Wisconsin Oven composite curing ovens feature temperature uniformity of ±5°F
March 15, 2017
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Wisconsin Oven Corp., East Troy, Wis., has shipped three electrically heated, heavy-duty walk-in ovens with temperature uniformity of ±5°F for composite curing. The maximum temperature rating for each oven is 500°F, with chamber dimensions of 10x24x10 feet. The customer required guaranteed temperature uniformity of ±5°F at 150°F, 250°F, and 350°F, which was verified through a fifteen-point profile test conducted in an empty chamber under static operating conditions.
The composite curing ovens feature combination airflow to maximize heating rates and temperature uniformity. The oven bodies are constructed of tongue-and-groove panels that feature high-efficiency panel seams. These panels provide 25% better efficiency than standard panels.
"For this project, our customer required guaranteed temperature uniformity," says Jim Lucas, Senior Sales Engineer. "Now in use, the customer is very pleased with the consistent uniformity at all three temperature marks."
These composite curing ovens include a reinforced insulated two-inch thick floor with wheel guides; a 35,000 CFM @ 25 HP recirculation blower; and one thermocouple check port and three vacuum ports on the side wall.
The combination airflow provides both horizontal and vertical upward airflow. The digital programmable temperature controller includes Ethernet communications, and the paperless chart recorder has four inputs.
The composite curing ovens were fully factory tested and adjusted prior to shipment. All safety interlocks were checked for proper operation, and the equipment was operated at the normal and maximum operating temperatures. An extensive quality assurance check list was completed to ensure the equipment met all Wisconsin Oven quality standards.
The ovens are backed by Wisconsin Oven's exclusive and unprecedented five-Year WOW warranty. This warranty covers all materials for all components (less wear items).
www.wisoven.com
Wisconsin Oven Corp., East Troy, Wis., has shipped three electrically heated, heavy-duty walk-in ovens with temperature uniformity of ±5°F for composite curing.
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Seco Warwick enables constant control of temperature in multi-chamber heat-treat furnaces
March 14, 2017
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Seco Warwick, Meadville, Pa., announces that its engineering team has designed an innovative way to continuously control the heating and cooling of the entire cycle in multi-chamber heat treating furnaces. The company says that this is a unique technological solution on a global scale that could revolutionize the heat treatment process and exceed the aerospace sector's standards.
"All of our customers set the bar high," says Katarzyna Sawka, Global Marketing Director. "Nevertheless, the aerospace industry sets the bar the highest."
The patented solution, designed to meet the highest AMS standard, is based on thermocouples that move between chambers during the heat treatment cycle. Temperature control is achieved based on a special construction that allows the operator to monitor the temperature in both chambers. This provides full temperature control of the processed parts in multi-chamber vacuum furnaces during the entire process.
The technology has already been successfully implemented in a two-chamber vacuum furnace, the CaseMaster Evolution, which enables precise vacuum case-hardening for the most challenging industries. It has been successful in applications for aerospace, automotive, machinery, wind energy, and commercial heat treating facilities.
In 2016, Seco Warwick received a number of prestigious awards and nominations. The company won the Symbol of Innovation 2016, for implementing research and development projects with technical universities, and for developing an innovative graphene production line. Seco Warwick was also one of the first companies in the world to introduce augmented reality technology into heavy industry (SECO/LENS).
www.secowarwick.com
Seco Warwick, Meadville, Pa., announces that its engineering team has designed an innovative technology for continuous control over the heating and cooling of the entire cycle in multi-chamber furnaces.
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Lucifer Furnaces benchtop furnace heat-treats BeCu pins in nitrogen atmosphere
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Lucifer Furnaces, Warrington, Pa., has shipped a customized benchtop heat-treating furnace to R. Hueter Co., Beverly, Mass., a CNC machine shop, to harden beryllium-copper pins. With a chamber size of 9x12x12 inches, Model 42GT-H12 is insulated with five inches of both insulating firebrick and mineral wool backup. Four kilowatts of power allow fast heat-up to 1200°F.
Hueter plans to use the furnace primarily at around 600°F for two-hour cycles, to achieve a specific Rockwell hardness on small lots of beryllium-copper pins. They will be treated under a nitrogen atmosphere to reduce surface oxidation and achieve a scale-free, bright finish.
