Electric Furnaces

Electric heating is any

process in which electrical
energy is converted to heat.
Common applications
include heating,
cooking, water heating and
industrial processes. Wasted
energy appears as heat called
dielectric loss. The
nonmetallic material with
poor thermal conductivity
can be very effectively
heated by dielectric heating. Dielectric loss Figure 7: An electric furnaces
is proportional to frequency and square of the supply Voltage. Frequency can be
selected between 10to 30kHz and voltage about 20kV.
When a solid dielectric material (Insulating) is subjected to an alternating
electric field, it is not supposed to carry any current. However, in practice some
leakage current passes through it and power loss is takes place. This loss is called
as dielectric loss and result into heating of dielectric material.

Application of Dielectric Heating

Plywood Industry

Bakeries

Sand Core Baking

Electronic Sawing

Plastic Industry

Dehydration of food

Tobacco Industry

Electro medical application

Advantages of Dielectric Heating

Heating is very quick

The efficiency is higher
Heating is uniform
Being free from smoke, dust, process is very clean
There are no flue gases, no risk of pollution
Heat is produced due to dielectric loss occurs in the material itself.

There are three types of electric furnaces:

Resistance

Arc Furnace

Furnace

Induction
Furnace

Resistance Furnace

An electric furnace in which heat is generated by conductors th

at offer resistance topassage of a current through them. Resistance furnaces a
re widely used in heat treatment, for heating prior to pressureshaping, and to
dry or melt materials.

Resistance furnaces are used extensively because of their numer

ous advantages. Any temperature up to 3000C can beobtained in the furnac
e chamber. Articles can be uniformly heated either by appropriately locating
the heating elementsalong the walls of the furnace chamber or by means of f
orced circulation of the furnace atmosphere. Automatic control ofthe power

and, consequently, of the temperature conditions in such a furnace is easily i

mplemented. Resistance furnacesare readily mechanized and automated, thu
s alleviating the work of personnel and facilitating the inclusion of such furn
acesin automatic transfer lines. In addition, they are compact. Such furnaces
provide a secure environment for variousprocesses. A resistance furnace ma
y be well sealed, in which case the heating is carried out in a vacuum, or it m
ay containeither a gaseous medium that prevents oxidation or a special atmo
sphere for chemical case hardening, for example, forcarburization or nitridin
g.

Figure 8: Diagram of a batch type resistance furnace

1) Heating element
2) Refractory Lining

3) Heat Insulation
4) Refractory Hearth Plate

5)

Arc Furnaces

6)
7)
An electri
c arc furnace (EAF) is
a furnace that heats
charged material by
means of an arc.
Industrial arc furnaces
range in size from
small units of
approximately
one ton capacity (used
in foundries for
producing cast
iron products) up to
about 400 ton units
used for secondary steelmaking. Arc furnaces used in research laboratories
and by dentists may
Figure 9: Parts of an Arc Furnaces
have a capacity of only a few dozen grams. Industrial electric arc furnace
temperatures can be up to 1,800 C (3,272 F), while laboratory units can
exceed 3,000 C (5,432 F). Industrial EAF used around 200-300 volts at
10k-30k amps. And burns some of your electrodes during operation for us its
8-10 inches per heat. The amps set your heat and volts set where your heat
goes.
8) When voltage is applied between the two electrodes separated by small
distance in air is increased, a stage is reached when the air gets ionized and
air act like conducting. Hence, current flows between the electrodes in the
form of continuous spark called ARC. This self-sustained discharge of
electricity between 2 electrodes through air is known as Electric ARC. An
ARC drawn between 2 electrodes has a temperature between 3000 C to3500
C depending upon the electrode material.
9)
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11)

Arc Heating Types

12)
Direct ARC heating

 Indirect ARC heating

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16)
17) Direct ARC Furnace
18)

