JPWO2013011837A1 - Glass melting apparatus, glass fiber manufacturing apparatus, and glass fiber manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

When it is melted at a high temperature, the molten glass is effectively clarified and homogenized.
A glass melting furnace 11 provided with a bottom wall 12 and a side wall 13 and having a molten glass outlet 15 formed in the bottom wall 12; and molten glass in the glass melting furnace 11 is inserted into the glass melting furnace 11 and energized. A heating electrode 14 for heating, and an upper partition plate 16 that allows molten glass to pass only from the bottom of the glass melting furnace 11 into the glass melting furnace 11, an upper partition plate 16, and an outlet 15. The molten glass is arranged between the upper partition plate 16 and the molten glass is arranged between the upper partition plate 16 and the flow path for flowing the molten glass upward from below, and the overflowed molten glass is lowered to form a thin film. A thin film forming member 25 having a thin film forming surface 25b formed thereon.

Description

  The present invention relates to a glass melting apparatus that melts a glass raw material, a glass fiber manufacturing apparatus that uses the glass melting apparatus, and a glass fiber manufacturing method.

  In recent years, in order to produce high-quality glass products, there is an increasing demand for melting and clarifying glass raw materials at high temperatures. As techniques for melting glass raw materials at a high temperature as described above, there are those described in Patent Documents 1 to 4.

  Patent Document 1 describes that a glass raw material is melted at a high temperature by heating the skull crucible by induction heating, and further, the life of the skull crucible is extended by cooling the skull crucible with a cooling pipe. Patent Document 1 describes that bubbles contained in the molten glass are raised to the surface of the molten glass and ruptured by high-temperature purification or addition of a purification agent.

  Patent Document 2 discloses that a glass raw material is melted by heating a skull crucible with high-frequency energy of a coil mechanism, and the molten glass is cooled by a cooling bridge disposed on the top of the skull crucible, whereby molten glass in the skull crucible is obtained. It is described to promote convection. Patent Document 2 describes that the influence of the coil mechanism on the quality is minimized by disposing the outlet of the molten glass above the coil mechanism.

  Patent Document 3 describes melting a glass raw material at a high temperature using an iridium melting container with a tubular outlet. Patent Document 3 describes that the outlet of the melting vessel is clogged by cooling the lower portion of the melting vessel to solidify the molten glass and clarifying the molten glass in the melting vessel.

  In Patent Document 4, it is described that bubbles are raised and ruptured on the surface of the melt by flowing the melt into a thin layer of 5 to 10 cm and flowing it in a horizontal flow path. Patent Document 4 describes that a conduit is immersed in the melt while being inclined downward toward the downstream, whereby bubbles are separated from the melt and the conduit is caused to flow backward.

Japanese translation of PCT publication No. 2003-507111 JP 2005-504707 A JP 2005-119959 A JP 2001-518049 gazette

  However, the techniques described in Patent Documents 1 to 4 have the following problems.

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, although bubbles can be raised to the surface by refining, this is not devised as a defoaming mechanism, but simply by raising the temperature, a separate refining agent Therefore, it does not exceed the general clarification effect. In the technique described in Patent Document 1, since the inside of the skull crucible has a simple structure, the residence time of the molten glass in the skull crucible is short, and the molten glass cannot be sufficiently homogenized and clarified. Moreover, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, since the skull crucible is actively cooled by the cooling pipe, a portion where the temperature is lowered is generated in the skull crucible. For this reason, the risk of devitrification (the molten glass crystallizes and becomes opaque) increases the risk of quality deterioration, and the thermal efficiency is poor.

  In the technique described in Patent Document 2, although the influence of the coil mechanism can be minimized, a clarification effect is not sufficient because no special device for promoting defoaming is provided. Further, in the technique described in Patent Document 2, convection is promoted in the skull crucible, but since the inside of the skull crucible has a simple structure, the residence time of the molten glass in the skull crucible is short, Homogenization and clarification cannot be performed sufficiently. Moreover, in the technique described in Patent Document 2, since the skull crucible is actively cooled by the cooling bridge, a portion where the temperature is lowered is generated in the skull crucible. For this reason, the risk of devitrification is increased and the risk of quality deterioration is increased, and the thermal efficiency is poor.

  In the technique described in Patent Document 3, since the molten glass is closed from the outside and the molten glass surrounds the bubbles thickly, the bubbles cannot be efficiently removed even if the viscosity of the molten glass is low. In addition, in the technique described in Patent Document 3, the molten glass is temporarily confined in the melting container in order to secure the residence time in the melting container, so that continuous melting cannot be performed. ineffective.

  Among the techniques described in Patent Document 4, in the technique of defoaming by flowing the melt through a horizontal channel, the thickness of the melt is still 5 to 10 cm, and thus the thickness of the melt is still thick. For this reason, it takes time for the bubbles to reach the surface of the melt, and a sufficient defoaming effect cannot be obtained. Further, among the techniques described in Patent Document 4, in the technique of immersing the conduit in the melt, since the bubbles in the conduit are always wrapped in the molten glass, even if the viscosity of the melt is lowered, Air bubbles cannot be removed efficiently. In addition, in all of the techniques described in Patent Document 4, since the maximum temperature is 1500 ° C., it is not possible to melt the hardly-meltable glass, and even if it can be melted, the melting time becomes long. It takes a lot of time to homogenize and clarify the molten glass.

  Then, an object of this invention is to provide the glass melting apparatus, glass fiber manufacturing apparatus, and glass fiber manufacturing method which can perform clarification and homogenization of a molten glass effectively, when it fuses at high temperature.

  A glass melting apparatus according to the present invention comprises a glass melting furnace provided with a bottom wall and a side wall and having an outlet for drawing out molten glass, and an inlet for placing glass raw material disposed above the glass melting furnace. The heating electrode that is inserted into the glass melting furnace and heated to heat the glass raw material charged into the glass melting furnace by energization and the bottom wall between the charging port and the outlet is heated to heat the heating electrode. And a thin film forming member having a thin film forming surface formed into a thin film shape by damming the molten glass melted by the above and lowering and extending the overflowing molten glass.

