Aluminium International Today Newspaper

The Journal of aluminum production and processing

ALUMINUM USA is returning to Nashville, TN, October 25-26, 2023. Join top industry professionals for two days of exhibits, networking, and conference programming.

ALUMINUM USA aims to showcase cuttingedge technologies, foster collaboration, and promote knowledge exchange to shape the future of the aluminum sector. Whether you are an industry veteran or an aspiring newcomer, ALUMINUM USA offers an inclusive space for everyone interested in exploring the boundless possibilities of aluminum while also enjoying some of the attractions downtown Nashville has to offer!

The Gateway to Innovation

At ALUMINUM USA, innovation takes center stage. Exhibitors from top companies in the aluminum industry such as Wagstaff, Mechatherm, and Gillespie & Powers along with a plethora of SMEs and start-ups demonstrate their latest breakthroughs and products. Attendees get a firsthand look at cutting-edge machinery, advanced processes, and sustainable practices driving the industry forward. From smelting and casting to rolling and extrusion, every aspect of the aluminum production chain finds representation on the show floor.

Not only does ALUMINUM USA showcase existing technologies, but it also offers a glimpse into the future through R&D presentations and innovation forums. Attendees can witness prototypes and concepts that will shape the aluminum landscape in the coming years. This visionary approach inspires industries to adopt more efficient, sustainable, and advanced practices, propelling them into a greener and smarter future.

Building Connections, Enhancing Networks

ALUMINUM USA creates a unique environment that encourages meaningful connections and partnerships. Attendees can engage with industry experts, researchers, and potential clients, opening doors to new opportunities. Whether you are seeking to secure business deals or learn from experienced professionals, the event offers a vibrant networking space where ideas and collaborations flourish.

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Additionally, ALUMINUM USA hosts conferences, seminars, and workshops with prominent speakers sharing their insights on industry trends and best practices. These knowledge-sharing sessions not only keep attendees updated on the latest developments but also provide invaluable learning opportunities for industry newcomers.

Sustainable Solution for a Greener Tomorrow

Sustainability-focused seminars and discussions provide a platform to explore pressing environmental challenges and collaborative strategies to address them. Attendees can gain valuable insights into resource management, circular economy models, and the importance of sustainable practices within the sector. From recycling initiatives to energy-efficient production methods, attendees can explore a wide range of solutions that promote environmental sustainability.

What’s New to the Show This Year

The ALUMINUM USA team has been hard at work developing some new and exciting features for this year’s Show. Here’s a sneak peek at what can be expected this October:

○ The ALUMINUM USA Conference Program, in association with CRU and the Aluminum Association.

○ The official ALUMINUM USA Networking

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○ 175+ Exhibitors

○ Networking Breakfast

○ ALUMINUM USA Innovation Theater

○ Exhibitor Events, including a bourbon and whiskey trail right on the Show Floor!

ALUMINUM USA is THE event that unites professionals, researchers, and experts from all areas of the industry. The event helps drive progress, shapes a sustainable future, and unveils the boundless possibilities of aluminum.

ALUMINUM USA is an unmissable opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals, witness groundbreaking technologies, and embrace the future of aluminum. Join us at ALUMINUM USA and be a part of shaping the next chapter in the story of aluminum.

ALUMINUM USA: Unveiling the Future of Aluminum

Building on our Successes - How the Aluminum Industry Continues to Advance Sustainability

Trending Marketing Insights for Aluminum Thermal Processing

8 Aluminum used in solar PV arrays helps protect communities during disasters in The USA

9 Industrial furnace plants under the sign of modernization and transformation

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Aluminum USA: Norsk Hydro’s Aluminum Preserves a Piece of History, Unlocking Unique Collaboration

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Aluminum Scrap and Dross Recycling Plants

Plugging in to greener power with Combilift

Maximize Productivity of your Cast House with RiA: Charge at the earliest and safest time, every time.

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Automation and Sustainability: Gränges Leading the Way Together with Precimeter

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Custom Melting Furnaces Engineered to Exceed Expectations

MQP takes high efficiency grain refiners and casthouse solutions to next level

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Laser Induced Breakdown

Spectroscopy in Aluminum Cast Houses: The New Technology Promises to Reduce Downtime and Energy Consumption

BUILDING ON OUR SUCCESSES

How the Aluminum Industry Continues to Advance Sustainability

By Charles Johnson, President & CEO, The Aluminum Association

Sustainability, in all its many forms, is more important today than ever before. As governments, customers and consumers put a higher priority on sustainable materials and practices, it’s vital that industry do its part. By developing, implementing and refining business practices, the materials space can make progress – on decarbonization, recycling, responsible production and more – throughout the value chain. As we incorporate these values into our purchasing choices, there will be winners and losers in the material space. But what we are seeing is that aluminum is more and more a material that is chosen to answer these sustainability concerns.

The aluminum industry is relatively young compared to many other materials, and we were early movers recognizing the importance of recycling and addressing

scrap usage. In nearly every area, the U.S. aluminum industry has reduced its impact significantly since the 1990s. We can attribute this improvement to both performance improvements by the U.S. industry and the transition from an aluminum supply heavily reliant on primary metal to one that includes significantly more recycled material.

Further, a third-party critical-reviewed life cycle assessment (LCA) report found that since 1991, the carbon footprint of primary aluminum production declined by 49% while the footprint of recycled aluminum production dropped by 60%. It’s important to note that aluminum producers have accomplished these improvements during a period when domestic demand for the metal has grown dramatically – making more metal, more sustainably.

carbon reduction. These efforts span decades. From supporting the modern recycling movement of the 1970s to helping automakers meet fuel-efficiency demands as early as the 1990s to working on voluntary carbon reduction programs with the EPA in the 2000s – the aluminum industry has been and remains committed to actionable steps to improve its overall environmental impact from production to semi-fabrication to recycling.

And this work has had an impact. Across markets, data shows positive environmental impact trendlines for the U.S. aluminum industry on virtually every measure over the past 25 years. The U.S. Aluminum Industry Sector Snapshot report, created by the Aluminum Association and relying on public reporting by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), focuses on seven key environmental issue areas – air, energy, greenhouse gas emissions, land management, water, waste, and aluminum

In all the discussion of “green” aluminum on the production side, it’s important that we don’t lose sight of progress that can be made by growing aluminum recycling. The aluminum business essentially built the modern recycling business in the 1970s in a bid to bring more aluminum beverage cans back into the system to be melted down and made into new cans. These systems remain in place today and help ensure that the average American-made aluminum can contains 73% recycled content.

Aluminum production in the U.S. is increasingly a story of scrap recovery and recycling. In fact, the United States is recycling more aluminum today than ever before. Today, more than 80% of U.S. production is in making recycled (or secondary) aluminum. This compares to 20% to 30% recycled production in the 1980s.

Despite this progress, more can be done. In the aluminum can market alone, we still throw away far too many cans. In fact,

despite a recycling rate that outpaces other material types, every year some 40 billion cans end up in landfills – that’s around a dozen 12-packs worth of cans for every American and $800 million worth of metal. The Aluminum Association is advocating for new investment and policy changes to stem this tide. In addition to calls for more investment in recycling infrastructure, the industry is pushing strongly for recycling refund (container deposit) programs as a proven way to drive more recycling through our Recycling Refunds Work campaign. Looking further down the supply chain, aluminum is critical to improving the efficiency of many products in the use phase. It helps vehicles go farther using less energy, makes the most efficient and recyclable beverage package, and supports sustainable buildings through its lightweight durability. Aluminum is also a critical component in

revolutionary technology that eliminates virtually all direct greenhouse gas emissions from the production of new aluminum, improving the energy efficiency in downstream manufacturing processes or building new, state-of-the-art aluminum rolling mills in the United States for the first time since Ronald Reagan was president, our members pursue new approaches every day to make this lightweight, durable and infinitely recyclable material using less energy and with lower emissions.

Sustainability and the push for “greener” aluminum is central to the Aluminum Association’s mission. Every day, our team works to develop research and amplify the industry’s sustainability story. We’re proud of the progress we’ve already made, and we’re nowhere close to done. We have several sustainability projects underway including a North American roadmap to spell out

the green infrastructure of the future. Low carbon technologies including solar, wind, energy storage, electric vehicle chargers and more all rely heavily on aluminum. The metal is used widely in both on-shore and off-shore wind projects, including tower platform components and turbines. According to a 2020 study by the World Bank, aluminum is the single most widely used material in solar photovoltaic (PV) applications. In fact, the metal accounts for more than 85% of most solar PV components – from frames to panels. And aluminum-ion batteries have the potential to revolutionize energy storage systems.

The U.S. aluminum industry continues to innovate and find new ways to produce this essential metal in as environmentally sustainable way as possible. Whether it’s

potential pathways and strategic options for the industry to reduce carbon emissions even further in the coming decades. Working hand in glove with our member companies, the Aluminum Association is leading the way toward a more sustainable future.

•• Learn more about our efforts at ChooseAluminum.org

•• See us on Stand 64 www.aluminum.org

Industry leading air-cooled furnace stirring technology

Increasing productivity, reducing energy and improving operational efficiency

The ALTEK Electro-Magnetic Stirrer (EMS) is the most versatile and advanced air-cooled furnace stirring system available to the industry. Pioneers in this field, Altek’s EMS has been installed around the world on a variety of furnace types and sizes, from reverbatories up to 145T capacity, to curved EMS designs for dome furnaces, and applications for scrap submergence as well.

