US2773629A

US2773629A - Fuel feeder

Info

Publication number: US2773629A
Application number: US390030A
Authority: US
Inventors: Earle C Miller
Original assignee: Riley Power Inc
Current assignee: Riley Power Inc
Priority date: 1953-11-03
Filing date: 1953-11-03
Publication date: 1956-12-11
Anticipated expiration: 1973-12-11

Description

E. C. MILLER FUEL FEEDER Dec. 11, 1956 Filed Nov] 5, 1963 INVENTOR [4515 C. MILLER BY ATTORNEY FUEL FEEDER Earle C. Miller, Worcester, Mass., assignor to Riley Stoker Corporation, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts This invention relates generally to a fuel feeder and more particularly to an apparatus for regulating the movement of bulky fuel from a storage bunker to a furnace.

There are many situations in industry where it is good practice, from the view-point of economy, to produce steam for heating and processing from one of thebyproducts of the industry. One industry where such a situation exists is in the refining of sugar where the fibrous refuse known as bagasse may be burned to produce steam for the sugar refining processes. The lumber industry provides another such situation, since the scrap wood may be hoggedinto small pieces and used to produce steam for the power necessary to drive the wood working machinery. In the burning of refuse, however, it is often necessary to have available a reservoir of refuse which can be used to maintain the boiler load should the source or" refuse be interrupted temporarily. There have not been any satisfactory apparatus for providing for the feeding of moist fibrous refuse such as bagasse, hogged wood, etc., because this material packs easily and hangs up or arches over in the hoppers. The present invention obviates the difficulties experienced with prior art fuel feeders in a novel manner.

It is therefore an outstanding object of the invention to provide a fuel feeder for refuse which will not be rendered inoperative by clogging.

Another object of this invention is to provide a fuel feeder for refuse which will furnish storage space for temporary interruption of the source of refuse and which is not subject to clogging.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a fuel feeding hopper having a live side for separating matted refuse in the hopper.

It is another object of the instant invention to provide a fuel feeder which will provide storage for the fuel and at the same time will feed the fuel evenly without clogging.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, the mode of its operation and manner of its organization may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof, in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional view of the apparatus of the invention used in conjunction with a steam generating unit, the section being taken on the line II of Figure 2, and

Figure 2 is an elevational view of the apparatus of the invention looking toward the furnace.

Like reference numerals denote similar parts in the several figures of the drawings.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the fuel feeder of the invention, designated generally by the reference numeral 10, is shown mounted above a pneumatic spreader 11, both feeder and spreader being mounted on the wall 12 i United States Patent" 2,773,629 Patented Dec. 11, 1956 of the furnace of a steam generating unit. The pneumatic spreader 11 is of the type shown and described in U. S. Patent No. 2,602,706, which issued to Earle C. Miller et al. on July 8, 1952. This spreader is mounted over the opening 13 in the furnace wall and is provided with a distributing plate 14, the angularity of which is adjusted by a handle 15. A nozzle 16 is connected to a source of air, not shown, under substantial pressure by a conduit 17. Extending upwardly from the mouth of the nozzle 16 and from above the distributor plate 14 is a chute 18. The chute 18 is narrow at the lower end and is enlarged at the upper end. The chute 18 is fastened to the furnace wall 12 and extends therethrough at a substantial angle.

The upper end of the chute 18 is attached to a trough 19 forming a part of the fuel feeder 10. The chute is attached to the lower end of the trough adjacent the furnace at which point an opening 20 is provided. Extending longitudinally of the trough are a pair of

conveyor screws

21 and 22 which are positively driven by means not shown. The sizes of the

screws

21 and 22 are such that they touch each other centrally of the trough and have their outer portions closely adjacent the bottom of the trough and the sides of the trough. The screws terminate over the aperture 20 and the trough 18 and are driven in such a manner as to convey mathe hopper are parallel to one another and have a somewhat trapezoidal shape. A fourth wall 27 of the hopper is of course adjacent the furnace wall 12. At its lower edge it is fastened to the trough 19 and it extends upwardly and away from the furnace at a somewhat lesser angle than would be required to match the angle of the wall 24. However, at its upper portion the wall 27 is bent into a somewhat cylindrical transverse surface 28 so that the wall 27 is somewhat horizontal at its uppermost portion. To the top of the hopper 23 and fastened to the top edges of the