  In the glass melting apparatus according to the present invention, the molten glass melted by heating the heating electrode is blocked by the thin film forming plate, and the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming plate is along the thin film forming surface on the outlet side. By being lowered, the film is drawn thinly to form a thin film, and then led out to the outlet. As described above, when the molten glass is thinned, the bubbles cannot maintain their shape and break the bubbles, so that a very excellent clarification effect can be obtained. Moreover, since the heat transfer efficiency to a molten glass will become high when a molten glass is reduced in thickness, fusion | melting of an unmelted material is accelerated | stimulated and homogenization of a molten glass is achieved.

  Moreover, while supplying the heating electrode inserted in the glass melting furnace, the molten glass of the glass melting furnace can be directly heated, and the molten glass can be heated at an arbitrary position of the glass melting furnace. For this reason, regardless of the shape, size, material, etc. of the glass melting furnace, the molten glass can be efficiently heated, and in particular, it can be applied to a large glass melting furnace.

  The thin film forming member is formed in a plate shape, and is arranged between the vertical lower side of the inlet and the outlet, the lower end is in contact with the bottom wall, and the side end is in contact with the side wall. And an upper passage part that allows the molten glass to pass therethrough at the upper end part. When the thin film forming member is configured in this way, the thin glass forming member is disposed between the lower portion in the vertical direction of the inlet and the outlet, so that the molten glass melted by the heating of the heating electrode directly enters the outlet. It is blocked by the thin film forming member without being led out. Then, when the liquid glass level in the glass melting furnace is adjusted to a position slightly higher than the upper passage part by adjusting the input amount of the glass raw material, the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member It is formed into a thin film by descending along the thin film forming surface. Thereby, molten glass can be formed in a thin film shape.

  In this case, the thin film forming member is preferably inclined toward the inlet side. By tilting the plate-shaped thin film forming member in this manner, the molten glass that has passed through the upper passage portion slides down the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member without leaving the thin film forming member, so the molten glass is smoothly formed into a thin film. Can be formed.

  On the other hand, the thin film forming member can also be formed in a tubular shape that surrounds the outlet, with the lower end being in contact with the bottom wall. When the thin film forming member is configured in this way, the outlet is covered with the thin film forming member, and a thin film forming plate is formed inside the thin film forming member. Then, the molten glass melted by heating the heating electrode is not led directly to the outlet, but is blocked by the thin film forming member, and the amount of the glass raw material in the glass melting furnace is adjusted by adjusting the amount of the glass raw material charged. When the position is adjusted to a position slightly higher than the upper end portion of the thin film forming member, the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member descends along the thin film forming surface arranged inside the thin film forming member, thereby forming a thin film shape. It is formed. Thereby, molten glass can be formed in a thin film shape.

  In this case, the thin film forming member preferably has a shape in which the thin film forming surface is narrowed from the upper part in the vertical direction toward the lower part in the vertical direction. By forming the tubular thin film forming member in this way, the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member slides down the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member without leaving the thin film forming member, so that the molten glass is smoothly formed into a thin film shape. Can be formed.

  The glass melting furnace is preferably made of iridium or an iridium-based alloy. By configuring the glass melting furnace with iridium or an iridium-based alloy in this manner, the glass raw material can be melted at a high temperature equal to or higher than the melting point of silica, so that the melting time of the glass raw material can be dramatically shortened. Moreover, since iridium does not generate silicon from molten glass even when it comes into contact with molten glass, silicon particles in the molten glass can be reduced and the quality of the molten glass can be improved.

  Moreover, it is preferable to further have a casing that covers the glass melting furnace and an inert gas supply means that supplies an inert gas into the casing. By comprising in this way, since the whole glass melting furnace becomes an inert gas atmosphere and is isolated from air | atmosphere, it can suppress that a glass melting furnace and a heating electrode oxidize and sublimate. For this reason, even if a molten glass is heated to high temperature, it can suppress that the lifetime of a glass melting apparatus falls.

  Moreover, it is preferable to further have an upper partition plate provided between the lower portion in the vertical direction of the charging port and the thin film forming member, and having a lower passage portion through which the molten glass passes from the inner bottom portion of the glass melting furnace. By arranging the upper partition plate in the glass melting furnace in this way, it is possible to prevent unmelted material from being drawn out from the outlet through the rapid flow of the surface layer of the molten glass, and the molten glass in the glass melting furnace The travel route can be extended. As a result, the residence time of the molten glass in the glass melting furnace becomes longer, so that defoaming is promoted and the clarification effect of the molten glass is enhanced, and the melting of the unmelted material is promoted to make the molten glass uniform. It is done. In addition, since a flow path for flowing the molten glass upward is formed between the upper partition plate and the thin film forming member, the bubbles contained in the molten glass are pushed upward to break the bubbles at the liquid surface of the molten glass. be able to. Thereby, the clarification effect of molten glass can further be improved.

  A glass fiber manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention is introduced into any one of the glass melting apparatuses described above, a storage tank into which molten glass disposed below the glass melting furnace and drawn from the outlet is introduced, and the storage tank. And a fiberizing apparatus for fiberizing and spinning the molten glass. According to the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, the molten glass melted by heating the heating electrode is clarified and homogenized by the thin film forming member and then fiberized, so that high-quality glass fiber can be manufactured. it can.

  A glass fiber manufacturing method according to the present invention is a glass fiber manufacturing method using the above-described glass fiber manufacturing apparatus, in which a glass raw material is charged into a glass melting furnace through a charging port, and a heating electrode is energized to generate glass. After melting the glass raw material put into the melting furnace and forming the molten glass into a thin film shape by the thin film forming member, the molten glass is drawn out from the outlet and introduced into the storage tank, and the molten glass introduced into the storage tank is Glass fiber is produced by fiberizing with a fiberizing device. According to the glass fiber manufacturing method according to the present invention, the molten glass melted by heating the heating electrode is clarified and homogenized by the thin film forming member and then fiberized, so that high-quality glass fiber can be manufactured. it can.

  In this case, the glass melting apparatus has a casing that covers the glass melting furnace, and the inside of the casing is preferably in an inert gas atmosphere. Thus, since the inside of a casing is made into inert gas atmosphere, since the whole glass melting furnace can be isolated from air | atmosphere, it can suppress that a glass melting furnace and a heating electrode oxidize and sublimate. . For this reason, even if a molten glass is heated to high temperature, it can suppress that the lifetime of a glass melting apparatus falls.

  And it is preferable to heat a molten glass to 1700-2000 degreeC by electricity supply of the electrode for a heating. By heating the molten glass to 1700 to 2000 ° C. in this way, the melting time of the glass raw material can be drastically shortened because it is melted by a single silica as the main component of the glass.