Benefits include

• Increased furnace productivity

– up to 25%

• Reduced energy consumption

– up to 15%

• Reduced metal loss

– up to 25%

• Guaranteed temperature and chemical homogeneity

• Bottom and side-mounted applications available

• 100% air-cooled inductor

PART OF OUR LEADING END-TO-END DROSS MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

Trending Marketing for Aluminum Thermal Processing

STEADY AND INCREASING

MELTERS’ DEMAND

Is demand increasing or decreasing for aluminum processing/melting equipment?

AFC-Holcroft: “Yes, we continue to see opportunities for a variety of furnaces for T5, T6, and other aluminum heat treating processes. We recently signed a license agreement with Sanken Sangyo in Japan to offer their aluminum rotary furnace designs in the U.S. and Canada.”

Can-Eng Furnaces Intl., Ltd.: “Yes, particularly in finished component heat treatment systems (T4, T5, T6, and T7 processes). The processing demand is coming from new vehicle (ICE, hybrid, electric) model line-ups that are focusing heavily on lightweighting body in white (BIW), structural, and suspension components that are being converted from steel to aluminum.”

Typically, our clients are requesting either solution furnaces, drop bottom furnaces, or pre-heat furnaces. There has been an increased demand for larger furnace chamber sizes and heavier load capacities as more customers are requesting furnaces that can handle a variety of materials, temperature ranges, and processes. It seems the aerospace industry is driving most of the demand at the moment.”

SECO/WARWICK: “On the molten metal side of the SECO/WARWICK business, there are a few significant projects out there which are active, and the level of inquiries is good!”

Wisconsin Oven: “We have seen an uptick in solution treat and aging equipment in recent years.”

volumes are still low, which has kept heat treating equipment investments at a minimum.”

Can-Eng Furnaces Intl., Ltd.: “No noticeable increase.”

Lindberg/MPH: “There have been more requests than in the past few years for sintering applications which, I believe, is largely driven by the increase in 3D metal printing manufacturing.”

Premier Furnace Specialists: “The company has been receiving a number of requests for smaller batch style ovens for the processing of additive manufactured/3D printed materials. We have also fulfilled a number of requests to alter existing or used systems to meet new process requirements.”

SECO/WARWICK: “On the molten metal side, this would be what we call the powdered metals

ADAPTATIONS TO SLOW SUPPLY CHAINS

Have international supply chain disruptions impacted demand for your company’s equipment?

AFC-Holcroft: “There are certainly disruptions, but we’re finally starting to see some improvements. Our team has worked hard to mitigate the supply chain challenges through unique forward-looking programs with our suppliers and clients. As far as demand goes, it has not had an impact at all. In fact, we are currently experiencing booking levels that we haven’t seen in more than 20 years.”

Can-Eng Furnaces Intl., Ltd.: “Clients are planning ahead to address the longer lead times.”

ABOUT THE INDUSTRY EXPERTS

Are there rapid changes in the North American aluminum industry to accommodate trending technology, or does the aluminum market have a different focus? Six industry players respond.

Source: Premier Furnace Specialists/BeaverMatic

Dougherty Chief Operating Officer AFC-Holcroft LLC

quench system used for the solution treatment of parts (Source: Wisconsin Oven)

Marketing Insights Processing

Lindberg/MPH: “We have noticed that supply chain issues in general, both domestic and international, have created an environment where lead times to build equipment have more than doubled. This has caused many clients to begin looking for alternative solutions to meet their needs, as they cannot wait two-thirds of a year for equipment. The largest delays are with refractory, gas burners, alloy, and many various control components.”

Premier Furnace Specialists: “Actually, we’ve seen an increase in demand for our equipment from various industries impacted by disruptions. Many companies seem to be reassessing their supply chains and expanding production capacity to avoid future disruptions.”

SECO/WARWICK: “Lately our clients are for projects that are further out, 1–2 years in some cases. Most of our end users are aware that prices are still moving up and deliveries are stretched out, however there have been some improvements of deliveries on MCC’s and PLC’s.”

Wisconsin Oven: “Not that we know of.”

THE STATE OF SUSTAINABILITY IN ALUMINUM MARKET

Has the sustainability push affected demand for your equipment?

AFC-Holcroft: “Again, no impact on demand, but our group has been offering many ‘green’ options on our equipment for years to assist our clients in the drive for a reduction in their carbon footprint.”

Can-Eng Furnaces Intl., Ltd.: “Yes, there’s more emphasis on reduced environment impact processes and equipment designs.”

Lindberg/MPH: “Not really. We have had a couple of RFQ’s come in related to green energy, but they are very slow-moving projects with a lot of R&D on the buyers’ end. Additionally, we have been asked to partner with these clients to develop a solution to help them meet the end goal.”

Premier Furnace Specialists: “For a minor segment of clients, the push for sustainability seems to be driving a demand for electrically heated equipment rather than natural gas. Even for those clients, however, the main deciding factors are still local utility costs, existing facility restrictions, and familiarity with existing equipment.”

SECO/WARWICK: “Environmental sustainability has definitely affected what our clients are looking for on most new inquires. Most have strict emissions requirements and are looking for combustion systems with lower NOx and higher fuel efficiency. Peripheral hooding is also commonly requested to capture emissions from around door openings and over charge wells. I would not say that sustainability has diminished the demand, however it has affected what they need with regard to emissions compliance.”

Wisconsin Oven: “Clients occasionally request energy-efficient features and designs, but not more often than in the past.”

ANTICIPATING GROWTH AND NOVEL ALUMINUM APPLICATIONS

What plans are you making to meet future market demand?

AFC-Holcroft: “We are a global group and have recently restructured our organisation to better serve our customers. We have also undergone a facility expansion to help reduce our carbon footprint and provide our clients with the best products and deliveries available in the market. This includes an expansion of our build to stock production planning to greatly reduce lead times

use of electric energy as an alternate heating source for system designs.”

Lindberg/MPH: “We are looking to work with vendors to create vendor managed inventory in order to reduce lead times, as well as hire additional employees to reduce labor driven lead times. We continually look for additional vendors to remain cost competitive and reducing the overall cost of manufacturing.”

Premier Furnace Specialists: “We’ve expanded vendor and supplier listings. We have also gained experience implementing existing and new alternatives for almost all of our furnace components. By reassessing our standard component choices and offering a variety to clients, we have been able to substantially reduce lead times which allows for more efficient and flexible production while reducing costs.

“We have also added new technology to aid in our manufacturing. Building parts in-house significantly cuts down on lead times and pricing. Thus, clients know that their equipment will have little or no downtime, saving them the time and stress of not running product.”

SECO/WARWICK: “We are adding engineers, field service technicians, etc. and having our “seasoned veterans” bring them up to speed! We have also moved to a larger new office location to accommodate future growth.”

Wisconsin Oven: “We have acquired additional floorspace in recent years and have been hiring aggressively in the last six months.”

Dual pit furnace and water quench tank system designed and built for a client in the castings industry. It is used for aluminum solution heat treating of thick walled castings. Each furnace has a 4,000 pound gross load capacity and an operating temperature range of 300°F – 1100°F. (Source: Premier Furnace Specialists/BeaverMatic)

Aluminum used in solar PV arrays helps protect communities during disasters in The USA

Sometimes, we forget the impact that aluminum can have on people and communities. That aluminum isn’t just a metal that can be made into a variety of products and then be endlessly recycled.

That aluminum itself is a product that when utilized with other items can truly save lives.

In recent weeks, there have been catastrophic disasters that have hit the United States of America (USA). From Hawai’i to California and from Vermont to Washington State, Americans have been faced with the wrath of Mother Nature.

One of the first things that typically happens when wildfires, earthquakes, and other natural disasters occur is the loss of electric power to the affected communities. As winds grow stronger and as land gives way, power lines fall, transformers explode. Sometimes, electrical substations are taken offline and electric power is preemptively shut down to prevent even further potential devastation in impacted areas.

Those activities – whether caused by disasters themselves or implemented as proactive steps to protect communities from potential dangers – can create major problems for people dependent on electric service.

One way to minimize those possibilities is through the use of solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays in microgrids. These are groups of solar panels that have battery storage capabilities and control systems. The microgrids can be connected to the overall electric grid, but can also be disconnected in times of disaster.

Aluminum is a critical component used in these solar PV arrays.

The Blue Lake Rancheria is one of the communities in the USA that operates its own microgrid; operations began in 2017. This Native American Nation is located in Humboldt County in the northern part of California and is recognized as a tribal government by the Federal government of the USA.

“When you control your energy, you control your future,” stated Jana Ganion, Sustainability and Government Affairs Director of the Blue Lake Rancheria. “Tapping into a sense of confidence, resiliency, and

solutions-oriented approach is critical to getting this work done.”

A number of entities worked together with the Blue Lake Rancheria to make this microgrid a reality, including The California Energy Commission, the Schatz Energy Research Center of Humboldt State University, Siemens, REC Solar (Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions), Tesla, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), Idaho National Laboratory, and others.

Today, this microgrid provides electrical service to power critical infrastructure at Blue Lake Rancheria as well as a number of governmental and commercial operations on the land of the Nation.

Whilst day-to-day electric service is important, the microgrid at the Blue Lake Rancheria showed its resilience on at least three occasions as electric service in the region was unavailable due to disasters.

In October of 2019, Humboldt County lost power for several days as the potential risk of

California, shut down power preemptively to mitigate the possibility that transmission lines might fall because of high winds and cause further wildfires.

Three years later, at 2:34 AM (local time) on December 20, 2022, a 6.4 earthquake hit off the coast of Humboldt County, according to the U S Geological Survey.

The region again lost electric service.

