent to. The air and / or oil mixture is delivered from the air and / or oil mixing line 34 to an air and / or oil mixture heating header 36, which header 36
At this point, it is sufficiently heated by the heat from the bushing frame and vaporized. This vaporized air and / or oil mixture is delivered from the air and / or oil mixture heating header 36 to the air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38, after which it is directed from the distribution orifice 52 towards the continuous glass filament 16. This continuous glass filament 16 is sprayed onto the longitudinal axis at an angle of approximately 90 °. The sparging orifices are located between the rows of bushing nozzles from which the continuous glass filaments are drawn so that air and / or oil vapors, i.e. mists, are bidirectional from the air and / or oil distribution conduits. Flowing over the entire length of the bushing and coating an array of continuous glass filaments with diethylene glycol or a similar medium.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show an external air and / or oil vapor application system 62 of the present invention, which external air and / or oil vapor application system 62 comprises:
Attached to bushing 64, this bushing 64
Is supplied with molten glass from a front furnace (not shown). An array, typically 500 to thousands, of continuous glass filaments 66 are drawn from bushing 64 through gathering shoes 68 by winder / chopper 78. Before passing through the gathering shoe 68, the continuous glass filaments 66 in this array state
It is sprayed by a spray water applicator 70 and coated with a sizing material by a sizing applicator 72. After passing through the gathering shoe 68, the continuous glass filaments 66 are gathered by a gathering wheel 76 to form a strand 74. This continuous glass strand 74 is fed from the gathering wheel 76 to the winder / chopper 7
Proceed to 8 where it is cut to a short length or wound for further processing.

The external air and / or oil vapor application system 62 includes an air supply line 80 and an oil supply line 8.
2 and an air and / or oil mixing line or conduit 84
And an air and / or oil mixture heating header 86,
External air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88. Pressurized air is supplied from a source such as is used for plant equipment air and / or oil vapor application system 6
2 is supplied. This air flows into the air and / or oil mixing line 84 via the air supply line 80 and the air flow meter 90. It should be noted that the air flow meter 90 regulates the amount of air and / or air supplied to the oil vapor application system. The pressurized oil is supplied from the positive displacement pump 93 to the oil supply line 82 via the oil flow meter 92. This oil flows from the oil supply line 82 into the air and / or oil mixing line 84, where the air supply line 80
Mixed with pressurized air from.

The air and / or oil mixture flows into the air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 from the air and / or oil mixing line 84, where the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is provided. Preheated before flowing into the. A stainless steel heating and vaporization header 86 is attached to the frame of bushing 64 by bracket 87 and is heated by the radiant heat of the bushing tip plate and the radiant heat of the glass filament drawn from the bushing. The heating and vaporization header 86 can be located above or below the spreading ring 88, but must be located well away from the hot bushing 64. This spacing allows the air and / or oil mixture to be vaporized without causing oil condensation or carbonization within the heating and vaporization header 86 or within the distribution ring 88. Air and / or oil vapor flows from the heating and vaporization header 86 into the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit or ring 88 and is applied to the filament.

The distribution conduit or ring 88 is preferably located below the bottom of the bushing frame, approximately 3.25 inches, but this distance is variable and this optimum The distance changes with different bushing designs. As mentioned above, the present invention vaporizes the air and / or oil mixture without causing condensation and carbonization of the oil in the heating and vaporization header, and air and / or oil vapor to the molten glass filament at the bushing tip. It is important to make contact very close to the edges.

As clearly shown in FIG. 6, the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is rectangular in shape and is identical to and surrounds the shape of the bushing 64 and the filament 66 in the array. . The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is typically stainless steel, is a 0.95 cm (3/8 inch) diameter tube and has an air and / or oil vapor distribution orifice 94. These orifices 94 spray air and / or oil vapor from all of the sides towards a continuous array of glass filaments 66. The air and / or oil vapor distribution orifices 94 are typically 0.16 cm in diameter.
(1/16 inch), typically outside air and / or
Alternatively, they are approximately 3/4 inch apart about the entire inner perimeter of the oil vapor distribution conduit 88. The sprinkling orifice 94 is oriented at approximately 90 ° to the axis of the continuous glass filament 66 and sprays air and / or oil vapor in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of withdrawal of the continuous glass filament. The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is typically 10.2 cm (4 cm) behind the bushing nozzle tip behind the bushing.
Inch) below and 3 cm below the tip of the bushing nozzle on the front side of the bushing, it is mounted on the bushing frame. In this way, the air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is sloping so that deposit buildup of material on the distribution conduit 88 can be minimized, and deposit buildup material on the distribution conduit is located at the operator's position. Can be dropped from the rear side of the conduit away from. The distance from the inside perimeter of the distribution conduit 88 to the array of continuous glass filaments 66 is typically 7.6 cm (3 inches) at the front and rear,
It is 10.2 cm (4 inches) on each side.

