How to tune PID settings for validating heat treating equipment
June 19, 2015
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Engineers at Ipsen, Cherry Valley, Ill., explain that by properly tuning the proportional-integral-derivative (PID) settings in the furnace controller, users can ensure that the furnace reaches and maintains the correct setpoint temperature. The furnace will thus achieve optimal results, and will also enable completing a vital step for Temperature Uniformity Surveys and System Accuracy Tests.
In a recent blog post, PID Tuning as First Step for Preparing for TUS and SAT, Ipsen experts discuss several key steps for tuning the PID settings. They also examine how the three settings — proportional, integral, and derivative — relate to each other, and how they impact the outcome. Find out how to tune the PID controller at http://bit.ly/PIDTuning.
Ipsen's blog, The Ipsen, Harold, also features informative videos, expert tips, and throwback photos. Useful resources include A Daily Checklist for Preventive Maintenance and Finding Leaks in Your Vacuum Furnace. Focused on sharing tips of the trade, as well as explaining technical and complex material, this blog provides valuable, up-to-date thermal processing information.
Be sure to check out Ipsen's other posts and how-to videos on The Ipsen, Harold, as well as articles and technical resources at www.IpsenUSA.com/Articles.
www.ipsenusa.com
Engineers at Ipsen, Cherry Valley, Ill., explain that by properly tuning the proportional-integral-derivative (PID) settings in the furnace controller, users can ensure that the furnace reaches and maintains the correct setpoint temperature.
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Flexible polymer electrodes printed with improved electrical properties
Source: ASM International
The Technical University of Munich (TUM) announces that its researchers have printed razor-thin polymer electrodes with improved electrical properties.
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ATI achieves PQ titanium product and process qualification
June 17, 2015
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Allegheny Technologies Inc., Pittsburgh, has achieved qualification for its premium-titanium products for jet engine rotating parts made of premium-quality titanium sponge from ATI's facility in Rowley, Utah. Premium-quality titanium sponge is the critical raw material required to manufacture the most demanding jet engine rotating parts.
"We are pleased to achieve PQ product qualification for the premium-quality titanium sponge produced at our Rowley facility. Our operating team did an excellent job and exceeded the qualification schedule," said Rich Harshman, ATI's Chairman, President, and CEO. "This concludes a multi-year strategic process. The timing of the qualification is well aligned with forecast growth in demand from the aerospace market."
This approval pertains to ATI's premium-grade titanium products produced using ATI PQ titanium sponge and melted at its Plasma Arc Melt facility in Bakers, North Carolina, and its Vacuum Arc Remelt operations in Albany, Oregon.
With this approval, ATI is now integrated for titanium alloys from PQ sponge through melting processes, to mill products, and to parts and components such as fully machined forgings and investment castings, for next-generation and legacy jet engines and airframes.
www.atimetals.com
Allegheny Technologies Inc., Pittsburgh, has achieved qualification for its premium-titanium products for jet engine rotating parts made of premium-quality titanium sponge from ATI’s facility in Rowley, Utah.
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AFC-Holcroft supplies two universal batch quench furnaces to Paulo Products
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AFC-Holcroft, Wixom, Mich., has supplied two new Universal Batch Quench furnaces to Paulo Products Co., a commercial heat treater headquartered in St. Louis, to be installed at its Kansas City Division. The new equipment, standard 36-48-36 sized units with top cool chambers, was customized to integrate with Paulo's existing UBQ batch furnaces already in operation.
Each furnace is equipped with a state-of-the-art furnace controls system which will also integrate with Paulo's existing production and quality control systems. Paulo supports a wide variety of aerospace, automotive, and agricultural customers, many with stringent quality requirements; subsequently the ability to comply with the end user's reporting requirements is of critical importance.
The equipment is being built by AFC-Holcroft's partner MATTSA, and will then be shipped to Paulo's facility in Kansas City for installation. The equipment will be delivered in the second quarter of 2015.
Paulo offers a wide variety of heat treating, brazing, and metal finishing solutions, as well as a broad range of metallurgical and engineering services. In addition to the Kansas City Division, Paulo operates divisions in St. Louis; Nashville; and Murfreesboro, Tenn.; and Cleveland, Ohio.
www.afc-holcroft.com
AFC-Holcroft, Wixom, Mich., has supplied two new Universal Batch Quench furnaces to Paulo Products Co., a commercial heat treater headquartered in St. Louis, to be installed at its Kansas City Division.
