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About Infrared Heaters
Infrared heaters heat objects or materials using radiant
heat produced by infrared light waves. Infrared heaters have waves that
are invisible to the human eye. They are longer waves located very near
the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The waves have a penetrating
heating effect. Infrared heaters produce waves of heat, which radiate
from the source or element outward. The waves are directed and/or concentrated
by a series of reflectors, reducing wasted energy.
Infrared heaters are best used in areas where some kind of object, rather
than a space, needs to be heated (i.e. adhesive curing, drying lacquer,
liquid paint curing, etc.). Infrared heaters are typically found as part
of a process on a production line, where plastic, ceramic, food or metal
products are produced. However, infrared heaters are also found in areas
that make central heating impossible, such as automobile garages and
plane hangars. Buildings like these have large doors that allow great
amounts of air to escape. Infrared heat is useful in these circumstances,
as it heats the floor rather than blowing down from vents in the ceiling,
as is the case with forced warm air systems. The amount of heat generated
by infrared heaters depends on the molecular makeup of the material,
meaning that one type of material reacts differently to infrared energy
than another type of material.
Infrared heaters are preferred to convection
ovens for a variety of reasons.
It can heat products to temperatures above 1,200óF at a much lower
cost than convection ovens. Infrared heaters can be turned on and off
and within seconds will achieve desired production conditions; convection
ovens may take between 30 minutes and two hours and so must be left on
all day, even when there is no production. Infrared heaters can heat
objects in a vacuum, which is impossible to do with convection. Part
temperature is regulated by a convection oven, not to exceed a certain
temperature only; infrared heaters prevent temperature from increasing
or decreasing, usually employing a closed loop automatic system. Infrared
heaters are also beneficial in heating delicate material, because the
source of the heat does not come into contact with the material. Convection
ovens are always designed the same, but infrared systems can be custom
designed to correspond to the substrate being processed.
Convection does have some advantages over infrared, however. In a mixed
batch, components heat up at different rates but never surpass the temperature
of a convection oven. Products heated by infrared heaters will heat at
different rates and reach temperatures that differ according to their
mass. Convection ovens are more easily designed and simpler to operate.
In designing infrared ovens, it is normally necessary to use advanced
product testing to determine oven design, making them more complex to
operate. An increase in production can be obtained with minimal capital
investment by adding a short infrared oven section in front of a convection
oven.
Featured
Articles
http://www.noblelight.net/products/resources/pdf_central/infrared/engineering_aspects_of_Radiation_Theory.pdf
http://www.reverberray.com/pdf/articles/ltahr.pdf
Types of Infrared Heaters
- use elements coated in
ceramic to heat objects; often used for food or plastics.
- use
electricity to create infrared light waves and heat material or objects.
- are used to heat garages and workshops.
- are powered
by gas and use infrared light waves and reflectors to heat objects
or materials.
- move
hot gases through a tube to produce radiant energy from the tube.
Reflectors direct the heat accordingly.
- uses electromagnetic radiation.
- are
constructed to be able to be moved around fairly often without damage
or hassle.
- use propane to generate
energy to produce infrared light waves to heat as needed.
- are infrared radiant heaters used on decks, patios, and other outdoor locations.
- can be moved from one place to another.
- are what most people
are referring to when referring to infrared heaters in general.
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