1.

An induction furnace system comprising: a crucible; an induction coil system for inductively heating and melting the electrically conductive material placed in the crucible, the induction coil system comprising: a passive induction coil surrounding a first partial section of the crucible; a capacitor connected across the terminals of the passive induction coil to form a parallel L-C tank circuit; an active induction coil surrounding a second partial section of the crucible, the active induction coil disposed relative to the passive induction coil to create a magnetic coupling bet een the active and passive induction coils hen a first ac current flo s through the active induction coil; and a po er supply having an input adapted to be connected to a source of po er e!ternal to the induction furnace system and an ac output connected across the terminals of the active induction coil to supply the first ac current to the active induction coil, hereby the first ac current creates a first magnetic field to inductively heat and melt electrically conductive material placed in the crucible, and, by the magnetic coupling ith the passive induction coil, the first ac current induces a second ac current in the passive induction coil, the passive ac current creating a second magnetic field to inductively heat and melt electrically conductive material in the crucible, and the resistance of the parallel L-C tank circuit is reflected into the active induction coil to improve the efficiency of the induction furnace system. ". #he induction furnace system of claim 1 herein the passive induction coil at least partially overlaps the active induction coil. $. #he induction furnace system of claim 1 herein the capacitance of the capacitor is ad%usted to alter the magnetic stirring characteristics of the second magnetic field. &. #he induction furnace system of claim 1 herein the crucible is an open-ended thermally insulated material. '. #he induction furnace system of claim 1, further comprising electrically conductive material placed in the crucible. (. #he induction furnace system of claim ' herein the crucible is an open-ended thermally insulated material and the electrically conductive material comprises a billet. ). An induction furnace system comprising: a crucible; an induction coil system for heating and melting the electrically conductive material placed in the crucible, the induction coil system comprising: an induction coil surrounding the crucible; a capacitor connected across a partial section of the induction coil to form a parallel L-C tank circuit ith the partial section of the induction coil; and a po er supply having an input connected to a source of po er e!ternal to the induction furnace system and a single phase ac output connected across the terminals of the induction coil to supply a single phase ac current to the induction coil, hereby the single phase ac current creates a magnetic field to inductively heat and melt the electrically conductive material placed in the crucible, and the resistance of the parallel L-C tank circuit improves the efficiency of the induction furnace system. *. #he induction furnace system of claim ), herein the crucible is an open-ended thermally insulated material. +. #he induction furnace system of claim *, comprising electrically conductive material comprising a billet placed in the crucible. 1,. An induction furnace system comprising: a crucible; an induction coil system for heating and melting the electrically conductive material placed in the crucible, the induction coil system comprising: an induction coil surrounding the

crucible; a capacitor connected across the terminals of the induction coil to form a parallel L-C tank circuit ith the induction coil; a po er supply having an input arranged to be connected to a source of po er and an ac output connected across a partial section of the induction coil to supply an ac current to the partial section of the induction coil, hereby the ac current creates a magnetic field to inductively heat and melt the electrically conductive material placed in the crucible, and the resistance of the parallel L-C tank circuit improves the efficiency of the induction furnace system. 11. #he induction furnace system of claim 1,, herein the crucible is an open-ended thermally insulated material. 1". #he induction furnace system of claim 11, comprising electrically conductive material comprising a billet placed in the crucible. 1$. A method of inductively heating and melting an electrically conductive material in a crucible comprising the steps of: surrounding a first partial section of the crucible ith a passive induction coil; connecting a capacitor to the terminals of the passive induction coil to form a parallel L-C tank circuit; surrounding a second partial section of the crucible ith an active induction coil; providing a source of ac current to the active induction coil to generate a first magnetic field to inductively heat and melt the electrically conductive material and to induce an induced ac current in the passive induction coil by magnetic coupling the passive induction coil ith the first magnetic field, hereby the induced ac current inductively heats and melts the electrical conductive material and the resistance of the parallel LC tank circuit is reflected into the active induction coil to improve the efficiency of the induction furnace system. 