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Carpenter agrees to supply powder metallurgy superalloys to Pratt & Whitney
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Carpenter Technology Corp., Wyomissing, Pa., reports that operations will begin soon at its new superalloy powder facility in Alabama as part of a multi-level agreement with United Technologies Corporation's Pratt & Whitney Division. The facility is technologically advanced with twin atomizing towers, and will be capable of producing 2100 tons of clean, aerospace grade powder per year.
Carpenter's recent investment in the Athens facility has allowed for the fluid movement and expedited production of the materials required for crucial aerospace components. The high-purity ingots arrive from one of Carpenter's legacy operating facilities, and move through conditioning, re-melting, finishing, and testing until they have reached the exact customer specifications.
As part of the agreement, UTC's aerospace business units (Pratt & Whitney, Pratt & Whitney Canada Corp., UTC Aerospace Systems, and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation) have agreed to purchase alloy steel bar/billet, nickel superalloy billet, stainless bar/billet, and strip laminate products from Carpenter for a period of ten years. Carpenter currently supplies UTC's aerospace businesses with a portion of their overall demand for nickel, stainless, and strip laminate products. The agreement was signed in October 2013, and means that Carpenter will supply Pratt & Whitney with superalloy powder for up to 20 years once qualifications are satisfied.
www.cartech.com/aerospace
Carpenter Technology Corp., Wyomissing, Pa., reports that operations will begin soon at its new superalloy powder facility in Alabama as part of a multi-level agreement with United Technologies Corporation’s Pratt & Whitney Division.
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Kanthal heating elements for service at 3050°F have fast temperature ramping
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Sandvik Materials Technology, Sweden, announces that its Kanthal division introduced Superthal FeCrAlMo heating elements at the Thermprocess show held last week in Dusseldorf. Superthal prefabricated heating modules consist of vacuum-formed ceramic fiber with an integral powder metallurgy molybdenum-disilicide (MoSi2) heating element. The maximum temperature is raised to 1725°C (3140°C) for Superthal HT half-cylinder heating elements, enabling up to 1675°F (3050°C) furnace temperature. During operation, a layer of Al2O3 forms spontaneously, producing a dense, adherent, and self-healing surface.
Superthal heating modules are intended for use in laboratory or production furnaces/heaters wherever concentrated heat is needed. They also provide major energy savings in several applications. The flexibility of the heating modules allows for different tests and processes to take place in the same furnace setup.
The Superthal modules have quick temperature ramping, are easy to install, and have accurate temperature profiles and long service life. They are available in a variety of geometries and standard sizes. Tailor-made modules can be supplied to optimize the design and function of the particular application.
www.smt.sandvik.com
Sandvik Materials Technology, Sweden, announces that its Kanthal division introduced Superthal FeCrAlMo heating elements at the Thermprocess show held last week in Dusseldorf.
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Collaboration to develop carbon fiber for automotive light-weighting
June 11, 2015
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The Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., and DowAksa, Turkey signed a joint development agreement to formally advance research on cost-effective, high-volume manufacturing of automotive-grade carbon fiber—a material poised to play a significant role in the drive to make vehicles lighter for greater fuel efficiency, performance and capability.
The agreement will combine DowAksa's feedstock capacity, carbon fiber conversion and downstream intermediates production capabilities with Ford's expertise in design, engineering and high-volume manufacturing. The goal is to produce materials that make cost-effective carbon fiber composite parts that are much lighter than steel but meet automotive strength requirements.
"This joint development agreement reinforces Ford's commitment to our partnership with DowAksa, and our drive to bring carbon fiber components to the broader market," says Mike Whitens, director, Vehicle Enterprise Sciences, Ford Research & Advanced Engineering. "The goal of our work here fits within the company's Blueprint for Sustainability, where future Ford vehicles will be lighter with optimized performance that would help consumers further improve fuel economy and reduce emissions."
"Today's agreement marks another milestone in the partnership to develop lightweighting solutions for the automotive industry," says DowAksa Chairman Heinz Haller. "Ford and DowAksa's collaboration will accelerate delivery of advanced materials and technologies to meet and exceed expectations for high performance and fuel economy."
"Automotive manufacturers' use of carbon fiber composites has been hindered by the absence of both high-volume manufacturing methods and affordable material formats," said DowAska Vice Chairman Mehmet Ali Berkman. "This partnership combines the individual strengths of each company to target these challenges."
The JDA allows the companies to collaboratively generate new, lower-cost automotive grades of carbon fiber that can be applied to aligned and random fiber formats while maintaining compatibility with both thermoset and thermoplastic matrices. The agreement also includes a pathway for potential extension of development collaboration into a commercial manufacturing partnership.
