Claims
- 1. A zone melting apparatus comprising an elongated sample-holding container which is traversed by a series of heat transfer elements each comprised of one or more heat transfer tubes to internally heat and/or cool the sample contained in said container, said elements having a plurality of thermally conducting fins spaced regularly at fixed positions along the tubes of the elements and extending into the sample in planes parallel to the container axis, and means to regulate the flow of hot or cold fluid through each of the various heat transfer elements thereby producing at least one molten zone bounded on opposite sides by solid material with a corrugated freezing interface therebetween and means to switch the fluids through each heat transfer element from hot to cold and cold to hot in order to successively heat and cool different portions of the sample thereby moving the molten zone and the corrugated freezing interface along the axis through the sample, in which the ratio of the center distance D between adjacent heat transfer elements and the distance d between adjacent fins of a given element is between about 1 and about 6 and the fin dimension W parallel to the axis of the container is greater than 3/4 D.
- 2. The zone melting apparatus of claim 1 in which the outer diameter of the heat transfer tubes is less than about 1/2 D.
- 3. The zone melting apparatus of claim 2 in which the distance D between tubes is between about 3/4" (1.91 cm) and 6" (15.2 cm) and the distance d between fins is between about 1/4" (0.635 cm) and 1" (2.54 cm).
- 4. The zone melting apparatus of claim 3 in which the fin dimension W is between 3/4 D and 11/12 D.
- 5. The zone melting apparatus of claim 4 in which the ratio of D to d is between about 1 and 3 and D is between about 3/4" (1.91 cm) and about 2" (5.08 cm) and d is between about 1/4" (0.635 cm) and about 3/4" (9.91 cm).
- 6. The zone melting apparatus of claim 5 in which D is about 11/8" (2.86 cm), d is about 2/3" (1.27 cm), W is about 1" (2.54 cm) and the outer diameter of the heat transfer tubes is 3/8" (0.95 cm).
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 896,431 filed Apr. 14, 1978, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,196,042.
US Referenced Citations (5)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
1136983 |
Sep 1962 |
DEX |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (3)
Entry |
Zone Melting; Pfann, pp. 78-81, Wiley & Sons (1958). |
Apparatus for Zone Melting of Organic Substances, L. Marrelli, Quaderni dell'ingegnero Chimico italiano, 11, 95-99 (1975), No. 6. |
Analysis of the Thermal Behavoi of a Pilot Apparatus for Zone Melting of Organic Substances, R. DeSantis, L. Marrelli, and L. Toro, Quaderni dell'ingenero Chimico italiano 11, 100-104 (1975), No. 6. |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
896431 |
Apr 1978 |
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