1&. #he method of claim 1$, further comprising the step of at least partially overlapping the passive coil section ith the active coil section. 1'. #he method of claim 1$, further comprising the step of ad%usting the capacitance of the capacitor hereby the magnetic stirring characteristics of the second magnetic field are altered. 1(. #he method of claim 1$, further comprising the step of passing the electrically conductive material through the crucible. 1). A method of inductively heating and melting an electrically conductive material placed in a crucible comprising the steps: surrounding the crucible ith an induction coil; connecting a capacitor to a partial section of the induction coil to form a parallel L-C tank circuit comprising the capacitor and the partial section of the induction coil; and providing a source of a single phase ac current to the terminals of the induction coil to generate a magnetic field to inductively heat and melt the electrically conductive material, and hereby the parallel L-C tank circuit improves the efficiency of the induction furnace system. 1*. #he method of claim 1), further comprising the step of passing the electrically conductive material through the crucible. 1+. A method of inductively heating and melting an electrically conductive material placed in a crucible comprising the steps: surrounding the crucible ith an induction coil; connecting a capacitor to the terminals of the induction coil to form a parallel L-C tank circuit comprising the capacitor and the induction coil; providing a source of ac current to a partial section of the induction coil to generate a magnetic field to inductively heat and melt the electrically conductive material, and hereby the parallel L-C tank circuit improves the efficiency of the induction furnace system.

",. #he method of claim 1+, further comprising the step of passing the electrically conductive material through the crucible. -escription ./0L- 1. #20 /3403#/13 #he present invention relates generally to electric induction furnaces and more particularly to induction furnaces having improved efficiency coil systems. 5AC678193- 1. #20 /3403#/13 0lectric induction furnaces are used to heat and melt metals and other electrically conductive materials. An induction furnace utili:es an induction coil that is po ered from an ac po er source. Alternating current flo ing through the coil creates a magnetic field that is applied to the electrically conductive charge placed inside of the furnace;s crucible. 0ddy currents induced by the field in the charge can be used to heat, melt and superheat the charge. #he magnetic coupling bet een the induction coil and charge is analogous to a magnetic transformer coupling. 2o ever an induction coil has a much higher leakage inductance than the leakage inductance of a magnetic transformer. Conse<uently an induction furnace;s po er factor is e!tremely lo , typically ranging from ,.,* to ,.1', lagging and, therefore, an e!tremely inefficient load. #he conventional coreless induction furnace consists of a copper ater-cooled helical coil ith a ceramic crucible containing the charge. Alternating current in the coil generates a magnetic field that induces current into the conductive charge. As illustrated in ./7. 1=a>, the induction furnace 1,, can be vie ed as a loosely coupled transformer here the turns of the primary coil are magnetically coupled to a single turn formed by the conductive melt 1,". /n the figure, /.sub.c represents the coil current and /.sub.m represents the current in the molten bath. #herefore, it can be assumed that the ratio of the current induced into the melt to the current in the coil appro!imates the number of coil turns. ?a!imum current density is induced on the circumference of the melt, ith current e!ponentially decaying into the melt depth to ards the center of the crucible. #he rate of decay is defined by a constant, namely the depth of current penetration into the metal, .-0L#A..sub.m, as defined =in meters> by the follo ing e<uation: @@0A91@@ here: .rho..sub.m Bresistivity of the molten metal =in ohmsCm>; .mu..sub.o.multidot..mu..sub.m Bthe product of absolute and relative permeability = ith .mu..sub.o B&.pi..times.1,.sup.-) and .mu..sub.m, the relative permeability of the metal, in 2Cm>; and fBthe fre<uency of the coil current =in 2ert:>. /nduction furnaces are usually designed to satisfy the condition that the depth of current penetration into the metal is much less than the radius of the melt =.-0L#A..sub.m DDr.sub.m>. #he conventional shape of the melt is cylindrical. ?ost of the induced current is flo ing in the outer layer of the melt ith thickness e<ual to the depth of penetration, .-0L#A..sub.m. #he resistance, 8.sub.m, =in ohms> of this layer can be estimated by the follo ing e<uation: @@0A9"@@ here 8.sub.m Bresistance of the melt =in ohms>; r.sub.m Bradius of the melt; h.sub.m Bheight of the melt; .rho..sub.m, .-0L#A..sub.m and f are as previously defined. /nduction furnaces are principally single-phase devices. #he supplied electric po er is typically distributed over balanced three-phase lines. .or optimal operation, induction furnaces operate at fre<uencies typically in the range of 1,, to 1,,,,, 2ert:. #hese fre<uencies are needed to maintain an optimal .-0L#A..sub.m Cr.sub.m ratio

