Infrared Application of the Month #1:
Preheating and Other Applications in Photovoltaics
A leading supplier of anti-reflex coating and passivation for crystalline silicon solar cells required an efficient heat process. They chose infrared technology from Heraeus Noblelight. IR technology is now critical to their production in several areas, including preheating and drying of substrates; process heating; maintenance of temperature homogeneity; and others. The fact that Heraeus manufactures heaters that can operate in vacuum was a major deciding factor for the manufacturer.
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Infrared Application of the Month #2:
Drying of Latex Gloves
An international manufacturer of latex gloves for a wide variety of applications sought methods to increase production to meet market demands. One bottleneck in production was the drying of the latex gloves. The old method -- hot air blowers -- resulted in a substandard level of surface dryness. With carbon infrared heaters from Heraeus Noblelight, heating and drying time was shortened significantly, and production was increased.
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Tech Center Spotlight:
Shortwave Twintube Heaters
Shortwave IR heaters from Heraeus are suitable for all applications in which the attainment of high temperatures in the shortest possible time is what counts. Their emission maximum is between 0.9 and 1.6 micron. Among their advantages are high radiation density in the most compact space, and low space requirements.
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Special Designs:
Ring Heater
Designed for horizontal use, this shortwave ring heater, internally focused for intense rapid heat-up of rods, stakes etc. is made of quartz glass, has a diameter of 8 mm, a two-sided connection, and is available with or without the Heraeus gold reflector.
A wide assortment of ring heaters are in stock at Heraeus. Click HERE to for details.
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Technical Learning: Is IR Right for My Application?
Electric IR is a special kind of heat source, in that it is a relatively high-temperature source that can be turned on and off almost instantaneously.
Wherever a heat source is needed, electric IR can probably be used. Within each of the categories previously
discussed, major categories are literally hundreds of specific applications. In fact, the number of specific applications is growing as more uses are found for this special heat source. In addition to more traditional uses for electric IR, such as automobile body finishing, relatively new uses, such as drying silk-screened inks on clothing continue to be developed.
Assessment of Your Application
When choosing an electric IR system for your application, you should evaluate both the technical and the economic feasibility.
Technical Aspects
To determine the technical feasibility, gather certain information about your product and your process. This information will help you determine the size (length and height) of the oven, the power density required, and other aspects needed to specify the correct oven.
Economic Considerations
To evaluate the economic feasibility of electric IR, a number of issues need to be considered. The following issues must be addressed to determine the cost of doing business with and without electric IR:
- Remaining life of the current heating equipment
- Current heating capacity
- Energy source for the current heating method
- Annual energy costs of the current heating method
- Current energy charge
- Percentage of material wasted by the current heating method
- Scrap value of the material
- Embedded cost in the scrapped part; material
- Annual labor costs associated with the heating operation
- Annual production throughput
- Space requirements for the current heating equipment
- Annual cost of floor space
- Installed replacement cost for the current heating process
- Payback period required to justify the installation of a new electric IR system
- Expected capacity of the plant in five years
These economic issues can be condensed into five basic costs associated with electric IR heating:
- Equipment
- Labor
- Energy
- Scrap
- Floor space
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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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