In the apparatus described above and shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a mixture of air, typically plant equipment air, and oil, typically diethylene glycol, is combined in an air and / or oil mixing line 84. Mixed in. If the bushing has approximately 2000 tips, air is typically delivered at a flow rate of 50 (standard cubic feet per hour) through the air flow meter 90 to the mixing line 84, while diethylene glycol is typically present. Is delivered to the mixing line 84 via the oil flow meter 92 at a flow rate of 35 milliliters / hour. The air and / or oil mixture is delivered from the air and / or oil mixing line 84 to the air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 where the radiant heat from the bushing and the radiant heat from the glass filament are sufficient. When heated, the oil in the header 86 or the spreading ring 88 is vaporized without causing condensation or carbonization of the oil. The vaporized air and / or oil mixture is
From the air and / or oil mixture heating header 86 to an external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88, from a distribution orifice 94 toward a continuous glass filament 66 in an array relative to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament 66. Is sprayed at an angle of about 90 °. Since air and / or oil vapor is sprayed from all four sides toward the continuous glass filament 66, the continuous glass filament coating is shown in FIGS.
It is more complete than that of the embodiment. For best results, spray orifices 94 on each side of the external spray conduit.
Are preferably aligned in a row with the cooling tubes and between a plurality of rows of bushing nozzles that draw continuous glass filaments 66.

FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention in which a stainless steel air and / or oil vapor distribution device 100 has two parts, an internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 102. And external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104. The internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 102 and the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104 are attached to an air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 106. The entire device is attached to the bushing frame by brackets 108. The air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 106 is attached to the bushing frame in the same manner as the external air and / or oil distribution conduit of FIG. The air and / or oil mixture is
The air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 is supplied to the air and / or oil mixture heating header 106 just as the air and / or oil mixture is supplied to the air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 of FIGS. When the bushing has approximately 2000 tips, air is delivered to the mixing line via the air flow meter at a flow rate of 50 (standard cubic feet / hour), while diethylene glycol has a flow rate of 35 (milliliters / hour). Is sent to the mixing line via the oil flow meter.

Internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 1
02 is an external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104
Extends across the center of the bushing between the sides of the. The conduit 102 also includes sparging orifices 110, the orientations of which are approximately 90 ° with respect to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament.
To spray air and / or oil vapor at an angle of. As in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4, the sprinkling orifices 110 need to be arranged in the same row as the cooling tubes, but not in the same row as the bushing nozzle from which the continuous glass filament is drawn. Allows the vapor, or mist, to flow in both directions between multiple rows of continuous glass filaments and flow over the entire length of the bushing, sufficiently covering the continuous glass filaments drawn from the tip of the bushing nozzle. .

The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104 is rectangular in shape and conforms to and surrounds the shape of the bushing. The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104 comprises air and / or oil vapor distribution orifices 111, which are shown in FIG.
And similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, air and / or oil vapor is directed inwardly from all four sides toward the continuous glass filaments in the array and at an angle of approximately 90 ° to the continuous glass filament longitudinal axis. Spray at an angle.
In this way, the continuous glass filaments in the array state
Air and / or oil vapor is sprayed from a first location within the array of continuous glass filaments and a second location outside and surrounding the array of continuous glass filaments.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a bushing having an internal air and / or oil vapor application system of the present invention.