  According to the present invention, when the glass is melted at a high temperature, the molten glass can be clarified and homogenized effectively.

It is a schematic diagram of the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a top view of the glass melting furnace shown in FIG. It is a cross-sectional perspective view of the glass melting furnace shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the flow of the molten glass in a glass melting furnace. It is a top view of the glass melting furnace in the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is VI-VI sectional view taken on the line of the glass melting furnace shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the other example of a plate-shaped thin film formation member. It is a figure which shows the other example of a tubular thin film formation member. It is a schematic diagram of the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus which attached the vacuum degassing furnace.

  Hereinafter, with reference to drawings, preferred embodiments of a glass melting apparatus, a glass fiber manufacturing apparatus, and a glass fiber manufacturing method according to the present invention will be described in detail. In all the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a glass fiber manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus 1 which concerns on 1st Embodiment is provided with the glass melting apparatus 10 mounted in the floor 2, and the fiberization equipment 30 arrange | positioned under the floor 2. As shown in FIG. .

  The glass melting apparatus 10 includes a glass melting furnace 11 that melts a glass raw material such as a glass raw material powder or a glass lump, and a casing 18 that covers the glass melting furnace 11. The glass raw material powder is a glass raw material mixed with powders of metal oxides such as silica and alumina, and the glass lump is a marbled glass raw material cooled once the glass raw material powder is melted, or this marbled glass raw material Is a cullet-shaped glass raw material. In order to increase the homogeneity of the molten glass, it is preferable to use a cullet-shaped glass raw material. Although it does not specifically limit as a glass raw material, The glass raw material for an E glass, T glass, a silica fiber, and nitride glass manufacture use can be used conveniently.

  The glass melting furnace 11 is formed in a box shape opened upward by a bottom wall 12 and a side wall 13 erected on the bottom wall 12. As long as the glass melting furnace 11 has a bottom wall 12 and a side wall 13, the glass melting furnace 11 may have any shape such as a circular shape in a top view and a polygonal shape in a top view.

  The bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13 are made of a platinum group metal that has low reactivity with molten glass and is not easily eroded by molten glass. Among them, iridium (melting point is 2447 ° C. and excellent in mechanical strength at high temperature) Ir) or an iridium-based alloy is preferable. The iridium-based alloy preferably contains 50% or more of iridium, and more preferably 60% or more of iridium. The glass melting furnace 11 may be configured by coating the surface of a general furnace material such as brick with a platinum group metal such as iridium (Ir) and an iridium-based alloy.

  In such a glass melting furnace 11, the inside is divided into a first region A and a second region B by an upper partition plate 16. The first region A is a region that is disposed vertically below the charging port 19 into which the glass raw material is charged and for melting the glass raw material charged into the glass melting furnace 11. The second region B is a region in which the molten glass is clarified and the outlet 15 for drawing the molten glass to the bottom wall 12 is formed.

  A plurality of heating electrodes 14 are inserted into the first region A of the glass melting furnace 11 from above. The heating electrode 14 is made of a material (high temperature and heat resistant material) that can withstand high temperatures such as molybdenum and tungsten, and is connected to a power source 17 that supplies electricity. The heating electrode 14 is preferably cylindrical from the viewpoint of insertion / extraction with respect to the glass melting apparatus 10, but can be deformed into various shapes without particular limitation. And it is possible to directly energize the molten glass by the heating electrode 14 and heat and melt the glass raw material charged into the glass melting furnace 11. When the glass melting apparatus 10 is heated up (started up), since the glass melting furnace 11 is not filled with molten glass, it is difficult for the heating electrode 14 to be energized. 11 is preferably melted. When the glass raw material is melted to some extent, the molten glass is heated to 1700 to 2000 ° C. by energization by the heating electrode 14 to melt the glass raw material. Thereby, the melting of the silica contained in the glass raw material is promoted, the glass raw material is rapidly melted, and the molten glass is homogenized. The glass melting furnace 11 is also called a boosting furnace because it is heated by a heating electrode 14 inserted in the glass melting furnace 11, and is mainly a direct melt method (DM method) for melting glass raw material powder. Used for. However, you may use this glass melting furnace 11 for the marble melt method (MM method) etc. which fuse | melt the glass raw material of a glass soul.

  If there are two or more heating electrodes 14, the number and arrangement thereof can be arbitrarily selected. However, it is preferable to select the heating electrode 14 so as to surround the charging port 19 in a top view in view that the region surrounded by the heating electrode 14 is heated most. FIG. 2 is a top view (plan view) of the glass melting furnace shown in FIG. For example, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), two heating electrodes 14 may be arranged in the first region A so as to sandwich the insertion port 19, and as shown in FIG. In the region A, three heating electrodes 14 may be disposed at a position surrounding the inlet 19. Thus, by arranging the heating electrode 14 at a position sandwiching the charging port 19, the glass raw material charged into the glass melting furnace 11 from the charging port 19 can be efficiently heated and melted.

  By the way, when the glass material is heated by the heating electrode 14 at a temperature higher than the melting temperature of silica, the glass material charged in the glass melting furnace 11 is melted in a short time. However, when the heating temperature is low, the glass raw material stays unmelted for a while. Therefore, since the heating electrode 14 has a property that electricity easily flows at the tip thereof, when the glass raw material is melted at a low temperature lower than the melting temperature of silica, the tip of the heating electrode 14 is inserted into the charged glass. It is preferable to arrange at a position where the raw material accumulates. For example, since the glass raw material of the glass raw material powder is collected near the liquid surface of the molten glass, it is preferable to arrange the tip of the heating electrode 14 near the liquid surface of the molten glass. It is preferable to arrange the tip of the heating electrode 14 at the bottom of the glass melting furnace 11 in order to sink to the bottom of the furnace.

  A bubbler 24 is inserted in the first region A of the glass melting furnace 11. The bubbler 24 is a tubular member that ejects an inert gas into the molten glass in order to promote melting of the glass raw material. The jet port of the bubbler 24 is preferably disposed near the bottom of the first region A and near the lower portion of the input port 19 in the vertical direction. The inert gas ejected from the bubbler 24 may be any kind of inert gas, but is preferably a non-oxidizing gas from the viewpoint of preventing the molten glass from being oxidized. Nitrogen gas is most preferable in terms of stable supply. The bubbler 24 may be inserted into the first region A of the glass melting furnace 11 from any position. However, if the bubbler 24 is inserted from above the first region A of the glass melting furnace 11, the glass melting The structure of the furnace 11 can be simplified.

