Features of Annealing Furnaces
Abbott Furnace Company’s annealing furnaces provide improved control over time and temperature relations to achieve desired properties in such areas as machinability, cold work (process annealing or in-process annealing), dimensional stability, as well as electrical and mechanical properties. This can be applied to ferrous and nonferrous alloys alike. These furnaces are used to heat materials at very high temperatures to change their hardness and strength properties.
Annealing is commonly associated with the manufacture of steel, to relieve internal stresses that may lead to failure in service and to produce a more uniform, or homogeneous, internal structure. This process is also commonly used with various metals, glass, and other materials to make them less brittle and more workable.
Abbott Furnace can supply annealing furnaces for practically any annealing operation including final, full, intermediate, partial, and recrystallization annealing, in varying time and temperature ranges.
Abbott Furnace maintains the intellectual property and exclusive North American rights for the manufacture of Drever continuous annealing furnaces and bright annealing furnaces for steel and stainless-steel strip.
Special Muffle Design
- We use a unique muffle design which improves the efficiency of both gas-fired and electric versions of our annealing furnaces.
Gas or Electric Heating
- Abbott Furnace Company offers both types of furnace heating, depending on your needs.
Monitoring & Control
- We offer computerized monitoring and control systems that may supervise several different functions including furnace temperature, atmosphere flow, dew point, oxygen content, carbon control, belt speed, etc.
- Abbott utilizes a variety of systems to perform these functions.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is industrial annealing?
Annealing is a controlled heating and cooling process used to modify a material’s microstructure, reduce hardness, improve ductility, relieve stress, or prepare a part for additional forming or manufacturing operations.
What materials can be annealed in a continuous belt furnace?
Depending on the furnace design and process conditions, continuous furnaces can anneal stainless steel, carbon steel, copper alloys, wire, and other metals. Material chemistry and desired properties determine the required cycle and atmosphere.
Why is a protective atmosphere used during annealing?
A protective or reducing atmosphere can limit oxidation and discoloration while supporting the desired surface condition and metallurgical result. Atmosphere selection depends on the alloy and process objective.
What determines the correct annealing furnace configuration?
Key factors include alloy, part size, production rate, heating rate, soak time, cooling rate, atmosphere, surface requirements, and applicable quality standards.