During each of these disaster situations, the microgrid at the Blue Lake Rancheria continued to produce electricity.

“We welcomed people from communities throughout the region,” stated Ms. Ganion.

She explained that people were able to recharge their mobile telephones, access the internet, and secure fuel – gasoline and electric power – for their motor vehicles.

Those dependent on medical equipment –respirators and portable oxygen machines, for example – that needed electricity to operate or to have batteries recharged were able to power that equipment at the Blue Lake Rancheria.

Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), among other entities.

“When a nearby wildfire caused a power outage in October 2019, the microgrid [at the Blue Lake Rancheria] successfully islanded and kept the facilities from experiencing a blackout,” according to a report issued by FEMA in October of 2022. “During the outage, the microgrid served 10,000 people, about 10 percent of the county’s population, and is credited with saving four lives.”

Beyond the microgrid at the Blue Lake Rancheria, other microgrids composed of solar PV arrays and battery backup systems have also been built with aluminum as a key element throughout the USA.

“As the world moves toward an increasingly renewable future, aluminum is helping to lead the way,” according to a statement from The Aluminum Association. “Aluminum extrusions are incredibly versatile, making them a perfect option for solar panel frames. The metal can even improve solar cells themselves. Using embedded aluminum studs can significantly increase solar panel efficiency thanks to the material’s unique reflectivity properties.”

Ms. Ganion noted that the Blue Lake Rancheria continues to make improvements in its microgrid operations. The goal of this Native American Nation is to have net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

“We want to be prepared for any kind of scenario,” stated Ms. Ganion. “To keep our tribal community – our lives – going, in any circumstance. Reliable access to electricity. Rural communities need to be resilient.”

Do you have questions about the aluminum Governmental regulations? Company operations?

Your questions may be used in a future news

Contact Richard McDonough at aluminachronicles@gmail.com

© 2023 Richard McDonough

w Aluminum is a key element utilized in the solar photovoltaic arrays that are part of the microgrid that provides electricity at the Blue Lake Rancheria in Humboldt County, California. (Photographs provided courtesy of the Blue Lake Rancheria.) x An aerial view of the Blue Lake Rancheria. Solar photovoltaic arrays can be seen in the foreground.

Industrial furnace plants under the sign of modernization and transformation

OTTO JUNKER, a leading manufacturer of high-quality melting and heat treatment plants, presents proven and new equipment, continues to intensify its R&D efforts and is encouraged in its dedication to environmentally friendly and sustainable solutions in the metal processing industry.

Living the future

By participating at ALUMINUM USA in Nashville at the Made in Germany Pavilion with booth no. 229, OTTO JUNKER is taking one of many important steps in the transformation process, which will raise the profile of the company and push it forward on its way to an environmentally friendly future. One main target of OTTO JUNKER’s trade fair appearance is to present the induction furnace as a CO 2 neutral melting plant and, thus, as an environmentally friendly alternative to cupolas and gas-fired furnaces.

Advantages for industrial companies

OTTO JUNKER’s CO 2 neutral melting and heat treatment plants allow an environmentally friendly production by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Further to that, they offer technical innovations and improved performance. The ongoing optimization of the equipment allows a more efficient and precise processing of metals resulting in better product quality

and lower scrap rates and, thus, in improved competitiveness. Apart from that, recycling solutions for metallic scrap and batteries allow the recovery of valuable resources and thus contribute to a successful recycling economy.

New horizons and sustainable perspectives

The company has clear targets in mind and will increasingly put its focus on CO2 neutral melting and heat treatment, the recycling of metallic scrap and batteries, powerto-heat applications, and equipment for electrification in the coming years. In doing so, OTTO JUNKER wants to continue to be a reliable partner for industrial companies and offer innovative solutions allowing customers a sustainable production while, at the same time, increasing product quality and efficiency.

Visit OTTO JUNKER at ALUMINUM USA in Nashville at booth no. 229 •• www.otto-junker.com

Aluminum USA: Norsk Hydro’s Aluminum Preserves a Piece of History, Unlocking Unique Collaboration

Earlier this summer, Norsk Hydro teamed up with the Catholic University of America’s School of Architecture and Planning on the reconstruction of ‘Weatherbreak,’ the world’s first large span, self-supporting geodesic dome at the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.

Originally built in 1950 near Montreal, Quebec, the dome was a great success and later served as private residence in Los Angeles, Calif., before being accessioned into the Smithsonian’s archives. Over the years, many of the nearly 1,000 aluminum struts were damaged or lost. To help complete the structure, Hydro provided extruded components made with Hydro CIRCAL®, the company’s certified aluminum product containing at least 75 percent recycled, postconsumer scrap.

The partnership between Hydro and Catholic University is just one proof point of Hydro’s strong commitment to sustainability. By providing lower-carbon aluminum solutions produced in a sustainable and responsible way throughout the value chain, Hydro continues to make sustainability a priority. This unique collaboration to reconstruct the historic structure highlights how aluminum is an ideal option not only for geodesic dome design, but for a variety of uses and industries.

Aluminum’s unique properties enable the ‘Weatherbreak’ dome to be light, strong, and easily assembled without the need for heavy machinery. These attributes make aluminum structures particularly useful for disaster response and recovery, but the same benefits also apply to permanent construction applications. By using aluminum, designers can reduce the weight of the underlying structure, while retaining high strength. This, in turn, allows higher wind and snow loading or the use of heavier cladding materials. This concept is not unique to the built environment, as electric vehicle designers often utilize aluminum to reduce the chassis weight of a vehicle, allowing for additional battery mass and increased driving range.

Aluminum is also naturally corrosion resistant, as evidenced by the raw aluminum structural components in ‘Weatherbreak’ which perform just as well today as they did in 1950. Structural components made from other materials are often subject to corrosion and need costly and environmentally unfriendly coatings that still require maintenance. In addition, aluminum is easily formed via extrusion, a process that can create complex shapes not readily achievable with other manufacturing methods. The flexibility of the aluminum extrusion process can help architects and engineers create structural components, nodes, and other interface points for geodesics, spaceframes, and truss

thinking, so it is no surprise that aluminum plays a significant role in the modern built environment. Just as the student led project sought to preserve a piece of architectural history, recycling aluminum conserves resources and energy. Unique among modern building materials, aluminum is infinitely recyclable, so it does not lose its properties when recycled again and again. It naturally makes sense to design aluminum products, like ‘Weatherbreak,’ in ways that are easy to disassemble and reclaim at the end of their useful life.

The team at Hydro’s recycling plant in Henderson, Ky., produced extrusion ingots for this project from Hydro CIRCAL®, which

its manufacturing facility in Elkhart, Ind., one of the company’s many manufacturing sites in North America supplying the building and construction industry.

Taking end-of-life aluminum and transforming it back into building components gives the material a new life. The ‘Weatherbreak’ reconstruction was not only a great joint effort between academia and private industry, but also highlights how collaboration is key to moving industry in a more sustainable direction.

Every step matters on the path to zero

To continue developing modern society, we need more materials, and we need more from our materials, too. What we produce and consume must not only meet the surging demand, but also embody the principles of responsible sourcing, environmental consciousness, and recyclability.

Aluminium, with its infinite recyclability and corrosion-resistant longevity, is already a building block for a low-carbon, circular economy, but production comes with a footprint. Our recycled and low-carbon aluminium products are one step closer to solving that problem, and one step closer on the path to zero.

Choose your materials with the future in mind. Visit hydro.com/path-to-zero to learn more.

Aluminum Scrap and Dross

Altek Melting Solutions design, manufacture and supply tailor-made, turnkey aluminum scrap and dross recycling plants.

Who we are?

ALTEK is a technology-based company with specialist expertise and experience in the design, manufacture and installation of aluminum dross and scrap processing systems. We pride ourselves on supplying market-leading equipment to maximize aluminum recoveries and optimize cast houses and are the only partner than can provide world class End to End Solutions for total dross and scrap management.

In January 2020, ALTEK acquired Melting Solutions Limited, gaining its years of experience and a proven track record melting scrap and delivering many cost-effective melting plants worldwide for all types of scrap and dross. Today, the ALTEK Tilt Rotary Plants deliver outstanding outcomes for customers, achieving exceptional results on both oxy fuel and air fuel applications for yield, energy consumption, productivity, and reliability.

Overview

Investments in scrap re-melting facilities are paying off across the entire spectrum of the aluminum industry, including primary and secondary cast houses and the foundry/die casting sectors. Recycling utilizes resources, and scrap is a low-cost feedstock alternative compared to primary reduction, providing high energy savings.

The key profit drivers for scrap melting are low energy, high productivity and, most notably, maximum metal recovery. As scrap is a highly complex and varied material, to achieve desired outcomes, the furnace and its process technology must be tailored to the individual operator’s specific needs.

Apart from the Filtration Plant, Altek are specialists in the design, manufacture, and supply of all other equipment in the TRF cast house, offering our customers seamless integration between equipment, each of which

TRF Cast House

Tilting Rotary Furnace (TRF)

The applications for TRF’s and capacities are constantly evolving with the recognition of scrap as a very valuable feedstock resource for all types of aluminum products.

A key driver here is the TRF’s very high thermal efficiency for aluminum scraps, resulting in significant energy and CO 2 savings; air fuel burners consume approximately 750kWh/t (1,161BTU/ lb) whereas with oxy fuel this reduced significantly to 350kWh/t (542 BTU/lb). For drosses, this is reduced further due to the reduction in energy required to heat up the oxide components.

