US3388427A

US3388427A - Apparatus for preparing samples for X-ray analysis

Info

Publication number: US3388427A
Application number: US412489A
Authority: US
Inventors: Allan H Smallbone
Original assignee: Applied Res Lab Inc
Current assignee: Applied Research Laboratories Inc; EIDP Inc
Priority date: 1964-11-19
Filing date: 1964-11-19
Publication date: 1968-06-18
Anticipated expiration: 1985-06-18
Also published as: GB1090439A; GB1090440A; DE1573982A1

Description

June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE 3,333,427

APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS Filed Nov. 19, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. l M

FIG. 2 66 l 54 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY ALLAN H. SMALLBONE June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS w OE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 19, 1964 INVENTOR ALLAN H. SMALLBONE ATTORNEY June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE 3,388,427

APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS lNVEN TOR.

ALLAN H. SMALLBONE ATTORNEY June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Nov. 19, 1964 OF OE INVENTOR. ALLAN H. SMALLBONE 0 m N: H A mm we. a y 5: J 7 5 mo.

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,388,427 APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS Allan H. Smallbone, La Crescenta, Califi, assignor to Applied Research Laboratories, Inc., Glendale, Califi, a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 19, 1964, Ser. No. 412,489 4 Claims. (Cl. 18-165) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSEURE A briquetting machine including a central hub rotatable about a vertical axis and carrying a radial arm with a vertical bore at its outer end. Pistons are reciprocatable on the arm into and out of the bore, and into and out of coaxial alignment with the bore. A cam and connecting rod arrangement drives the pistons in response to rotation of the central hub.

Brief summary This invention relates to a novel apparatus for preparing specimen materials for presentation to X-ray analytical instruments, and, more particularly, to novel apparatus for making briquettes suitable for analysis by spectrometric methods.

One method of preparing specimens of solid materials for spectrometric analysis, particularly by X-ray techniques, is first to pulverize a portion of the material to be analyzed, mix the resulting pulverulent mass, and then form briquettes of it. Heretofore, the briquettes have generally been made laboriously and tediously, hand filling special molds fitted in hydraulic or screw presses, and then extracting the briquettes from the molds by hand. High pressure compaction is necessary to insure adequate and uniform spectrometric results. This procedure is satisfactory for occasional analyses, but is uneconomic and undesirably slow for repetitive and frequent routine analyses that are required for efficient production control in modern processing plants such as modern ore concentrators.

For efiicient control of materials processing, it is often necessary to provide analyses of various materials in the process stream at fairly frequent intervals, and to make the analytical results available to the responsible personnel as quickly as possible after each specimen is taken.

The apparatus of the present invention is designed to produce briquettes for spectrometric analysis quickly and cheaply, and thereby to facilitate efl'icient production control at minimum cost.

Briefly, the machine according to a presently preferred embodiment of the invention includes a central member mounted for rotation about a vertical axis. The member carries means defining a bore parallel to and spaced from the axis of rotation, and pistons mounted for travel into and out of the bore and into and away from coaxial alignment with the bore. Cams are fixed generally coaxially with the axis of rotation, and the central member carries cam followers engaging the cams and linked to the pistons for driving the pistons in response to rotation of the central member.

The arrangement is simple and inexpensive. It also facilitates loading of the powders to be briquetted, unloading of the finished briquettes, and enables the use of an auxiliary high powered press to produce any desired degree of compaction.

Detailed description A presently preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic, plan view of apparatus for forming briquettes according to the invention;

3,338,427 Patented .lune 18, 1968 FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, side elevational view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow 3 therein;

FIG. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 are fragmentary, side elevational views of a portion of the apparatus illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, showing successive steps in the operation thereof;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of a portion of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1-8; and

FIG. 10 is a side elevational view of the portion shown in FIG. 9.

Referring first to FIGS. 1-8, the briquette-forming apparatus of the invention comprises a central hub 40 journalled for rotation in a horizontal plane. Six angularly spaced operating

arms

44, 45, 46, 47, 48, and 49, respectively, are fixed to the hub 40, and extend radially outwardly from it like the spokes of a wheel. There is a vertical bore 50 extending through each of the arms 44-49 near its outer end. Each arm 44-49 carries a pair of

pistons

52 and 54, which are movable selectively into and out of the bore 50, and toward and away from coaxial alignment with the bore.

The

pistons

52 and 54 are operated by a cam and connecting rod arrangement, which will be described hereinafter in connection with FIGS. 9 and 10. The sequence of operation of the

pistons

52 and 54 is illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 8, and will be described herein in relation to the first arm 44, it being understood that all of the arms 44-49 are of identical construction and move in succession through the same operating sequence.

