What you should know about Ipsen’s atmosphere technology.
Hard work wins
So the atmosphere is correct – technically and economically. Ipsen atmosphere furnaces are used in conventional heat treatment processes, that is to say for hardening, quench hardening and tempering, carburisation, carbon nitriding, nitro-carburisation, bright tempering and annealing. The technology involved is distinguished
Mixing battery and control electronics ® of a Recon -heating system
by its simple design and comparatively low costs.
How is such an atmosphere furnace constructed
a very long service life, not least because the
and why in this way and not another? The following
heating elements do not come into contact with
requirements were all important in the development
the process gases. In addition they do not cause
of the design: First – uniform heat transfer to
any environmental pollution and do not cause
the charge and protection against direct heat
any noise emissions.
radiation. Second – a uniform flow of the furnace atmosphere through the charge. Third – problem free operation and long furnace service life. For the latter the most important factor is the characteristics of the furnace interior. The bricklining comprises insulating firebricks, which are suitable for temperatures well above the working temperature and are extremely durable. The arched roof is self-supporting and contains a built-in duct for the atmosphere circulator. The hearth is formed
® For gas heating, the proven Ipsen Recon burners
from a silicon-carbide plate – with especially large
with interior tubes made from special ceramic
outlet openings for the gas recirculation, which
are used. They attain a particularly high thermal
ensures uniform penetration of the charge by the
efficiency of up to 85 % – not least thanks to a new
furnace atmosphere. The muffle which surrounds
type of recuperator burner, which uses the exhaust
the hearth, and is likewise made from silicon-car-
gas flow to recover waste heat. It is suitable
bide, serves both to protect the charge from direct
for use with natural gas, a propane/butane mixture
heat radiation and to promote a uniform tempera-
and LPG. It is distinguished by a low noise level
ture distribution in the material being hardened.
and high temperature uniformity as well as a long service life, low maintenance and easy installation.
The Ipsen atmosphere furnaces are assembled
Moreover the NOX-values are considerably below
from standard modules. Therefore they can
the permitted values for TA air.
easily be ideally matched to individual customer requirements.
For electric heating, Ipsen standard cage elements made from metal radiant tubes are used.
How is an Ipsen atmosphere furnace heated?
They provide the highest possible heat efficiency,
There are two alternatives available: gas or electric
a high power density and uniform heat radiation.
heating.
They require very little maintenance and thus have
Fire resistant cladding in an atmosphere furnace
Excellent uniformity and reproducible results ensure high productivity
How the furnace charges are processed. Various gassing processes are available for use in heat treatment of charges ® in Ipsen atmosphere furnaces. They are controlled using the Ipsen Carbon Sensor and computer® based Carb-o-Prof measurement and control system.
SuperQuench offers optimum quenching especially for low alloy steels.
Carburisation, carbon nitriding, bright hardening
® The proven Ipsen Supercarb process is remark-
Often, the quenching performance of a con-
and carbon-free bright annealing in multi-purpose
able for its high efficiency and quick, uniform and
ventional oil bath is not sufficient, even with only
chamber furnaces take place in carbon content-
reproducible carbon transfer. It works at heat
slightly alloyed steels, to obtain the required
regulated atmospheres – for bright tempering
treatment temperatures above 850 ºC. In the
properties. With the SuperQuench quenching
in tempering furnaces, no controlled atmospheres
process, the chamber furnace system is directly
chamber, Ipsen provides an oil bath for the heat
are required.
gassed using air and natural gas or another fuel,
treatment of widely varying steel grades, even
e. g. propane or alcohol (but not methanol). In
slightly alloyed steels. To achieve this, the flow
The following gassing processes are particularly ®
comparison with other processes the Supercarb
®
speed of the oil is much higher than that obtainable
important in the above: Supercarb air direct
process reduces gas consumption by up to 90 %,
in conventional oil baths, due to the use of more
gassing, Endogas gassing and nitrogen-methanol
considerably shortens the processing time and re-
powerful drive motors and larger circulators.
gassing.
sults in an exceedingly uniform carburisation layer.
Up to six motors per frequency converter can be continuously regulated – at up to four times the
Endogas is a gas mixture of 40 % hydrogen,
speed of conventional motors. In addition each
20 % carbon monoxide and 40 % nitrogen as well
individual circulator has been allocated a separate
as small fractions of carbon dioxide, water and
flow control system, so that the entire charge
methane. It can be used in very varied manners,
is reliably, uniformly and quickly cooled. Here also,
e. g. with additional carbon dioxide for C-level
® the process software, Carb-o-Prof , guarantees
controlled carburization, as a protective gas during
optimally adjusted control of the quenching
bright annealing and tempering or with the addition
process for all steel grades.
of ammonia in nitro-carburization. In addition, endogas similar atmospheres with nitrogen-
Here a chain conveyor system is used to lower
methanol gassing can also be used, but only at
an automatically fed in charge per hoist into the oil
process temperatures above 800 ºC.
bath.
