Prototype metal tap block design

摘要

One of the most severe duty areas in any furnaceis the metal tap hole. Operation of these tap holes requiresfrequent maintenance and usually involves hot repairs duringfurnace idle conditions. The requirement for a meal tap blockdesign which both simplifies and minimizes maintenance is clear.In anticipation of the construction of a new lead smeltingfurnace, Cominco Ltd. embarked on a testing program todevelop an optimal metal tap block for the commercial furnace.Two alternative prototype tapping blocks were installed in anexisting lead blast furnace settler for evaluation under dutiessimilar to those expected in the new furnace. The test programverified the predicted performance of the blocks and identifiedkey features to be included in the final commercial block.This paper presents the general design basis of the Hatchprototype tapping block. Also included are details of the thermalanalysis of this block and the performance of this block during testing.