for electromagnetic stirring of molten metal in the furnace. Eolid state po er converters generate the po er at re<uired fre<uency, voltage and current for induction furnaces. #hese converters utili:e po er semiconductors =such as EC8, /75# or /7C# topologies>. #he solid state static po er converter resolves the phase balancing problem. /nput $-, (-, or 1"-phase line voltages are rectified before being inverted into a single-phase medium-fre<uency electrical current. .ull- ave rectification of multi-phase line voltage produces a lo harmonic distortion on feeding electrical lines, thus eliminating the need for line filters. As illustrated in ./7. 1=b>, the po er converter consists of three ma%or sections: an ac to dc rectifier and dc filter; a dc to ac medium-fre<uency inverter; and a bank of tuning capacitors. Fo er supplied to the furnace is controlled automatically by varying the commutation timing of the inverter;s solid state s itching components. #his timing determines the operating fre<uency, phase and amplitude of the furnace current. #here are t o conventional implementations of static solid-state po er converters, namely a current-fed inverter ith a parallel capacitor bank and a voltage-fed inverter ith series capacitor bank. ./7. "=a> illustrates a furnace system utili:ing a current-fed converter. ./7. "=b> illustrates a furnace system utili:ing a current-fed converter ith seriesCparallel tank capacitors. ./7. "=c> and ./7. "=d> illustrate furnace systems utili:ing a voltage-fed converter in full bridge and half configurations, respectively. 0ach of these po er supply topologies comprises a rectifier and filter section 11,; a solid state inverter section 1",; and a tuning capacitor section 1$,. Ghile the generally recogni:ed symbol for an EC8 is used in these set of figures, other solid state s itching devices can be utili:ed in these applications. /n the current-fed inverter, as illustrated in ./7. "=a>, the po er factor correction capacitor bank is usually connected in parallel to the furnace coil. #he term Hcapacitor bankH is used here to designate one or more capacitors connected in series or parallel to be the e<uivalent circuit as sho n in the figures. 5oth the capacitor bank and the coil are connected into the diagonal of a full-bridge inverter. #his connection allo s the reactive component of the coil current to bypass the inverter;s solid state s itching components. 2o ever, the inverter is e!posed to the full furnace voltage. #he values of inverter voltage may be higher or lo er than the dc voltage on the rectifier. #herefore, dc rectifier and inverter sections must be decoupled by reactors. #he reactors supply the inverter ith constant dc current. #hey are acting as a filter and reservoir of energy. #he inverter converts dc current into s<uare ave current that is supplied to a parallel resonant circuit. #he furnace po er in current-fed inverter systems is controlled by varying both inverter timing and dc voltage. Ghen inverter voltage falls belo dc rectifier potential, the output po er cannot be controlled by variation in inverter commutation fre<uency alone. Additional control of the in%ected dc current is carried out by regulating the conduction phase angle of the rectifier EC8s. Euch regulation ill introduce distortion into the feeding electrical line unless filters are provided. #he main advantage of the parallel resonant inverter is that only part of the coil current is passed via solid state s itching devices, thus saving the number of semiconductor devices. #he inverter controls only part of the coil current. #his, ho ever, limits the controllability of the inverter. 9sing the smoothing dc reactors as temporary energy accumulators causes difficulties in starting the inverters. #he energy in the reactors is kinetic =analogous to the energy of a fly heel>--it e!ists only hen the dc current flo s from the rectifier to the inverter. #o accumulate the necessary energy in the smoothing dc reactor, a special starter net ork is used. Ghen the

parallel inverter is stopped, the energy from this reactor is e!pended using the solid state s itches of the inverter as a cro bar circuit. #he advantage of lo er current in the inverter solid state s itching devices is offset by a high voltage to hich these devices are e!posed. #his often re<uires stacking the devices in series, hich in turn necessitates special dynamic voltage dividers. .or small current-fed inverters connected to standard lo voltage lines, a seriesCparallel connection of capacitors is used, as illustrated in ./7. "=b>, rather than a parallel resonant circuit. .rom the standpoint of electric circuit theory, voltage-fed series resonant inverters, as illustrated in ./7. "=c>, represent a duality circuit to the current-fed parallel converter. #he current smoothing reactors in the dc line are replaced by dc voltage filter capacitors. #he output parallel resonant circuit is replaced by a series resonant circuit. #he voltage on the inverter is constant and e<ual to the output voltage of the ac to dc rectifier. #he full coil current flo s through the inverter;s EC8s and tuning capacitor bank. Euch a configuration provides e!cellent controllability of the system. 