Ovens raise production capacity and quality
November 1st 2006 Two high-specification Carbolite ovens have been installed by specialist sealing solution provider Greene Tweed to increase the capacity and consistency of the raw material sintering operation at its UK manufacturing facility. Greene uses a wide variety of proprietary PTFE formulations for its products, which are moulded in tube and bar form in the facility before being sintered and then machined to custom designs required by customers. The new ovens have a maximum volumetric capacity of 1.73m3 and can operate to 425°C maximum. The tube and bar being processed stand on rotating tables, ensuring that heat is applied very evenly to all the material. The tables, which are perforated to improve air circulation throughout the chamber, rotate approximately once every two minutes. Heating is provided by Incoloy-sheathed, mineral-insulated rod elements located behind side duct sheets, with air being circulated by fan impellers on either side of the chambers. A typical sintering programme takes up to 20 hours, with time and temperature being controlled by a high-quality digital programmer supplemented by an overtemperature cut-off. More articles from Carbolite: | 