"DowAksa is committed to bringing the benefits of carbon fiber to the industrial marketplace," Berkman added. "By entering into this agreement, DowAksa is taking a serious approach to providing environmentally sustainable solutions, the goal being the manufacture of much lighter vehicles with optimized performance and cost, which will ensure reduced fuel consumption and exhaust emissions."
As announced in January, the companies will be part of the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI), announced by President Obama as part of the larger National Network for Manufacturing Innovation supported by the U.S. Department of Energy. The JDA will facilitate the companies' efforts in conjunction with IACMI to overcome the high cost and limited availability of carbon fiber in automotive applications.
The Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., and DowAksa, Turkey signed a joint development agreement to formally advance research on cost-effective, high-volume manufacturing of automotive-grade carbon fiber.
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Rocketdyne selects Seco-Warwick box furnace for heat treating and brazing rocket parts
June 9, 2015
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Seco-Warwick, Meadville, Pa., reports that Aerojet Rocketdyne has updated its facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., with the turnkey installation of a Seco-Warwick custom-engineered box furnace for brazing and heat-treating rocket parts and assemblies. The various rocket engines sealed within the retort can weigh up to 5000 pounds per load, including the retort.
This unit replaces an older furnace, improving the overall operation with new technology that makes the furnace easier to control, with more economical operation and improved temperature uniformity.
The new control system was developed with Aerojet Rocketdyne and adjusted in the field to meet not only the customer specifications, but also the operator's needs. Natural gas usage was reduced by utilizing a high-velocity burner system. Although the original specification was to meet +/-20°F, the unit as installed is operating at +/-5°F uniformity.
www.secowarwick.com
Seco-Warwick, Meadville, Pa., reports that Aerojet Rocketdyne has updated its facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., with the turnkey installation of a Seco-Warwick custom-engineered box furnace for brazing and heat-treating rocket parts and assemblies.
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Bodycote opens new heat treatment plant in Poland
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Bodycote, South Windsor, Conn., recently opened a new heat treatment site in Wroclaw, Poland, as part of its expansion strategy in Eastern Europe. Building on this investment, Bodycote announces its intention to open another greenfield heat treatment site in the aviation valley close to Rzeszow, Poland. The new facility will support the manufacturing supply chains in this region and is expected to be operational by the second half of 2016.
Initially, vacuum heat treatment, vacuum brazing, and nitriding will be offered. Other processes will follow as demand for heat treatment services in the region continues to grow. Additional services are likely to include HVOF and plasma coatings, vacuum oil quench, and aluminum heat treatment.
The new facility will hold international quality standards including Nadcap and AS 9100, as well as OEM approvals. First-tier suppliers to United Technologies Corporation (UTC), Rolls-Royce, and Safran, among others, will be supported.
www.bodycote.com
Bodycote, South Windsor, Conn., recently opened a new heat treatment site in Wroclaw, Poland, as part of its expansion strategy in Eastern Europe.
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Worthington’s TWB Company to open tailor welded blank facility in Nashville
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Worthington Industries, Cleveland, announces that its tailor welded blanking joint venture, TWB Company LLC, is opening a new facility in Nashville. It will include next-generation fiber lasers and curvilinear welding technology, expanding TWB's 2D welding capabilities and its ability to reduce weight and increase strength in more vehicle parts.
"The market for tailor welded blanks continues to grow and TWB's capabilities are growing with it," said Ivan Meltzer, president of TWB Company. "We are continually pushing the technology to allow more applications across all vehicle lines. This new Tennessee facility provides capacity to further serve automakers and Tier 1 automotive suppliers in the South."
The use of tailor welded blanks in vehicles has grown in recent years as automakers use light weighting to improve fuel economy to meet new targets set by the government. The significantly higher Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards take effect in 2025. Laser-welded blanks are made from welding steel blanks of various thicknesses and grades together to form a tailored blank that is then stamped into automotive body panels.
The new 120,000-square-foot facility will have approximately 45 employees, and will initially serve General Motors, Nissan, and several Tier 1 automotive suppliers. Production is expected to begin by October 2015. The new facility is TWB's 9th in North America; additional locations include Alabama, Michigan, Smyrna, Tenn., Ontario, and four in Mexico.
www.TWBCompany.com.
Worthington Industries, Cleveland, announces that its tailor welded blanking joint venture, TWB Company LLC, is opening a new facility in Nashville, Tenn.
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