5y controlling the timing of commutation of the inverter solid state s itching devices, it is possible to rapidly change = ithin one oscillation period> the amount of energy circulating in the resonant circuit. #he potential electrical energy in the dc filter capacitor bank may be indefinitely maintained regardless of inverter status. -uring each cycle, the reactive po er is flo ing either from the filter to the furnace via the solid state s itching devices or from the furnace to the filter via anti-parallel diodes. -ue to good controllability of the inverter section, there is no need to control dc voltage. Eince phase control is not applied to the rectifier, the input po er factor on the feeding line is relatively constant. 3o ac phase correction capacitors or line filters are re<uired. Fractical implementation of series resonant converters is even more simplified by utili:ing a half-bridge inverter scheme as illustrated in ./7. "=d>. A current-fed inverter operates ith higher voltage, hile a voltage-fed inverter operates ith lo voltage but full coil current. #he voltage-fed inverter has better controllability and stores reactive energy entirely in the capacitors, hich have lo er losses than the dc reactors of the current-fed inverter. /n all of these prior art configurations for induction furnace systems, the furnace coil is, as noted above, an e!tremely inefficient electrical load. #herefore, there e!ists the need for a higher efficiency coil system for an induction furnace. 58/0. E9??A8I 1. #20 /3403#/13 /n one aspect, the present invention is an apparatus for and method of heating and melting electrically conductive material in the crucible of an induction furnace system that includes a passive induction coil surrounding a partial section of the crucible. #he passive induction coil is connected to a capacitor to for m an L-C tank circuit. An active induction coil, surrounding a partial section of the crucible is supplied ac current from an ac po er source. #he ac current generates a first magnetic field that heats and melts the electrically conductive material and, by magnetic coupling ith the passive coil, induces an induced current in the passive coil. #his induced current generates a second magnetic field that heats and melts the electrically conductive material. #he resistance of the L-C tank circuit is reflected into the circuit of the active induction coil to increase the efficiency of the induction furnace system. #hese and other aspects of the invention are set forth in the specification and claims. 58/0. -0EC8/F#/13 1. #20 -8AG/37E

.or the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is sho n in the dra ings a form that is presently preferred; it being understood, ho ever, that this invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities sho n. ./7. 1=a> is a cross sectional vie distribution. of a conventional crucible illustrating the induced current

./7. 1=b> is the crucible in ./7. 1=a> connected to a conventional po er supply to form an induction furnace system. ./7. "=a> is a diagrammatic plan of a conventional induction furnace system utili:ing a current-fed converter. ./7. "=b> is a diagrammatic plan of a conventional induction furnace system utili:ing a current-fed converter ith seriesCparallel tank capacitors. ./7. "=c> is a diagrammatic plan of a conventional induction furnace system utili:ing a voltage-fed inverter. ./7. "=d> is a diagrammatic plan of a conventional induction furnace system utili:ing series tank capacitors. ./7. $=a> is a diagrammatic plan illustrating one e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. $=b> is a simplified schematic illustrating one e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. $=c> is a simplified schematic illustrating another e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. & is a graph illustrating the magnitude of po er available for induction heating and melting as a function of system fre<uency for one e!ample of an induction furnace system of the present invention. ./7. ' is a graph illustrating the magnitude of the input impedance for the induction coil system as a function of system fre<uency for one e!ample of the induction furnace system of the present invention. ./7. ( is a graph illustrating the magnitude of the coil load po er factor for the induction coil system as a function of system fre<uency for one e!ample of the induction furnace system of the present invention. ./7. ) is a graph illustrating the magnitude of the input reactance for the induction coil system as a function of system fre<uency for one e!ample of the induction furnace system of the present invention. ./7. *=a> is a diagrammatic plan illustrating another e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. *=b> is a simplified schematic illustrating another e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. +=a> is a diagrammatic plan illustrating another e!ample of the induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention.

