INTRODUCTION
The coatings
and paint industries strive to provide high technology coatings while reducing
volatile organic compounds and energy consumption to produce a finished
coating. Conventionally Convection ovens are used to cure the coatings. But
this process which uses electric heaters is not an optimal process and is
associated with various disadvantages. Improved technologies are available
today, which can either replace or improve the convection curing process.
Infrared Curing is such a technology which uses Infrared rays emitted by an
Infrared emitter to provide the required cure. Infrared curing applies light
energy to the part surface by direct transmission from an emitter. Some of the
energy emitted will be reflected off the surface, some is absorbed into the
polymer and some is transmitted into the substrate. This direct transfer of
energy creates an immediate reaction in the polymer and cross linking begins
quickly once the surface is exposed to the emitter. Infrared emitters are often
custom manufactured to suit the production demand. The various aspects of
Infrared curing and convection curing and the possibility of combining these
two technologies into a singe system will be discussed in this seminar.
CURING
Curing is a process of baking surface coatings so as to dry them up quickly. Curing is a broad term which means all the techniques employed for the finishing operations incurred during part production. Curing essentially involves either the melting of the coating or evaporation of volatile fluids present in the coating by the application of heat energy.
Curing is given
to a wide range of materials both organic and inorganic .Usually curing is
given to materials like ,
" Paints
" Enamel
" Laquer
" Powder coatings
" Varnishes
" Epoxy coatings
" Acrylic coatings
" Primers Etc
" Enamel
" Laquer
" Powder coatings
" Varnishes
" Epoxy coatings
" Acrylic coatings
" Primers Etc
Curing is also
given to Rubber and Latex .The principle used for curing can also be used for
drying rice and grains.
CONVECTION
CURING
Convection
ovens are usually used for curing purposes. Traditional convection ovens use
heated forced air to provide the necessary cure. Convection ovens consist of a
chamber lined on the inside with Electric heaters. The shape of the chamber
will be in accordance to the shape or geometry of the part being cured. A
series of blowers circulate the heated air around providing the required cure.
This process depends on convection to transfer heat from hot air to body
surface and conduction to transfer heat to the interior of the surface. The air
being delivered is held at temperature using closed-loop control, which
provides predictable, repeatable results. Typically a temperature of around
250-500 degree farenheit is required for paint or powder. Though convection
ovens are widely used today they have certain disadvantages, which chokes the
overall productivity of a company
Disadvantages of convection ovens :
Disadvantages of convection ovens :
" Fairly
long heating times:-
Convection is a slow process. It takes a considerable amount of time for the heaters to heat up and raise the temperature of air to the required level. This causes a lag in the process and hence the curing time increases. Longer curing time spells reduced assembly line movement. This in turn reduces productivity.
Convection is a slow process. It takes a considerable amount of time for the heaters to heat up and raise the temperature of air to the required level. This causes a lag in the process and hence the curing time increases. Longer curing time spells reduced assembly line movement. This in turn reduces productivity.
" High
energy consumption:-
A convection column dryer uses around 2000 BTU(British Thermal Unit) of energy to remove 1 pound of moisture. They use around 7.7 KW of electrical energy to dry a ton of rice. These are significantly larger figures for any company trying to bring energy consumption under control. The additional use of blowers and compressors further increases energy consumption.
A convection column dryer uses around 2000 BTU(British Thermal Unit) of energy to remove 1 pound of moisture. They use around 7.7 KW of electrical energy to dry a ton of rice. These are significantly larger figures for any company trying to bring energy consumption under control. The additional use of blowers and compressors further increases energy consumption.
" Large
floor area required:-
Convection ovens are bulky in nature. Due to the presence of compressors and blowers, additional space is needed, which in turn increases the floor area requirement.
Convection ovens are bulky in nature. Due to the presence of compressors and blowers, additional space is needed, which in turn increases the floor area requirement.
" Air
circulation is required:-
Convection heating requires a medium for transmission of heat. Hence blowers are employed for good circulation of heated air. This increases the overall cost of the equipment.
Convection heating requires a medium for transmission of heat. Hence blowers are employed for good circulation of heated air. This increases the overall cost of the equipment.
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