19)
20) Direct
ARC is established
between the charge and
the electrode. The heat
directly conducted to
the charge which
charge absorb. Hence,
this method is called
Direct ARC heating.
This consist of Carbon
or Graphite electrode.
The power is controlled
by adjusting the ARC
length by moving the electrodes manually or automatically. Direct ARC
operates at 0.8 p.f. lagging.
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Uses of Direct Arc Furnaces:

Making of Alloy steels like stainless and high speed steel

Composition can be controlled during refining process.
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28)

Indirect Arc Furnace

29)
30) Indirect arc is formed between two electrodes and heat is
transmitted to the charge by radiation. Lower temperature than direct ARC.

is

It operates at 0.85 p.f. lagging have to provide rocking motion through a

motor to distribute heat uniformly.
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34)

Uses of Indirect Arc Furnaces

35)
Melting non-ferrous metals.
36)
37)
Due to
application of sufficiently
high voltage across an air
gap causes the air in the
gap to get ionized and
form ARC drawn between
two electrodes develop
high temperature (30003500C) depending upon
material. ARC may be
used in following ways:
by striking between charge
and electrodes-principle
behind Direct ARC Furnace by striking between two electrodes principle
behind Indirect ARC Furnace by striking between an electrode and the two
metallic pieces to be joined -principle behind ARC welding.
38)
39)
40)

41) Advantages of electric arc furnace for

steelmaking
42) The use of EAFs allows steel to be made from a 100% scrap
metal feedstock. This greatly reduces the energy required to make steel when
compared with primary steelmaking from ores. Another benefit is flexibility:
while blast furnaces cannot vary their production by much and can remain in
operation for years at a time, EAFs can be rapidly started and stopped,
allowing the steel mill to vary production according to demand. Although
steelmaking arc furnaces generally use scrap steel as their primary feedstock,

if hot metal from a blast furnace or direct-reduced iron is available

economically, these can also be used as furnace feed. As EAFs require large
quantities of electrical power, many companies schedule their operations to
take advantage of off peak electricity pricing.
43) A typical steelmaking arc furnace is the source of steel for a
mini-mill, which may make bars or strip product. Mini-mills can be sited
relatively near to the markets for steel products, and the transport
requirements are less than for an integrated mill, which would commonly be
sited near a harbour for access to shipping.
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45)

Environmental issues

46) Although the modern electric arc furnace is a highly efficient

recycler of steel scrap, operation of an arc furnace shop can have adverse
environmental effects. Much of the capital cost of a new installation will be
devoted to systems intended to reduce these effects, which include:
47)

Enclosures to reduce high sound levels

Dust collector for furnace off-gas
Slag production
Cooling water demand
Heavy truck traffic for scrap, materials handling, and product
Environmental effects of electricity generation

48)
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50)

Submerged Arc Heating

51) Arc is formed

between carbon electrodes
placed at top and earth
electrode or the conducting
earth itself. Number of
electrodes depends on type of
supply. Power is controlled by
varying supply or varying
distance between electrodes.
Better mixing of Charge.
Operates at 0.8 p.f. lagging.
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57)

Uses of submerged arc heating

58)
Manufacturing of ferro-chrome and ferro-manganese
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Induction Furnace

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65)
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68) Induction method is based on Principle of Electromagnetic
Induction. When alternating Current flows in a conductor it produces

alternating flux. If any other conducting material is placed in this magnetic

flux emf gets induced in it. This induced emf drives eddy current in that
piece and power loss due to eddy current appears as heat.
69)
70) Induction furnaces are ideal for melting and alloying a wide
variety of metals with minimum melt losses, however, little refining of the
metal is possible.
71)
72)

There are two main types of induction furnace:

Coreless Induction
Channel Induction
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Coreless induction furnaces

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76)

The heart of the coreless induction furnace is the coil, which

consists of a hollow section of heavy duty, high conductivity copper tubing
which is wound into a helical coil. Coil shape is contained within a steel
shell and magnetic shielding is used to prevent heating of the supporting
shell. To protect it from overheating, the coil is water-cooled, the water bing
recirculated and cooled in a cooling tower. The shell is supported on
trunnions on which the furnace tils to facilitate pouring.