2 is a cross-sectional view of the internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit fixed to the bushing taken along line 2-2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a detailed enlarged view of FIG. 2 showing the relationship between the bushing nozzle and the distribution orifice of the distribution conduit.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the bushing and internal air and / or oil vapor application system of the present invention shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a bushing having an external air and / or oil vapor application system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a perspective view of the header and external air and / or oil distribution conduit of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a header and a combination of internal and external air and / or oil distribution conduits attached to the bushing as in the external air and / or oil distribution conduit of FIG. 6;

[Description of Reference Signs] 12 Internal Air and / or Oil Vapor Application System 14 Bushing 16 Continuous Glass Filament 30 Air Supply Line 32 Oil Supply Line 34 Air and / or Oil Mixing Line 38 Sprinkling Conduit 52 Sprinkling Orifice 54 Nozzle 62 External Air And / or oil vapor application system

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] December 1, 1994

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Full text

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Document name] Statement

Method and apparatus for applying vapor of air and / or oil to a continuous glass filament

[Claims]

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

The present invention glass filaments bush plate consecutive BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION (a bushing plate)
(Here, "bushing" means glass fiber.
Surrounded by heat insulating material in forming fiber or filament
In an alloy container, this is electrically heated to melt the glass.
Continuous glass filament production by subjecting this continuous glass filament to a vapor or mist of air and / or oil as it is drawn from a plurality of nozzles ( defined as the forming furnace used for feeding). An improved method and apparatus.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In a typical process for producing commercially continuous glass fibers that produces multifilament glass strands, a continuous glass filament is electrically heated to produce a precious metal bush .
Pull out from the tip of multiple nozzles in g). Molten glass is supplied to this bush from a front furnace of a direct melting type glass melting furnace. After these individual continuous glass filaments have been drawn from the bush nozzle, they are sprayed with water and sizing material (siz).
ing) or a binder is applied, after which the individual continuous glass filaments are combined together to form a multifilament strand.
The strands are either wound into a collet to make a post-treatment cake, or cut into short lengths for use in reinforced plastics and the like.

The bottom plate of a bush usually has a large number of nozzles, for example 500 to several thousand nozzles or orifices, in a very small area. Due to the large number of nozzles in a small area, some of the filaments drawn from the nozzles or orifices may be damaged, which reduces operating efficiency. Breaking a few of the thousands of filaments is not a big problem by itself, but if one or more of the filaments breaks somewhere at the tip of the nozzle, this will always break the surrounding filaments. It Due to this chain reaction, the operation efficiency may be deteriorated and eventually the production process may be interrupted. Thus improving the quality of the strands and
In order to improve the operating efficiency of the bush , it is desirable to reduce the number and frequency of filament breaks in the nozzle.

The present invention is designed to improve the efficiency of the bush.
It discloses an apparatus and method for spraying steam into continuous glass filaments from Mesh U.S. Patent No. 4,235,6
It is an improvement of No. 14. This US Pat. No. 4,235,61
In the device disclosed in No. 4, steam is sprayed from the nozzle opening of the tube towards the spreader (distributor) surface, the steam being directed towards the glass filament by air flowing over the spreader (distributor) surface. It is guided towards a continuous glass filament.

[0005]

Applicants have determined that a vapor of air and / or oil is sprayed directly onto the continuous glass filament as it is being drawn from the nozzle tip by spraying a mist of air and / or oil directly onto the continuous glass filament. It has been found that the application of C. to continuous glass filaments reduces the number of broken filaments, which can improve the operating efficiency of one process by about 4.5%. Applicants' method and apparatus are described in US Pat. No. 4,235,614.
No. 13 and 32 used in the method and apparatus of No.
And the air used to convey the vapor used in the method and apparatus of U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,614 to the filament and the air and / or oil vapor to the continuous glass filament. Further control of the direct application of improves the efficiency of the process. The exact reason for this improved operating performance is not completely known, but the application of air and / or oil vapor to the continuous filament results in some additional cooling effect on the filament and the surface tension of the filament. It is considered that the number of breakage of the filament is reduced due to changes, carbon coating of the filament that increases the strength of the filament, increase in smoothness of the filament, removal of static electricity from the filament, and the like.

According to the present invention, when the filament is being drawn out from the nozzle tip of the bush plate, air and / or oil vapor, that is, mist, is directly applied to the continuous glass filaments arranged in the vicinity of and directly below the bush. The present invention provides a method and apparatus for applying the same. This air and / or oil vapor is directed onto the continuous glass filament at an angle of about 90 ° to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament and is applied to the filament. The distribution conduit for spraying air and / or oil vapor onto the continuous glass filaments may be arranged within the array filaments, whereby the air and / or oil vapors are arranged from the internal distribution conduit into a continuous glass filament array. Is sprayed outward toward. However, in the preferred embodiment, an outer distribution conduit surrounds the array of continuous glass filaments and air and / or oil vapors, or mists, are sprayed inwardly from all sides toward the filaments. In a third embodiment, air and / or oil vapors, or mists, are sprayed directly toward the continuous glass filament, both outward from the inner distribution conduit and inward from the outer distribution conduit.

