Carbolite Gero Ltd., Hope Valley, U.K., has developed a rotating tube furnace with a work tube that is easily removed. The sample is automatically fed into the rotating tube via a Retsch vibratory feeder and recovered in a five-liter collecting vessel after the heat treatment process is finished. The RHZS system utilizes a safety switch that automatically stops the tube from rotating and interrupts the power supply for the heating elements.
The three-zone split tube furnace has a maximum operating temperature of 1150°C and an overall heating length of 900 mm. The furnace frame can be easily adjusted between horizontal and approximately ten degrees of incline and variable tilt, and rotation speeds provide flexible residence times. Wire elements in vacuum formed insulation provide temperature control.
Rotating tube furnaces are used for continuous heat treatment of small sample volumes for powders or granulates, or under inert gas (e.g., calcinations).