With more than 20 years of TRF building and experience, our benchmark design is proven even in the most hostile environment in the cast house. Our TRFs are available in capacities from 2T (4,400lb) up to 40T (88,000lb) incorporating several key features to maximize yield, increase productivity and reduce energy consumption compared to our competition. These include:

○ TRF Tilt Back – Significantly increases available volumes for charging

○ Multi-directional Door – Quick easy viewing inside the furnace, significant energy savings (15%) compared to fully open doors

○ Pin-drive Drum Rotation – custom designed, no water cooling, no hydraulics, less power consumption and maintenance

To improve

operational efficiency, we offer a remotecontrol system to allow many functions of the system to be operated on the shop floor, or in a fork truck for example, shaving many minutes per cycle. This can also reduce the number of employees required to operate the furnace, which in todays labor market issues is a desirable feature to have.

Continuous operation of the TRF is the best and most efficient style for the technology, as soon as the melt is complete, cast the aluminum, empty the slag and charge more scrap. There is however no substitute for quality engineering underpinned by experience and application of the Finite Element Analysis, which is applied across the range of Altek’s furnaces and related cast house equipment. Furthermore, decades of development and analysis in the field combined with this has resulted is a proven furnace which will deliver relentless production even in the harshest environments.

FURNACE CHARGING

Selection of the correct charging method is a key component of the TRF operation. The charging machine capacity needs to be balanced with:

- Available furnace volume for the charge

- Scrap weight

- Scrap bulk density

- Scrap size relative to the furnace size and charge machine hopper

It is worth stating that the first charge in a TRF is potentially the largest as an empty furnace has the largest available volume. We have taken this principle further by increasing the TRF charge tilt angle, nearly doubling the first available charge.

Altek’s preferred charger of choice is the vibratory charger approach. The system operates on mechanized rail system, and unloads all material into the furnace in 2-3 minutes (depending on the scrap type). We can also include additional extras such as weigh cells for accurate salt and scrap quantity loading. The loading height into the charger must be a sensible and safe level, balanced with the loading vehicle and procedure. Often these are supplied with a scissor lift system, or alternatively the use of a loading ramp can be implemented.

The capacity of the charger, volume, and payload limits will be based on several factors to ensure the best fit for the types of scrap likely to be charged, and the size of the TRF chosen. This is an area where our flexibility in design is a key factor in reducing cycle times.

All of the above factors influence the time required to load the charge which has a very considerable effect on the melt cycle time. Altek’s aim is to provide a system which minimizes the time for all processes in the cycle, allowing our customers to get more cycles completed per shift/day/year.

HANDLING LIQUID ALUMINUM

Our customers typically see the charging and melting part of the cycle, up to the point where the furnace is ready to pour the recovered aluminum, completed in 2 – 3h. The liquid metal handling must be able to take the liquid metal as fast as possible, so the TRF is free to complete the slag out and clean down ready to immediately commence the next melt.

A holding furnace is one option available. This is used predominantly where the recovered metal needs additional alloying to achieve a specification and/or if the final product is in ingot or de-ox form where casting times are extended. To speed up alloying time, minimize dross formation and improve melt homogeneity, metal circulation using Altek’s EMS or Altek’s new low energy ViPER furnace stirring technologies are used with excellent effect.

Holding furnaces that we supply can be stationary with tap pour or hydraulically tilted, whereby the latter is typically required for installations where aluminum casting heights are limited. Working with refractory specialists, we offer a range of furnace refractories to minimize heat loss though the external surface. Careful consideration of the geometry to minimize surface area and reduce heat losses are inherent in our design, whilst ensuring that the correct access for any FLT movements and processes are adhered to based on differing customer operations. We aim to minimize the door opening as much as possible to again, reduce heat losses and therefore energy consumption.

INGOT & SOW CASTING

Ingot casting lines are used to convert liquid aluminum, typically from Tilt Rotary Furnaces or Holding Furnaces into small ingot stacks. Altek’s ingot casting lines come in a variety of sizes depending on the size of ingot mould required, throughput requirements, and preferred cooling methods, and are manufactured to high standards of precision with the best materials available to give a machine requiring a minimum of maintenance and extended component life. An example of some of the ranges of ingot size to production rate for our machines is provided opposite:

w Figure 2 - A 12T capacity TRF utilizing the energy saving multi-directional door feature for reduced heat loss when pouring

Dross Recycling Plants

reached regularly, especially when melting scraps with volatiles (oil, paints etc.) and using oxy-fuel burner systems, and this in turn will significantly impact productivity. However, careful consideration of the cycle and ‘dew point’ of the fumes needs to be considered, oversizing the filter can cause this and lead to corrosion and blinding of the filter bags.

Other important considerations include the fume collection hood and assessment of “peak” emissions which occur when charging scrap containing volatiles and when discharging the slag. To ensure fume containment, Altek’s ‘Dog House’ is a specially designed structure encapsulating the TRF, which acts as a secure fume containment for high fume emission stages in the cycle. Combined with the filter plant, a constant air flow of 150ft/min through roller shutter door opening is always maintained to stop fumes escaping into the wide cast house. Successfully installed in the majority of our installations, our customers ensure a clean working environment for their employees.

alloying, homogenizing, holding and casting.

The surface area of a ladle is less than a quarter of the equivalent holding furnace capacity, which equates to significant energy and space savings. At the ladle station, Altek’s furnace circulation (EMS and ViPER) technologies ensure both temperature and chemical homogeneity is easily achieved, even for the largest capacity crucibles. To maintain alloying and casting temperatures we use a crucible lid complete with heating elements (gas or electric).

Some of our customers require dynamic casting capabilities, so each titling ladle station can cast into an ingot line, DC caster or sow caster for example. Alternatively, the ladle can be transported to another cast house location, where liquid metal can be poured directly into another production furnace. This will result in the maximum value for the recovered metal from the TRF.

Benefits of this concept are:

○ Increased cast house productivity

Liquid metal is poured from the furnace into our highly developed “star wheel” caster, which pours the metal into the ingot moulds with minimal removing any dross skimming requirement. Water is used to cool the moulds by either evaporative cooling via water spray nozzles, or by an indirect primary quench bath, where the moulds move through a bath of water. By the end of the conveyor the ingot has cooled to approximately 250°C (482°F), the ingot contraction and installed bronze hammers release the ingot from the mould.

Should strapping be required as soon as possible, the ingots then move through a secondary water quench bath to reduce the ingots to approximately 70°C (158°F). An automated laser rejection system removes out of tolerance (height) ingots, then a ingot roll-over mechanism ensures the ingot is the correct orientation as required for the row in the stack. A pneumatic stop holds the ingots to form a row, which when complete, short stroke cylinders lift the ingots clear of the chain so the robot gripper can engage and lift the row. The robot has many ingot stack bundles automatically programmed specific to the end user requirement, and places these on a ‘walking beam’ which moves completed ingot stacks ready for banding and marking if necessary. Altek can offer a variety of banding and marking options depending on client preferences and automation requirements.

It is common practice to also cast directly into sows from the TRF, to which Altek have

many standard size sow castings on offer. There are several options to choose from, the cheapest and simplest method being a banjo launder system, whereby an extended launder on a pivot is manually positioned over sow moulds in an arc formation. Automated systems vary in complexity single line or duplex line casting lines, to carousel systems with cooling and automatic stacking systems.

FILTER PLANT & EMISSION CONTAINMENT

The TRF process requires an effective and robust off gas filtration system to comply with the strict environmental regulations seen around the world. Working with filtration specialists, we offer the highest quality filter plants with lime injection systems, an important feature of to neutralize the acidic gases which can and are often emitted during contaminated scrap melting. Depending on the scrap to be melted, supplement activated carbon can also be used for further neutralization.

The overall filter plant needs to be correctly sized according to the filter media selected and permitted operating temperatures to ensure consistent productivity. Safety features in our system will automatically reduce the burner output should temperature inlet into the bag house exceed a programmed limit, and an automatic shut-down will occur if temperatures go even further to safeguard the filter from burning down. If this equipment is undersized the temperature limit will be

Altek’s Ladle Furnace Cast House Solutions

At Altek we know the importance of quick and reliable production of metal. One of the main bottlenecks of a TRF cast house is tapping out aluminum into holding furnaces, which takes time and is energy inefficient. Our solution utilizes ladles for very fast metal transfer,

○ Reduced and more variable cast house layout

○ Quick and efficient alloying

○ Flexible casting options

○ Safer working environment

•• For more information please contact us at: altsales@harsco.com

•• See us on Stand 805 www.altek-al.com

w Figure 3 - Casting from Altek’s holding furnace into their low turbulence starwheel and fully automated ingot casting line

w Figure 4 - Altek's ladle furnace cast house concept

Reducing your carbon footprint is beneficial to society, the environment and our planet, and switching to electric powered equipment can ensure a more sustainable business model. Materials handling manufacturer Combilift looks at recent developments in electric powered forklifts.

When Combilift was established 25 years ago, diesel power was the default choice as at the time it was considered the best option to ensure powerful and reliable performance for most users and suppliers of industrial vehicles such as forklift trucks. This was particularly true for heavy duty and demanding working conditions.

Times have changed however, as have environmental concerns, which have prompted a shift in public opinion towards what are seen as greener and more sustainable practices. This has in turn influenced decision makers across diverse industry sectors to consider switching from diesel to electric power – particularly when it’s time to renew the fleet. More stringent legislation has of course also played its part in promoting battery electric vehicles and equipment.

As a manufacturer and an exporter to 85 countries, Combilift has witnessed the shift to electric power over the past couple of decades or so, the pace of which has increased markedly in the past few years.