The GT ovens, built for operation with an inert atmosphere, are crafted with a continuously welded outer steel shell and gasketed roof plate. A strong seal on the double-pivot door is achieved with a square gasket around the door perimeter to form a tight seal to the oven face-plate. Swing bolts with T handles make clamping easy.
The stainless-steel liner baffles the work chamber from the side wall heating elements, and directs the air flow horizontally through the chamber for uniform heating. Hueter chose a Honeywell DC2500 temperature controller with a soak timer to shut off heating elements at the end of a programmed cycle, in addition to a flowmeter mounted and piped to the oven for easy connection to the atmosphere supply.
www.luciferfurnaces.com
Lucifer Furnaces, Warrington, Pa., has shipped a customized benchtop heat-treating furnace to R. Hueter Co., Beverly, Mass., a CNC machine shop, to harden beryllium-copper pins.
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Sinterite installs process development furnace at China research center
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Sinterite, a Gasbarre Furnace Group Company, St. Marys, Pa., recently installed a continuous belt furnace for development of sintering, brazing, annealing, and heat treatment applications at the new Air Liquide Shanghai Research & Technology Center. The center houses offices, showroom, laboratories, and a pilot demonstration department.
The Sinterite Furnace is a nine-zone, 12-inch-wide continuous belt atmosphere furnace design with numerous processing capabilities. The electrically heated furnace is capable of operation to 2100°F and rapid cooling with the advanced technology Sinterite HyperCooler. Additionally, multiple configurations of atmosphere gas setups are possible (H2, N2, NH3, O2, CO2).
The process control system has advanced capabilities for monitoring and recording for process development. The furnace, primarily designed for the powder metallurgy sintering process, has dedicated delubrication, sintering, and cooling sections. The Sinterite HyperCooler inline rapid cooling system provides for traditional protected atmosphere cooling and sinter-hardening of compacted powder metal components.
Sinterite designs, manufactures, and services custom continuous belt and batch furnaces for sintering, steam treating, annealing, brazing and heat treating applications. Sinterite's design includes alloy and ceramic muffles, powder-handling equipment, custom fabrications, and the exclusivel HyperCooler, sinter-hardening system.
www.sinterite.com
www.gasbarrefurnacegroup.com
Sinterite, a Gasbarre Furnace Group Company, St. Marys, Pa., recently installed a continuous belt furnace for development of sintering, brazing, annealing, and heat treatment applications at the new Air Liquide Shanghai Research & Technology Center.
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Dynacast to acquire Signicast, the world’s largest investment casting manufacturer
March 9, 2017
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Dynacast International, Charlotte, N.C., has signed a definitive share purchase agreement to acquire Signicast LLC, a highly automated and vertically integrated manufacturer of precision investment cast parts. The company is the largest commercial investment casting manufacturer in the world, and is respected for its superior product quality and value, speed and flexibility, and customer services.
Combining the companies' offerings will provide customers even more design freedom, with expanded choices of materials, part complexity, and volume. As part of the merger, Signicast will remain as a separate operating division, ensuring business as usual for customers.
"Given Signicast's complementary manufacturing technology, this acquisition will expand our existing customer offerings and accelerate our strategic vision for growth," says Simon Newman, Dynacast's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "I look forward to working closely with the Signicast team to ensure that the combined company continues to provide our customers with unparalleled technology, quality, and service."
Once the transaction is closed, the acquisition is expected to add over 800 employees from Signicast's two campuses in Wisconsin. This addition will expand Dynacast's footprint to more than 9500 employees in 27 locations. The merger will allow Dynacast to continue growing both businesses, with intentions to globalize the Signicast division in the coming years.
This transformative acquisition is the next step of Dynacast's strategic vision toward becoming a $1 billion-plus organization over the next two to three years, and furthers Dynacast's position as the foremost global manufacturer of precision metal components.
www.dynacast.com
www.signicast.com
Dynacast International, Charlotte, N.C., has signed a definitive share purchase agreement to acquire Signicast LLC, a highly automated and vertically integrated manufacturer of precision investment cast parts.