The

pistons

52 and 54 are mounted upon respective upper and

lower levers

56 and 58, respectively, which move along and pivot upon the top and bottom, respectively, of the arm 44. The

pistons

52 and 54 are pivoted at the outer ends of the

levers

56 and 58, and the

levers

56 and 58 are controlled by separate pairs of connecting

rods

61 and 62, and 63 and 64, respectively, which are parts of the arrangement to be described hereinafter. For the present, it is sufiicient if it is understood that the

levers

56 and 58 can be pushed lengthwise of the arm 44 by their

respective push rods

61 and 63, and their inner ends can be raised and lowered by their respective, pin-in-

slot connecting rods

62 and 64, respectively.

When the arm 44 is at the first station, station A, the lower piston 54 is at its position of maximum advance into the bore 50, and fills about three-quarters of the bore. The upper piston 52 is retracted away from the bore 50, leaving the upper end of the bore open. At this position, a bore may be cleaned and a briquette backing plate 66 inserted in it. During travel of the arm 44 from station A to station B, the upper piston 52 remains in its radially inward, retracted position, and the lower piston 54 is moved slightly downwardly to provide space for a charge of powdered material 68 in the upper part of the bore. The charge of material 68 is placed in the bore 50 at station B. During travel between station B and station C, the lower piston 54 is held steady, and the upper piston 52 is advanced radially outwardly and lowered into the bore 50 with appreciable force, as developed by the pin-in-

slot connecting rods

62 and 64. During this and the succeeding indexing step, the force is maintained to apply a preliminary briquetting pressure on the powdered material 68.

When the arm 44 reaches station D, it comes between the

jaws

70 and 71 of a press, which is actuated to compress the powdered material 68 to form a rigid briquette 68' with a compacting force greatly in excess of the force available through operation of the connecting rods and cam arrangement. The press is released and the jaws 70 and '71 retracted before the arm 44 is indexed again.

During the next two indexing steps, that is, between stations D and E and stations E and F, the lower piston 54 is withdrawn from the bore 50 and retracted inwardly 3 to stand clear of the bore, and the upper piston 52 is driven downwardly into the bore to drive the briquette 63 out. As the arm 44 approaches the last station, station F, the lower piston 5 is driven outwardly, positively to disengage the briquettc 68' from the arm and to deposit the briquette in a receptacle (not shown) or upon a conveyor belt 74 for delivery to the analysis room. As the hub 40 completes its rotation, bringing the arm 44 back to the first station A, the upper piston 52 is withdrawn from the bore 50 and retracted inwardly, while, simultaneously, the lower piston 54 is driven upwardly into the bore 50 in position to receive and support the next backing plate The operation as described comprises six. steps, and for maximum efiiciency combined with economy of construction, the apparatus includes six arms 4449, which is the minimum number that allows all six operations to be carried out simultaneously, each operation on a different successive specimen. The invention is not, however, limited to a six-armed device. Any desired number of arms may be used in accordance with the designers choice.

Also, if it is desired to make successive briquettes of materials taken from various diiterent sources such as, for example, from various different flow streams in a smelter or concentrator, any desired number of discharge hoppers 76 may be arranged at station 8 for successive alignment with the bore 50 in the arms. Such an arrangement is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, which show a series of six hoppers '76 mounted on a guideway '78 in fixed relation to each other and indexable along the guideway synchronously with the indexing rotation of the hub 40.

The construction of the hub 40 and arms 44 59 according to this embodiment of the invention is shown in detail in FIGS. 9 and 10. Since all of the arms -49 are identical, only one is shown. The hub 40 is journaled between upper and lower

eccentric earns

84 and 86, respectively, which are fixed against rotation. An upper cam cylinder 88 bearing a cam groove S t) is fixed to the upper eccentric cam 84 in coaxial alignment with the hub 4%. Similarly, a lower cam cylinder 92 bearing a lower cam groove 94 is fixed to the lower eccentric cam 86 in coaxial alignment with the hub 40.

The hub 46 is rotatably secured between upper and lower thrust bearings $7 and 9?, which are fitted respectively between the hub 49 and the upper eccentric cam 84, and between the hub 40 and the lower eccentric cam 86. The hub 4-0 is rotated through a hollow drive shaft 101, which is fixed coaxially to the hub, and extends downwardly through the

lower cams

86 and 92. The assembly of the earns 84, 86, 88, and 92, and the hub 4-9 is secured by a tie rod 103, which fits within the drive shaft 101 and is fixed at its upper end to the upper cam cylinder 38. The lower end of the tie rod 103 extends below the lower end of the drive shaft 1&1 and is fixed to a rigid frame member (not shown), The tie rod 103 serves the dual purpose of securing the assembly and of holding the

upper cams

84 and 88 against rotation.