Combilift’s CEO and Co-Founder Martin McVicar: “We launched our first electric C-Series model over 18 years ago, and now more than 70% of the trucks that come off the production lines in Monaghan are electric.”

Alongside electric power, making the best use of the available space in the warehouse also helps to operate a sustainable supply chain. Before looking at expanding facilities or even relocating in times of growth, it is worth exploring space-saving strategies to optimize your existing footprint.

Narrowing aisles and using higher racking are two methods that Combilift’s team of design engineers can advise on as part of the company’s free warehouse planning consultancy service. They will supply diagrams and 3D simulations that will help you visualize how to gain extra storage capacity, maximize workflow efficiency and keep your operation on a more sustainable level. Using versatile trucks that can work indoors and out such as those supplied by Combilift reduces the overall number of forklifts, the energy required and consequently the carbon footprint – as well as lowering operational costs and outlay for

Plugging in to greener  power with Combilift

As part of Combilifts’ celebrations to mark its 25th year in business, it is launching no fewer than five new models this year, the majority of which are electric powered.

choice. Combilift electric trucks are designed primarily for lead/acid batteries, but they can all be supplied with a lithium option. Newer lead/acid battery technology now allows the charging of trucks during lunch breaks etc., enabling electric trucks to operate for longer than a single standard shift without needing a second battery.

As electric powered trucks do not have traditional combustion engines or hydraulic transmissions, there is no longer any need to check and top up engine fluids or lubricants. This results in longer intervals between services for further costs benefits. Drivers also appreciate the smooth and quiet operation and the cooler conditions in hot weather as there is no heat emanating from the engine.

But it’s not all about money - just as onstreet traffic emissions can cause serious health problems, people need to be protected from pollution at their workplace, and the key benefit of an electric fleet is the improvement in air quality on site and the reduction of potential risks to employees and visitors alike. This becomes even more of an issue in areas with poor ventilation.

Noise pollution is an underestimated threat to human health, wildlife and environmental quality, and more and more companies are aiming to quieten down their operations by using electric trucks. For those with premises in residential or urban areas, keeping noise levels to a minimum can substantially improve relationships with the neighbors. It also enables forklift operation during so- called unsocial hours, for loading or unloading deliveries for example.

The products that are handled in the aluminum sector are often very long, heavy or bulky, and Combilift’s multidirectional models have long been a popular choice as they enable safe and space saving transportation of these loads in confined spaces. The Combi-XLE, launched in 2021, is a 10,000-lb. capacity model that combines emission-free operation with powerful multidirectional performance for a wide range of industries and tough working environments. It incorporates the same key design features as its earlier diesel powered counterpart such as high ground clearance, large cushioned front and rear tires and a

The first two of these were launched at international trade fairs in Germany in April and May. The very compact Combi-CUBE is available with unique Dynamic 360 Steering which enables seamless directional change, making this model the most maneuverable counterbalance forklift on the market. The driver’s position in the center of the cab offers generous room and excellent all-round visibility. The angle of the telescopic steering column can be adjusted and the Grammer MSG65 seat, combined with hydraulic cabin mounts guarantees a comfortable ride. The Combi- CB15-5E boasts the distinction of being the shortest 15,500lb capacity counterbalance truck on the market whilst also benefitting from multidirectional ability, enabling the versatile space saving handling of both long and bulky loads even in very confined spaces. It also features the optional newly developed Auto Swivel Seat, which automatically engages and swivels the seat and armrest 15° to the right or left to accord with the direction of travel selected by the operator - reducing driver strain, particularly when travelling in reverse. Martin McVicar said: “Almost every model in our extensive range of products is now available with electric power. The everincreasing lift capacities will answer the demand for more powerful products, which at the same time help companies to achieve their aims for more sustainable operations.”

•• See us on Stand 547 www.combilift.com

SCAN HERE TO FIND OUT MORE

Safety Storage Efficiency

Enhance the Safety, Storage & Efficiency of your logistics with Combilift

The Combilift ethos is helping customers increase storage without the need to expand the size of their facility.

Combilift is the perfect fit for the Aluminium industry. Our versatile range of multidirectional forklifts and pedestrian forklift trucks are designed for narrow aisle operation, allowing you to maximise your storage, efficiency and safety.

Contact Us Today

To find out how Combilift can help you unlock every inch of your storage space.

MAXIMIZE PRODUCTIVITY OF YOUR CAST HOUSE WITH RIA: Charge at the earliest and safest time, every time.

RIA Cast House Engineering provides precision rail-mounted Cast House proven Charging and Skimming equipment for Aluminum Cast Houses worldwide. The design and development of all RiA Machines take reliability, durability, maintenance, and occupational safety into account. RiA has supplied over seventy Furnace Charging and Skimming Machines, all rail-mounted and capable of Charging up to 30 Metric Tonnes in less than 90 seconds or Skimming a Furnace faster than a traditional Forklift Truck or wheeled Furnace Tending Vehicle, but with more repeatable results and without damaging the refractory lining. Key customers include Hydro, Constellium, Kaiser, Matalco, Alumet and many others. Several clients have multiple Machines in the same Cast House or across multiple sites and territories. One client alone has implemented more than thirty RiA Machines in ten different countries.

In recent years, in conjunction with our exclusive partner Fioscope GmbH, RiA added the innovative capability of AI Smart Camera based decision making to our Machines to offer fully Autonomous operation and therefore removing the requirement to have operators on or near our Machines. RiA’s Managing Director, Michael Rockstroh also became Managing Director of Fioscope GmbH in February 2022, helping to drive the continuous development of RiA’s AI enabled Autonomous Machines and assuring our growing customer base that RiA equipment is not only suitable for today, but also tomorrow and beyond.

Autonomous Operation Maximizing Productivity

In typical operations, the melt cycle cannot be observed without opening the door and losing heat and energy, as well as the associated safety risk to the operators. Therefore, valuable minutes can be lost if the Furnace is ready to receive the next charge, but the operators are unaware since the contents are not visible. For several years, RiA have integrated Smart Cameras onboard its Machines and in Furnaces to enable Autonomous operation. Significant advances in process control are then

possible using air-cooled Smart Cameras. High-temperature resistant Cameras allow for real time observations of melt progress. They provide a safe and real-time process development benefit that was in the past impossible to even observe let alone monitor, without opening the Furnace door.

RiA’s Intelligent Camera’s monitor the progress of the scrap pile, as it melts. The Camera’s determine the earliest possible moment in which the Charging Machine can deliver the next charge. Through this, Autonomous operation is possible. Figure 1 shows 3 still Images taken for the purpose of this article from the operator station at one of RiA’s fully Autonomous Charging Machine installations. Three different stages of the melt cycle are shown, following a charge. The first image shows the furnace with a scrap pile that has recently entered the furnace, using a ‘traffic light’ visual for the operators, the Intelligent Cameras not only relay the image but also highlight using the red light that the furnace is not ready to receive the next charge.

A yellow signal on the second Image indicates that the Intelligent Cameras are detecting that the scrap pile has lowered in height and is therefore getting closer to the point in which RiA’s Charging Machine can enter the furnace without contacting the scrap pile. Operators are now alerted to the fact that within the next few minutes they must conclude loading the container to ensure RiA’s Charging Machine can deliver the next charge at the earliest possible

moment, ensuring valuable production time is utilized.

Finally, the third image and green light indicates that the Furnace is ready to receive the next charge. Previously, the Furnace door would need to be opened for the operators to confirm this information and make informed decisions, but in this case, RiA’s Intelligent Cameras detect the scrap pile is now low enough for the Charging Machine to enter, deposit the next load and retract from the Furnace without contacting the scrap already inside. Whilst ensuring maximum productivity through charging at the earliest appropriate time, there are also significant safety benefits as the requirement to open the furnace door is significantly reduced, combined with giving operators the assurance that they are not charging the next load into liquid aluminum. As operators are shown the time period, they have to ensure the Charging Machine is loaded, this helps to ensure the Furnace contents will not be in a molten state, an important safety feature of high value to many of RiA’s customers.

No time is lost during the charging phase of the melt cycle ensuring maximum productivity of your Cast House. Once the Charge Machine is loaded, operators can complete other tasks as RiA’s Intelligent Cameras trigger the cycle to begin, requiring no further operator interaction. Once the cycle is complete, the Machine moves back to the loading position to prepare for the next charge. As Figure 2 shows, the Furnace

Charging cycle can be viewed safely from the monitor in the operator pulpit via another Camera mounted at the rear of the Machine.

Even if you do not yet operate RiA’s Charging and Skimming Machines, using our In-Furnace vision technology would allow you to safely recognize when it is the optimum time to charge your Furnace, knowing that you are doing it at the earliest and safest time, every time.

In summary, Smart Cameras reduce unnecessary door openings, shortening cycles and saving energy. These systems can increase safety and potentially avert accidents. Smart Cameras also allow the melt cycle to be optimized, ensuring charging can take place safely, at the first opportunity. Furnace Monitoring Systems allow playback, trouble shooting and diagnostics. It is believed that in the future all new Furnaces will incorporate InFurnace Cameras. Contact RiA to find out how we can help optimize your operation.

•• See us on Stand 319 www.ria-casthouse-engineering.de

x Fig 1: Screenshots of RiA’s Intelligent Cameras relaying real time information of melt progress to the Cast House.

v Fig 2: RiA’s On-Board Camera monitoring the Furnace Charging cycle, relaying the footage to operators who can be situated in the safety of the operator pulpit.

