Elterma

Search page
Advanced search

Main products and services

Heat Treatment Processes Control

sterowanie procesami 2
sterowanie procesami 3
sterowanie procesami 1

 

Heat Treatment Processes Control

Main functions of control system for the heat treatment of metals:

  • measurement and automatic control of process parameters (temperature, atmosphere composition)
  • furnaces mechanisms operation and monitoring
  • process history data acquisition.
These functions are carried out within the fully integrated furnaces control system by the following elements:
  • temperature and furnace atmosphere carbon potential controllers
  • programmable logic controller (PLC), operator’s panel (HMI), recorder and computer control system
  • computer control system and process archive (SCADA system - Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition).
The main advantages of using a computer control and archive systems for heat treatment processes are:
  • full and accurate archive of all heat treatment processes parameters
  • easy storage and reproduction of the recorded information
  • complete control of process
  • easy operation (owing to computer process simulation)
  • increased efficiency.
In addition to the increase of accuracy and repeatability of heat treatment process, use of a computer control system can allow improved organization with regard to production planning (programming of workloads for particular furnaces) and documentation of heat treatment processes in accordance with present quality norms (archive and processes report).

Temperature and carbon potential control

Temperature and atmosphere carbon potential controller with carbon diffusion calculation in "on line" mode

The PROTHERM 300DIFF controller is used as our standard device for programmable temperature and carbon potential control in chamber and carburizing pit furnaces. For multi-chamber furnaces it is applied with the computer system PROTHERM 500 or PROTHERM 600.

The controller is connected to the oxygen probe and thermocouples for temperature measurement inside a furnace chamber. The oxygen probe is a standard measuring sensor in carbon potential control systems. In total ELTERMA S.A. and Seco/Warwick Ltd. have installed over 300 oxygen probes.

For the regulation of carbon potential in hardening belt furnaces and the dew-point regulation in endothermic atmosphere generators instead of an oxygen probe as a measuring sensor a Lambda probe is used.

Computer SCADA systems

Computer based SCADA systems are used to display the real time and archive information of the heat treatment processes:

Specialized PROTHERM 9000/9800 system produced by Process Electronic for carburizing furnaces
Commercial systems - In Touch made by WONDERWARE or iFIX made by Intellution for other furnace applications.

PROTHERM 9000/9800

PROTHERM 9000 system is a specialized SCADA system for superordinated control and carburizing processes archive with calculation of carbon diffusion in "on-line" mode. The system software is based on LINUX operation system.
PROTHERM 9800 system is a modern version of PROTHERM 9000 system. It is equipped with a graphic interface for use with WINDOWS® systems.

Main functions of PROTHERM 9000/9800 system:

  • testing of processes recipes through the simulation of carbon diffusion process in "off-line" mode
  • process control: submitting process recipes and sending values to temperature and carbon potential controllers and moreover the start-up and process course control
  • heat treatment process visualization in the particular furnaces and projection of current carbon content profile in "on-line" mode
  • Process documentation in accordance with current quality norms by loading the correct recipe from the furnace computer workloads database and prints of process reports for particular workloads.


Complete heat treatment processes control systems, including control-measuring apparatus are assembled into control cabinets, which are in total designed and assembled at ELTERMA S.A.