US3697004A

US3697004A - Method and apparatus for granulating wax

Info

Publication number: US3697004A
Application number: US155761A
Authority: US
Inventors: Joseph H Lazar
Original assignee: JOSEPH H LAZAR
Current assignee: JOSEPH H LAZAR
Priority date: 1971-06-23
Filing date: 1971-06-23
Publication date: 1972-10-10
Anticipated expiration: 1989-10-10

Abstract

Multiple sets of blocks of solid wax which is a byproduct of the distillation of crude oil into gasolene and other useful direct products are vertically supported over a pair of oppositely rotating spirally wound wire brushes about twelve inches in diameter having stiff bristles of high tensile steel wire about 1 inch long. The sets of blocks are enclosed within feeders rockably positioned over the brushes and mounted on hemispherically shaped enclosures for the upper portions of the brushes. The brushes and feeders are mounted on an open frame which also supports a separate driving motor for each brush. Below the brushes is a hopper shaped accumulator, the outlet of which opens into a 6 inch pipe connected to a suction blower which feeds directly to the process or product using the waxes or to a bagging apparatus.

Description

United States Patent Lazar [54] METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR GRANULATING WAX [72] inventor: Joseph H. Lazar, 530 Green Bay Road, Highland Park, Ill. 60035 [22] Filed: June 23, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 155,761

[ 1 Oct. 10, 1972 Primary ExaminerGranville Y. Custer, Jr. Attorney-Curtis F. Prangley et a1.

[57] ABSTRACT Multiple sets of blocks of solid wax which is a byproduct of the distillation of crude oil into gasolene and other useful direct products are vertically supported over a pair of oppositely rotating spirally wound wire brushes about twelve inches in diameter [52] 241/138 4 3 52 having stiff bristles of high tensile steel wire about 1 I 5] 1 Int Cl 802C 13/00 inch long. The sets of blocks are enclosed within 58 i 5 R 186 R feeders rockably positioned over the brushes and I l I o c 241/l9l 3 mounted on hemispherically shaped enclosures for the upper portions of the brushes. The brushes and feeders are mounted on an open frame which also sup- [56] References Clted ports a separate driving motor for each brush. Below UNITED STATES PATENTS the brushes is a hopper shaped accumulator, the outlet of which opens into a 6 inch pipe connected to a sucl,344,l80 6/1920 McMillan ..24l/277X tion blower which feeds directly to the process or product using the waxes or to a bagging apparatus. 11 Claim, 4 Drawing Figures 6a 67 62 I 64 66 n 4 6'6 55 M l] M PATENTEBUBI 1 I 12 3 697.004

[2 we via/x I Mim/ gg PATENTED 10 1973 3,697,004

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION At present granulated wax is of commercial importance. It is mixed with rubber to eliminate the rubber cracking while exposed to the sun. It is also important as a lubricant for plastic pipe.

The preparation of tiny and discrete particles of wax is at the present time difficult and relatively expensive. Commercially, such particles are made by spraying heated liquid wax into a cold chamber, wherein the temperature is below that of the solidifying temperature of the wax, and wherein the tiny droplets harden and fall to the bottom of the chamber. The temperature must be carefully controlled so that the wax spray will harden instantly to form the tiny particles. Care must be taken in removing the particles from the chamber so that they do not fuse together or remelt to adhere into lumps which could not be used. The environmental control, the melting of the wax, spraying hot liquefied wax, and the subsequent required care in handling the wax particles contribute to the high cost of manufacturing tiny wax particles or granules under prior art methods.

The technique used in the method and apparatus of the present invention of granulating wax is mechanical in nature and may be carried out at normal room temperature and in circumstances where it is merely necessary that the room would be kept sufficiently clean to prevent collecting dust and dirt with the wax granules. The mechanical process contemplates subjecting one or more blocks of wax to abrasive action from a rotating spirally wound wire brush. This action erodes granules of wax which are collected in a hopper from which they are removed by a suction device for bagging or sent directly to use in an intended process or incorporated in an ultimate product.

By selection of the brush bristle size and spacing and speed of rotation, the size of the produced granules can be readily controlled. This is not possible under the prior commercial process because there is lack of precise control over the size of the sprayed wax droplets.

It is possible to carry out the improved process at room temperature where the wax is normally solid. It was noted above that the liquid wax had to be sprayed into a cooled chamber where the temperature had to be carefully regulated. It was also necessary to determine precisely when the particles could be removed from this chamber to prevent their being fused or lumped together. These expensive conditions are not necessary under the improved method and apparatus of this invention.

In the apparatus of the present invention the granules are automatically collected for bagging or immediate use. In the prior art commercial arrangement it is usually necessary that someone physically remove the particles from the cold chamber.

with the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.

