Production device capable of reducing unit consumption of graphite anode
By setting up a nitrogen hood and gas sealing unit at the top of the electrolytic furnace to form a gas curtain, the problem of uneven oxidation rate of graphite anode plates was solved, resulting in reduced unit consumption and extended service life of graphite anode plates.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202520083117.4
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-01-14
- Publication Date
- 2026-01-02
- Estimated Expiration
- 2035-01-14
AI Technical Summary
In existing rare earth metal production processes, the consumption per unit of graphite anode plates is relatively high, especially the part located on top of the molten salt electrolyte, which has a fast oxidation rate, resulting in a large amount of residue and high consumption per unit.
A nitrogen hood is installed at the top of the electrolytic furnace. Inside the nitrogen hood, a gas sealing unit forms a horizontal gas curtain to prevent air from entering the furnace. At the same time, a gas collection device is installed outside the nitrogen hood to remove the escaping gas. A raised part is added to the graphite anode plate to balance the oxidation rate.
This effectively reduces the consumption of graphite anode plates, extends their service life, and reduces residual anode material, thereby achieving the goal of reducing residual graphite content.
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Figure CN223752926U_ABST
Abstract
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The application relates to a rare earth production equipment technology field, in particular to a production device capable of reducing the unit consumption of a graphite anode. BACKGROUND
[0002] Rare earth elements have been widely used in new energy, new materials, energy saving and environmental protection, aerospace, electronic information and other fields due to their special optical, electrical and magnetic properties, and are important elements indispensable in modern industry.
[0003] Rare earth permanent magnet materials are mainly used in electronic information communication, wind power, transportation and consumer electronics, and the future development trend of these products determines the development of rare earth permanent magnet materials; wind turbines, new energy vehicles and electric bicycles, mobile phones, tablet computers, electromechanical products and micro-motor products. With the rapid development of new energy vehicles, wind power, variable frequency air conditioners and robots, the expected demand will increase rapidly, which will provide strong support for the rapid development of China's rare earth industry.
[0004] In the prior art, the production of rare earth metals is mainly prepared by an oxide molten salt electrolysis method, and the main equipment used is a rare earth electrolytic furnace. The rare earth electrolytic furnace has an upper insertion anode and cathode structure, and a rare earth metal receiver is arranged at the bottom of the furnace. The electrolysis temperature during work is 1000-1100 DEG C. The high-temperature molten metal liquid in the furnace is discharged from the furnace by siphon method, scooping method and lifting bucket method, and is poured into an ingot mold. The graphite anode plate in the rare earth electrolytic furnace has a circular arc plate structure, the thickness is 70-100 mm, the height is 450-550 mm, the residual graphite rate of the plate is 30-40%, and the unit consumption is about 200 kg / ton REM (the consumption of graphite anode plate is about 200 kg per ton of rare earth metal produced). Figure 1 As shown in the rare earth metal production process, the furnace body is generally in an open state, and the graphite plate used as the anode is mostly immersed in the molten salt electrolyte for anode electrolysis reaction (for example, about 450 mm of the 500 mm graphite plate is immersed in the molten salt electrolyte), and the oxygen gas separated from the oxide molten salt reacts with the graphite to release carbon dioxide; a small part (about 50 mm high) of the graphite plate is located above the molten salt electrolyte and is exposed to the air to cause oxidation. Due to the influence of the smoke exhaust during the production process, the oxidation speed of the graphite plate above the electrolyte is obviously faster than that below the electrolyte, which will cause a large amount of residual graphite and high unit consumption. CONTENT OF THE UTILITY MODEL
[0005] The application provides a production device capable of reducing the unit consumption of a graphite anode, which can effectively reduce the unit consumption of the graphite anode plate in the electrolytic furnace during the production process of rare earth metals.
[0006] The above object of the application is achieved by the following technical scheme:
[0007] The application discloses a production device capable of reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes, which comprises an electrolytic furnace, a plurality of graphite anode plates are installed in the electrolytic furnace through special fasteners, a nitrogen cover is arranged on the top of the electrolytic furnace, the nitrogen cover covers the top opening of the electrolytic furnace, a gas sealing unit is arranged in the nitrogen cover, the gas sealing unit can form a horizontal gas curtain at the top opening of the electrolytic furnace by using nitrogen, and a gas collecting device is arranged on the outer side of the nitrogen cover and used for sucking away the gas escaping from above the electrolytic furnace.
