MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING

Assignment # 3

Submitted To:
Sir Akhtar Khurshid

Submitted By:
Daniel Shehroz Khan
160341
BEMTS-VIII (B)

Air University Islamabad

Date: 16-04-2020
 FURNACES
What are Furnaces?
In metal casting, the required heat to be exerted to the metal so as to reach its
melting point is applied through the furnaces. A furnace is used to melt the metals
in initial stages of the metallurgical process. There are different types of melting
furnaces used in casting

Process Flow diagram of Furnace in foundry

Selection Criteria for Furnace

The selection of the melting unit is one of the most important decisions foundries
must make with due consideration to several important factors including:
1. The temperature required to melt the alloy
2. The melting rate and quantity of molten metal required
3. The economy of installation and operation
 4. Environmental and waste disposal requirements

Types of Furnaces
Cupola Furnace
The cupola is a most widely used foundry furnace for melting ferrous metals and
alloys. Sometimes, it is also used for melting non-ferrous metals and alloys.
Cupola furnace is the cheapest means for converting pig iron or scrap metal into
gray cast iron. The fuel used is a good quality low Sulphur coke. Anthracite coal or
carbon briquettes may also be used.

Process Description
The cupola furnace has a special significance for the production of cast iron. Over
the decades a great deal of development work has been carried out to optimise
melting performance and costs. Scrap pig iron, recycled material and aggregates
are loaded into the oven from the top and pre-heated on their way to the melting
zone. Melt and slag is separated from each other and continuously or
discontinuously tapped off.
Energy for the melting process in the cupola furnace, with the exception of the
cokeless cupola furnace, is created through the combustion of coke. The oxygen-
enriched air necessary for the process is fed into the combustion zone via wind
nozzles.  
The combustion zone is covered by the melting zone, further creating a reduction
zone. The use of oxygen is particularly effective when the feed system used allows
it to penetrate deeply into the coke bed. This can be attained through addition of
oxygen at supersonic speeds. The aim is to achieve a uniform temperature increase
and an even melting of the feed over the entire furnace cross-section without
additional wear to the refractory material

Structure of Cupola Furnace

The cupola is a shaft type furnace whose height is three to five times its diameter;
it is most widely used furnace for producing molten gray cast iron.
 Shell
The shell is constructed of a steel plate of about 10 mm thick riveted or
welded together and that is internally lined with refractory fireclay bricks.
The shell diameter varies from 1 to 2 meters with a height of about three to
five times the diameter.

 Foundation
The whole structure is erected on legs or steel columns. A drop door, which
is made of one piece, is hinged to a supporting leg. When the cupola is full
of charge, a prop support at the bottom door is provided so that door remains
close and do not collapse due to the heavy weight of the charge. If the
cupola is not in use, the drop door allows for maintenance and repair work of
the furnace lining.

 Charging Door
Towards the top of the furnace there is an opening called charging door is
situated. The charging door is used for feeding the charge containing metal,
coke and flux, into the furnace. It is situated at the height of about 3 to 6 m
above the tuyers.
 Charging Platform
The charging platform is made of robust mild steel rods and plates. Usually,
it is surrounding the cupola at the level of about 0.3 m below the bottom of
the charging door.

 Air Blower
An air blower is connected to the wind box by means of blast pipe. It
supplies the air to the wind box. A valve is provided in the blast pipe to
control the flow of air. The blast pressure varies from 250 kg/m2 to 1050
kg/m2

 Tuyeres
Air, which is needed for the combustion is blown through the tuyeres located
about 36 inches (0.9 m) above the bottom of the furnace. Total area of the
tuyeres should be 1/5 to 1/6 of the cross-section area of the cupola inside the
lining at tuyere level.

 Volume meter
The volume meter is installed in a cupola furnace to know the volume of air
passing. The amount of air needed to melt one tone of iron depends upon the
quality and quantity of coke and coke iron ratio.

 Tap Hole
Slightly above the bottom and in the front, there are a tap hole to allow
molten cast iron to be collected

 Slag Hole
There is also a slag hole located at the rear and above the level of the tap
hole because slag floats on the surface of molten cast iron.