2 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a view partially in side elevation and partially in perspective of the wax granulating equipment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged end elevational view of the wax granulating machine showing the wax feeders in a dotted line changed position, and may be considered as being taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross sectional detail view and may be considered as being taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of a portion of the drive for one of the brushes, and may be considered as being taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 shows the wax granulating equipment 10 to include a granulating machine or unit 12 and a collection unit 14. The granulating machine 12 has a supporting frame 16 including a set of horizontal upper rails 18 and supporting legs 20. Motor support rails 22 are also carried by the legs 20.

At opposite ends of the frame 16 the top rails 18 mount pairs of bearings 24 of conventional design. The bearings rotatably journal shafts 26 and 28 of

long wire brushes

30 and 32, respectively. Each of the brushes includes a long, closed end tube or drum 34 from which projects a great multitude of wire bristles 36. The bristles 36 are relatively short, being about 1 inch long and made of 0.026 inch high tensile steel wire. It is important to note as seen in FIG. 4 that the bristles 36 are arranged in spiral form about the length of the tube 34. The importance of this arrangement will be discussed hereinafter.

One outer end of each

shaft

26 and 28 is fitted with a pulley 38 over which is trained a driving belt 40 which is also trained over a driving pulley 42. The pulleys 42 are mounted on the outer ends of the power shafts of electric motors 44 and 46, which are mounted on inclined supports 48 and 58 carried on the frame rails 22 and joined together at 60 between the motors 44 and 46. The motors are so arranged that they drive the

brushes

30 and 32 in opposite directions at about 1200 r.p.m., the brush 30 being driven in the clockwise direction and the brush 32 being driven in the counterclockwise direction.

The blocks of wax to be granulated are held over the rotating

brushes

30 and 32 by a pair of mirror image constructed

feeders

62 and 64. Each feeder includes a vertically extending chute 66 which is divided by partitions 67 into sections, each being designed or adapted to hold a set of blocks of wax. A typical set may include three blocks to be fed to either of the

brushes

30 or 32. Conventional blocks of wax measure 36 inches by 12 inches and are 2 inches thick. The blocks are so fed through the chute sections that the 12 inch edges contact the

brushes

30 or 32. As seen in the drawings the partitions 67 extend through the chutes 66 so that their lower edges are spaced only slightly above the

respective brush

30 or 32. This arrangement prevents the last portions of the wax blocks from turning or twisting in the chute which could cause chunking of the remnants, an undesirable result.

At its lower end the chute 66 is fixed to or made integral with a semicylindrical housing 68. As clearly seen in FIGS. 3 and 4 the interior of the chute 66 is open to the housing 68. Each housing 68 encloses slightly more than the upper portion of the

brushes

30 and 32, and each semicylindrical housing 68 and its associated chute 66 are pivoted to a side top rail 18 by a long hinge 70. The housings 68 are provided with end plates 72, each of which is cut out or slotted at 74 to accommodate the

wire brush shafts

26 and 28. At their inner sides the housings 68 are formed with lips 76 which rest upon a rail 78 lying atop the frame rails 18 and between and parallel to the

brushes

30 and 32. In their normal positions the

wax block feeders

62 and 64 are supported by their hinges 70 on the side rails 18 and by the lips 76 on the central rail 78.

For cleaning, the

feeders

62 and 64 may be moved to the dotted line positions of FIG. 2. In this position each feeder is temporarily held by a support leg 80 provided with a foot 82 and pivoted at 84 to a small bracket 86 fixed to the exterior of the chute 66 adjacent its upper end. In the dotted line position of FIG. 2 the interior of the chute 66 and the housing 68 is easily inspected and when necessary cleaned.

Each chute 66 is formed along its sides and ends and through the partitions 67 with aligned slots 88 which have a dual purpose. They support transverse bars (not shown) against which an initial charge of sets of wax blocks may be placed in the chute sections with the chutes 66 disposed vertically as shown in full lines in FIGS. 1 and 2. The motors 44 and 46 are started and when the

brushes

30 and 32 have attained their operating speed the bars are quickly withdrawn to drop the wax blocks down onto the rotating brushes.

When the granulating machine 12 is operating normally the blocks of wax will be mechanically pulverized at their lower ends and through their weight will sink in the chutes 66. In their second purpose the slots 88 serve as windows through which the operator may determine which of the chutes is being emptied first and whether certain blocks are being eroded before others. The operator can thus readily determine when to reload the machine. He will also be advised when either of the chute sections is operating with less than the maximum number of blocks and can determine whether to add blocks to make up a full set. The granulating machine operates more efficiently with a full load of blocks than with less than the full load.

