2020 has been quite the year for in-person meetings, with almost all being cancelled nationwide since April. Every association has had to adjust, innovate and create an alternative learning and networking experience for their industry.

We continue to review some of the most important materials in heat treatment and metallurgy.  

How much do you think you know about high-temperature corrosion, and what does “high temperature” really mean?

Lincotek Additive completed a state-of-the-art Additive Production Center for medical devices in its Trento, Italy, facility by installing a new high-vacuum furnace and a validated heat-treatment process specifically designed for 3D-printed titanium parts. The project – along with an expansion in lab capabilities – will triple the capacity for thermal treatment at the site.

Lindberg/MPH shipped a continuous mesh-belt conveyor furnace to a microelectronics manufacturer in the United States. The furnace is configured for process applications requiring a nitrogen/hydrogen blend process atmosphere in the heating section muffle at process temperatures up to 1832°F (1000°C). The combustible gas system provides a timed nitrogen gas purge of the muffle before process gas can be introduced into the furnace muffle.

Nitrex is set to start the fourth phase of expansion at its commercial heat-treating facility in Aurora, Ill. The project will add a fourth building that will house a new low-pressure carburizing (LPC) system and secondary heat-treating equipment. The ECM vacuum carburizing furnace with oil-quench capabilities will help meet growing demand from makers of high-end critical parts within the automotive, aerospace and tooling industries. The 20-bar dual-chamber furnace has a workload size of 40 inches long x 24 inches wide x 28 inches high (1,000 x 600 x 715 mm) and a load capacity of 1,500 pounds (680 kg).

No. 1040 is a 2200°F (1204°C) inert-atmosphere pit furnace that can be used for heat treating automotive parts in baskets.

Armil CFS Inc. shipped a hydraulic pusher furnace designed to burn out and preheat investment-casting molds to a Midwest manufacturer of marine propulsion components. The furnace, which includes an automated tray extraction system and return conveyor, is designed to push a 48-inch-wide tray holding investment-casting molds up to 18 inches high. The combustion system is configured to promote clean firing of ceramic molds at temperatures up to 2150°F (1177°C).

Tenova LOI Thermprocess, a global company in the field of heat-treatment plants based in Essen, Germany, underwent a change in its management.

It would be easy to refer to Salto Heat Treating as the “new kid on the block.” Just a couple of months old, the company is northern Ontario’s first fully automated commercial heat-treating facility.