Ceramics & Refractories/Insulation

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Hard lessons learned from the 2020 pandemic taught us that we needed to rebuild and re-establish our U.S. supply-chain ecosystem. The systemic shock to our global supply chains left us with bottlenecks, shortages and an acute awareness of our overdependence on imports.

When it comes to lining fired heaters in the petrochemical industry, refractory ceramic fiber has been the go-to material. However, it has its drawbacks. Consider an alternative material and learn how it can mitigate refractory ceramic fiber’s limitations.

The Plibrico Company, a global supplier of industrial refractories, relocated its Salem, Ohio, construction office to a bigger facility. The larger location will support its continued development of refractory products while providing an improved work environment for employees. The expansion was fueled by the company’s growth in the Midwest over the last five years, necessitating a larger space for employees and for more streamlined production flow due to ongoing investments in equipment. The new facility, which is nearly 25% larger than the previous facility, houses additional atmosphere-controlled manufacturing and storage areas for Redi-Shapes precast shape molds and more than doubles the current space for the company’s in-house construction and fabrication area.

Here is a complete list of all the feature articles – by topic – that appeared in Industrial Heating in 2020. The month each article appeared in is included. All articles are hyperlinked for your convenience.

Refractory Sheet Type RS-1200 is a high-strength composite designed for use as thermomechanical and electrical insulation in applications with temperatures as high as 2372°F (1300°C). RS-1200 is a combination of strong reinforcing fibers tightly bound in an alumina ceramic matrix.

The Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) in the U.S. Department of Energy is sponsoring research to formulate high-quality metal powders optimized for metal additive manufacturing (AM), including hard-to-build alloys such as high-temperature refractory alloys. AM refractory multi-principal-element alloys (MPEAs), comprising elements with melting points of 1850-2200°C, offer the potential for step-change improvements in extreme high-temperature resistance needed for the newest high-efficiency gas turbines and other industrial applications.

If you’re at all like me, you wonder which articles get the most attention on our website. Every year we publish around 45 feature articles, and at the end of the year we gather statistics to see which ones get the most page views. So, without further ado, here are the five most-viewed articles on www.industrialheating.com based on page views. This ranking applies only to articles published in 2020.

A manufacturer of remote-controlled demolition machines offers specialized, high-heat options ideal for processing applications. Equipment customization with heat-resistant options allows facilities and contractors to tailor equipment to fit their specific needs and the unique demands of steel and foundry applications.

Industrial Heating, during a Q&A session at FNA 2020, announced that it will support the Reshoring Initiative with a $2,500 sponsorship. The mission of the Reshoring Initiative is to bring good, well-paying manufacturing jobs back to the United States by assisting companies to more accurately assess their total cost of offshoring and to shift collective thinking from offshoring is cheaper to local reduces the total cost of ownership. As part of this new relationship, the Reshoring Initiative will provide Industrial Heating with editorial content throughout 2021.

The key to reducing or eliminating unscheduled downtime and minimizing the need for scheduled repairs lies in efficient and quality brick installation. By minimizing air gaps, interlocking rings or loose bricks, the life of kiln lining is extended, and unscheduled or emergency maintenance can be drastically reduced.