The Float Process is considered to be one of the great glass achievements of the 20th century. The tin bath at the heart of the float process, develops the ribbon of glass to the desired thickness and width under a controlled inert atmosphere of nitrogen and hydrogen. An electrical heating system, using silicon carbide electrodes, is used to control the temperatures within the tin bath as the glass is pulled and cooled from about 1100 deg C to 600 deg C. The electric firing system, while considered a standard component to the tin bath, does have several inherent limitations. In the mid 1990s, Gessler Eng developed and engineered the concept using a radiant tube burner system in the Tin Bath. The Float Fire system was later tested and proved with over 5 years of continuous operation as an auxiliary heating system. Gessler, along with Eclipse Inc, and Unifrax Corporation, has tank the concept further to develop designs for a completely operational tin bath using the Eclipse SER Radiant Burner Technology. This paper shows and demonstrates the advantages of the Float Fire technology.