In the case of external distribution conduits, vapors of air and / or oil, ie mist, are applied to the glass filaments from four directions, rather than one, whereby the air and / or oil to the glass filaments. The application of steam or mist is more uniform and complete. Such a complete and uniform coating of continuous glass filaments reduces the amount of oil used, resulting in cost savings and reduced oil consumption due to increased efficiency due to reduced filament breakage. Other advantages of the preferred embodiment of the present invention over the distribution conduit construction of U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,614 are as follows. That is, during operation of the bushing, a point easily access the bush easily visible point and the bush, that the air flow to produce regions of lower bush is increased, the manufacturing cost 50
%, More accurate positioning of the distribution conduit relative to the continuous filament, ease of replacement of the distribution conduit, and tedious maintenance required when using the distribution conduit of US Pat. No. 4,235,614. Is a point that requires almost no.

[0008]

1 to 4 show a first embodiment of the present invention during a continuous glass filament manufacturing operation. Internal air and / or oil vapor dispensing system 12 shown is attached to the bushing 14, this bush 14 is supplied from the forehearth molten glass (not shown). 500 to thousands of continuous glass filaments 16 arranged
From the bush 14 via the gathering shoe 18 by the chopper / winder 28. The continuous glass filaments in this array are sprayed with water by the spray water applicator 20 and covered with a sizing material by the sizing applicator 22 before passing through the gathering shoe 18. After passing through the gathering shoe 18, the continuous glass filaments 16 are assembled together into a strand 24 by a gathering wheel 26. This strand of continuous glass 24 reaches from a gathering wheel 26 to a chopper / winder 28 where it is cut into short lengths or wound for further processing.

The internal air and / or oil vapor application system 12 includes an air supply line 30 and an oil supply line 3.
2 and an air and / or oil mixing line or conduit 34
And an air and / or oil mixture heating header 36,
Air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38. Pressurized air is plant equipment air (plant in
The air and / or oil vapor application system 12 is supplied from a source such as that used for the instrument air). This air passes through an air supply line 30 and an air flow meter 40 and an air and / or oil mixing line 34.
Flow into. It should be noted that the air flow meter 40 regulates the amount of air supplied to the air and / or oil vapor application system. The pressurized oil is supplied from the positive displacement pump 43 to the oil supply line 32 via the flowmeter 42. This oil flows from the oil supply line 32 to the air and / or oil mixing line 34, where it is mixed with the pressurized air from the air supply line 30.

The air and / or oil mixture flows from the air and / or oil mixing line 34 to an air and / or oil mixture heating header 36, which header 36
At the internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38
Preheated before flowing into the. 0.95 cm (3/8 inch)
"Inconel" heating header 3
6 is attached to the frame of the bush 14,
316 ° C (600 ° F) with bush frame
Is heated to the temperature of. The heat applied to the air and / or oil mixture in this heating header 36 is sufficient to vaporize the air and / or oil mixture.
Air and / or oil vapors flow from this heating header 36 into internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduits 38.

2-4, "Inconel" internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 is shown.
Extends across the bush at its center. This internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 3
8 is welded to a support rod 44 made of “Inconel” of the bush 14. Air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 3
8 and the support rod 44, immediately below the guide bar 48, bush
Attached to Interview frame, the guide rod 48 holds the bush <br/> cooling tube 50. The internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 has a plurality of distribution orifices 52 along each side, which distribution orifices are air and / or
Alternatively, the oil vapor is sprayed toward the continuous glass filaments 16 in the array state in two directions outward from the center of the bush plate and the center of the continuous glass filaments in the array state. Dispersing orifice 52 is typically 0.24 cm (3/32 inch) in diameter and sprays air and / or oil vapor at an angle of approximately 90 ° to the longitudinal axis of continuous glass filament 16. Is oriented. As clearly shown in FIG. 3, the spray orifice 52 is in the same row as the cooling pipe 50, but the bush nozzle 5
4 must be aligned so that they are not in the same row, so that the vapor, or mist, flows out between the rows of continuous glass filaments in both directions over the entire length of the bush and is drawn from the tip of the bush nozzle. All of the continuous glass filaments 16 can be coated well.

