1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates broadly to coke ovens, and more particularly to a method of determining coke level during pushing operation.
2. Description of the Prior Art
To effect proper operation of a battery of byproduct coke ovens, each oven must be charged from a larry car, conveyor or pipeline with a predetermined weight amount of coking coal, then leveled by a leveler bar to move peaks of coal below charging holes to valleys therebetween. It is intended that when leveling is completed the charge will fill the maximum predetermined space in the coke oven and that the top of the charge will have a relatively smooth line lengthwise throughout the oven at the start of the coking cycle.
After a suitable heating cycle, an ideal charge will have settled downward and became a coke mass having a theoretical coke line below and parallel to the charge level line. Subsequently, the coke is pushed by a pusher ram on the pusher side of an oven through a coke guide on the coke side of the oven and into a quench car. In the past, an operator at the coke guide visually inspected the coke height at a gap between the oven and coke guide or between the slats of a coke guide during pushing for indications of undercharging the coke oven. However, all batteries currently require emission exhaust controls during pushing which have done away with the gap between the oven and coke guide or slats, thereby preventing visual inspection of coke height during pushing.
Other problems arise in actual practice because ideal battery operations are not always achieved. These are attributable to charging errors and/or heating deficiencies which affect coke height or level at pushing. For example, coal density variations and scale errors directly effect the volume, and therefore level, of coal charged before the coking cycle. Prior art mechanical probes having moving parts inserted through charging holes do not always provide an adequate indication of actual coal level in the oven, nor do they provide a coal level record at any time. In addition, nonuniform gravity distribution of the coal charge will result in an uneven coke level during pushing. Moreover, heating deficiencies caused by variations in overall heating value of fuels, or localized clogging of flues will also have an effect on not only coke value but coke level at the time of pushing operation.