Model of a glass melting furnace by Li2O tracing

By adding a tracer element not normally utilized in the batch, the residence time and mixing dynamics of a furnace can be determined. The mixing dynamics are modeled through a system of differential equations of mass balance which utilize two parameters to define the batch mixing before the tank is entered, and three parameters to predict the tank mixing. This results in a model that is easily solvable and optimal parameter settings that can be identified by a nonlinear least-squares method used on assay results from the tracer study. By using this method, the complex measurements of temperature distributions heat conductivity factors and convection factors are not necessary. Sample results are shown and discussed.<>