  The upper partition plate 16 is formed in a flat plate shape, and allows the molten glass in the first region A to pass through the second region B only from the bottom of the glass melting furnace 11.

  Both end portions of the upper partition plate 16 are in contact with a pair of opposing side walls 13 to seal between the side walls 13. The upper end portion of the upper partition plate 16 is disposed at a position higher than the liquid level of the molten glass so as to dam the surface layer of the molten glass. The upper end of the glass melting furnace 11 may be arranged at any position as long as it can dam the surface layer of the molten glass in the first region A. For example, it may extend to the upper surface of the glass melting furnace 11. . At the lower end portion of the upper partition plate 16, a passage port 16 a through which the molten glass passes from the vicinity of the inner bottom portion of the glass melting furnace 11 is formed. For this reason, the molten glass melted in the first region A can move to the second region B only by diving through the passage port 16 a formed in the upper partition plate 16. The passage port 16a may have any shape and configuration as long as the molten glass can pass through. For example, the passage opening 16 a may be formed by separating the lower end portion of the upper partition plate 16 from the bottom wall 12, and the passage opening 16 a is formed by forming a through hole in the lower end portion of the upper partition plate 16. Also good. In addition, it is preferable that the passage port 16a is located below at least half of the height (depth) of the glass melting furnace 11.

  The standing direction of the upper partition plate 16 configured in this way may be a direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction, and is a direction inclined from the direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction to the inlet 19 side. Also good. Moreover, the upper partition plate 16 may change the standing direction in the middle. For example, the lower part immersed in the molten glass is directed to the direction inclined from the direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction to the inlet 19 side. The upper part which is not immersed in the surface may be directed in a direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction.

  The upper partition plate 16 is made of a platinum group metal like the bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13 of the glass melting furnace 11, and among them, it is preferably made of iridium (Ir) or an iridium-based alloy. The upper partition plate 16 may be configured by covering the surface of a general furnace material such as brick with a platinum group metal such as iridium (Ir) and an iridium-based alloy.

  In the second region B of the glass melting furnace 11, a flat thin film forming member 25 is disposed between the upper partition plate 16 and the outlet 15. The thin film forming member 25 is erected on the bottom wall 12, dams the molten glass melted in the first region A, and forms a flow path for flowing the molten glass from below to the upper partition plate 16. At the same time, the overflowing molten glass is led out to the outlet 15 by being lowered along the thin film forming surface 25b on the outlet 15 side.

  FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the glass melting furnace shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the thin film forming member 25 is formed in a plate shape. Both end portions of the thin film forming member 25 are in contact with a pair of opposing side walls 13 to seal between the side walls 13. The lower end portion of the thin film forming member 25 is in contact with the bottom wall 12 and seals between the bottom wall 12.

  An upper passage portion 25 a through which the molten glass melted in the first region A passes is formed at the upper end portion of the thin film forming member 25. The upper passage portion 25a may be formed by, for example, the upper end surface of the thin film forming member 25, or may be formed by a through hole or a notch formed in the thin film forming member 25. The upper passage portion 25a is formed in a horizontal plane at a position slightly lower than the liquid level of the molten glass in order to form the molten glass into a thin film having a uniform thickness.

  A thin film forming surface 25b is formed on the drawing port 15 side of the thin film forming member 25. The thin film forming surface 25b is formed as a thin film by lowering and extending the molten glass that has passed through the upper passage portion 25a. The thin film forming surface 25b is formed in a flat shape in order to make the thickness of the thin molten glass uniform. However, if the molten glass can be formed in a thin film shape, the thin film forming surface 25b may be formed in a curved surface curved in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction.

  In the first embodiment, the thin film forming member is described as having a plate shape. However, the overflowing molten glass can be lowered along the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member without leaving the thin film forming member. Any shape is possible if possible. For example, as in a second embodiment described later, the thin film forming member may be tubular. Further, when the thin film forming member is plate-shaped, it may be a curved surface or a step shape, and when the thin film forming member is tubular, it may be a mortar shape or a step shape.

  The thin film forming member 25 is made of a platinum group metal like the bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13 of the glass melting furnace 11, and among them, it is preferably made of iridium (Ir) or an iridium base alloy. The thin film forming member 25 may be configured by coating the surface of a general furnace material such as brick with a platinum group metal such as iridium (Ir) and an iridium-based alloy.

  The standing direction of the thin film forming member 25 configured as described above may be a direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction, and is a direction inclined from the direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction to the inlet 19 side. Also good. However, the molten glass that has passed from the upper passage portion 25a may be directed from the direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction to the inlet 19 side so as to be formed in a thin film shape while sliding down the thin film forming surface 25b. preferable. In this case, the standing angle of the thin film forming member 25 is preferably 30 to 85 ° C with respect to the horizontal direction, more preferably 35 to 80 ° C, and most preferably 40 to 70 ° C. In addition, the upper end surface of the upper passage portion 25a is preferably formed in a curved surface with the thin film formation surface 25b side chamfered so as to smoothly guide the molten glass that has passed through the upper passage portion 25a to the thin film formation surface 25b. In addition, in order to lengthen the shortest distance of the flow path formed between the upper partition plate 16 and the thin film forming member 25 and lengthen the residence time of the molten glass in the flow path, the upper partition plate 16 and the thin film It is preferable to arrange the forming member 25 in parallel in the standing direction.

  In addition, it is preferable to provide heating means such as a heater for heating the molten glass in the second region B of the glass melting furnace 11 configured as described above. Thereby, since the heating temperature of a molten glass can be finely adjusted also in the 2nd area | region B separately from the 1st area | region A, the drawing-out amount of the molten glass pulled out from the outlet 15 can be adjusted.

  Further, a drain 29 is formed on the bottom wall 12 of the first region A in the glass melting furnace 11 to draw out the molten glass that is blocked by the thin film forming member 25 when the glass type to be melted is switched. When switching the glass type, it is necessary to draw all the molten glass out of the glass melting furnace 11. At this time, the molten glass exceeding the thin film forming member 25 can be drawn out from the outlet 15, but the molten glass dammed up by the thin film forming member 25 is not melted unless the glass melting furnace 11 is turned over. It cannot be withdrawn from the furnace 11. Therefore, at the time of switching the glass type to be melted, the drain glass formed on the bottom wall 12 of the first region A is opened, and the molten glass blocked by the thin film forming member 25 can be drawn out. .

