External Quench Vacuum Furnaces

Horizontal External Quench Vacuum Furnaces

Horizontal External Quench Vacuum Furnaces (EQ)

Vacuum heat treating and brazing furnaces

The HFL-EQ model is a horizontal front loading, external quench, vacuum heat treating and brazing furnace generally designed for high production commercial and captive heat treating shops. It is a high temperature, high vacuum, batch-type furnace with electric resistance heating elements. All aspects of form, fit and function are designed for easy maintenance and minimal downtime.  Designed for heat treating, hardening, brazing, stress relieving, normalizing, annealing, tempering, sintering, homogenizing, degassing, diffusion bonding, creep forming.

 

External Quench Furnace

 

 

Features and Benefits

  • Designed for easy maintenance and minimal downtime
  • Weight capacity of up to 7,500 pounds
  • Energy efficient graphite felt insulation for operating temperatures up to 2500°F
  • Temperature uniformity of approximately ±10°F
  • External gas quenching up to 15 PSIG (2 Bar)
  • SolarVac® fully automated and programmable industrial controls package
  • Backed by fully stocked spare parts warehouse and the best technical support
  • Comprehensive one year warranty

 

Hot Zone

Solar Manufacturing produces both metallic shielded or graphite insulated hot zones, depending on your specific processing requirements.

Graphite Hot Zone Construction:

  • Operating temperature: 2400°F
  • Maximum temperature: 2500°F
  • Temperature uniformity: ±10°F
  • AMS 2750 compliant
  • Survey temp points at 1000°F / 1500°F / 2100°F
  • Insulation: multiple layers of 0.5” thick high purity rayon graphite felt
  • Hot Face: one layer of 0.075” thick CFC
  • Heating Elements: rugged segmented, graphite bands or ML Molybdenum bands, supported with a Solar proprietary design to reduce metallization of insulation materials and increasing the ease of maintenance
  • Hearth: Molybdenum or graphite insulation and rails
  • Support Structure: insulation and heating elements mounted on a heavy duty 304 stainless steel fabrication with heavy duty, back up shields of 0.090” thick

All-Metal Shielded Hot Zone Construction:

  • Operating temperature: 2400°F
  • Maximum temperature: 2500°F
  • Temperature uniformity: ±10°F
  • AMS 2750 compliant
  • Survey temp points at 1000°F / 1500°F / 2100°F
  • Insulation: combinations of molybdenum and/or stainless steel sheet metal
    • Other shielding materials are available depending on the application and temperature requirements
  • Hot Face: Lanthanated Molybdenum hot face increases hot zone life expectancy
  • Heating Elements: rugged segmented, curved graphite bands or ML Molybdenum bands, supported with a Solar proprietary design to reduce metallization of insulation materials and increasing the ease of maintenance
  • Hearth: TZM hearth rails for strength at high temperatures
  • Support Structure: all stainless steel support structure material increases the cleanliness and decreases pump-down time

 

Power Supply

The power supply is adequately sized to properly and efficiently heat the furnace and workload.

  • MSI SCR fan cooled or air conditioned NEMA cabinet
  • Hunterdon VRT (water cooled)

 

Vacuum Chamber

  • Available in either carbon steel or stainless steel construction
  • Door closure methods include Autoclave locking ring, Pneumatic clamps or standard bolted design
  • All chambers are fabricated in the USA, using materials also produced in the USA

 

Gas Quenching System

  • The high performance, external gas quench system provides the lowest resistance, highest efficiency gas flow in the industry for rapid cooling at pressures up to 15 PSIG (2-bar). An appropriately sized motor drives a computer balanced, radial bladed fan to recirculate the quench gas straight through the water-to-gas heat exchanger and then into the hot zone at high velocity. The unique tapered graphite gas nozzles are positioned to direct quench gas at the work load for optimum cooling.
  • If in the unlikely event it is ever necessary to access or remove the heat exchanger or quench motor or fan wheel, all components can be easily serviced through the appropriate end plates of the separate, external housing.

 

Vacuum Pumping System

  • Mechanical Pump: Edwards Stokes Microvac rotary piston
  • Booster Blower: Edwards Stokes direct drive
  • Diffusion Pump: Varian/Agilent
  • Holding Pump: Pfeiffer Pascal Series
  • High Vacuum Valve: Pneumatically operated, right angle poppet valve

 

Control Cabinet and Instrumentation

At the heart of the furnace control system is the SolarVac® controls and Automation.  This advanced control system is capable of vacuum furnace control and monitoring even while at a remote location.

  • All industrial controls and instrumentation are housed in a suitable NEMA 12 control cabinet.
    • Cabinet is designed to NFPA Standards and electrostatically powder coated to match the furnace system.
  • Operator Interface: High Definition touchscreen 21.5” “Human Machine Interface”
  • Programmable Logic Controller: Allen-Bradley CompactLogix
  • Over-temperature Controller: Honeywell Model UDC2500
  • Graphic Video Recorder: Eurotherm 6100 Series with up to 48 input channels and Ethernet capabilities
  • Vacuum Gauge Controller: Televac
  • Control and over-temperature Thermocouples: Type “S” with additional SAT ports available
  • Work Thermocouples: Type “K” or type “N”, built in guaranteed soak feature

 

Equipment and Energy Savings Options

  • ConserVac® energy-saving control system
  • ElementGuard off-line heating element protection system
  • Variable Frequency Drives (VFD) or soft-start motor starters are available in place of across-the-line motor starters for optimum quench motor performance.
  • Dedicated rail guided load truck; manual or powered
  • Gas backfill reservoir
  • Recirculating water cooling system
  • RA330 and molybdenum work grid

 

EQ Series Standard Furnace Sizes

Work Zone Size (WxHxD) Load Capacity
HFL-38 24″ x 24″ x 36″ 2,000 lbs
24″ x 24″ x 48″ 2,000 lbs
24″ x 24″ x 60″ 2,000 lbs
24″ x 24″ x 72″ 2,000 lbs
HFL-57 36″ x 36″ x 48″ 5,000 lbs
HFL-66 42″ x 42″ x 48″ 5,000 lbs
42″ x 42″ x 60″ 5,000 lbs
42″ x 42″ x 72″ 5,000 lbs
42″ x 42″ x 96″ 5,000 lbs
42″ x 42″ x 144″ 5,000 lbs
HFL-74 48″ x 48″ x 60″ 5,000 lbs
48″ x 48″ x 72″ 10,000 lbs
48″ x 48″ x 96″ 10,000 lbs
HFL-84 54″ x 54″ x 144″ 10,000 lbs

*Additional options are available upon request

 

Typical Materials Processed in External Quench Vacuum Furnaces

  • Alloy Steels
  • Titanium
  • Tantalum
  • Inconel
  • Nitinol
  • Stainless Steel
  • Tool Steel
  • Precipitation Hardening Stainless Steel (PH)
  • AerMet® 100
  • Tungsten
  • Zirconium
  • High Speed Tool Steels
  • Copper
  • Brass
  • Hot Working Tool Steels
  • Nickel Based Alloys
  • . . . and more

 

Typical Components Processed in External Quench Vacuum Furnaces

  • Aircraft parts and equipment
  • Power Generation blades and components
  • Medical devices
  • Additive manufactured components
  • Implants
  • Tooling
  • Gears
  • Braze assemblies
  • Plate
  • Forgings
  • Bar
  • Ingots
  • Weldments
  • Structural components
  • Castings
  • Sheet
  • Tube and pipe
  • . . . and more