[0008] Further, the gas sealing unit comprises two L-shaped nitrogen injection pipes which are symmetrically arranged in the nitrogen cover, the nitrogen injection pipes are connected with a nitrogen supply pipeline in a factory, a plurality of injection holes are uniformly arranged on one side of the nitrogen injection pipes which faces the center of the top opening of the electrolytic furnace, and the axis of the injection holes is parallel to the top surface of the electrolytic furnace.
[0009] Further, the nitrogen cover is surrounded by three movable covers, each of the movable covers comprises a rectangular side plate and an isosceles right triangle top plate, the length of the long side of the side plate is equal to the length of the hypotenuse of the top plate, the hypotenuse of the top plate is fixedly connected with the long side of the side plate and perpendicular to the long side, and a supporting leg is fixedly arranged on the lower side of the end of the top plate which is away from the side plate; after the three movable covers are combined to form the nitrogen cover, the top of the nitrogen cover is in the shape of a Chinese character "qu".
[0010] Further, a handle is arranged on the outer side of the side plate.
[0011] Further, the gas collecting device comprises a side suction cover which is arranged on the nitrogen cover and located at the gap of the three movable covers, and the side suction cover is connected with an exhaust pipeline in the factory.
[0012] Further, an arc-shaped gap with a central angle of 90 degrees is arranged at the right angle end of each of the top plates.
[0013] Further, the gas collecting device further comprises a top suction cover which is arranged above the nitrogen cover and connected with the exhaust pipeline in the factory.
[0014] Further, the upper end of the graphite anode plate is protruded to one side, the protruding thickness of the graphite anode plate is 2-5 mm, and the protruding height of the graphite anode plate is 5-10 cm.
[0015] In conclusion, the application has at least one of the following beneficial technical effects:
[0016] The electrolytic furnace of the present application is provided with a nitrogen cover above the open top thereof, and a gas sealing unit is arranged in the nitrogen cover, which can generate a horizontal gas curtain at the open top of the electrolytic furnace by using nitrogen during use of the electrolytic furnace, which can effectively prevent air from entering the furnace from the open top of the electrolytic furnace, thereby reducing the erosion of air to the graphite anode plate, protecting the graphite anode plate, reducing the unit consumption of the graphite anode plate, and prolonging the service life of the graphite anode plate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0017] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or prior art description will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can also be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor.
[0018] Figure 1 is a structural schematic diagram of a common electrolytic furnace in the prior art;
[0019] Figure 2 is a structural schematic diagram of the whole structure of the present application;
[0020] Figure 3 is a top view of the remaining part after the top suction cover of the present application is removed;
[0021] Figure 4 is a structural schematic diagram of the nitrogen injection pipe of the present application;
[0022] Figure 5 is a structural schematic diagram of the movable gas cover of the present application;
[0023] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the state when the protrusions on the graphite anode plate of the present application are arranged on the inner side;
[0024] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the state when the protrusions on the graphite anode plate of the present application are arranged on the outer side.
[0025] Explanation of reference numerals: 1, electrolytic furnace; 2, graphite anode plate; 3, nitrogen cover; 31, movable gas cover; 311, side plate; 312, top plate; 313, leg; 4, gas sealing unit; 41, nitrogen injection pipe; 42, injection hole; 5, gas collection device; 51, side suction cover; 52, top suction cover; 6, handle; 7, protrusion. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] In order to make the purposes, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below. Obviously, the described embodiments are some but not all of the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative work fall within the scope of the present application.
[0027] As shown in Figure 2 Fig. 1, a production device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anode disclosed by the present application comprises an electrolytic furnace 1, a plurality of graphite anode plates 2 are installed in the electrolytic furnace 1 through special fasteners, a nitrogen cover 3 is arranged on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, and the nitrogen cover 3 covers the top opening of the electrolytic furnace 1, a gas sealing unit 4 is arranged in the nitrogen cover 3, and the gas sealing unit 4 can form a horizontal gas curtain at the opening of the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 by using nitrogen, and a gas collection device 5 is arranged on the outside of the nitrogen cover 3, and the gas collection device 5 is used to draw away the gas escaping from the top of the electrolytic furnace 1.