The arms 44-49 are fixed along the rim of the hub 49 and extend radially outwardly from it. The bores 50 at the outer end of the arms 4-4-49 are preferably provided with hardened steel liners 96 for maximum wearing qualities, and the end surfaces of the liners 96 are preferably chamfered to help guide the

pistons

52 and 54 into the bore.

The

levers

56 and 58 carry rollers 98 at their fulcrums, which are caged within guideways 1G8 and 1&2, re spectively, on top of and beneath the arms 4449. The push-

pull connecting rods

61 and 63 are pivoted at the fulcrums of the levers 56 and 58., respectively, and carry cam followers 196, which ride on the respective upper and lower eccentric cams 8d and 86, respectively. The connecting

rods

61 and 63 are biased inwardly into pressure engagement against the cams 8-? and 86 by any desired means such as the springs 108 illustrated. The

connccting rods

61 and 63 serve alternately to advance and retract the

levers

56 and 58 in accordance with the rises and falls of the cams 8d and 86.

For raising and lowering the

pistons

52 and 54, other connecting

rods

62 and 64 are pin-in-slot connected to the radially inner ends of the

levers

56 and 58, and carry followers 112, which ride in the respective cam grooves 90 and 94. When the cam groove 99 or 94 falls, that is, when the follower enters a portion of the cam groove 90 or 94 which is relatively close to the hub 40, the connecting

rod

62 or 64 moves the inner end of the

lever

56 or 58 to which it is connected away from the arm 44, driving the outer end of the lever toward the arm 44 to insert the

piston

52 or 64 into the bore 55). Guide stops are mounted upon the upper and lower surfaces of the arms 44-49 adjacent to the bores 59 for guiding the

pistons

52 and 54 and preventing them from tilting as they are withdrawn from the hole 50. The bearings 124 by which the

pistons

52 and 54 are mounted upon the

levers

56 and 58, are preferably made tight so that the

pistons

52 and 54 do not rotate freely but tend to remain in the angular positions relative to the

levers

56 and 58 to which they are driven by their sliding engagement with surface of the bore 50.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for chemical analysis by X-ray means comprising:

(1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(2) means mounting said member for rotation about an axis spaced from said bore and parallel to the length thereof,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectively into and out of said bore, and into and away from coaxial alignment therewith, and

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predetermined sequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member.

2. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for chemical analysis by X-ray means comprising:

( 1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectively into and out of said bore, and into and away from coaxial alignment therewith,

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predetermined sequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member, and

(6) means for pressing said pistons together at a time when they are both in said bore with a force greater than the force achievable by said means for moving, thereby to compact a powdered material held between said pistons and to form a briquette thereof.

3. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for X-ray analysis comprising:

(1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(2) means mounting said member for rotation about a normally vertical axis spaced from said bore and with the axis of said bore parallel to the axis of rotation,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectivel into and out of said bore thereof, and into and away from coaxial alignment therewith, and

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predetermined sequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member, said moving means including, for each of said pistons:

(a) a pair of cams fixed at the axis of rotation of said member,

(b) a pair of followers for following said cams,

and

(0) connecting rods attached to said followers for driving the piston in accordance with the rises and falls of the cams as said member rotates.

4. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for X-ray analysis comprising:

(1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectively into and out of said bore thereof, and into and away from coaxial alignment therewith,

(a) a pair of cams fixed at the axis of rotation of said member,

(b) a pair of followers for following said cams,

and

(c) connecting rods attached to said followers for driving the piston in accordance with the rises and falls of the cams as said member rotates,

(6) means for indexing said member between six angularly spaced stations, said earns being arranged to drive both of said pistons into said bore as said member approaches a selected one of the stations, and

(7) a press at the selected station for pressing said pistons together with a force greater than the force achievable by said moving means, thereby to compact a powdered material held between said pistons and to form a briquette of the material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,568,956 9/1951 Fienberg et al. 18--20 2,621,363 12/1952 Fienberg et al. 18-2O 2,904,835 9/1959 Thomas 1820 3,129,464 4/1964 Heider l820 3,318,265 5/1967 Winters et al. 18-2() XR I. HOWARD FLINT, 111., Primary Examiner.