Background
A furnace is a device that produces heat. Not only are furnaces used in the home for warmth, they are used in the industry for a variety of purposes such as making steel and heat treating of materials to change their molecular structure.
History
Central heating with a furnace is an idea that is centuries old. One of the earliest forms of this idea was invented by the Romans and called a hypocaust. It was a form of under-floor heating using a fire in one corner of a basement with the exhaust vented through flues in the walls that were connected to chimneys. This form of heating could only be used in stone or brick homes. It was also very dangerous because of the possibility of fire and suffocation.
Furnaces generate heat by burning fuel, but early furnaces burned wood. In the seventeenth century, coal began to replace wood as a primary fuel. Coal was used until the early 1940s when gas became the primary fuel. In the 1970s, electric furnaces started to replace gas furnaces because of the energy crisis. Today, the gas furnace is still the most popular form of home heating equipment.
Wood and coal burning furnaces required constant feeding to maintain warmth in the home. From early morning to late at night, usually three to five times a day, the furnace will require attention. In addition, the waste from the ashes from the burnt wood or coal must be removed and disposed.
Raw Materials
Today’s modern furnace uses stainless steel, aluminized steel, aluminum, brass, copper, and fiberglass. Stainless steel is used in the heat exchangers for corrosion resistance. Aluminized steel is used to construct the frame, blowers, and burners. Brass is used for valves, and copper in the electrical wiring. Fiberglass is used to insulate the cabinet.
Design
The original gas furnace consisted of a heat exchanger, burner, gas control valve, and an external thermostat, and there was no blower. Natural convection or forced air flow was used to circulate the air through large heating ducts and cold air returns to and from each room. This system was very inefficient—allowing over half of the heated air to escape up the chimney.
Today’s gas furnace consists of a heat exchanger, secondary heat exchanger (depending on efficiency rating), air circulation blower, flue draft blower, gas control valve, burners, pilot light or spark ignition, electronic control circuitry, and an external thermostat. The modern furnace is highly efficient—80-90%, allowing only 10-20% of the heated air to escape up the chimney.
When heat is requested from the thermostat, the burners light and heat is run through the primary heat exchanger. The heated air then flows through the secondary heat exchanger (90% efficient furnace only) to the exhaust flue and chimney. The average furnace has three heat exchangers each producing 25,000 BTUs for a total of 75,000 BTUs. A flue draft blower is placed in the exhaust flue to supercharge the burners and increase efficiency. The heat exchangers perform two functions: transfer heated air from the burners to the home and allow dangerous exhaust gases to escape up the chimney. The transferred heated air is circulated throughout the home by a large blower and heating ducts.