AUTONOMOUS CHARGING & SKIMMING MACHINES

Automation and Sustainability: Gränges Leading the Way Together with Precimeter

solutions for this purpose since around 2006–2007. For us, it is a regular workday to let the casting go automatically. Our set-up allows us to avoid having staff in critical places at critical moments. We also increase production efficiency,” says Elin. ‘In addition, it has never been a problem to teach new employees our systems with Precimeter. It is very straightforward,’ she adds.

Increased productivity

Automation is crucial to ensuring sustainable production as customers and the industry increasingly focus on energy consumption and efficiency. Solutions for measuring metal levels and actively controlling flows are essential in improving productivity, reducing waste, and minimizing energy consumption. – “Productivity has improved a lot since we started using Precimeter lasers to measure our levels and actuators to regulate the flow. We have fewer fails and rejections because we can repeat castings several times. We also have more stable starts for each casting,” states Elin.

Good teamwork

High-quality solutions and effective communication define the successful collaboration between Precimeter and Gränges. The partnership’s success is built upon a mutual understanding and a shared wealth of knowledge. “The collaboration with Precimeter is only positive! It is excellent to have a supplier close by and open to the intimate cooperation we have. We can get service on-site; there are fast response times and good support but also dialogue to develop solutions that suit us. Precimeter is very knowledgeable about what we want and understands the risks we may experience, which gives us peace of mind knowing that the propositions fit our needs,” Elin concludes.

Customer Case Study

As development takes place at an everfaster pace, it is crucial to keep track of the current situation and plan for the next steps. Aluminum producers must live up to customers’ expectations based on today’s sustainability standards, and ideally, exceed those of tomorrow. This is where the power of sustainability occurs: when productivity and environmental benefits are in correlation with each other. Today, we bring the successful case of Gränges, in Finspång, which has achieved significant sustainability strides for personnel, environment, and production by implementing Precimeter solutions for more than ten years. Consistently, the company has embraced sustainability at the core of its business for many years, exemplifying innovation, accessibility, and competence. This commitment positioned Gränges as industry pioneers in modernization. It was over ten years ago that the work towards optimizing casting productions for sustainability began to take shape. Elin Lindfors, Production Technology Manager at the Casthouse at Gränges Finspång, became committed to this topic since then – “The view of sustainability has gone from being relatively ignored to being a high priority. Awareness is snowballing, and at the same time, as we feel that it is essential to produce more sustainably, our customers agree. They now demand that we lower our carbon footprint and that

our materials maintain a certain standard,” says Elin Lindfors. Indeed, the advanced automation and control solutions offered by Precimeter play a pivotal role in achieving sustainability goals across the industry.

Safer and smoother

The concept of sustainability has, in turn, developed from primarily dealing with environmental aspects to including automation and personnel. Automating the production line will make each casting safer, simpler, and more sustainable. – “We continuously measure sustainability according to several parameters: our staff ’s well-being and security in the workplace, environmental aspects based on carbon footprint and energy consumption, and efficiency based on production power and speed. Some of our employees have worked with us for their entire careers, while many are new employees. We work intensively to engage the entire workforce to operate sustainably, foster a strong community, and build cohesive teams,” claims Elin.

Reaching business goals

Several set sustainability goals have come closer by automating production, and Gränges has achieved a win-win situation by utilizing modern casting solutions. “Automatic casting is a big part of our safety and sustainability work. We have been using Precimeter’s ABOUT

Gränges is an aluminum technology company that drives the development of lighter, smarter, and more sustainable aluminum products and solutions. The company offers advanced materials that increase the efficiency of customers’ manufacturing processes and the performance of the end products. Want to know more? | Contact us sales@precimeter.com precimeter.com

Custom Melting Furnaces Engineered to Exceed Expectations

The SECO/WARWICK Brand is Synonymous with Quality and Performance which the Aluminum Industry around the world can depend on.

The design elements and unique features that go into the SECO/WARWICK Line of Melting and Holding Furnaces are tried and proven, as the roots of our history run deep.

When SECO/WARWICK supplies a furnace system it is engineered to meet the specific needs and requirements of the customer.

Our design engineers have years of experience in aluminum melting and holding applications. Whether your requirements involve melting solids such as Sows, T-bar, Ingot, Clean and Dirty Scrap, or holding metal for cleaning and alloying, SECO/WARWICK has the right furnace to melt, hold, and deliver at the rates casting processes require.

Most Recent Example

A major multinational aluminum producer has finalized an order for a new 100,000 lb. capacity tilt melting aluminum furnace for one of its regional aluminum extrusion plants. SECO/WARWICK USA will fabricate the Aluminum Reverb Furnace in the USA. Several innovative features have been incorporated to meet the customer’s efficiency, production, and capacity requirements.

This is a melting furnace designed to reduce the charge of aluminum scrap to a molten bath that will then be tilted and poured into an adjacent tilting holding furnace, which was built and installed by SECO/WARWICK 10 years ago, where further purification and alloying occurs prior to casting.

Dimensional Challenges

The furnace hearth will have dimensions of 20’-10” wide by 14’-3” long by 34” deep, giving it a full capacity of 100,000 lbs. of molten aluminum.

The furnace will be custom designed to fit in an existing constrained space. Based on the dimensional constraints, a single pair of North American Twin Bed II regenerative burners were chosen as they have more compact regenerative beds than alternate burner brands, offering higher efficiency gains for the same amount of physical space.

Regenerative burners work in pairs with one firing and the other exhausting. They recuperate otherwise wasted heat in the exhaust gases by using it to preheat the incoming combustion air.

Another optional feature will allow for a magnetic stirrer (supplied by the customer) to be mounted under the furnace, saving more energy by increasing the melt rate by up to 10%.

Making the Most Out of Every BTU

In addition to the regenerative burner and magnetic stirrer, efficiency gains will also be realized from the Customer’s existing charging machine, allowing for quick loading and minimum door open time.

Most of the damage to a furnace like this is from loading it manually with a forklift or end loader. Damage to the refractory framing the opening happens frequently, although in this case pre- cast shapes around the opening make the door opening maintenance easier. Damage from impact and thermal shock can reduce the furnace doors ability to seal. This leads to significant heat losses.

refractory framed opening and effectively places a load into the furnace in minutes. Charging machines reduce overall door open time, save valuable heat. This also increases actual available melt time while also extending the life of the refractory framing the door opening.

When it is time to pour the molten aluminum into the holding furnace, two 14” diameter hydraulic cylinders tilt the entire furnace. To ensure uninterrupted operation, they are powered by a redundant pair of hydraulic pumps. To ensure fail safe operation, the entire hydraulic tilt system allows for emergency lowering in the event of power failure or other hazardous conditions.

The combination of properly sealed doors, on ratio burner firing furnace, pressure control, and the proposed refractory lining will provide a fuel economy when the burners are firing in the regenerative mode of less than 1200 BTU per pound during the melt cycle

The furnace will complete one full batch cycle in under 6 hours, accommodating four batches a day, yielding a total of 340,000 to 400,000 lbs. per day. It is an impressively large production output, but it is also an impressively small fuel consumption to achieve it. Such efficiency, however, is not limited to brand new furnaces. SECO/ WARWICK USA can also retrofit old furnaces from any manufacturer with the latest clean burner technology, waste heat recuperation, loaders, insulation, PLC controls and more.

Custom aluminum melting technologies

SECO/WARWICK furnaces come in many types, shapes and sizes with melt rate and capacities to meet specific requirements and provide many years of efficient and dependable service. Our engineering staff works closely with plant engineering, production, and maintenance staff from start to finish to ensure optimum performance for the furnace system and integration with upstream and downstream plant operations. The following are several examples.

A 142,000lb. capacity single well melter with Lo-NOx burners designed for melting extrusion scrap at an average rate of 12,000 pounds per hour.

The furnace features include a SS window for a future electromagnetic sidewall stirrer

A discharge pump well for a molten metal transfer pump to automate metal transfer to the customers billet caster.

regenerative burners designed for melting shredded scrap in the well at a rate at a rate of 24,000 pounds per hour.

The furnace also has an extended sill capable of melting 6,000 pounds an hour of sows’ Giving the furnace an overall melt rate of 30,000 pounds per hour at an efficiency of 1150 to 1100 btu/lb. melted.

The furnace exceeded melting expectations and efficiency when the well is evenly loaded in a consistent manner!

This 260,000 lb. well melter includes an under-hearth cooling system and an aircooled hot wall.

The well of the furnace is divided into a charge section with a divider wall where a Metaullics J50 pump provides exceptional circulation of hot metal, pulling hot metal from the main heating chamber and pushing it through the shredded scrap loaded in the scrap charge section of the well.

A 45,000lb. capacity batch melting furnace with one pair of Bloom regenerative burners designed for melting in house return scrap placed on the hearth. The furnace melts at a rate of 10,000 pounds per hour at an efficiency of 1100 btu/lb. melted or less.

This furnace was purchased as part of a Lithium Aluminum expansion project.

The furnace met and exceeded all performance guarantees for melt rate and efficiency.

SECO/WARWICK combines the leading aluminum furnace technology with years of real-world experience to offer consistently reliable results. SECO/WARWICK furnaces are known worldwide for designing and building the highest quality, most durable aluminum furnace systems available anywhere.

Furnace design

SECO/WARWICK delivers complete solutions, offering superior construction, advanced control systems, combustion system options, high-performance refractory linings, and turnkey installation service, getting the most out of every step of the casting process.

Steel Construction

SECO/WARWICK furnaces feature heavier steel construction, reinforced with structural members at critical stress points around the furnace. Localized high stress areas such as door openings, tap and drain plugs, and openings into external wells receive additional analysis and subsequent reinforcement.