  The drain 29 can be opened and closed by various methods. For example, the drain 29 can be air-cooled or water-cooled to cure the molten glass in the drain 29, so that the drain 29 can be sealed, and the drain 29 is heated to melt the cured glass in the drain 29. The drain 29 can be opened. Moreover, the drain 29 can be sealed by plugging the drain 29 using the lid member, and the drain 29 can be opened by removing the plug from the drain 29.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the casing 18 is placed on the floor 2, and is disposed above the glass melting furnace 11 in the vertical direction, and a ceiling wall 18 a serving as a ceiling of the casing 18, and the periphery of the glass melting furnace 11. The side wall 18b to cover and the bottom wall 18c arrange | positioned below the vertical direction of the glass melting furnace 11 are formed in box shape.

  The top wall 18a holds a plurality of heating electrodes 14 inserted into the glass melting furnace 11, and the number and arrangement of the heating electrodes 14 can be easily changed by replacing the top wall 18a.

  In the top wall 18 a, a loading port 19 for feeding a glass material into the glass melting furnace 11 is formed above the first region A in the glass melting furnace 11 in the vertical direction. A screw charger 20 is connected to the charging port 19 for supplying a glass raw material to be charged into the glass melting furnace 11.

  An inert gas inlet 21 for introducing an inert gas into the casing 18 is formed in the side wall 18b. An inert gas supply device 22 that supplies an inert gas to be introduced into the casing 18 is connected to the inert gas inlet 21. The gas supplied from the inert gas supply device 22 may be any kind of inert gas, but is preferably a non-oxidizing gas in terms of preventing the oxidation of the molten glass, Nitrogen gas is most preferable because it can be stably supplied at a low cost.

  A discharge port 23 for discharging the molten glass drawn out from the outlet 15 is formed in the bottom wall 18c below the outlet 15 of the glass melting furnace 11 in the vertical direction. Further, the discharge port 23 can discharge the inert gas simultaneously with the discharge of the molten glass.

  The casing 18 thus configured may cover any shape and any material as long as it covers the entire glass melting furnace 11 and can ensure airtightness. However, mechanical properties, workability, price, heat resistance, and airtightness may be used. In view of the above, a metal container is preferable.

  In the casing 18, a heat insulating material such as a refractory brick or a heat-resistant board that keeps and insulates the glass melting furnace 11 is inserted. In this heat insulating material, a material whose innermost layer is not alloyed with iridium is disposed, and the outer layer is configured by appropriately combining an alumina heat resistant board and a heat resistant brick. And it is preferable to arrange | position so that the surface temperature of an outermost layer may be 300 degrees C or less at least, and it is still more preferable to arrange | position a heat insulating material so that the surface temperature of an outermost layer may be 100 degrees C or less.

  The floor 2 is formed with a floor hole 3 for introducing the molten glass drawn from the outlet 15 of the glass melting furnace 11 into the fiberizing facility 30.

  The fiberizing facility 30 is a facility for fiberizing the molten glass drawn from the outlet 15 of the glass melting furnace 11. This fiberizing equipment 30 includes a forehearth 31 into which the molten glass drawn from the outlet 15 is introduced, a bushing 32 for forming a large number of filaments from the molten glass in the forehearth 31, and a high speed by drawing the filament from the bushing 32. , A rotating drum 33 that winds up, an applicator 37 that applies a sizing agent to each filament drawn from the bushing 32, and a focusing roller 34 that focuses each filament.

  The forehearth 31 is a storage tank in which the molten glass drawn from the outlet 15 is introduced and the temperature of the molten glass is adjusted to adjust the viscosity of the molten glass to be easily fiberized. The forehearth 31 is disposed below the floor hole 3 in the vertical direction, and is formed with an upper opening 35 into which the molten glass drawn from the outlet 15 is introduced. The forehearth 31 is open to the atmosphere through the upper opening 35. In addition, the forehearth 31 includes a heating means for adjusting the temperature of the molten glass. This heating means may be, for example, an electric heater 36 suspended from the ceiling surface of the forehearth 31, and any heating means capable of adjusting the temperature of molten glass such as a gas burner in place of the electric heater 36. May be used.

  The bushing 32 is provided in the bottom part of the forehearth 31, and many (for example, about 100-4000) nozzles (not shown) for spinning are formed. The bushing 32 includes a heating means (not shown) for adjusting the temperature of the molten glass. This heating means is for generating resistance heat by energization. For this reason, the bushing 32 is formed of an electrothermal member that generates heat when energized, and is made of, for example, platinum or a platinum alloy.

  Next, a method for manufacturing glass fibers by the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the flow of molten glass in the glass melting furnace. In FIG. 4, the bubbler 24 is omitted for convenience.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, first, the inside of the casing 18 is evacuated or at least depressurized with a vacuum pump to remove oxygen present in the casing 18 and then supplied from the inert gas supply device 22. The operation of introducing the inert gas into the casing 18 from the inert gas inlet 21 is repeated several times until the oxygen concentration in the casing 18 is at least 1% or less, and the inside of the casing 18 is made an inert gas atmosphere. . Note that the gas filled in the casing 18 before the inert gas is introduced and the inert gas introduced into the casing 18 are discharged from the discharge port 23.

  Next, the glass raw material is supplied from the screw charger 20, the glass raw material is supplied from the charging port 19 to the first region A of the glass melting furnace 11, electricity is supplied from the power source 17, and the heating electrode 14 is energized. The glass raw material charged into the first region A is heated and melted.

  In addition, the forehearth 31 and the bushing 32 of the fiberizing equipment 30 are also heated, and the heating temperature of the forehearth 31 and the bushing 32 is appropriately adjusted so that the molten glass has a temperature at which fiber is easily formed according to the glass composition of the glass fiber to be manufactured. Keep it.

  And the glass raw material thrown into the glass melting furnace 11 is adjusted, and the liquid level of the molten glass in the glass melting furnace 11 is made slightly higher than the upper passage part 25 a of the thin film forming member 25. At this time, the liquid level of the molten glass in the glass melting furnace 11 is adjusted by adjusting the viscosity of the molten glass with the heating means provided in the second region B and adjusting the amount of the molten glass drawn from the outlet 15. It may be slightly higher than the upper passage portion 25a of the thin film forming member 25.