./7. +=b> is a simplified schematic illustrating another e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. 1, is a vector diagram illustrating the advantages of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. ./7. 11 is a simplified schematic illustrating another e!ample of an e!ample of an induction furnace system ith the improved efficiency coil system of the present invention. -0#A/L0- -0EC8/F#/13 1. #20 -8AG/37E 8eferring no to the dra ings, herein like numerals indicate like elements there is sho n in ./7. $=a> and ./7. $=b>, in accordance ith the present invention, one e!ample of an induction furnace system 1, utili:ing a high efficiency coil system. Coil L.sub.1 =active coil> is connected at its end terminals to ac po er source ", that is operating at a controllable voltage and fre<uency to produce current /.sub.1, in coil L.sub.1. Coil L.sub." =passive coil> is connected to capacitor C.sub." to form a parallel L-C tank circuit. #he magnetic field created by the flo of current in coil L.sub.1 creates a flu! field that is magnetically coupled to coil L.sub." =as indicated by mutual inductance ? in the figures>, hich induces current /.sub." in coil L.sub.". #he induced current /.sub." has the same fre<uency as current /.sub.1. #he magnetic fields created by current flo ing in coils L.sub.1 and L.sub." ill inductively heat and melt electrically conductive material 1" placed in the crucible 1$. #he magnitude and phase of /.sub." also depends up the selected impedance values of coil L.sub." and capacitor C.sub." in the tank circuit formed by these components. #he voltage across coil L.sub." generates a back voltage on coil L.sub.1, hich opposes the supply voltage that controls the flo of current /.sub.1, in L.sub.1. As a result, coil L.sub.1 dra s less current from the inverter hile the induction furnace system 1, generates the same magnitude of po er, thus allo ing do nsi:ing of electrical components for the po er supply hile maintaining the same level of heating and melting po er. .urther the reactance of capacitor C.sub." in the tank circuit substantially improves the lo lagging po er factor of the induction coil to provide a higher efficiency coil system. Ghile a voltage-fed half-bridge converter ith series tank capacitor is used in ./7. $=a>, ./7. $=b> illustrates a more general e!ample of the induction furnace system of the present invention herein the converter =po er supply> is generically identified as element "1. /n ./7. $=a>, hich for this e!ample of the invention is configured as a half-bridge converter, capacitor C.sub.1 is sho n as a distributive capacitance across the halfbridge, hereas in ./7. $=b> capacitor C.sub.1 is generally sho n as a single circuit element. #he high efficiency coil system of the present invention can be utili:ed ith various types of po er supply topologies, such as =but not limited to> series resonant voltage-fed converters and converters utili:ing pulse idth modulation, to take advantage of the improved efficiency coil system. #he present invention can be further appreciated by the vector diagram sho n in ./7. 1,. /n the figure, ith respect to the active coil circuit, vector 14 represents current /.sub.1 in active coil L.sub.1 as illustrated ./7. $=a> through ./7. $=c>. 4ector 1A represents the resistive component of the active coil;s voltage, /.sub.1 8.sub.1

=8.sub.1 not sho n in the figures>. 4ector A5 represents the inductive component of the active coil;s voltage, .omega.L.sub.1 /.sub.1 = here .omega. e<ual ".pi. times f, the operating fre<uency of the po er supply>. 4ector 5C represents the voltage, .omega.?/.sub.", induced by the passive coil L.sub." onto active coil L.sub.1. 4ector Crepresents the voltage, /.sub.1 C.omega.C.sub.1, on series capacitors C.sub.1 connected bet een the inverter section of the po er supply and active coil L.sub.1. 4ector 1- represents the output voltage, 4.sub.inv, of the inverter =terminals $ and & in ./7. $=a>>. Gith respect to the passive coil circuit, vector 1G represents current /.sub." in passive coil L.sub." that is induced by the magnetic field produced by current /.sub.1. 