In the case of the apparatus described above, a mixture of air, typically plant equipment air, and oil, typically diethylene glycol, is mixed together in an air and / or oil mixing line 34. This air is typically used with an air flow meter 4 at a flow rate of approximately 50 (standard cubic feet per hour).
0 to the mixing line 34, while diethylene glycol oil typically flows at about 40 milliliters / hour via the oil flow meter 42.
Sent to. The air and / or oil mixture is delivered from the air and / or oil mixing line 34 to an air and / or oil mixture heating header 36, which header 36
At, it is sufficiently heated by the heat from the bush frame and vaporized. This vaporized air and / or oil mixture is heated by the air and / or oil mixture heating header 3
6 to the air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 38 and then sprayed from the distribution orifice 52 towards the continuous glass filament 16 at an angle of approximately 90 ° to the longitudinal axis of this continuous glass filament 16. . The sparging orifices are located between the rows of bush nozzles from which a continuous glass filament is drawn so that air and / or oil vapors, i.e. mist, is bidirectional from the air and / or oil spreading conduits. Outflow
The continuous glass filaments, which flow through the length of the bush and are aligned, are coated with diethylene glycol or a similar medium.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show an external air and / or oil vapor application system 62 of the present invention, which external air and / or oil vapor application system 62 comprises:
It is attached to a bush 64, and the bush 64 is supplied with molten glass from a front furnace (not shown). An array, typically 500 to several thousand, of continuous glass filaments 66 are drawn from bush 64 through gathering shoes 68 by winder / chopper 78.
The continuous glass filaments 66 in this array are sprayed by the spray water applicator 70 and coated with the sizing material by the sizing applicator 72 before passing through the gathering shoe 68. After passing through the gathering shoe 68, the continuous glass filaments 66 are gathered together by a gathering wheel 76 to form a strand 74.
Is made. From the gathering wheel 76, the strand of continuous glass 74 travels to a winder / chopper 78 where it is cut to a short length or wound for further processing.

The external air and / or oil vapor application system 62 includes an air supply line 80 and an oil supply line 8.
2 and an air and / or oil mixing line or conduit 84
And an air and / or oil mixture heating header 86,
External air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88. Pressurized air is supplied from a source such as is used for plant equipment air and / or oil vapor application system 6
2 is supplied. This air flows into the air and / or oil mixing line 84 via the air supply line 80 and the air flow meter 90. It should be noted that the air flow meter 90 regulates the amount of air and / or air supplied to the oil vapor application system. The pressurized oil is supplied from the positive displacement pump 93 to the oil supply line 82 via the oil flow meter 92. This oil flows from the oil supply line 82 into the air and / or oil mixing line 84, where the air supply line 80
Mixed with pressurized air from.

The air and / or oil mixture flows into the air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 from the air and / or oil mixing line 84, where the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is provided. Preheated before flowing into the. Stainless steel heating and vaporization header 86, blanking by a bracket 87
It is attached to the frame of the shoe 64 and heated by the radiant heat of the bush tip plate and the radiant heat of the glass filament drawn from the bush. The heating and vaporization header 86 can be located above or below the spreading ring 88, but must be located far from the hot bush 64. This spacing allows the air and / or oil mixture to be vaporized without causing oil condensation or carbonization within the heating and vaporization header 86 or within the distribution ring 88. Air and / or oil vapor flows from the heating and vaporization header 86 into the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit or ring 88 and is applied to the filament.

The distribution conduit or ring 88 is preferably located below the bottom of the bush frame, approximately 3.25 inches, but this distance is variable. This optimum distance changes with the design of the bush . As mentioned above, the present invention vaporizes the air and / or oil mixture without causing condensation and carbonization of the oil in the heating and vaporization header, and directs the air and / or oil vapor to the molten glass filament at the bush tip. It is important to make contact very close to the edges.