[0028] In the above embodiments, the opening of the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 can also be referred to as a furnace mouth, and during use, the gas such as carbon dioxide gas generated in the furnace will be discharged from the furnace mouth, and in production, the rare earth metal liquid after being melted at high temperature in the furnace is usually transferred out through the furnace mouth. As shown in Figure 1 Since the top of the existing electrolytic furnace 1 is always in an open state during production, the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the molten salt electrolyte will be continuously exposed to air during use, and this part of the graphite anode plate 2 will have an oxidation reaction with air, and in addition, the air flows quickly due to the influence of the flue gas exhaust fan above the electrolytic furnace 1, and the oxidation of the graphite anode plate 2 above the electrolyte will be obviously faster than that of the graphite anode plate 2 immersed below the molten salt electrolyte, thereby causing the problems of more residual amount of graphite and higher unit consumption.
[0029] As shown in Figure 2 Fig. 1, the electrolytic furnace 1 of the present application is provided with a nitrogen cover 3 above the opening of the top thereof, and a gas sealing unit 4 is arranged in the nitrogen cover 3, which can generate a horizontal gas curtain at the opening of the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 by using nitrogen during use of the electrolytic furnace 1, and the nitrogen cover 3 can effectively reduce the influence of the external environment on the gas sealing unit 4 when the gas sealing unit 4 is working, and the gas curtain can effectively block the air from entering the furnace from the opening of the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, thereby reducing the oxidation reaction rate of the air and the graphite anode plate 2, and achieving a significant protection effect on the graphite anode plate 2, so that the loss rates of the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the electrolyte and the part of the graphite anode plate 2 below the electrolyte are as close as possible, thereby achieving the purposes of reducing the unit consumption of the graphite anode plate 2 and prolonging the service life of the graphite anode plate 2.
[0030] Further, as shown in Figures 2-4As shown, the gas sealing unit 4 includes two L-shaped nitrogen spouts 41 symmetrically arranged in the nitrogen cover 3, the nitrogen spouts 41 are connected with the nitrogen supply pipeline in the factory, and the two nitrogen spouts 41 are uniformly provided with a plurality of jet holes 42 on one side of the open center of the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, and the axis of the jet hole 42 is parallel to the top surface of the electrolytic furnace 1.
[0031] In the above embodiment, the long pipe sections of the two L-shaped nitrogen spouts 41 of the present application are respectively located on opposite sides of the top of the furnace mouth of the electrolytic furnace 1 in the nitrogen cover 3 and are parallel to each other, and the short pipe sections of the two nitrogen spouts 41 are located on the same side of the furnace mouth of the electrolytic furnace 1. Thus, the two nitrogen spouts 41 connected with the nitrogen supply pipeline in the factory can spray nitrogen through the jet holes 42 provided on the pipe sections in the above-mentioned manner toward the open top of the electrolytic furnace 1. These nitrogen gases can form a horizontal gas curtain on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 under the protection of the nitrogen cover 3. This gas curtain can effectively reduce the contact reaction between air and the graphite anode plate 2 in the electrolytic furnace 1 during operation, thereby reducing the loss rate of the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the electrolyte. The nitrogen spouts 41 can be supported by supports arranged on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 during use, thereby improving the stability during use.
[0032] Further, as shown in Figure 2 、 Figure 3 and Figure 5 , the nitrogen cover 3 is surrounded by three movable gas covers 31; each movable gas cover 31 is composed of a rectangular side plate 311 and an isosceles right triangle top plate 312. The length of the long side of the side plate 311 is equal to the length of the hypotenuse of the top plate 312. The hypotenuse of the top plate 312 is fixedly connected with the long side of the side plate 311 and is perpendicular to each other. The lower side of the end of the top plate 312 away from the side plate 311 is fixedly provided with a support leg 313. After the three movable gas covers 31 form the nitrogen cover 3, the top of the nitrogen cover 3 is in the shape of a "U".
[0033] In the above embodiment, the three movable gas covers 31 that form the nitrogen cover 3 are each composed of a rectangular side plate 311 and an isosceles right triangle top plate 312. After the three movable gas covers 31 are spliced together on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, the nitrogen cover 3 formed thereby has a hollow rectangular structure, and its horizontal cross section is a square structure. The bottom of the nitrogen cover 3 and one side thereof are open. The open bottom facilitates communication with the space inside the electrolytic furnace 1, and the open side facilitates providing access space for the gas collection equipment 5, as shown in Figure 3As shown, since the nitrogen cover 3 is formed by three movable gas covers 31, the top of the nitrogen cover 3 appears as a Chinese character "qu" when viewed from above, after the top plates 312 of the three movable gas covers 31 are closed together. The legs 313 arranged below the top plates 312 of the movable gas covers 31 in the above manner can ensure that the top of the movable gas cover 31 is supported in a suspended state by the legs 313 during use, so as to ensure the stability of the movable gas cover 31 during use. In addition, since the movable gas cover 31 of the present application is simply placed on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, the assembly and disassembly are convenient. The shape of the nitrogen cover 3 of the present application can be a cylindrical structure in addition to the above-mentioned cuboid structure, and is not limited in actual use. The specific conditions can be adjusted adaptively according to the site conditions.