77) The
crucible is formed by
ramming a granular
refractory between
the coil and a hollow
internal former
which is melted
away with the first
heat leaving a
sintered lining.
78) The
power crucible
converts the voltage
and frequency of
main supply, ot that required for electrical melting. Frequencies used in
induction melting vary from 50 cycles per second (mains frequency) to
10,000 cycles per second (high frequency). The higher the operating
frequency, the greater the maximum amount of power that can be applied to
a furnace of given capacity and the lower the amount of turbulence induced.
79) When the charge material is molten, the interaction of the
magnetic field and the electrical currents flowing in the induction coil
produce a stirring action within the molten metal. This stirring action forces
the molten metal to rise upwards in the centre causing the characteristic
meniscus on the surface of the metal. The degree of stirring action is
influenced by the power and frequency applied as well as the size and shape
of the coil and the density and viscosity of the molten metal. The stirring
action within the bath is important as it helps with mixing of alloys and
melting of turnings as well as homogenizing of temperature throughout the
furnace. Excessive stirring can increase gas pick up, lining wear and
oxidation of alloys.
80) The coreless induction furnace has largely replaced the crucible
furnace, especially for melting of high melting point alloys. The coreless
induction furnace is commonly used to melt all grades of steels and irons as
well as many non-ferrous alloys. The furnace is ideal for remelting and
alloying because of the high degree of control over temperature and
chemistry while the induction current provides good circulation of the melt.

81)

82)

Channel induction furnaces

83)

84)
84)
The chann
el induction
furnace consists
of a refractory
lined steel shell
which contains
the molten
metal. Attached
to the steel shell
and connected
by a throat is an
induction unit
which forms the
melting component of the furnace. The induction unit consists of an iron
core in the form of a ring around which a primary induction coil is wound.
This assembly forms a simple transformer in which the molten metal loops
comprises the secondary component. The heat generated within the loop
causes the metal to circulate into the main well of the furnace. The
circulation of the molten metal effects a useful stirring action in the melt.
85) Channel induction furnaces are commonly used for melting low
melting point alloys and or as a holding and superheating unit for higher
melting point alloys such as cast iron. Channel induction furnaces can be
used as holders for metal melted off peak in coreless induction units thereby
reducing total melting costs by avoiding peak demand charges.
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87)

Factors for Induction heating:

88)
It is proportional to relative permeability. Heating produced in magnetic
material is more than nonmagnetic material.
89)

 Heating is proportional to MMF. Force can be vary by changing current or

number of turns.
90)
Heating effect can be increased by employing high frequency supply.
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Operation OF Induction Heating

94)
95) When the primary winding is connected to the supply , theeddy
currents gets induced in the metal container forming thwalls of the oven.Due
to eddy currents, metal container gets heated and then itransferred to the
charge by radiation.
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Action of Special Alloy

100) Oven reaches its critical temperature. Magnetic circuit loses its
magnetic property. Due to this reluctance of the magnetic circuit becomes
very high and inductive effect corresponding decreases.
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103)

Advantages of Induction Furnace

104)
Simple and foolproof method of temperature control
No external temperature control equipments required
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Limitations of Induction Furnaces

107)
Poor Power factor
Complicated Construction Applications
108)

109) Don Honorio Ventura Technological State

University

110)

Bacolor, Pampanga

111)
FURNACE
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117) Group 3
118)

Bendicio , Neil Aldrine

119)

Cordova, Arvin

120)

Guevarra, Sherwin

121)

Nabartey , Mherk Anthony

122)

Nacion, Cheska

123)

Nacpil , Jonas

124)

Yambao, Justin

125)

126)
Escober

Engr. Ramon
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128)

Instructor