Controls

SECO/WARWICK incorporates the latest PLC based control hardware and software providing optimal furnace system control. Combustion fuel to air ratios and combustion input are optimized to achieve targeted metal set points and provide highly efficient results. SCADA and Ethernet communication capabilities allow interface communication with casting stations and other upstream and downstream processes. Remote communication capabilities allow display of furnace system alarms, set points and fuel usage on remote PC or smart phone screens. These remote capabilities allow authorized personnel to monitor processes from any location.

Combustion Systems

SECO/WARWICK works with all burner manufacturers to determine and select the burners best suited for each specific application, balancing performance vs. budget.

The cost of improper burner assessment and placement can lead to direct flame impingement and excessive bath surface agitation, causing high metal loss. Over-sized heat input into the furnace chamber can dramatically reduce the service life of the valuable furnace lining.

Burner placement and input is analyzed to provide maximum melt target coverage, ensuring fast and efficient melting. Burner specifics such as flame length, shape, and velocity are all taken into consideration to maximize melting performance without compromising metal quality.

Refractory Lining

SECO/WARWICK understands that processes and operating parameters require furnace refractory lining and materials specifically designed to suit the operation. The factors taken into consideration include composition of alloys, the aluminum freeze plane, spall resistance, metal attack resistance, abrasion resistance in severe duty areas, along with charging, fluxing and cleaning routine. New energy saving refractory materials such as calcium silicate board, which is a non-wetting board with superior insulating properties, are constantly being evaluated and utilized to provide efficient and economical furnace lining designs. Materials such as this become cost effective back-up material in the value calculation.

Cost vs. Performance

SECO/WARWICK offers a wide range of options to maximize performance within a budget. Preheated combustion air systems, preheating chambers for solids, metal recirculation pumps, and stirrers are just some of the efficiency improvements that can be included to strike a balance between budget and performance.

•• Contact: Dan Peterson at Dan.Peterson@secowarwick.com

•• See us on Stand 622 www.secowarwick.com

THE 1ST CHOICE IN ALUMINUM HEAT TREATMENT

When it comes to aluminum furnace systems, no one offers more knowledge and experience than SECO/WARWICK. We’ve been building highly efficient custom aluminum furnace systems since 1984, with an installed base of thousands of furnaces worldwide. Our product offerings include coil/foil annealing, solution heat treatment & aging, homogenizing, ingot heating, and melting & holding furnace systems. Our depth of expertise allows us to ask the right questions and, more importantly, listen to our customers’ answers in order to build a furnace that will meet their needs and expectations.

If you expect your custom furnace to be delivered on time, on spec and on budget, call the SECOVISORY team at SECO/WARWICK. We‘ll help you stay competitive and meet the ever increasing demands of the aluminum industry.

See us at Booth 622.

“Casting is good one day, bad the next. But we haven’t changed anything.”

According to high efficiency grain refiner specialist MQP, this is the most common complaint from casthouses and inconsistency of grain refiner plays a big part, leading to cracking, inconsistent or large grain size and impairment of melt quality.

MQP was founded in 2000 to revolutionize the industry through the development of its high efficiency Optifine grain refiners, preventing defects in aluminum alloys and bringing addition rates right down to make cost savings for casthouses. Because grain refiners had often been inconsistent in performance, it resulted in significant waste, but through intensive innovation, the company changed all this and today, has three versions of Optifine with varying potencies for different requirements, which are used in the production of over five million tonnes of alloys a year at 45 major casthouses worldwide.

The most recent development, Optifine 5:1 125, is a game-changer. With 125% relative efficiency, it is the result of five years of fundamental research into nucleation with BCAST at Brunel University London and means casthouses need up to 90% less grain refiner, helping them make cost savings while achieving excellent melt quality, especially in alloys with high tensile strength and high surface quality typically used in automotive applications. It is a premium product which gives the end user a high rate of return.

John Courtenay, chairman of MQP, said: “Grain refiner is, arguably, a casthouse’s second biggest spend and by using Optifine instead of standard grain refiner, customers can save up to three dollars per tonne, which results in savings of hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in a medium-sized plant.”

It’s also about making life as easy as possible for customers, who have access to stock quickly and easily via warehouses across the world, including a warehouse in Rotterdam to service Europe, and one in Kentucky, where there are a high number of aluminum processing plants, to service North America.

Customers can pick up a pallet at short notice if they need to and if they want to put in a replacement order a few months before they need the product, MQP will store it for them until they want it delivered, an extra level of certainty that the stock is there.

Improving the casthouse solutions range

It’s not just about grain refiner. MQP provides a suite of casthouse solutions to improve the grain refinement part of the manufacturing process. For example, the Optifeeder system, a high precision rod feeder that solves the problem of empty despoolers or coils not rotating, and no action being taken or alerts sounded, which can have serious repercussions, including scrapping of a charge at the last stage of the process and the expense that follows.

MQP takes high efficiency grain refiners and casthouse solutions to next level

Improving the Opticast testing system

MQP has also completely automated its pioneering Opticast grain refiner measuring system to make it even easier for casthouses to achieve operational efficiency.

Opticast is the only system in the industry that enables casthouses to test-drive the grain refiners they are using to see if they can improve melt quality and make cost savings.

Traditionally, this has been a guessing game and struggling to maintain the same grain size in the melt every time has resulted in scrapped charges, product downgrades and higher processing costs. Opticast changed all this and since its launch in 2000, hundreds of casthouses have benefitted from the testing system, preventing defects in their melts.

With technological advances, however, the system did require a revamp, said which produces the high efficiency Optifine grain refiner range. “We’ve been working on research into grain refiner efficiency with scientists at BCAST at Brunel University London for three years now, which provided the perfect opportunity to tap into their specialists in laboratory equipment and update Opticast,” said John.

“We have completely automated what was a manual system and by simplifying the programming process, it means it can be bought and easily operated by casthouses themselves, not just have us testing their grain refiners at our MQP Technology Centre. This will particularly benefit those developing new alloys who need to set new grain refiner addition rates.”

Benefits of the revamped Opticast include:

○ Lightweight, portable equipment which can be set up on a typical desktop, providing all functions necessary for rapid sample preparation and completion in just 3-5 minutes

○ Robust and simple to operate

○ Timings for the anodizing, rinsing and polishing of samples can be pre-set on the HDMI controller

○ Audible signals to alert the operator to the completion of each stage

○ Polishing and anodizing liquids safely stored and dispensed from externally mounted plastic bottles

○ Surface finish allows direct and accurate determination of grain size with polarizing microscope

○ Can be set up in an area close to the casting pit

Completing the package of grain refining solutions is the Optifilter system, an efficient, low hold up volume filtration process for frequent alloy changes or low volume operations. The three chamber system has a ceramic foam filter as the first stage, TiBAl grain refiner added in the second stage and filtration is completed in the third stage by using an efficient cyclone. This unit is

currently undergoing casthouse trials and from customer feedback, is drastically reducing the number of inclusions in the melt.

Overcoming the zirconium problem

Currently undergoing an expansion, adding several more production lines at its parent company STNM’s plant in China to answer demand, MQP’s customers include those in the business of producing alloys with high tensile strength - typically higher than 400MPa (UTS) – together with enhanced recyclability, machinability and corrosion resistance. These properties are essential for high stress components such as extrusionbased crash management systems, body-inwhite structural components and battery boxes for electric vehicles.

However, the challenge for these casthouses is that they are increasingly having to add more zirconium to melts to achieve this high tensile strength.

“Through our research at BCAST, we discovered that zirconium has a poisoning effect on grain refiner,” said John. “Using state-of-the-art electron microscopy, we saw a definite need for an ultra-potent 5:1 grain refiner to overcome the Zr poisoning effect and Optifine 5:1 125 enables casthouses to successfully cast high strength zirconium containing 6000 and 7000 alloys for automotive mitigating the zirconium ‘poisoning’ problem, as I demonstrated at this year’s TMS.

“By improving efficiency, we are going even further in preventing everything from pin holes in thin sheets, black-line surface defects in litho plates to tears in food and beverage cans. We are also key in ensuring excellent surface quality in chassis for aerospace to trims and rails on EV SUVs and high gloss surfaces of luxury and sports cars.”

As well as Optifine 5:1 125, MQP also works with casthouses to supply 100% relative efficiency Optifine 5:1 100 grain refiner for producing foilstock, litho sheet, canstock and packaging and Optifine 3:1 100 for those in the business of general purpose applications and production routes.

Becoming more sustainable Businesses, globally, are under pressure to implement sustainability strategies to stay ahead of the compliance curve and drive sustainable change. In terms of end user behavior, a recent report revealed that 65% of UK consumers think about the environmental impact of the items they buy, with nearly 80% of US consumers considering sustainability when buying a product.

Making vehicles lighter and creating electrical infrastructure and solar panels, aluminum is a game-changer when it comes to energy transition towards low carbon energy sources and we expect demand to grow massively by 2050. But the manufacturing process involves large amounts of energy and MQP is striving to combat that.

The company is now producing Optifine 5:1 125 with low carbon aluminum, meaning it’s manufactured using hydro-electric power or wind power which results in far lower polluting CO2 emissions. The aim is to convert all its grain refiners, including Optifine 5:1 100 and Optifine 3:100, to this process in the near future.

On top of this, MQP is recycling customers’ scrap to make its product. This means it takes customers’ production scrap aluminum and melt it down to create our grain refiners, as well as master alloys, which they can buy back.

“Making our grain refiners on a closed loop recycling basis is very attractive as customers endeavor to improve their practices in a meaningful way that goes towards meeting emissions targets,” John said.