As clearly shown in FIG. 6, the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is rectangular in shape and has a bushing.
It is identical to the shape of the filaments 66 of the shape and arrangement of the Interview 64 surrounding it. The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is typically stainless steel, is a 0.95 cm (3/8 inch) diameter tube and has an air and / or oil vapor distribution orifice 94.
These orifices 94 spray air and / or oil vapor from all of the sides towards a continuous array of glass filaments 66. The air and / or oil vapor distribution orifices 94 typically have a diameter of 0.16 cm (1 /
16 inches) and are typically approximately 3/4 inches apart over the entire inner perimeter of the outer air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88. The sprinkling orifice 94 is oriented at approximately 90 ° to the axis of the continuous glass filament 66 and sprays air and / or oil vapor in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of withdrawal of the continuous glass filament. The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is typically located on the rear side of the bush .
In 10.2 cm (4 inches) below the bushing nozzle tip, than the front bushing nozzle tip bushing 7.6
It is attached to the bush frame so that it is located cm (3 inches) below. Thus, the air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 is sloping so that the distribution conduit 8
Adhesive deposits of material on 8 can be minimized and adhering deposits of material on the distribution conduits can be dropped from the rear side of the conduits away from the operator's position. The distance from the inside perimeter of the distribution conduit 88 to the array of continuous glass filaments 66 is typically 7.6 cm (3 inches) at the front and rear and 10.2 cm (4 inches) at each side.
Inches).

In the apparatus described above and shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a mixture of air, typically plant equipment air, and oil, typically diethylene glycol, is combined in an air and / or oil mixing line 84. Mixed in. If the bush has approximately 2000 tips, the air will typically flow at a flow rate of 50 (standard cubic feet per hour) 9
0 to the mixing line 84, while diethylene glycol is typically delivered to the mixing line 84 via the oil flow meter 92 at a flow rate of 35 milliliters / hour. The air and / or oil mixture is delivered from the air and / or oil mixing line 84 to the air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 where radiant heat from the bush and radiant heat from the glass filament. It is sufficiently heated by the heat and vaporized without causing condensation or carbonization of the oil in the header 86 or the distribution ring 88. The vaporized air and / or oil mixture is delivered from an air and / or oil mixture heating header 86 to an external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 88 and from a distribution orifice 94 into a continuous array of glass filaments 6.
6 is sprayed at an angle of approximately 90 ° with respect to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament 66. Since air and / or oil vapor is sprayed from all four sides onto the continuous glass filament 66, the continuous glass filament coating is more complete than the embodiment of FIGS. 1-4. . For best results, the spreading orifices 94 on each side of the outer spreading conduit should be aligned with the cooling tube and the continuous glass filament 6
Alignment is preferably between multiple rows of bush nozzles for withdrawing 6.

FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention in which a stainless steel air and / or oil vapor distribution device 100 has two parts, an internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 102. And external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104. The internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 102 and the external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104 are attached to an air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 106. The entire device is attached to the bush frame by brackets 108. The air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 106 is attached to the bushing frame in a manner similar to the external air and / or oil distribution conduit of FIG. The air and / or oil mixture is mixed with the air and / or oil mixture heating header 10 just like the air and / or oil mixture supplied to the air and / or oil mixture heating and vaporization header 86 of FIGS.
6 is supplied. If the bush has about 2000 tips, air is delivered to the mixing line via the air flow meter at a flow rate of 50 (standard cubic feet per hour), while
Diethylene glycol is delivered to the mixing line via an oil flow meter at a flow rate of 35 (ml / hr).

Internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 1
02 is an external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104
Extends across the center of the bush between the sides of the bush . The conduit 102 also includes sparging orifices 110 that are oriented to spray the air and / or oil vapor at an angle of approximately 90 ° with respect to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament. Has been. As in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4, the sprinkling orifices 110 need to be aligned with the cooling tubes, but not with the bush nozzles through which the continuous glass filaments are drawn. , steam, i.e. fog flows over the entire length of the flows in both directions between a plurality of rows of glass filaments continuous bush, it is possible to sufficiently coat the glass filaments continuous drawn from the tip of the bushing nozzles.

The outer air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104 is rectangular in shape and conforms to and surrounds the shape of the bush . The external air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit 104 has an air and / or oil vapor distribution orifice 1
11, these orifices 111 direct air and / or oil vapor inwardly from all four sides towards the continuous glass filaments in an array, as in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. Spray the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament at an angle of approximately 90 °. Thus, in the arrayed continuous glass filament, air and / or oil vapor has a first position within the arrayed continuous glass filament and a second position outside and surrounding the arrayed continuous glass filament. Is sprayed from the position.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bushing having an internal air and / or oil vapor application system of the present invention.

