Infrared Application of the Month #1:
Preheating of Leather Chair Covering
The manufacturer of leather chairs for office and home use required a heat source to facilitate shaping of the leather covering onto chair frames. The manufacturer previously used a ceramic heater for this application, but found that the heat provided was inconsistently applied, and that the service life of the inefficient ceramic heaters was too short.
A new system from Heraeus Noblelight made use of the efficient single tube carbon heater. The new heater provided symmetrical heating, much longer service life, and a shorter heat-up time.
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Infrared Application of the Month #2:
Heating Mild Steel Bearings
An international fabricator of mild steel bearings required process heat for a step in the manufacture wherein molten white metal is added to coat the bearings. Those bearings required preheating prior to this application so that the white metal would adhere to the bearing surface.
The previous method was a flat bed oven; the aggressive fluxes and acids used in the process corroded the metalwork. A new system from Heraeus Noblelight -- using short wave infrared heaters -- includes pyrometer control and temeprature downoad for quality control.
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Tech Center Spotlight: Fast Mediumwave IR Heaters
Stable and efficient, fast response medium wave heaters can transfer high power over long lengths. The high absorption by surface layers and films makes them particularly applicable to thin materials, while the fact that they also have a penetrative effect fits them for use in plastics processing. The heaters can be switched on and off in seconds and are consequently best suited for processes with short cycle times.
Because infrared heaters can be individually matched to a particular application, heating and drying processes can be seamlessly integrated within finishing operations – and with minimum disruption to existing manufacturing lines.
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Special Designs: Slot Heater
Infrared heater with a slot in one of the tubes, working like a drying channel for fibers or ropes. Twin tube made of quartz glass, gold coating around the whole heater. Fast response medium wave heater. The special slot design makes drying very intensive and efficient.
A wide assortment of special design heaters are available from Heraeus. Click HERE to for details.
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Technical Learning: Introduction to IR Technology, Part 3
Infrared heating in everyday life
There is a popular misconception that infrared radiation is something new and mysterious. The emotive word radiation is usually associated with nuclear physics, medical X-ray, and ultra-violet tanning lamp equipment, so it is hardly surprising that infrared radiation is treated with some suspicion by the general public. Some typical examples of how and where IR is encountered in everyday life should help dispel these myths.
Infrared radiation exists around us at all times: in fact any body having a temperature above the absolute zero (- 273°C) emits infrared radiation in an elaborate exchange with its surroundings.
In addition to being below the level of appreciation by the senses, these low levels of radiation are of limited practical application. However, even the human body emits infrared radiation, as does a candle, hot fluids and foods, a flame, a light bulb, and of course the sun.
With electric infrared sources, heat is normally produced by passing a current through a coiled resistive element. To be applicable to domestic and industrial processes, source temperatures in the range of 500°C to 2200°C are normally required. The domestic quartz tube radiant heater, popular for bathroom heating, falls within this range. It operates with an element temperature of around 950°C and produces a bright orange glow from the element spiral.
Similarly, the tubular metal sheathed element rings and grill elements on electric cookers emit a substantial amount of infrared radiation, operating with a cherry red glow at around 700°C The latest quartz halogen infrared heaters used for cooking operate at a maximum temperature of 2200°C resulting in luminous emission. In the medical field, infrared radiant heat lamps are used in osteopathy for the treatment of muscle and limb disorders.
Infrared thermography for diagnostic purposes is now commonplace. In medical diagnosis the technique provides a multicolored contour plot of the heat radiation patterns from the human body from which medical specialists can locate areas of abnormality. A similar technique is used for the detection of heat losses from the external surfaces of buildings thus indicating where additional insulation could be used to conserve heat and thereby reduce space heating costs.
Special video cameras sensitive to the IR heat emitted by a scene can be used to good effect in darkness to produce remarkably clear pictures. These have applications in the military, security, and entertainment fields. Domestic television remote control units make use of infrared signals for program selection etc. while certain types of burglar alarms detect the presence of intruders by responding to the infrared content of body heat. In a more specialized application, heat seeking missiles home in on the infrared emission from the hot exhaust gases of enemy devices.
A wide range of appliances and devices rely on infrared radiation for their operation; we use these in ever-increasing numbers with complete confidence.
Coming in the next issue: Intro to IR Technology, Part 4 (conclusion).
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That's it for this month's issue of Application Notes for IR Heating. Feel free to encourage your colleagues to subscribe. Just click HERE to send them an invitation to subscribe. It's quick, easy, FREE, and no-obligation.
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