“And if the world was to adopt Optifine, fluoride by products and emissions would be cut by two thirds. The higher relative efficiency means less energy used, less coil changes and transportation around the casthouse and lower warehouse inventory.”

MQP operates through a network of consultants and distributors with representatives and offices in all parts of the aluminum world, from Australasia to South Africa, Europe to the Americas.

•• Find out more about how MQP, which won Most Innovative Company at the international BizX Awards 2022, can help casthouse operations at www.mqpltd.com

•• See us on Stand 747 www.mqpltd.com

The New Technology Promises to Reduce Downtime and Energy Consumption

The evolution of spectroscopic technologies holds an important promise for the advancement of the metals industry, including the aluminum casting sector. Despite being confined to laboratory settings, traditional methods such as X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and Optical Emission Spectrometry (OES) have been instrumental in understanding material compositions. While XRF has been preferred for determining the surface concentration and distribution of elements in sediments, OES has been widely used in the aluminum industry for elemental analysis of chemical composition. However, as the industry seeks faster, on-site solutions, the introduction of LIBS is heralding a new era. With advancements in laser technology, data analysis algorithms, and fundamental plasma physics, LIBS is expected to be a game-changer in the aluminum industry. Its ability to provide real-time, non-destructive, and comprehensive analyses of molten metals can easily revolutionize quality control, operational efficiency, and safety protocols within aluminum cast houses. The transition from benchtop analysis to LIBS’ immediate, in-situ capabilities highlights not only the evolution of spectroscopic technologies but also their profound impact on optimizing processes, minimizing downtime, and enhancing product quality across the aluminum sector.

To understand why LIBS holds such a great promise, one must understand the current spectroscopy applications in the industry. While spark-OES is widely used for the elemental analysis of chemical composition in current metal alloy applications and recycling processes, this method requires the sample to be taken from the melting furnace, cooled, and analyzed while tons of molten aluminum wait inside the furnace at high temperatures for the process to be complete. According to the result of the analysis, the alloying element

is added. Causing significant energy loss, it also results in approximately an hour of downtime for each casting cycle. This problem of inefficiency caused by the use of existing spark-OES systems has intensified the studies on LIBS, which provides on-site analysis for molten metals.

In addition to the in-situ analysis, LIBS boasts the other unparalleled ability to analyze a wide array of materials including metals, semiconductors, glasses, biological tissues, plastics, soils, plants, coatings, and electronics. With the development of powerful chemometric software for the LIBS data analysis and the advancement of research in understanding the fundamentals of laser ablation, LIBS has been effectively applied in both quantitative and material classification studies. With LIBS, in addition to the other elements in the periodic table, the analysis of elements with low atomic numbers such as H, Be, Li, C, N, O can be easily carried out. Small amounts of metals in the sample at low limits can be analyzed.

While measurements are often taken in the laboratory environment, with the appropriate design, LIBS can perform analysis concurrently with production. Depending on the energy of the laser pulse, LIBS can be used in a wide working range for the aluminum industry. In general, the distance from the head of the mechanism to the surface to be analyzed can vary between 10 and 100cm. With current applications that do not include LIBS technology, the elemental analysis of metal alloys is carried out on solid samples. LIBS, on the other hand, allows for measurement on liquid samples. The simultaneous and multi-element analysis capability of LIBS technology, including light elements, provides a significant advantage for the metallurgical field. With its real-time and on-site analysis capability, LIBS eliminates the sample preparation process and enables the transition to automation.

The integration of LIBS with Industry 4.0 principles redefines industrial processes, transforming aluminum cast houses into fully automated environments that utilize data and make decisions autonomously. This is an area of research that the Sistem Teknik R&D Centre has given much attention to in the past years. The company has been working on data processing and predictive analytics in aluminum cast houses since 2019 and has been determined to integrate its expertise on data science and software technologies with spectroscopy solutions. After being awarded with a research fund by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, Sistem Teknik has developed its own LIBS system in late 2022 and has been carrying out experiments

(STAR) laboratories since then. A prototype was developed for the detection of different elements in molten aluminum alloys in the STAR lab (Figure 1).

Sistem Teknik’s fundamental aim with this project has been reducing the energy consumption in aluminum cast houses as well as bolstering operational safety by providing fully automated on-site composition measurement. The project brings together LIBS’ real-time material analysis with data-driven automation, empowering smart decision-making through instant quality control checks, remote monitoring, and supply chain integration. The technology’s versatility and non-destructive nature align with Industry 4.0’s emphasis on realtime insights, enhancing traceability and optimizing production parameters. When paired with machine learning algorithms, the collected data is used to generate alloy recipes automatically through the access to various casting parameters such as temperature, melting rate, and elemental composition.

The ST LIBS system is designed in accordance with the specific factory environment and is equipped with the software technology that allows rapid analysis of spectroscopic data. The ST LIBS software consists of an atomic database of all elements used in the periodic table for alloy preparations. There are automatic noise extraction and peak detection functions in the spectra taken with the ST LIBS system. By using the database, the elements in the spectra taken from the molten alloy are automatically detected and quantitative analysis is performed with the calibration data. Alloys are classified instantly with the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) approach. The system is equipped with immersed probes to provide high-precision measurement on the production line. A gas cooling mechanism is installed to ensure that the system is not affected by high temperatures and that analyses are accurate.

In the ST LIBS system (Figure 2), common measurement errors that occur due to the level differences in the immersed liquid aluminum are prevented with the automatic focusing and beam collection system. Calibration takes time especially in industrial

Since the plasma spectroscopy analysis method provides the thermal equilibrium conditions of the plasma environment in the ST LIBS system, the plasma temperature can be determined rapidly by analyzing the data, and the amounts of the elements in the alloy content can be determined accordingly. Inert gas (mostly argon) is used to provide a stable environment for the plasma formed during molten material analysis. When the laser pulse ends, the plasma begins to cool. During the cooling process, the electrons of atoms and ions in the excited electronic levels drop to their ground energy levels, causing the plasma to emit light of different spectral wavelengths. The light emitted from the plasma is collected by the optics and separated into wavelengths with a spectrometer. Each element in the periodic table has different wavelengths of spectral lines: by determining the wavelengths for the analyzed samples, the chemical composition is quickly determined.

To conclude, from rudimentary elemental analysis techniques to cutting-edge solutions like LIBS, the journey of spectroscopy has been marked by continuous innovation and adaptation. LIBS minimizes energy loss, reduces operational downtime, and enhances accuracy, positioning itself as the forefront solution for efficient and comprehensive material analysis in industries requiring precise elemental information such as aluminum casting. Sistem Teknik R&D Centre has been working on its own LIBS technology for over three years, focusing on its integration with Industry 4.0 to further enhance its appeal by enabling real-time process adjustments and data-driven decision-making. The ST LIBS technology serves the important goal of reducing energy consumption during melting operations while also saving time and providing safety.

•• Stand 423

www.sistemteknik.com

w Figure-1 ST LIBS molten aluminum analysis prototype in the STAR Lab

w Figure-2 Diagram of the ST LIBS System

The Future Aluminium Forum is set to return and will take place in Istanbul on the 21-23 May 2024. The Forum was originally developed to explore the transformational impact of digital technologies in the aluminium manufacturing processes and by hosting this next edition in Istanbul, we will be looking to uncover the potential to revolutionise the industry in Turkey and the surrounding regions.

By bringing together major aluminium manufacturers, suppliers of digital and sustainable technologies, and industry experts, the Forum aims to foster collaboration and knowledge-sharing, paving the way for a more e cient, sustainable, and competitive aluminium sector.

INTERESTED IN EXHIBITING OR SPONSORING?

Please contact Nathan Jupp, Commercial Sales Director

+44 (0)1737 855 027 nathanjupp@quartzltd.com

FOR SPEAKING ENQUIRES

Please contact Nadine Bloxsome, Content Director

+44 (0)7778 688 035 nadinebloxsome@quartzltd.com @Alu_Forum

FutureAluminiumForum.com

SLAB CASTING LINE

4

CASTING LAUNDER / CASTING TABLE:

- Automated casting launder (hands-free casting)

- Integrated preheating equipment

- Automatic lids

- Fused silica refractories (low density)

- Cooling system to prevent bending/distorsion

CASTING CONSUMABLES:

- Pin and spouts

- Spout seat

- Heated pin package available

- Ring retainer (FRR Fiber Reinforced Refractory)

- Combo bags (Thermo-Formed & regular version)

3

METAL FLOW REGULATION:

- Laser sensor technology for metal level control

- Pin position actuators

- Centralized electrical outlet

- Improved control software

CASTING TOOLING:

- Platform & Bottom block support

- Bottom blocks & Plugs machining

- Casting table (tilt-able or powered travel bogie systems)

- Casting molds

- Tooling spare parts

ventas@rodabell.com 1 2 2

. CERAMIC FOAM FILTER SYSTEM:

- CFF lining castridge and insulation kit

- Air based preheating system

- Electrically powered lid

- Safe draining mechanism

- Mechanical lock-out system for safe lter assembly & removal

DEGASSING SYSTEM:

- Vessel cartridges and insulation kits

- Heating systems

- Degassing rotor/shaft

- Lid lifting/turning system

CASTING CYLINDER:

- Single acting

- Internal anti-rotation rod guide system

- Integrated torque limiter

- Minimum rod deflection guaranteed

- Long life piston rod coating

- Specially designed hidraulic Power unit control

- Control loop for casting speed regulation

- Ceramic Foam Filter available in all sizes and porosity levels