Page 50
www.us-tech.com
August, 2016 Infrared Technology is Bringing the Heat By Ed Sullivan I
nfrared heating technology has become preva- lent among the industrial ovens, dryers and heaters used by a multitude of manufacturers.
The OEMs that manufacture these ovens and heaters use infrared heating elements, which are more energy efficient, cheaper to operate, provide controllable heat, and are significantly more envi- ronmentally friendly. Infrared heating elements are available in
standard, off-the-shelf designs such as flat panel models, but there is a host of custom infrared ele- ments that have been developed by OEM suppliers to meet the unique requirements of specific appli- cations. Whether custom or off-the-shelf, properly
sized infrared heating elements can have dramat- ic, positive effects on the performance and even cost of the heating apparatus as well as its appli- cation. So, it benefits the OEM to collaborate with its supplier before settling on element design parameters and specifications.
Standard or Custom Oven and heater applications can vary wide-
ly among market segments, even within the same industry. For example, within the printing indus-
Oven and heater applications can
vary widely among market segments, even within the same industry.
try, different heaters or elements are used by screen printing, paper, and 3D printing industries. “There may be some standard specifications within the OEM models available for some specific applications, but in many cases the OEMs don’t have the in-house technical resources to determine exactly whether an off-the-shelf element is suit-
Properly-sized infrared heating elements can have dramatic effect on the performance of the heating application.
ing for production automation and material han- dling in a wide range of industries. Stricker, who has been involved with the
industrial heating field for over 40 years, says that in many cases it is quite practical to tailor infrared
able or if a custom design is required,” says Jesse Stricker, founder of INTEK Corporation. INTEK, located in Union, Missouri, is a man-
ufacturer of heaters and elements for industrial ovens and dryers used in continuous process heat-
heating elements to provide the exacting perform- ance necessary for the heater or oven to provide optimum productivity and minimum downtime in a given application.
Determining Specifications Whether standard or custom element design
is anticipated, certain design criteria should be established with the element supplier at the out- set. “OEM designers sometimes use different ter- minology, so the first question we usually ask is ‘Do you need a filament, element or heater,’” says INTEK’s Stricker. Basically, a filament is the bare heating wire
(usually nichrome) that generally requires some sort of additional construction to provide a fin- ished, usable element. An element generally con- sists of a filament wire encapsulated in a ceramic body or suspended by ceramic bushings and includes the terminal wires necessary for connect- ing to the power source. Heaters generally consist of a heating element and insulation contained in a sheet metal housing suitable for installation using brackets or structural framework of some design. Consider the desired size of the element
which is determined by the actual heating surface needed for the application. These include the dimensions of the heater frame, where it will be mounted or installed, and allowing for any neces- sary clearance. Next, be sure of the correct electri- cal specifications — watts, volts, amps, ohms, and if it requires single- or three-phase operation. The next thing to be considered is how the fil-
ament, element or heater is connected to the power supply and what the location is of each element lead wire, as well as the method of attachment or termination required. Whatever the element design specifications,
Continued on page 57
Malcom RCX Series Modular Reflow Oven Profiling System
Winner of the 2016 NPI Award for Process Control Tools!
The Malcom RCX series modular profiler system includes:
Complete profiling of reflow ovens including oven temperature, video imaging, O2 concentration and convection air velocity.
Verification of oven optimal performance
Enabling user troubleshooting of oven process
Offering 6 and 12 channel reflow thermo-profiling
Suite 100 Main: 310-540-7310
Main: 770-446-3116 Fax: 770-446-3118
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88