walls

24, 25, 26, and 27 is a chute 29 of rectangular cross-section which extends vertically upwardly and is attached at its upper end to a source of refuse, not shown. Transversely of the hopper 23 and overlying the opening 20 is a shaft 30 which is driven by means, not shown, and which has keyed thereon a sprocket drum 31. A similar shaft 32 and sprocket drum 33 are mounted at the upper portion of the hopper and underlie the point of juncture of the wall 27 and the chute 29. Around the drums 31 and 33 extends an endless belt 34. This belt may be formed of link chain and may be provided with lugs 35. A stiffening plate 36 is mounted inwardly of the belt 34 and serves to restrain any tendency of the inner run of the belt to move toward the furnace.

The operation of the invention will now be understood in view of the above description. The bulky refuse will enter the apparatus through the chute 29 and fall into the hopper 23. The

screws

21 and 22 by rotating will carry portions of the fuel which are in the lower part of the hopper toward the opening 20. The fuel falls through the opening 20 down the chute 18 and is blown into the furnace by the impingement of air from the nozzle 16. The adjustment of the distributing plate 14 by means of the handle 15 determines the type of distribution of fuel within the furnace. Because of the desirability of having a storage of fuel adjacent the spreader 16 to take care of the contingency of failure of the supply of fuel down the chute 29, it is desirable to fill the hopper '23. However, because of the fibrous moist nature of the refuse and the pressure of fuel in the chute 29 there is a tendency for the fuel to form a tight, matted mass within the hopper '23. When this happens, the

screws

21 and 22 will not successfully tear particles of refuse from the mass and the fuel feed to the spreader 16 is interrupted. However, the action of the endless belt 34 is to tear layers of refuse from the mass and drop them through the opening 20, thus by, in effect, providing the hopper 23 with a moving wall, the natural tendency of the refuse fuel to mat and hang up inside the hopper is prevented. One of the reasons why fuel of this type jams in hoppers and conduits is because of the pressure on the fuel causing the fuel to press out wardly against the walls. The outward pressure against the walls of the hopper or the like prevents the fuel from falling downwardly in the desirable manner. It can be seen then that by providing a movable wall in the manner of the invention, such action becomes impossible.

While certain novel features of the invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A fuel feeder for supplying moist, bulky refuse to a furnace comprising a hopper having at least one inclined side, an endless belt providing an inclined downwardlyrnoving surface in opposition to the said inclined side, the moving surface and the said wall diverging in a downward direction, a screw type conveyor underlying the hopper and a downwardly directed chute having its upper end underlying the discharge end of the screw type conveyor.

2. A fuel feeder for supplying moist, bulky fuel to the furnace of a steam generating unit comprising a hopper having an opening at its upper end to which is connected a vertical chute through which the fuel arrives, a trough underlying and connected to the lower end of the hopper, the trough having a pair of driven conveyor screws mounted therein and having an opening at the discharge end of the screws to which a downwardly directed chute is attached, the hopper having an inclined wall, a driven endless belt mounted in the hopper and having a straight run providing a downwardly-moving surface in opposition to the said inclined wall, the inclined wall and the moving surface diverging in a downward direction, the lower end of the moving surface overlying the discharge end of the screws, while the lower end of the inclined wall overlies the other ends of the screws.

3. A fuel feeder for supplying moist, bulky refuse to a furnace comprising a hopper having at least one inclined side, an endless belt providing an inclined down- Wardly-moving surface in opposition to the said inclined side, the moving surface and the said wall diverging in a downward direction, a horizontally-traversing conveyor underlying the hopper, and a downwardly-directed chute having its upper end underlying the discharge end of the conveyor.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 426,689 Silvertooth Apr. 29, 1890 1,835,989 Hofit et al Dec. 8, 1931 1,862,752 Jones et al. June 14, 1932 2,362,315 Schultze NOV. 7, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS 238,901 Germany Oct. 4, 1911