 Chimney
The portion of shell above charging hole is known as chimney. Its height is
generally 4 to 6 m. The chimney is provided with a filter screen and a spark
arrester. This facilitates a free escape of the waste gases and deflects the
sparks and the dust back into the furnace.
Advantage of Cupola Furnace
1. It is simple in construction and operation.
2. Low cast of construction, operation and maintenance.
3. It has a continuous and fast rate of production.
4. It does not require very skilled operators.
5. It requires small floor area as compared to other furnaces.
6. Composition of melt can be controlled.

Limitation of Cupola Furnace

1. Temperature control is difficult to maintain.
2. Carbon content increases in the iron product due to the heating of coke
together with metal.

Electric Induction Furnance

The electric induction furnace is a type of melting furnace that uses electric
currents to melt metal. 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.

Principal of Induction Furnace

The principle of induction furnace is the Induction heating. Induction heating is a
form of non-contact heating for conductive materials. The principle of induction
heating is mainly based on two well-known physical phenomena:
1. Electromagnetic induction
The energy transfer to the object to be heated occurs by means of
electromagnetic induction. Any electrically conductive material placed in a
variable magnetic field is the site of induced electric currents, called eddy
currents, which will eventually lead to joule heating
2. The Joule effects
Joule heating, also known as ohmic heating and resistive heating, is the process
by which the passage of an electric current through a conductor releases heat.
The heat produced is proportional to the square of the current multiplied by the
electrical resistance of the wire.

Induction heating relies on the unique characteristics of radio frequency

(RF) energy - that portion of the electromagnetic spectrum below infrared
and microwave energy. Since heat is transferred to the product via
electromagnetic waves, the part never comes into direct contact with any
 flame, the inductor itself does not get hot and there is no product
contamination.
 Induction heating is a rapid, clean, non-polluting heating.
 The induction coil is cool to the touch; the heat that builds up in the coil
is constantly cooled with circulating water.
Features
 An electric induction furnace requires an electric coil to produce the charge.
This heating coil is eventually replaced.
 The crucible in which the metal is placed is made of stronger materials that
can resist the required heat, and the electric coil itself cooled by a water
system so that it does not overheat or melt.
 The induction furnace can range in size, from a small furnace used for very
precise alloys only about a kilogram in weight to a much larger furnaces
made to mass produce clean metal for many different applications.
 The advantage of the induction furnace is a clean, energy-efficient and well
controllable melting process compared to most other means of metal
melting.
 foundries use this type of furnace and now also more iron foundries are
replacing cupolas with induction furnaces to melt cast iron, as the former
emit lots of dust and other pollutants.
Construction
 There are many different designs for the electric induction furnace, but they
all center around a basic idea.
 The electrical coil is placed around or inside of the crucible, which holds the
metal to be melted. Often this crucible is divided into two different parts.
The lower section holds the melt in its purest form, the metal as the
manufacturers desire it, while the higher section is used to remove the slag,
or the contaminants that rise to the surface of the melt.
 Crucibles may also be equipped with strong lids to lessen how much air has
access to the melting metal until it is poured out, making a purer melt
Types of Induction Furnace
There are two main types of induction furnace: coreless and channel.
Coreless induction furnaces

 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.
 To protect it from overheating, the coil is water-cooled, the water being
recirculated and cooled in a cooling tower.
 The crucible is formed by ramming a granular refractory between the coil
and a hollow internal.
 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
Channel Induction Furnaces
 The channel 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.
 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.

Advantage of Induction Furnaces

Induction furnaces offer certain advantages over other furnace systems. They
include:
Higher Yield.
The absence of combustion sources reduces oxidation losses that can be significant
in production economics.
Faster Startup.
Full power from the power supply is available, instantaneously, thus reducing the
time to reach working temperature. Cold charge-to-tap times of one to two hours
are common.
Flexibility.
No molten metal is necessary to start medium frequency coreless induction
melting equipment. This facilitates repeated cold starting and frequent alloy
changes.
Natural Stirring.
Medium frequency units can give a strong stirring action resulting in a
homogeneous melt.
Cleaner Melting.
No by-products of combustion means a cleaner melting environment and no
associated products of combustion pollution control systems.
Compact Installation.
High melting rates can be obtained from small furnaces.
Reduced Refractory.
The compact size in relation to melting rate means induction furnaces require
much less refractory than fuel-fired units
Better Working Environment.
Induction furnaces are much quieter than gas furnaces, arc furnaces, or cupolas. No
combustion gas is present and waste heat is minimized.
Energy Conservation.
Overall energy efficiency in induction melting ranges from 55 to 75 percent, and
is significantly better than combustion processes.