Metal is an essential material in modern times. It is used in almost every field, and it needs to be processed in order to turn it into products of various shapes and functions.
If you want to process metal, you need to heat it, because heating is the easiest way to change the shape of metal, but the traditional heating method is to generate a high temperature environment by burning fuel, and then put the metal in this environment for heating.
But it takes a long time to use this heating method. If you choose to use induction heating, you can heat the metal quickly.
What is induction heating?
Induction heating, also known as electromagnetic induction heating, is a method used for bonding, heat treating, welding, softening metals or other conductive materials. For many modern manufacturing processes, induction heating increases heating speed and efficiency.
How Induction Heating Works
How exactly does induction heating work? Induction heating mainly uses the principle of magnetic field to heat, and its heating system is mainly an induction coil, a power supply and a metal workpiece that needs to be heated.
The induction heating power supply converts the AC power into a higher frequency AC, transmits it to the induction coil, and generates an electromagnetic field in the coil.
Since the metal workpiece that needs to be heated is also a conductor, the circles of magnetic induction lines generated by the induction coil will directly penetrate the metal workpiece placed in the coil to form a current closed loop, and the resistance of the metal is small, plus Higher current, when these high-current magnetic induction lines pass through the metal workpiece, the electrons inside the metal will be very active, collide with each other, and friction will generate heat energy, achieving the effect of rapidly heating the metal itself.
At the same time, in order to prevent the pipe port from collapsing due to softening after heating during the pipe heating process, Hangao Tech (SEKO Machinery)'s rotary black annealing induction heating production line has created an original "pipe tracking" technology. When the PLC intelligent system detects that a new pipeline enters through the loading rack, it will automatically "speed up" the latter pipeline to catch up with the previous pipeline, so that the ports of the two pipelines can be overlapped, so that the speed of the front and rear pipelines can be synchronized . This is one of the core technologies unique to Hangao Tech (SEKO Machinery).
Features of induction heating
1 Guarantee product quality
Induction heating does not require direct contact with open flames, and can guarantee the quality of all products. It only needs to set and calibrate the temperature, and each product will not have uneven heating and heating temperature deviation, which can ensure the heating quality of each product.
And the power can be turned on or off instantly, the system is also able to measure the temperature of each individual metal part, and can record the data of each heated part.
Parts heated by induction will not be in direct contact with flames or other heating elements. The alternating current will generate heat inside the parts, reducing the scrap rate of heated products. Metal parts are heated in a closed loop of coils, which is compared to vacuum conditions. , can also reduce the oxidation of parts.
2 Improve production efficiency
Because the heating speed is very fast, the production efficiency can be maximized. The equipment can make the workpiece generate heat of 800~1000 degrees Celsius in a few seconds at the earliest. It can be said to start instantly without preheating or cooling cycle.
The induction heating process can be done next to the metal forming machine without sending parts to other workshops or processing plants, saving time and improving efficiency.
3 Extend fixture life
Induction heating applies heat to specific locations on the metal and quickly transfers heat to an area of the part without heating any surrounding parts, which extends the life of fixtures and machinery.
4 more environmentally friendly and safer
Induction heating systems do not burn traditional fossil fuels, heating is a clean, non-polluting process that will help protect the environment.
And it also eliminates smoke, waste heat, harmful emissions, and no noise, which improves the working conditions of employees.
Induction heating also improves safety. There is no open flame in the whole process, which will not cause harm to the operator and the environment, and non-conductive materials will not cause damage if placed near the heating zone.
5 Reduce energy consumption
Induction heating is able to convert 90% of the energy into useful heat, compared to the typical 45% energy efficiency of ordinary furnaces, and since the induction process does not require preheating or cooling cycles, standby heat loss is also minimized.
Induction Heating Applications
Induction heating is widely used in industrial manufacturing fields, such as melting metal, smelting, metal heating, welding and so on.
Unlike combustion heating, induction heating is precisely controllable. By changing the current, voltage and frequency of the induction coil, fine-tuned heat is generated. It is very suitable for processes such as case hardening, hardening and tempering, annealing and other forms of heat treatment.
This high-precision heating is essential for material heating in automotive, aerospace, optical fiber, petrochemical and other fields; ideal for heating some precious metals and advanced composite materials.
It can be said that induction heating is one of the cleanest, most efficient, cost-effective, accurate and repeatable methods of heating materials available in the industry today.
Especially with the arrival of demand for advanced engineering materials, alternative energy sources, etc., the unique function of induction heating technology provides a fast, efficient and precise heating method for future industrial production.
