US 11,781,748 B2
Push/pull furnace and methods related thereto
Timothy J. Tupa, Santa Rosa Beach, FL (US); Justen William Grubb, Clarksville, TN (US); Caleb R. Joiner, Clarksville, TN (US); William James Teising, Nashville, TN (US); Stephen Kowalski, Clarksville, TN (US); and Gary L. Wright, Clarksville, TN (US)
Assigned to TRANE INTERNATIONAL INC., Davidson, NC (US)
Filed by Trane International Inc., Davidson, NC (US)
Filed on Jul. 10, 2020, as Appl. No. 16/926,401.
Prior Publication US 2022/0010958 A1, Jan. 13, 2022
Int. Cl. F23C 99/00 (2006.01); F24D 5/02 (2006.01); F23L 17/00 (2006.01); F23D 14/04 (2006.01)
CPC F23C 99/008 (2013.01) [F23D 14/04 (2013.01); F23L 17/005 (2013.01); F24D 5/02 (2013.01); F23K 2400/201 (2020.05); F23N 2229/00 (2020.01); F23N 2233/02 (2020.01); F23N 2233/08 (2020.01); F23N 2235/12 (2020.01)] 21 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A furnace, comprising:
a burner box including two or more burners configured to combust a fuel/air mixture, each burner aligned with a port in a premixing chamber and including a burner housing and a burner medium, wherein each burner medium is disposed between the premixing chamber and the respective burner housing, and each burner housing is a hollow cylindrical member;
a pair of electrodes extended inward toward the burner medium along the burner housing for a first burner of the two or more burners, and each electrode including an uninsulated portion disposed nearest the at least one burner;
a flame sensor configured to detect an upset in the combustion of the fuel/air mixture, the flame sensor disposed through a side of the burner housing for a second burner of the two or more burners, the second burner being different from the first burner;
a first blower including an inlet nozzle having an air inlet and fuel inlet, wherein the inlet nozzle is configured such that operation of the first blower is to pull air and fuel into the inlet nozzle via the air inlet and fuel inlet, respectively, to produce the fuel/air mixture at a fuel/air ratio that is configured to produce flue products having less than 14 Nano-grams per Joule (ng/J) of nitrogen oxides (NOx) when combusted in the at least one burner,
wherein operation of the first blower is configured to push the fuel/air mixture into the burner box,
wherein combustion of the fuel/air mixture within the at least one burner is initiated by the pair of electrodes;
a heat exchanger assembly fluidly coupled to the burner box through a vestibule;
a second blower configured to pull the flue products through the heat exchanger assembly; and
a controller assembly coupled to at least the flame sensor and configured to adjust operation of the furnace in response to the detected upset.