  Then, the molten glass melted in the first region A moves from the first region A to the second region B only from the passage port 16a of the upper partition plate 16 formed in the bottom of the furnace. The flow path formed between the thin film forming member 25 is raised to the liquid level. At this time, since the surface layer of the molten glass melted in the first region A is dammed to the upper partition plate 16, the unmelted material rides on the fast flow of the surface layer in the molten glass from the first region A to the second region B. It is blocked from moving. Further, while the molten glass flows through the flow path formed between the upper partition plate 16 and the thin film forming member 25, the unmelted material is melted and the bubbles contained in the molten glass are pushed up to the liquid level. And break the bubbles. For this reason, the flow path formed between the upper partition plate 16 and the thin film formation member 25 functions as a clarification part of molten glass.

  The molten glass that reaches the liquid level and overflows from the thin film forming member 25 passes through the upper passage portion 25a of the thin film forming member 25 and is formed into a thin film shape along the thin film forming surface 25b of the thin film forming member 25. While sliding down. At this time, when the molten glass is made into a thin film, the bubbles cannot maintain their shape, so that the bubbles contained in the molten glass break up when they slide down along the thin film forming surface 25b. For this reason, the upper passage part 25a and the thin film forming surface 25b of the thin film forming member 25 function as a clarified part of the molten glass. Moreover, since the heat transfer efficiency of molten glass improves because molten glass is thinned by the thin film formation member 25, the heating of molten glass is accelerated | stimulated and homogenization of molten glass is achieved.

  Thus, the molten glass that has been melted, clarified and homogenized at the high temperature in the glass melting furnace 11 is drawn from the outlet 15 downward in the vertical direction. The molten glass drawn from the outlet 15 passes through the outlet 23 formed in the casing 18, the floor hole 3 formed in the floor 2, and the upper opening 35 formed in the forehearth 31 of the fiberizing facility 30. It is introduced into the forehearth 31, and is further drawn out as a glass filament from a number of nozzles of the bushing 32 provided at the bottom of the forehearth 31. The glass filaments drawn out from a number of nozzles of the bushing 32 are coated with a sizing agent by an applicator 37 and wound by a rotating drum 33 that rotates at a high speed while focusing a number of glass filaments by a focusing roller 34. Glass fibers in which glass filaments are bundled are produced.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, by arranging the thin film forming member 25 between the upper partition plate 16 and the outlet 15, the molten glass melted by the heating of the heating electrode 14 is a thin film. Since it is blocked by the forming member 25, the liquid level of the molten glass is made slightly higher than the upper passage portion 25 a, and the molten glass that has passed through the upper passage portion 25 a is transferred to the thin film formation surface 25 b of the thin film formation member 25 and descends. By doing so, the molten glass can be stretched and formed into a thin film. Thereby, since the bubbles contained in the molten glass can no longer hold the shape and break the bubbles, a very excellent clarification effect can be obtained.

  In addition, since the heat transfer efficiency to the molten glass is increased by reducing the thickness of the molten glass, the melting of the unmelted material is promoted and the molten glass is homogenized.

  And since the molten glass which passed the upper passage part 25a slides down on the thin film formation surface 25b without leaving | separating from the thin film formation member 25 by inclining the thin film formation member 25 to the inlet 19, the molten glass is made into a thin film smoothly Can be formed.

  In addition, by supplying power to the heating electrode 14 inserted in the glass melting furnace 11, the molten glass in the glass melting furnace 11 can be directly heated, and the molten glass is heated at an arbitrary position in the glass melting furnace 11. be able to. For this reason, regardless of the shape, size, material, etc. of the glass melting furnace 11, the molten glass can be efficiently heated, and in particular, can be applied to the large-sized glass melting furnace 11.

  Moreover, since the glass raw material can be melted at a high temperature equal to or higher than the melting point of silica by configuring the glass melting furnace 11 with iridium or an iridium-based alloy, the melting time of the glass raw material can be dramatically shortened. Moreover, since iridium does not generate silicon from molten glass even when it comes into contact with molten glass, silicon particles in the molten glass can be reduced and the quality of the molten glass can be improved.

  Then, by heating the molten glass to 1700 to 2000 ° C. by heating the heating electrode 14, the melting time of the glass raw material can be drastically shortened because the silica is melted as a single component of the glass. .

  In addition, by making the inside of the casing 18 an inert gas atmosphere, the entire glass melting furnace 11 can be isolated from the atmosphere, so that the glass melting furnace 11 and the heating electrode 14 are prevented from being oxidized and sublimated. Can do. For this reason, even if a molten glass is heated to high temperature, it can suppress that the lifetime of the glass melting apparatus 10 falls.

  In addition, by disposing the upper partition plate 16 in the glass melting furnace 11, it is possible to prevent unmelted material from being drawn out from the outlet through the rapid flow of the surface layer of the molten glass, and to melt in the glass melting furnace 11. The moving path of the glass can be extended. Thereby, since the residence time of the molten glass in the glass melting furnace 11 becomes long, defoaming is promoted and the clarification effect of the molten glass is enhanced, and the melting of the glass raw material is promoted to achieve homogenization of the molten glass. It is done. Further, since a flow path for flowing the molten glass upward is formed between the upper partition plate 16 and the thin film forming member 25, the bubbles contained in the molten glass are pushed upward to break at the liquid surface of the molten glass. Can be foamed. Thereby, the clarification effect of molten glass can further be improved.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment will be described. The second embodiment is basically the same as the first embodiment, and only the shape of the thin film forming member is different. For this reason, in the following description, only the part different from the first embodiment will be described, and the description of the same part as the first embodiment will be omitted.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view of a glass melting furnace in the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the glass melting furnace shown in FIG. 5 taken along the line VI-VI. As shown in FIG.5 and FIG.6, the glass melting furnace 70 of the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment is provided with the thin film formation member 71 instead of the thin film formation member 25 of 1st Embodiment. Yes.

  Similarly to the thin film forming member 25 of the first embodiment, the thin film forming member 71 dams the molten glass melted in the first region A, and forms the overflowing molten glass in a thin film shape, and then the outlet 15 Is derived. The thin film forming member 71 is formed in a circular tube shape surrounding the outlet 15, and is erected on the bottom wall 12 and is in contact with the bottom wall 12.

