Method of heat treating articles

Claim 1

A method of heat treating articles by immersing them in a fluidised bed comprising a container having a porous base and containing a mass of refractory particles, comprising the steps of: arranging a layer of said refractory particles immediately adjacent to said porous base, the layer being formed of particles having a sufficiently larger mean diameter so as to remain unfluidised, the remainder of said refractory particles being fuidisable; supplying a non-stoichiometric fluidising and treatment medium to the underside of said porous base and allowing said medium to flow therethrough and into said mass of refractory particles at such a velocity as will leave said layer of larger mean diameter refractory particles unfluidised while forming a fluidised layer thereabove from said remainder of said refractory particles; introducing a gaseous medium into said container at a position above and spaced from said porous base, at least one of: said gaseous medium; and, a mixture of said gaseous medium and said fluidising medium, being a combustible product; and, igniting said combustible product and thereby heating said fluidised layer of refractory particles, whereby said porous base is thermally shielded from said fluidised layer by said layer of larger mean diameter unfluidised particles which remain substantially cooler than the fluidised particles.

Claim 2

A method of heat treating articles by immersing them in a fluidised bed comprising a container having a porous base and containing a mass of refractory particles, comprising the steps of: arranging a layer of said refractory particles immediately adjacent to said porous base, the layer being formed of particles having a sufficiently larger mean diameter so as to remain unfluidised, the remainder of said refractory particles being fuidisable; supplying a non-stoichiometric fluidising and treatment medium to the underside of said porous base and allowing said medium to flow therethrough and into said mass of refractory particles at such a velocity as will leave said layer of larger mean diameter refractory particles unfluidised while forming a fluidised layer thereabove from said remainder of said refractory particles; introducing a gaseous medium into said container at a position above and spaced from said porous base, at least one of: said gaseous medium; and, a mixture of said gaseous medium and said fluidising medium, being a combustible product; and, igniting said combustible product and thereby heating said fluidised layer of refractory particles, whereby said porous base is thermally shielded from said fluidised layer by said layer of larger mean diameter unfluidised particles which remain substantially cooler than the fluidised particles.