[0034] Further, as shown in Figure 2 and Figure 5 , the side plate 311 is provided with a handle 6 outside.
[0035] In the above embodiment, the side plate 311 of the present application is outside away from the side of the top plate 312, and the handle 6 is arranged outside the movable gas cover 31, so that the operator has a convenient gripping area to move the movable gas cover 31 during use.
[0036] Further, as shown in Figure 2 , the gas collecting device 5 includes a side suction cover 51 arranged on the nitrogen cover 3 at the gap of the three movable gas covers 31, and the side suction cover 51 is connected with the exhaust pipeline in the plant.
[0037] In the above embodiment, the nitrogen cover 3 with a top formed by three movable gas covers 31 and in the shape of a Chinese character "qu" is provided with the side suction cover 51 arranged in the gap on one side and connected with the exhaust pipeline in the plant, so that the excess nitrogen and the gas discharged from the electrolytic furnace 1 can be effectively collected and sucked away through the side suction cover 51 during the operation of the electrolytic furnace 1, so as to prevent these gases from remaining around the electrolytic furnace 1 and causing unnecessary harm to the production workers.
[0038] Further, as shown in Figure 2 , Figure 3 and Figure 5 , each right-angled end of the top plate 312 is provided with an arc-shaped gap with a central angle of 90°.
[0039] In the above embodiment, the top plate 312 of each movable gas cover 31 is arranged in the above manner, so that a through hole is left above the opening on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 after the three movable gas covers 31 form the nitrogen cover 3, which facilitates the production workers to observe the condition of the metal liquid in the furnace.
[0040] Further, as shown in Figure 2As shown, the gas collecting device 5 further comprises a top suction hood 52, which is arranged right above the nitrogen hood 3 and connected with the plant exhaust pipeline.
[0041] In the above embodiment, the top suction hood 52 arranged above the through hole surrounded by the arc-shaped notch of the top plate 312 of the movable gas hood 31 in the nitrogen hood 3 can cooperate with the side suction hood 51 to effectively improve the collection effect of the excess nitrogen gas and the exhaust gas of the electrolytic furnace 1 in the production process, thereby effectively reducing the harm caused by the accumulation of these gases around the electrolytic furnace 1.
[0042] Further, as shown in Figure 6 and Figure 7 the upper end of the graphite anode plate 2 is protruded 7 to one side, the thickness of the protrusion 7 of the graphite anode plate 2 is 2-5mm, and the height of the protrusion 7 of the graphite anode plate 2 is 5-10cm.
[0043] In the above embodiment, since the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the molten salt electrolyte is oxidized too fast, the present application balances the difference in oxidation rate between the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the molten salt electrolyte and the part immersed in the molten salt electrolyte by increasing the thickness of the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the molten salt electrolyte, so that the consumption rate of the graphite anode plate 2 at the part above and below the electrolyte surface tends to be equal, that is, when the part of the graphite anode above the electrolyte cannot be used, the part below the electrolyte just reaches its end of life, which, in cooperation with the gas sealing unit 4 arranged at the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, can further reduce the residual amount of graphite and achieve the purpose of reducing the consumption of graphite. The specific direction of the protrusion 7 part on the graphite anode plate 2 can be determined according to the method used by the enterprise to extract the furnace, as shown in Figure 6 if the enterprise adopts the ladle method, that is, using a tungsten-molybdenum crucible as a receiver for rare earth metals, and taking it out of the furnace as a whole, pouring into an ingot mold to cast ingots, which is usually one hour per furnace, the protrusion 7 part on the graphite anode plate 2 can be arranged on the inner side; as shown in Figure 7 if the enterprise adopts the spoon method, that is, manually scooping out rare earth metal liquid with a spoon, the protrusion 7 part on the graphite anode plate 2 can be arranged on the outer side, which can increase the space for manual operation.