4ector 1. represents the resistive component of the passive coil;s voltage, /.sub." 8.sub." =8.sub." not sho n in the figures>. 4ector .0 represents the inductive component of the pasive coil;s voltage, .omega.L.sub." /.sub.". 4ector 07 represents the voltage, .omega.?/.sub.1, induced by the active coil L.sub.1 onto passive coil L.sub.". 4ector 71 represents the voltage, /.sub." C.omega.C.sub.", on capacitor C.sub.", hich is connected across passive coil L.sub.". #he active coil circuit is driven by voltage source, 4.sub.inv, hile the passive coil loop is not connected to an active energy source. Eince the active and passive coils are mutually coupled, vector 5C is added to vector 15, hich represents the voltage =4;.sub.furn> across an active furnace coil in the absence of a passive capacitive furnace coil circuit, to result in vector 1C, hich is the voltage =4.sub.furn> across an active furnace coil ith a passive capacitive furnace coil circuit of the present invention. #he resultant furnace voltage, 4.sub.furn, ith a smaller lagging po er factor angle, .phi. =counterclock ise angle bet een the !-a!is and vector 1C>, than the conventional furnace as represented by vector 15 =sho n in dashed lines>. As illustrated in ./7. 1,, there is a po er factor angle improvement of .-0L#A..phi.. /n the present invention, the inductive impedance in the passive coil is substantially compensated for by the capacitive impedance =i.e., .omega.L.sub.". 1C.omega.C.sub.">. #he uncompensated resistive component, 8.sub.", in the passive coil circuit is reflected into the active coil circuit by the mutual inductance bet een the t o circuits, and the effective active coil circuit;s resistance is increased, thus improving the po er factor angle, or efficiency of the coil system. .urther the po er factor angle, .FE/., for the output of the inverter improves by .-0L#A..FE/. as illustrated by the angle bet een vector 1J =the resultant vector =4;.sub.inv> of resistive component vector 1A and capacitive component vector AJ in the absence of a passive furnace coil circuit> and vector 1- =the resultant vector =4.sub.inv> of resistive component vector 12 and capacitive component vector 2- ith the passive furnace coil circuit of the present invention>. /n another e!ample of the high fre<uency coil system of the present invention, as sho n in ./7. $=c>, coils L.sub.1 and L.sub." can be fully or partially overlapped to increase the mutual inductance ? bet een the t o coils. As sho n in ./7. & for one e!ample of the present invention, coils L.sub.1 and L.sub." have t o distinct resonant fre<uencies at appro!imately 1&& 2ert: and 1(( 2ert:, respectively. #he same fre<uency appro!imations for resonance of coils L.sub.1 and L.sub." ignores the minor fre<uency offsets for resonance of the t o coils that is sho n in ./7. &. /n ./7. &, the F1.sub.n curve =sho n in dot-dashed line> illustrates the magnitude of po er in the coil L.sub.1 circuit and the F".sub.n curve =sho n in dashed line> illustrates the magnitude of the po er in the coil L.sub." circuit. #he

F.E/7?A..sub.n curve =sho n in solid line> represents the summation of po er in the coil L.sub.1 and coil L.sub." circuits. Fo er control can be achieved by varying the output fre<uency =f.sub.n> of the po er supply bet een dc and the fre<uency at hich resonance occurs for coil L.sub.1 =in this e!ample, appro!imately 1&& 2ert:>. ./7. ' sho s for one e!ample of the present invention, the effect of the fre<uency =f.sub.n> of the po er supply, on the magnitude of the load impedance =K.sub.n>, in ohms, at terminals 1 and " as sho n in ./7. $=a> and ./7. $=b>. ./7. ( sho s for one e!ample of the present invention, the effect of the fre<uency =f.sub.n> of the po er supply, on the po er factor =Ff.sub.n> of the load circuit at terminals 1 and " as sho n in ./7. $=a> and ./7. $=b>. ./7. ( illustrates the improved coil load po er factor that can be achieved in one e!ample of the present invention by operating the po er supply in a range belo the first resonant fre<uency of appro!imately 1&& 2ert:. ./7. ) sho s for one e!ample of the present invention, the effect of the fre<uency =f.sub.n> of the po er supply, on the magnitude of the load reactance =L.sub.n>, in ohms, at terminals 1 and " as sho n in ./7. $=a> and ./7. $=b>. 