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Meridian, Birmingham City U. partner to cut cost of diecast magnesium parts
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Birmingham City University, England, has signed an exclusive partnership with Meridian Lightweight Technologies, Plymouth, Mich., to showcase magnesium diecast components as viable alternatives for luxury car makers and the aerospace industry.
As part of the new partnership with Meridian, academics from Birmingham City University's Faculty of Computing, Engineering and The Built Environment, and personnel from the company, will be investigating new ways to offer more sustainable goods for low-volume manufacturers, while making production financially viable for Meridian and its potential clients.
The two organizations will work together in the education, research, and development of magnesium applications that will improve fuel efficiency through weight savings and sustainability. At 1.8 g/cm³, magnesium is the lightest of all structural materials, 75% lighter than steel and 33% lighter than aluminum.
Meridian opened its UK facility in July 2003. Today, its Nottinghamshire plant produces around 5000 net metric tons of diecast products annually, serving automotive clients such as Jaguar, Land Rover, BMW, Ford, Honda, and Volvo. However, current magnesium manufacturing processes create the same amount of waste as product, resulting in high cost.
To address this issue, the University has established the Magnesium Innovation Group to investigate ways to add value to the excess material. Some ideas being considered include reacting magnesium with oxygen and water to create hydrogen, which can be used in the fledgling fuel cell industry to power cars and smartphones going forward. Although magnesium is 100% recyclable, currently no plants in the UK can process the waste.
Research findings will be published ahead of a major international magnesium conference, which will be held at Birmingham City University in July this year.
"The strategic partnership we have signed with Birmingham City University is very much a first for us," says Meridian's Randy Chalmers, "but is one which we hope will pave the way for future expansion with the institution as we seek to work together on our shared strengths in fuel efficiency and sustainability."
www.bcu.ac.uk/news-events/news/magnesium
www.meridian-mag.com
Birmingham City University, England, has signed an exclusive partnership with Meridian Lightweight Technologies, Plymouth, Mich., to showcase magnesium diecast components as viable alternatives for luxury car makers and the aerospace industry.
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3D printing enables 50% less mass in titanium and graphite satellite structures
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Space Systems Loral (SSL), Palo Alto, Calif., announces that it has successfully introduced additive manufacturing techniques for titanium and graphite structural components into its geostationary satellite platform. The highly optimized strut-truss antenna tower consists of 37 printed titanium nodes and more than 80 printed graphite struts. The strut-truss design methodology is now standard for SSL spacecraft, with 13 additional structures in various stages of design and manufacturing, and has resulted in SSL using hundreds of 3D printed titanium structural components per year.
Its first antenna tower designed through additive manufacturing was launched last December on the JCSAT-15 satellite, which was designed and built for SKY Perfect JSAT, a world leading satellite operator based in Japan. The satellite, renamed JCSAT-110A, has completed in orbit testing and is performing according to plan.
For SSL, optimizing at the system level with additive manufacturing has enabled an average of 50% reductions in mass and schedule for large and complex structures. The savings over conventionally manufactured structural assemblies is much greater than what is possible with the optimization of an individual part.
Since the launch of JCSAT-110A, SSL has completed assembly and testing on several other strut-truss structures and continues to expand its use of additive manufacturing and other next-generation design and manufacturing techniques.
"SSL is an innovative company that continues to evolve its highly reliable satellite platform with advanced technologies," said Dr. Matteo Genna, chief technology officer and vice president of Product Strategy and Development at SSL. "Our advanced antenna tower structures enable us to build high performance satellites that would not be possible without tools such as 3D printing."
www.sslmda.com.
Space Systems Loral (SSL), Palo Alto, Calif., announces that it has successfully introduced additive manufacturing techniques for titanium and graphite structural components into its geostationary satellite platform.
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One Minute Mentor: High-Temperature Nitriding for Deeper Case
March 2, 2017
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High-temperature nitriding or solution nitriding at temperatures of 2010 ± 90°F is a new treatment available to produce cases with nitrogen concentrations in the range of 0.4 to 0.9 wt%, which is low compared to plasma nitriding treatments at low temperature (up to 16.9wt% N), but the resulting case is up to 100 times deeper (2 mm, or 0.08 in.). The lower nitrogen concentration implies a lower surface hardness (360 HV for solution nitriding of austenitic steels).
