Umicore Ag & Co Kg

Asahi Glass Company, Limited

Hubertus Gölitzer

Rudolf Singer

In some embodiments, the invention provides a refining chamber for glass production, made of platinum group metal materials, with improved refining effectiveness. The refining chamber according has the shape of a tube with a cross section (), with the cross section of the tube being shaped, in at least one segment, so that in the operating position the length () of a horizontal line () which divides the surface of the cross section into essentially a lower and an upper segment of the surface, both of which have essentially the same area, is greater than twice the maximum vertical extent () of the lower segment of the surface. The cross section of the refining chamber can, for example, have the shape of an oval, an ellipse, a slot, a rounded triangle or a polygon, and the stiffness of the shape of the refining chamber can be increased by forming radially peripheral creases, corners, waves or folds.

Refining chamber made of platinum group metal materials

A process for the production of tubular structural parts fabricated from PGM materials and having circumferential undulating bulges by forming from smooth-walled tube pieces. A smooth-walled tube piece () is inserted into a cylindrical forming die () with an internal diameter that corresponds substantially to the external diameter of the tube piece and that has radial undulating recesses (). This die is provided at both axial ends with a press tool () that tightly seals the tube ends. The space that is thus formed is completely filled with an hydraulic fluid (), and an hydraulic internal pressure is then produced by exerting an axial compression via the press tools () in such a way that under simultaneous shortening of the tube piece bulges () are formed in the wall of the latter that correspond to the recesses () of the forming die ().

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Alzenau, Germany

Hubertus Gölitzer