0lectromagnetic stirring of the molten material in the crucible can be ad%usted by replacing capacitor C.sub." of the passive reactance ith a capacitor having a different value of reactance to change the resonant point in the parallel L-C tank circuit form ed by coil L.sub." and capacitor C.sub.". /n some applications, here the L-C tank circuit is located near the bottom of the crucible, capacitor C.sub." is selected to minimi:e turbulence caused by e!cessive electromagnetic stirring near the bottom of the crucible to avoid removal of refractory material from the crucible that settles at the bottom of the molten material and contaminates it. Alternatively, capacitor C.sub." can be an ad%ustable capacitor bank herein the capacitance of capacitor C.sub." can be easily ad%usted. ./7. *=a> and ./7. *=b> sho an alternative e!ample of the induction furnace system of the present invention herein tuning capacitor C.sub." is connected across a partial section, L.sub.b, of coil L, hich is connected at its end terminals =1 and "> to the output of the po er supply ", in ./7. *=a> or po er supply "1 in ./7. *=b>. /n this e!ample, coil L functions as an autotransfomer ith po er applied across the entire coil. #he L-C tank circuit form ed by partial coil section L.sub.b and capacitor C.sub." improves the overall efficiency of the induction coil circuit. ./7. +=a> and ./7. +=b> sho s another alternative e!ample of the induction furnace system of the present invention herein tuning capacitor C.sub." is connected across the end terminals of coil L, hich has a partial section, L.sub.b, connected to the output of the po er supply ", in ./7. +=a> or po er supply "1 in ./7. +=b>. /n this e!ample, coil L functions as an autotransfomer ith po er applied across a partial section of the entire coil. #he L-C tank circuit formed by induction coil L and capacitor C.sub." improves the overall efficiency of the induction coil circuit. ./7. 11 illustrates another e!ample of the present invention herein crucible +, comprises an open-ended thermally insulated material surrounded by induction coils. Ghile the crucible +, is sho n as generally cylindrical in shape, the open-ended crucible may be other ise configured as long as it allo s electrically conductive material +" pass through the crucible. #he electrically conductive material may be, but is not limited to, a billet that passes through the crucible hereby the billet is inductively heated or melted. #he crucible and the electrically conductive material may be oriented in other directions than that sho n in ./7. 11, for e!ample, hori:ontally rather than vertically. /n this e!ample, the coils, parallel L-C tank

capacitor and po er supply are similar to those in ./7. $=a>. #his open-ended crucible can be used ith any other e!amples of the present invention. 1ther active and passive coil arrangements are ithin the scope of the disclosed invention. .or e!ample, either multiple active andCor multiple passive coil circuits maybe be utili:ed in various configurations having one or more overlapped coils andCor one or more non-overlapped coils. .urther the active and passive coils may be alternatively arranged around the height of the crucible. .or e!ample, the passive coil may be disposed above the active coil. Ghile one type of po er supply is sho n in the figures for use ith the high efficiency coil system of the invention, other po er supply topologies, such as po er supplies employing pulse idth modulation techni<ues, can be used to the advantage of the coil system of the induction furnace system of the present invention. #he e!amples of the invention include reference to specific electrical components. 1ne skilled in the art may practice the invention by substituting components that are not necessarily of the same type but ill create the desired conditions or accomplish the desired results of the invention. .or e!ample, single components may be substituted for multiple components or vice versa. #he foregoing e!amples do not limit the scope of the disclosed invention. #he scope of the disclosed invention is further set forth in the appended claims