Modelling of connecting channels of glass melting furnace

Processed glass melt is transported/from a melting tank to the place where feeding and forming are carried out. During the transport through connecting channels, i.e. a throat and a riser, the glass melt quality should not deteroirate, and therefore designers and keepers of glass melting furnaces pay the great attention to constructional and technological optimization of these parts of furnaces. In our work the method of physical modelling war used to observe processes which take place in connecting channels. The influence of the glass melt temperature and the amount of glass melt moving from a tank into a throat upon the flow characteristics in connecting channels, the influence of throat and riser dimensions and the influence of heating system and thermal losses upon convection current and temperature distribution in connecting channels were found for a furnace of a mean pull. The results obtained by measuring on physical models made the knowledge about the glass melt flow and temperatures more accurate, and they also showed possibilities of the throat and connecting channels design which would supply present technological and economical requirements.