  An upper passage portion 71 a through which the molten glass melted in the first region A passes is formed at the upper end portion of the thin film forming member 71. The upper passage portion 71a may be formed by, for example, the upper end surface of the thin film forming member 71, or may be formed by a through hole or a notch formed in the thin film forming member 71. The upper passage portion 71a is formed in a horizontal plane at a position slightly lower than the liquid surface of the molten glass in order to form the molten glass into a thin film having a uniform thickness.

  A thin film forming surface 71b that is formed in a thin film shape is formed on the inner side of the thin film forming member 71 on the outlet 15 side by lowering and extending the molten glass that has passed through the upper passage portion 71a. The cross section of the thin film forming surface 71b is formed in a perfect circle, but may be formed in any shape such as an ellipse or a polygon as long as the molten glass can be formed in a thin film.

  The thin film forming member 71 is made of a platinum group metal similarly to the bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13 of the glass melting furnace 11, and among them, it is preferably made of iridium (Ir) or an iridium-based alloy. The thin film forming member 71 may be configured by covering a surface of a general furnace material such as brick with a platinum group metal such as iridium (Ir) and an iridium-based alloy.

  The thin film forming member 71 configured as described above may have the same horizontal cross-sectional shape from the upper end to the lower end, or may have a different horizontal cross-sectional shape. However, in the case of different horizontal cross-sectional shapes from the upper end to the lower end, the thin film forming surface 71b is such that the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member 71 slides down along the thin film forming surface 71b without leaving the thin film forming surface 71b. The shape is preferably narrowed from the upper part in the vertical direction toward the lower part in the vertical direction. Specifically, it is preferable that the thin film forming surface 71b has a mortar shape, a funnel shape, a taper shape, or the like that narrows from the upper part in the vertical direction to the lower part in the vertical direction.

  Further, the upper end surface of the upper passage portion 71a is preferably formed in a curved surface with the thin film formation surface 71b side chamfered so as to smoothly guide the molten glass that has passed through the upper passage portion 71a to the thin film formation surface 71b.

  In the glass melting furnace 70 configured as described above, when the liquid level of the molten glass in the glass melting furnace 11 is slightly higher than the upper passage portion 71a of the thin film forming member 71, the molten glass melted in the first region A. However, it moves from the 1st area | region A to the 2nd area | region B only from the passage port 16a of the upper partition plate 16 formed in the furnace bottom part, and is dammed by the thin film formation member 71.

  The molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member 71 passes through the upper passage portion 71a of the thin film forming member 71 and slides down while being formed in a thin film shape along the thin film forming surface 71b of the thin film forming member 71. At this time, when the molten glass is made into a thin film, the bubbles cannot retain their shape, so that the bubbles contained in the molten glass break up when sliding down the thin film forming surface 71b. For this reason, the upper passage part 71a and the thin film forming surface 71b of the thin film forming member 71 function as a clarified part of the molten glass. Moreover, since the heat transfer efficiency of molten glass improves because molten glass is thinned by the thin film formation member 71, the heating of molten glass is accelerated | stimulated and homogenization of molten glass is achieved. Then, the molten glass is pulled out vertically from the outlet 15.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, by providing the tubular thin film forming member 71 surrounding the outlet 15, the molten glass melted by the heating of the heating electrode 14 is blocked by the thin film forming member 71. Therefore, the liquid level of the molten glass is made slightly higher than that of the upper passage portion 71a, and the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member 71 is moved down to the thin film forming surface 71b, thereby extending the molten glass to form a thin film. Can be formed. Thereby, since the bubbles contained in the molten glass can no longer hold the shape and break the bubbles, a very excellent clarification effect can be obtained.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made.

  For example, the thin film forming member may have any shape and structure as long as the molten glass can be dammed and lowered into a thin film shape, and may have the shape shown in FIGS. FIG. 7 is a view showing another example of a plate-like thin film forming member, in which (a) and (b) are sectional views of the glass melting furnace, and (c) and (d) are plan views of the glass melting furnace. is there. FIG. 8 is a view showing another example of a tubular thin film forming member, in which (a) is a sectional view of a glass melting furnace, and (b) to (d) are plan views of the glass melting furnace. 7 and 8, the glass melting furnace is illustrated by omitting components other than the thin film forming member.

  The plate-shaped thin film forming member 25A shown in FIG. 7A is formed in a curved surface curved in an arc shape in the horizontal direction. The plate-like thin film forming member 25B shown in FIG. 7B is formed in a curved surface curved in a wave shape in the horizontal direction. The plate-like thin film forming member 25C shown in FIG. 7C is formed in a curved surface curved in an arc shape in the vertical direction. The thin film forming member 25D shown in FIG. 7D is formed in a curved surface curved in a wave shape (step shape) in the vertical direction.

  And as shown to Fig.7 (a) and (b), since the flow volume of a molten glass can be increased by curving a thin film formation member in a horizontal direction, the manufacturing amount of a molten glass can be increased. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 7C and 7D, by curving the thin film forming member in the vertical direction, the residence time of the molten glass on the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member can be increased. The clarification effect of molten glass can be improved.

  The tubular thin film forming member 71A shown in FIG. 8A is formed in a rectangular ring shape, and the inner diameter of the outlet is different from the inner diameter of the thin film forming member. The tubular thin film forming member 71B shown in FIG. 8B is formed in a tapered shape in which the thin film forming surface is narrowed from the upper part in the vertical direction toward the lower part in the vertical direction. The tubular thin film forming member 71 </ b> C shown in FIG. 8C is formed in a mortar shape or funnel shape in which the thin film forming surface narrows in a curved manner from the upper part in the vertical direction to the lower part in the vertical direction. A tubular thin film forming member 71D shown in FIG. 8D is formed in a two-stage mortar shape in which the thin film forming surface gradually narrows gradually from the upper part in the vertical direction toward the lower part in the vertical direction.

