Refractory liner brick with tongue and compound groove for forming circular tapered furnace stack constructions

Claim 1

AS AN ARTICLE OF MANUFACTURE, A REFRACTORY SHAPE ARRANGED TO BE USED WITH A PLURALITY OF IDENTICAL SHAPES TO FORM A TAPERED CIRCULAR WALL, SAID SHAPE BEING ELONGATE AND OF GENERALLY ARCUATE CONFIGURATION WITH OPPOSED LONG SIDES DESCRIBING PARALLEL CURVES, OPPOSED ENDS, AND PARALLEL TOP AND BOTTOM FACES EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID CURVED SIDES AND OPPOSED ENDS TO DEFINE THE SHAPE, A COMBINATION OF ONE FACE AND AN ADJACENT END INCLUDING COOPERATING MEANS ARRANGED TO POLARIZE THE SHAPE, SAID COOPERATING MEANS WHICH POLARIZE THE SHAPE BEING OF THE TONGUE AND GROOVE TYPE, AND IN WHICH AT LEAST ONE TONGUE EXTENDS LENGTHWISE ACROSS THE UPPER FACE AND DOWN AN ADJACENT END, AND AT LEAST ONE GROOVE EXTENDING LENGTHWISE ACROSS THE BOTTOM FACE AND UP THE OTHER END OF THE OPPOSED ENDS, THE RESPECTIVE GROOVES AND TONGUES HAVING RESPECTIVE CENTER LINES PARALLEL TO A PAIR OF OPPOSED EDGES WHERE THE RESPECTIVE FACES AND ENDS JOIN THE CURVED LONG SIDES TO FORM THE SHAPE, THE GROOVE IN THE BOTTOM FACE OF THE SHAPE BEING CHARACTERIZED BY SUBSTANTIALLY IDENTICAL CROSS SECTIONAL AREA AT EITHER END, THE CROSS SECTIONAL AREA OF A MID-POINT OF THIS GROOVE IN THE BOTTOM FACE BEING SMALLER THAN THAT OF THE ENDS BUT SLIGHTLY LARGER THAN THE CROSS SECTIONAL AREA OF THE TONGUE ON THE UPPER FACE, SAID GROOVE BEING A COMPOUND GROOVE FORMED BY TWO GROOVES INTERSECTING AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE CENTER POINT OF SAID BOTTOM FACE, THE VERTICAL BISECTOR OF EACH GROOVE HAVING A DIAMETER OF DIFFERENT LENGTH, THE VERTICAL BISECTOR OF THE TONGUE ON THE UPPER FACE HAVING A DIAMETER WHICH IS THE MEANS OF THE DIAMETERS OF THE VERTICAL BISECTORS OF THE COMPOUND BOTTOM GROOVE THEREOF, WHEREBY A PLURALITY OF IDENTICAL SHAPES MAY BE STACKED IN SUCCESSIVE RINGS TO FORM A CURVED WALL IN WHICH SHAPES IN THESE SUCCESSIVE RINGS MAY BE ROTATED ON THE TOP FACE OF SHAPES IN THE NEXT LOWER SUPPORTING RING, THE ROTATION BEING ONLY IN A PLANE PARALLEL TO THE BOTTOM FACE AND ABOUT SAID MID POINT OF THE GROOVE IN THE BOTTOM FACE OF SAID SHAPE WHICH IS OF SMALLER CROSS SECTIONAL AREA THAN THE ENDS OF SAID GROOVE, AND THE DEGREE OF ROTATION OF THE SHAPE BEING LIMITED BY THE CROSS SECTIONAL AREA OF THE ENDS OF SAID GROOVE IN THE BOTTOM FACE, THE RESPECTIVE TONGUE AND GROOVE PORTIONS OF THE ENDS OF SAID ARTICLE SO DIMENSIONED THAT THE TONGUE OF ANOTHER IDENTICAL SHAPE CAN BE ENCOMPASSED WITHIN THE END GROOVE OF A SUCCESSIVE IDENTICAL SHAPE IN FORMING A RING OF A CIRCULAR WALL WHILE ALLOWING SAID LIMITED ROTATION OF ONE SHAPE RELATIVE TO THE NEXT, THE RESPECTIVE END TONGUE AND END GROOVE OF SAID SHAPE BEING SO DIMENSIONED AS TO ASSURE ON THE ORDER OF ABOUT A 50% AREA CONTACT BETWEEN THE OUTER FACE OF THE TONGUE AND THE INNER WALL OF THE SHAPE WHICH DEFINES THE END GROOVE IN ALL POSITIONS DURING SAID LIMITED HORIZONTAL ROTATION, AND THE SURFACE AREAS ADJACENT EITHER SIDE OF THE END TONGUE BEING REARWARDLY SLOPED TO ASSIST IN MAINTAINING SAID 50% AREA CONTACT DURING SAID LIMITED HORIZONTAL ROTATION.