Seco/Vacuum, Meadville, Pa., has announced that a U.S.-based international manufacturer has placed an order for a Vector high-pressure gas quench furnace. The new furnace will increase the partner’s heat treat capability while improving part quality. The Vector will allow the partner to heat treat larger parts, at higher quantities per cycle than their existing furnace, all with improved quality control and reliability.
The partner’s equipment requires the use of large dies that require precise heat treating. Their current heat treatment setup includes a pair of vacuum furnaces, which have some limits compared to the Vector they are about to receive.
The new furnace, a bottom loading Vector vacuum furnace with 6 bar nitrogen gas quench, has a 60″ diameter, 72″ tall, and a 3-ton capacity working zone. It is equipped with convection heating which allows them to run their tempering cycle in the same furnace without having to move parts after hardening, a tremendous time and labor savings.
The furnace is also equipped with SECO/WARWICK’s FineCarb low-pressure carburizing system for future process developments. The Vector will increase production capacity to meet the rising market demand of today and tomorrow. The new furnace’s vertical configuration and rotary hearth were built specifically to accommodate more large dies, allowing the partner to meet the elevated demand with ease. SECO/VACUUM’s intuitive process controls ensure greater heating uniformity than their existing equipment in both convection mode and in vacuum mode.
ECM Technologies, Grenoble, France announced the release of a new furnace system that will replace current sealed quench (SQ) or integral quench (IQ) style furnaces. The system offers a cleaner, safer and greater performance in comparison to traditional SQ or IQ furnace on the market today.
Digital Metal launches two binder-jet additively manufactured superalloys
September 11, 2019
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Digital Metal AB, Sweden, a Höganӓs Group company, announces that it is launching two binder-jet 3D-printed superalloys for applications in extreme environments: DM 247, a nickel-base superalloy, and DM 625, a nickel-chromium superalloy. The unique properties of Digital Metal’s binder jetting technology make it highly suitable for printing superalloys with near full density, including non-weldable grades.
Superalloys exhibit great strength and corrosion resistance even when subjected to high heat and stress. These properties make them especially suitable challenging applications such as aerospace, automotive, and chemical. However, so far it has been difficult to use non-weldable materials such as MAR M247 in 3D printing, where high solidification rates and thermal gradients are inherent.
Digital Metal’s unique binder jetting technology helps avoid most of these problems by printing in an ambient temperature without applying any heat, followed by a separate sintering step. During sintering densification takes place without melting and with minimal thermal gradients during cooling from sintering temperature.
The DM 247 is based on the non-weldable MAR M247, which is widely used as material for turbine blades and in other applications with elevated temperatures. The DM 625 is an Inconel 625-grade. Its application areas range from seawater applications and chemical processing equipment, to nuclear industry and aerospace.
“We have been receiving qualified requests for these materials from various large companies,†says Ralf Carlström, General Manager at Digital Metal. “Many producers within the aerospace and automotive business have long been anticipating high-quality superalloys that are suitable for 3D printing. Now we can offer them the perfect combination – our unique binder jetting technology and superalloys that are specially developed for our printers.â€
Digital Metal AB, Sweden, a Högan?s Group company, announces that it is launching two binder-jet 3D-printed superalloys for applications in extreme environments: DM 247, a nickel-base superalloy, and DM 625, a nickel-chromium superalloy.
Seco Warwick 96-foot CAB line enables brazing a variety of parts and heat exchangers
September 4, 2019
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Seco Warwick, Meadville, Pa., announces that it has been selected to relocate a very large CAB line for a customer who purchased it with the intention of brazing its own heat exchangers. Built by Seco Warwick for another Houston OEM in 2005, the CAB line will be a first for Cold Shot Chillers, as they have not previously conducted furnace brazing in house.
The indexing CAB furnace has an overall load size of 48 inches by 100 inches. The entire line, which measures 96 feet, includes a wet spray fluxer with blow off, load table, dry off (dehydration) oven, entrance/purge chamber, convection furnace, atmosphere air cooling chamber, final air-blast cooling chamber, and final unloading table. In addition, there is a power panel, a control panel and an atmosphere scrubber.
The controlled atmosphere brazing (CAB) process heats a product to brazing temperatures while maintaining uniform temperatures within the product in an oxygen-free nitrogen atmosphere. The Seco Warwick design allows OEMs and aftermarket specialists the flexibility to produce a wide variety of sizes and types of heat exchangers on a daily basis. The Indexing solution allows a variety of parts to be brazed with no changes to the menus or furnace settings.
The Seco engineering team has the knowledge and experience to manage fleets of heat treating equipment in a planned and professional manner regardless of the equipment manufacturer. The solutions offered by the Group are universal because they are based on best practices.
Seco Warwick, Meadville, Pa., announces that it has been selected to relocate a very large CAB line for a customer who purchased it with the intention of brazing its own heat exchangers.
DOE awards $36 million to develop materials for high-temperature heat exchangers
March 24, 2019
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The U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, announces $36 million in awards for 18 projects as part of the High Intensity Thermal Exchange through Materials and Manufacturing Processes (HITEMMP). These project teams seek to develop new approaches and technologies for the design and manufacture of high temperature, high pressure, and highly compact heat exchangers and components.
Durable and affordable higher-temperature heat exchangers could make energy conversion much more efficient, which in turn could reduce fuel consumption, system footprint, capital and operational cost, and emissions. HITEMMP projects will target heat exchangers capable of operating for tens of thousands of hours in temperatures and pressures exceeding 1470°F 800°C and 80 bar (1,160 psi) respectively.