2 is a cross-sectional view of the internal air and / or oil vapor distribution conduit secured to the bush , taken along line 2-2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a detailed enlarged view of FIG. 2 showing a relationship between a bush nozzle and a distribution orifice of a distribution conduit.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the bushing and internal air and / or oil vapor application system of the present invention shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a bushing having an external air and / or oil vapor application system of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a perspective view of the header and external air and / or oil distribution conduit of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a header and a combination of internal and external air and / or oil distribution conduits attached to a bushing as in the external air and / or oil distribution conduit of FIG. 6;

[Description of Reference Signs] 12 Internal Air and / or Oil Steam Application System 14 Bushing 16 Continuous Glass Filament 30 Air Supply Line 32 Oil Supply Line 34 Air and / or Oil Mixing Line 38 Sprinkling Conduit 52 Sprinkling Orifice 54 Nozzle 62 External Air And / or oil vapor application system

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (72) Inventor Kurt Gee. Melia United States, 43615 Ohio, Toledo, Tibaron 5662

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A method of making a plurality of continuous glass filaments by drawing the glass filaments in an array from nozzles in an array extending from a bushing plate, the method comprising heating a mixture of air and oil; And / or vaporizing a mixture of oil to produce air and / or oil vapors; near the tip of the nozzle and immediately below it, the air and / or oil vapors into the continuous glass filament. Direct spraying, wherein the vapor is the continuous glass in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament when the continuous glass filament is withdrawn from the nozzle tip. A method characterized by being sprayed on filament. 2. The vapor of the air and / or oil is directed outward from a position within the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state and near the bushing nozzle toward the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is sprayed on. 3. The vapor of air and / or oil is introduced from the position outside the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state and near the bushing nozzle toward the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is sprayed in a direction. 4. The air and / or oil vapor is directed outward from a position in the arrayed continuous glass filaments near the bushing nozzle toward the arrayed continuous glass filaments. The vapor of the air and / or oil is sprayed inward from the position outside the arrayed continuous glass filaments and in the vicinity of the bushing nozzle toward the arrayed continuous glass filaments. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is sprayed on. 5. The vapor of air and / or oil is at a position in the vicinity of the bushing nozzle and outside the continuous glass filaments in the array state, and substantially the continuous glass filaments in the array state. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it is sprayed inwardly from the surrounding position towards the continuous glass filaments in the array. 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the oil is diethylene glycol. 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the oil is diethylene glycol and the air and / or oil mixture is preheated by heat from the bushing. 8. A device for applying vapor of air and / or oil to the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state when the continuous glass filaments in the arrayed state are drawn out from the tip of the nozzle in the arrayed state of the bushing plate. A mixing conduit for mixing air and oil with each other; a means for supplying pressurized air to the mixing conduit; a means for supplying oil to the mixing conduit; a connecting conduit connected to the mixing conduit and of the bushing plate A spray conduit located near and below the tip of the array of nozzles; provided in the spray conduit and spraying the air and / or oil mixture directly toward the array of continuous glass filaments. A spraying orifice. 9. The distribution conduit is located within the array of continuous glass filaments and the distribution orifices are oriented at an angle of substantially 90 ° with respect to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filaments. 9. The device according to claim 8, characterized in that 10. A heating means for preheating the air and / or oil mixture prior to spraying the air and / or oil mixture from the spray orifice. Equipment. 11. The distribution conduit is located outside the array of continuous glass filaments and the distribution orifices are oriented at an angle of substantially 90 ° with respect to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filaments. 9. The device according to claim 8, characterized in that 12. A heating means for preheating said air and / or oil mixture before said air and / or oil mixture is sprayed from said spray orifice. Equipment. 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the distribution conduit surrounds the array of continuous glass filaments. 14. A first portion of the distribution conduit is located within the array of continuous glass filaments and a second portion of the distribution conduit is located outside of the array of continuous glass filaments. 9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the dispensing orifice is oriented at an angle of substantially 90 ° with respect to the longitudinal axis of the continuous glass filament. 15. A heating means for preheating the air and / or oil mixture prior to spraying the air and / or oil mixture from the spray orifice. Equipment. 16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the second portion of the distribution conduit surrounds the array of continuous glass filaments.