Independent of which gassing type is used,
Symmetrically arranged circulators ensure that
hardening processes, carburisation and carbon
the hardening oil is strongly, turbulently mixed and
nitriding cycles are controlled in a targeted manner
fed via guidance channels through the charge.
®
by the process software Carb-o-Prof .
The process results in uniform hardening and minimal distortion. At the same time the speed
The most common quenching method in a multi-
of the oil circulation defines the type of quenching
chamber furnace takes place in an oil bath quen-
and with it the result of the heat treatment.
ching-chamber. The quenching tank comprises
It can be very flexibly controlled using the process
a double-walled, insulated, steel plate housing.
® software, Carb-o-Prof .
Chain transport system of a multi-purpose chamber furnace
Drive motors of the two oil circulators
A quick look at our range.
Well advanced: The transport system.
Atmosphere technology from Ipsen is available in various standard sizes. Thanks to its modular
Charging and discharging of atmosphere furnaces can be executed completely automatically.
design, it can be supplied in a wide range of technical types, matched exactly to customers’ needs.
® Not only that, the production software AutoMag means Ipsen atmosphere furnaces can also be
seamlessly inserted into the production line.
Ipsen transport systems ensure reliable production processes Type RTQ – Gas-tight multi-purpose chamber furnace with an integrated double-walled oil quench bath. Based on retrieval principle (loading and unloading from the same side).
Type TQ – Gas-tight multi-purpose chamber furnace with an integrated double-walled oil quench bath. Based on continuous transfer principle (unloading on the side opposite to the loading side).
Atmosphere furnace technology from Ipsen is
To permit integration of atmosphere furnaces into
available in various standard sizes. Thanks to its
production and manufacturing processes Ipsen
modular design, it can be supplied in a wide range
provides fully developed transport and storage
of technical types, matched exactly to customers’
systems – both automatic charging and discharging
needs.
systems as well as intermediate storage systems and roller conveyors. The systems can be con-
The following specific advantages are common
figured so that the charges can be accessed in
to all furnaces: They offer full-surface charge
any order or so that they are processed based on
support courtesy of the ceramic hearth and
a “first in/first out” principle, in a saved sequence.
ensure, thanks to the ceramic gas conduction
To enable fully automatic control, automation
muffle and optimised circulation system,
and charging of the furnace systems and their
a particularly uniform atmosphere circulation
® peripherals, the proven AutoMag production
and temperature distribution within the heating
software is used. It offers a complete system
chamber. In all multi-purpose chamber furnaces,
overview, controls the automatic transport and
the charge is transported using the proven
permits data exchange with ERP systems such as
Ipsen cold chain system from the hot area into the
SAP or Infor.
quenching chamber. Two alternative heating methods are available: gas or electrical. Alongside standard sizes, Ipsen offers custom manufacture of special types. Type TQ-2 – Gas-tight multi-purpose chamber furnace with two heating chambers and integrated double-walled oil quench bath. Based on continuous transfer principle (unloading on the side opposite to the loading side).
Type DAC – Gas-tight tempering furnace with integrated lowerable heat exchanger for accelerated cooling.
The Service. All included. The optimum solution is one-stop supply: alongside its furnaces and systems, Ipsen offers optimum service, 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. To conclude then, a few words about Ipsen’s
Nevertheless should a repair be required: You
service. Hardly any other engineering product
can reach our service hotline +49-1 72-2 53 39 10
lasts as long as an Ipsen atmosphere furnace.
365 days per year, 24 hours a day, so that our
This is because of the quality of our furnaces.
service technicians and engineers can help as
Nevertheless they need professional servicing.
quickly as possible. And we have got even more in
And to achieve this we provide you and our
stock: the largest spare parts range in the world
furnaces with the best possible customer service.
for Ipsen atmosphere technology. Always at hand: A selection of important wear parts is always carried by our service vehicles.
About the company. Ipsen – we deliver performance. Ipsen stands for cutting edge heat treatment technology and systems. Few companies in the world have had such a decisive impact on the development of heat treatment.
For over 60 years Ipsen has been finding new ways
all over the world. Our customers work in auto-
of producing steel of ever improving quality using
motive, aviation and aerospace as well as tooling,
the company’s innovative, proprietary technologies,
machining, medical and commercial heat treating.
®
such as the AvaC process (low-pressure carburisDespite Ipsen’s many important innovations,
recently developed HybridCarb process (gas car-
our focus is not solely on technology: in all we do,
burising with recycling). Ipsen’s offerings combine
we aim to surpass our customers’ expectations.
the highest performance with outstanding reliability,
We are not only committed to developing great
which perhaps explains why our furnaces and heat
technology, we are also passionate about providing
treatment equipment enjoy an excellent reputation
quick, seamless and attentive service.
© Ipsen 10 2007
® ing), the SolNit process (solution nitriding) and the
If you require further information or would like to know more about our company and the products we make, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you! Ipsen International GmbH Flutstraße 78 47533 Kleve Germany Telephone +49 2821 804-0
[email protected] · www.ipsen.de
Hard work wins