Some examples:
General Electric Company, GE Global Research – Niskayuna, New York
The GE team will develop a metallic-based, ultra-performance heat exchanger enabled by additive manufacturing technology and capable of operation at 900°C (1652°F) and 250 bar (3626 psi).
The Boeing Company – Huntington Beach, California
Highly Compact Metallic Heat Exchangers for Extreme Environments – $2,397,756.52.
Boeing will develop a compact, extreme environment heat exchanger (EEHX) for application in supercritical carbon dioxide power cycles for hypersonic aircraft and distributed power generation.
United Technologies Research Center (UTRC) – East Hartford, Connecticut
UTRC will develop an ultra-compact, topology-optimized 800°C (1472°F), 250 bar (3626 psi) heat exchanger substantially smaller and substantially more durable than current commercial cross-flow heat exchangers.
CompRex, LLC – De Pere, Wisconsin
Compact Heat Exchanger for High Temperature High Pressure Applications Using Advanced Cermet - – $1,455,000.00
CompRex, LLC aims to realize a transformational and disruptive advancement in heat exchange technology for high temperature (>800°C or 1472°F) and high pressure (80 bar or 1160 psi) applications through use of advanced metal and ceramic composite material, development of a new simplified manufacturing approach, and optimization of heat exchanger design.
The U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, announces $36 million in awards for 18 projects as part of the High Intensity Thermal Exchange through Materials and Manufacturing Processes (HITEMMP).
United States Steel Corp., Pittsburgh, announces plans to restart the No. 1 Electric-Weld Pipe Mill at Lone Star Tubular Operations in Lone Star, Texas, and also to restart construction on a technologically advanced electric arc furnace steelmaking facility at its Tubular Operations in Fairfield, Ala.
Idaho National Lab develops heat treatment to extend life of superalloys in nuclear reactors
November 24, 2018
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Researchers at Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, announce that they have developed a heat treatment process that enables superalloys to withstand high heat more than six times longer than an untreated counterpart, extending useful life by thousands of hours in applications such as nuclear reactors.
"We came up with a way to make a superalloy that is much more resistant to heat-related failures. This could be useful in electricity generators and elsewhere," says Subhashish Meher, an INL materials scientist. He was lead author of a new Science Advances paper describing the research.
INL scientists have been studying nickel-base superalloys, which are useful for electricity-generating turbines and high-temperature nuclear reactor components. Previous research had shown that performance can be improved if the material structure of the superalloy repeats in some way from very small sizes to very large, like a box within a box within a box.
This is called a hierarchical microstructure. In a superalloy, it consists of a metallic matrix with precipitates, regions where the composition of the mixture differs from the rest of the metal. Embedded within the precipitates are still finer-scale particles that are the same composition as the matrix outside the precipitates — conceptually like nested boxes.
Dr. Meher and his coauthors found that with the right recipe of heating and cooling, they could make the precipitates two or more times larger than would be the case otherwise, thereby creating the heat-resistant microstructure.
These larger precipitates last longer when subjected to extreme heat. Moreover, computer simulation studies suggest that the superalloy can resist heat-induced failure for 20,000 hours, compared to about 3,000 hours normally.
One application could be electrical generators that last much longer because the superalloy structures would be tougher. What's more, INL scientists may now be able to come up with a procedure that can be applied to other superalloys. So, it may be possible to adjust a superalloy's strength, heat tolerance, or other properties to enhance its use in a particular application.
Researchers at Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, announce that they have developed a heat treatment method that enables superalloys to withstand high heat more than six times longer than an untreated counterpart, extending useful life by thousands of hours in applications such as nuclear reactors.
JSW Steel breaks ground on uniquely integrated plate/pipe mill complex in Texas
November 15, 2018
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JSW USA, Baytown, Texas, has broken ground on what its engineers believe to be the most technologically advanced and eco-friendly electric arc furnace, slab caster, and plate mill in the world. It is the only melt-and- manufacture plate mill with a contiguous pipe mill in North America. The melt-and-manufacture electric arc furnace and slab caster are being built on 111 acres at its 700-acre Baytown campus.
Thanks to new policies from Washington, JSW Steel USA is embarking on a journey to hire 1000 new workers and invest up to $1 billion to modernize and expand its U.S. operations. The project was initially unveiled in March of this year before an audience of more than 200 that included Texas Congressman Brian Babin, representatives from U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn’s offices, local economic development officials, and employees.
JSW USA, based in Baytown, Texas, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of JSW Group, a $13 billion group headquartered in India with more than 40,000 employees worldwide.
JSW USA, Baytown, Texas, has broken ground on what it believes to be the most technologically advanced and eco-friendly electric arc furnace, slab caster, and plate mill in the world.
Gasbarre Furnace Group/J. L. Becker, Plymouth, Mich., recently shipped a large-capacity gas-fired temper furnace to a major specialty alloy manufacturing company located in the Northeastern portion of the United States. The furnace is designed to temper workloads after hardening. It is capable of processing workloads that are 32 feet wide by 6 feet long by 4 feet high and that weigh up to 40,000 pounds.
Temperature uniformity is achieved through five zones of heating, recirculation fans, and a custom-designed baffling system. As a result, the furnace is capable of achieving ±10°F from 800°F to 1400°F. The vertical lift door and hearth enables it to be installed in the company’s existing J. L. Becker heat treating system, and loaded and unloaded by a J. L. Becker manipulator. The control system incorporates an Allen Bradley MicroLogix PLC and PanelView HMI. A Eurotherm 3216 instrument controls the temperature in each zone.
Gasbarre Furnace Group/J. L. Becker, Plymouth, Mich., recently shipped a large-capacity gas-fired temper furnace to a major specialty alloy manufacturing company located in the Northeastern portion of the United States.