  And as shown to Fig.8 (a), a thin film formation member can be easily manufactured by forming a thin film formation member in a rectangular ring shape. Further, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), it is not necessary to match the outlet and the thin film forming member with high accuracy by making the inner diameter of the outlet different from the inner diameter of the thin film forming member. Can be easily manufactured. Further, as shown in FIGS. 8B to 8D, the molten glass overflowing from the thin film forming member is not separated from the thin film forming member by narrowing the thin film forming member downward in the vertical direction. Since the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member slides down, the molten glass can be smoothly formed into a thin film. Further, as shown in FIG. 8B, the thin film forming member can be easily manufactured by linearly constricting the thin film forming member. In addition, as shown in FIG. 8C, by constricting the thin film forming member in a curved manner, the residence time of the molten glass on the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member can be increased. The clarification effect can be improved. Further, as shown in FIG. 8D, the residence time of the molten glass on the thin film forming surface of the thin film forming member can be further increased by gradually narrowing the thin film forming member.

  In the above embodiment, the glass melting furnace 11 is described as being covered with the casing 18, but oxidation problems such as the glass melting furnace 11 and the heating electrode 14 can be tolerated, and the glass melting furnace 11 and the heating electrode 14 are acceptable. Is not necessarily covered with the inert gas atmosphere, it is not always necessary to cover the glass melting furnace 11 with the casing 18.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although demonstrated as what introduce | transduces the molten glass pulled out from the outlet 15 directly into the forehearth 31, the molten glass pulled out from the outlet 15 like the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus 60 shown in FIG. You may introduce | transduce glass into the forehearth 31 via intermediate tanks, such as the molten glass storage tank 61 and the pressure reduction degassing furnace 62. FIG. The vacuum degassing furnace 62 hermetically covers the furnace 63 into which the molten glass is introduced with a casing 64 and depressurizes the inside of the casing 64 with a vacuum pump 65, thereby removing the molten glass introduced into the furnace 63. It encourages bubbles.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although demonstrated as what applies the glass melting apparatus 10 to the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus 1, it is applicable to manufacturing apparatuses of various products, such as a glass cullet manufacturing apparatus.

  In the above embodiment, the outlet 15 is described as being formed in the bottom wall 12, but the outlet 15 is perpendicular to the liquid level of the molten glass passing through the upper passage portion 25 a of the thin film forming member 71. It may be formed at any position as long as it is below the direction. For example, it is formed at the joint between the bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13 (the corner portion formed by the bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13) or at the lower part of the side wall 13 (near the joint between the bottom wall 12 and the side wall 13). May be.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used as a glass melting apparatus that melts a glass raw material, a glass fiber manufacturing apparatus that uses the glass melting apparatus, and a glass fiber manufacturing method.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Glass fiber manufacturing apparatus, 2 ... Floor, 3 ... Floor hole, 10 ... Glass melting apparatus, 11 ... Glass melting furnace, 12 ... Bottom wall, 13 ... Side wall, 14 ... Heating electrode, 15 ... Drawer outlet, 16 ... Upper partition plate, 16a ... passing port (lower passing part), 17 ... power source, 18 ... casing, 18a ... top wall, 18b ... side wall, 18c ... bottom wall, 19 ... loading port, 20 ... screw charger, 21 ... inactive Gas inlet, 22 ... inert gas supply device, 23 ... outlet, 24 ... bubbler, 25 (25A-25D) ... thin film forming member, 25a ... upper passage part, 25b ... thin film forming surface, 29 ... drain, 30 ... Fiber equipment 31 ... Fore Haas, 32 ... Bushing (fiber equipment), 33 ... Rotating drum (fiber equipment), 34 ... Condensing roller (fiber equipment), 35 ... Top opening, 36 ... Electric heater, 37 ... Application T , 60 ... glass fiber production device, 61 ... molten glass storage tank, 62 ... vacuum degassing furnace, 63 ... furnace, 64 ... casing, 65 ... vacuum pump, 70 ... glass melting furnace, 71 (71A-71D) ... thin film forming member, 71a ... upper passage part, 71b ... thin film forming surface, A ... first region, B ... second region.

Claims (12)

A glass melting furnace having a bottom wall and a side wall, and having an outlet for drawing molten glass;
An inlet into which the glass raw material is placed and disposed above the glass melting furnace;
An electrode for heating that heats the glass raw material inserted into the glass melting furnace by being energized and inserted into the glass melting furnace;
Standing on the bottom wall between the inlet and the outlet, the molten glass melted by the heating of the heating electrode is dammed, and the overflowing molten glass is lowered and stretched to form a thin film A thin film forming member having a thin film forming surface formed thereon;
A glass melting apparatus comprising:   The thin film forming member is formed in a plate shape, and is disposed between a vertically lower side of the inlet and the outlet, a lower end is in contact with the bottom wall, and a side end is the side wall The glass melting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an upper passage portion that is brought into contact with the upper end portion and allows the molten glass to pass through at an upper end portion.   The glass melting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the thin film forming member is inclined toward the charging port side.   2. The glass melting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the thin film forming member is formed in a tubular shape with a lower end abutted against the bottom wall and surrounding the outlet.   5. The glass melting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the thin film forming member has a shape in which the thin film forming surface is narrowed from the upper part in the vertical direction toward the lower part in the vertical direction.   The said glass melting furnace consists of iridium or an iridium base alloy, The glass melting apparatus in any one of Claims 1-5 characterized by the above-mentioned. A casing covering the glass melting furnace;
An inert gas supply means for supplying an inert gas into the casing;
The glass melting apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising:   The apparatus further comprises an upper partition plate provided between a vertically lower portion of the charging port and the thin film forming member, and having a lower passage portion through which molten glass passes from a furnace inner bottom portion of the glass melting furnace. Item 8. The glass melting apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 7. The glass melting apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
A storage tank into which the molten glass placed under the glass melting furnace and drawn from the outlet is introduced;
A fiberizing apparatus for fiberizing and spinning molten glass introduced into the storage tank;
An apparatus for producing glass fiber, comprising: A glass fiber manufacturing method using the glass fiber manufacturing apparatus according to claim 9,
Glass raw material is charged into the glass melting furnace from the charging port,
Energizing the heating electrode to melt the glass raw material charged into the glass melting furnace,
After the molten glass is formed into a thin film by the thin film forming member, the molten glass is drawn from the outlet and introduced into the storage tank,
A glass fiber manufacturing method, wherein the molten glass introduced into the storage tank is fiberized by the fiberizing apparatus to manufacture glass fibers. The glass melting apparatus has a casing that covers the glass melting furnace,
The glass fiber manufacturing method according to claim 10, wherein the inside of the casing is made an inert gas atmosphere.   The glass fiber manufacturing method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the molten glass is heated to 1700 to 2000 ° C by energization of the heating electrode.

Images