The machine is reloaded by adding wax blocks to those chute sections being emptied. This is done by dropping fresh blocks into nearly empty sections while the wire brushes are running. This technique insures a continuous operation of the machine until it must be shut down for inspection, cleaning, or repair.

The lower portions of the

brushes

30 and 32 extend into the upper open mouth of a hopper shaped accumulator 90 which has an outwardly projecting flange 92 secured as by bolting, brazing, welding, or the like to the undersides of the upper frame rail 18. Accumulator walls 94 slope downwardly to a discharge opening 96 in free communication with a suction pipe 98. A door 95 closes an access opening to the accumulator 90 and is normally secured by a latch 97. It provides ingress for cleaning the accumulator.

The suction pipe 98 is connected by a feed pipe or conduit 100 to inlet 102 of a conventional suction blower 104 mounted on a frame 106. The suction pipe 98 has an adjustable air damper 99 at its open end which is removable for cleaning the pipe. The blower 104 has an outlet 108 connected to a hopper 110 from which the granulated wax may be bagged of carried directly to the place of use in a process or to be incorporated in a product.

As noted previously the wire brushes 30 and 32 are rotated in opposite directions at about 1200 rpm. The rotational directions are such that the granulated wax is fed downwardly between the brushes and into the center of the accumulator 90. Under optimum operating conditions both

feeders

62 and 64 will contain full sets of wax blocks, the amount of wax granulated by each brush will be about the same, and the feeders will require servicing and resupply of wax blocks at the same time. Because the wire brushes 30 and 32 have their bristles 36 arranged in spiral form, the wax will be eroded evenly the length of each block and the blocks will be granulated efficiently. This would not be possible if the bristles 36 were arranged circumferentially in ribs or rows. The latter arrangement would result in ridging the eroded edge of the wax blocks and cause chunks of wax to break away and mix with the wax granules, an obviously undesirable result.

From the foregoing description, it is clear that the objects and advantages set forth at the outset of the specification are attained by the method and apparatus disclosed.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by US. Letters Patent is:

It. Apparatus for granulating wax from blocks of wax, comprising in combination, a frame, a pair of parallel spirally wound wire brushes rotatably mounted on said frame, means connected to rotate said brushes, a feeder associated with each brush and adapted to hold one or more blocks of wax for gravity feed to its associated brush, and an accumulator mounted on said frame in such position as to receive the granulated wax from said brushes.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said wire brushes are made of a base and have short, thin high tensile steel wire bristles projecting therefrom in spiral configurations the length of said base.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said means to rotate said brushes comprise a pair of electric motors mounted on said frame below said brushes.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein said motors drive said brushes in opposite directions to dispense the granulated wax between them into said accumulator.

5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein each feeder has a vertically extending portion divided into sections above its associated brush within which sections the blocks of wax to be granulated are fed against an upper portion of said associated brush.

6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, wherein each feeder has a housing enclosing that part of its associated brush projecting above said frame and supporting in open communication therewith said vertically extending portion.

7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 6, wherein each feeder is pivotally mounted on said frame so that it may be pivoted to a horizontal position to permit ready access to its associated brush and to the interior of said feeder.

8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including a suction means connected to said accumulator to withdraw granulated wax therefrom.

9. The method of granulating blocks of wax, comprising feeding at least one set of blocks of wax against a rotating spirally wound wire brush, accumulating the wax granules, and continuously removing the accumulated granules.

Claims

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said wire brushes are made of a base and have short, thin high tensile steel wire bristles projecting therefrom in spiral configurations the length of said base.
3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said means to rotate said brushes comprise a pair of electric motors mounted on said frame below said brushes.
4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein said motors drive said brushes in opposite directions to dispense the granulated wax between them into said accumulator.
5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein each feeder has a vertically extending portion divided into sections above its associated brush within which sections the blocks of wax to be granulated are fed against an upper portion of said associated brush.
6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, wherein each feeder has a housing enclosing that part of its associated brush projecting above said frame and supporting in open communication therewith said vertically extending portion.
7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 6, wherein each feeder is pivotally mounted on said frame so that it may be pivoted to a horizontal position to permit ready access to its associated brush and to the interior of said feeder.
8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including a suction means connected to said accumulator to withdraw granulated wax therefrom.
9. The method of granulating blocks of wax, comprising feeding at least one set of blocks of wax against a rotating spirally wound wire brush, accumulating the wax granules, and continuously removing the accumulated granules.
10. The method as set forth in claim 9, wherein multiple sets of blocks of wax are gravity fed against a pair of rotating spirally wound wire brushes.
11. The method as set forth in claim 10, wherein the wire brushes are arranged in parallel and are rotated in opposite directions at about 1200 r.p.m. to dispense the granulated wax between them.