The graph shows a time-temperature transformation (TTT) curve for the precipitation of Cr2N, from which it can be estimated that, to avoid CrN precipitation, the temperature must drop from 2010°F to below 1650°F in approximately 20 seconds. That is feasible only in relatively thin parts (large area/volume ratio) that cool sufficiently to cope with the TTT curve time limitations to avoid precipitates, and only for a small number of parts at a time.
Volume 4D, Heat Treating of Irons and Steels ⇒ Heat Treated High-Alloy Steels ⇒ Nitriding of Stainless Steels ⇒ Thermochemical Nitriding Treatments
High-temperature nitriding or solution nitriding at temperatures of 2010 ± 90°F is a new treatment available to produce cases with nitrogen concentrations in the range of 0.4 to 0.9 wt%, which is low compared to plasma nitriding treatments at low temperature (up to 16.9wt% N), but the resulting case is up to 100 times deeper (2 mm, or 0.08 in.).
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Immersion-tube lead holding/melting furnaces designed for auto battery plates
March 1, 2017
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Lindberg MPH, Riverside, Mich., has shipped two 18-tube gas-fired immersion tube lead melting and holding furnaces to a supplier of the battery industry. The immersion tube furnaces will be used in the production of lead plates for automotive batteries.
The maximum temperature rating for each furnace is 900°F. The front process wells are 30 in. x 15 ft 2 in. x 39 in. The carbon-steel plate welded design of this system facilitates energy-efficient melting and holding of the lead, and precise temperature control of the casting process.
Each furnace incorporates eighteen immersion tubes, each with its own burner and ratio regulator control. The molten lead capacity is equivalent to 290,000 pounds, and the system is rated at 6,000,000 BTU/hr. Each furnace is controlled by a programmable logic controller and includes a touchscreen HMI. These furnaces include a sow platform for safe loading of the lead ingots and sows into the bath.
"We designed these immersion tube furnaces to give the customer precise temperature control over the process and to run efficiently to save on energy costs," says Andrew Paul, Sales Engineer.
Each burner has its own gas/air ratio regulator, assuring the correct air and gas mixture for dependable ignition and efficient combustion. On-off firing allows for a wide input range, virtually eliminating temperature creep. The sow cradle protects the immersion tubes from possible damage from charging of large and heavy lead hogs. The hog ramp feeding onto the sow cradle allows for automatic loading of lead hogs and gently slides the pigs into the bath.
www.lindbergmph.com
www.thermalproductsolutions.com
Lindberg MPH, Riverside, Mich., has shipped two 18-tube gas-fired immersion tube lead melting and holding furnaces to a supplier of the battery industry.
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Solar Manufacturing designs vacuum furnace to process mu-metal shields
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Solar Manufacturing, Souderton, Pa., has completed a new Model HFL-5772-EQ vacuum furnace specially designed by Solar for processing mu-metal shields at Magnetic Shields Ltd. for electronic applications. Mu-metal is a nickel-iron soft magnetic alloy with very high permeability suitable for sensitive electronic equipment shielding. The new furnace, with hot-zone dimensions 36x36x72 inches, will operate in partial pressure hydrogen or high vacuum in the 10-5 Torr range.
The furnace has full CE rating to the strict European code. The furnace incorporates the new SolarVac 5000 electronic controls with touchscreen overview programming. SolarVac 5000 enables precise temperature control from ambient to 2400°F, then down through the critical order-disorder transformation range for mu-metals, and finally to the nitrogen fan blower quench, to ambient.
According to Magnetic Shields CEO Colin Woolger, "High vacuum performance is also provided for nickel brazing of complex mu-metal assemblies." Magnetic Shields is the largest supplier of this type of electrical shielding in Europe, as well as worldwide..
"The furnace design is based on Magnetic Shields' years of mu-metal heat treating experience," says William R. Jones, CEO of Solar Atmospheres. "It allows for minimum furnace power loss and minimum hydrogen consumption."
www.solarmfg.com
www.magneticshields.co.uk
Solar Manufacturing, Souderton, Pa., has completed a new Model HFL-5772-EQ vacuum furnace specially designed by Solar for processing mu-metal shields at Magnetic Shields Ltd. for electronic applications.
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