[0044] The principle of the embodiment is that when the electrolytic furnace 1 of the application is used to treat oxides containing rare earth metals, three movable gas hoods 31 are first arranged on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1 to form a nitrogen gas hood 3 in the shape of a Chinese character "qu" on the top, and then the valve at the connection between the nitrogen gas supply pipeline and the nitrogen gas nozzle 41 is started, at which time the nitrogen gas nozzle 41 will uniformly spray nitrogen gas to the opening on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, thereby forming a gas curtain composed of nitrogen gas at the opening on the top of the electrolytic furnace 1, which can effectively block air and the graphite anode plate 2 in the furnace body, thereby preventing air from contacting the graphite anode plate 2, reducing the oxidation rate of the part of the graphite anode plate 2 above the electrolyte, and improving the service life of the graphite anode plate 2 as a whole. At the same time, the side suction hood 51 and the top suction hood 52 arranged on the side and directly above the nitrogen gas hood 3 can timely remove excess nitrogen gas and other gases generated by the furnace body during the production process. In addition, the graphite anode plate 2 in the electrolytic furnace 1 of the application is also designed to be thicker on the top and thinner on the bottom, which, in cooperation with the nitrogen gas curtain generated by the nitrogen gas nozzle 41, can make the consumption rates of the graphite anode plate 2 above and below the electrolyte surface similar, thereby reducing the amount of residual graphite anode plate and achieving the purpose of reducing the graphite consumption per ton. In the actual production operation of the device of the application, the service life of the graphite anode plate 2 has been significantly improved, and the residual graphite anode rate can be reduced to about 25%, and the ton consumption can reach about 150 kg / ton REM.
[0045] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the application, and not to limit them; although the application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or make equivalent replacement for part or all of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the application.
Claims
1. A production device capable of reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes, comprising an electrolysis furnace (1), the interior of said electrolysis furnace (1) being fitted with a plurality of graphite anode plates (2) by means of dedicated fasteners, characterized in that: The electrolytic furnace (1) top is equipped with nitrogen cover (3), and the nitrogen cover (3) covers the top opening of the electrolytic furnace (1), the nitrogen cover (3) is equipped with gas sealing unit (4), the gas sealing unit (4) can form horizontal gas curtain by nitrogen at the opening of the electrolytic furnace (1) top; The outer side of the nitrogen cover (3) is equipped with gas collection equipment (5), which is used to remove the gas escaping above the electrolytic furnace (1).
2. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The gas sealing unit (4) includes two L-shaped nitrogen injection pipes (41) symmetrically arranged in the nitrogen cover (3), the nitrogen injection pipes (41) are connected with the nitrogen supply pipeline in the factory, and the two nitrogen injection pipes (41) are uniformly provided with a plurality of gas injection holes (42) towards one side of the center of the opening of the electrolytic furnace (1) top, and the axis of the gas injection hole (42) is parallel to the top surface of the electrolytic furnace (1).
3. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to claim 2, characterized in that: The nitrogen cover (3) is surrounded by three movable gas covers (31); each movable gas cover (31) is composed of a rectangular side plate (311) and an isosceles right triangle top plate (312), the length of the long side of the side plate (311) is equal to the length of the hypotenuse of the top plate (312), the hypotenuse of the top plate (312) and the long side of the side plate (311) are fixedly connected and perpendicular to each other, and the lower side of the end of the top plate (312) away from the side plate (311) is fixedly provided with a supporting leg (313); after the three movable gas covers (31) form the nitrogen cover (3), the top of the nitrogen cover (3) is in the shape of a Chinese character.
4. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to claim 3, characterized in that: The outer side of the side plate (311) is provided with a handle (6).
5. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to claim 3, characterized in that: The gas collection equipment (5) includes a side suction cover (51), which is arranged on the nitrogen cover (3) at the gap of the three movable gas covers (31), and the side suction cover (51) is connected with the exhaust pipeline in the factory.
6. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to claim 5, characterized in that: Each of the right angle ends of the top plate (312) is provided with an arc-shaped gap with a central angle of 90°.
7. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to claim 6, characterized in that: The gas collection equipment (5) further comprises a top suction cover (52), which is arranged directly above the nitrogen cover (3) and connected with the exhaust pipeline in the factory.
8. The device for reducing the unit consumption of graphite anodes according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The upper end of the graphite anode plate (2) protrudes (7) to one side, the thickness of the protrusion (7) of the graphite anode plate (2) is 2-5mm, and the height of the protrusion (7) of the graphite anode plate (2) is 5-10cm.