Infrared Application of the Month:
Drying Paint on Bicycle Frames
A production line manufacturing high quality bicycle frames sought a better method to dry paint on the frames. The previous method -- hot air drying -- had numerous drawbacks: drying time was long, the oven required a great deal of plant floor space, and the finished product did not yield a high quality finish. Moreover, a dirty oven required periodic shutdown for cleaning, causing interruption to the production schedule.
An infrared drying system from Heraeus Noblelight made use of mediumwave IR lamps placed in an array to provide targeted heat to the freshly painted surfaces. Drying time was cut nearly in half, quality was improved, production bottlenecks were eliminated and less plant space was used.
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Infrared Application of the Month:
Bonding Polypropylene Pipeline Composite
High power infrared heaters from Heraeus Noblelight help ensure bonding of a high-tech polypropylene composite coating onto pipelines. The custom-built shortwave infrared system is moved around the pipe to allow the infrared heaters to be located as close as possible to the pipe surface. One of the production steps involves helical application of polyolefin tape that provides insulation and corrosion protection. This is bonded to the pipe by an adhesive, and the high power infrared heaters are used to heat the pipe before the coating tape with its adhesive is applied. An inline infrared heating module heats the tape itself to maintain flexibility.
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Tech Center Spotlight: Wavelength Converter
Heraeus has developed an ingeniously simple solution to the problem of radiaiton loss during heating materials of different heat absorption rates: a patented wavelength converter, consisting of a plate with mineral fibers, absorbs the radiation which has passed through the material and radiates it back into the material at a different wavelength. The wavelength converter absorbs transmitted infrared radiation, heats up to 500 - 600°C and then radiates back medium- and long wave radiation. Energy savings and faster heating are among the wavelength converter's many advantages.
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Special Designs:
KR85 and K110 Modular IR Systems
These simple housings can be used for any standard or custom heater produced by Heraeus. Once the heater type or design is chosen for the application, a KR reflector can be used as a low cost housing option. With a housing constructed from 18 ga aluminized steel, a polished internal surface can act as as a primary or seondary reflector. The KR and K110's unique design holds up well against high temperature environments. These units can be combined on a user supplied framework to form oven walls either in straight or geometrical designs.
Learn more about the KR85 and K110 Modular IR Systems from Heraeus Noblelight.
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Technical Learning Q&A: A Comparison of Convection vs. Infrared, Part 3 of 3
Part 3 of 3
continued from last month's issue...
Q: How flexible are the technologies in working with mixed batches?
A: Although components heat up at different rates, they never exceed temperature of convection oven. Infrared heats up components at different rates and will reach different temperatures depending on mass. Care should be taken to "group" like parts size and mass.
Q: What about the design of the ovens?
A: For convection ovens, product testing generally is not necessary. Although simple, it results in larger sizes and longer oven times. Infrared ovens normally require advanced product tests to determine oven design (power, wavelength, density, length, zoning, etc).
Q: What can be used for "Class 1 Applications (high solvent)?"
A: Convection ovens are more easily designed for use in Class 1 areas. Again the trade off is simplicity vs. size and efficiency. Infrared systems are more complex to use in Class 1 areas, and like convection will require large amounts of air flow to remove solvents, and interlinks between IR source and conveyor to shut down the system in case of line stoppage. The advantage of IR here is size (reduced footprint) and throughput. A combination of IR and convection may be the best solution.
Q: Which oven type is more common?
A: Convection is widely known and easily accepted. It is easy to use and requires little training. Infrared is a more complex system that offers many more advantages: smaller footprint, less power consumption, zoned heating, closed loop control, quick start up and shut down. Although not as widely used as convection, infrared systems are quickly gaining acceptance as a highly effective alternative to the standard convection technology.
Q: How is power calculated?
A: For convection a simple mass x specific heat x temperature rise calculation provides information for oven design. For IR, tests are often required to determine design.
A: In a 200°C convection oven, the complete component will eventually achieve 200°C. Infrared ovens require more planning than convection for 3 dimensional objects. Because conduction cannot be relied upon to heat hidden areas, care is taken to design oven to equally heat all surfaces. Design and control are key to a good job.
Q: How does color-reflectivity-transmission of material influence oven design?
A: A convection oven will have always the same design and characteristics. Infrared systems are custom designed to suit the substrate being processed.
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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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