METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HEATING AND COOLING A WORK PIECE

1. A process for the partial heating and subsequent recooling of work-pieces by burning a fuel above the work-piece and then, cooling by supplying a cooling medium to the work-piece, where the region of the fuel flame is screened from the zone supplied with coolant by a separating fluid introduced between these zones, with a burner device having supply line(s) (1) and outlet opening(s) (6) for fuel and oxygen, and with a cooling device having associated supply line(s) (2) and outlet opening(s) (7) for a cooling medium and with a separating device with associated supply line(s) (10) and outlet opening(s) (9) for a separating fluid, where the outlet opening(s) (9) of the separating device is/are arranged in the region between the outlet openings of the burner and those of the cooling device (6; 7) and in this way supply this zone with separating fluid, characterised in that the burner device, the cooling device and the separating device are combined to form one unit with a common head component (4), where the outlet openings of the individual devices (6, 7, 9) are arranged at such short distances from one another that the individual outlet jets contact each other when they have emerged from the outlet openings, although the burner flame and the cooling fluid jets are screened from one another by the separating fluid.